Dan Monson is finally beginning to see his team improve and develop at the rate he’s been hoping for.
After Saturday’s win over Cal Poly, the coach said his players have put together a sustained effort in practice over the last few weeks, something he was begging for from them earlier in the season.
With junior transfers Keala King and Tony Freeland now 10 games into their Long Beach State basketball careers, the landscape of the team has completely changed in just a month.
This change is not only made apparent by the squad’s eight-game winning streak but also by its rededication to playing stringent defense and maintaining composure.
After failing to hold an opponent under 60 points for the first 18 games of the season, the ‘Niners have now accomplished the feat in three straight.
Even the body language on the court has changed. Early on players seemed lost or out of place (which was understandable due to their lack of time playing together), but now the players are talking, picking up assignments and winning ball games as a unit.
Dan Jennings, another junior transfer who was recently suspended for a game and given a chance to reflect on his unacceptable attitude in practice, returned right on schedule and has stepped up his game physically and as a leader.
With the “first round” of Big West Conference play complete (despite the team having yet to face UC Davis), this team has only one goal – to earn a second consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament.
In order to reach their goal, the 49ers will have continue their dominance of familiar foes at next month’s conference tournament at the Honda Center. The Big West will assuredly have just a single bid in the big dance, and it will go to the conference champion.
First and foremost, LBSU must continue its recent trend of constant improvement in all facets of the game, both in practice and in competition.
Sure, the ‘Niners are getting loads of production out of James Ennis, who is tallying 17 points and 7 boards a night, but the ultimate success of the team will be determined by its collective ability to put together 40 minutes of solid basketball on both ends of the court.
Allowing four transfers (three coming mid-season) is an experiment Monson said he will never again undertake, but the risk may be worth the reward this season.
With the pieces seemingly in place, there is no reason Long Beach State should not be representing the Big West in late March when it’s time to dance.