By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
The Southeast of Saline boys basketball team will hit the road on Friday night as they travel to take on the 4-8 Ellsworth Bearcats.
The Trojans enter this contest at 9-3 and 4-0 in league play while Ellsworth has slid to fifth in the NCAA at 1-3.
Despite the poor record, SES will need to play better than they did against Republic County if they want to keep their recent undefeated league stretch alive.
“Sometimes when you see a team with a lesser record or a team that’s undermanned on film these guys get out of what got us here in the first place and do some things that are uncharacteristic of what we do,” Trojan head coach Bryson Flax said.
Much of Southeast’s focus will revolve around slowing down sophomore standout Will Cravens, who has stepped up big for Ellsworth after his freshman season.
“He’s a much-improved player from last year and that whole offense runs through him,” Flax said. “He’s a really good shooter, he has a good mid-range game and he attacks the basket well. He’s a challenging kid to guard.”
To limit Cravens’ production, the Trojans will need to keep the shifty guard in front of them and force him to finish over the top while remaining aware of his ability to tee up teammates for open looks.
Offensively SES will play their usual chess match, looking for favorable matchups early in the contest.
“We’ve got a lot of different guys that can play different positions and so usually there’s a matchup that we like,” he said. “We’ll see how they match up on us and figure out who we want to work through.”
Regardless of who takes the reigns offensively, SES will once again remain focused on getting out of the gates quicker than they have in most of their games this season, especially after a 3-15 start on Tuesday.
“We have to have a better start,” Flax said. “We were pretty good last game defensively but we have to convert when we force turnovers or get rebounds and part of that is just being locked in and finishing those opportunities.”
Tip-off between the Trojans and Bearcats is set for 7 pm at Ellsworth High School following the girl’s game at 6.
Both games can be heard on KINA (910 AM or 107.5 FM) or streamed live on the Salina Post.