I want to start out by sending my best wishes to WashU and Sean Wallis. Sean is a tremendous athlete and person and D3 basketball is surely not the same without him. However, I know that MIT and the rest of the nation expect success for WashU and a speedy recovery for Sean.

I would also like to thank Pat Coleman for getting me involved with the Insider Team. D3hoops.com is a great site with great coverage of the basketball that we all love.

I am from Littleton, CO so coming to the east coast was somewhat of a weather and culture shock for me. In MIT talk, I’m majoring in Course 15 and Course 8. At our school all classes and majors are given a number like 18.01 (Calculus). The students, faculty, and even coaches communicate with these numbers rather than the name of the class or major. Thus, when I say that I am a Course 15 and a Course 8 major it means that I am majoring in Business Management and Physics.

Here at MIT, basketball and academics create a rather interesting dynamic. First and foremost, recruiting is one of the big issues that our coaching staff has to deal with. Unfortunately (from my perspective as an athlete) our school does not grant any slots or point systems that help kids get admitted. The application process is essentially the exact same for athletes as it is for non-athletes which ultimately makes recruiting a difficult process.

Second, overcoming the stereotypes of an MIT athlete also proves to be difficult. I was no different from many of the prospects that set foot on our campus. I thought, “How terrible, nerdy, and socially inept is this team going to be?” Initially this was more of a rhetorical question but to my pleasant surprise, the basketball team and a good portion of the school transcends that stereotype.

I have come to learn that at most D3 programs, recruits often believe that the level of play in D3 is not very competitive. I would adamantly argue that the opposite is true. Once you play against the shooters in the NESCAC or the defense in the NEWMAC you realize the extraordinary talent at this level. We play for the love of the game, the competition, and the relationships that we develop with coaches/teammates/opponents. Recruiting simply becomes a matter of how well you can express and display these great attributes to a prospect.

Lastly, adjusting to the MIT rigor is one of the hardest things to do as a student-athlete. MIT is a place that encourages communication and group efforts. I was blessed enough to meet three amazing teammates and friends at the beginning of my college career. Bradley Gampel (Miami, FL), Brandon Suarez (Tampa, FL), and Bill Johnson (
Everett, WA) quickly became like brothers on and off the court. We have had countless nights in which we have worked on Problem Sets until the sun comes up. Without that group support, school can be unbelievably overwhelming.

As you can imagine, scheduling becomes a major issue as well. At MIT it is said that a student can choose two of the four S’s and excel at them or choose three of the four and perform at an average level. Almost all students would agree that it is basically impossible to do all four of the categories. The “S” categories are Sleep, School, Social, and Sports.

I truly believe that our team is committed to including Sports as a major priority and that this attitude will be reflected by our success on the basketball court this season. I am very excited to grow and develop as the year progresses. I expect this will be a very special year for our program.

Our season has started off on a decent note. Looking forward, we have a game on Tuesday against a very solid and undefeated Emerson team. After the game I’ll be back on this column to recap the first part of the season for our team, the recent close game with #1
Amherst, and touch on some of the topics floating around the D3 basketball community.

Take care and good luck!

-Jimmy Bartolotta