TRENTON, Ga. — Basketball practice this week at Dade County High School hasn’t been very exciting.
As the Wolverines prepare for their GHSA Class AA first-round basketball playoff game at Manchester (Ga.) High, the gym isn’t a place for fancy one-on-one drills or intricate fastbreak practice. “Boxing out” and “crash the boards” are the two catch phrases coach Glen Hicks has barked out all week as his team readies for a team that lives by second-chance points.
“The biggest key is we have to keep from getting embarrassed on the boards,” Hicks said. “They’re a very, very good rebounding team on both ends. They’re not very big. The biggest guy on their roster is listed at 6-foot-3, but he plays a lot bigger than that.”
Very seldom, if ever, have Hicks’ Dade teams had a size advantage over any playoff foe, but they will in Saturday’s 7 p.m. game by a good margin. While the 19-8 Blue Devils have two 6-3 players and 10 players listed under 5-10, the 24-4 Wolverines have four 6-4 or taller, led by 6-9 senior center Andrew Reid.
Despite the size, though, Dade has been outrebounded more often than Hicks would like, though the team’s fastbreak style often comes at the sacrifice of rebounding as players take off downcourt. Securing the defensive rebound will be crucial, according to Reid.