By Roya Ghorbani-Elizeh
Five years ago, both men's and women's basketball teams were struggling with their ability to win games in the WCC.
The 2004-2005 men's squad finished with a 4-10 record in the conference while the women finished 1-13. Both teams had mediocre seasons resulting in disappointing finishes in the standings.
Five years later, the teams have had a complete reversal in performance. The men's and women's teams are looking to this season as a crucial one as both have been ranked highly in the pre-season WCC polls.
The men's basketball team was picked to finish the season in 2nd place in the WCC Coaches' Poll with 44 overall points.
Second place is the highest pick the Pilots have ever received in this preseason poll.
Seniors Nik Raivio and T.J. Campbell were the Pilots to be placed on the WCC Men's Basketball Preseason All-Conference team. Raivio and Campbell were also featured in last year's Posteason All-Conference team.
The women's basketball team has been slated to finish fourth in the WCC conference in the same poll. First place went to Gonzaga while Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine rounded out the top three.
Senior guard Laiken Dollente was recently named to the WCC Women's Basketball Preseason All-Conference team. Dollente was also the only Pilot to be named to the last season's Postseason All-Conference team.
Both the men's and the women's teams have been prepping for their upcoming pre-season matches.
Practicing through fall break, both teams are ready for the competitive seasons and are both aiming to improve their WCC standings.
"I don't like making predictions about the season, but I do have expectations," Eric Reveno, men's basketball head coach, said. "I do expect that we will be better than last year."
Having implemented a "two-a-days" practice schedule over fall break, the men's team is getting ready for its first game, a non-conference match against Concordia at Chiles Center on Oct. 29.
The team finished last season with a 19-13 record for all games played. The Pilots were narrowly beat out by the Gonzaga University Bulldogs who had a total of 48 points.
"Gonzaga is still the measuring stick to the conference," Reveno said. "I want to measure us to them."
With no graduates from the men's team, the veteran squad is expected to do well against teams in the WCC. The Pilots will have a leg-up against Gonzaga, who has an inexperienced team with seven new players and 10 who have never played a collegiate game.
Fox Sports' Jeff Goodman recently revealed his top shooters in 2009-10 with two Pilots finishing in Goodman's top 50 list. Junior Jared Stohl is ranked sixth with regard to Stohl's career 3-point percentage of .438 and his 147 career 3-pointers. The Pilots will be looking at the Stohl to continue with these impressive numbers on the frontcourt.
Campbell was also featured on the list as 31st in the country. Campbell is known to be a consistent shooter with a shooting average of 53.1 percent last season.
With a focus on refining skills, Coach Reveno is hoping to improve on the Pilot's 9-5 conference record last year. The main objective for the squad is to work on the nuances and techniques that will be heavily utilized during the upcoming pre-season and in WCC conference games.
"I'm looking at the season like it's a course," said Reveno. "The team has taken the lower level course, now we're going to go for the graduate degree."
According to Reveno, practices have consisted of perfecting elements the players have already worked on. By adjusting the practice plans, improvement is expected to come from each player on the court this year.
"As a team, we are definitely up the learning curve," Reveno said.
The women's basketball team is also looking to find improvement in their standings for the upcoming season. Finishing last year with a 17-14 record in all games, the women's team is continuing their quest for the conference championship.
"Our goals are the same every year," said Sollars. "We want to win 20 games and compete for the championship."
Sollars and his team came in second to Gonzaga in the WCC Conference. The Pilots had their most successful season in 10 years and finished their best in the conference since their first place finish in 1996-97.
The second place conference team has lost five graduates from the squad. This year's team consists of a mere 11 athletes with six being upperclassmen who will help the team win important games.
"Our upperclassmen will be good leaders," said Sollars. "They will send us in the right direction."
According to Sollars, it's important for team to remain small in numbers because the players are able to get more attention out of the coaching staff.
This season's Pilots team will be looking for players such as Dollente to help guide them to another winning season. Last year Dollente was the fifth highest scorer with an average of 15.3 points per game, which will prove vital for the Pilot's offensive game this season.
"Laiken would score about 15 points a game for us," said Sollars. "We expect her to continue to score this season."
"I anticipate that Gonzaga will be the front runner in the conference," said Sollars. "I'd like to knock them off this year."
If the Pilots can continue the momentum from last season, the team has a good shot at going for a successful playoff run. One player that will be vital will be junior Lauren Angel, who will be needed for her strength and ability to make shots at the post position. Angel was named on the WCC Honorable Mention team last year and will be expected to continue with her excellent shooting at post.
Practices for the pre-season for the Pilots have consisted of strength training and conditioning. According to Sollars, the team is in their peak performance ability, which will help carry the team during the season.
"We need to avoid injuries, stay healthy, and without that we will be in good shape for the season," Sollars said.
