By Adam Ovenell-Carter

Jeremy Lin has taken the sporting world by storm. Just when you think he can’t top himself, he does. He consistently puts forth unexpectedly amazing performances, and has a knack for the big-time play late in games. Hollywood couldn’t write a script like this.

Sound familiar? Not so long ago, this was Tim Tebow. But are they really that similar, as many have suggested? The short answer is no.

Tim Tebow was a first-round draft pick from an elite college program. Jeremy Lin wasn’t even considered for a college scholarship. Undaunted, he went to Harvard, as if it were his backup school or something. After graduating from Harvard, he went undrafted before bouncing around from team to team, before the New York Knicks finally snatched him up. Call Tebow an underdog all you want, but he doesn’t hold a candle to Lin.

Regardless of how he got to where he is now, Lin is here and making a statement. What that statement is has yet to be determined — who knows if Lin really is here to stay — but it’s fun to be a part of the process.

Everything has seemingly come together at the right time for Lin; it only makes sense this story would unfold in the Big Apple. And it’s all happening at just the right time for the NBA.

Tim Tebow was a big deal, and for good reason, but he added intrigue to a league that gets 135 million American viewers for its championship game. With the NBA’s relevance in the U.S. comparable to that of hockey’s, the league was desperate for a big story, and Lin handed it to them on a silver platter. He’s turned the NBA into a worldwide news story, and he himself has become a global phenomenon. People that generally care nothing for the sport are flipping over to whatever channel he’s playing on.

“Not often I’m switching off hockey for hoops but…Lin. Wow,” tweeted TSN’s NHL specialist James Duthie.

The staying power of the hype is tied directly to that of Lin: as he goes, so goes the story. But it’s more than that, really. As he goes, so go the TV ratings, jersey sales and website hits. Not in a long time has one (completely unexpected) player become so (in)valuable to the association.

When Lin-sanity finally subsides, which it inevitably will — whether he becomes a mainstay or fizzles out — the NBA will have had one of the most memorable stories of the past few years linked to their game and their league. That can only prove beneficial to a league that has been struggling to grab people’s attention.

Lin went from being an undrafted Asian-American guard out of Harvard, to claimed off waivers by the Knicks in December, to being demoted to and recalled from the D-league, pressed into duty to and sleeping on his brother’s couch, to one of the biggest stories in the world, all within the span of a week.

All that’s left for him to do is give a big public “you’re welcome” to the rest of the NBA.

By Adam Ovenell-Carter

With their 14-year odyssey through the NAIA ranks officially over, the Clan are set for a season unlike any before it. Competing fully as a member of the NCAA for the first time in the 21-year history of SFU women’s softball, the team enters the 2012 season ready to write a new story.

The Clan’s transition to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference means new opponents and new challenges, but the team’s storied history and impressive talent suggest they’re ready to meet them head-on. During their time in the NAIA, they captured four national titles and were thrice runners-up. They finished in the top-10 in the championships all 14 years and are led by a coach just six wins shy of 500.

Of course, none of that matters if the players can’t get it done on the diamond. However, that’s not likely to be the case, despite facing tougher competition. The team is deep, and led by eight returning starters — valuable experience the team lacked last year.

The team’s four seniors are headed by shortstop Leah Riske and first base star Kelsey Haberl. That’s no slight to fellow seniors Megan Durrant and Brittany Ribeiro, but Haberl and Riske have unquestionably been two of the Clan’s most valuable players. Riske is one of the team’s best all-round players, shining both offensively and defensively. Quick and agile, she plays the shortstop position well, but can also play a power game, leading the team in homeruns last year. Meanwhile, Haberl lead the team in almost every other statistical category, including hits and RBIs, while playing what head coach Mike Renney called an “overlooked, outstanding defensive game.” If the Clan hope to improve on their 6–12 record from last year, Haberl and Riske, along with Durrant and Ribeiro, will need to continue their strong play and use their experience to move the Clan forward.

It won’t be entirely on their shoulders, however. The walk-on phenom Cara Lukawesky will likely lead the Clan’s pitching staff again, and being the leader in most pitching categories, she’ll have to maintain, if not improve her game to keep the Clan afloat should the bats dry up. Coming out of the blue just two years ago, Lukawesky has steadily improved her game, and that’s not likely to change in her third year.

Fellow junior Lauren Mew returns to second base, where she shone so brightly last year. Steady as a rock defensively, her offensive game showed signs of breaking through last year and it very well could do so this year. Extra offensive contributions will be needed from everyone and if Mew’s offense heats up this year, it could prove quite a boon for the Clan. Two other juniors, both from Pickering, Ontario had quietly productive years last year, and could be poised for the same in 2012. The duo of Carly LePoutre and Rosie Murphy combined for 17 runs (with the former leading the team in the category), and, like the other returners, have the experience needed to help improve the team, now and in the future.

In just one year, the Clan went from a young and relatively inexperienced team to one full of practiced veterans. With the extra playing time under their belts, a team that was erratic at times last year, on both sides of the plate, will surely calm down and should be much more productive.

Given SFU’s provisional status as a member of the NCAA, the team unfortunately cannot play in post-season action. However, that will give tham more opportunity to focus on each game rather than looking too far ahead, which could prove invaluable when playoffs are an option.

Having already played a few out of-conference games to get warmed up, the Clan are poised to turn a few heads once GNAC play commences on February 25. And come that time, the Clan have the talent and the experience to keep right in the thick of conference play.

By Adam Ovenell-Carter

A win on Thursday night could’ve propelled the SFU women’s basketball team into the second seed in the GNAC standings. A loss could’ve sent them to sixth. That’s the way it is in the GNAC, and that’s the way it’s been all season: incredibly tight, where no team can be taken for granted.

Heading into the game, the Clan were sitting on a 9–5 record, while the Central Washington Wildcats were struggling at only 4–10 — but don’t think for a second that they’re a bad team. In this league, those don’t exist.

Nevertheless, with the playoffs inching closer and closer, one could’ve expected the Clan to come into the game with bigger things on the mind. But when one loss can drop you to the sixth and final playoff berth, there’s no bigger thing than the game at hand.

“It’s impossible not to be focused [on the game],” said guard Marie-Line Petit. “You have to be. With the conference so tight, you have to be ready to play.”

However, for large portions of the game, it seemed as though the Clan were lacking that necessary focus.

The team showed it early and played to an early lead, and looked like they might run away with the game early. A strong start forced the Wildcats to take a timeout and make a full personnel change just two minutes in. But every time the Clan looked like they were about to pull away, the Wildcats clawed their way right back into the thick of things. A back-and-forth first half ended with the Clan up 35–27, thanks in large part to the team’s inside defense. SFU outscored Central Washington 18–6 from inside the paint, but the Wildcats’ deep ball was firing on all cylinders, keeping the team in it.

In the second half however, things began to unravel a little for the Clan. The team committed just three turnovers in the entire first half, but had six in the first five minutes of the second alone. Foul trouble cost the Clan Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe’s services for longer than anyone would’ve hoped. Kristina Collins — arguably the Clan’s most accurate shot — finished just 4–11 from the floor. The team as whole shot only 14 per cent from beyond the arc, and while the team did rebound well, those missed shots often turned into points for the Wildcats.

The Clan are a talented enough team to succeed even when playing poorly, and for 57 minutes, they were doing just that. And for the final 10, it seemed like they were simply surviving. Eventually though, the team’s troubles finally caught up to them and Central Washington took a 66–64 lead with just over two minutes to play.

“We just rallied and stayed calm,” said Petit of her team’s mentality after trailing for the first time in the game. “We’re a good team, we knew how to get it back.”

And they did.

As if they had just been saving their best play for when they absolutely needed it, the Clan promptly stole the lead right back. With time ticking down, the Wildcats were forced to foul to salvage any chance at a win. Instead, the Clan finished 8-for-8 from the line in the final 90 seconds, which sealed the 70–66 Clan victory.

That the Clan didn’t put forth anything close to their best effort against a team below them in the standings is disconcerting. That they found a way to win in spite of it is critical. When the playoffs roll around in just a few weeks’ time, finding ways to win will be essential. The best teams know how to do just that, and while the win only moved the Clan into third, they’re not all that far from the top. And in a league like this, that’s no small feat.

By Adam Ovenell-Carter

With three star players graduating from the men’s soccer program, the Clan naturally had some roster spots to fill. Midfielder Josh Bennett, who recently tried out with the MLS’s San Jose Earthquake, along with defenders Carson Gill and Anthony DiNicolo, leave the Clan on a high note. The team had an incredible 2011 season, and truly were the toast of the NCAA Division II. Fortunately, the team is deep enough to withstand the loss of three prominent players and has a strong enough foundation to be a force for the foreseeable future. Of course, that starts with strong recruiting, and the Clan hope their four new recruits will help continue that trend.

Simon Cohen, Colin Jacques, Gilbert Kyne, and Tristan Wallis-Mayer are all high-end talents, and all local products.

“It is very rare for us in this day and age to find four elite players like this in our own backyard,” said head coach Alan Koch.  “As is consistent with our recruiting over the years we look local first before looking at any foreign talent.” It helps when the local talent is good enough to play on the best team in the league.

Cohen, a goaltender, joins a deep pool of keepers that will no doubt have much to teach him as he develops into a potential starter. That said, Koch says he already has many characteristics that cannot be taught.

“Simon has a lot of intangibles that you cannot teach. His desire and his height are major attributes in his position,” he said. “He is fortunate that he is coming into a very healthy goalkeeping situation. He will be able to learn from our senior keepers this coming season and I am confident that he will become the number one goalkeeper for us at some stage in his career at SFU.”

By that time, two of the other recruits might just be carrying the team offensively. Jacques is an explosive forward with big play capability, and can tear up opposing defenses. The dynamic striker is complimented nicely by well-rounded fellow forward Kyne, and together they could grow into a force up front.  As Koch puts it, they possess a “great combination of flair and strength to add to our potent goal-scoring game,” and given SFU’s already-lethal attack, the two should have plenty of material to learn from.

And while those two work their way into the Clan’s offense, Wallis-Mayer will be given his chance to grow into an anchor on the Clan’s backend. Wallis-Mayer, a lightning-quick fullback from West Vancouver, comes to SFU with no shortage of accolades. Having been a member of the B.C. provisional team twice, he has
big-game experience, which could prove valuable when playoffs become an option for the Clan.

Despite having three key players leaving the system, the Clan still sport few, if any, holes throughout their roster. Four freshmen might not see the field all too much, but it’s still a great time to be a Clan recruit. Right now, they have a great opportunity to learn from their peers that comprise the reigning number-one team in the NCAA Division II. That, coupled with four local talents, could mean the Clan will
stay in that spot for quite
some time.