The junior varsity basketball players just finished tryouts and the boys team is ready to take on the McLean school today at 4:30 at the Upper School. The JV Lions are looking to re-establish themselves as a solid contender in the Potomac Valley Athletic Conference.

The JV team was on the verge of winning the PVAC title last season but was defeated by league champions Grace Brethren. It was a extremely tough loss for the team. According to JV Coach Brian Westerman, the loss was due to the lack of practice time caused by inclement weather.

“Last year we had a lot of success during the year, and we had a huge win against Sandy Spring in the semi-finals where we had a lot of momentum, then Mother Nature kind of took over and for a good two and a half, three week time period we didn’t know if we were practicing, playing or not coming to school,” Westerman said. “We lost momentum because of all the things that were transpiring. In the championship game, the team could not match the strength of Grace Brethren’s team.”

“It was just one of those fluke situations where they couldn’t miss that day, and we couldn’t make our shots,” Westerman said.

This year, Westerman is making sure to work on the team’s transition game and maintaining a faster tempo on both sides of the floor in order to create more opportunities to put points on the scoreboard and stop defensive attempts. With these goals in mind, Westerman is optimistic about the upcoming season.

“I look forward to having a great year, and having an opportunity to coach this team and I hope that we are able to have a very successful year this year,” Westerman said.

Sophomore Oren Azar was recently named the JV team captain and is excited to take on such a significant role. Azar has been on the team since last year and hopes to make a large impact on the playing floor this season. He said that he has a very strong relationship with Westerman and is looking to the build the team’s chemistry and become a strong leader that the team can depend on.