Although FHS boys’ basketball only had one returning starter from the 2018 season last year, the team still went 17-10 and ended up winning a playoff game. This year, all five starters return for the Panthers, and the team hopes to pick up where it left off in its pursuit of a deep postseason run.
“We were proud of the season,” said head coach Doug Plemmons of last year. “With all the unknowns before the season started, we felt like we made a strong showing in our conference and in Western North Carolina. I think the kids felt good about the season, and now we have all five starters returning from last year’s team.”
After a surprisingly successful season that saw the Panthers advance to the second round of the state tournament, Plemmons’ team hopes to build on last year’s accomplishments with a more experienced squad.
Among the players set to gain from that experience are guard Griffin Green and forward Miles McClure, the team’s two leading scorers from last year. The juniors both enter the season coming off All-Mountain Six Conference selections and were the team’s first and second leading scorers a year ago.
“Both of them set good examples, they’re hard workers, and they’re
serious about their basketball,” said Plemmons. “I think on the court, especially, they both set a good example. They’re pushing themselves, they’re pushing their teammates, and for that reason I think we have a chance to have a really good team this year.”
Although Green and McClure promise to be bona fide college prospects this year, Franklin’s roster is far from top-heavy. Also returning are junior forward Trey Penland and senior guard Chad Wilson, who both averaged more than 9 points per game last year, with Penland also pulling down nearly 8 rebounds a game. Although FHS has not been known statewide as a basketball powerhouse in recent years, the team has gained notice from North Carolina scouting service Phenom Hoop Report.
“After a taking a closer look at three rising juniors and one rising senior, the appeal should be fairly obvious with Franklin,” wrote the service’s director of player analysis Jeff Bendel in a write-up earlier this year. “They have the necessary pieces in place to be a special group for these next few years. Only time will tell how successful this unit is but college coaches would be very wise to start getting involved with this roster before it becomes too late.”
JV starters moving up
In addition to quality veteran players, the future also looks bright for Panther basketball. All five starters from last year’s 23-1 JV team will move up to varsity this winter, and Plemmons expressed excitement for the young group’s potential.
“They went undefeated in the conference, and then we have a little tournament at the end where they take the top four teams, and they won it also,” said Plemmons. “They only lost one game all year long, so they had a great season. They just played really well together. At times, I didn’t feel like they were the most talented team, but especially with the sophomores that are moving up, it’s just a group of guys that have played a lot of ball together and kind of grown up together. You can tell on the court they really mesh well as a unit.”
While the Panthers will have no shortage of talent this year, the upcoming season will be far from a cakewalk. Although the North Carolina High School Athletic Association shortened this year’s season to 14 games – 12 regular season and two postseason – three nonconference games against quality programs loom large on the schedule.
“We’re gonna play two non-conference games,” said Plemmons. “We’re going to play Asheville School away and then we’re bringing in Mount Heritage here. Mount Heritage traditionally is one of the better 2-A high schools at this end of the state, and so we felt like that would be a good test for us early. As a matter of fact, they’re our first game. We felt like that would be a way to kind of judge ourselves on what kind of team we’re going to have.”
Between regular-season tilts with Asheville School and Mountain Heritage and a preseason scrimmage against Western North Carolina 1-A contender Hayesville, Plemmons has made an effort to test his team’s mettle this winter.
After a long offseason of uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic, FHS’s players expressed confidence in the team’s prospects this season.
“I think we will be really strong,” said Green. “We still have all the starting five from last year moved up, more mature, bigger, stronger, better.”
“Making the state playoffs and going down and playing in playoff games will help a lot, too,” said McClure. “Really, as far as conference and regular season games go, we know what to do there. We’ve done it before; we’ve just got to make small improvements. And when we only play 14 games, I don’t see any reason why we can’t go 14 and 0.”