By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
The Chapman Fighting Irish boys basketball team has gotten off to a bit of a slow start in 2020-21, but has been playing catch-up behind the rest of the state after a delayed start to their season.
Due to covid-19 concerns, Chapman was unable to play its first game until January 8th, and was unable to hold meaningful practice until the new year.
As a result, by the time the Irish began playing basketball games, their opponents had already notched 4-5 games worth of experience and established a rhythm.
“Not having a chance to play games before break was probably the hardest thing,” Chapman head coach James Bell said. “We didn’t have much practice before we did start playing so it feels like we’ve been a little bit behind.”
Despite learning a lot of things on the fly, Chapman was able to split their first four games before falling to the 3-6 mark the team sits at heading into the final month of the regular season.
While many teams would struggle to stay focused or motivated, coach Bell’s bunch have done an excellent job of keeping their eye on the prize and continuing to work each and every day.
“These kids have been through so much this season,” he said. “From being unable to start on time and having to play catch up, to losing members of our coaching staff for some games due to covid, they’ve had to fight through a lot of adversity and I think they’ve responded great.”
Chapman has also refused to let their slow start be a reason to panic, as the team has kept a level head and focused on taking the new year one game at a time.
“The best thing I’ve seen from this team this year is their positive attitude,” Bell said. “They haven’t let the win loss record get in their head, they’re enjoying each other and they’re excited to get back on the court.”
As Chapman’s playmakers begin to emerge, much of what was expected in the preseason has come to fruition. The Fighting Irish are led by two consistent double-digit scorers in Cam Libeau and Trey Adams, two veteran seniors in Trevor Erickson and Jon Jenkins, and a surprise sixth man in Torin Cavanaugh.
While that core has played well together, there is still much work to be done down the stretch to prepare this team for better things come playoff time.
“I think we have to get a little more out of our transition offense,” he said. “If we can get some easy buckets on the run I think that can really help us out late in games. We also need to communicate a little bit better especially when we’re in our zone.”
Chapman will face several tough opponents down the stretch, but as Coach Bell pointed out, it’s all about how you finish.
“I think that if we can get everything together here at the end of the year and stay healthy and on the court we have as good a chance as everybody to make it out of this sub-state,” he said.
Chapman will be back in action on Friday when they travel to Southeast of Saline for a tip with the 7-6 Trojans.