Piedmont Basketball Set for New Season

Piedmont Academy’s basketball teams will usher in the new season this week against a long-time rival.

The 2012-2013 season is set to tip-off today, Nov. 29, against Gatewood at home. Varsity games begin at 6 p.m.

“The kids are really working hard,” said Josh Daher, who will coach both varsity squads this season. “It is awesome for a coach to watch kids really focus during the preseason and really try to get better at the fundamentals. Both teams have a long way to go, but at this point I am really happy with the progress of both teams.”

For the Lady Cougars, the team will be led by six seniors including Heather Tyler, Lanie King, Lucy Strickland, Kacy Swart, Carley Cain and Hailey Burnham. “We are experienced at both the guard and post positions this year,” Daher said. “We have to get better at handling the basketball and finishing around the basket. These girls work really hard and do a great job of listening so I am hoping it can be a special year for them.”

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The Piedmont boys are not returning a starter for 2012-2013.

“We may struggle early in the season learning how to compete with one another,” Daher said. “We are very athletic this year and have some good shooters so we are going to try and get up and down the court with a little pace. Our goal is to get a quality look every time down the court before the defense sets up.”

The Piedmont teams will also be at home Monday against John Milledge at 6 p.m.

“Both of our teams have struggled with breaking the press and a high-pressure defense,” Daher said. ”Early on I will be interested to see how we handle that. We start with a very difficult schedule. The only way to get better is to play tough competition. We are trying to get better every day fundamentally, physically and mentally.”

The Piedmont Academy Middle School basketball teams will also host Gatewood Thursday and John Milledge Saturday. Games will begin at 3:30 p.m. each day.