His team went only 5-13 last year, but with another year of experience for a young group and a cleaner bill of health, Coach Troy Brown figured this could be a more successful season for his Wells boys’ basketball squad.
So far the season’s early going has resulted in just that.
After missing the playoffs last year, the Warriors are 3-0 following wins over Traip Academy, Biddeford and Lake Region. With three starters and the sixth man from last year back, Wells is seeing experience work to its advantage.
“We had a good preseason. I thought that we could be a pretty good basketball team this year,” said Brown. “We have both some very skilled basketball players, but also a little bit of depth on our bench. We want to get our foot in the door for the playoffs.”
Across both boys’ and girls’ basketball, several teams are off to strong starts after rocky seasons last year. The list includes the boys’ teams at Windham (3-0 after going 5-13), Noble (2-1 after going 7-11), Freeport (2-1 after going 5-13) and Wiscasset (2-1 after going 1-17), as well as the girls’ teams at Massabesic (2-1 after not playing a varsity season), Fryeburg Academy (2-0 after going 7-11), Lincoln Academy and Waynflete (both 3-0 after going 6-12).
At Wells, Brown had a feeling a turnaround was probable. Last season was derailed when starters Mike Lewinsky and Hayden Bedell were lost for the winter out of the gate, forcing younger players like Jeremy Therrien and Nolan Brown to step up and play bigger roles.
One year later, that experience has only helped their development, and allowed them to contribute to a team that already returned starters Eli Roy, Spencer Carpenter and Kayden Springer, as well as sixth man Keith Ramsey. It’s also resulted in growing confidence, which allowed the Warriors to pull out a 66-57 win over the Lakers after trailing 37-31 at the half.
“Actually seeing it all the way through (was big),” Brown said. “I do see (more excitement). We were thinking about not practicing this past Saturday and all the kids wanted to practice. They all wanted to come in and practice after the late game, so that’s what I like to see. Those are the things that make you feel good as a coach, when they’re 100%, they’re bought in, they’re ready to go.”
It’s been a similar story for the Windham boys, who have taken down Lewiston, Scarborough and Bangor. The Eagles lost only two seniors, so a team that was heating up by the end of last season was able to carry over its momentum.
“It’s really just been unselfishness,” said Coach Chad Pulkinnen. “We have some really talented players and we share the ball. There have been a lot of people in double digits; it hasn’t been just one guy. The concept of sharing the basketball and getting the best shot we can get really resonates with these guys. … That’s been the biggest improvement for us.”
Tyrie James, Creighty Dickson, Adrian Moody and Blake McPherson have all scored in double figures for Windham.
“We were in a lot of close games last year as a young team,” Pulkinnen said. “(We were) just a young team trying to figure it out. They figured out what they needed to do to be successful.”
A MARQUEE MATCHUP will take place Tuesday when the Cheverus girls host Thornton Academy at 6 p.m. The Stags are 2-0 while the Golden Trojans are 3-0, and the game will feature some of the state’s best players in Maddie Fitzpatrick, Emma Lizotte and Addisen Sulikowski.
For the Stags, it will be a third challenge to start the season. Cheverus opened by defeating South Portland 48-28, then walloped defending Class AA champion Oxford Hills 76-47 on Friday.
Cheverus Coach Billy Goodman was pleased to see a team in transition – only Fitzpatrick, Ruth Boles, Megan Dearborn and Anna Goodman played significant minutes last year – find a rhythm so soon.
“It’s been good for us to play tough teams early, (and) figure out what we do well and what we need to work on,” Billy Goodman said. “The younger kids are really stepping up. … They all kind of know their jobs now. I think they like the way we’re playing; we’re bringing it (with) full-court defense. They like that.”
That showed Friday, when Cheverus opened an 18-0 lead on the Vikings and took command in a gym where it often has struggled.
“They played one of the best games I’ve seen a Cheverus team that I coached play,” Goodman said. “We gained confidence that we can at least compete with the top teams.”
The Stags will be tested again against the Trojans and former Cheverus standout center Emma Lizotte, who transferred before the school year. Goodman downplayed the personal aspect of the game, given the turnover on his team.
“Emma’s moved on, I don’t think that’s going to be a big deal Tuesday,” he said. “For us, we’re just playing another good team with good players.”
FULL SLATES OF basketball on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday mean several teams will be playing three games in only five days.
One of them will be the Brunswick girls (3-0), whose grind includes games against Gardiner on Tuesday, Edward Little on Thursday and Oxford Hills on Saturday.
“You get it once or twice a year,” said Coach Sam Farrell. “I try not to make a big deal of it so the players know, ‘Hey, let’s prepare. Let’s go out and play.’ … If you take it one bit at a time, you don’t worry about, ‘Jeez, there’s three games in a week.’ The tournament’s no different.”
Farrell said the key is managing player energy, which can mean adapting practice to the workload.
“You worry about wearing out your players,” he said. “With one day in between games, you don’t practice as aggressively as you can. … Practices are a little less intense, and you also try not to have too many highs or lows. If you have a great game in between or a bad game in between, you really have to have a short memory and move on.”
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