This year’s Brescia University men’s basketball team could be one of the best in program history. They already set a new record for the best start in River States Conference (RSC) play, and they received votes to finish 28th in the latest NAIA DII Men’s Basketball Coaches Top 25 Poll.
The Bearcats’ highest-ever ranking came in the 2014-15 season, when they were ranked No. 27 for a stretch. They finished the season as RSC West Division champions and made their only appearance in the national tournament in school history.
Head coach Brian Skortz said a big key for the current squad has been a top-notch offense. The Bearcats are one of the best teams in the country in assists per game (No. 7 with 17.9), and they are on pace to set a new record for scoring and assists at Brescia.
“We are one of the top teams in the nations with team assists,” Skortz said. “When we share the basketball we are a very difficult team to defend. We are still getting better offensively, but our biggest gains still have to be on the defensive end of the court.”
In his third year at the helm, Skortz put together a tough nonconference schedule in hopes of helping enter conference play with a well-rounded team.
“I have a philosophy — to be the best we must play the best,” he said. “We have played a lot of great teams on the road to get the competition we needed to get us ready for conference. We learn a lot about ourselves during the nonconference schedule.”
Brescia began conference play with a pair of 3-point victories before a 91-86 home loss to IU Southeast, who was ranked No. 20 at the time. The Bearcats then rattled off six consecutive RSC wins, including going on the road to take down WVU Tech — then No. 11 and now No. 9 — who had previously not been challenged by a conference opponent.
The Bearcats are coming off their second RSC loss after falling to IU Kokomo on the road Monday. With three weeks still left and so many talented teams, Skortz said every game plays a big factor for the postseason.
Four teams from each RSC Division make the conference tournament, and the West is especially crowded near the top.
“Our league is very tough and has improved so much with everyone’s program getting better,” Skortz said. “There is work to get done and we must take it one game at a time. Our conference is so good, and a team could lose two games and be in third any given week. We have to bring it every night.”
The Bearcats have a pair of regular go-to guys who typically lead the charge with Dillon Geralds and Kayode Daboiku. Each of them nearly averages a double-double, and they lead the team in both scoring and rebounds.
Geralds averages 18.0 points per game (ppg) and 9.4 rebounds per game (rpg), while Daboiku averages 17.2 ppg and 8.5 rpg. Daboiku also leads the team with 71 assists and 15 blocks, and Geralds has 60 assists.
Skortz said that duo is usually reliable, but a couple of sophomores have also stepped up to contribute key minutes.
“DaMontae Barnhill (8.9 ppg, 66 assists, 25 steals) has really grown and has provided some scoring out of the position,” Skortz said. “Tristen Murray (12.5 ppg, 17 steals) is a redshirt sophomore who has also stepped up and has been our top on-the-ball defender. Those two have given us a good foundation to our program’s future.”
A pair of seniors in Darion Morrow (9.2 ppg) and Zach McDaniel (7.0 ppg) also play big roles, but Skortz said it really is a team effort.
“Morrow has shot the ball well from the 3-point line and McDaniel has also knocked down the 3 well from his forward position,” he said. “We play 10-12 players a night and everyone has contributed at different times. We recruit versatile players year that can do multiple things from an offensive and defensive standpoint.”
Skortz is focused on this season and is hoping to reach a new level of success, but he said the goal is to create a strong foundation on which to build.
“We are about building a program,” he said. “We’re not here to just build teams. We are looking at taking this program to places it’s never has been, but we do it the right way and focus on each other as a family to get it done.”
