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Blues Look To Six Returning Players For Leadership
With seven returning players leading four first-year varsity players, the Parry McCluer High School boys basketball team is eager to get the season underway.
The Fighting Blues are coming off a 22-5 season, during which they went 10-1 during the regular season in the Pioneer District before winning the district title. PM was just a step away from the Class 1 state tournament, ending its season with a 77-70 loss at George Wythe in the Region 1C semifinals.
From that team, PM graduated three all-region players: Evan Cook, JJ Jones and Landon Catlett, who is now a member of the Southern Virginia University team.
Looking forward to the upcoming season, thirdyear PM head coach Tyler Kerr said getting ready for the season is going to be similar to last year. “I think the key to a good program is consistency,” said Kerr, a 2011 PM graduate. “The way that you coach team to team might be a little different, but a lot stays the same.”
“It’s the same workman’s approach,” added Kerr. “We have to condition. I like to run the floor. We’re trying to build that team camaraderie and make sure we are as ready and prepared as possible for that first game.”
The Blues have four returning seniors: 6-foot-1inch guard Braedyn Houck and forwards Brayden Holdren (6-1), Ellis Hill (511) and Peyton Montgomery (6-1). Also returning are junior forward Nathan Glass (6-3) and sophomore guard Langston Cook (6-0). Houck, Glass and Cook all earned all-district honors last year. Kerr said he expects a lot of minutes from all of his returning players.
Highlighting the senior members of his team, Kerr said, “A few of our seniors that may have not played as much as much in the past are ready to step up. They’ve grinded a lot. Houck and Hill are ready to be assertive players. PMont [Peyton Montgomery] and Holdren are really reliable too and have experience. We can expect a lot of production out of Cook.”
New to the varsity team are junior guard Sam Griffin (6-0), junior forward Brendan Holdren (6-2), along with a pair of sophomores, guard Parker Snider (5-10) and forward Kyle Smals (6-1) and freshman guard Quentin Rosser (57).
Kerr is joined by the same coaching staff as last year, with assistant coaches Andy Fainter, Aaron Higginbotham and David Smith. Talen Roberts, a 2021 PM graduate, will be the head junior varsity coach for the second year in a row. New to the staff is assistant coach Ryan Farris.
In the Pioneer District, the Blues’ toughest rival last year was Narrows. The two teams split a pair of games during the regular season before PM beat Narrows 64-51 in the district tournament.
Kerr said he believes the Pioneer District will be much more competitive across the board this season. ”I expect this year to be a lot closer in the district, at least game-wise, in the district than last year,” said Kerr.
“A lot of these young teams are older now, and they are gonna be more competitive,” added Kerr.
The PM coach said that he believes Nelson County and Auburn, teams the Blues will play in December, will be highly competitive nondistrict matchups.
Confident in his team, Kerr said, “We have a good program here. We aren’t going to take shortcuts and we are going to bring them every day. Coaches are gonna hold each other accountable, players will hold each other accountable, and across the board we will have that workman’s attitude. This group has the makings to be very successful.”
The Blues will tip off the season on Tuesday when they play at James River in Buchanan. Their home opener will be against Nelson County next Thursday, Dec. 5, and they’ll play host to James River the following Tuesday, Dec. 10. All three nights will start with JV action at 5:30 p.m. PM’s Pioneer District opener will be at home against Highland County on Tuesday, Dec. 17, with the varsity teams only playing at 7 p.m.
