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(ALEX HAVARDANSKY | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Nick Wankowicz jumps up to defend against a shot from Olney in their match Monday, Sept. 22. Wankowicz was pivotal for the Steers using his frame to box out defenders and create second chance opportunities offensively. -
(ALEX HAVARDANSKY | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Cooper Wilde brings the ball up past half court for the Steers in their first matchup Monday, Sept. 22, against Olney. The Steers beat the Cubs 66-15 in their opening match of fall league basketball. -
(ALEX HAVARDANSKY | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Caleb Chandler plays man defense on an Olney player Monday, Sept. 22. The Steers participated in their first night of fall league basketball.
After participating in summer league basketball earlier in June, the Steers varsity basketball team kicked off fall league play this past week.
The Steers saw a mixed bag of strengths and weaknesses going 1-1 in their first night of play.
One unique thing about this league is that it is hosted in Graham over the next four weeks.
The first night of competition took place Monday, Sept. 22, and the Steers started their run of games against Olney and Jacksboro.
Against the Cubs, Graham balled out on their way to a 66-15 victory.
Cooper Wilde started things off for the team with a midrange jumper, and he was one of several competitors whose names popped up as key contributors throughout the night.
Nick Wankowicz continued where he left off from the summer league, using his height and wingspan to box out defenders and grab key rebounds defensively, while also creating second chance opportunities for the team on offense.
Wankowicz was also key in creating putback shots for the team to help them jump out to a commanding lead going into the half.
Jaden Neal and Tyler Allen also found themselves in the scoring department early throughout the first half of game one to help the team jump out to a 39-6 lead.
The Steers continued to remain relentless and another key player in Obed Trejo started to find his stroke from behind the arc.
Trejo knocked down multiple key three pointers in the team’s eventual win.
The second matchup however was not so ideal for the Steers. The team started off trailing 12-3. However, the Steers shooting ability helped bring them back into it somewhat.
Trejo hit a three to cut the lead in half 12-6, while Caleb Chandler added another to make it 15-11 later in the half.
Wankowicz continued to put in work with putback shots to make it 22-16, but key buckets from Jacksboro helped the Tigers jump out to a 29-19 lead at the end of half one.
The team fought to close the gap as much as they could in the second half, but it was just too much for the Steers to overcome as the Tigers would end up winning things, 56-39.
Steers head coach Quinton Fossett, who was in attendance that night, spoke about the team’s performances afterward.
“There were some good things tonight, there were some things we’ve got to work on, we’ll get better,” Fossett said. “There were flashes of us sharing the ball really well.”
Fossett went on to say overall the team needs to get more consistent in the playmaking ability they showed on the night and that should improve with increased play throughout the fall.
The Steers will pick things back up at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30, this time taking place at the Graham High School old gym.
