“We lost a lot of close games last year, and as a coaching staff we would certainly shake our heads afterwards and say, ‘What can we do better?'” Deschenes said. “But it’s a process. These guys had to learn how to win.”
Their 5-2 start this season gives some indication of how much they’ve learned. A roster of seven sophomores, three juniors and just two seniors suggests how far they still have to go.
Deschenes acknowledges the Patriots’ rebuilding project is ahead of schedule, but adds quickly the combination of young talent and hard work and a hunger for more success as the season approaches its midway point have them continuing to take control of their development.
“I don’t think anybody’s really surprised (with the start),” junior guard Josiah Rottari said. “We put in a lot of work this summer, and in the preseason we had a lot of really close games that we didn’t pull out but we learned from those.”
“Our team chemistry is there,” senior guard John Henry Villanueva said. “Every game, we’re developing and getting better and better.”
The Western Maine Conference has a way of teaching young teams that better and better still may not be good enough. The Patriots were immediately reminded how much better they still had to get when they opened the season with losses to Class A playoff contender Kennebunk and Class B power Yarmouth.
“The toughest thing has been battling back from starting 0-2 and trying to get all cylinders going,” Villanueva said.
Even with their current five-game winning streak, highlighted by triumphs over KVAC crossover opponent Lincoln Academy and rival Poland, Gray-New Gloucester doesn’t think it’s in gear yet.
“We haven’t really had a good first half this season,” sophomore guard John Martin said. “We’ve been working on our time and score at the end of the game (in practices), and we usually have a better second half. We usually pull away.”
One reason the Patriots have become a second-half team over the first half of the season is Martin, a 6-foot-2 point guard who is one of the best young players in Class B.
Averaging a robust 19 points per game, Martin’s size and shooting ability make him a matchup nightmare.
“I feel a lot of coaches are taking notice now, and it’s really fun to see,” Deschenes said. “He’s stepping up. He’s had some big fourth quarters. When the game’s on the line, he steps up and makes the plays for us.”
Martin has hit seven 3-pointers in a game on two separate occasions during the winning streak, against St. Dom’s and Poland.
But he’s not a one-man offense. Rottari, one of his backcourt mates, dropped six 3-pointers in a win over Sacopee Valley. Sophomores Ryan Lachance and Hunter Colby, two old-school back-to-the-basket 6-foot-5 post players, give the Patriots’ offense a throwback element in this era in which spreading the floor means shooting the first open 3 available.
With three years of varsity experience, Villanueva is the lone senior in the starting lineup.
“He’s kind of the glue that holds us together, him and our other captain, Tanner Mann. They’re calming influences. They’re tough kids and do a lot of the little things on the court,” Deschenes said.
Deschenes and his captains preside over a team with the kind of off-court chemistry that fosters it on the court and helps keep it on an even keel through any ups and downs.
The upcoming schedule promises to be full of ups, downs, or both. It starts Friday with another KVAC crossover, this one against unbeaten Spruce Mountain. Then it’s back to the WMC grind with the likes of Fryeburg, Lake Region, York, Greely and Yarmouth.
Deschenes feels his team will have to get tougher on the boards and get a better grasp of a rebuilt defensive system to continue making others take notice while walking that gauntlet.
“We feel we’re a tough team to guard when we’re moving the ball and running our stuff. We’ve just got to be committed on the defensive side and rebounding,” Deschenes said.
The ultimate goal for this season is to make teams fear facing Gray-New Gloucester in February, he said.
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