After taking over the MWC basketball program in 1996-97 and leading it to one of its best seasons ever, MWC head coach Rod Wood was challenged with raising the bar again in 1997-98. Unlike the year before, MWC didn't have the opportunity to "sneak up" on its opponents, as other teams in the region began to take notice of the potent Eagles attack. MWC played a tough schedule that included 15 away contests, including Division I Campbell University, and four NCAA Division III Tournament teams from the past two years (Washington MD, Salisbury, Goucher and Catholic).
Leading the way for the Eagles was first team All-CAC forward George Bunch (Lynchburg, VA/E.C. Glass), who led the team and finished second in the CAC in scoring (20.0 PPG), and led the league in rebounding for the second straight year (10.9 RPG). Bunch was named All-State and All-Region (the Eagles' second selection in as many years) as well. Bunch also became the tenth player in MWC to score his 1,000th career point, in the home finale against Salisbury State.
The Eagles' all-junior starting backcourt of David Love (Springfield, VA/West Springfield) and Burt Burroughs (VA Beach, VA/Cape Henry Collegiate) averaged 9.2 and 11.8 PPG, respectively, and combined for 70 steals and 288 assists. Love's 190 assists led the conference, and placed him among the top ten in the nation in that category.
Senior Erik Bursch (Vienna, VA/Marshall) scored 7.2 points and hauled in 6.5 rebounds (third place in the CAC) in his final season. Other contributers for MWC included freshman forwards Craig Emmerton and Toler Cross (combined 6.4 PPG, 5.1 RPG), Branan Burde, senior guard Mike Prensky, and frontcourters Paul Stoddard, Stockton Banfield, and John Steele.
In 1998-99, the Eagles will play another top-notch schedule, including games against CAC foes Goucher, Catholic, Salisbury, and non-conference opponents like Frostburg, Wesley, Washington MD, and Gettysburg. The Eagles will rely on the leadership of three seniors (Bunch, Burroughs, and Love), the improvement of the underclassmen, as well as the talent of one of the top recruiting classes in years to lead them back to the top of the Capital Athletic Conference and
into the NCAA Tournament.