Men's basketball loses in first round

As the Norwich men's basketball team closes another season, 19-year-old Leland Brunswick reflects, "It turned out better than last year - we doubled our wins."

Brunswick, a sophomore communications major from San Francisco, Calif., was pleased with the progression the Cadets made in their 2009-10 season.

"I think as far as the team chemistry, we were a lot better than last year," Brunswick said.

"Everybody was on the same page and we played better as a team this year."

On Feb. 20, the Cadets played Emerson College in Andrews Hall and lost 86-83 in overtime. In a rematch three days later, Norwich lost 63 – 45, ending its season during the quarterfinals of the Greater Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tournament.

Team members agreed about the frustration  they have with the way the season ended.  

"It was pretty disappointing. We had enough talent to win (the GNAC title), we just couldn't put it together," said Cori Boston, 26, a junior communications major from Boston, Mass.

"The expectations were very high; we were supposed to win our league, but we ended up losing (in the) first round," said Dee Marshall, 19, a sophomore physical education major from Dallas, Texas.

Marshall said that in order to prepare for the tournament, the team worked hard on reforming its defense.  "We did our job the first half, (but) the second half we just went away from it."

Only after the season ended did the Cadets realize how important their decisions on the court are.

"I guess the difference was little mistakes," Boston said. "When you play close games, you can't make all those stupid little mistakes: turnovers, fouls, stuff like that. Everything has to be crisp.

"You have to make sure you're playing at your best during playoff times," said Israel Guardado, 22, a senior criminal justice major and co-captain from El Centro, Calif. "We came out flat after the first half."

The men are in unison in regard to where they went wrong during their final game.

"When we played them (Emerson) in the playoffs, we came out flat in the second half; we were too excited and too anxious," Brunswick said. "We could have done really well if we just made better decisions, were wiser with our game, and listened to the coach."

Yet despite the disappointing end, the Cadets are proud of the season they had, and are focusing on their successes.

"This year we were actually a team, instead of a bunch of people playing the same sport," Guardado said.

"Last year's team seemed more separated and had more cliques, so I think the team was closer this year," Boston said.

"Overall, I think we did a lot better than last year," said Joe Figueroa, 19, a sophomore business major from St. Johnsbury, Vt.

The N.U. men's basketball team will lose two of its players this May, leaving behind a lot of returning Cadets for the 2010-11 season.

"Our team was pretty young, but we had better chemistry on the team this year," said Joshua Cabrera, 19, a sophomore mathematics major from Providence, R.I.

With the majority of the team returning in the fall, the Cadets plan to capitalize on the chemistry they gathered this season, and hope to finish stronger next year.