While the majority of us were sleeping each day away at home over winter break, the Wesleyan men’s basketball team was on campus hard at work.  Since The Argus’ last issue, the Cardinals have played 10 games against a gauntlet of tough opponents.  With a 4-7 record over that span, the team improved its overall record to 5-11 and 1-3 in the NESCAC.

After starting out December with an impressive win against Fisher College, the Cards traveled to Bristol, R.I., to do battle against Roger Williams University.  They got off to a slow start, trailing by 19 points at halftime and as many as 22 points early in the second half, but the three-pointer by Jason Mendell ’12 with 1:20 left capped a furious comeback that tied the game at 63.  The home court advantage, however, was too much to overcome, as Roger Williams made its free throws at the end to scrape out a 68-65 win.  But the Cardinals’ disappointment was soon diminished by an emphatic, 23-point home win against Endicott College in which the outcome was never in question.

Following the win over Endicott, the team took a short winter break, but soon was back at school, practicing hard. The extra work paid off with a win against Wheelock College in the Inn at Middletown Tournament.  Dave Maltz ’11 was the top performer, totaling 18 points and 11 rebounds as he led the Cardinals to the 71-64 victory in their first game of 2009.  The tournament championship game, against Daniel Webster, was a hard-fought contest, and the Cards gave it their all, led by Mendell’s 23 points.  However, Daniel Webster’s Chris Hanson had 27 points and Wes couldn’t get closer than within four points in the second half, eventually losing 69-62.  Mendell played so well during the championship game that he was named to the All-Tournament team despite being held scoreless in the Wheelock game.

In the next week, Wes played two close home games against quality opponents, beating Amherst 72-69 but losing to Albertus Magnus College 85-83.  Against Amherst, the Cards ended a 16-game losing streak to the Lord Jeffs with a dramatic victory. The Cardinals had trailed by 12 points with 12 minutes left, but Jeremy Kaminer ’10 completed the comeback when he banked in a 30-footer at the buzzer to break a 69-69 tie. The loss was one of only two losses Amherst has had this season.  The Albertus Magnus game was a thriller as well, but the three-pointer with four seconds left by Kevin Scura ’12 missed its mark and Mendell’s putback in the lane at the buzzer just missed.

Following the loss to Albertus Magnus, the Cardinals had two rough defeats. After losing at NYU 66-54, Wesleyan was unable to replicate its previous success against Amherst when the Lord Jeffs cruised to a 76-46 victory. Wes rebounded with a resounding 68-52 home win against Trinity, in which Stan Grayson ’09 had 10 rebounds and a career high 25 points.  The Cards were down one at halftime, but seemed to come out with a vengeance in the second half, going on a 28-8 run to put the game away immediately.  With this win, they ended a five-game losing streak against Trinity.

This Trinity win was followed by a 62-49 home loss to Williams.  The game was tied 47-47 with five minutes to go, but Williams went on a 15-2 run to put the game out of reach.  The next day, the Cardinals lost a tight contest to Middlebury 67-60, coming as close as five points but ultimately trailing for the whole second half.

With more than half of the season completed, the team has formed its identity.  Four players, Grayson, Mendell, Kaminer, and Maltz, are averaging double digits in points per game.  Grayson is shooting an astronomical 59 percent from the field, Maltz is grabbing almost nine rebounds a game, and Kaminer is such an effective floor general that he is on the court an average of 37 minutes out of 40.

The team’s next games are this Friday, January 30, at home against Tufts and Saturday Jan. 31st against Bates.