With a new conference this year, the boy’s basketball team anticipates a hard year in front of them. This years new captain, junior Ray Whitlock, said he thinks the season will be difficult for the boys.

“We will be better than last year I think, but this season is still going to be very hard,” Whitlock said. “Senior Tommy Burnett, can’t play until January due to personal injury, so that creates some difficulty for the team, player wise.”

The boys captains have already organized team meetings to discuss the upcoming season, as well as figuring out team bonding activities and workouts for the players, according to senior captain Wes Johnson.

The team meets up together to do hill workouts on Thursdays at Cedar Manor and at Hyland. On Saturdays, the team meets up with the coaches to condition.

Wes Johnson talks about what the boys have been doing on the off season to maintain their skills, in preparation for the season.

“Many players on the team played in a summer basketball league called AAU (Amateur Athletic Union), to improve their game, so hopefully this year’s dynamic on the court will be better than last season’s,” Johnson said.

“Although we had many lumps last year with the team not having any seniors. We now know what we need to work on to be better this year,” Whitlock said.

The boys first official game of the season is at 7:15 p.m. November 21, at Irondale high school.