The potential of Southern Lehigh’s boys’ basketball team for the 2023-24 season has yet to be determined. After losing in both league and district semifinals, last year’s team fell short of bringing home gold. Since then, the roster has lost a lot of vital graduates.
On the surface, the situation may look like it could be better. Behind the scenes, however, the team could be stronger than ever.
In the 2022-23 season, Southern Lehigh started five seniors with even more on the bench. After ending the regular season with a solid 17-8 record, the boys went into the playoffs last year with confidence to make it far. Their journey was cut short, as they lost to Saucon and East Stroudsburg in leagues and districts, respectively.
This time around, the boys’ lineup is less experienced, though they might be even stronger mentally. Behind the scenes, the players have a positive mindset.
Senior and team captain Hansen Fan has been playing basketball for Southern Lehigh since eighth grade. His experience shines through in his attitude and the praise he directed towards the sport and his teammates.
“We’re working very hard [and] building trust everyday,” Fan said. “Overall, the chemistry is really good.”
Although the team has suffered some hard losses so far, it’s apparent that there’s a strong foundation from a leadership standpoint. Knowing the team’s attitude on the court can help see where a team is mentally. Looking towards the locker room can reveal even more.
“Being good friends off the court makes it a lot easier to play with each other,” Fan said. “We have a lot of fun together, but we also work well together as a team.”
It’s clear that our boys are in the right mindset. Turning this attitude into results has been a different story, however.
The varsity team has endured some tough losses this season. Some younger players offered their perspective of what may be missing.
“The attitude and effort is there, but the other teams are executing better. We need to execute.” junior John Savage said. “We’ve also lost a lot of seniors and height within our Varsity roster. [Ninety-six percent] of our points last year came from the graduating seniors.”
The Southern Lehigh roster is clearly aware of their weaknesses. Whether or not they can improve upon them is a different task. The team seems to have maintained a steady perspective on their goals, which could aid them in this ambition.
“We’re going to prove everyone wrong,” junior Josh Allen said.“We are dogs.”
No matter the obstacles faced so far, Southern Lehigh’s boys basketball team is maintaining the same ambition moving forward. This sort of mindset could push the boys past these losses and towards a stronger finish to the season.
