The success of the junior varsity boys basketball team is dependent on their strong effort and positive attitude, rewarding them with their 6–2 record.
Head coach and counselor Josh Peters is confident in the team’s new defensive strategies. Four of their victories are from their most recent games.
“Over the past week plus, we’ve hit a new level of our execution on defense and it’s taken us up a notch,” Peters said.
The boys recently broke Langley High School’s winning streak with their new defense tactics.
“I’ve coached 50-something games here,” Peters said. “That’s got to be one of the top probably two or three defensive performances I’ve seen in terms of points allowed.”
The team, mostly sophomores, provides suggestions to improve their performance in games.
“We told Coach about our own ideas, such as putting in direct defense,” sophomore and boys JV basketball player Justin Lee said.
Peters appreciates the constructive criticism from the team, praising the boys for knowing and expressing their strengths and weaknesses.
“I love it because they are taking ownership,” Peters said. “This is their team. This is their season.”
Emphasis on effort and skill improvement, not just winning, is another reason for their team’s success. The primary goal of a JV team, according to Peters,, is to prepare the players for a spot on varsity.
“We don’t preach wins and losses,” Peters said. “It’s all about just improving as basketball players, finding our potential and doing everything we can to realize that potential.”
For Peters, observing each player reach his best is “fun to see.”
The audience, according to Plawin, also enjoys observing the team’s potential as they cheer for the success of their school.
“Most remarkable is the sophomore student section,” sophomore Paul Plawin said. “Even Coach said they’ve never seen the J.V. crowd so spirited and hyped.”
Peters noted the abundance of pride within the sophomore class.
“We’ve had some really good crowds,” Peters said, adding that last year, the freshmen class was one of the loudest he has seen during the Homecoming Pep Rally. “For a lot of our games there has been a lot of really good support.”