Cold sweat running down your face, your body is hurting from the constant contact it is receiving every two to three seconds and then… you hear that whistle and know that every bruise, bump, ache and pain will have to wait to be dealt with.

Donald Smith Sports Reporter

For some, this seems like torture. But, to twelve individuals, this is just another practice with Metro’s men’s basketball squad.

Once again, it is time for the Roadrunners to make a run at their third national crown, but this time, two pieces of their RMAC dynasty will have to be replaced as graduating talented players Patrick Mutombo and Clayton Smith will not be in the starting five this December.

Instead, it could possibly be junior Mark Worthington, senior Jamar Bohannon or junior Ben Ortner at forward, and either senior transfer C.J. Massingale or junior transfer Keith Borgan who will replace Smith. Like every season, Metro Head Coach Mike Dunlap will have a core of great players like senior guard Luke Kendall, senior forward/center Lester Strong and Worthington who will be ready at the start of the season. The difference this season is that the team is older, more experienced and, for most of them, they want to make their final season their best one.

The New Guys
This team is loaded with big men with speed and versatility as Massingale (6’4” from Washington University) can play everything from point guard to small forward, and junior Michael Morse (6’6” from the University of Northern Colo.) can play either forward position himself. Both men have size, strength and quickness — all things that are going to make Metro even more dangerous than last season.

The lone freshman, Michael Bahl, is going to have to play more mature than his class rank if he is to ever see the scorer’s table this season. The 6’6” player from Broomfield High School looks like he can hold his own, especially since he hints at having the skills to play the top three offensive positions. The new players at Metro are three reasons why this team could run ten deep.

Who needs to step up?
From a coach’s standpoint, probably everyone, since this team is so mature, but this is Kendall’s and Strong’s team. Last season, both players were No. 1 and 2 in scoring (not counting Patrick Mutombo), and this season has to be no different. This team will need both players to become double-double threats in the points and rebounds categories.

Also, this is going to be a real test to see who is going to be the third gun, because Bohannon, when playing well, can score 10 to 12 points silently and quickly. He will have to play like he did in the first five games of the season— a series of games in which he was averaging over 10 points a night. If he can make those five games become a whole season of averaging ten or more, those three players could carry this team through the RMAC and possibly win it all. Why? Easy. With these three players able to score ten a night with Kendall and Strong adding ten boards, it will allow players like Worthington, Ortner, Massingale and the others to play much easier and free them up to have big nights too.

Bogans will have a huge void to fill on this team if he gains the starting nod because he looks like a polar opposite to his predecessor Smith. Bogans likes to score when the opportunities arise and might not sacrifice easy buckets to throw exciting, crowd-pleasing alley-oops.

Morse might just end up being a huge compliment to Strong because they are both quick, agile forwards who can run the floor and create easy baskets for the team.

Dadiotis may not have played much last year, but so far it seems like he could be an excellent guy on the floor when Kendall needs a break.

Ortner is a player who plays in the trenches, as he does the little things that sometimes don’t show up on the stat sheet: he hustles and provides hard defense and enthusiasm.

Finally, sophomore guard Benas Veikalas and Nickle both work hard in practice, but sometimes they don’t appear in games. Between them, they have only 25 games played. I don’t know if that will change this season, but these two players are a reflection of just how good this team is.

This season, the Roadrunners are going to have a very deep bench and a very good squad, but how it will turn out in the wins and losses column has yet to be determined.

This year’s team is more mature and very hungry, so this could be the year they do it… again.

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