By TYLER HENRY
Lead Sportswriter - Salina Post
On the heels of a disappointing 3-18 campaign, the Minneapolis boys basketball team will look to right the ship with a strong core of returning talent in 2023-24.
John Darrow returns for his ninth season as the leader of the Lions, and his 22nd season as a head coach overall.
This year’s Minneapolis squad returns two starters, and six total players with varsity experience for a rotation that should look like this come tip-off.
G- Ryan Parks (Sr)
G- Owen Just (So)
G- Zach Nelson (Jr)
G- Grant Rice (So)
G- Joseph Woehl (Jr)
P- Dalton Krueger (So)
Ahead of the 2023-24 campaign, we had a chance to catch up with Coach Darrow and get his thoughts on this year’s squad.
Q: When you had a chance to look back on it, what were your overall thoughts on last season?
A: Despite having three freshmen after losing one to injury, two sophomores, one junior, and only two seniors who played substantial minutes, I thought we made great progress. We had to grow mentally and physically in the off-season to continue to make each individual better.
Q: Entering this year, what would you say are the biggest known strengths of your team?
A: We have a ton of experience at the varsity level this season but overall we are still very young.
Q: What are the biggest looming questions or challenges that you’ll look to sort out in these first few weeks?
A: Our biggest question marks will be in how good our communication is on both offense and defense.
Q: What are the biggest goals and expectations for this group heading into the new season?
A: Being confident and being consistent. With how young we were last year, players were thrown into situations they weren't ready for yet. This could lead to players not feeling as confident as they should have, but we are working to continually build their confidence so they can be more consistent.
The Lions open their season at Inman with a road game against the Teutons this Friday.