The Tartan Pride men’s basketball team is on quite a tear starting with a record setting 14-0 start. The fourteen wins to start the season is also the longest winning streak the Pride have had in their history. To go along with these two records, the Pride are also ranked fourth overall in the NCJAA Division II rankings. The three teams ahead of them, Lansing, Kirkwood and Johnson County all have one loss. Sinclair also received one first place vote while Lansing received five and Kirkwood received six.
Over the holiday break, the Pride have won five of their seven games before heading back to class. One of those wins was against conference rival Columbus State Community College with a final score of 90-87. This has been only one of two games where the Pride have trailed at half time, but the Pride did not buckle under any kind of pressure.
“Our assistant, Herb Shaughnessy, actually pointed out that during no time did he sense that our guys were in panic mode. To hear that from our staff with our guys that they were still business as normal and they were still engaged in the game,” said Price.
Perhaps one of the biggest factors to their success is how they are veterans. Some students and most athletes leave after a year at a community college, but a large majority of the players on this roster are sophomores. They have worked together before and stick to their game plan that the coaches designed for them.
“If you had a team of a bunch of freshman, they would have scrapped the game plan and tried to do things on their own. This group has been through the wars and been through tough games. They are a little more mature. Down the stretch, we are finding ways to win,” said Price.
The Pride have a few tough games coming up between now and the end of January. Cincinnati State Technical & CC are described as a powerhouse and have been ranked in the Top 20 this year. According to Price, they have played a tough schedule and aren’t a pushover by any means despite their 11-6 record.
“They have a winning tradition there. They don’t lose at home. So all the things we are going to encounter will happen Wednesday night (January 6) at 7:30 p.m.,” said Price.
The Pride also have to play four conference games, one of which is Columbus State Community College, a team they edged out with a final score of 90-87, their smallest margin of victory this year.
The Pride still have 16 more games to play in their 30 game season but they have many reasons to be optimistic. As of January 5 in school history, this team is first in 3-point percentage, second in field goal percentage and third in assists per game. The Pride are also in the top five of all these categories nationally as well. As long as their stick to their game plan and work together under coach Price, it isn’t farfetched to think this team could be number one in the nation at some point.
Matthew Summers
Sports Editor