photo by Harmoni Guerrero
CAPTION: Senior guard De’quare’yon Haney leads his team up court in an exciting game against Sam Houston High School.
Varsity Boys Basketball takes on the Brandeis Broncos at 7:30pm tonight at Harlan High School’s gym. The team has been working hard so far this season, and the Gavel Sports Team spoke to Head Coach James Joseph about the progress to this point in the season, as they currently stand with an a record of five overall wins.
“In a ironic way, our record doesn’t reflect it but, I’m super proud of our kids,” Joseph said. “They had a lot of highlights early against some real good ranked teams like McArthur and Sam Houston. They also got a chance to play one of the top five teams in Austin Westlake and our kids played well in all those games, so it’s been fun.”
Joseph also shared what the Huskies have learned that they can take into the final stretch of this season.
“I think the big thing is we’re learning is where we’re lining up, what players can play what roles, who can do what and just trying to build a younger team’s confidence as we get ready to go more into district play,” he said.
Joseph also has an eye on the improvements his players are making.
“The big thing is watching our kids grow and just learning how to win,” he said. “We’ve been in a lot of close games where we’ve been up.”
When asked what players fans should watch this season, Coach Joseph highlighted two.
“Players to keep an eye on this season should always be Robert Gill and Elijah Moreno, two of our really good players,” he said.
The team has also dealt with injuries and players missing games this season.
“We’ve been waiting on a few guys dealing with PAPF’s [eligibility] and those guys are really gonna help. Malachi just got eligible and then we’ll have another good player named D who’s coming,” Joseph said.
For fans, Joseph has a request down the home stretch of games.
“Just come out and be supportive,” he said. “We just want to see our fans in the stands and see our community. When they come out, it gives us energy and hopefully we can pull some wins. Just keep the pride and tradition of the Husky win going.”
Fans can do just that as the Huskies face the Brandeis at Harlan High School’s gym tonight at 7:30pm.