The boys basketball team will play their first official game of the season on Nov. 21 against Winnebago Lutheran Academy. After making it to the second round of playoffs last year, their season came to an end with a record of 15-11. The team graduated three seniors, all of which had a considerable amount of playing time. However, that does not seem to be a concern for the upcoming season. 

“We have a few returners with considerable varsity experience so it’s their turn to step up and be leaders. From coaches to players, we all have a responsibility to take a step forward and embrace new roles,” Head Coach Jeremy Mercer said. 

In their off-season the team has worked to build their connections both on and off the court. 

“In the off-season we mostly focused on playing together and building team chemistry. We did this through playing many summer league games as well as a couple tournaments. We also had open gyms throughout the off-season,” senior guard Brock Wilde said. 

Wilde is a returner this year after leading the team in scoring last year. Junior point guard Aaron Bartol will also be returning after leading in assists and steals per game last season. Bartol is confident that the team has all the pieces they need to accomplish a successful season. 

“Our goal as a team is obviously to win conference and win as many basketball games as possible. We had a great last season that ended shorter than I would’ve hoped. I never like losing games, and losing a game that we had a lead in never feels good,” Bartol said.

With returners also comes some newcomers. Sophomore center Hayden Redington played on the freshman team last season while still suiting up and getting some minutes on varsity. With the loss of the seniors Redington is prepared to adopt a heftier role.

 “In order to adjust to the loss of our seniors I, along with others, will have to take on a bigger role this season. This season I would like to practice to be more aggressive off the ball,” Redington said. 

With their first game coming up quickly they are planning to go into the game with what they know to be true from their last meeting with WLA.

“We have played them each of the past two years so there is some familiarity there to lean on. We will watch and break down film to prepare a game plan heading into that one,” Mercer said. 

With their plan in place the team is prepared to work hard to achieve their goals.

“I think we have a lot of potential this year and I’m excited to see what we can do. Winning is obviously a goal I have for us but I also believe that we can win a conference championship and that’s the real goal I’m looking to reach,” Wilde said.

The boys will scrimmage Lourdes Academy tonight at 4:30 p.m. at home.