It’s not too often that a coach has to tell a player that he’s working too hard. Then again, it’s not too often that a player like Keegan Hyland comes along.
The 6-foot-4 sharpshooter is entering his senior season at South Portland High. He’s led the SMAA in scoring the past two seasons and is the No. 2 ranked college prospect in the state (and the only one in the top five that is not on Lee Academy’s prep team), according to New England Recruiting Report.
He has a number of scholarship offers from Division I college programs on the table, and is drawing interest from some of the top programs in the country. With a good performance on his MBR 17-and-under team at the AAU Junior National Championships later this month, Hyland will undoubtedly receive more offers.
To get to this point has taken plenty of work.
“He’s a driven young man,” MBR coach Carl Parker said before a recent practice at Bates College in Lewiston. “His workouts are legendary. As a matter of fact, oftentimes when we talk, we’ll talk about maybe taking a day off. A day off to him might be taking 500 shots – 500 makes, that is.”
“(Coach Parker) and my dad are big on me taking days off,” Hyland said. “I don’t really like it.”
Hyland said he gets up at 5 a.m. to begin his workouts, which will stretch throughout the day. Generally, he starts with 150 made shots. Then he does some strength training – pushups, core work, running, jumping – for 45 minutes or so.
“I was lifting a lot in the spring, but I think that screwed up my shot a little bit, so I’ve tapered off lately,” Hyland said. “I’ll probably get back into that after Nationals.”
Then it’s more shooting. Hyland tries to find someone to rebound for him. A friend or his younger brother will usually help him out.
“I do 100 twos, running around inside the arc,” he said. “Then after I make 100 of those, I do 100 threes. It takes me like 20 minutes. Then I’ll do some screen shooting. Then I’ll try to do pull-up jump shots, working on ball handling. Then I’ll do 10 minutes of straight two-ball (dribbling drill), just for my handle. I try to mix it up.”
During the spring, he was making 1,000 shots every day. He’s scaled that back a little bit, with games and practices taking place frequently. He’s down to about 700 these days.
But that’s not 700 bunnies, and it’s not at your leisurely, chuck-a-few-up-with-a-buddy pace. It’s mid- and long-range jumpers at game speed.
Hyland’s quick release and deep range forces SMAA opponents to try a variety of defenses. Whether it’s a double team, triple team, or a gimmick zone, it is rare for Hyland to receive an open look in a high school game.
But he’s become a more rounded offensive player even since the high school season, Parker said.
“I think the thing that really is much more pronounced now than during the high school season is his handle is much better,” the coach said. “Last year in AAU, he was primarily a jump shooter. He’s taking the ball to the basket a lot now. In (a tournament in) New York City, he didn’t shoot the ball particularly well, but still had good games because he took the ball to the basket and was able to finish.”
Parker called Hyland “one of the hardest workers” he’s ever coached, which is saying something since Parker has been coaching in Maine for a long time, with stops at Bangor High, Maine Central Institute and Lee Academy, to name a few. He’s also been coaching some of the state’s elite players in AAU ball since it started in Maine nearly two decades ago.
MBR teammate Dominic Borelli of Westbrook said he and the other players can’t keep up with Hyland’s workouts, which can total nine hours in a day.
“He’ll call us up and say he just finished his workout and ask us if we want to go and do some more drills with him,” Borelli said. “He’s always a step ahead of us.”
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