The Asbury men’s basketball team kicked off its 2021-2022 season with an away game against Covenant College. With a slow start and a comeback in the second half, the men fell short in a 67-63 loss.
While the men were able to put up a fight, it wasn’t enough to overcome the sluggish start. However, freshman Joshua Clark is still optimistic for what’s to come.
“We dropped our first game of the season, but I have no doubt that we will bounce back and have a great rest of the season,” Clark said. “This team has a lot of potential.”
Clark said given some new faces, the team played together and communicated well.
“Our goals as a team, however, are to grow as a team, as individual players, and to win as many games as possible this year. Coach Shouse and the rest of his staff have high expectations for this team, and for good reason,” Clark said.
The team has a lot of changes but also many things to look forward to as they make the transition into NCAA Division III.
“This preseason was unlike any other because there was a much longer dead period where the coaches were not allowed to be with us, so it was up to the team captains to make sure we were practicing, lifting, and staying conditioned,” Clark said. “When the dead period was over, the coaches only had three weeks to practice with us before our first game, but we were much better prepared because of the leadership of the captains and what they did to get us ready.”
The men followed this up with a game against Midway University on Tuesday where they lost 68-87, with another slow start the men just couldn’t get the lead in the second half.
They will compete at home against Finlandia University on Nov. 19th.