Loading ...The American International College men’s basketball team had a season to be proud of in 2023–2024, despite the record not reflecting it. With a record of 9-20 (7-15 in conference play) this season, the Yellow Jackets have improved their winning percentage from 0.172 to 0.31 after finishing just 5-24 (3-17 in conference play) the previous year. Justice Ellison, a junior guard, made a significant improvement this season to lead the team after averaging just 13 points per game with a true shooting percentage of 44.5% in the previous campaign. Ellison scored 22 points per game with a true shooting percentage of 53.2% and pulled down six rebounds per game to go along with that this year.
With bad coaching decisions possibly being the reason to blame for many losses, sophomore guard Jack Hall’s season ended with a broken hand just four games into the season, and after a very promising freshman campaign. Hall was expected to keep improving significantly as he only played four games and averaged 12.5 points.
When asked what his attitude was after the injury heading into the offseason, Hall answered, “My mindset is to take no days off and work as hard as I can day in and day out. Not playing made me realize what I’m missing out on and I don’t want to take that for granted ever again.”
Aguibou Balde, a sophomore forward, was another player who had a good season. He averaged 10 points a game on 50% shooting and pulled down five rebounds a game to go along with that.
Due to their hard work, AIC was ranked eleventh coming into the playoffs, and they would have to travel to play the sixth-seeded Southern Connecticut team. AIC lost both of their regular-season games against Southern Connecticut, 69-49 and 90-72. Given that AIC lost both of their prior games by blowouts, nobody was anticipating that they would win or even challenge in this one. Justice Ellison scored 39 points, an exciting career high, to send the game into overtime. Unfortunately, AIC was outscored by 4 points in the extra period, and Southern Connecticut prevailed 80-84.
When asked about his mentality after failing to meet goals while putting up such a stat line, Ellison answered, “My mindset for the off-season after a tough game like that and a season with a lot of adversity is to just get better. I want to get better at everything I’m good and bad at. There’s always things to get better at. I want to look at the areas I struggled in the most that could possibly help us win more games and get better at that first, then proceed to put work in areas I already excel at and keep pushing myself to be better and never be satisfied. The rest will take care of itself. “
The futures of many important players are uncertain, but this team has enormous potential if everyone returns. Jalen Jordan, the team’s starter, and reserves Carlos Hubb and Buka Peikrishvili are the only seniors not returning. As previously stated, Jack Hall will be back on the court next season with a more experienced and accomplished group of teammates. A spot in the lineup is an objective that players like Loudon Chupas, Jason James, Aasim Gunther, Chase Nelson, and Macahi Nelson are vying for.
Freshman guard Aasim Gunther discussed his approach entering the off-season. “My mindset is to work on all aspects of my game, becoming more mentally tough, and making improvements from my first year of college basketball,” Gunther said. It is clear he has an eye toward playing a larger role the following season.
This season demonstrated that the Yellow Jackets can fight for a top spot in the NE-10 next year with a great deal of preparation and hard work. This team can have a winning record for the first time since the 2014–2015 campaign if the coaches are more adept at distributing the minutes to the deserving players. Many people I’ve spoken to, including myself, believe that this team has amazing talent sitting on the bench while players with less skill play all the minutes. With just a minor lineup adjustment, this group could improve significantly for the 2024–2025 season.
Story continues below advertisement
