Brookwood Goes 2-0 to Start Region Play
VALDOSTA – The Brookwood Warriors have started out the new year hot, picking up their first two region wins, defeating Deerfield-Windsor 49-29 on Saturday and beating Valwood 83-56 on Tuesday.
“The biggest thing for us is seeing improvement night after night,” Head Coach Nate VanDuyne said. “We have lofty goals, and every game helps us progress toward them. We’ve worked hard in practice, but now it’s about applying what we’ve done when it counts: in games.”
VanDuyne added that he is seeing progress, saying, “We’re starting to see that slowly. There are still many things that we’re working on. I mean, we changed a lot of things in the offseason.”
“The biggest thing for us is seeing improvement night after night,” Head Coach Nate VanDuyne said. “We have lofty goals, and every game helps us progress toward them. We’ve worked hard in practice, but now it’s about applying what we’ve done when it counts: in games.”
VanDuyne added that he is seeing progress, saying, “We’re starting to see that slowly. There are still many things that we’re working on. I mean, we changed a lot of things in the offseason.”
After introducing new offensive and defensive schemes in the offseason, The benefits are starting to show, especially against Valwood.
“I think that’s the biggest thing for us, when it comes to intangible stuff. I think last night, I was just thrilled with how unselfish we were. We did a great job getting great shots.” VanDuyne said. “Um, we didn’t always make the shots, but it’s process over results. We’re doing the right stuff that will allow us to be successful later. So, I think that’s what I’m most excited about, but we got to do it again today in practice, and we got to do it again on Thursday when we get back out on the court.”
Heading into the holidays, the Warriors stood at 10-3 but came out of the break, finding their stride. “I think the fact that we’ve scheduled harder and already been exposed to some losses and closer games, I think that has helped our, our kind of rate of growth,” VanDuyne said. “It’s really started to pick up here of late, and I always kind of say, like, you know, like before Christmas is that time to kind of tinker and tweak and figure out what is truly going to work with this team. And then post-Christmas, you have to start making progress. Otherwise, you’re just not going to get where you want to go.”
“I think that’s the biggest thing for us, when it comes to intangible stuff. I think last night, I was just thrilled with how unselfish we were. We did a great job getting great shots.” VanDuyne said. “Um, we didn’t always make the shots, but it’s process over results. We’re doing the right stuff that will allow us to be successful later. So, I think that’s what I’m most excited about, but we got to do it again today in practice, and we got to do it again on Thursday when we get back out on the court.”
Heading into the holidays, the Warriors stood at 10-3 but came out of the break, finding their stride. “I think the fact that we’ve scheduled harder and already been exposed to some losses and closer games, I think that has helped our, our kind of rate of growth,” VanDuyne said. “It’s really started to pick up here of late, and I always kind of say, like, you know, like before Christmas is that time to kind of tinker and tweak and figure out what is truly going to work with this team. And then post-Christmas, you have to start making progress. Otherwise, you’re just not going to get where you want to go.”
While the majority of last year’s roster returned, players have had to take on new roles, and VanDuyne had plenty of praise for his players and how they have taken on that challenge.
“When you look at the guys whose role has changed, like Levi (Williams) has been steady at the point, and Jordyn (Jean) and Thomas (Lee) have been steady on the wing,” VanDuyne said. “But I think about the guys that have been thrust into different roles, I think Roscoe Jones has done a really good job of really being the centerpiece and having to be kind of a hybrid player, to where he’s perimeter and post with Walker (Jackson) being gone now, he’s done a really good job.
VanDuyne also talked about two of his players who are dual-sport athletes who have taken on the tough work in the post.
“When you look at the guys whose role has changed, like Levi (Williams) has been steady at the point, and Jordyn (Jean) and Thomas (Lee) have been steady on the wing,” VanDuyne said. “But I think about the guys that have been thrust into different roles, I think Roscoe Jones has done a really good job of really being the centerpiece and having to be kind of a hybrid player, to where he’s perimeter and post with Walker (Jackson) being gone now, he’s done a really good job.
VanDuyne also talked about two of his players who are dual-sport athletes who have taken on the tough work in the post.
“But then I also think about our seniors Will Stevens and Harrison Chapura. You know, they’re soccer first players, but when we talk about rim protection, they do a great job protecting the rim. They do a great job of screening and rebounding and just doing a lot of the toughness things.”
When looking ahead to the latter half of the season, VanDuyne is focusing on is continued improvement on the boards.
“I mean, there are those ones that you can’t control, like, obviously, we’ve got to stay healthy, and we’ve got to continue to show progress.” VanDuyne said, “But I think for us, you know, we have to continue to establish ourselves on the backboard. Like we’d have to rebound the ball. And that’s an area where we need to show growth. Like if we continue to rebound the ball as is right now, like, we’re just not going to be good enough.”
On the offensive end, he’s hoping for limited turnovers.
“Then on the other side, you know, we have to take care of it better. We’ve got to limit those turnovers, get that turnover number down, and have more possessions with shots. And those are just timeless truths with basketball.” VanDuyne said. “Like you have to rebound it, and you have to take care of it to give yourselves a chance to win a championship. And those are, those are probably the two biggest things that we’ve got to keep going.”
Brookwood returns home to take on Tiftarea on Thursday, January 8th at 7:45p.m.
When looking ahead to the latter half of the season, VanDuyne is focusing on is continued improvement on the boards.
“I mean, there are those ones that you can’t control, like, obviously, we’ve got to stay healthy, and we’ve got to continue to show progress.” VanDuyne said, “But I think for us, you know, we have to continue to establish ourselves on the backboard. Like we’d have to rebound the ball. And that’s an area where we need to show growth. Like if we continue to rebound the ball as is right now, like, we’re just not going to be good enough.”
On the offensive end, he’s hoping for limited turnovers.
“Then on the other side, you know, we have to take care of it better. We’ve got to limit those turnovers, get that turnover number down, and have more possessions with shots. And those are just timeless truths with basketball.” VanDuyne said. “Like you have to rebound it, and you have to take care of it to give yourselves a chance to win a championship. And those are, those are probably the two biggest things that we’ve got to keep going.”
Brookwood returns home to take on Tiftarea on Thursday, January 8th at 7:45p.m.
Brookwood School
Located in Thomasville, GA, Brookwood School is a private school for grades JK-12. Students benefit from a challenging academic program, fine and performing arts, competitive athletics, and a wide selection of extracurricular activities.