Rebels girls looking to continue to roll on hardcourt

By Greg Price
Taber Times
gprice@tabertimes.com

Eight will certainly not be enough for the W.R. Myers Rebels varsity girls basketball team for the season, but it is still a heck of a start to the 2014-2015 season for the team.

With two tournament wins along with two league victories to begin 8-0 on the season, the Rebels certainly have the confidence in place right now as it builds towards 3A girls provincials which Taber will be hosting.

“It was what we were hoping for obviously and I knew we have the capability of what we did in December,” said Kenney Wood, head coach of the W.R. Myers Rebels varsity girls basketball team.

“Our first game (tight win against Chinook) it was sort of to see where we were at and we saw rather quickly that if we play well, we are one of the better teams.”

It has been a bit of a nice Christmas break for the Rebels sprinkling in a few shooting practices along with participating in the alumni tournament. But, the Rebels will jump right back into the deep end as the team hosts the Magrath Pandas today at 8 p.m.

“We just need to play well. We won’t need to do anything out of the ordinary to win, but we have to play well defensively and have strong fundamentals,” said Wood.

“We have enough scorers that we don’t need one or two people to shoot the lights out. We have numerous offensive weapons, that if one or two aren’t clicking, the other four or five can pick up the slack, We have no huge scorers, but we have a balanced attack.”

The team is then off to a tournament in Brooks on the weekend. The Rebels will square off against Queen Elizabeth right off the bat.

“I know nothing about them other than they are from Calgary and are a 3A school,” said Wood adding the hosts and Calgary Christian are also on the Rebels’ side of the tournament bracket. Eagle Butte and Crescent Heights are featured on the other side.

“A title is what we are shooting for and there’s going to be some pretty good matchups.”

Although the Rebels are off to an 8-0 start, Wood admits there is always room for improvement. Wood would like to see a more rounded approach than the run-and-gun mentality the team has relied on solely so far.

“We are relying mostly on athleticism and quick baskets. Our plays are not coming really easily to them where they are still thinking ‘where do I have to go, where do I pass the ball.’ Once we get that, a bunch of other things will occur,” said Wood.

“Right now defensively, we are pretty tough and getting some transition baskets. We are a team that sees the floor pretty well and can run and pass to the open man. What we need to get better at is when we don’t get that transition, and we have to set up a half-court offence. We are getting better at it, but if there’s anything, it’s that we need to pick up a bit in 2015.”

The Rebels girls are currently ranked as the number-two ranked 3A girls team in the province thanks to its 8-0 record. But Wood knows this dance all too well that it is about how you finish, not how you start.

“It’s nice, it shows the girls their hard work is paying off, but we have a pretty tough schedule in January. If we come out of January undefeated, that will be a huge accomplishment,” said Wood.

“We are pretty good, but there’s always those little things you can improve on. It’s those little things in a tight game that matter like foul shooting and keep the turnovers to a minimum. If you make more foul shots and have fewer turnovers than the other team, you usually win. Last year we went into provincials ranked fourth and we didn’t get it done, so it’s all about playing the game and winning when you need to win. These are all stepping stones to that final goal.”