Three weeks ago, Husson College men’s basketball coach Warren Caruso wasn’t a very happy or satisfied man.

His Braves, one of the favorites to win the Sunrise Conference title this year, had just been upset 88-83 by conference rival University of Maine-Farmington at home.

Caruso said his team had a lot of improving and a lot of maturing to do if they were going to contend for, let alone win, a title.

Judging from the results of the last three weeks, the Braves have done both. Heading into a Wednesday night home game against Thomas College, Husson had won six straight conference games and gone 9-1 overall.

“The Farmington game helped the kids understand what we were talking about and point out the things we weren’t doing well,” Caruso said. “We’re not quite where we want to be yet, but over the last couple weeks, we’ve made significant strides and won eight in a row.”

The Braves are now in sole possession of first place with an 11-1 record and a one-game lead over Fisher College (8-2) of Boston.

Before Wednesday’s game, Husson was first among Sunrise teams in scoring margin (15.8 points per game) and scoring defense, second in field-goal percentage (44.4) and third in 3-point field-goal percentage (34.5), free-throw percentage (68.8) and scoring offense.

“We have a better understanding of strengths and weaknesses on the offensive end,” Caruso explained. “Everyone was trying to do too much and not relying on the balance we have.”

The Braves have gotten back to basics, emphasizing the concept of going from the inside-out on the offensive end.

Senior co-captain Randy Fletcher has been the prime beneficiary of that emphasis. The 6-foot-5, 230-pound forward is the conference’s third-leading rebounder with 166 in 20 games (8.8 rpg). The Braves’ leading scorer is No. 6 in the conference with 16.5 points per game and No. 2 in field-goal percentage (.613).

“We’ve been able to use our inside game more successfully, but we’re also able to make adjustments and have some other people step up if they shut Randy down inside,” Caruso said.

Senior co-captain Ryan Rivera has also been impressive with 13.5 ppg. The 6-1 guard from Bradford is also No. 2 in the Sunrise for free-throw percentage with 80.9 percent.

With five games (one against Fisher at home Feb. 22) and two weeks left in the regular season, Husson is poised to make another title run, but Caruso still isn’t complete satisfied.

“We’re in crunch time and our kids realize that as the veteran group they are,” said Caruso. “We really have to take another step as far as our level of execution and not take time off either mentally or physically.”

Leavitt gets a waiver

Former Piscataquis Community High School star Buddy Leavitt has returned to the college basketball courts a lot faster than he expected.

Due to an NAIA waiver procedure, Leavitt was cleared to play for NAIA Division II Husson College about a week after transferring from NCAA Division I University of Maine.

The NAIA has a residency requirement that requires a transfer student to be at his new school one semester before they can play for a team, but there are five waivers, according to head coach Warren Caruso.

“His waiver falls under the category that he was eligible at the school he left and he received a release from that school as well,” said Caruso. “The hitch is that he gives up a second year of eligibility.”

That means Leavitt is eligible to play the rest of this season plus two more before his athletic eligibility ends. That allows him the equivalent of 21/2 seasons at Husson.

“He’ll play in 12 of the 25 games we have, not including playoffs,” said Caruso.

In seven games, Leavitt has scored 59 points and grabbed 20 rebounds. He’s shooting 37.8 percent from 3-point range and 36.4 percent from the field overall.

“The best thing he does is shoot the ball very well, but what I’m real impressed with is his ability to know when not to take a shot,” Caruso said. “He’s becoming a very important part of our rotation now.”

NESCAC snubs ‘U.S. News’

The presidents of the 11 schools that make up the New England Small College Athletic Conference, including Colby College of Waterville, Bates of Lewiston and Bowdoin of Brunswick, recently voted unanimously to decline a request from U.S. News & World Report for detailed statistical information about the institutions’ athletic programs.

The magazine first told NESCAC members information was being collected in order to rank NCAA Division III athletic programs. U.S. News subsequently revealed it intended to offer the information on its Web page as a service to readers, according to a NESCAC press release.

The NESCAC presidents spoke out in opposition to this process, citing the conference’s commitment to providing “a balanced and proportionate approach to college athletics, one in which intercollegiate competition, intramural play, physical education and fitness programs are viewed within the context of a liberal education aimed at the development of the whole student.”

“Efforts by U.S. News and other enterprises to evaluate or rank our athletic programs raise serious concerns for us with regard both to the validity of such rankings and to their effect in influencing our own priorities,” read a statement by NESCAC presidents.

“We believe that the present ‘data collection’ process undertaken by U.S. News may well result in a publication that ranks college athletic programs. We are strongly opposed to such an undertaking.”

Robb, Rodgerson reach 1,000

Angela Robb of the University of Maine-Machias and Derek Rodgerson of Franklin Pierce College in Rindge, N.H., recently reached the 1,000-point marks in their collegiate careers.

Rodgerson, a Hampden Academy graduate, became the 24th player in Franklin Pierce history to score 1,000 with a first-half layup in a Feb. 5 win over Stonehill. The junior guard finished with 16 points to put him at 1,012 points.

Robb, a senior guard from Woodland, became the third woman in school history to record her 1,000th career point. She reached the plateau Feb. 6 with a 12 point-effort in a 69-61 victory over Thomas College of Waterville.

Tracy Kershner and Becky Tower are the other members of the Clippers’ 1,000-point club.

Machon honored by WNE

Monica Machon recently was named the Western New England College women’s tennis rookie of the year.

Machon, a freshman from Ellsworth, put together a 20-6 record (10-3 in singles, 10-3 in doubles) to help the Golden Bears post a 9-2 record.