By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
After a strong 3-1 start to their season, the Salina Central girl’s basketball team will look to keep the pedal to the floor on Friday when they welcome in the Lady Bulldogs of Ark City.
Despite falling out of this week's 5A rankings, the Lady Mustangs have done a good job of restocking and retooling after graduating several key pieces from last year’s state runner-up team.
While things are still coming together on the offensive end of the floor for a unit averaging just 40 points per game, Central’s effort on the defensive side has been more than enough to overcome that as the Lady Mustangs have held three of their four opponents to south of 35.
“Our defense and rebounding have been very solid,” Central head coach Chris Fear said. “I thought we would cause other teams trouble with our defensive pressure but I was not sure about our rebounding. Overall, I’ve been pleased with our effort to get to the board.”
While the Lady Stangs have been far from careless on the offensive end, patience in the half-court, and tempo off of turnovers could prove to be the key to unlocking the team's full potential.
“We need to execute better offensively,” Fear said. “We are doing a decent job of taking care of the basketball, but we need to convert a higher percentage of our attempts. I would also like to see us get a few more easy baskets in transition.”
Expectations in Salina were high for the Central coming into the season, and despite their offseason departures, this Lady Mustang team is quickly settling in under the pressure.
“Our confidence is growing with every experience,” he said. “This is a brand new group that has been thrust into the limelight. Everyone has a new role and they are adapting very well. We are a team that is going to defend and scrap and make our opponents work for everything they get. I like what we are becoming.”
With two more opportunities to close out the December portion of their season strong and potentially re-enter the 5A rankings, Central will turn their attention to an Ark City team that has stumbled out of the gates, but that has the potential to be dangerous nonetheless.
“[Ark City] is going to play hard,” Fear said. “They are off to a tough start and I’m sure they are hungry to come in here and get a win. We respect them and will be prepared to play as hard as we can.”
Tactically, not much will change for a Lady Mustang team that understands the importance of lockdown defense and has already seen that defense pay dividends this season.
“Our biggest key is to continue to defend, that won’t change for us,” Fear said. “If we take a step back in that area, we are going to struggle. Additionally, I would like to see us convert in transition and get our shooting percentage up from where it has been.”
Tip-off between the Lady Mustangs and Bulldogs is set for 6 pm at the Brickhouse on the campus of Salina Central, with the boy’s game to follow at 7:30.
For continuing coverage of Central hoops all season long, stay tuned to the Salina Post.