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by Robyn Syme
Staff Reporter
The NS boys basketball team is off to a great start this season. Right now the team is sitting in 3rd place in the 3A RPI rankings, only behind Grantsville and Layton Christian.
The boys recently beat Juab 60-52 on their home floor in an exciting and well-fought game. They have won 13 games and lost only 3 in some very close games.
One of their wins includes beating the Templars at Manti for the first time in 10 years. This was a huge victory for them against one of their biggest rivals.
This year’s team is very competitive and passionate about their sport. They have a ton of experience with seven seniors on the team who have been playing together since well before high school.
They say they are going to give everything they got, every time they play.
“Our biggest strength this year is the athletes’ commitment to excellence,” said coach Bill Pollock, “working hard every day for the opportunity to play.”
They show this every time they play. It’s no secret why this year’s team is so successful: they love basketball and are committed to the game.
Most of the boys have been playing for as long as they can remember. All of the boys are also really close on and off the court.
“We all are really close off the court, and we all work hard to get really good on the court,” said senior Ty Morley.
The coaching staff this year is also a huge advantage. Coach Pollock, Coach Straatman and Coach Bailey are key in keeping the team motivated to work hard to reach their goals.
This is Pollock’s first year as the head coach, but he carries a wealth of experience having coached basketball for 19 years at the high school and college levels. Pollock has spent the previous four years as the assistant coach of the boys team and has developed a very strong relationship and bond with them. Pollock expects a lot out of the boys, but they love and respect him. He feels the same toward them.
“I’m proud of their willingness to do what I ask of them,” Pollock said, “even when it’s tough.”
These coaches’ previous experience with the sport has helped push this year’s team in the direction of success.
The team doesn’t mind a challenge as long as they can play ball and have fun together.
“I joined the basketball team because I like competing and being with all my friends,” said junior guard Tyler Allan. “The funnest part of being on the team is bus rides, team dinners, parties, games and hanging out together.”
The goal of the team is to be successful and improve every day. In addition to practicing every day, they also lift weights in the morning before school.
“It’s a commitment, there’s weights every morning, and then we practice after school,” Allan said, “so we are at the school from 6 in the morning to 7-8 at night. So we definitely put a lot of time into it—it’s fun though.”
The hard work shows in the way our boys wear down opposing teams. With the bond the team has with each other, and the coaches and the work ethic the team has created, they will only get better.
