BOYS BASKETBALL PLAYS STRONG
With unmatched team chemistry, the basketball boys play through the highs and lows
Edgewood’s boys basketball team is a very experienced group. With a roster constructed entirely of juniors and seniors (and a senior lineup of friends that have played together since middle school), their teamwork and experience playing together can make them a threat to any opponent on any given night.
The boys started off the 2021-2022 season very slowly, losing their first six games and eight of their first nine. However, they have been playing better in recent weeks, winning five of their last nine games including a tournament win over the holidays. They also notably beat rival West Shore 54-48 in an overtime thriller for their first win of the season.
Senior Nathan Rao says that the team supports each other and stays motivated even when shots aren’t going in, helping them to stay positive and rebound from their slow start.
“I think that we support each other,” Rao said. “If someone is doing bad, we tell them to keep shooting and running the plays. I feel like some of the teams we have played have kind of self-destructed and started talking down on each other when things weren’t going well for them, and I think we’ve avoided that, which has helped us win some big games this year.”
Coach Jim Cook added that the team plays well together and are able to make adjustments mid-game if they are struggling.
“Our team plays really well together,” he said. “It’s a high IQ basketball team that if we need to make an adjustment, I can draw it up on the board and they do a really good job at it.”
Refat Muwalla, 12, also said that the team’s experience playing together is a key to them gelling so well.
“In eighth grade, we really started bonding. We started going to the gym a lot and shooting around and playing games, and we've been doing that every single year since. We built a connection off of that. We got better together, pretty much,” said Muwalla.
Coach Cook felt that in order to reach their full potential as a team and continue to win consistently, they need to be more consistent at executing their offense.
“We consistently hold teams under their average points per game, but we’ll go through stretches where we miss four or five shots in a row and then make four or five in a row," said Cook. "We need to be more consistent on offense.”
Unfortunately, that's not the only difficulty that the team has faced, as player injuries have made it difficult for the team to stay consistent.
"This season, I think our biggest weakness has been a lack of taking care of everybody's bodies, and getting hurt as a result. At one point, we had like five varsity players out for some games," said Nishant Mehta, 12.
The current team is constructed of entirely juniors and seniors, so Edgewood boys basketball will have a completely new look in the coming years. As they near the end of their high-school careers, the current core has enjoyed their time together even if they may not have always won many games or awards. Here’s to hoping the next core will have as much team chemistry as this one.
Max is in his fourth year at Edgewood and second on the Edge staff. He enjoys rock climbing, following sports, reading, writing, and listening to country music. This year, he hopes to bring some more great stories and ideas to the Edge.