JV2 Basketball

 From December through February, Jaden and Cody played on their school's JV2 basketball team. The team was made up of mostly 5th graders, all players with little prior experience. Because of this, our athletically-inclined boys quickly arose as leaders on their team. Both boys were consistently top scorers and rebounders. They were confident, aggressive players and were so fun to watch! Their coach often played both boys at the same time, so we enjoyed seeing their minds work together on the court. Here are a few photos of our #13 and #15 playing together.

Haha, can they look any more like twins here??

The boys enjoyed playing a few games against their cousin Ryan. We loved finding out that their jersey numbers were sequential! How crazy is that?!

Jaden had an exceptional season as a Salem saint! He was the primary point guard for his team and was the leading scorer for nearly every game. At the team's first game, Jaden scored all of the team's 14 points! He was a consistent shooter, regularly scoring between 8-12 points each game. His highest record was 17 points! Jaden was especially consistent with his free throws, averaging at least 75% accuracy throughout the season. Jaden was a confident dribbler and played intelligently as point guard-- passing off to teammates when they were open and not being afraid to drive in for a shot. He was also an aggressive defender and a frequent rebounder. Jaden always worked hard on the court and gave each game his all!

Jaden often did the opening tip-off for his team. He frequently won the tip-off too, often tipping the ball straight to Cody who took the ball in for an easy lay-up. These two pulled off this opening play during at least 4 or 5 games! Here, Jaden faced off against his cousin Ryan.

 

Cody had an amazing basketball season as well. He often played the position of shooting guard (or wing, as I remember calling it growing up). He was a very aggressive, heads-up defender and got tons of steals during the season! Not surprisingly, then, many of his points were made by fast break layups. He had a lot of practice with these shots and quickly became a very consistent at making his layups! It was so fun to watch Cody tear down the court on defense and knock the ball away from opponents who were trying to make a fast break. Cody was always faster! He got a lot of his team's rebounds, too. Offensively, Cody typically scored 4-6 points per game and was very good about passing off to open teammates. His best game was the last of the season at 10 points. He was a confident ball handler and made a lot of progress on driving into the lane throughout the season. This talented baller was so fun to watch this season!

As a team, this JV2 group grew so much throughout the season. They learned to be more confident with the ball, attempt more shots, be aggressive on defense, and work together as a team. We appreciated their coach's patient and affirming attitude. The team ended up winning just about half of their games and showed a lot of support for one another. All in all, it was a great first season for Salem basketball!