After an RMAC Tournament championship and a trip to the NCAA North Central Regional Finals in last season’s national tournament, Roadrunners men’s basketball is looking to “carry on the culture of winning,” said Head Coach Mike Dunlap.

Metro returns two starters from a team that finished 28-5, 11-2 RMAC last season while being eliminated by conference rival Nebraska-Kearney in the North Central Regional Finals.

Luke Kendall Senior guard

“We are looking forward to playing Kearney (this season) because they knocked us out (of the tournament) last season,” said Mark Worthington, junior guard/forward. “We hate them (Kearney) with a passion.”

Dunlap says the thing they most need to improve on is “diversification in scoring” with the loss of guard/forward Patrick Mutombo, who was tied for third in the RMAC with 19.3 points per game.

One player who may help in the scoring department is returning senior guard Luke Kendall, who was tied with Mutombo for the team lead in points scored.

The ‘Runners were fifth in the RMAC for scoring offense at 75.6 points per game, however, that is compared with the 59.5 points they allowed their opponents per game, which was first in the RMAC.

“We’re just an in-your-face, full court trapping and rotating (type of defense),” Dunlap said. He says “disruption” is also key to their defense.

Ben Ortner Junior F/C

Although the Roadrunners are ranked pre-season No. 11 nationally, Dunlap is not concerned about national opponents yet.

“I always figure out that the RMAC is the only thing that we really care about,” Dunlap said.

“If you take care of business there, you’re pretty set for all the other stuff.”

Worthington says Fort Hays State will be a tough team in the RMAC because “they are a very physical team.”

Dunlap adds that Kearney and Fort Lewis will also present challenges for the ‘Runners in the conference. He also said there is always a team nobody expects to do well.

“There’s always the x-factor; there’s one (team) that comes out of the woods and nobody knows about,” Dunlap said.

Michael Morse Junior forward

“Year in and year out, you just have to pay attention to what they’re doing and go after them.”

Metro’s starting lineup isn’t set currently, however, Dunlap says Kendall and senior forward/center Lester Strong “have certainly established their starting spot.”

Newcomer Michael Morse, a junior forward transfer from the University of Northern Colorado is also projected to be in the starting five. There is currently a battle at the swingman spot, and the one left out figures to be the sixth man.

“Quite frankly — because we go with an up-tempo game and we press a lot — (the starting lineup) doesn’t end up being set in stone,” Dunlap said. “We’ve averaged 17-18 different starting lineups per year.”

Dunlap says the team intends on using “nine or 10 players” in the rotation. He expects all this season’s newcomers to contribute.

The key newcomers are: Morse; Keith Borgan, a junior guard transfer from Wabash Valley Junior College; C.J. Massingale, a senior guard transfer from the University of Washington and Michael Bahl, a freshman guard from Broomfield High School.

Lester Strong Senior F/C

Dunlap knocks on wood when he says there aren’t any key injuries at the moment. The coaches won’t know about the team’s weaknesses until they play, but Dunlap says there are challenges.

“Just to get their (the players) undivided attention on the night can sometimes be a challenge,” he said.

The possible athletics program cut might bring some motivation to the team’s season, Dunlap said.

“Anything that comes our way in the cloak of adversity has got to be seen as a silver lining,” he said. “We see it as an opportunity to represent the (athletics) program and use it to our advantage.”

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