Conference: 2A 2
Coach: Jeff Adams (third year at school, all as head coach, was the junior-high head coach and senior-high assistant coach at Mayflower prior to that; career record, 6-41.)
Assistant coach: None
2010-2011 record: 4-18 overall, 4-8 in conference
Returning starters: “We only had one senior last year,” coach Adams said, then added that while he would return starters at the four other spots, a total of seven players — all juniors — had started at some time last season. “We’ll have our other four starters back if no one is hurt and everybody comes out.” Those junior starters include Chase Stewart, a 5-10 point guard; Hunter Martin, a 6-1 forward; Sawyer Johnson, a 5-11 forward/center; Chase Freeman, a 6-1 guard/forward; Dakota Bohannon, a 5-10 guard; Hunter Bridges, a 6-0 guard; and Sheldon Minor, a 5-7 guard, who will get some time at the point after moving back into the district late last school year.
Best inside players: “Sawyer Johnson is a real physical player. He’s real strong, a pretty good passer and makes good decisions,” the coach said.
Best outside players: “This year, I’d say best outside player would be a tie between Freeman and Bridges. Both will complement each other. Bridges has worked on his shot and gotten better. Freeman is a slasher-type player who can do some different things. Both will be good threats for us this year,” Adams said of his backcourt standouts.
How will you match/exceed/fall short of your success from last year? “My expectations are to have a lot better year. We hope to play an up-tempo style. We play a tough nonconference schedule, but that should get us ready for conference,” the coach said. “We think it will make us competitive in conference like last year. We hope that experience pays off with wins. Then we can push for the conference title and into the playoffs.”
Strengths of the team: Defense, quickness. To utilize those positives, coach Adams said, “We’ll try to press a little bit and do some things to push the pace on offense and defense.”
Weaknesses of the team: Not a lot of senior leadership. “We need our juniors to step up, so that is one thing we are hoping to overcome as we play through the year,” Adams said. “The other thing, somewhat, is height, but there are not a lot of big kids in our conference. With our post players only around 6 feet at best, we are hoping that athleticism and quickness will make up for anything we lack in height.”
Games to watch: “As far as our conference schedule, we are looking at Cedar Ridge. They won the conference last year and have several kids coming back. If we can compete there, or get a victory there, that would set the tone for what our conference run could be this year,” the head Bulldog said, then noted that Quitman’s tough nonconference schedule is highlighted by Conway Christian. “We’ll be back in conference with them the next reclassification,” he said.
Toughest opponent: “For us this year, our toughest opponent will probably be Concord. They were real good last year in 1A and got a lot of kids back. We’ve not beaten them since I’ve been here. So, hopefully, we can compete with them and change the trend of the last few years,” Adams said.
College prospects: “I’d have to say the jury is still out on that. Some of our kids play hard enough, but they have to get better and produce. On paper, they have an opportunity, but you’re only as good as you play in the game,” the coach said.
In a nutshell: “I’m hoping that we can compete and make a run in the conference,” coach Adams said. “We need to make a run and get to the regional, and then we’ll see what happens after that.”