Why You Should Care About the Men’sBasketball Team

by Max M

One of the many beautiful things about sports is its sense of forgiveness. Every year, each team, regardless of its history of disappointments or triumphs, is given a clean slate. Nothing before matters. Each season’s quirks are removed and replaced, until the replacements meet the same fate. Nothing is permanent, everything is fleeting.

The Oberlin Men’s Basketball Team went 14-12 last season. They went 8-8 in conference play, good for the fifth seed in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC). They were eliminated from the NCAC tournament by Denison University in the first round. 

But that is immaterial. They have the talent to be a legitimate contender this season.

Did you know? There is a gazelle amongst us. He walks the same halls as you and me, sauntering intentionally yet without care, ducking in and out of doorways with a sense of ease. This grace is not for waste - the gazelle displays its talents for all to see once it touches its home territory. Once his hooves hit hardwood, he is truly a sight to behold.

JJ Gray spins and fades. He cuts through defense like a butterknife to its namesake, maneuvering with an elegant poise not often seen from those his age. Gray is only a sophomore. His game has even more room to grow.

It would be a disservice not to begin a preview of the men’s basketball program with the revelation that Gray has been. In his freshman campaign last season, Gray was somewhat ethereal. He averaged 16.7 points per game, the most for an Oberlin freshman since the turn of century. And he did so on impressive efficiency, especially considering his shot diet (lots of turnaround mid-range jumpers), going 49.8% from the field and 35.7% from behind the three point line. For all of this, as well as good rebounding and playmaking numbers, Gray was awarded the NCAC Newcomer of the Year (the first Yeoman to get the honor since Quinton Spencer, a man referred to by the Oberlin Review as “the Kobe Bryant of Oberlin,” did it in 2005), as well as the D3hoops.com Region 7 Rookie of the Year. 

As long as Gray is donning crimson and gold, he will be an offensive weapon. Gray’s combination of size (6-7) and skill make him a nightmare matchup, especially at the Division III level. He is too quick and shifty to be guarded by bigs and too big to be successfully guarded by guards. He is a sign of hopeful things to come for this team, both for this season and the two following. 

And Gray will be aided by senior point guard Yuuki Okubo, who always seems to have the game on a string, moving to his will. Okubo is always in control. He is a playmaking machine: By the time that this is published, Okubo will likely have the most assists in Oberlin men’s basketball history. And Okubo’s fast hands make him a factor on both ends of the court, an acheivement given his 5-8 frame, averaging 2.0 steals per game a season ago. 

More than anything, Okubo seems to have exceptional command over every single situation he is put in. Perhaps his time in the spotlight in high school helped form that seemingly unflappable presence - Okubo, who was teammates with Shareef O’Neal, Shaquille’s son, at Crossroads High School, went viral numerous times, with videos of his game amassing over ten million views on YouTube. Perhaps he was born with it. Either way, he is a huge plus for this Oberlin team as their primary ball handler.

Beyond those two names, there is a lot to be excited about on this Oberlin roster. I really love what seniors Asaan Snipes-Rea and Andrew Gannon and junior Will Bousquette III bring to the table defensively. They are forces to be reckoned with on the perimeter. Junior guard Zach Smith seems like he’s going to be taking on a bigger role this year, and he can shoot the leather off of it. Zach Bronson, also a junior guard, has some real on-ball juice as a playmaker and can adeptly handle bench units when Okubo needs a breather, as well as play alongside the 5-8 senior as matchups allow. (Also, he’s a great guy. Shoutout to Zach Bronson.) Freshmen Alasan Njie-Morgan, who is currently injured, Matt Andreopoulos, and juniors Shea Laursen and Adam Navarre will also vie to earn some minutes off the bench for this Oberlin team.

Aside from Junior Center Milun Micanovic, who was a force in the paint for the Yeomen last year, the frontcourt room is largely unproven. Junior Jackson Reynolds and sophomore Dut Lual both didn’t get a ton of run last season, playing six and nine games respectively. But, unthwarted by their collective lack of experience, they have looked very solid to start the season. 6-6 freshman Rob Magner might also get some minutes in the big rotation, and he seemed like a pretty good option in their game against Lawrence University on November 8th. 

Head coach Shiva Senthil’s Yeomen seem to be in a good spot to start the year, but more than that, they are in an enviable position for the near future. There is a lot of youth on this team, and where there is youth, there is a promise of possibility. Whether that possibility is realized or not, this roster construction is sound, and the Yeomen are set up to be entertaining, competitive, and gritty for the years to come.