First Impressions of Friar Men's Hoops

"It's a start," said a Men's Basketball supporter as he passed through the glass doors of Ruane Atrium, referring to the Friars' 97-74 exhibition win versus the Merrimack Golden Eagles in Alumni Hall this past Saturday. Indeed it was a start for this young team filled with nine newcomers, but for the old dogs, it was just another day at the office. Marshon Brooks '11 led the way with 33 points on 14-24 shooting, while Sharaud Curry '10 and Brian Mackenzie '10 added 15 and six points, respectively. "The Paul Pierce Shooting Camp really improved my shooting and I gained 15 pounds, and the combination has allowed me to get past defenders and get to the rim more effectively," said Brooks, who also pulled down eight rebounds and went 2-7 from behind the three-point line. "I think I'd like to play for me if I was him," joked Head Coach Keno Davis when asked about Brooks. "When we have a certain play called, Brooks asks where I want him and I turn the question around and ask him where he would like to be because he has proven in practice that he can make these shots and has so much confidence. He's improving every day and it's scary to think how good he can get." If it's scary to think about how good Brooks can be, then it might just be mind-boggling when it comes to how much talent can come out of Bilal Dixon '13. The 6'9" power forward introduced himself to Friartown by recording a double-double with 16 points and 15 rebounds, not to mention five blocks. "It was absolutely miserable," proclaimed Dixon when he was asked about watching from the sidelines last year. The small press group broke into laughter and even Keno Davis shed a smile. "I felt great out there and I was so excited to be playing in a game and to be out on the floor with my teammates. I focused on just listening to my coaches and my veteran teammates so I could come out this year and be a leader for the younger guys." When asked about his main focus on the floor, it was a one word answer repeated over and over, "Rebounding, rebounding, rebounding. If you can't rebound, you can't stay in games and you can't win games. Rebounding is the most important part of my game and I know that I need to outwork everyone under the glass so my teammates can get second looks." The Friars out-rebounded the Golden Eagles 68-40. The crowd was close to full capacity on this Halloween afternoon and really seemed to give the Friars a true home-court advantage as the students were right on top of the players. "The fans were great and they make me want to put down big dunks and jump higher," said Dixon. "They really got on some of their players and it helped us because we knew that they had to listen to them while watching us put the pressure on." So could there be another game at Alumni Hall any time soon? "Well, I think it's great if you make it more of a once-in-a-while type deal," commented Davis. "For our fans, especially the students, it's great for them to be able to see a game right here on campus. It was great at Alumni, but now we need to transfer this atmosphere down at the Dunk all season long." Indeed the Friars will need all the support they can get this year, especially for a young team with much to learn. "To be honest, these new guys are taking to Keno's system much quicker than I did last season," said Brooks. "I feel the younger guys are starting to take better shots and make better decisions. I think some of the older guys and myself have helped them to get out of that freshman mentality that every shot is going in and that is a good thing because for our seniors and myself, a junior, we want to win now." Brooks will certainly look to be an offensive leader this year and will certainly look to help the young guys buy into the system of man-to-man full court pressure defense and an up-tempo offense with running up and down the court as a priority. "This is an exciting team because they are the future and they will struggle, but they will get better and work harder than any other team in the nation. This is a team Friar fans will be proud to watch, so jump on the bandwagon and come along for the ride because this is going to be a special group," remarked Davis. This young team has a lot ahead of them and will look to avoid any slip-ups by limiting the mistakes. Fans certainly seem to be taking notice of this group as student season ticket sales have surpassed 1,000. This marks the most season tickets sold to the student body since the 2004-05 season. Providence returns to action this Saturday when they host Stonehill College in an exhibition match.