FARMVILLE, Va. – Family. Brotherhood. Together.
 
Three words that describe a common theme—connectedness—that has propelled Longwood men's basketball down the stretch of the regular season and into the 2024 Hercules Tires Big South Men's Basketball Tournament.
 
The Lancers are playing some of their best basketball of the season after winning four of their last six thanks to a connected, tight-knit group.
 
"Everybody likes each other," said All-Big South Second Team guard Walyn Napper. "We all have the same mindset, and get along well on and off the court, especially off the court. We always hang out together."
 
"We do have a chemistry on and off the court," said senior guard DA Houston. "The guys are always around each other, after practice, before practice, you know, group chats, we text to meet in certain places. It helps when we get in tense situations on the court."
 
The final stretch of wins came against a daunting gauntlet of a schedule to finish the season. The Lancers played the top four teams in the Big South in their final six games, beating the teams that are now seeded No. 1, 2, and 4 in this weekend's conference tournament
 
"This team really has great chemistry and connectedness," said Longwood Head Coach Griff Aldrich. "They really enjoy one another and believe in one another. I think that's been key to us playing some of our better basketball, and probably some of our better wins, in the past couple of weeks. I think in large part it is connected to how much they enjoy one another, and they're continuing to fight, which is really exciting to see. And they believe and know that they're a good basketball team when they put it together."
 
That connectedness provided a huge lift for the Lancers in their final home contest of the season against the regular season champ: High Point. With the game tied, High Point could hold for the final shot. But Houston's tough defense forced a turnover with precious few seconds left. The team knew the ball was going to be in Napper's hands for the last shot.
 
The result? An off-balance, last-second driving layup and a thrilling 74-72 win over the top team in the Big South less than 48 hours after a heartbreaking loss. The win provided an exclamation point to the team's run down the stretch to finish fifth in a highly competitive Big South race.
 
"We have an understanding of each other and if something goes wrong, we know how to approach somebody about it and help them out and get through it, get through any adversity we hit," said graduate forward Michael Christmas.
 
"Everybody has a good personality," Napper added. "When you know somebody has good intentions, you just connect with them well."
 
It's a chemistry focused around a common goal, and it is a chemistry built from before the season began.
 
"Everybody wants to be better, not only on the court, but off the court, and we really strive and push each other in different ways," said Houston. "Having that common goal, I feel like, pushed the chemistry along. Then this summer, that trip, I really think that helped us too. We got to know each other and being around each other more, doing different activities. I feel like that really helped with our chemistry."
 
The team bonded during their trip to Europe over the summer, with those bonds deepening as the season has gone along.
 
"I feel like we just had a connection, especially from the summer," Christmas said. "There was a new team, and these new faces, and then I felt like we all jelled really well over the summer and going into the preseason and practices and stuff like that. Definitely, over the season, we got more connected on the court just like how we were off the court."
 
Now, the team faces another test with the pressure cooker of the conference tournament before them.
 
"The atmosphere, the environment, the competitiveness, there's more at stake," Houston added about the excitement of a conference tournament. "I mean, the pressure is really on, and I enjoy being in that environment and having that pressure."
 

But it is a pressure that the team handles one way: together.
 
The Lancers face Winthrop on Friday afternoon at 2 p.m.
 
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