Men’s basketball team adopts Academic Gameplan

By Jake Bragonier
Athletic Media Relations

With the first exhibition game on Nov. 4, Fresno State men’s basketball coach Ray Lopes is anticipating a great season heading into his third year with the Bulldogs.

Fresno State’s players have already received positive marks for their achievements in the classroom. With the majority of the Bulldogs enrolled summer school classes, the outcome was a combined 3.07 grade point average.

The men’s basketball team’s performance in the classroom has coincided with the Bulldogs’ adoption of the Academic Gameplan, an innovative study-skills program developed by Fresno State’s associate head football coach John Baxter. The program has reaped huge benefits to the football program, which boasts of 57 Academic All-WAC honorees since 1997, the second-most in the league during that time.

The Academic Gameplan has received favorable reviews from many high schools and universities such as Notre Dame and Arizona State, who have implemented the program in their athletics departments.

“We are continuing to place a strong emphasis on academics,” Lopes said. “I am proud to say we had nine players enrolled in summer school, and they did very, very well.”

Looking at the upcoming season, Lopes cites the players’ eagerness to get onto the court.

“This is a young, fresh group with a great attitude, tremendous focus and unusually good personal chemistry,” Lopes said. “The team will be faster and more athletic than last year. Our style will be aggressive and up-tempo. I’m looking forward to starting the season with high energy and then building on that strength as the team matures together. We anticipate a great season.”

Following exhibition games on Nov. 8 and 14, the 2004-05 season starts Nov. 19 with a home contest against Maryland-Eastern Shore. When the Bulldogs take the court, they’ll feature Mustafa Al-Sayyad, considered one of the WAC’s top returnees, and eight newcomers. Of that group, three are Fresno natives while four more hail from California.

Fresno State continues its tradition of engaging in community service projects. During a four-day period beginning Sept. 29, the Bulldogs were involved in three different community service projects, which included reading to children at a local elementary school, feeding lunch at the Poverello House and then helping celebrate the Fulton Mall’s 40th anniversary.

“Our community is extremely important to our basketball family and our athletics department,” said Lopes. “Having the opportunity to interact with our fans is something our coaching staff and players really enjoy. It is something that we've done in the past and something we will continue to do in the future.”

Along with the start of practice, there are two other notable dates on the Bulldogs’ calendar on the horizon. First is the annual WAC Basketball Media Day in Reno on Thursday. The Red/White Scrimmage is also around the corner. The annual exhibition, which serves as the public’s first chance to view the team, is scheduled for Nov. 4 at 6:30 p.m. at the Save Mart Center. The event will serve as the arena’s official one-year anniversary.

What follows is a challenging schedule that features 13 games against teams that played in the postseason last year. Non-conference contests against Oregon, USC and East Tennessee State as well as league matchups against NCAA participants Nevada and UTEP highlight the ledger.

“This certainly is a challenging schedule that will match us with some high-caliber opponents in the non-conference season,” Lopes said. “In doing so, it will prepare us well for a tough WAC schedule in a conference that is poised to surpass the success we achieved nationally last season.

“I see this team as one that is going to steadily improve as the year goes on. We will play hard every night, and we have a goal to be playing our best basketball down the stretch.”

For more information on the men’s basketball team, see www.gobulldogs.com.