Varsity and JV basketball season commences with tryouts

A new season of high school basketball has started. The players were excited to come out to the gym, meet the new coaches, and to begin playing again. The tryouts took place on October 15th, and now that all of the teams have completed their team selections, they are focused on preparing for the upcoming season. This year’s tryout system was very different compared to previous years. Last year, the tryouts separated people based on height and physical abilities. This year’s tryouts focused more on the players’ skillset, such as shooting, passing, dribbling, as well as their athleticism.

19 boys turned up for the JV tryouts, more than eager to play, but only 12 spots were available. This meant that 7 boys were not selected. However, Coach Kristian Dumicic, the JV boys coach, gave those boys a second chance, allowing them to practice with the Varsity girls. “I really appreciated this chance. Even though I won’t get to play with the boys, I can still play basketball.” exclaimed Wyatt Huang (9A), one of the four boys that practiced with the Varsity girls. This year, under the leadership of Coach Tim Cook for the Varsity boys, Coach Dumicic for the JV boys, Coach Renelle Richmond for the Varsity girls, and Coach Patrick McCann and Coach Joleah Pierce for the JV girls, all four basketball teams are striving to bring glory and fame to the school. “The JV boys [finished] second last year. This year, with [the players’] passion and hard work, the JV team is going for [the championship],” commented Sean Fu (9C), a player who is switching between playing for both the JV and Varsity boys teams. “Last year, [the] Varsity boys finished 8th, JV boys was 2nd, and [both JV girls and] Varsity girls placed 3rd. This year, all four teams are headed for the champion,” added Claire Zhang (9C), a JV Girls player.

The first home games of the season are the JV boys and girls against LAS on October 29th. Please come out to the Shark Tank and cheer them on!

Featured Image – The JV boys practicing in the gym Courtesy of Andy Shi

by Andy Kim