Pats look to take next step

By ALEX SPONSELLER
Posted 12/10/19

By ALEX SPONSELLER The Pilgrim boys basketball team hit the reset button prior to the 2018-19 season, hiring new coach Matt Fontaine and introducing some new faces to the squad in a loaded Division II. The Pats had some growing pains and finished with

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Pats look to take next step

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The Pilgrim boys basketball team hit the reset button prior to the 2018-19 season, hiring new coach Matt Fontaine and introducing some new faces to the squad in a loaded Division II.

The Pats had some growing pains and finished with three wins. A year later though, Pilgrim feels that it has the pieces, and experience, to take a step forward and make a playoff push.

“I hope to be better than last year. Last year, we only got three wins, this year we want to make the playoffs and possibly win. I expect a lot of this group, it’s going to take discipline to get it done,” said senior Dana Baptiste.

In his second year at the helm, Fontaine has been encouraged by what he has seen in this group and feels that he has a better handle on what he has to work with on the roster.

“We’re excited. We know where we were at last year and now we need to improve on that. Like every year, you need to see what you have for personnel. I now have a full year under my belt and have gotten to know the kids. You always have a style in which you want to play, last year we were able to put that foundation in, so this year we are just trying to add things based on our personnel,” said Fontaine. “You are always looking to add some new wrinkles.”

Returning junior Jared Reminder is set to take on a large role for the Pats, and believes that hard work and sound defense will be key.

“This is our second year with Coach Fontaine, he’s done a great job, and even if our record didn’t indicate it last year, we have some good players on this team and we also got two Hendricken transfers (in Tyriek Weeks and Peter Kay). We have a lot of kids that just want to work hard at get after it. Right now our mindset is defense, we want to be better defensively,” said Reminder.

Senior Ethan Asadorian is also optimistic in the club and is hoping to see the Pats improve in areas beyond just the X’s and O’s.

“Last year and this year are rebuilding years for us, but we have a lot of talent in this group and this year we will need the intangibles to take the next step,” said Asadorian. “Team chemistry, discipline, those are the things that will help us. We just need to play as a team, there were times last year where we played one-man ball and it didn’t work. This year we need to play as a team.”

Fontaine is looking for leaders to step up both on and off the court while the roster and lineup is in flux.

“It’s all about being together on the court. You look at the summer and how crazy that was and then you look at the camaraderie and success of the fall sports season, we want to build on that, and that’s what you want leaders to do. That’s huge and it can be anybody, you just need that person that you know that you can go to as a coach,” said Fontaine, who has preached the importance of taking it one step at a time. “First off, our goal is to reach the playoffs and then to make the open state tournament. Anything can happen, but that’s our goal.”

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