How Pitman boys basketball has started hot despite less than ideal circumstances
Pitman High boys basketball coach Harvey Marable has always had enough players to set up a scrimmage.
In the past, he could separate the group into two teams of five to give players valuable practice on offense and defense.
This year, he does not have that option. The Pride have just nine players on their varsity roster.
“Is nine an ideal number? No,” said Marable. “I don’t think anyone in their right mind would want to have nine because an injury or sickness makes it a very small team to practice with.”
While most varsity teams carry a 12 to 15 player roster, the Pride make good use of what they have. Of the nine players, six have varsity experience and three average at least 12 points a game.
“There are some years where nine works out and this is one of the years where it works out,” said Marable, who is in his 19th season at Pitman. “The players who are participating are fully bought in.
“Every basketball season brings a new flavor. This year, the teammates get along very well and at one time, we have five people on the floor who can score. It’s like go ahead and double team that dude, OK, we have this guy who can score. We’re not the biggest, but we play hard.”
Sophomore Avery Sanchez leads the Pride in scoring with 16.5 points a game. He was an immediate starter last year as a freshman and was second on the team in scoring, averaging 10.5 points.
This year, he has seen his role increase and responded by averaging more points, rebounds and assists than his first year.
“Avery works hard, the kid is a gym rat,” Marable said. “You like when your best player is your hardest worker. You can’t ask for anything more.”
Four other players average at least five points a game, including junior Justin Anderson and senior Seth Vink who add 12.2 points each.
This year’s team had a busy off-season. Players were in the gym nearly every day. With the exception of Sac-Joaquin Section mandated dead periods, the Pride took advantage of summer leagues, fall leagues and found the time to get into the gym for extra workouts individually. It is a routine that helped the team improve and bond.
“We’ve put in a lot of time,” Sanchez said. “I’ve got to credit all these guys. Last year, we didn’t put in nearly as much time. The whole team is bought in.”
The work has shown. At 14-4, they have already won more games than last season and after Friday’s 70-46 win over Modesto, are 2-0 in Central California Athletic League play. The team has won the Modesto City Classic and played in tournaments San Ramon and Tracy, gaining experience against different teams’ playing styles to prepare them for league play.
“This year, we’ve been trying to spread out the competition in our schedule and play teams from different areas “We really get a feel for the game of basketball and how other teams play in other areas,” said Sanchez who finished with 21 points, eight rebounds and four steals Friday. “Hopefully that provides us with a lot of experience in league and we can come in and be comfortable with whatever teams throw at us.”
Vink scored 20 points and added nine rebounds and four assists Friday night.
The Pride won their first two CCAL games last year, then went 3-5 in their final eight. They are hoping to go from a 5-5 league finish last season to a league title and a spot in the playoffs for the first time since the 2019-2020 season.
“I told them we have ten bricks,” Marable said. “Sitting on the top of the last brick is a trophy. All we’ve got to do is knock down one brick at a time. We might not knock down all the bricks because no one’s gonna go undefeated in league. We just hope that when we knock down the last brick, it’s going to lead to a trophy for us to grab.”
