Neville sees Western game as a chance to get Lumen’s hoops season on track
By Mike Moore
Staff Writer
Jackson – He says the confidence is there, the will is strong and the belief in each other hasn’t faded.
The one thing lacking so far for the Lumen Christi boys basketball team has been the wins.
And according to coach Pat Neville, the opportunity his guys have Friday night could go a long way in shifting the direction of 2016.
“We’ve taken some steps in the right direction lately,” Neville said. “We were down one against a good Marshall team. We were down six against Jackson in the fourth. The confidence is fine with this group. They are working so hard right now, but when the wins don’t show up, it’s tough to really feel it. A win (Friday) night could do a lot to show what we’re doing is working.”
Entering Friday night’s home contest with Western, Lumen is 1-5 on the year. The lone win was a victory in December against Northwest in which the Titans surrendered a 21-point lead and had to hold on late to win.
But as Neville stated, the team has started to play better of late, and that was somewhat expected. Everyone knows about the losses Lumen suffered due to graduation after last year, and how this year’s group was going to need game action to acclimated.
Neville feels that time is about now, although nothing is going to come easy.
Western enters the game 3-4 and seeking what would be a huge win on the road.
But the Panthers will be without Hunter Page, so finding a way to slow Steele Fortress will be key.
“They can shoot, they are athletic, and they have Steele in the middle,” Neville said. “I think for us, we’ve been able to control the tempo the past few games, and we have to do that again.”
Neville stressed the importance of tonight’s game, with an eye toward the future of this season.
“We’re still take it one game at a time, but we’re a team that’s focused on being competitive by the end of the month,” Neville said. “We have four or five games in a row coming up that should be toss ups. You like to think you can win those games and build from it.”
Visit the website tonight for photos from both the boys and girls games. Western vs. Lumen will air on JTV Saturday and Sunday at 1pm and 7pm.
Mike Moore is a play-by-play commentator and Sports Writer for JTV Sports. You can reach him at mjm12@albion.edu. He’s also the author of ‘Love, Defined; A Dedication to the Love, Sacrifice, and Magic of Motherhood.’
Love, Defined is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Tate Publishing or by contacting Mike directly.