The Purdy boys basketball team turned in a 17-win season last year, and although the team has a new look, the Eagles have set their sights on a 20-win campaign, and with plenty of returners to accomplish that goal.
Heath Carmichael, Purdy boys basketball coach, said the Eagles intend to be in the mix for a conference title and in good positioning for district play.
“We were a 17 win team from a year ago, so for us, even though we lost a lot of production and pieces, being back around that 20 win mark would be a fantastic goal for us or a goal to strive for,” he said. “With a few seniors in the mix and some newer younger guys being thrown into the rotation, the ability to mesh and build chemistry together will be vital. If we come to ‘work’ every day, and we strive to be the best basketball players we can be, on top of being great young men and teammates, then the uncontrollables will hopefully take care of themselves.”
A big part of the Eagles’ gameplan revolves around junior Carter Keeling, who earned First Team All-Conference as a sophomore.
“Carter has been a vital piece for our program over his (and mine) first two seasons,” Carmichael said. “He moved into a starting role midway through his freshman year and was a full-time starter for us a year ago. Carter is a basketball player. He travels and plays AAU in the springs and summers, which is a big help. He has a basketball in his hands for the vast majority of the calendar year, which is vital for becoming a good, consistent basketball player.
“A lot of the things we run tend to be for Carter to get open and get quality looks, but I also have to give credit to older guys/upperclassman for having trust in Carter and what we do to look for him and be willing to give a younger guy, underclassman the reins to ‘be the guy’ per se — that takes a lot of selflessness for older guys, which is awesome.”
Carmichael said Keeling has the ability to score at all three levels, which makes him a hard player to defend.
“He continues to grow and mature so he can be a tough matchup for teams,” Carmichael said. “If he has a big on him, he has the ability to pace the floor, shoot the ball, as well as play off the dribble. If he has a smaller guard on him, he has the ability to post up and play around the rim as well, which as he continues to grow and mature and he is able to put on weight and get stronger will only make him that much more difficult to defend and productive for us.”
With that ability, Carmichael said he expects other teams to have Keeling at the top of every scouting report, but there’s still work to be done.
“From a coach’s standpoint, in order for Carter to take that next step would be to become a more consistent shooter and to be able to continue to improve his play without the ball in his hands (reading screens and actions to get open looks),” he said. “If he is able to improve his shooting percentages from a year ago (40% FG, 32% 3FG, 65% FT), that will only help him as he continues to grow, mature and develop.”
Three returners will add to Keeling, including senior guard J.J. Felipe, junior center Will Henderson and senior center Gauge Davidson.
“J.J. was our 6th man a year ago but played starter minutes a lot of games and found himself in the lineup during crunch time more often than not,” Carmichael said. “J.J. has a very high basketball IQ and has the ability to read and see things before they happen and develop. J.J. has the ability, like Carter to score at all three levels and will have a much more expanded role this year for us. He was our fourth-leading scorer in a deep and very balanced rotation/ production line. We look for J.J. to increase his outputs for us tremendously in all areas of the game. He will find the ball in his hands a ton as a scorer and play maker. J.J., along with Carter, have the green light and the keys to the kingdom — we will go as those two go this season.
“Will is a kid who has found minutes at the varsity level since the middle to end of his freshman year. His role and minutes have been limited due to a balanced and deep rotation but we look for Will to have an expanded role for us this year. He is one of our bigger and stronger kids we have, so he will have a lot of responsibility on the defensive end for us in terms of production and being a leader on the defensive end with talk and communication. If Will is able to be a consistent shooter/scorer for us, at 6-8 points a game, and be a threat on the perimeter where opponents have to respect his shot, it will only make us that much tougher to guard. Gauge will be back with us this season after missing his junior season to a shoulder injury. He was a starter for us towards the end of his sophomore season and will find himself in a large role this year for us. Gauge has the ability to stretch the floor for us and has the speed and quickness to attack the rim off the dribble as well. With his speed, strength, and athleticism, he has the ability to be a tough matchup for a guard and or a post. We look for Gauge to be an energy giver for everyone with how hard he plays the game and how hard he works. Gauge will be a vital piece in this success of this season.”
Adding to the depth of the Eagles will be a senior, three sophomores and a freshman.
“Geo De Leon (senior guard) has the opportunity to find minutes as a defender and energy giver,” Carmichael said. “Damon Mahurin (sophomore guard) has the opportunity to be a valuable piece to our puzzle this year as a guard who can handle the ball and defend. He is a capable shooter and high IQ player. Denilson De Leon (sophomore guard/post) is physical around the rim and has the ability to defend. He is a ball magnet and rebounder and has the opportunity and the ability to play a role for us.
“J.J. Aguliar (sophomore guard/post) is another good athlete who has the ability to play a role for us as a defender and energy giver. He’s a hustle guy who has length and speed. Jordyn De Leon (freshman guard) has the ability to shoot and handle the ball. He is an energy guy who has ‘it.’ He has the opportunity to find a role and consistent minutes.”
Carmichael said a strength of the team as a whole this season will be versatility on both ends of the floor, having lost some physicality and size but also having potential to replace it.
“We will have some length and some athleticism on the perimeter and around the rim as well, but it will have to be a group effort battling around the rim, rebounding, etc. with less size this season,” he said. “Another strength is our basketball IQ. Over my first two years, we have made great strides in improving the way we think and see the game, but I am very excited about this group’s IQ and our ability to mix up what we are doing on both ends of the floor, especially on the offensive end of the floor.”
Discipline, Carmichael said, will be a key area to improve, working constantly to get quality possessions and shots while being hard-nosed on defense.
“It’s going to take a group effort on the defensive end controlling the paint and rebounding,” he said. “We are really going to have to buy into the defensive end and limit opponents to just one shot and force teams into earning everything they get. For us to be at our best, each guy is going to have to buy into his role, no matter how big or how small, and come to work everyday to honor and fill that role.”
Ultimately, Carmichael said he hopes Purdy enters and exits the season with pride in doing things the right way.
“I want my kids to be known for their toughness, their grit, their fight and their 9-5 blue collar mentality on the defensive end,” he said. “Offensively, I want my kids to be known for their ability to read defenses and be disciplined enough to get quality shots each time down the floor. As a whole, I want my teams to be known for how hard they play, how hard they compete, and how they go about the game of basketball in doing things the right way.”
The Eagles have opened the season at 3-1 in the Verona Tip-Off Classic, defeating Hurley, 63-26, and Wheaton, 50-36, before falling to Blue Eye, 55-41. They play in the Marionville invitational this week, and the home opener is on Dec. 8 against Exeter.
