Down, but not out

Before we left for Christmas break, our beloved men's basketball team had a 2-5 record and was undefeated at Calihan Hall. The season was still relatively new and a spirit of hope and excitement was still in the air. Students and alumni alike were certain that this year, we would not be seeing the same ol' Titans, who have disappointed and under-achieved so much recently.
Boy, how things have changed.
The past four weeks have seen our Titans go 2-7 to drop to an underwhelming 4-12 with many of those losses coming by double digits. They have failed to win a Horizon League game, and now sit at the very bottom of the conference standings at 0-7.
Same ol' Titans.
Chris Hayes, one of our leading scorers and rebounders a year ago, was suspended indefinitely for "conduct detrimental to the team" and has not played in the last few games. It's not like his production made a huge difference anyway. His scoring was down from 10.6 points per game in 2007-08 to a less-than-stellar 3.7 this season.
Same ol' Titans.
Head coach Ray McCallum has not found a starting lineup that he likes; 10 different players have started a game this season. This inconsistency has led UDM to average only 55 points per game, and that's not going to get you many W's in the final box score.
Same ol' Titans.
Here's how UDM ranks in the Horizon League:
Scoring offense: last
Assists: last
Turnover margin: last
Steals: second to last
Field goal percentage: second to last
Free throw percentage: second to last
Three-point percentage: second to last
Rebounding offense: second to last
Same ol' Titans, right? Wrong.
While their winning percentage might not be anything to stop and look at, these Titans have definitely made improvements since last year, and they still have about half a season to go.
Senior Woody Payne is averaging 2.1 steals per game, ranking second in the entire Horizon League.
Freshman guard Donavan Foster has stepped up nicely after coming off of surgery just weeks before the season to average 5.6 points per game while shooting an extraordinary .895 percent from the free-throw line. Eugene Blue, who didn't see a minute of action in the Titans' first seven games, has found a spot in the rotation thanks to hard work and good rebounding.
Just last week, the Titans faced their biggest rival in the Butler Bulldogs. Butler was ranked 17/18 at the time and UDM played a hard game before losing by four.
What was so impressive about that? A loss is a loss, right? Not exactly.
UDM was playing without Eli Holman, Chase Simon, Xavier Keeling and Chris Hayes. The Titans had to play their last possession with two walk-ons on the court, Tryl Hartfield and Jordan Fee, and they almost pulled out the victory.
Playing a ranked opponent without some of your best players on the floor is a lot to ask of any team, let alone one that is rebuilding. Even with everything going against them, you never hear anyone on the team make excuses.
Our Titans give it their all every time they step on the court, and just because they have a bad record doesn't mean we should give up on them now. Time after time, McCallum and the players praise the fans who pack Calihan Hall to witness the little success the team does achieve, and they often cite the fans as the reason when they do win a particular game.
UDM currently ranks third in attendance in the Horizon League. If we keep going to the games and keep cheering on our team, I can guarantee you that by the end of the season we will look back and realize that these are not the same ol' Titans.