The Milwaukee Area Technical College Stormers mean plenty to city native Mason Johnson.
"It means a lot you know," MATC Forward Mason Johnson says. "We get to see a lot of people that we grew up with. And support one another. They come to our games. We go to their games.
Lance Allan asks, "What is it like to play for this team?"
"It's fun," MATC Guard DeMarco Clayton says. "Like every day, it's a new experience. All the guys. They locked in."
The Stormers are ranked 8th in the nation, and at one point as high as third. Despite the turnover, at a junior college.
"It's an ongoing process," MATC Head Coach Randy Casey says. "And like you said, especially now with the portal and everything at the NCAA level. It's making it more with the one-year guys now. We already had it with two where you were thinking you know it's a short period of time, and now they're just getting things figured out and they leave to go to a four-year institution. Now like you said, it's a lot of the one-year guys as well."
The Stormers are currently Division II, and would love to take it up a notch.
"Every year, we continue to get better," Johnson says. "Every year we continue to get higher-level recruits. Putting the school on the map is huge. We've gotten more funding, allows us to travel more."
But for now, they recruit the right athletes.
"We had a team GPA of 3.1 first semester, so they're not only doing it on the basketball floor, they're also doing it in the classroom," Casey says.
With goals of doing something they've never done before.
"Win a ring, for sure," Clayton says. "Win a national championship. Get one for Coach Casey. Bring one to MATC."
Lance Allan asks, "Tough to do but obviously, you guys are in the mix, at one point being third-ranked in the nation."
"Yeah, we're coming for it all!" Clayton exclaims.
For the first time, the Stormers had a game streamed live on ESPN plus against city rival Bryant and Stratton College. Clearly, the program and profile are on the rise.
