This weekend marks the start of an extended road trip for the men’s basketball team.T The trip started Thursday in Illinois, where the Bisons lost to the Illini 79-64. The team will stay in the the state and play Illinois State before heading to Cancun for the Cancun Challenge.Senior guard Jordan Burgason is excited to watch the younger guys play on the big stage. “The new guys will get an opportunity to play on the big stage against Illinois and Illinois State,” Burgason said. “This will really help show where we are at as a team and how hard we have to work to beat top tier teams.”
Senior guard Jacob Arnett thinks this week with help the growth of the team.
“I think this week will be good for our team because we are playing four games this week,” said Arnett. “Being a young team we lack game experience so I think we will benefit from having games like these.”
Burgason is anxious to get back on the court and help the younger guys out. “I’m looking forward to the Sacred Heart/Hampton game because it’s my first game back. It’s been a struggle having to watch my teammates play and not being able to get out on the floor so I’m definitely looking forward to getting back out there.”
Burgason is in the middle of a five-game suspension for an undisclosed matter.
The Bisons travel to Normal, IL on Saturday for a game against Illinois St. before they travel to Cancun, Mexico to play SIU Edwardsville on Nov. 22 and either Hampton or Sacred Heart on Nov. 23.
Burgason said the game plan is the same as it has been all season. “Rebounding and limiting our turnovers are huge. Our offense will come together as we play more games, but its important to do what we do best every night, which is defending,” Burgason said. “Playing against bigger, more athletic teams, it’s important to box out every possession. We can never take a possession off.”
The first game on Nov. 17 will be broadcasted on 102.1 The Light and the last three of the tournament will be on 102.5 The Game.