Year two for a couple of Winston Academy basketball coaches is about to be underway with optimism coming in hot before the games begin. Both coaches have had a bit of a delay to start things off, however, with the girls slated to get on the court this week. Kelley Greer’s team had to skip out on the first week of play due to COVID-19 positives. They hope to return this Thursday taking on Kemper Academy. Whenever they begin, Greer is confident in what she has returning this season with all of her main contributors back. “I think they’re 100 percent better than last year. This summer we incorporated more fundamentals and everything is where it needs to be. My thing is being in shape and getting up and down the court against these teams like Leake, Starkville and Heritage,” Greer said. “I’ve got a lot of speed and a lot of depth on my bench. I’m really excited about this season and I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people. Last year was disappointing at times but this year is going to be different. I’m really excited.” After finishing second in both district and north state the previous season, the Lady Patriots had a rebuilding year last year as they lost some key players. This season they return four of their starters led by sophomore Hailey Bradford. They’re also adding in Bella Hillyer to the mix at point guard and ninth graders that the coach believes will add depth. Following the game against the Lady Rams on Thursday, WA will travel to Carroll on Monday. As for the boys team, it might be a while before they get on the court for the first time. In Jordan Graham’s second year as a coach at Winston, the team has just one player that currently doesn’t play football. Considering the Patriots are now in the second round of the playoffs, Graham is fine with delaying the season as long as they can if it means success for the football team. “We’re just kind of sitting on go right now,” Graham said. “We’ll see what happens with football and hopefully we won’t play for a couple of weeks so they can take care of business. I’m used to it from my time at Starkville Academy and we’re always happy when our other sports are having success.” When the players do return, Graham expects his team to move forward after a tough season a year ago. The Patriots found wins hard to come by and they lost their top scorer in Cage Palmer to graduation. Still, the coach believes there’s a chance for good things to happen. “Losing Cage is a big question mark. Our biggest question mark is finding someone that can handle pressure and the basketball,” Graham said. “Taylor Hudson will have to step up for us this year and play guard as well as Jack Wooten. We’ve got Johnson (Wells) and Will Catt coming back that will be the big seniors returning. Johnson is the straw that turns the drink for us.” The Patriots won’t play a game for at least the next two weeks and the first game is to be determined after the football team’s season comes to an end.
