It’s been a good season for Panther JV boys hoops.
With just four sophomores returning from last year’s conference runners-up, this winter’s squad features plenty of new faces. With a 12-2 record entering their final five games, the Panthers have already turned in a strong campaign.
“Honestly, right now I think we’re doing way better than expected, given the fact that we started the season with 12 freshmen,” said head coach Tres Rogers. “We’ve got four sophomores, three of which really didn’t play much last year. Jake [Pendergrass] played a little bit, but Caden [Mason] and Judah [Bradford] didn’t play much at all, and so Gunner [McConnell] was really the only one we had with any game experience coming into it JV-wise. Paxton [Sutton] and some of those guys obviously did very well for the middle school and that’s carried over, but as far as having an inexperienced team, not knowing what’s going on, trying to get used to high school and all that, we’ve done very well this season in my opinion.”
With a roster full of freshmen, coaches weren’t sure what to expect this year, hoping to simply guide the team to a .500 record. Following an early hiccup however, the team never looked back.
“We kind of knew that that we had enough pieces to be competitive this year, it was just a matter of them putting it together,” said Rogers. “Obviously I would love to have the Cherokee game back – we didn’t have a single scrimmage game going into that, and really didn’t know who we were gonna play at what positions yet. We were still experimenting a lot, and some of the guys just didn’t show up that night, and we wound up losing a game that we shouldn’t have lost. ... After that they kind of tuned in, and the first time that we played East [Henderson] over at East – I mean, that’s a hard place to go and win – they played well and got that one, and I think that just picked up their confidence to, ‘Hey, we can compete.’”
After dropping their season opener 48-42, Franklin responded with promising wins over Andrews and East, tipping off what would become a six-game streak. With just one conference loss to North Henderson so far, they’ve been one of the Mountain Seven’s best teams.
“I do think that, from a conference standpoint, North and West have probably got the two best teams just because of their size,” said Rogers. “Smoky obviously is a little better than what everybody thought they were going to be this year. They shoot the ball pretty well, and we’ve got to figure out a way to defend them a little better, but overall I think we’re right there where we need to be to get into the tournament and finish at the top of the conference.”
With four conference games to play including rematches with Smoky, North and West, Franklin will need to play their best to stay in contention. To do so, their game plans will be as varied as their opponents.
“To beat North and West we’ve got to play really good defense, we’ve got to rebound, and we’ve got to knock down some shots on the outside because they’re going to keep us from scoring inside just because of their size,” said Rogers. “Smoky we’re gonna have to figure out how to defend on the perimeter, which I thought we did a pretty good job of on East, as we got the right people guarding the right people. ... Especially in a tight ballgame, two or three possessions make the difference, and that’s a rebound here, a loose ball there, a good shot or a great shot on the other end. Stuff like that, just taking care of the basketball and valuing the basketball is what’s gonna win games down the stretch against these really good teams.”
Rogers says that while he always wants to win, his main job is to prepare his JV players for the next level, toward which late-season conference games provide invaluable experience. With two of their would-be teammates already starring on varsity as sophomores, he credited his team for their work every day.
“If we’d had Lance [Parker] and Will [Rauers] down on JV we [would not have] lost a game in two years, but that’s not the game. The game is varsity, and we’re trying to get these guys ready for varsity basketball,” he said. “I want to get better at eveything every day, and that’s our thing with practice is just to try to get better every day. ... For a lot of these guys, yeah, it’s about this season, but it’s about getting better for next season, too. We’re so young and we’ve got so many freshmen that it’s about progressing as a player and trying to add something to my game and refine something in my game and make it better for now and building towards next year, too.”
Already having clinched a winning record for the year, the freshmen-heavy Panthers have exceeded expectations. Regardless of what happens the rest of the year, Rogers says his players have the tools to succeed on JV and beyond.
“We’re always trying to get better and win no matter what, but this year has been really rewarding. [Varsity head coach Doug Plemmons] said early on, ‘If this thing turns out well, it’s going to be one of those years where youlook back and say, “It was a really rewarding year,” and when you see these guys get better every day, compete, go out there and get after it, and then put a record up that is surprising to a lot of people ... we have had a really good season, and we’re just going to try to finish it out right.”