Adam Bremner
Staff Writer

Amidst the success of the Cowboy football team this fall, the basketball team is hard at work to prepare for the upcoming season that begins in November.

Thanks to an immense amount of athleticism on the roster, head coach Brad Chasteen has altered the philosophy of play from past years’ teams. This season, Chasteen is fashioning a technique in which the objective is to apply overwhelming pressure on the opposition, which will, in return, provide easy scoring chances. The pace for the team is supposed to pick up and allow for the bench to be more utilized.

The focus of this system revolves around a single number: seven. The digit is printed on the back of the players’ workout shirts and represents more than the eye can see. To be specific, there are 10 meanings behind the number; 7 different kinds of presses, 7 kinds of shots to master and 7 different district opponents to defeat, just to identify a few. It is a symbol, rather than a lucky number, that signifies their hard work and a potential district title for the team.

“We want to play faster, not for entertainment but to play to our strengths,” Chasteen said. “This year, we have a talented back court and our tallest players are more equipped to run rather than be physical.”

Participating in this scheme has required this offseason to be rigorous and challenging for the players, perhaps, even more demanding than the offseason a year ago, which included intense sprints and lifting regimens.

“To an extent, it is different than last year,” junior guard Warren Oishi said. “We are doing more sprints and activities that are basketball related like defensive slide drills that will help with pressing [the other team].”

These defensive slide drills contribute to the new system by emphasizing a defensive approach to couple with the frantic offense. Chasteen wants the team to be able to pressure the other team at any point of the game to create better opportunities.

Of course, this request by Chasteen does not come easy even for the most talented players. Disrupting the opposition is a task that requires a healthy heart rate as well as being in a state of prime condition. Senior captain Andrew Rexroat believes that working hard over the offseason will eventually allow them to disturb other offenses.

“All of these sprints and drills are hard now but will be helpful during the season,” Rexroat said. “We will be more prepared to intensify our presses and get steals against the other teams.”

Naturally, coming hand in hand with pressing and a frenzied type of offense, there are tired players, regardless of how grueling the workouts, in fact, are. The Cowboys’ starters will have to be substituted early and often to ensure that the legs are fresh throughout each quarter. Subsequently, Chasteen will admittedly have to look deeper into his bench to relieve the winded starters after pressing and running up and down the court.

“[This new philosophy] changes how we play and substitute,” Chasteen said. “We will have to go deep in the bench to play at a frantic pace.”

Sure, this offseason has been physically demanding for the players (and they will be the first to tell you), however, coach Chasteen considers a different benefit from the workouts to be more valuable. Chasteen, rather, believes his players will gain a mental edge over the opponents that will prove essential to the team’s success.

“At the least, we should be better, not necessarily in our conditioning, but mentally [after this offseason],” Chasteen said. “Repetition [in the workouts] will make the players stronger mentally as they take on the season.”

Following this offseason, the new look Cowboy team will enter non-district play in excellent shape, adapting to the exciting style of play. If the players have completely bought in to this system, it is promising that the team will thrive during the season and more importantly district play.

The Cowboys first official action commences on November 9th, away at Creekview for their first of two exhibitions games before facing Plano East on November 16th to kick off the year.