UMD Men’s Hoops Equipped with Continuity Entering 2023-2024 Season

The Bulldogs return all their starters from last year's elite eight team.

DULUTH, Minn.- The UMD men’s basketball team didn’t have many nametags on at their first couple of practices.

That’s because the Bulldogs return all their starters from last year’s elite eight team.

They also have two others on the roster that have seen plenty of time.

Head Coach Justin Wieck say’s it’s been nice having a large amount of continuity. He added with that it means that they’re looking to go even further this year after a lengthy tournament run in 2023.

“Now it’s about trying to refine some of the things that gave us trouble last year, throughout the entire season. Our guys have done a great job of committing to trying to make the extra pass, get easier shots. We have so many talented players on our roster, sometimes we get a little bit iso heavy sometimes on the offensive end. Our guys have been really committed to trying to take that next step as a team,” said Wieck.

One of Wieck’s leaders that’s back in the fold is the NSIC preseason player of the year, Drew Blair.

“That’s definitely a part of it, on and off the court, kind of just being around these guys for so long. You definitely get tendencies of what they’re going to do. At the same time, we can’t just rely on we’ve been there before so it’s going to happen again. It’s a new team, it’s a new chapter every single year. So you have to turn the page on that. Definitely look back and take a couple of things from that and use that to our advantage. But at the same time, we have to come in with a new mindset, work harder and try to get back there and further,” added Blair.

UMD will open up the exhibition portion of their schedule November 1st against UW-Eau Claire.