by Sam Abbas | staff writer
Johnson boys’ basketball tipped off the regular season with a 95-76 win over Robert E. Lee high school. In their second game, they played hard but ultimately fell 76-61 to Ronald Reagan high school.
“I feel like we are in store for a really good season. It will be my final one here at Johnson, so hopefully it will be the best. I think we have a good chance at a deep playoff run and a very successful season,” senior Christian Quintanilla said.
The team has seven seniors on its roster. It has players with multiple years of varsity experience and some are going into their final year of high school basketball. The players are confident for the start of a new season and are hoping for a great season.
“I feel confident going into my senior year of basketball. I feel a little more relief because I have already signed with Houston Baptist. But I also have some nerves because I played on varsity every year and this will be my last,” senior Asa Cantwell said.
This year’s team has several players who have stayed committed to the program all four years of high school.
“I think the team is going to do well this year because we mesh very well together. Everyone has their own role and when each player commits to their job, it makes us just that much better of a team,” Quintanilla said.
That’s not to say there won’t be close games. The players will look to Coach Keller for a revamped approach to the game and new points of emphasis on the court.
“Coach Keller has been my coach since freshman year and I think that as a team we have a really special bond. He has always been there to push us through tough situations and been a great coach through the years,” Quintanilla said.
Having many players in their second year of playing on varsity, the players on the team each other very well and have past experience from playing together. They feel like they have good team chemistry because they play for the best of the team’s interest, not for the individual.
“I think we will perform very well this season. I think we are in store for a deep playoff run that will be very successful because of the team players we have and a great coaching staff. We have very good team chemistry and hopefully that will hope us in the long run,” Cantwell said.
