Emily Leighton | Staff Writer

The Buena Vista University (BVU) men’s basketball team is back at it again. Practice has begun and games will soon be underway. This year’s seniors are ready to go and ready to put up a fight.

Here are your 5 senior men’s basketball players and their thoughts of what they would like to see happen this season.

Kyler Huisman, a guard, will see his first year of significant varsity time this season.

“I want to see our basketball team work hard and focus on getting better each and every day. I hope to see that hard work pay off with a conference championship,” Huisman said.

Forward Sam Lipps will also see his first year of significant varsity time this season.

“I’m looking forward to another memorable year with my best friends. I also can’t wait to show the Beaver faithful what we believe our team can do this season,” Lipps said.

Nick Clark, a guard, will be a significant contributor on the court for the Beavers for the fourth year.

“This year is going to be a very exiting year for us as a basketball team. We have a lot of new guys playing this year. We as a team are looking to play fast and efficient. We should be a very fun team to watch. I am excited because these guys on the team are honestly my best friends. Our goal is to win the conference championship. It would be a dream come true to play in the national tournament. I believe all of us will make sure we do everything to make that come true. I am looking forward to playing with this group of guys. I think the fans will enjoy our style of play. RollBeavs,” Clark said.

Guard, Bobby Ivey will also see his first year of significant varsity time this season.

“I am hoping to see us continue to get better each and every day as a team so that we are playing our best toward the end of the year come tournament time. I hope we can achieve another regular season conference championship, as well as win the conference tournament and then see what happens in the national tournament. I believe our team has a lot of talent, skill, and chemistry, and we can achieve many great things this year,” Ivey said.

Jarod Juhl, a forward, will also see his first year of significant varsity time this season.

“In terms of experience, we are a very young team, but we have a lot of basketball skill. I’m looking forward to us being a very competitive team this year. We have put in a lot of hard work already and I am excited to see this work pay off as we begin our chase for another conference championship and being tournament champions,” Juhl said.

Head Coach Brian Van Haaften has high hopes for his team and is expecting a lot from his 5 senior leaders.

“Our 5 seniors are the type of leaders that all the younger guys will fight for. All the underclassmen know this is the seniors’ last season and they will give everything they have to make sure they do their very best everyday for them. Most of our seniors have been behind the scenes in this program. This is their year to make it a great finish on their terms. We can’t wait to see how it all goes,” Van Haaften said.

The Beavers will open play on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 4 p.m. here in Siebens Fieldhouse against Nebraska Wesleyan.

Photo by Taylor Staab