The Aerie, Yearbook of University of North Texas, 2004 Page: 76
231 p. : ill., ports. ; 32 cm.View a full description of this yearbook.
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Worthwhile
Progression
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The Men's Basketball team came out in better shape than
they had thought and they hope for an even better year in '05.If one word could sum up this year's
men's basketball team, it would be
progress. The Mean Green finished
13-14 after a prediction for the worst.
"We were picked last in our division
and we ended up finishing 3rd. We
have had a real improvement from last
year," said Associate Head Coach Fred
Rike.
On top of that, two of their leading
players, Leonard Hopkins andThe 1960 Yucca reads, "Tom Grissom strains to dunk one the hard
way. Grissom was the next best scorer and a stellar defender."Shawnson Johnson, were picked to
play on the All-Sun Belt Conference
Team.
"The coaches and the media vote
for that. Those two had a lot of accom-
plishments," said Assistant Director
of Media Relations Jerry Scott.
Going into the Sun Belt tournament,
Rike felt determined.
"We feel like we can beat every
team in it. We have beaten every team
before with the exception
of Western Kentucky who
only won in the last 20 sec-
onds of the game."
In the finals it seemed
NT was a little nervous.
"Western Kentucky, we
are on their home floor, so
that's an advantage.
Lafayette won the league
and went 10 and 3, so that's
the team to beat," Rike said.
When it came to players
that really stepped it up this
year besides the two cho-
sen for the All-Sun Belt
team, there were manyqualifiers. Justin Barnett, a 6'10", 260
pound sophomore, is said to be one of i
the big men that could lead the team in
the future. This season Barnett missed
his chances to shine because of con-
sistent back problems.
One of the better improvements for
the team has been Head Coach Jimmy
Jones. Jones ended the regular sea- i
son two years ago with the first win-
ning record in six years. This year he
continued the tradition of improvement
which is just what this team has needed.
"Last year there were a lot of inju- i
ries. This year, new junior players came
on; one high school recruit, Calvin i
Watson; Shawnson Johnson trans-
ferred; and that's really helped the '
team," Scott said.
The team seems poised for another
victorious year full of greater improve- i
ments and continued success. )
Zach Bard Ii
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University of North Texas. The Aerie, Yearbook of University of North Texas, 2004, yearbook, 2004; Denton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth61069/m1/78/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.