SF State men’s basketball coach Bill Treseler said the key to any good team is the ability to rebound. Whether it’s in the paint or dealing with a loss, he said the fortitude and desire of each player has an impact on the team's success.

With the start of the 2006-2007 men’s basketball season just around the corner, the Gators are preparing to rebound from last year's disappointing season, in which they lost 19 conference games. This year’s team is looking to be competitive with an up-tempo style of play, emphasizing its depth at the guard position, and more importantly, a consistent defense that will be able to get after the ball and force turnovers.

“We’re going to hang our hat on our man-to-man pressure defense this year,” said Treseler, who is entering his second season as the Gators head coach. “We have some real good individual players who are capable of playing solid defense.”

Practice officially began for the team on Oct. 15, but their first regular season game isn’t until Nov. 15, a home match-up against Pacific Union.

The roster for this year’s team is new, with only three returning players, including two starters from last season, junior forward Kajahl Benes and sophomore small forward Will Logan. Logan is sure to be a major contributor, Treseler said, because of his athleticism and the threat he poses on the wing, which helps to spread out the opponent’s defense.

Last season, Logan averaged 10.4 points per game to go along with 5.8 rebounds a contest. With 49 assists and 30 steals on the year, Logan also showed off his versatility by starting the last 11 games for the Gators at point guard.

"I feel like I have a lot to prove after last year, so I'm really excited to get going," Logan said. "As a team, we're all working real hard to get better."

Logan said he has been preparing for this year since the moment last season ended.

"I just want to be the best player I can possibly be," Logan added. “I don't want to have any regrets, or make any excuses."

Treseler is particularly excited about two junior college transfers, one of whom is from Oceania High School in Pacifica. After graduating from Oceania, junior combo guard Dean Wilson played his last two seasons at Shasta College, where he started at shooting guard.

"I think this team is coming together as a unit," Wilson said. "The guys all really get along with each other, which will make it easy when we go on the road."

Wilson, along with Chabot College transfer, sophomore Jamil Mucheel, are likely to be in the rotation of starting guards, Treseler said, and both will be looking to force the tempo with their quickness early on in the game. The head coach pointed out that team speed is there, but how well conditioned the players are when the regular season begins will determine part of their success.

“The players have been doing a lot training on their own in the off-season,” Treseler said. “Coming into the season in excellent shape should give us a chance to get a good start.”

Mucheel, who was recruited by a number of division one programs before he chose SF State, thinks that team leadership will not be an issue.

"Will (Logan) has an idea of what coach Treseler likes, which I think is really important," Mucheel said. "We basically have a whole new team, so we need somebody who knows what the coach wants."

Another transfer player who hopes to be a big contributor for this year’s team is sophomore guard Alex Thomas. Treseler recruited Thomas during his previous coaching job at Dominican University in San Rafael. Thomas said the team has to play with a lot of tenacity, and make the most of their opportunities.

“We have guards with playmaking abilities," said Thomas. "Not only can they score for themselves, but they can get other people involved as well."

When the Gators are unable to get out and run in transition, their set offense will rely on solid teamwork and court leadership

“We also want to have the ability to break people down on the half-court, execute using screens while taking advantage of our intelligence and unselfishness,” Treseler said. “Our team will be relatively small, so we’ll have to play to our strengths.”

A class of ’82 Cal Berkeley graduate, Treseler was very successful in his previous coaching job at Dominican, where he guided the team to three consecutive California Pacific Conference Championships, from 2003-2005. He was named conference coach of the year for four of the five seasons he was there, and twice had his defenses nationally ranked (Division II) in the top five for points allowed.

Gators assistant coach John Weber, who played for two years under Treseler at Dominican University, is confident about this year’s team because he saw firsthand what the head coach did with a struggling program.

“Our first year at Dominican College we were pretty bad,” Weber said. “But after that, coach Treseler had his system in place and we won a lot.”

Treseler said a defensive mentality must consistently be there for the team, and that communication between the players is crucial. He adds that if the players take defense seriously enough, and make it a priority, then they will put themselves in the position to win.

Weber, who was also an assistant coach for Treseler at Dominican after he graduated, is in charge of the defense for the Gators. Weber looks for a combination of mental and physical toughness in a defender.

“Doing the little things on defense really matters,” Weber said. “Like taking a charge when they need to.”

This season, Treseler is looking forward to seeing the same level of support and enthusiasm he saw from the SF State fans last year.

“The fans were awesome last year,” he said. “We wanted to win for the people coming to the game and rooting us on.”