The BYU-Hawaii Men’s Basketball team will start off its 2014-2015 on Saturday, Nov. 15 campaign against visiting Saint Katherine College. The Seasiders are coming off a 15-12 record last year and a 13-7 conference record. This year’s team will return a number of players from last year’s squad including senior guard Luke Aston, senior point guard Robbie Mitchell, junior guard Scott Friel, junior guard Pablo Coro, and sophomore guard Cory Lange. Both Friel and Coro were named to the 2013 All-PacWest Team.Along with a number of valuable returning starters, the Seasiders have a number of impressive summer signings. The Seasiders will feature three Division I transfers including Ian Harward from BYU, and Daniel Berger and Jordan Stone from Utah State. Stone is a 6’10” senior from Smithfield, Utah. As an Aggie, Stone played in 93 games and averaged 2.4 points and 2.7 rebounds. Stone will provide the Seasiders with physicality and defensive presence in the post. Berger is a 6’6” senior from Medford, Ore. While attending Utah State, Berger played in 64 games over three seasons, including 30 starts. Berger will provide the Seasiders with a substantial offensive threat, particularly from the three-point line.Harward is a 7-foot sophomore center from Orem, Utah. In one season playing for BYU, Harward had 22 appearances for the Cougars, in which he scored 22 points and grabbed 21 rebounds. “Ian adds a lot of size and can run the floor extremely well,” said Coach Ken Wagner in an interview on the BYU-Hawaii athletics website. “We are really excited knowing he can shoot, can rebound, and will give us another big man that can play great defense.” The team will have an extremely competitive schedule as it will face Central Washington, Seattle Pacific, and Oakland City. “We have a lot of really good athletes who have special talents and will play key roles on the team,” said Lange, an pre-biology major from Tehachapi, Calif.The Seasiders are picked to finish fourth in the PacWest Conference in the pre-season polls behind California Baptist, Dixie State, and Chaminade. “We feel like we can be very good this year,” said BJ Ford, a junior guard studying exercise science from Payson, Utah. “We expect to win our conference and go on to regionals and nationals.”
Writer: Matthew Roberts ~ Multimedia Journalist
