Grafton Globe Newspaper
Winter 2020 Edition
The Grafton Boys Varsity Basketball team currently stand with a record of 10-6. They just came off a dominant win against Auburn by a score of 68-44. Surprisingly, playing on the road hasn't affected the team at all, as they have 5 wins and 3 losses both on the road and at home. They have 3 games left in the season, including in a rematch against Milbury who they previously lost to this season. Grafton is hoping to finish the final 3 games with a win, which would put their record at an impressive 13-6.
Grafton has been playing much better in the 2nd half of this season. They didn't have the best start, as in their first 7 games they were only able to win 3 of them. But in their last 9 games, Grafton has caught fire and they have won 7 out of 9 games. Their offense has shown improvement, as in the first 7 games of the year, they scored an average of 53.4 points per game, and in their last 9 games, they’ve been scoring an average of 59.4 points per game-- an increase of 6 points. Recently, they’ve scored at least 56 points in 7 out of their last 9 games. In the beginning of the year, the offense wasn’t showing much consistency, as their shots weren’t falling at a consistent level. Some nights they had the hot hand, and other nights they were cold. However as the season is going along, the team has shown consistency in their offense, and that's a great sign. Ryan Jack and Sean Tyldesley lead Grafton in scoring, as Ryan Jack averages 15.4 points per game, and Sean Tyldesley is right below him, as he averages 15. Marc Salvatelli is the next leader scorer as he adds 11.2 points per game. The scoring improvement has shown over the season by the players. In the beginning of the season, Marc Salvatelli would have a big night one game, and then a quiet one the next. But his consistency has shown over the past several games, as he’s lately been consistently scoring 12-13 point every game which is good. In the first 8 games of the year, Grafton’s scoring leaders- Ryan Jack and Sean Tyldesley put up 20 point performances a total of 3 times combined. But in the last 8 games, they’ve put up 20 point performances a total of 5 times combined. Grafton has been more explosive and consistent in terms of their scoring and offense, and this shows that they’re headed in the right direction. Grafton’s biggest weakness is their disadvantage in size. Since Grafton is a team of mostly guards, they would be the smaller team on most nights. Because this, it’s difficult for Grafton to dominate the paint defensively, and it would also be difficult for them to get rebounds. An issue for the team has been allowing second chance points, because if they have trouble getting the rebound, the opponent could get the offensive rebound and have an extra possession. There size weakness reflects the scoreboard as they haven't had any improvement defensively. In the first 7 games of the season, they allowed 52.3 points per game to their opponent. And in their last 9, they allowed an average of 53.6 points per game. Unlike the offense, there hasn’t been any improvement defensively. This of course doesn't mean Grafton has a bad defense, because Grafton’s biggest strengths is the team’s chemistry and effort. The Grafton players put everything they have onto the court, and they give their very best effort every game. As a result of this, Grafton is still able to play good defense. The team’s chemistry is their great strength, and it has only gotten better throughout the season, which is shown by their improvement in their offense. The Grafton Indians currently stand at 10-6 on the year, with 3 games left in the season. They’ve shown improvement over the year, as they’ve not only been scoring more consistently on offense, but they’ve also been winning-- going 7-2 in their last 9 games. The biggest game of the year for Grafton will be their final game of the year; the game at Hudson High school. Hudson High school has an incredible 16 wins to only one loss record, and this will be Grafton’s biggest test yet. They're coming off of 13 straight wins, but Grafton will give them a good fight. With the Grafton Indians only getting better, they should be able to end the season strong, and maybe even win all of their final 3 games.
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February 2020
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