Raiders ready for tough region stretch

The Three Rivers College Raiders Men’s basketball team looks to pick up the pace as they enter conference play.

The Raiders recently picked up a 73-72 overtime win over West Plains to snag their first conference matchup of the season, improving their record to 9-8. Every team will go through a rough patch at some point during the season, but as the Raiders gear up to play tougher competition, head coach Brian Bess seeks more from his team.

“It’s been up and down, but we’re seeing some progress in certain areas,” Bess said. “We’re young and still trying to figure some stuff out, but we have to get in a better flow because region play is here. Getting wins within our conference is huge, so we’ve got to start playing better because this level of competition is different.”

Bess said the Raiders have gotten close to accomplishing a lot of goals that he set at the beginning of the season. He said the team’s competitiveness had grown tremendously over time, but it’s still not where he would like it to be. He hopes they will get there, but he wants them to continue working hard, and hopefully, the results will show on the court.

The Raiders are on a two-game winning streak and are 4-2 in their last six matchups. Anthony Sellars leads the offense for the Raiders on the court, averaging 12 points a game with six rebounds while shooting forty-three percent from the three.

Bess said Sellars has stepped up a lot for the Raiders and has done a little of everything on the floor to keep the team afloat in challenging game-time situations. Earlier this year, Bess said that the key component to having a successful season was having leadership on the floor. Sellars is one of the few who’s stepped up for the Raiders.

“Anthony has really grown with his overall confidence on the floor,” Bess said. “He’s been our best rebounder and has shot the ball really well. He’s really been playing well, along with some other key players, and I hope that will continue in our regional play.”

The other key players for the Raiders include Zyier Beverly, who’s averaging over 11 points and four rebounds while shooting over fifty-six percent from the field, Kyle Edison with 10 points, Faheim Meran with nine points and Caleb Young with eight points.

While the Raiders zone in on playing their toughest stretch of the season, Bess said the team’s thought process going forward is to be locked in and ready to go, noting that the games will get more intense and they must be prepared.

“The games are a little more important, and the competition is at its highest peak than any other game we’ve played so far,” Bess said. “I know it will be quite a challenge for us, so we must be better defensively and with our rebounding. Offensively, we’ve been pretty good. It’s just been the other end that’s been killing us, so if we can clean that up, we will be solid for the next half of the season.”

The Raiders are scheduled to host Moberly Area Community College (13-4) in their next conference matchup on Wednesday at 7 p.m.