Credit: Courtesy of WSPN

The boys varsity basketball team is set to take on their rivals, the Weston Wildcats, Friday, Dec. 20 at the Wayland High School (WHS) Field House. This game marks the first home game of the season.

The boys varsity basketball team is set to take on their rivals, the Weston Wildcats, Friday, Dec. 20 at the Wayland High School (WHS) field house. The game marks the first home game of the season.

With the season just kicking off, WHS guidance counselor and boys varsity basketball coach Dennis Doherty shares his hopes for this year’s team.

“I think the primary goal for this team is to get to the state tournament,” Doherty said.

The team has been struggling to qualify for the state tournament the past couple seasons. In order to qualify for last year’s playoffs, the team needed to win a total of 10 games, however, they ended last season with a 4-15 record and they ended the 2022-23 season with a 4-16 record. This year’s team is a mix of new players as well as some returning players. Doherty plans to focus more on the team’s defensive skills this season and has hope for this new group.

“I think this is a group that has the potential to really play well together,” Doherty said. “We’re really going to work on our defense and rebounding.”

Last season, the team suffered a 62-42 loss to the Wildcats. This year, the Wayland players want a rematch against the Wildcats. They are going into this game with confidence, not letting last year’s outcome dictate the outcome of tomorrow’s game.

“I’m feeling pretty confident,” sophomore Josh Lewis-Guy said. “They beat us last year, so we’re just expecting to get the win.”

The team knows that beating Weston won’t be easy because of Weston’s physicality, rebounding and boxing out last season. However, two of Weston’s Dual County League All Star players left for private school last year which could give Wayland an advantage.

The rivalry between the fans is also expected to be intense, which will only heighten the excitement of the game.

“I think it’s going to be very hectic,” Lewis-Guy said. “I think Weston’s crowd is going to be there and [Wayland’s] crowd is going to be there. Our crowds are going to be going back and forth [at each other] like last year.”

Despite the intensity of the match, Lewis-Guy still has faith that the strong bond between his teammates will be beneficial to securing the win against Weston.

“[Our strengths are] our team chemistry and our offense,” Lewis-Guy said.

Lewis-Guy believes that these strengths will give Wayland an upper hand which they can use to their advantage by keeping the ball away from Weston and playing strong defense.

There are five seniors on the team, three of which are captains including Ido Geffen, Owen Williams and Ridley Keegan. Keegan, a three year varsity player, says that the feeling of playing his last first home game hasn’t hit him yet.

“It just feels like another first home game of the season,” Keegan said. “I don’t know if that will change when I get out there tomorrow, but to even think that this could be my last season of organized basketball is mind-blowing.”

According to Keegan, the rivalry between the two teams acts as automatic motivation for Wayland. Keegan and the team are hoping that the home-court advantage will help them win the game as it did for Weston last year.

“I remember what it felt like last time when we played Weston near the holiday’s and we lost on their home floor.” Keegan said. “So we all want to return the favor this year.”