Blue White Illustrated

opportunity to become vocal leaders. ���I think that was part of the reason why we started to pick it up," Newbill said. ���I think me, Jermaine, Nick [Colella], and Sasa [Borovnjak], and all of the older guys started to take it personally. We just wanted to leave it out on the court. ���Jermaine used to come into those games and say, ���Man, we got nothing to lose! Let���s come out here and give it our all.��� ��� Marshall said players heeded Chambers��� advice to focus on the present. He said players refused to fold in the face of stacked odds, adding that he and his teammates don���t consider the season a total loss. ���We stayed the course. We kept believing in Coach and we kept believing in each other,��� he said. ���Our goal was to be the best team that we could be, and I don���t think we ever really let go of that through the wins and losses. Guys stayed focused, and as long as we can do that next year, I think we���ll be the best team we can be at the end of the year.��� The Lions lose only two players to graduation: Colella, a former walk-on, and Borovnjak, a forward. The returning players contributed 81 percent of the team���s scoring, 82 percent of its rebounding and 84 percent of its assists this past season. Those numbers, along with Frazier���s much-anticipated return, have Chambers and the Nittany Lions eagerly looking ahead to next season. ���I think there���s an excitement already and a buzz already, and I think people are anticipating a good year,��� Chambers said. ���Now, we have to stay healthy and we have to compete and we still have to work hard. But yeah, I anticipate having a better year. What does that mean, better? Is it 20 wins? I can���t tell you that yet. There are a lot of question marks still. ���However, there���s a lot of great energy from the end of the season, and people are excited about next year because they see D.J. and Jermaine and Ross and how much better they got toward the end of the year. So, yeah, there���s excitement. Hopefully everything works out, but I���m looking forward to year three.��� Minn. shooter set to join PSU Graham Woodward and his Edina High School teammates began the boys��� basketball season ranked No. 2 in Minnesota���s Class 4A division. Woodward, one of four recruits in Penn State���s Class of 2013, entered the season with the high hopes that inevitably accompany such a lofty ranking. The initial results, however, didn���t match the expectations. ���We started out the season kind of rough, actually,��� WOODWARD Woodward said. ���We had high expectations, and I think guys kind of felt as though they didn���t need to work as hard, or felt as though we were just good enough so we would win games.��� The team���s reality check came in the form of consecutive seasonopening losses to Waconia, Lakeville North, Austin and Woodbury. But Woodward and his teammates were undeterred by their 0-4 start and ended up winning 22 of their final 25 games. Leading the way with 26.5 points, 5.5 assists, four rebounds and three steals per game, the 6-foot, 175 pound senior gradually improved as the season progressed, helping guide the Hornets to a Lake Conference championship and Section 6AAAA title, as well as a berth in the highly competitive state playoffs. Throw in three victories against rival Hopkins, and Woodward said he was happy with the season, Edina���s best since 1968. ���Throughout the season, I felt as though I was really able to get my teammates involved,��� he said. ���Toward the beginning of the season, I probably shot it a little more than I should have. I felt like I needed to figure out when to pass and when to shoot, because it was just something that needed to come naturally. When we started to get on our run, that was something that I was really able to figure out.��� Woodward was able to score in a variety of ways, shooting 42 percent from beyond the 3-point line while also knocking down pull-ups from 15 feet and drives in the lane. But he���s proudest of his assists. Woodward averaged 10 assists per game during the Hornets��� final seven games, helping them finish third in the state tournament, a run that included an 84-49 victory against Eden Prairie. ���I was just able to find my teammates, and they were beginning to get confidence, too, just being able to play their role,��� he said. ���By making the shots and doing the things they did, they were becoming very confident, which was ultimately what led to our success. That was something that I really grew [into] throughout the season, and it really helped our team have success.��� Woodward was named a finalist for Minnesota���s Mr. Basketball award, earned a berth on the AllState Tournament Team and was a first-team Associated Press AllState selection. With his senior season complete, Woodward is focused on the next step of his career, beginning with his arrival on Penn State���s campus June 23. He has already done considerable work in the weight room, and is planning to do more. ���I can���t wait. I���m really looking forward to it,��� he said. ���It���s a new challenge and a new adventure. It���s a new journey that I get to embark on this summer, and I can't wait. I know it���s going to be so much fun, and I can���t wait to do it at Penn State.��� ��� N.B.

• Cover