Men's basketball starts season on wrong foot

This year's men's basketball team has come a long way toward fixing last season's most glaring weakness. Averaging just over 40 rebounds a game, the Crimson Thunder have been crashing the glass well. Sadly, while the team has proven its ability to collect crucial rebounds, it has failed to produce the scoring necessary to win games.

Oberlin's early season can only be described as brutal. They trail their opponents in every statistical category. The most disheartening of these categories is the one they put in the big lights. In four of their five losses the men have suffered defeat by an average of over 41 points, including a 49 point loss to DePauw University.

The team's most disappointing loss, however, was very nearly a win. Coming off a humiliating display at Capital Tournament, in which they lost by a combined total of 90 points in two games, Oberlin went into their game against Thiel College with a loss being an almost a foregone conclusion. To all, that is, except the Crimson Thunder.

Down by eleven points with 7:23 left in the second half, Oberlin came alive. Electrified by a jump shot from guard sophomore James Knight and a lay-up by point guard senior Jabali Sawicki, the team embarked on a nine-point run. Guard sophomore Maurice Elrod and forward sophomore Zeljko Petrovic each hit a jumper, and Knight stroked a free throw. The Crimson Thunder found themselves down by only two with 3:54 remaining.

Capitalizing on what is quickly becoming a fatal weakness for this year's Oberlin team, Thiel began to light it up from beyond the arc. Squaring up over Oberlin's 1-3-1 zone defense, Thiel's Slovakian native Ivan Cilik hit two treys. The Tomcats quickly followed with a third, dunked and nailed two free throws.

Down by seven with 0:31 on the clock, Oberlin's Yugoslavian connection got hot. Following a steal, Petrovik nailed a trey from the left corner with 19 seconds left. Ten seconds later, captain senior John Norris found Petrovik at the top of the arc. Two shots, six points, and the Crimson Thunder trailed by one. When asked about his clutch performance, Petrovic downplayed his heroics. "I didn't really think about it," he said. "When you want to win, you don't think about pressure."

But a win was not forthcoming. Following another free throw by James Smolko, the Tomcats led by two, 71-69, and after a desperation floater in the lane by Elrod rimmed out, the game reached its devastating conclusion.

In contrast to the rest of their games this season, Oberlin played tough defense, holding Thiel to 28 percent shooting from three-point land, and 31 percent overall. Led by Sawicki's 11 rebounds and two steals, Oberlin's scrappy play almost resulted in a rare victory. "It was the hardest we've played all season," Petrovic said. The final score reflected that."

The Yeomen's record is 0-5. They are averaging 58 points per game and giving up 92. They are turning the ball over 7 more times each game than their opponents. They are shooting 28 percent from behind the arc, and 40 percent overall. Their opponents are shooting twice as many free throws as they are (71 vs. 141 on the season). Worse yet, some of their opponents have been mediocre. In short, this has not been a pleasant early season for the Yeomen.

But one must keep the Thiel game in mind. Thiel is comparable to a team like DePauw, yet Oberlin almost pulled out a win. Considering the horrible beating they had taken immediately prior, it was a remarkable performance. That they pulled themselves together and almost escaped with a win serves as a testament to their love of the game. To salvage this season, their most recent performance must serve as an inspiration, and an imperative.

Oberlin's next game is Saturday against Wittenberg in Philips Gym at 4 p.m., the second game of a double-header with the women's team.