Willen elbows into lineup

Ryan Willen suffered 15 losses combined during his last three years of high school basketball.

He and his Lafayette College teammates have dropped 21 games this season, including Saturday's 75-68 overtime setback against American University.

"I can't really deal with it right now," Willen said during a phone interview from Easton, Pa. "I get pretty upset after we lose. Our whole team, we're not satisfied with losses. You can't really adjust to it.

"My grandpa told me, 'You know how it feels to lose, so you have to work that much harder so that you don't have to feel that way again.' I thought that was a great quote from him. It sucks to lose, and you have to do what you can to try to win."

Willen led the Notre Dame boys basketball team to the Class 4 state title a year ago, and he's already earned a spot in the starting lineup at Lafayette, which finished its regular season 8-21. He's started 15 of the team's 29 games and is fifth on the team in minutes per game.

"I was pretty excited when I got my first start," he said. "It was a confidence builder too, just knowing that the coach and my teammates have confidence in me that you're good enough to be in the starting lineup. Maybe that has something to do with why I'm playing better recently, too. I feel like I have more confidence in myself as well as the team."

Willen gained recognition for his recent play when he was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Week on Monday. He ranks third on the team in scoring, averaging 9.5 points per game. He's also the team's top 3-point threat, hitting 32 of his 84 attempts (38 percent).

Lafayette College Sports Information Department Lafayette College's Ryan Willen puts up a shot against Colgate during a game earlier this season.

"I think it's just been gaining confidence," Willen said. "I got thrown into a new system out here. The more I play in the system, the more I play with my teammates, the more I get used to where my shots come from and the different ways I have opportunities to score. The past couple of weeks, it seems I've been getting more and more opportunities to get shots up."

Willen often was double- or triple-teamed when he received the ball in the post during his high school career. He's thankful not to see as many defenders crashing toward him, but he said it doesn't mean it's easier to get off shots.

"I don't see as many double-teams, but I have more athletic and more talented defenders playing me one-on-one," he said. "It's another thing I've just had to adjust to.

"The help-side defense is so much quicker and people get to spots so much faster at the college level than they did in high school. Even if you beat a guy, you still have to make a play if you're going to get a basket."

Lafayette College Sports Information Department Ryan Willen launches a 3-pointer during a game earlier this season.

While Willen is finding his chances to score, he said the biggest transition has come on the defensive end. His 20 steals rank fourth on the team.

"I can't take plays off anymore," he said. "I feel like each game I'm going up against a guy that can score on me just as well as I can score on him, so you have to play every possession. You can't take 1 second off or you'll get scored on. I'd say that's the biggest difference."

Getting ready for games also has been an adjustment from his days at Notre Dame under coach Paul Hale. Willen said that the length and intensity of practices caught him off guard.

"Coach Hale practices, we'd have really intense practices for two hours or an hour and a half," Willen said. "But up here, it seems we go for three hours of every second intensity. With coach Hale practices, we'd play a lot more scrimmage, a lot more up and down. Here, it's five-minute drills after five-minute drills after five-minute drills, and we'll do that for an hour and a half. Then we'll have intense up and down workouts."

Willen, a biology major, is enjoying himself at Lafayette, which is located about 75 miles west of New York City. He said that while his classes are challenging and he doesn't have much spare time, he squeezes in some fun.

"I do miss my family and friends, but at the same time, I'm making new friends out here and just adjusting," he said.

One time where he said he really would miss being in Missouri was Friday night, when his alma mater, Notre Dame, took on Sikeston in the Class 4 District 1 title game. He planned to follow the game online.

He also sometimes thinks back to his time in Missouri, especially a year ago with the Notre Dame basketball team, after a tough loss at Lafayette.

"Sometimes after losses, I'll think back to what it felt like to win and to win that championship," Willen said. "But that's about it. I never dwell on it. I never think that's good enough."