Hardwood Heroes
Men gear up for new year

By Mike Caputo

The men’s basketball team finished last year’s successful run on a sour note in the conference championship game, but it has an opportunity to have a fresh start in its first regular season game tonight at Alumni Gym.

“Fresh” is an appropriate word to describe the 2005-2006 team. It will have to rely on a group of five highly touted freshmen to fill in the void left by graduating players, such as three-time conference Player of the Year Jerry Johnson, to guide the Broncs back to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship game.

Freshman guard Lamar Johnson said the coaching staff, under the first-year leadership of interim head coach Tommy Dempsey, has put the special group of rookies into a comfort zone.

“Maybe last year I would have been nervous if I was playing in the Niagara game [MAAC Championship],” he said. “All the coaches and my teammates have made me extra comfortable.”

Johnson and the rest of the Broncs open up the 2005-2006 season with a home game against the Bucknell Bisons. The Bisons are known for their upset victory over No. 3 seeded Kansas in the first round of last year’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Tournament. Bucknell went into the NCAA Tournament as a No. 14 seed after winning the Patriot League title.

Although the Bisons pose a challenge for the Broncs, Rider is indeed the returning co-Regular Season MAAC Champion, and Dempsey explains his team’s relaxed approach for tonight’s matchup.

“Pressure is not [tonight],” he said. [Tonight] is just a test. We will see where we are and where we need to be.”

Top returning players include senior forward Edwin Muniz, senior forward Paul Johnson, junior guard Terrance Mouton (last year’s MAAC Sixth Man Award winner) and lanky sophomore forward Jason Thompson. Dempsey acknowledges the importance that the experience gained from last year’s MAAC Tournament will have on this season’s team.

“The guys got a chance to have a little bit of a taste of what it is all about playing in such a big game against Niagara last year,” said Dempsey. “Obviously we didn’t play well, so there is a sense of urgency to get back to that game and play better this time.”

The new and returning players had an opportunity to get a test-run on the season during an exhibition game against Albright on Saturday, Nov. 12, at Alumni gym. The Broncs breezed by the Division III Lions by a score of 96-72. Although the margin of victory was impressive, it was not the Broncs’ main goal of the afternoon.

“We got a chance to play a lot of guys,” said Dempsey. “The exhibition game is a chance to put the uniforms on, the lights on and get the people in the stands. I thought that was important, especially with a young team.”

Muniz had 18 points and five rebounds while Thompson added 17 points, six rebounds and four blocks.

After the date with the Bisons, the Broncs open the season with a difficult schedule. On Monday, Nov. 21, the Broncs head over to Philadelphia for a game against the Colonial Athletic Association’s Drexel Dragons. After that, the Broncs go up against the Boston University Terriers on Saturday, Nov. 26, and then against No. 4 ranked Villanova Wildcats on Wednesday, Nov. 30, at Sovereign Bank Arena.

Lamar Johnson, along with the rest of the Broncs are energized for tonight’s game against Bucknell, but he said there is no nervousness to be found.

“This is our first game of 29,” he said. “We are more psyched than nervous.”