As the first half of Central Valley Conference play draws to a close, the Merced College men's basketball team finds itself facing a crucial portion of it schedule.
While the Blue Devils' playoff chances are minimal, they have a solid shot at a top-three finish.
Sure, the players and head coach Bill Russell would much rather be in title contention, but third place would be quite an accomplishment for a squad that opened the season 0-8 and has been on the bottom half of the CVC standings the last two years.
The Blue Devils' next four games, starting with a home contest against West Hills tonight at 7 p.m., are an opportunity to distinguish themselves from the pack.
MC follows tonight's showdown with second-place Sequoias (4-1 CVC), last-place Porterville (0-4) and third-place Columbia (2-2). All three will come on the road.
The task will be mighty, to be sure.
The Blue Devils (2-3) already have losses to COS and Columbia, but both were winnable games.
The key for MC moving forward will be effort.
Anyone who has seen the Blue Devils play this year knows that hustle is one thing that hasn't been lacking.
Now they need to focus that effort.
Russell's squad isn't a particularly gifted offensive team, so they need to compensate.
Tamar Moultrie, JerMichael Williams and Fred King are good offensive rebounders and will be called upon to get points that way.
The Blue Devils also need to maximize their possessions.
When you don't score a lot, you need every shot you can get.
MC has been plagued by forced or lazy passes.
With the way Blue Devils plays defense, if they cut their 19.6 turnovers a game to around 11 or 12, they'll give themselves that all important shot to win.
The Lady Devils aren't quite to the midway point of the CVC season, but are faced with a similar crossroads.
Allen Huddleston's squad failed to hold a four-point lead with 30 seconds to go against Sequoias, putting their playoff hopes in doubt.
The Lady Devils are currently tied for third in the CVC at 1-2, staring up at Fresno City College (3-0) and Sequoias (2-1).
Unless there is a massive upset by COS in Fresno tonight, MC still controls its own fate.
There can be no more slip-ups, however.
The Lady Devils close out the first half of conference play this week at Taft (1-2, 7-12) tonight and at home against Reedley (1-2, 9-10) on Saturday.
Huddleston's main concern entering this pivotal stretch is his squad's struggles with putting two good halves together.
To avoid this, MC must attack from start to finish.
Huddleston's guards need to stay aggressive, both in pushing the ball up the court and in knocking down open shots.
On the interior, center Linda Murray needs to work harder. The freshman has produced consistent double-doubles almost entirely on talent.
If she can add a little ferocity to her game, the Lady Devils could be a team to be reckoned with come playoff time.
Both MC basketball programs have reach points where one misstep can be the difference between a successful campaign and disappointment.
They've shown promise in spurts. Now it's time to cash in on it.
Sean Lynch is a Sun-Star sports writer. He can be reached at 385-2476 or via e-mail at slynch@mercedsun-star.com.
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