The men’s basketball team here at Bellevue College recently played in a tournament in Oregon as their season switched on.
The Bulldogs played two games and came away with a victory for each, beating Linfield College and Clackamas Community College. The tournament ran the weekend of Nov. 17-18. Jeremy Eggers, the head coach of both the men’s and women’s team, is now participating in his tenth year as head coach.
Pierce College also held a Thanksgiving tournament, which the Bulldogs entered. The team came off strong, winning their first two games but faltered when they played PC
Losing the championship game to the Raiders helped highlight mistakes that the men were making. According to Eggers, PC has always been a tough team to compete with and this year they’re strong. BC has a young team, with only two returning from past teams. The rest are freshmen.
Men’s basketball has had very successful and strong runs over the years. They’re the only team in the North West Athletic Association Community College that has placed in the final tournament seven years in a row. The team has also had eight consecutive 20-win seasons, another first in the NWAACC.
However, despite these impressive stats and accomplishments, the Bulldogs still have to fight hard for first place over Peninsula Community College and Whatcom College.
These two schools have been BC’s biggest rivals in past years According to the NWAACC standings of last year’s season, the Bulldogs had an impressive record of 23 wins and seven losses, and ranking eighth overall in the NWAACC tournament. However, they came in third place in their division, below both Whatcom and Peninsula.
The team is hosting the crossover tournament this year beginning Dec. 14-16, during the winter break.
A crossover tournament is a random selection of two teams per division, so a total of eight team altogether. Eggers explained that the tournament this year is going to be loaded with talent, with no easy victories in sight.
Every year the crossover is held somewhere different so that teams have to travel. The crossover is also used as a small-time fundraiser by the team, with profits from ticket sales going to the team.
With such a young team to work with, Eggers stressed the importance of growing together and overcoming together: “It will take time to grow as a group. [They] have to be receptive for it to happen.” Egger’s and the team’s main goals this season are to grow. “To get better, we talk about it every day at practice. To get better,” said Eggers.
The men’s team already has a winning record with only one loss this season. League play is scheduled to start in January, giving the team a little more than a month to perfect their game. “Expect Peninsula and Whatcom to be tough competitors in our division,” Eggers stated. Outside their division, Highline Community College and Clackamas Community College are also strong competitiors for the Bulldogs. Eggers believes that the team will have a winning season, but he’s unsure of how well they will do and how high they will place this year.
Overall, the team is happy with their performance so far this season, even though it just begun.
Students can support the team by going to their matches and cheering on the home team here at Bellevue College.