Last season, the Stratford boys basketball team made the playoffs for the first time in four years.
Senior Keshaun Bell said that accomplishment showed the players how far they can get and what it will take to get even further than the first round of the playoffs, and the 2021-2022 Spartans are looking to display that improvement from the get-go.
“Last year was great for those guys, but, for us, each year is a new year,” said coach Brett Nixon. “We have to do the things that we think matter in this program. If we take that approach, it will lead to a result that we like.”
The team
The Spartans are returning two first team all-district players in juniors Keanu Dawes and Hawkins Polley.
“We talk about we can’t skip steps, so we try to repeat the process we did last year, but I feel like the process gets speeded up because we have guys that return and they know the standard of performance of what we expect every day,” said Nixon.
Stratford is also returning second team all-district player senior Luke Hatcher and honorable mention all-district player.
Though Hatcher made it clear that being a second team all-district player will have no impact on how he approaches this season.
The season
Stratford opens the season on Nov. 12 at Cinco Ranch.
The team’s first home game is on Nov. 16 against Bridgeland.
“Every game’s important, but the first few games are important because everybody in the Stratford area will believe in us more once we start winning,” said Bell.
Stratford continues with non-district and tournament games for the first month of the season before beginning District 17-6A play at Jersey Village on Dec. 17.
Stratford won both district matchups with Jersey Village last season, winning the first one 63-62 and the second one 50-38.
The Spartans play a tournament over the winter holidays before continuing district play the first week back in January with games against Spring Woods and Memorial.
Last season, Stratford lost to Memorial by three points in the first matchup and by 10 points in the second matchup.
Stratford was 2-2 in district games decided by a single-digit margin, beating Jersey Village by one point and Cy Ridge by nine points and losing to Memorial by three points and to Cy Creek by eight points.
Stratford was 0-2 in district games decided by 10 points and lost its first round playoff game against Bellaire by seven points, 53-46.
“We’ve got a lot of returners, so I think we’ll be able to handle the pressure a lot better,” said Hatcher. “We’ve still got some young players, but they’re a lot more mature in the game. Everyone’s used to the feeling now, so I think we’ll be able to pull those out.”
Stratford wraps up the regular season at Cy-Fair on Feb. 16.
Cause for excitement
Hatcher said all the players have been putting in a lot of time in the gym and in the weight room over the offseason in order to get better.
“This is my last year I am going to give it my all,” he said. “I’m excited for it. I think we have a great group. I think we can go far if we play together, set the tone at the beginning of the season, let it carry over, and just keep our intensity high.”
elliott.lapin@hearst.com
"continued" - Google News
November 10, 2021 at 01:04AM
https://ift.tt/307F96w
Stratford looking to experience for continued success - Houston Chronicle
"continued" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2WiTaZN
https://ift.tt/2YquBwx
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Stratford looking to experience for continued success - Houston Chronicle"
Post a Comment