The Clipper Men’s Basketball Program has high hopes this season and the the league has taken notice. After being snubbed from the top 10 rankings all of last season, the Clips started off the season ranked #9 in the 2024 Ticketsmarter NWAC Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll.

“Our guys were excited about it and it’s always nice to be recognized, but I’ll be more excited about it when we are in the top 10 in about two months. We’ve got a long way to go and we’re just getting started,” said Head Coach Zach Smith about the recognition the Clipper MBB has received at the beginning of the season.

But, with the high praise of being in the upper echelon of the conference also comes the hard work to stay at the top, and that is a fact that Coach Smith is very well aware of. “[We] have a target on our back and now you’ve got to live up to it. You’ve got to compete because everybody’s going to give you their best game,” said Smith.

So far, the Clippers have lived up to the hype. The MBB program sits at a record of 4-1, scoring big wins over Bellevue, Peninsula, and the Corban and Evergreen JV programs. The team also had a blowout scrimmage win against Northwest Indian College and managed to keep a close scrimmage game against the Seattle Mountaineers, a semi-professional team.

“These past games proved that we can win in a variety of ways,” said Smith about the team’s performances against Bellevue and Peninsula. “The first game against Bellevue we shot the ball really well, we were just about 50% from three and 60% from the field. We play really hard and our defense is where we’ve put a huge emphasis. Our guys want to have #1 defense in the NWAC, so to hold two good NWAC teams to 60 points each night … it proved to our guys that we can go through a dogfight even if we aren’t shooting the ball well.”

With this great start to the season, the Clipper MBB players have high aspirations to make a deep run into the playoffs this season. The team is swarming with confidence and have a “championship or bust” mentality.

Sophomore Point Guard Quincy Linton was optimistic when asked about his expectations for the season. “The team is focused on winning, being better than last year, try to make it past the first round of the tournament. Obviously, it’s going to be hard making it to the tournament with all of the competition, but I feel like we have a good team,” said Linton.

But no one athlete best exemplified the tenacity the team has than Freshman Center Jeremiah Lewis. When asked if the #9 ranking bolstered team confidence, Lewis stated, “It doesn’t at all. That just means that there are eight teams that we need to be better than. That is eight teams that people are putting above us … The goal was never to be number nine, the goal is always to be number one. I take it personal.”

To check out the Clipper Men’s Basketball schedule and results, be sure to visit www.psccathletics.com/sports/mbkb/2024-25/schedule.