Even with tough Northwest Competition, the Linfield men’s basketball team currently sits in the top half of the conference. The Wildcats are ranked fourth out of nine teams and have a NWC play record of 6-6 and an overall record of 12-9.

“The season has been a constant improvement from game to game and has been going well so far,” junior Matt Woods said.

“We are playing for something bigger than ourselves. I feel as a group we have all come together and have tried to be our best day in and day out,” junior Jordan Clark said.

The Wildcats are led by head coach Shanan Rosenberg and assistant coaches Mickey Polis and Ryan Cali, who have really turned the program around into a competitive team.

“Our coaches really prepare us well all week in practice so by the time we play in games, situations just come naturally,” Clark said.

The men’s basketball team has had a fairly even number of wins and losses but is still in contention for the conference tournament. The Wildcats hope to finish out the season strong and reach their end of the season goals.

“Right now our goal is to finish the season strong and get into the league playoff to give us a chance to win the league title,” Woods said.

“Our goal is to play our best ball every time we step out on the court as a group. Whether that means we make the conference playoffs or not, as long as we feel and know we are doing our jobs successfully, we feel good about ourselves,” Clark said.

The NWC is lead by the Whits, who both sit in the top 20 among all NCAA Division III men’s basketball teams. Whitman claims the number one spot in the NWC with a record of 12-0, and the team is ranked second nationally. Whitworth is seeded second in the NWC with a record of 9-3, and also sits at eighth in the nation.

The next time the Wildcats will be on the court will be at Forest Grove where they will battle Pacific University. The game is set for 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 7.