Coping & Connecting: Men's Basketball
5/28/2020 1:04:00 PM | General, Men's Basketball
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Matt Beachler knows full well that he will be counted upon to be one of the leaders of the Central Michigan men's basketball team in 2020-21.
That leadership role has taken on more immediacy and importance during the quarantine necessitated by the coronavirus.
Beachler, who redshirted last season, is headed into his fourth season in coach Keno Davis' program and has logged more time in that program than any player who will be with the team next season.
He said that shortly after the nationwide shutdown in mid-March – about a week after CMU's 2019-20 season came to an end – he took the initiative by organizing a group chat with the student-athletes who will be new to the program in '20-21, when up to half of the roster is expected to comprise newcomers.
"We wanted to introduce ourselves as the returners," said Beachler, who is home with his family Lowell. "We're just talking about making sure everybody is doing their part and talking about next year, how last year went, what we can do to improve.
"We're using each other to kind of motivate and push forward through this because when we get back it's not going to be beneficial for the team if even one guy's out of shape because that's going to hold others back."
Davis, who is headed into his ninth season in charge of the program, said the immediate concern at the end of the season and the start of the quarantine was academics and the safety and well-being of his players.
"You've taken the structure that they have, the support system, the academic support, the study tables, the tutors, you've taken a lot of that away from them," he said, adding that he and his coaching staff have met regularly with the players via video conference. "It just was happening all at one time. As we get our final grade reports, it looks like our guys did well, considering the circumstances."
With the semester finished, the Chippewas can now look ahead to the summer, the start of the '20-21 school year, and the season albeit with an air of caution because of the uncertainty.
That leadership role has taken on more immediacy and importance during the quarantine necessitated by the coronavirus.
Beachler, who redshirted last season, is headed into his fourth season in coach Keno Davis' program and has logged more time in that program than any player who will be with the team next season.
He said that shortly after the nationwide shutdown in mid-March – about a week after CMU's 2019-20 season came to an end – he took the initiative by organizing a group chat with the student-athletes who will be new to the program in '20-21, when up to half of the roster is expected to comprise newcomers.
"We wanted to introduce ourselves as the returners," said Beachler, who is home with his family Lowell. "We're just talking about making sure everybody is doing their part and talking about next year, how last year went, what we can do to improve.
"We're using each other to kind of motivate and push forward through this because when we get back it's not going to be beneficial for the team if even one guy's out of shape because that's going to hold others back."
Davis, who is headed into his ninth season in charge of the program, said the immediate concern at the end of the season and the start of the quarantine was academics and the safety and well-being of his players.
"You've taken the structure that they have, the support system, the academic support, the study tables, the tutors, you've taken a lot of that away from them," he said, adding that he and his coaching staff have met regularly with the players via video conference. "It just was happening all at one time. As we get our final grade reports, it looks like our guys did well, considering the circumstances."
With the semester finished, the Chippewas can now look ahead to the summer, the start of the '20-21 school year, and the season albeit with an air of caution because of the uncertainty.
Players Mentioned
Guard
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