A Step Back: Men’s Basketball Season Recap
Ocean County College Men’s Basketball came off a season where they clinched the playoffs and won a playoff game, and the team was going into the 2023-24 season with hopes that they would take a step forward and take last year’s momentum into this season.
I chatted with second year Vikings guard Dallas Weisse to take a look back on this past season and what his future looks like.
The Vikings took a step in the wrong direction this past season, going 10-15 overall with a 5-7 record at home, 4-7 on the road, and 1-1 in the Roadrunner Classic. Averaging 77.9 PPG, which was better than last year, but with a team shooting percentage of 41.9 and a measly 28.6 three point percentage, both a step back from a year ago, it’s hard to win games if you’re struggling to shoot the ball. When asked why the team regressed this season, Weisse said, “The biggest issue we had this year was holding teams to one possession. We would play great for 20-25 seconds then give up an easy offensive rebound to give away two points. We struggled with leads late in games that were crucial reasons for the big losses this season.” Of the 15 losses the Vikings had, seven of them were within 10 points, with three of those games going to overtime. If the team can win even four of those, this season’s outlook is completely different.
The Vikings will look back at this season as one to learn from. What did the team do right and what did they do wrong? “We played hard, communicated, and shared the ball well late in the season, but we didn’t execute one-and-done possessions and we didn’t shoot the three ball well,” Weisse said. With new players coming in next year, and some like Weisse playing his last season with the Vikings, the team will need to lean on some guys who are on the roster next year. Among those players are guards Dekari Harrell, Dylan Hall, Brian Starrett, and forward Brandon Farber. Each of these players all saw a good amount of time and will be able to carry that experience into next year and leave 23-24 in the rearview mirror.
After talking about the team, I wanted to hear what Weisse had to say about his season and what his future after OCC will look like. Weisse played in 24 games, averaging 13.5 points per game, 5.5 rebounds per game.and 2.2 assists per game, while shooting 38.2 percent overall, 31 percent from three, and 77.2 percent at the line. “I started to pick it up towards the end, but overall I thought I could have shot a lot better and been a little more consistent throughout the season,” Weisse said. His best games coming against Thaddeus Stevens and Luzerne County, he reached a season-high 25 points in those games.
With the basketball season in the past, Weisse looks to his future and what things could look like for him in the fall. “As of right now, I plan on staying at OCC for one more year to graduate before I decide to make a decision on playing somewhere else for two years. I’ve been in contact with a few schools, but as of right now, I plan on staying here for one more year to focus on academics,” Weisse said. With basketball done for now, he hopes to play somewhere else in the future and he definitely is talented enough to. For now, he will stay home and cheer his former teammates on from the sidelines next year.
When asked what he wanted to say about his time as a Viking, “It was a great two years with a lot of exciting wins here at OCC. Unfortunately, we didn’t make the playoffs this season like we wanted, but we finished the season strong, closing it out with three wins in a row which was a great way to end my career here. I wish all the best for the future athletic teams and their coaches,” Weisse said.
