There is no doubt that the Trinity Western Spartans men鈥檚 basketball team has athleticism and speed.
The question 鈥� and what their success hinges on 鈥� is whether coach Scott Allen can harness the team鈥檚 raw talent and turn that into victories.
鈥淭hey are very exciting to watch, especially in the transition part of the game,鈥� he said.
鈥淎 lot of them play above the rim.鈥�
What remains to be seen is how successful the squad will be.
鈥淭hey are very athletic and coachable, just lacking experience as a collective group,鈥� Allen said.
鈥淭hat has been the most difficult thing, establishing roles, but that is coming together.鈥�
The team was in China earlier this month and won all three of their games to finish the pre-season at 3-3. The losses came to a trio of American colleges and universities.
Eight starters return from last year鈥檚 12-10 Spartans team which won 10 of its final 13 games to make the playoffs with a 12-10 record.
Among the returnees is last year鈥檚 leading scorer Mark Perrin who led the team with 18.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. The guard was also tops among the Spartans in steals.
Another returnee who should provide a lift to the team is forward Denny McDonald, who has been arguably the team鈥檚 top performer in the pre-season.
While last season saw many of the players competing at the Canadian Interuniversity Sport or Canada West level for the first time, the players should benefit from having a full year under their belts.
The Spartans tip off the Canada West regular season with a pair of home games at the 91原创 Events Centre: Nov. 1 against the Calgary Dinos and Nov. 2 against the Lethbridge Pronghorns.
A Canada West coaches poll has the Spartans ranked seventh out of the conference鈥檚 16 teams.
And just like last year, they face a daunting first half schedule that will see them play seven of the higher-ranked teams in the first 10 games.
On the flip side, the back half of the schedule 鈥� which follows the holiday break 鈥� will see them face just one opponent ahead of them in the last dozen games.
Allen knows the experiences 鈥� and bumps along the way 鈥� will help the team in the season鈥檚 second half.
鈥淲e have to go in believing that we have all the tools and we are going to do whatever it takes to win,鈥� Allen said.
鈥淭hat is the first part of our step to success.鈥�
