Morgan Academy gains valuable experience in playdate
Published 7:19 pm Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Morgan Academy’s Davis Campbell keeps his eyes on the ball as he drives past an EMCA defender in the Senators’ game on Wednesday. The game was one of four games the Senators played as part of their basketball playdate, whidh featured fifteen boys teams from around the state. –Tim Reeves
By Daniel Evans
The Selma Times-Journal
Morgan Academy is hoping hard work during its basketball playdate on Wednesday will be one of the building blocks for a great season.
The boys varsity played four games as part of the event, including a matchup with the defending 2A AISA state champions East Memorial Christian Academy.
“They got after it. They played hard. We pretty much hung neck and neck with the 2A defending state champions [EMCA],” Morgan Academy head coach Bob Taylor said. “We are getting better, and the more we play the better we get. “
Technically, the Senators lost to EMCA 52-38 despite outscoring them in the second half, but the playdate was more about getting comfortable on the basketball court than the final result on the scoreboard.
“We don’t worry too much about wins and losses in the summer,” Taylor said. “It’s about how much we play and how much better we get at it.”
Overall, Taylor sounded satisfied when asked how well his team performed.
“We got after it. We hustled,” Taylor said. “We did the things we needed to do.”
However, there are still a lot of areas for improvement. One of Taylor’s goals this summer is to give his younger players experience, which could result in a deep bench when the season starts.
”We just have got a lot of young guys that have to get used to playing at that varsity speed,” Taylor said. “My older guys I’m not worried about as much, but our younger guys coming up [have] got to learn to play at varsity speed. “
Taylor’s older guys include four seniors that return to his varsity squad.
Considering the Senators won 21 games last season, expectations are high with so many experienced players returning.
Morgan Academy also took on Hooper, Lee-Scott, and Clarke Prep Wednesday. The games featured sixteen-minute halves with a running clock that kept action moving so each team could play multiple games in one day.
In total, fifteen boys’ teams played games at Morgan Academy Wednesday.
The girls varsity is scheduled to play four games Thursday during the final day of the playdate.
