Dec. 12, 2008
Kerry Keating Blog
December 12, 2008
Home. It's a great place to be and it couldn't come at a better time for our team after traveling close to 8,000 miles to start our season. Having fallen short against UAB at Arizona and then traveling the next week in back-to-back games in Athens, Ga., against Georgia and Arizona definitely took its toll on our young team, many of which are learning to handle college basketball for the first time. If we were playing horseshoes we would be a really good team right now. But close doesn't cut it in college basketball, so we are really happy that we were able to bounce back last week with three straight wins after opening the season down four.
Our staff is really proud of our young team for battling hard with Georgia and Arizona; and having the wherewithal and focus to then win two on the road. The wins came first at Montana, a historically difficult place to play, and then against our cross-town rival, at San Jose State. Coming back home to play Sacramento State right before exams was a challenge in itself and we played well enough on the defensive end to come out with the win.
Today marks the end of the exam period and the first academic quarter; and tomorrow will be the start of one of the best times of the season: four straight weeks with no class and all basketball! We are looking forward to continued improvement, as upcoming games during this stretch will present many challenges. We also know at the end of those four weeks starts our annual challenge of competing in the West Coast Conference, which maybe the strongest it has been for some time.
I would ask our supporters, alumni and fans to gear up for some exciting home contests this month. Starting tomorrow night against Notre Dame de Namur, vs. Stanford on Dec. 23 and the 42nd annual Cable Car Classic this season including UTEP, Belmont and James Madison on Dec. 29 and 30.
Also note on Dec. 29 we will be retiring former Bronco great Kurt Rambis' jersey. Kurt, who wore No. 34, has been the all-time leading scorer for more than two decades upon his Santa Clara graduation. He has been a great representative for the Broncos both as a professional player and currently as a coach with the Los Angeles Lakers. Please join us in welcoming Kurt and Linda Rambis back to the Mission Campus for our game vs. Belmont on Dec. 29 at 6 pm.
I wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season and I look forward to seeing you in the Leavey Center this winter. The Bronco basketball family would also like to extend its congratulations to Rhodes Scholar recipient and Bronco cross country runner Noelle Lopez. She is the first Rhodes Scholar in Bronco Athletic history and a great example to use for our team to keep its academic focus.
Go Broncos!
