Media day tips off season
10/30/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Bethlehem, PA - Head Coach Billy Taylor and senior co-captains Austen Rowland and Ra Tiah were in attendance on Thursday for the first ever Patriot League Basketball Media Day, held at the Gateway Conference Center in Bethlehem. The Mountain Hawks were selected to finish fifth in a pre-season poll of coaches and sports information directors, which was unveiled at the event. This was also an opportunity for each Patriot League head coach to give a brief preview of their team, talk about this season’s captains, and also discuss other issues, like the recent National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) meeting in Chicago.
Lehigh is coming off of a season that saw the Mountain Hawks record the second largest turnaround in all of Division I basketball, as they won 11 more games than the previous season. Coach Taylor, in just his second season, is ready to get going and build on what was started last year. “This is an exciting time for me and the team as we prepare for the upcoming season. We will miss the seniors that we had last year, but this is a different year, and we’re ready to see what we can accomplish with this group. Right now we’re just trying to help turn these kids into the best basketball players possible, and in terms of the freshmen, we just want to prepare them for the jump to the Division I game,” Taylor told members of the media.
Coach Taylor then went on to discuss the captains, Tiah and Rowland, and was quick to point out that each leads in a different sort of way, both being equally important. “Ra has a lot of toughness, and the guys on the team respect him for that. He is coming off an injury last season, and has worked extremely hard to get himself prepared for this year. The other guys on the team see that and feed off of it. We will be relying on him for his leadership all season.”
In terms of Rowland, Taylor said that the transfer from Delaware is more of a vocal leader, and has gained a great deal of respect in his short time in Bethlehem. “Austen sparked a competitive nature last season when he practiced with us. He has earned the respect from his teammates in just one year, and that was unique to me, to see a player be voted on as a captain after only being around the guys for one year.”
Coach Taylor then spoke of two players who will help hold the team together and are going to be looked upon to improve upon last season’s production. “Junior Nick Monserez has some good experience. He has learned a great deal by watching his brother (Mike) who played at Butler in the NCAA Tournament. So, Nick is ready to expand his role on this team. Another junior, Earl Nurse can give us some athleticism and a much needed spark out of the power forward position, which we may not have had in the past.”
When asked about the meeting in Chicago earlier this month, Taylor discussed how he was learning as he went along. “That (meeting) was an interesting experience, I got to learn some new things, and it was unique in that it was only the second time I’ve been around every Division I coach.”
The Mountain Hawks have been hard at work in the gym, as they finish up their second full week of practice. The team will get a chance to see all of their practice in action, when Team Nike, a group of high profile ex-college players, comes to Stabler Arena on November 8 for an exhibition game. Tip off is slated for 7:30
Patriot League Pre-Season Poll
Team - Points (First place votes)
1. Holy Cross - 98 (14)
2. Lafayette - 76 (2)
3. Colgate - 75
4. American - 70
5. Lehigh - 45
6. Bucknell - 42
7. Navy - 25
8. Army - 17
