Lions off to hot start with tournament title
The Albany Lions boys basketball team went 4-0 to win the Lingleville Tournament last week, highlighted by steady scoring and strong defensive pressure throughout the three-day stretch.
Albany opened Thursday with a 62-34 win over Olney, then returned Friday morning for an early start against Bluff Dale, followed by a second game later that day against Coleman. The Lions closed the tournament Saturday with an 86-18 win over Eastland.
“We started Thursday, and played Olney. Then we played Bluff Dale at 8 a.m. on Friday, and then turned around and played Coleman at 10:30 on Friday,” head coach Ryder Peacock said. “We finished up with Eastland on Saturday. It was a long stretch, but I thought we handled it well.”
Albany defeated Bluff Dale 71-51 and Coleman 73-32. Peacock said the Lions were pleased with the pace they maintained after a slow start in the opener.
“Once we got through the first quarter against Olney, it felt like we found our rhythm,” Peacock said. “We did a good job of pushing tempo, and I thought we played with a lot of pace in terms of both offense and defense.”
Peacock credited recent practice time for allowing Albany to lean on full-court pressure when needed.
“Having some time to practice gave us an opportunity to go back and put on our full-court stuff defensively,” he said. “We were able to utilize that throughout some of the contests and to our advantage.”
Even with the Lions putting up big numbers, Peacock said the group believes it still has another level.
“The first three games we scored quite a few points, but we never felt like we really played to our potential,” he said. “We missed some shots, but we were creating good looks, and that’s a positive. We still felt like there were points left on the board.”
Against Eastland, Peacock said the Lions put together their best offensive quarter of the tournament.
“That first quarter against Eastland was probably as good as we’ve looked offensively,” he said. “The first quarter we scored 37 to three. Everything just kind of fell into place. That was a fun quarter to watch.”
Senior Chance Stewart was named tournament MVP.
Albany hosted Comanche on Tuesday, Dec. 15, before entering a break ahead of the Windthorst Tournament on Dec. 29-30. Details from the Comanche game will appear in the next edition of The Albany News.
Peacock said the schedule lines up well for a team still coming off football season.
“Our bodies are still recovering from football, and they really never got a break,” Peacock said. “The holiday break will give us an opportunity to shut down a little bit, take a breather, and then come back and get four games in at that tournament before we start district.”
District play opens Jan. 2 at home against Stamford.
JV Lions building
confidence
Peacock also pointed to encouraging progress from the Albany JV, which defeated Coleman 42-22 on Dec. 9 following a challenging week in the Albany JV tournament.
“We really challenged them in that tournament last week at Albany,” Peacock said. “We matched them up against Stamford, Graham, Breckenridge, and a Winters varsity team. They won one game, but they were in all four of them to the last three or four minutes.”
He said the goal was to expose a young roster, made up largely of freshmen, to a higher level of competition, then see how they responded against teams closer to their level.
“Then they come back and play a Coleman team that’s closer to their level, and they win by 20,” Peacock said. “That’s why we did that tournament, to expose them to the level we’re trying to get them to.”
Peacock said several younger players are being asked to take on new roles this season, and the staff is focused on steady growth.
“Our goal is just to try to make them have to do something, step out of their bubble, and do some things they maybe haven’t had to do in the past,” he said. “So far, it’s been good.”
