OGDEN -- Good things don't happen just by coincidence.
That's the philosophy of Weber State basketball coach Randy Rahe, who points to the extra time spent by his players in the gym shooting free throws, jumpers and 3-pointers as to why the team has had success this season.
The Wildcats (13-7, 7-1 Big Sky Conference) are alone atop the league standings midway through the league season, and play host to Sacramento State on Friday in the team's only game this week.
Damian Lillard's 36-point performance in WSU's win over Eastern Washington on Saturday was the latest example, but by far not the only instance, of a Wildcat's extra work paying off.
"He has a game like he had the other night because of the time he spends here," Rahe said, noting that Lillard is the ultimate gym rat. "Guys who don't spend time in here aren't going to have games like that. It just doesn't work out that way, and the basketball gods won't allow it."
It isn't just Lillard who has benefitted from finding time to get extra shots in. You can go down the Wildcat roster and find examples of players who find extra time during their busy days to work on their game. Whether it's in-between classes and study halls or before or after practice, the Wildcats love spending free time getting better.
That mentality is something the younger players learn from the veterans.
"From the very start, even in the offseason into the early practices, we kind of made it a standard to come in and work hard," said WSU senior Steve Panos, who is taking 18 credits this semester and still finds time to shoot in the gym. "I think the senior leadership and other leadership from the players have instilled that into everyone's minds."
Lost in the wake of Lillard's career game were the performances of Lindsey Hughey and Trevor Morris, who Rahe said had been struggling shooting the previous weeks but did something about it.
Hughey shot 5-of-7 from 3-point range while Morris shot 5-of-7 from the field and 7-of-8 from the free-throw line.
Franklin Session also showed earlier this season that extra work in the gym pays off as he has improved in areas such as free-throw shooting.
Rahe said he has a team full of players who want to get better. Starters Nick Hansen and Kyle Bullinger have spent a lot of extra time in the gym, and Rahe said he expects that to show soon. Darin Mahoney, one of WSU's top players off the bench, has been working on his jumpers as do reserves Matt Washington and Josh Noble, who may not get a lot of time on the court during the games but find time to get in some extra work.
"It just comes down to if you really want to do it," Panos said. "If you want to be a good player then you'll find time, you'll make time. There's always time throughout the day, in between classes, before practice, after practice."
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