Originally published January 21, 2025

     The MBMS varsity basketball team went through an adventurous season, facing many hard battles and challenges along the way. Despite the difficulties they faced, the team showed resilience and determination to improve and grow stronger as a team.

   Every practice and game, they showed up, and worked to the best of their abilities. Every time they had the ball in their hand, they were able to learn valuable lessons they could apply to the future.

   “Towards the beginning of the season, communicating, talking on the court and during practice, just wasn’t their strong suit,” junior varsity Coach Gleason said. “From the beginning of the season until now, that’s improved leaps and bounds.”

   Every improvement that any player on the team made was a tiny victory within itself for the team, and as they all progressed with communication, their plays got better and stronger.

   “I think we just needed to play more united than separate, which I think now we do,” eighth-grader team captain Owen Haws said.

   With every dribble of the ball and every pass made by one of their teammates, they began to grow and learn from each other. They became stronger as a whole.

   “Working together better and passing the ball could have gone better this season, I would say,” sixth-grader Karsen McCarthy said.

   Between communication, and actual playing in games, there were a lot of areas for improvement that could have been touched up on, but towards the end of the season no doubt did those areas improve. By the end of the season, the MBMS varsity basketball team had not only become better players but also better teammates.

   “After football season, there was a long pause [before basketball season] and I wasn’t really conditioned anymore, so I was pretty out of shape,” eighth-grader Nico Malachi said.

   For a lot of players, their biggest area of improvement was trying to get back into a consistent playstyle and adjusting to playing basketball seriously. They had to reteach themselves, and push themselves to the best of their abilities. 

   The team faced numerous challenges and tough opponents, but they never gave up. Their teamwork, communication, and determination was the most important part of their season, and the most impressive. 

   “I think focus, was the biggest struggle for the team,” Gleason said. “I think maybe it’s just hard to focus at 5:30 in the morning, but keeping attention and understanding what is and isn’t important is the biggest thing."