Navy?s men?s basketball team is expected to go as far as senior guard Greg Sprink carries it this season. But that won’t be very far, according to the Patriot League?s coaches.
The Midshipmen are predicted to finish seventh in the eight-team league this season after going 14-16 overall and 4-10 in conference play last year. However, Navy has shown improvement each of the past three seasons under Coach Billy Lange. The team posted its most wins last year since going 19-12 in the 2000-01 season.
“We’re just a positive group of guys,” Lange said. “We’re at a place where positive energy is very important to our success on and off the court. Our focus right now is to play like a team. What does all this mean come November, December, January, February? I don’t know. But what I do know is that I see a major change in our culture right now, and that keeps me very excited about this team.”
For Navy to win the Patriot League title for the first time since 1998, it will need to overtake several formidable teams, starting with Bucknell and defending league champion Holy Cross.
Holy Cross (25-9, 13-1 Patriot League) returns back 12 of 14 letter winners, including preseason Player of the Year Tim Clifford, a 6-foot-11 forward who averaged 12.7 points and 5.1 rebounds. Bucknell (22-9, 13-1) shared the regular season title with Holy Cross and has 10 players returning, led by senior guard John Griffin (10.5 ppg).
Sprink, who was Navy?s only player selected to the Preseason All-Patriot League first team, is confident Navy is very close to contending for the league?s tournament title and automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
The Midshipmen, who also return junior guard Kaleo Kina (9.2 ppg, 3.3 rpg), should be bolstered by 6-foot-10 freshmen Jeremy Wilson and Mark Veazey.
“Statistically we were at the bottom of the standings, but I always felt we had a chance where it could have gone either way last year, said Sprink, who averaged 16.9 points and 4.8 rebounds last year. “Maybe I didn’t providethe leadership to pull through those situations. But I never felt we didn’t have a chance. I felt we were just a little bit away.”
Lange agrees with Sprink?s assessment. Lange doesn?t believe the unexpected losses of guard Corey Johnson or Trey Stanton will hinder Navy’s progress. Johnson, now a senior, quit the team to play football at Navy. Stanton, a freshman forward, left Navy and transferred to Rice.
“We’ll miss Corey’s scoring, but there are other players ready to pick up that loss,” Lange said. “As for Trey, it’s not that difficult to adjust after losing a player who was just here for one season.”
