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Following a memorable 25-6 record season last year, as well as a regional champion title, boys varsity basketball is practicing and playing vigorously again in the face of another competitive lineup. With a recent win against York, the team is improving and hoping to continue to get better as the season progresses, varsity head coach Thomas Sloan said.
“We have a very fun group of student athletes that we work with everyday,” Sloan said. “We have a very competitive team, but we have a very challenging schedule.”
On Jan. 19, LT took home an exciting 48-45 victory against rival Hinsdale Central, and another 66-62 triumph the following day against Proviso East. This sets their record at 8-21.
“Overall, the season started off rougher than people would have expected,” senior player and Denison University commit Liam Taylor ‘24 said. “I think we play a lot of really good competition though.”
One of the bigger issues the team had faced coming in was the lack of experience in varsity games, Sloan said. With the previous starting line-up seniors of last year having graduated, the new season came with its challenges. This is an expected hurdle though, one that is repeatedly overcome.
“Now that we are around halfway through the schedule as far as the number of games that we play, the [players] that did not have a lot of experience now have gained experience,” Sloan said. “I think that’s one of the reasons that we have been improving as the season [has gone] on.”
The higher pressure varsity games come with added excitement from fans creating an electrifying atmosphere. The team aims to play with a lot of intensity and energy each game, Sloan said. Anyone who attends an anticipated game like one against a rival team, or the annual Blackout game that fills the stands each year, can see how varsity games differ from others.
“There’s definitely more pressure,” Brady Chambers ‘24 said. “Especially in the bigger games like Hinsdale, there’s a lot more people, and it’s louder.”
Nevertheless for experienced players the pressure takes a backseat when the buzzer sounds, and the only thing that matters is a winning mindset and performance, Taylor said.
“Once the game really starts it’s just about the game and the fans take a secondary part,” Taylor said. “I feel really no pressure, it’s just what I am used to, it’s just playing basketball.”
With the blackout game on Feb. 16, and the state series beginning the next week, expectations for the remainder of the season remain hopeful. The team will continue to work hard and do the best with what they have right now, in order to continue to improve for the final stretch, Chambers said. For him, and fellow senior Taylor, they want to have as much fun as a team together this final season.
“I feel like it’s been going by way quicker than I thought, it feels like every Friday game just comes immediately,” Taylor said. “It’s just kind of a blur.”
