The most hyped-up team on campus at the moment is the boys varsity basketball team, and for a good reason. The team boasts an impressive 11-1 record, remaining undefeated on their home court. They have already proven themselves against tough opponents, but with plenty of games left on their schedule, there is still work to be done.
The team thus far has found nothing but success and, above all else, is thankful to just be able to play the sport they love in such an uncertain time. The team has already defeated some talented Class A teams despite being a Class B school, and those games have been fun tests to see where the team is at.
The team’s success thus far has not been from only one player or just the five starters, but rather from the entire team. “We have kept balance on our team in the sense that in every game we have played, we have had our starting five, and then our guys come off the bench, and both have won games for us,” Head Coach Brad Seaman said. “So it has never come down to just one person or the starting five.” The team is at an advantage as they play with a deep bench which allows them to go hard in practice and in games, and everybody is able to get better because of it.
It is no secret that the team has some powerhouse players like sophomore guard Rhandyn Bair, junior center Devin Wolff, junior guard Esco Greene, senior Co-captain and guard Chase Fountain, and four-star prospect, junior Co-captain and forward Gavin Griffiths. But it is clear that it is always a team effort when it comes to winning.
“A win for us has never been defined by one single player, but instead by the whole team,” Coach Seaman said. “Baier has had multiple games where he has had points in the high teens, Greene has had points in the high twenties in most games, Wolff was the KIT MVP, and Fountain has had double figures in rebounds and once had nine steals in a single game, which is almost unheard of.”
The team has certainly found their groove, and different players have stepped up and accepted different roles; lockdown defenders, scorers, rim protectors, and bench players are ready and willing to go in when needed. All together, the players create a true force to be reckoned with and exemplify how it never comes down to just one player, but instead the whole lot.
The most memorable game so far for the team was one that occurred early on in the season. For the first time ever, the team was participating in an exposure event at the Dana Barrel Center in Massachusetts for a showcase game. The arena was buzzing, crowded with scouts, coaches, and players as games were being played simultaneously.
The Wyverns were set to first tip off against a talented Phillips Andover team. “Andover was well-equipped with multiple Division I players,” Coach Seaman said, “and if you had asked the people in the gym who was going to win, they would have said Andover without a doubt.” Against all odds, the team came out strong and were up by 20 at the half. Andover put up a hard fight after halftime, staging a small comeback, but the Wyverns were able to hold them off and pull out a win. “No one there had expected us to win, and it was a pretty big stage very early on in the season, so it was a lot of fun for everybody and definitely set the tone for what was to come,” Coach Seaman said.
A season is never complete, however, without its fair share of ups and downs. COVID-19 has still been a real concern and issue for everybody and has impacted the team in many ways. The biggest challenge was losing the energy that comes with a fan section. After the KITs, COVID-19 cases within the school soared, and it was decided that it was best to limit crowds at games to try to lower the amount of cases.
“When we went from having fans to no fans, it brought back the reality that everything is fragile and that we should be appreciative of what we have,” Coach Seaman said. “It isn’t the same without the energy the fans bring but it reinforces that you should seize the moment and enjoy it because if things get a little worse, there would be no games at all.” The team has been conscious of this and is grateful that they at least get to continue to compete.
One of the biggest things the coaching staff has done this season is continue to preach that, when it really comes down to it, competing is all about the overall experience.“If practice becomes a job and if the games become solely focused on the guys playing, we lose the sense of team camaraderie, and it makes it that much harder and you end up hitting a wall pretty early on in the season,” Coach Seaman said.
To combat this, Coach Seaman focuses on how he can bring the team closer. “We went to the UConn game together, and the team sat behind the bench,” Coach Seaman said. “And after the KIT finals, we got pizza and watched NBA games, and players often go out to eat after practice. There is definitely a general friendship and camaraderie between the team, and it translates to the court, which makes practices and games run more smoothly.”
Something new the team did this year was have a fantasy draft for the coaches in which the team was split up and played for either Assistant Coach Peter Jones or Assistant Coach Ron Garcia in a friendly scrimmage, which prompted some entertaining banter and a lot of laughter from the players. Coach Seaman and his assistant coaches ask themselves the same question every single day: What can we do in practice today to make it more fun? The fantasy draft is what they came up with, along with some other ways to keep a lighthearted atmosphere, all while continuing to improve each and every day.
The biggest goal for Coach Seaman as the season continues is for the kids to have nothing but a positive experience while they are a part of the team. “You won’t see the results until after graduation, but when alumni come back, they had enjoyed their time here and take pride in having once been a part of this team,” Coach Seaman said. “I want them to have trusted our program and the school because this is their experience, and this is their four years.” Having the kids look back on their time on the team and know that the coaches truly cared about them and that they had fun while on the team is all that matters to the entire coaching staff at the end of the day.
Looking ahead, the team has a much bigger goal: to be ranked as a top seed in the Class B tournament. Eight teams out of around 32 are selected to play, meaning it is a tough competition. In the past for the tournament, the home court advantage went to the higher-ranked team for the first two rounds, and the third was held at an arena or college. This year, though, because of COVID-19, the higher-ranked team gets home court advantage the whole way through. The team’s goal is to be one of the top four teams so they are able to have the home court advantage and feed off of the energy and support the crowd gives. There is still a ways to go until then, but in the meantime, fans have been allowed back in the gym to cheer on the team. Friday night basketball games are back, and there will be some you certainly won’t want to miss!
