Behind the excitement of what takes place on the basketball court is a lot of hard work. At least that is what Almin Hodzic of Mt. Olive has learned from his two years on the CCM basketball team.
“The most challenging part of playing basketball is the work that you put in before the actual games,” Hodzic says. “Like all the pre-season conditioning and weight lifting. You have to commit yourself to eating right and exercising right to be ready when the game is called.”
But all the hard work is worth it.
“Basketball appeals to the competitive nature in me,” Hodzic says. What he particularly likes is that team sports offer an opportunity to form friendships with people around campus that he otherwise never would have gotten to know. “Your teammates become your best friends because you win together and you lose together and you’re around them every day. You get to know what they are thinking and feeling. It becomes like a second family. That’s what it’s like with our team.”
One exciting experience he and his teammates shared this past year was a double-overtime game with only four players - that’s one player short since teams usually have five players. “We started with six players, but one got injured and I got fouled,” he recalls. “Somehow we pulled it out and won. It was one of those things that you never expect to happen and will probably never see again.”
At an imposing six-foot, nine-inches, he is usually called upon to play either the center or forward position on the team. “I’m a pretty well-rounded basketball player,” he says. He is especially good around the basket, rebounding and playing offense.
Hodzic is studying criminal justice and hopes to pursue that degree and play basketball at a four-year college. Born in Bosnia, his family moved to Morris County when he was three, after the war there ended, and they have lived here ever since. He wants to stay in New Jersey and is looking at colleges in the tri-state area. His coach is reaching out to contacts at four-year colleges to help Hodzic with the transition from CCM.
“Basketball has helped me a lot,” he says. His first year on the team, the season began with ten players and ended up with seven. This year, the team ended up with only six players.
“I never thought I’d be playing college basketball,” Hodzic says. “It has helped me as a player and as a person because I didn’t even think I would be on the team. Now I’m the captain of the team and it’s taught me to be a leader.”