A Pleasant Evening

All day yesterday, I thought how nice it would be if our guys could make last night's game and not leave the outcome in doubt. Well, that is exactly what we got, and it could not have come at a better time. The Ants jumped out to an early 11-2 lead and never looked back. Rod Wilmont and Wayne Chism were the catalysts for our hot start. Rod hit three quick jumpers -- including two three pointers -- and provided some stifling defense to help get the team off and running. From there, Wayne Chism went to work. Coming in for a foul plagued Larry Sanders, Wayne put together his best basketball of the year as he scored 9 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in the first quarter.

It was really all over from there, as every member of the team contributed to the 23 point victory. It was very encouraging to see Wayne play so well, because we are going to need consistent efforts like that once Sanders leaves back to the NBA and the Bucks. Wayne has the size, strength, and athleticism to be one of the better bigs in this league, but he will have to put together consistent efforts like last night to get there. If he does, watch out -- he will be a call up candidate.

As for the rest of the team, the usual suspects were there playing well -- Marvin Phillips, Corey Allmond, Wilmont, Walker, Kramer, Whitman, Lazare, Kent, Sanders, and Carlos English all contributed to a great win.

Now comes the hard part. The team has put themselves a half game out of the playoffs going into two tough games in Dakota. The guys really have to bear down, rely on each other, execute their offensive and defensive systems, and bring home some wins from the road. They are good enough, and if they continue to play together, play unselfishly, and play smart, I think they can continue to string together wins and put us in a great spot to win our first playoff spot.