In athletics, difficulties tend to arise in times of transition. In professional sports, we witness these changes occurring through ownership, team identity, and even coaching staff. Regardless of the transition, change always has a significant impact on the culture of a sports team. Ultimately, it is up to the entire organization to determine whether the transition results positively or negatively.
For the University of Massachusetts Boston Men’s Basketball program, transition is a word that rarely is mentioned. Since the introduction of the program in 1981, Beacon Basketball has only had one man overseeing basketball operations; Vice Chancellor Charlie Titus.
In Titus’ tenure as head coach, he was an instrumental figure both on and off the court. Titus was involved in almost every aspect of the Dorchester community. Now, as the new head coach, Jason Harris takes control of the reigns; he is tasked with the challenge of establishing his own culture within the basketball program.
Despite the difficult challenge, Coach Jason Harris is far ahead of schedule. In his first ten games as a head coach, Harris has accumulated a record of 5-5 overall and 1-1 in conference play. In a season labelled as a rebuilding year, Harris has completely shattered expectations, revealing that UMass Boston is much closer to becoming a contender than critics thought. 
“We have a solid core of young players. Our team is taking the schedule day by day and just trying to build off of each game,” said Coach Harris. “We have improved some things already for this season, but ultimately we are building something for the long-term.”
While this season is termed as a year for “building” up prolonged success, it still has the potential promise of yielding immediate results. Now that the December schedule is over, the Beacons are moving in stride into their January schedule. If they can maintain the same level of success, the Beacons could be a top threat within the Little East Conference.
In UMass Boston’s most recent game, the Beacons faced up against a conference rival, Keene State. UMass Boston starters Dan Powers and Maurice Magras helped propel the Beacons to their first LEC victory, 77 to 70. Magras had a stat line of 16 points, four rebounds and three steals, while Powers had 13 points, four assists, and 12 rebounds. Michael Campbell also provided an exceptional performance off the bench with 26 points, 13 rebounds, two assists and one steal. This was Campbell’s best game of the season. If he continues to perform at this level, the Beacons will be a tough matchup for LEC competitors. Hopefully Campbell can sustain his play and aid the team in reestablishing UMass Boston as a top team in Massachusetts.
Coach Harris only had compliments for his squad following the tight victory. “Going into the match, I had a good feeling because of how intense we were yesterday,” said Coach Harris. “We tied it back up and just said hey man we’ve been here, we’re still dealing with adversity. We knew [to] just keep playing hard… just keep knocking on the door. Eventually, they’ll let you win.”
Under Coach Harris’ guidance, the Beacons’ squad is destined for success.  The big question is, can Harris bring an LEC Title back to UMass Boston? The last NCAA appearance and Conference Tournament Title was in the 2005-06 season.