By: Paul Muyskens

 

The time has finally come for the Delta College men's basketball team to take the court for a game that counts and the excitement is off the charts as they head to San Jose this afternoon to take on San Mateo at the San Jose City Tip Off Classic as they will play three games over three days.

"There will probably be a lot of rust, coaches included," said head coach Richard Ressa about the upcoming season after having last season canceled because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

"We know there is still going to be some pitfalls that may still happen along the way but we are just excited to get back out on the floor and start playing," said Ressa.

Jaedon Malone and Gabe Alcaraz are the team's leading returning scorers as they both averaged four points a game as freshmen back in 2019.

With just a few returning players from two seasons ago, there are some question marks but they are exciting ones as the team's strength is expected to be its depth.

One of those new players is 6'9 freshman Vincent Olmo from Ripon, California.

"We expect to win league, hang up a banner, and go on a deep playoff run," said Olmo about the team's goals for the upcoming season while he will be looking to be a force inside, grab a bunch of rebounds, and be a good teammate.

"I'm excited for the season to get going," said Olmo. "After high school, I had surgery so I was out for a year and then the covid year so I haven't played a real basketball game in two and a half years."

After opening the season at the San Jose City Tip-Off Classic with three games the Mustangs will play at Canada next week before playing their home opener on Tuesday, November 16th against Yuba.