By: Brody Baker / Co-Sports Editor and Aiden Hendrickson / Co-Sports Editor
The boys’ basketball team enters the season coming off a semi state appearance will have a lot of questions. They lost a lot of seniors and will look for players to step up this year. There will be challenges but they expect players to fill those holes.
“I think obviously me and Will Davison will be expecting to make a huge leap but from people coming up I think everyone will have to but specifically Eli Parrett. He’s worked hard this offseason and the results are showing. I also expect big man Sam Hirschy to step up. He was great for JV last year and this summer for varsity so expect some big things out of him. Then, just all the role guys Evan Study, Liam Atkinson, Carson Rush and then we got a transfer who I think can step up this year in Cael Butler, overall lots of people are gonna have to step up but they are all ready to prove they belong,” senior Evan Darrah said.
Expectations are high coming off a semi state appearance. They will look to replicate their success and continue to grow and be better as a team.
“The expectation is always the same, you want to get better as the year goes on. You want to be playing your best basketball in March and competing for sectional and regional titles. It may take a little longer to get there this year, but the kids are doing a great job practicing, learning new things, and so far, so good,” head coach Trent Whitaker said.
With losing a lot of seniors last year, the new seniors will have to step up and they expect themselves to be leaders and set an example as a role model.
“I think for me the biggest challenge is just stepping into that lead role, I have been a part of the program for four years now, I need to be the person that people can come up to and ask me how to run this play or what to do on things, I have to be able to put people in the right spots so they can be the best possible player but I’m ready for it and I’ve been waiting for the moment,” Darrah said.
The team chemistry has been in question with losing a lot of important players. The players think the team chemistry has been even better than last year with guys having to grow.
“The team chemistry got so much better by losing all the seniors because we saw that we had to come together as a group and come more closer with each other if we want to keep having success just by hanging out with each other off the court and on,” Sophomore Will Davison said.
Coming off a tough loss last year in a semi state appearance, there were a lot of lessons to be learned. Players have used it as a learning opportunity to not take everything for granted and also grow not just as players but as a person too.
“I think last year’s run taught me to enjoy every moment, I feel like yesterday I was playing my first high school game, and now I’m getting ready to start my senior year. It’s crazy, I’m just trying to enjoy every last moment with my best friends. Also, my last time playing for the town that I’ve been in for 18 years, I remember being little, doing the water boy stuff, handing the refs the waters. I thought that was the coolest thing and to now getting to be playing my 3rd year for the high school varsity basketball, it’s really what every little kid on the heat programs dream of so I just want to go out with something the community can remember and leave with something they can remember me for,” Darrah said.
