Fall 2008 - Issue 1

The Silversword: Home > Sports > New Season, New Team, Same Direction

New Season, New Team, Same Direction

Shane Price, Sports Editor

A year filled with thrilling wins, dramatic comebacks, and a historic first-time appearance in the Division-II poll, ended with a disappointing 62 to 83 defeat to conference rival BYUH in their fourth meeting of the season.  If that wasn’t a bitter pill to swallow, in the three previous match-ups Chaminade won all of them (73-69, 76-70, 67-65).  The salt in the wound would be that it was the second round of the NCAA Division-II tournament. 

 “Every year you’re good, and every year you do something special more kids want to come to your school,” Head Coach Mahar said.  “I think that if we improve every year and just keep making the regional tournament we’ll be OK, because that’s the goal.  Once you’re there everything else is gravy,”

This season will be a true test for Mahar, who is entering his fourth year (56-28) roaming the sidelines for the Swords.  Seven seniors graduated and two other key contributors left the team. Only three players from last season return, and only one of whom played (Patrick Collier) for any significant time, and averaged 5.3 points and 1.3 rebounds per-game last season.

“We lost a lot of guys from last year.  It’s a whole new team,” Mahar said.  “Collier would be the only guy that’s returning who got any minutes last season.  In total we have three from last year, two redshirted, and the rest are all new.”

So Mahar and his staff have to rework some different schemes for this year’s squad.
           
“It’s going to be a different year from the coaching side, because we have a lot more teaching to do,” Mahar said 
           
From the looks of things the Swords will need some improvement in a few areas, including ball movement against the opposing defense, and development of a leadership role in the point guard position.  Defensive rebounding needs work, as well as stopping penetration.

Mahar and his staff did land a few dominant recruits.  Joel Smith and Mohamed Tangara, both of whom are graduate students granted an extra year of eligibility from the NCAA due to injury.

Smith, a 6-foot 4-inch guard from the University of Washington, adds versatility to the Swords.  Smith can play at any position on the court, from the one all the way to the five, and Tangara, a 6-foot-8-inch center out of the University of Arizona, is the first true center in recent Chaminade history. 

“He knows where he wants to be,” Mahar said.  “He’s strong — so strong it’s ridiculous.  A player that plays with his back to the basket is great, we can run things through him.”

 “We got a big man down low that is just a beast,” senior point guard Jamar Berry said. “It’s going to be pivotal, for example Alves (Lucas) trying to guard him will most likely end up in foul trouble.”  Alves is the starting 6-foot-11-inch center for BYUH, who averaged 19.5 points per-game against the Swords last season.

The test tips off with a huge inter-island showdown with the University of Hawaii Manoa this Friday.  Then the much-anticipated Maui Invitational Tournament presented by EA Sports kicks off on November 24 against North Carolina.  

“I don’t need to motivate them for Maui,” Mahar said.  “They’re all motivated and ready to go.  They all know it’s a business trip, and they want to get better.  We want to beat those teams, but the fact is we’re playing against the all rookie team in the first round.  Our guys will be pumped up and ready to go for that game no doubt,”