The summer is paying dividends for the Reeltown girls basketball team.
Now in Year 2 under coach LD Bell, the Rebels have attacked the hardwood. And in a series of playdates, including the one Monday morning, Bell has seen his girls game take a step up. But more importantly, he has seen their mentality change drastically.
“They’re hustling,” Bell said. “They're young, they're working. It's just different for them, and (we) got them playing games in the summer, so we're taking a lot of time doing that and just trying to build, step by step, the process of just trying to get better. And I've been very pleased.”
Similar to last season — the Rebels are young. The same young players who got their first taste of varsity basketball last year are mainstays for the group this year.
Bell knows the kind of talent Reeltown has this year, and playdates like they had on Monday are crucial to help develop his group.
“It's awesome to play now,” Bell said. “We would like to be practicing more, but to keep up with today's time, you got to do this. So girls love to do it, and I'm just glad to be at a school that allows you to have a gym to host it.”
Even so, the Rebels have some ways to go. The youth is great in the long run, but some of the girls still need to develop before it's all said and done. Bell eyes to play as a collective rather than individuals to combat not having a star player on the roster.
“We don't have the stars like everybody else might have, where a girl comes in here and scores 30 (points),” Bell said. “Our (girls) are going to rotate. It's about defense with us – that's the style we play. Because we don't have the skill level on the offensive side, but we score better than we were (last year).”
All around, the Rebels look different than they did last year. Bell hopes to continue that success through other playdates before the summer is over. However, his main goal leaving the summer is to keep everyone healthy while also seeing growth.
“I coach tough; some people like it, some people don't — I push them and we play hard,” Bell said. “And that's what I want to see out there, and that's what I demand. I demand you play hard and that's what we do. That's what I want to see. But by the end of the summer, (I hope to see) no injuries, and to continue to play and (show our) dedication, that's what you want to see.”