The SF State Men’s basketball team broke its 5 game losing streak last Thursday in its 77-69 win over Humboldt State in a home game. This was the Gators only 3rd win at home out of 11 and they deemed it Spirit Day by giving away free t shirts to the first 500 students to enter the Swamp. The Gators then traveled to Turlock, CA to take on Stanislaus State on Saturday and received their 13th loss in the conference by 81-79. 

The men’s basketball team is known for having strong seasons in the past and the Gators head coach Vince Inglima knows this. Inglima stated, “This season has obviously been disappointing for us in the win column. Following several seasons in a row where we were competing near the top of the league, this is definitely new territory for us.” Last year under Inglima, the Gators made it to the CCAA Basketball Championship playoffs.

When a group is going through a win drought, what proves how stable they are is the locker room. Inglima notices the locker room is as good as ever in regards to commitness. “I am proud of how committed this group is to each other, and how much energy they bring to practice every day. These young men have continued to work hard and support each other throughout the season. It is tough to keep things positive when you are not getting the results that you would like on the court. There is no way around that” stated Inglima. 

The basketball team at SF State is notorious for its achievements and economic investment compared to other sports programs on campus. The program is structured around winning and that serves a basis for success under Inglima. “We try to keep things focused on the things we can control: the areas in which we need to improve, preparation for the next opponent, etc. Even when you are winning, the goal is to stay committed to the process of improving from day to day rather than get caught up in the outcomes on gameday. That is a constant for us as a program” adds Inglima.

Out of the 16 man roster, only 4 are seniors with many players fighting for a spot next season. Linton Acliese, a Junior and Beca Major, leads the team in points and rebounds and will be on the team next season. Acliese states that, “I feel like the season hasn’t been what we all anticipated coming into the season. We know we have a great group of guys who are talented and can do a bunch of different things. We just haven’t been able to figure it out.”

In terms of being the leader of the team, Acliese believes his success is built around trust. “I would say the leadership role develops as my teammates start to believe and trust in me more. Trust that I’ll make the right plays and play for them.”

 Inglima has high hopes for next season and notes, “Our future is very bright. We return our leading scorer and rebounder from this year. We have some great young players who are getting a lot of experience this season which we hope they will be able to build upon going forward. Also, we have some great commitments already and are continuing to recruit now. We plan to be back competing for a CCAA title next year.”

 Acliese also believes next year will be a great turnaround compared to the current season. “Fans can expect a totally different year than this year. We’re losing a great senior group but we’ll still have a great group returning. Fans should expect us to win out the rest of the year and provide fun/exciting games” said Acliese. 

The Gators have 3 games left with the last game and senior night coming against the team they lost to last year in playoffs, Cal State LA. “We have two home games left. It is senior weekend, and we will be trying to send off this senior class on a high note”, concluded Inglima. 

SF State’s next game is away on Thursday the 20th against Chico State.