Since last year, the boys varsity basketball players have worked on playing at a quicker pace to produce more easy baskets and have worked on becoming a stronger defensive team. Their biggest weakness last year was a lack of consistency.  They would play well one game and then struggle in the next.

“We got on a pretty good run at one point during conference play, but we didn’t finish up the season on a very strong note,” said head coach Brian Nelson.  

Since then, the coaches have had opportunities to work with players in the off-season and take advantage of the time away from competition before the season starts.

“Our team has a great combination of talent and strong leadership,” Nelson said. “We have a very hard-working group of players who are committed to playing for each other. We will be strong defensively and play at a fast pace to take advantage of our deep roster. The combination of all those factors should set us up for success.”

The green days help with preparation for the season. They took a loss in their first game, losing Woodson 65-80. “Our defense was bad, our rebounding wasn’t great. Our offense wasn’t that good. We need to put more effort into practice such as working on defense and rebounding,” said senior Austin Jones.

In the second game the Rams came back strong and beat a good South Lakes team on the road. They trailed by as many as 18 points but fought back to win the game 63-56.

“We need to continue to focus on becoming a better defensive team, playing with more composure on offense, and making sure we give our best effort on every possession,” Nelson said. “We need to get our three football players up to speed with everything we have done so far and continue to develop our team chemistry.

“I believe we will finish with a better record than last season.”