I know what you’re thinking, and I agree wholeheartedly: I’m sick of this guy writing about basketball all the time.

There is a TON of hype already surrounding Steve Lavin and the men’s basketball program, and Anthony Mason Jr. got cut from the Miami Heat, and all this guy wants to do is talk about how interesting this year’s team is—a team, mind you, that isn’t even in season right now. To paraphrase the great Vince Lombardi, what the hell is going on in that guy’s head?

I agree with you. I do write about basketball a lot. Too much, even. Of all the athletics programs St. John’s has, I’ve been around the men’s basketball team more than any other in my time at the Torch, and as their beat writer, I’m going to be around them a lot in the coming months.

I should have written about soccer more than once, and I should have definitely tried to put the volleyball team’s rollercoaster ride of a season in perspective. I concede that, and I’m sorry.

I should have also done a better job of getting to more games this year—but in my defense, working two jobs (one on taking up both weekend days) and taking five classes affords me little free time, and certainly no free time when Dave Masur and Ian Stone’s teams take the field, and for that, I apologize.

But because of this, I’ve been able to take a step back and look at numbers and box scores — the bare essentials of sports, in essence—and try and come up with my own thoughts about the fall season, and I’ve come to one conclusion: the fall

season’s been kind of a disappointment.

The women’s soccer team is on a two-game losing streak and hasn’t won since a 1-0 home win over Seton Hall on Oct. 15, scoring just one goal in the last five games.

Despite pitching four straight shutouts, the men’s soccer team is 2-0-2 in those games, scoring only two goals over that span.

The volleyball team has lost seven of its last 10 games after a 12-3 start and has had too many sporadic individual

performances at inopportune moments.

People want happy news? Well, there hasn’t been much to report—except for, yes, the potential of a very good men’s basketball team this year. 

You want different news? Well, a potentially good men’s basketball team this year would certainly be different from the men’s basketball teams of years’ past, teams fans haven’t been too excited about.

But I’ll wager that you’re excited this year, right? I certainly am.

I find it sort of ironic in a way: the St. John’s sports fan has been spoiled with very good men’s and women’s soccer teams, as well as a top-notch volleyball team, for years now. What they haven’t had is a men’s basketball program that’s generated a lot of buzz.

This year, things are different—opposite, actually—and the same sports fan can’t get what he wants.

Not everyone can be world-class all the time. For every double-digit win season the USC football team has, its baseball team is reminded of past dominance in the Pac-10 and in the College World Series, and sometimes you need to take your sunshine with a little bit of rain.

By writing about men’s hoops and shying away from all the losing, I’m letting my reporters’ work stand on its own. I’ll let them tell you their stories the way they should be told.

And in bracing the rain, I’ll be the one to throw a bit of sunshine your way.