Despite facing a tough opponent at their Wednesday, Jan. 7 basketball game, the Ponoka Secondary Campus JV boys refused to end the game without a fight to the finish.
“Even though it was a tough game, it was pretty clear they did not want to quit,” explained coach Ryan Newman, referring to the young team.
With a final score of 72-48 for the visiting Camrose Trojans, much of the boys’ struggles came from a lack of experience.
In upcoming practices Newman is going to focus on building skills in a foundation that already exists but needs nurturing.
“We switched to zone defense, that was their first go with it,” said Newman.
The team’s offense also needs some focus in practices. “It’s kind of hit and miss. There are elements of it. We’re still in the process of improving upon it,” said Newman.
He says the team has suffered a few other losses recently and the boys’ confidence on the court is shaky.
During the game not enough pressure was put on the ball, which allowed the opposing team to dominate. Newman says the boys were a little lost on the court and feels, from the beginning, their heads were not in the game. Team communication also fell apart during the second half of the game.
“That being said, we have a couple retaining players who are indispensible . . . in terms of helping some of the younger players,’ said Newman.
The JV boys’ next home game is Monday, Jan. 19.