EDITORIAL: An Apology to the Men's Basketball Team

Nick Rampe
6 minutes ago
2 min read

Dear 2025-26 Belmont men’s basketball team,

I’m sorry.

“We’re doing the bare minimum; that’s all. The Bruin minimum,” I said Nov. 12 on the “Sideline Vision” podcast.

I said it in response to the team’s admittedly underwhelming 87-79 win over Tennessee State University in the second game of the season. But that wasn’t the only thing I said early in the season.

“There just still feels like there’s a lot to be desired from this team… You’re 4-0, but you’re not feeling good about it. If you weren’t 4-0, you’d be horrified,” I said one week later, following the team’s 75-68 win against Lipscomb University.

I would have been disappointed if the team weren’t 4-0 through the first four games of the season. But now the team is 22-4, and it’s becoming harder to defend my early-season analysis.

The team has already tied last season’s win total and recently scored 100 points in back-to-back games; the first two times the team reached the century mark during my four years at Belmont.

The slow start that I thought would define this team ended up just being growing pains for a young group with little experience on the court together.

During my time here, I watched players like Ben Sheppard, Cade Tyson, Ja’Kobi Gillespie, Isaiah Walker and Malik Dia suit up for the Bruins, but I don’t think I’ve seen as complete a team as this one.

I didn’t think Tyler Lundblade’s three-point heavy offense would translate well to being a No. 1 scoring option.

I didn’t think Drew Scharnowski would take over games in the post.

I didn’t predict Sam Orme and Brigham Rogers to make massive improvements on both ends of the court, and I didn’t know Jabez Jenkins would be such a spark plug for the team or that Jack Smiley and Eoin Dillon to be so reliable off the bench.

I was very wrong about this team.

It doesn’t have the superstars that it used to, but it works as a complementary unit.

It’s a tired cliché that a group of team players and hard workers will go farther than a group of superstars, but it’s a cliché because it keeps happening.

This team has a legitimate shot at the tournament, even if it doesn’t win the Missouri Valley Conference.

Either way, I’m excited to watch and cover such a talented team for my senior year.

Even if it means I was wrong.

This article was written by Nick Rampe