On Nov. 20, the Eastfield Harvester Bees basketball team faced off against CYM Prep. The game was an explosive, high flying show for Bees fans. Eastfield demolished CYM Prep with a final score of 111-67. This gives them a record of 4-4, a full swing from the start of the season in which they started 0-4. Leading the team in scoring was player No. 14 David Uwalaka with 17 points and player No. 0 Reggie McDonald with 16 points. While these two players lead in scoring, the entire team contributed big momentum with their boosting plays and showstopping defensive efforts. Other highlights came from player No. 32 Nash Beard, who had a couple of big dunks, as well as a transition steal leading to a big slam by player No. 5 Aiden White in the second half.
Throughout the first half, it was clear that Eastfield has a much more fluid offense, featuring much more off-ball movements and additional motions to get players good motion on the court. This level of offensive prowess was led primarily by incredible half court defensive sets and big transition plays. The Bees ended the first half with more than double the points of CYM Prep, going into the second half with immense confidence.
The second half started much more competitive with an 8-1 run by CYM Prep against Eastfield. This sparked some hope for a comeback in CYM Prep that did not last long. Player No. 5 Aiden White stopped this momentum with a huge transition steal, leading to an explosive dunk. Following this play, Head Coach Byron Rimm II saw the perfect opportunity to apply even more pressure on CYM Prep. For the next few minutes of the game, Eastfield implemented a full court press defense. This is when players press up on a team at the start of a possession instead of getting back to the defensive side for a half court set.
This full court press led to CYM Prep being unable to pass the half court line for several minutes of the game, which was an impressive defensive effort. This sequence set a defensive tone that would not end until the final buzzer sounded. With even more defensive pressure than the first half and the ability to make almost any shot, the Harvester Bees finished the game 111-67.
After starting the season 0-4, the Bees have managed to win four straight games, leaving them feeling very confident moving forward and evening out their record. Rimm feels “they shouldn’t have lost a few of those games at the start of the season.” A key to this four-game stretch has been the flourishing of a defensive identity instilled by Rimm. Overcoming challenges like this are what help mold a championship team. Spectators can get a good idea of what a team is really like when their backs are up against the wall, and this team is resilient.
Following the game, Rimm discussed highlights of the game and some key plays for them over the beginning of the season.
Q: You’ve previously mentioned trying to build a defensive identity. Have you started to see that form in this game, and what are some of the keys to that for you?
A: Yeah, our guys are getting very confident. We are long, we probably are the longest team in our conference, so guys know how to fly around. We try to cover everybody’s mistakes. We do gamble a lot more, and that does make us a better defensive team. We’re doing a good job of keeping the ball in front, getting deflections, getting steals and scoring after we get those steals.
Q: One of the things that was most noticeable in this game, coming out of the second half, was an emphasis on the full court press, trying to put some pressure on them. Is that something you were trying to emphasize?
A: Yeah, we want to press. We want our guys to stay focused. So, a lot of the time, our guys will score the basketball and they’re looking into the stands. So I try to press more now so that when they score, they’re focused on the next play. They’re playing a lot better defense, pressing and getting turnovers.
Q: One last thing, you guys started the season 0-4 and have managed to do a full swing back to an even .500 record. What have been the biggest keys for you guys in terms of mentality, and setting yourself up for that?
A: Yeah, we’ve been in most of those games you know what I’m saying. There are Division 1 teams that we’re playing against, and we let a couple of them go. We lost by 2 to Blinn, and we lost to the Paris team that we should’ve beat. So, I know our guys are a very confident group, we just got to knock down open shots and hopefully our guys will play together.
