By Chris Parker
Skyline boys basketball will have a young team coming off a four-win season with one senior on the roster.
That lone senior is AJ Dampier.
“AJ is our lone senior and a tremendous leader,” Skyline head coach Tommy Egan said. “He has taken on the role as the guy that will guard the other team’s best player and can help provide scoring and playmaking ability.”
Juniors Tyler Henry, Jayden Moppin and Camden West also return.
Egan on Henry: “Tyler missed out on an all-important JV season as a freshman with an injury and was thrown right into the varsity fire and started as a sophomore. He is a smart, hard-nosed competitor and we really feel he is going to make huge strides in his play this season.”
Egan on Moppin: “Jayden provides toughness to this team. He has the ability to be one of our better post defenders and is one of the best rebounders on our team.”
Egan on West: “Camden showed he could provide us with some scoring last season. With improved defense and ball handling he should be in the mix for more varsity minutes this year.”
Sophomores Aiden Meade and Paxton Foster round out the returning players.
Egan on Meade: “We put a ton on Aiden’s shoulders last season as a freshman and will be expecting even more out of him this year. Aiden led us in scoring last year, provided ball handling, and was one of our best defenders. We will be looking for more of the same out of him this season. Aiden was an honorable mention all-conference selection and made the all-district team.”
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Egan on Foster: “Paxton was able to get some varsity minutes as a freshman last year. He had a really good summer, and we are excited to see that transfer over in his second year.”
Twins Carter and Conner Millbern will be newcomers to the varsity lineup this season.
“Twin brothers Carter and Conner are tremendous individuals,” Egan said. “They are team-first guys and very coachable. Carter is our best rim protector and will provide depth at the post position and Conner is a good shooter that has really improved in the other aspects of the game. He will provide depth at the guard position.”
Fellow junior Isaiah Pippins will also be new to the varsity team this season.
A large freshman contingent featuring Parker Owen, Carter King, Landen Hodges, Ethan Brewer, Logan Moppin and Noah Long will all look to make immediate varsity impacts.
“I think some of our biggest strengths this year are our chemistry and motivation,” Egan said. “We have a tight knit group that really gets along on and off the floor and they are hungry to put in the necessary work to be successful after a rough 22-23 season.”
Egan will look for his team to win the turnover battle in an effort to stack more wins this season.
“We had far too many live ball turnovers on offense last season and did not force many turnovers on the defensive end,” Egan said. “This will have to improve if we want to take a step forward. We will not be very big so team rebounding will be extremely important.”
Skyline opens the regular season at the Warsaw Tournament Nov. 27 through Dec. 2.
“I just want to see us play with extreme effort and concentration every single day whether it be a game or practice,” Egan said. “Whenever we face the inevitable adversity that comes with every season, we have to be able to battle through it. Finally, as always, we need to put team success above all else. If we can do these things the wins and losses will take care of themselves.”
