Soddy Daisy Boys Basketball is off to a great start. Their first season under new head coach, Jeremy Henderson, has started off with a winning 4-2 record. Henderson challenged them in preseason with opponents such as McCallie, CSAS, and Brainerd. After putting up a fight against McCallie, and winning against CSAS and Brainerd, the boys were headed in the right direction for the beginning of district play.
Senior Braxton Angel stated his feelings so far, “I think we connected pretty fast and we are thankful for the changed program. We’re not just a family on the court but off the court as well. We’ve built a strong brotherhood that shows in how we’re playing.” Angel expressed the connection the team has created through the new program.
Senior Holden Gravley also stated, “Obviously the season is going good, we’re 4-2. We have two big district wins over Signal and Hixson. Our two losses were to Livingston, who shot 60% from three, and a big private school where we couldn’t finish the game out. Going into Christmas break, we’re a good team, but we definitely need improvements.”
As the regular season began, the boys faced Livingston Academy and Sequoyah High school in Hall of Fame games. The loss to Livingston did not stop the boys from fighting in their matchup against Sequoyah for a big win at home, but then a loss to Boyd Buchannan. As the season progressed, district play started with a rivalry matchup against Signal Mountain. With home court advantage and tough play, Soddy Daisy powered through a huge win over Signal Mountain, into another district win against Hixson.
With a new offense in play after graduating four starters, multiple boys had to step up to fill roles. One player being Noah Patterson, starting point guard. When asked about leading the offense, Patterson said, “Your role is to select plays and make sure the offense is set up good and to keep composure. If you aren’t composed as a point guard, the team isn’t going to flow.”
Junior and Captain Aidan Haile spoke on the team’s behalf to claim “I feel like we are nowhere near our peak as a team but we continue to get better everyday. I feel like our team loves playing for coach Henderson, as he keeps the game fun and simple but he is still a huge change from our previous coach and it’s taking some time to get used to.”
After hearing from some of the boys, Coach Henderson was asked about his view of the season. He expressed “Overall, I feel really good about it. We are 4-2 overall, and more importantly, 2-0 in the district… Hopefully, we will get fully healthy from an injury perspective once we return from the holiday break, and really make some noise the 2nd half of the season and be playing our best basketball going into the tournaments in February.” A new head coach stepping into a built program tends to be a hard step. According to Henderson, “I really feel like they (the team) have bought into what we are working on building and accomplishing on and off the court… It’s a process, but I feel like we are definitely heading in the right direction.”
Heading into Christmas Break, the boys will face off in a Christmas Tournament hosted by White County High School. But the team is mainly focused on their matchup against Red Bank fresh out of Holiday Break. Soddy Daisy wishes the best for the Men of Troy Basketball Team. Go Trojans!