MEN'S BASKETBALL: Season Preview
The 2007-08 Alma College Men's Basketball Team could best be described as a mystery. The team is coming off of a 3-22 season that found them back in the basement of the MIAA with a 2-12 conference record, their leading scorer and team leader from a year ago was lost to graduation, and the Scots are under the guidance of a new head coach. All things considered, the outlook for the upcoming season might look a little bleak. However, their is a new vibe surrounding the team that has the Alma College Athletic Department hoping that the program is ready to get back on track; a feeling that is re-enforced by the intensity seen in practice and the words of encouragement heard throughout the Hogan Physical Education Center.
Terry Smith has joined the Alma College Athletic Department as the new Head Men’s Basketball Coach and is charged with turning a program around that was left in array after the the resignation of Ed Kohtala in the summer. Coach Smith is a proven winner at the Division II level, having won conference championships and been named Coach of the year in the GLIAC. Smith brings a relentless hunger and expectation for excellence that he instills in his players through hard, competitive, and intense practices. In his 13 years at the collegiate level, Smith has posted a 184-164 record, helping to turn around both a Lake Superior State team and a Grand Valley State team that were in similar situations to that facing the Scots.
There is no doubt that Smith's team will play hard, but the question that must be asked is how talented will the team be? With the departure of Isaac Smith, the Scots are left with a roster consisting of no players who averaged double digit points last year. Two of the returning starters from a year ago are still padding up and playing on Saturday's and the late hiring of Smith meant that he had no time to recruit whatsoever. That being said, things aren't nearly as bad as they look.
The Scots are returning big man Sam Machuta (Mt. Pleasant/Mt. Pleasant) who did an excellent job protecting the basket for the Scots last year, recording the second most blocks in a season for any Alma College Scot. The forementioned football players, Matt Brown (Midland/Midland) and Vito Jordan (Detroit/Cody), are both excellent athletes who will fit in to Smith's aggressive style of play and should both contribute 10+ ppg this season. David McNally (Detroit/Winans Academy) also returns after getting valuable experience, starting seventeen games last year, and will be depended on to take care of the ball and distribute for the Scots along with being an outside threat.
Even though Smith didn't have a chance to recruit, there are some talented freshman who were brought in who look like they have a chance to contribute in their first year. Ted DeYoung is a 6-4 freshman from Grand Rapids Northview who is a big body and a scrapper in the paint. Jordan Redditt comes to Alma from U of D Jesuit and should provide the Scots with depth up top.
Trying to predict wins and losses for the upcoming year would be almost impossible as nobody really knows what to expect from this team. When asked about what he thinks of his squad, Coach Smith commented, "I don't really know. I know they work hard and I know they will play all out. Besides that, we are all just going to have to wait and see."
Smith may get a better glimpse of what he's got as the Scots are scheduled to play an intrasquad scrimmage this coming Saturday. The Scots will get their first real action two weeks later as they travel to Case Western College to play in a tournament the 16th and 17th of November. The Alma College fan base will have to wait until November 21st to get their first look at the revamped Scots as they host Ferris State for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off.
Posted: Wed, October 31st, 2007 at 8:47PM
