Keefer, Commodores hungry to rebound from winless season
Frazier's Keyshaun Thompson drives to the basket against Avella during the McGuffey Tip-Off Tournament on Dec. 3.
Frazier coach Zach Keefer glares out at the court during the Commodores' game against Avella at the McGuffey Tip-Off Tournament on Dec. 3.
Frazier's Brennan Stewart defends as Avella's Westley Burchianti takes a jump shot during the McGuffey Tip-Off Tournament on Dec. 3.
Now in his sixth year as the Frazier boys basketball coach, Zach Keefer and his team have seen both sides of the proverbial spectrum.
After his team went 18-4 and won the program蘑菇视频 first section title since 1990 during the 2020-21 season, the Commodores went winless last year and needless to say, Keefer and the team are hungry and ready to get things going.
鈥淭his is always one of my favorite times of the year,鈥� said Keefer. 鈥淲e are excited for the challenge, ready to get things going and we are going to fight for a coveted playoff spot.鈥�
Keefer detailed what the Commodores need to do for a return to the playoffs.
鈥淲e have got to do a better job on that defensive end of the floor, and it starts with the overall defensive mindset,鈥� said Keefer. 鈥淲e are going to have to grind games out if we want to have success and getting into a track meet will not bode well for us.
鈥淲e need to try and dictate the pace of play and it will start with taking care of the basketball, playing tough, physical defense, and doing our best to limit teams鈥� second-chance opportunities on the boards.
鈥淎ll of these guys will have hot and cold nights shooting the ball offensively, but we can鈥檛 ever take nights off on defense.鈥�
Keefer continued, adding, 鈥淚f we can do this each game, we will be able to put ourselves in a position to be in games for four quarters. Putting four quarters of basketball together while focusing on those previous stated points of emphasis is the key for us moving forward.鈥�
The team features four returning starters with seniors Logan Butcher and Keyshaun Thompson, junior Brennan Stewart and sophomore Dailan McManus, although McManus is recovering from an injury he suffered during football and will be out most of the season.
鈥淜eyshaun and Logan are guards and will be expected to lead this team,鈥� said Keefer. 鈥淏oth of those guys are skilled with the ball and have a very good grasp on our offense and run it well.
鈥淜eyshaun has a very quick first step and has the potential to create a match up problem for our opponents. Both shoot the ball well from the floor and will be expected to carry the majority of the load when it comes to production each night.鈥�
Thompson was second team All-Section and averaged 9.5 points per game last year, while Butcher averaged seven points a game and Stewart averaged five.
Other key players who will are expected to contribute are juniors Brock Alekson (6-9) and Josh Higbee.
鈥淏rock is also ready to see an expanded role this season as he brings that post presence and has really worked on his skill set this offseason,鈥� said Keefer. 鈥淲e are really excited to see the maturation process unfold for him this season.
鈥淲ith Josh Higbee, he has really improved his overall game, stepped into the void that Dailan left, and has been very good for us this off season.鈥�
As far as Section 4-AA goes, Keefer is familiar with Bentworth, Beth-Center and Carmichaels, but it is the additions of Fort Cherry, Burgettstown and Chartiers-Houston that caught his attention.
鈥淲ith the addition of WPIAL runner-up, Fort Cherry, things got a whole lot tougher for our section,鈥� said Keefer. 鈥淭he section they (Fort Cherry, Chartiers-Houston, and Burgettstown) came from was very solid.
鈥淚 believe all of us will be fighting each and every night to earn one of those coveted playoff spots.鈥�