Eagles fly above .500

With an 80-69 win over New Mexico Highlands University, Friday, followed by a 71-62 victory against CSU-Pueblo, Saturday, the Eagles’ men’s basketball team has done something no other CSC men’s basketball team has done since 2005 – earn a winning record. 

The two wins improved the Eagles to 9-8, the best record the Eagles’ have earned since going 7-19 in the 2015-2016 season and a sizeable improvement on the two three-win seasons since Head Coach Houston Reed took over the program for the 2016-2017 season. 

“It’s exciting,” Reed said, “Chadron State men’s basketball hasn’t been in this position in 15 years.” 

Speaking to The Eagle following the team’s 64-61 win over Dixie State University Jan. 12, Reed mentioned his team turning a corner, but Saturday, when asked about the team’s record now reflecting that turn, Reed said he wasn’t necessarily speaking about the wins column. 

“When we talk turning the corner we’re analyzing that with more than wins or losses,” Reed said. “We’re turning the corner and we’re getting more fluid offensively. And defensively guys understand their identity and our culture and their buy in to our roles; guys are starting to understand those. Wins and losses are going to start taking care of themselves if we just try to do the right thing every day.”

Establishing a winning culture and bringing CSC basketball back to life has been a long journey for Reed. Asked how he felt about that culture finally starting to take hold, the three-year CSC coach was unable to contain his emotions. 

“It means everything to me,” he said, unable to hold back tears, “we’ve worked so hard to get the culture where it’s at. Most people from the outside don’t know what Coach (Jalen) Little and I have been through getting this thing turned around. Having the years that we’ve had is tough, so to see our culture turn? Man, it feels great.”

Senior Jaisean Jackson, of Denver, who was one of the first players to be brought to the team by Reed after taking over as head coach, says that building that winning culture has been a process. This year’s team, Jackson said, started coming together in the preseason, and although they didn’t get the early results they wanted, has now begun to gel.  

“It means a lot,” Jackson said of achieving a winning record. “This is what we wanted. We wanted to change the culture, turn the program around and make it a winning program. Get more fans out and everything; it’s good.”

Both of the Eagles’ wins this weekend featured the team surrendering a lead in the second half, proving the team still has improvements to make. 

“We’re happy with the wins,” Reed said, “but when we watch film we have some finishes inside and some open perimeter shots that guys are capable of making, and we’ve gotta keep working and have the confidence to make them in the future.”

Against Highlands Friday, the Eagles shot 50 percent and had points from all 11 players, led by senior Diontae Champion, of Pearl, Mississippi with 17. Fellow senior Jeremy Ruffin, senior of Chicago, was the Eagles next-best scorer with 11. Saturday, the Eagles shot just 38.6 percent but had three players score in double-figures led by junior Michael Sparks, who had 15. Charles Gavin, senior of Denver, and Colby Jackson, junior of Las Vegas, each had 12.  

While becoming the first CSC men’s basketball team to be above .500 in 15 years shines a spotlight on this season’s successes, the Eagles time in the limelight could be brief as it plays host to the two teams atop the RMAC standings this weekend. 

Friday night the Eagles take on 12-5 University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, who are currently second in the RMAC, and Saturday, the RMACs’ top team, Colorado School of Mines.