BRYAN SCHACKMANN
Staff Writer
Senior leadership.
It is one of the most coveted traits found in a NCAA basketball team. Who makes the shot that pushes a team deep into the tournament? Who wins the big games that define a season? Despite some rare exceptions (Carmelo Anthony, Mike Bibby to name a couple), it is the seniors.
This year we are loaded with seniors: Yakhouba Diawara, Glen McGowan, Jesse Pinegar and Robert Turner. The thing about this group is they aren’t just upper classmen — three of them are starters, and they are extremely talented.
The year started just like you would expect for a group with a lot of talent and leadership.
Pepperdine woke up Dec. 9 with a 7-1 record with wins over University of Wisconsin and University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Wisconsin is by far the best team on our schedule and we beat them. We were having the dream season that everyone expected.
But a funny thing happened on the road to the NCAA tournament. We went to UCLA and lost even though they were missing their best player, Dijon Thompson. A last-second turnover and some heroics by Jordan Farmar left our team with a two-point defeat. It was the kind of loss that rips your heart out and kills your spirit. To rebound from a loss like that, it doesn’t take talent — it takes leadership.
Since that game we are 5-7 and we don’t look anything like the team that was once 7-1. Doesn’t that seem like it was a few years ago?
I’m tired of hearing the excuses. The officiating was terrible in the Saint Mary’s game but the bottom line is we lost. In a must-win game at home we let Saint Mary’s come in and out-rebound us 42-32.
We were down by three with 30 seconds left in the game and we let a guard get an offensive rebound. How is that possible?
I am a firm believer that rebounding is not only about height but also about heart. We should never be out-rebounded in a must-win game. It is sad when fans try harder to get T-shirts thrown into the crowd by the cheerleaders than some players try to get boards.
Despite this, I refuse to give up on this season. I believe in our players. I know that our team can win games. We have the talent.
I remember the 7-1 team. I remember our huge win over Wisconsin that I came back early from Thanksgiving break to see. I remember the passion that our team played with early in the season. Our season is not done yet, and we still have a winning record. The WCC tournament offers an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament and no one in our conference is unbeatable. There are so many opportunities, and we have so much potential.
Too bad games aren’t won with potential, and these opportunities will soon pass us by. The Waves are left with one question.
Do we have the senior leadership to take us to the top? After 20 games I still have no clue how to answer this question. This year has been a tale of two teams and right now it is the worst of times. This is my senior year, and I want nothing more than to see our team win every game the rest of the way.
As previously noted we have many seniors on this team. Unfortunately, there is a large difference between seniors and senior leaders — a fact that we know all too well this season.
Here’s hoping that our players realize they only have a few games left in college and start playing that way.
01-27-2005
