BANGOR — As the basketball season hits the final stretch of the regular season, both the Husson University men’s and women’s programs seem destined for another playoff run.
For the men’s team, they will look to do so without the likes of Jeremy Moronta, Riles Neff, or Scott Lewis. But despite the losses from last year, head coach Warren Caruso’s squad finds themselves as one of the favorites to claim the NAC title again.
“We got off to a rough start,” said Caruso. “But everyone learned their new roles and accepted different responsibilities. I feel like over break and during our trip to Virginia, some things came together for us and we started playing good basketball.”
This weekend, the Eagles will need to continue playing good basketball as they take on perennial rival Maine Maritime Academy at home, a team they beat 73-59 earlier this season. But sophomore Connor Heald and Caruso both know that teams change each and every time you play them.
“It’s hard to beat the same team twice in a year, so we need to not take them lightly,” said Heald. “We need to prepare. And we have been all week in practice running against two-threes. So we just got to prepare, and not take them lightly.”
“When you play Maine Maritime, you have to be ready to attack a zone,” said Caruso. “They play 40 minutes of zone. You have to be patient and you have to find your spots and make some shots. And defensively, we have to play.”
The women’s team has achieved a similar level of success this season. And much like the men’s team, younger players have been asked to step into more demanding roles. One of those players is sophomore Saige Evans. She credits the team’s success thus far to playing into the underdog mentality.
“I think going into the season, we were underdogs because we lost a huge senior class,” said Evans. “So I think we’re playing without pressure on us and I think that is working very well. We’re like a big family, and that translates really well on the court.”
The Eagles have only lost a pair of in conference games this season, with Maine Maritime being one of them. Head coach Kissy Walker says the team came out strong in the first half of that game, but let up in the second half, and that’s something they cannot allow to happen again this weekend.
“We had a really bad third quarter when we played them,” said Walker. “We started off with a bang and executed well. We’re going to need to put four quarters together, rebounding is always a key when we play them, and just executing. We know each other pretty well, both teams.”
Both teams will face MMA this Saturday at Newman Gymnasium live on FOX 22.
