Standings Update

different outcome,” said guard Connor Kochera ’24.

After a valiant effort that culminated in a disappointing yet unsurprising result, McKillop was far from hopeless about the direction of the program. The head coach, for one, didn’t have specified personal goals for the season, but “wanted to become better every day at trying to lead this program and help our players. I wanted our team to improve throughout the year to be at our best when the postseason arrived, and I wanted to cultivate a strong environment and relationships with our players that made them believe not only in their own abilities, but in consistently holding up the standards of our program.”

The players echoed these sentiments.

“I felt like the team got better as the season went along. We started to gel more and guys felt much more comfortable in the Davidson system and executing our principles more consistently,” expressed forward David Skogman ’24.

Indeed, that chemistry was clear during the ’Cats’ hot stretch of five wins in six games leading up to the VCU clash after a seemingly insurmountable 4-9 start in A10 play. Kochera agreed with his teammate: “Our team seemed to be making major strides toward the end of the year. We had a lot of new pieces (via transfer and incoming firstyears) and by the end of the season everyone was a lot more comfortable playing with each other…I would say the most important things are details and toughness. Those two things have been staples of the Davidson program for years and I believe that they will be even stronger next season.”

Loyer is the only graduating player. The combination of a strong core of skill and leadership among the upperclassmen and the continued development of younger players is suggestive of improvement for a program coming off a transformative year under a new coach and after considerable roster turnover. McKillop spent the 10 days after the loss to VCU meeting with every member of the team.

“Those conversations make me excited for what everyone on our roster can do next season,” McKillop said. “It was exciting to see [first-years] Reed Bailey, Sean Logan, and Achile Spadone play their best basketball in March. It was encouraging to see, with two months of practicing with the team, the talent that [incoming first-year] Hunter Adam and [Villanova transfer] Angelo Brizzi will bring to the floor as newcomers. Whatever the role may be or how the minutes will be distributed, I believe that those in our locker room will do whatever is asked of them to help our team improve and compete for a championship.”

It may be a few more years until the ’Cats regain their position as the class of the conference, but there is reason for positivity heading into next year.