By Spencer Bates

A historic season for the Oswego State men’s basketball season has officially ended following a Sweet 16 loss in the NCAA tournament to Marietta College.

This season has been one to remember for a plethora of reasons. The team broke the program record for most wins in a season, tied the program record for the farthest any Oswego State team has gone in the NCAA tournament and secured their highest ever end-of-season national ranking at No. 11.

However, there was not any assurance that this team would perform as well as they did. According to sophomore guard Jeremiah Sparks the capabilities of the team were unknown but he still had his sights set high.

“Didn’t really see anything special, didn’t really know what we were capable of,” Sparks said. “I was hoping for a national championship because what else would you play for?”

Despite the questions surrounding the team, the season started in the most emphatic way possible as the Lakers breezed through the Max Ziel Men’s Basketball Tournament. This would be Oswego State’s first of many titles they secured over the course of the year.

The team took down Elmira College and Hobart College with relative ease as the way the team played made it seem like they had played together for years. Efficient shooting and an early display of head coach Jason Leone’s defensive emphasis on the game shined through as they celebrated a dream start.

However, an early season 65-67 loss to Nazareth College provided a reality check for the team. The Golden Flyers danced around the national rankings throughout the season and ended the season outside of the top 25 and handed the Lakers an early season loss. Luckily for them it would be their last loss for a while.

The next 17 games that followed the loss all ended with the Lakers securing victory. Oswego State stormed through the SUNYAC winning each of their games over this span by an average of just under 23 points. This included three games in which they scored over 100 points and solidified the team in the top 25 nationally ranked teams.

Over the course of these games the Lakers fired on all cylinders, seeming unbeatable as they eyed an undefeated season in the SUNYAC. Unfortunately, a late season speed bump courtesy of SUNY New Paltz gave the Lakers their only conference loss of the season. For most a loss at this point in a season like Oswego State was putting together, it would be a cause for concern. However, Sparks explains how the loss actually helped.

“Definitely when we went on a win streak, we were rolling,” Sparks said. “Heads were big, egos were big and then went up to New Paltz and lost. [It] was kind of a reality check but it definitely helped us in the end.”

The reality check that the Hawks gifted the Lakers proved to be only momentary as the team got back to their winning ways the rest of the season. Going into the SUNYAC tournament it was clear that the Lakers had a target on their backs as the clear favorite. Both attempts by SUNY New Paltz and SUNY Oneonta in the semi-final and final respectively to upset Oswego State ended in failure as Sparks and the team cut down the nets in the Max Ziel Gymnasium signifying a conference championship and a punched ticket to the NCAA tournament. Sparks spoke on how it felt hosting the conference tournament and how much it meant to him and his team to secure the title.

“Winning the SUNYAC tournament was really fun,” Sparks said. “Having it at our place made it less challenging, less pressure, just [being] out there having fun … cutting down the nets, it’s like a dream come true for some guys.”

Not to be underemphasized is the chemistry and depth of Oswego State’s roster this past season. Several players like Devin Green, who led the team in points per game with his excellent three point shooting and Jamal Achille, who caught fire late in the season, played a massive role in the success of the team down the stretch. Other players such as Brendan Mulson, Ahkee Anderson, Julien Crittendon, Kaleb Cook and mid-season transfer Christian Simmons all played central roles in making the team the powerhouse it was.

Following their second to last regular season game, an 87-66 win over SUNY Brockport, Leone had plenty of praise for his roster. Saying how his team’s depth was something rare, that many teams don’t have the benefit of having.

“That’s certainly a big identity thing for us, is the fact that we can run a lot of guys at people and … it’s something that we haven’t necessarily had in the past,” Leone said. “This is a very unique feature of this team and I’m really happy we have the number of good players that we do.”

After the team laid stake to being the best team in the SUNYAC, the team learned their fate as they would depart for Swarthmore College to face Hood College in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Hood College proved a big first round challenge for the Lakers as the team’s style of play was different in comparison to anything they had seen this season. Oswego State had to adapt to the Blazers’ electric three-point shooting, spearheaded by the dynamic duo of twins Evan and Mason Wang. A close first half contest became unraveled as the Lakers found themselves on the beneficial side of an 82-73 scoreline.

The Lakers then moved onto play Keene State in the Round of 32 the day after the Owls knocked out No. 20 ranked host school Swarthmore College. Oswego State had a much easier time handling the Owls as they earned a 21 point victory over their adversaries. With the win the Lakers tied program history for NCAA tournament progress.

Next up for the Lakers was No. 2 ranked Marietta College. The Pioneers had been one of the nations best teams all season and to their benefit, they hosted the next two rounds of the Sweet 16 and Elite 8.

Unfortunately, this is where the historic road ended for Oswego State as they suffered a hard-fought 89-81 loss. The Ban Johnson Arena erupted as their team continued to march through the tournament. The Lakers were sent packing, but not for a lack of tremendous effort.

After the dust had settled Sparks reflected on his experience through this year’s NCAA tournament.

“It was honestly really fun … just being on the bus, guys are excited,” Sparks said. “Practices, prepping before the game, the locker room leading up to the game, just seeing everybody excited and playing in a crazy atmosphere.”

Despite not reaching the summit of the NCAA mountain, the Oswego State men’s basketball team has so much to be proud of after this season as they return to the campus who have supported them throughout their journey.

Sparks had some brief words for what lessons he took from the season and provided a sneak peak into the attitude he has going into next season.

“You have to stay hungry,” Sparks said. “You’ve got to work a little bit harder if you want to reach your goals.”

 

Spencer Bates | The Oswegonian