Coaching staff overhaul has Seahawks ready to soar

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — After years of struggling both on and off the court is this the year that Buzz’s boys put all that behind them and turn the UNCW men’s basketball program around.

The question on every Seahawk fan’s mind is how the team will replace one of the best players the program has ever seen.

“You don’t replace Keith Rendleman,” said head coach Buzz Peterson. “I don’t know if I’ve ever coached a finer offensive rebounder.”

After losing Rendleman to graduation, Coach Peterson is turning over a new leaf in hopes of having the programs first winning season since the 2007-2008.

“I’m hoping Cedric Williams can step up and take charge down there,” said Peterson. “I think Cedric sometimes had the approach where he let Keith do his thing. We want Cedric to have the mindset to take over and be the man down inside.”

One area where the Seahawks hope to be vastly improved is in the backcourt where inconsistency will no longer be tolerated by the coaching staff.

“We’ve got some competition there,” said Peterson. “One thing that competition does to you is you’d better bring your best every day in practice and if not that next guy is going to slip up and take your spot so I believe that competition is going to help us out a lot.”

But the most improved area of the team may be the coaching staff. During the offseason former division one head coaches Houston Fancher and former UNC-Asheville coaching legend Eddie Biedenbach were hired as assistants, adding a wealth of experience on and off the court.

“We have to get smarter and we have to work harder even though we’re working very hard and harder than they have in the past based on what some of the managers and some of the other coaches say but I believe we’re going to be good,” said assistant coach Eddie Biedenbach.

You can get a look at the 2013-2014 Seahawk’s men’s basketball team on Friday at Midnight Madness, which kicks off at 9:30 P.M. inside of Trask Coliseum.