While his seven-foot frame might be the most apparent attribute of basketball forward Mike Kurtz, his ability to settle into a new city, a new school and a new team simultaneously is the true proof of his merit as an athlete. The sophomore walked off the University of California, Davis campus straight onto the court at Chase Gymnasium this season and has averaged 11.6 points per game in his 10 appearances.
Kurtz’ experience with Biola athletics has not been vitally different than at UC Davis, but the new atmosphere has been a positive change.
“Biola doesn’t seem like a business where UC Davis did feel like a business, where I was just a pawn to someone higher up, a way of making money,” Kurtz said. “But here it seems like the coaches and the people here really care about us on and off the court, as people and players.”
Young team coming together well as season moves on
Biola’s varsity team is notoriously young; head coach Dave Holmquist has had the challenge of grooming a team without any returning athletes. Kurtz feels the team is coming together as the semester progresses.
“I definitely feel like a family. We’re pretty much all brand new as a team. Building team chemistry takes a long time,” he said. “We’re slowly getting closer as a team.”
The answer to fostering a unified team is simple, according to Kurtz: time.
“We work hard together, we give blood, sweat and tears out on the court. You’re going to get closer to anyone when you spend so much time together,” he said.
Kurtz’ impressive height is nothing to ignore. It certainly contributes to his 6.3 rebounds per game. He is the tallest player on the Biola basketball team as he was on his previous team at UC Davis. Holmquist factors Kurtz’ size into his roles on both offense and defense.
Kurtz's game fits in well with rest of team
On defense, Kurtz blocks shots and protects the key. His field goal percentage is .544. On offense, he is working on getting in the post more and working the inside-out game, something he calls a “work in progress.” As helpful as his height can be on the court, Kurtz doesn’t feel his overall game differs a great deal from his teammates’.
“I’m still turning the same distance, I’m still having to do basically the same thing,” he said.
With finals quickly approaching, students across campus are starting to sweat. Kurtz feels he has plenty of practice dealing with the heat of balancing school and basketball.
“If you ask the freshmen,” he said and chuckled, “I’m sure they would have a different answer.”
Still just a sophomore, Kurtz has plenty of time before he will be forced to make big decisions regarding life after his tenure as an Eagle. In the past, he has considered basketball a job to help him on the course to college, but not playing last year allowed this year to refuel his passion for the game. Kurtz would love to travel the world playing overseas, and use his marketing management major working for a company like Nike or Adidas.
