Triton Trojans Navigate Season Full Of Adversity
February 26, 2018 at 4:52 p.m.
By Zach [email protected]
Culver Community will now host the sectional and regional. This will be the first year since the 2014-15 season Triton has not hosted the sectional.
Because of the damaged floor, the Trojans were forced to practice at Triton Elementary, and play games at the elementary school and later Plymouth High School.
“It is what it is,” said Triton coach Jason Groves. “It’s taken a toll on us. Basketball is such a long season, both mentally and physically draining, and having to deal with something like this, it’s rough.”
Having to play every game on the road is one thing. It’s also changed the way the Trojans practice.
“We are used to having the varsity in one gym and junior varsity in another gym at times,” Groves said. “Now were sharing the elementary everyday and have two functional baskets.”
The Trojans will lose the comfort from playing in front of their home crowd, but are familiar with playing at Culver Community High School. Triton made the trek to Culver Community in 2014 to play in the sectional and played there the year before and won the sectional title.
The Trojans will play South Central in the opening round. The Satellites are unfamiliar foes for Triton. The two teams haven’t played since the first round of the 2016 sectional, with the Trojans winning 48-31.
In a sectional that has a total winning percentage of under 41 percent, Triton is 2-4 against the field. The Trojans defeated South Bend Career Academy, split two meetings against Culver Community, and lost to Argos, Elkhart Christian Academy and Oregon-Davis.
Groves and his team will look to their defense to keep them in the game and will need to attack the basketball.
“Defensively, we’ve been playing well enough to win basketball games,” he said. “We just have to play with more confidence and find ways to score.”
Triton will look to senior Ross Johnson to jump-start the offense and be aggressive. The 6-foot-3 forward is averaging 17.2 points per game, accounting for 42 percent of the team’s scoring this season. Johnson also leads the team with 5.5 rebounds per game and a total of 28 steals.
Alongside Johnson on offense will be junior guard Beau Hepler. The 5-5 ball handler is second on the team with 7.6 points per game and will try to ignite the scoring from the point.
As a unit, the Trojans are scoring just under 39 points a game and allowing 45 points a game. A team that has struggled at points throughout the season with scoring and has shot in the low 20 percents on some occasions, Triton will have to attack the basket and knock down shots.
Four seniors will don the Triton jersey in the postseason. Sixty-five percent of the team’s scoring and 54 percent of the rebounding is produced by these players. They will look to be leaders out on the floor and keep the season rolling.
Triton will play in the opening game of Class 1A Sectional 51. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m.
E-Editions
Culver Community will now host the sectional and regional. This will be the first year since the 2014-15 season Triton has not hosted the sectional.
Because of the damaged floor, the Trojans were forced to practice at Triton Elementary, and play games at the elementary school and later Plymouth High School.
“It is what it is,” said Triton coach Jason Groves. “It’s taken a toll on us. Basketball is such a long season, both mentally and physically draining, and having to deal with something like this, it’s rough.”
Having to play every game on the road is one thing. It’s also changed the way the Trojans practice.
“We are used to having the varsity in one gym and junior varsity in another gym at times,” Groves said. “Now were sharing the elementary everyday and have two functional baskets.”
The Trojans will lose the comfort from playing in front of their home crowd, but are familiar with playing at Culver Community High School. Triton made the trek to Culver Community in 2014 to play in the sectional and played there the year before and won the sectional title.
The Trojans will play South Central in the opening round. The Satellites are unfamiliar foes for Triton. The two teams haven’t played since the first round of the 2016 sectional, with the Trojans winning 48-31.
In a sectional that has a total winning percentage of under 41 percent, Triton is 2-4 against the field. The Trojans defeated South Bend Career Academy, split two meetings against Culver Community, and lost to Argos, Elkhart Christian Academy and Oregon-Davis.
Groves and his team will look to their defense to keep them in the game and will need to attack the basketball.
“Defensively, we’ve been playing well enough to win basketball games,” he said. “We just have to play with more confidence and find ways to score.”
Triton will look to senior Ross Johnson to jump-start the offense and be aggressive. The 6-foot-3 forward is averaging 17.2 points per game, accounting for 42 percent of the team’s scoring this season. Johnson also leads the team with 5.5 rebounds per game and a total of 28 steals.
Alongside Johnson on offense will be junior guard Beau Hepler. The 5-5 ball handler is second on the team with 7.6 points per game and will try to ignite the scoring from the point.
As a unit, the Trojans are scoring just under 39 points a game and allowing 45 points a game. A team that has struggled at points throughout the season with scoring and has shot in the low 20 percents on some occasions, Triton will have to attack the basket and knock down shots.
Four seniors will don the Triton jersey in the postseason. Sixty-five percent of the team’s scoring and 54 percent of the rebounding is produced by these players. They will look to be leaders out on the floor and keep the season rolling.
Triton will play in the opening game of Class 1A Sectional 51. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m.
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