By John DeCoste
KingsCountyNews.ca
Anthony Sears vividly recalls arriving at Acadia as a freshman in the fall of 2009. Five years later, his career with the basketball Axemen is complete.
“It’s amazing how quickly it’s gone,” Sears said. “It seems like just yesterday I was meeting Owen (Klassen) and the guys for the first time.”
Sears admitted to being “fairly heavily recruited” out of high school in Riverview, N.B., but says Acadia was in the mix from the start.
“I liked the idea of a small university town with a team with a future. I narrowed it down to Acadia and Bishop’s,” he said, “which were really similar schools, both in size and in terms of where the basketball programs were.”
In the end, Acadia’s academic reputation won Sears over, and he has no regrets.
“I now believe things happen for a reason,” he said. “I got to go to nationals three times in five years.”
Additionally, he also got to be part of a good program, make lots of good friends and earn a university degree.
“I’ve been fortunate,” he said.
Sears believes he has “grown, both as a player and as a person,” over the last five years.
“I did everything on my high school team. It was all on me, and I came here expecting it would be the same. It took a while to adjust, and it was a huge wake-up call,” he said. “I realized I couldn’t rely solely on my talent.”
Sears says he played ”a lot of roles over the years, which helped me learn to do a lot of things well. To an extent, I feel I’ve done that.”
Coming back from an injury during the 2012-2013 season, he willingly came off the bench to help the team win.
Program changes
One advantage Sears soon realized he had in his favour after coming to Acadia was that Owen Klassen was a member of the same freshman class. Their Acadia careers have paralleled and both became integral parts of the Axemen program.
“From my first year to now, our outlook as a program is completely different. In our first year, Owen and I had the green light to pretty much do whatever we wanted,” he recalled.
Over the next five years, ”the whole culture has changed, and the expectations have changed.”
From a team for which winning would have been a surprise in 2010, the Axemen became consistently among the best teams in the conference.
It’s not just the players, he adds. Five years ago, “we never used to do mental skills sessions, or have a full-time strength and conditioning coach. The overall expectation, in everything we do, has gone up.”
Head coach Steve Baur, Sears said, “has done a great job changing the culture. Now, we’re right there with some of the most successful teams Acadia has had. It’s the biggest change I’ve seen in the time I’ve been here.”
Sears says his role with the team has been “a little bit of everything.” Over the years, he had to “take on more of a leadership role,” especially in the dressing room.
On the court, he was seen as one of the top three scorers.
“I’ve been trying to help out more with the scoring load on a more consistent basis,” he added. On defence, “I’m our ‘go-to guy’, guarding the other team’s best player. I’ve taken on that role, too.”
Lots of support
Support from his family helped Sears become a better player and a better person.
“I’ve become closer to my family over the years, and their support has been great,” he said. “They’re the first people I call after every game, if they haven’t been there in person, which they often are. It’s been a great experience having them support me, not only with basketball but with school as well.”
As for his teammates, and particularly those, like Klassen, he has known the longest, “they’re absolutely friends for life,” he says.
“You come here, knowing you’re going to be playing sports, and you’re given your friends. I’ve made lots of friends I expect to be friends for life. We’ve become like a family, and we’ve created a lot of memories here together.”
One of the keys to Acadia’s success over the past three years is that the team had two legitimate starting lineups.
“Our bench was as good as a lot of teams’ starters,” Sears said, adding that he believes this past season has been his most successful.
“This year, everybody bought in, and checked their egos at the door,” he says.
‘There have been a lot of great players across the country who have never won a championship. The best teams have one thing in common – they play as a team and everybody buys in. It’s getting everybody to buy in that’s the challenge.”
Sears has pretty much completed his degree in recreation management, though he will need to return next year to finish up. It’s also possible he may get the opportunity to play professionally, as the NBL has shown some interest.
“I’ll either come back next year, or do online courses while playing pro if that’s what happens.”
As for his future plans, he is interested in marketing and the business side of recreation.
Whatever happens, he adds, “I’m not closing any doors.”
By John DeCoste
KingsCountyNews.ca
Anthony Sears vividly recalls arriving at Acadia as a freshman in the fall of 2009. Five years later, his career with the basketball Axemen is complete.
“It’s amazing how quickly it’s gone,” Sears said. “It seems like just yesterday I was meeting Owen (Klassen) and the guys for the first time.”
Sears admitted to being “fairly heavily recruited” out of high school in Riverview, N.B., but says Acadia was in the mix from the start.
“I liked the idea of a small university town with a team with a future. I narrowed it down to Acadia and Bishop’s,” he said, “which were really similar schools, both in size and in terms of where the basketball programs were.”
In the end, Acadia’s academic reputation won Sears over, and he has no regrets.
“I now believe things happen for a reason,” he said. “I got to go to nationals three times in five years.”
Additionally, he also got to be part of a good program, make lots of good friends and earn a university degree.
“I’ve been fortunate,” he said.
Sears believes he has “grown, both as a player and as a person,” over the last five years.
“I did everything on my high school team. It was all on me, and I came here expecting it would be the same. It took a while to adjust, and it was a huge wake-up call,” he said. “I realized I couldn’t rely solely on my talent.”
Sears says he played ”a lot of roles over the years, which helped me learn to do a lot of things well. To an extent, I feel I’ve done that.”
Coming back from an injury during the 2012-2013 season, he willingly came off the bench to help the team win.
Program changes
One advantage Sears soon realized he had in his favour after coming to Acadia was that Owen Klassen was a member of the same freshman class. Their Acadia careers have paralleled and both became integral parts of the Axemen program.
“From my first year to now, our outlook as a program is completely different. In our first year, Owen and I had the green light to pretty much do whatever we wanted,” he recalled.
Over the next five years, ”the whole culture has changed, and the expectations have changed.”
From a team for which winning would have been a surprise in 2010, the Axemen became consistently among the best teams in the conference.
It’s not just the players, he adds. Five years ago, “we never used to do mental skills sessions, or have a full-time strength and conditioning coach. The overall expectation, in everything we do, has gone up.”
Head coach Steve Baur, Sears said, “has done a great job changing the culture. Now, we’re right there with some of the most successful teams Acadia has had. It’s the biggest change I’ve seen in the time I’ve been here.”
Sears says his role with the team has been “a little bit of everything.” Over the years, he had to “take on more of a leadership role,” especially in the dressing room.
On the court, he was seen as one of the top three scorers.
“I’ve been trying to help out more with the scoring load on a more consistent basis,” he added. On defence, “I’m our ‘go-to guy’, guarding the other team’s best player. I’ve taken on that role, too.”
Lots of support
Support from his family helped Sears become a better player and a better person.
“I’ve become closer to my family over the years, and their support has been great,” he said. “They’re the first people I call after every game, if they haven’t been there in person, which they often are. It’s been a great experience having them support me, not only with basketball but with school as well.”
As for his teammates, and particularly those, like Klassen, he has known the longest, “they’re absolutely friends for life,” he says.
“You come here, knowing you’re going to be playing sports, and you’re given your friends. I’ve made lots of friends I expect to be friends for life. We’ve become like a family, and we’ve created a lot of memories here together.”
One of the keys to Acadia’s success over the past three years is that the team had two legitimate starting lineups.
“Our bench was as good as a lot of teams’ starters,” Sears said, adding that he believes this past season has been his most successful.
“This year, everybody bought in, and checked their egos at the door,” he says.
‘There have been a lot of great players across the country who have never won a championship. The best teams have one thing in common – they play as a team and everybody buys in. It’s getting everybody to buy in that’s the challenge.”
Sears has pretty much completed his degree in recreation management, though he will need to return next year to finish up. It’s also possible he may get the opportunity to play professionally, as the NBL has shown some interest.
“I’ll either come back next year, or do online courses while playing pro if that’s what happens.”
As for his future plans, he is interested in marketing and the business side of recreation.
Whatever happens, he adds, “I’m not closing any doors.”
