A host of departures will result in mostly new faces taking the court for the Portland High School boys basketball team this season.
The Panthers lost five seniors from last season’s 12-16 campaign.
“Last year was a great year for us,” Portland fourth-year head coach Chris Carney said. “As crazy as it sounds, we are trying to build on that.”
Portland also had two players transfer to Franklin-Simpson (Ky.) High School, junior guards Ollie Eutsey and Trey Radcliffe. Radcliffe was the team’s returning starter at point guard.
“It was tough enough losing five guys who played a lot for us last year to graduation,” Carney said. “Then, when you lose two more of your guys, there’s some questions.
“We’re excited to see these young guys and how they react. We’ve tried to push them and challenge them during the weight-lifting and conditioning. We’re big on that. We’ve tried to make them tough as nails and get them as ready as they could be. At the end of the day, that’s all we can do.”
Portland High senior forward Caelum Utley led the Panthers in scoring and rebounding last season.
Leading the list of returnees will be senior forward Caelum Utley, a three-year starter.
“He’s been our crutch for the past two years,” Carney said. “He’s a big-time player. He’s led us in scoring and rebounding. He returns as the guy.”
Classmate Jay Crutchfield – a small forward – was also in the starting lineup for much of last season.
“He’s a really good shooter, but definitely, his role has changed,” Carney said. “He understood his role last year. That (role) was to come in and make a shot if he’s open, and if not, make a good decision with the ball and be solid defensively. His role has changed. He’s worked hard on his ball-handling. People know he can shoot. He has some one-dribble moves in his arsenal (now). We’ve tried to expand his game as much as we can at this point.
“Last year, he was a passive guy, but he shot over 60 percent. He just didn’t shoot enough.”
Portland High senior Jay Crutchfield was in the starting lineup at times last season.
Fellow senior – guard Eric Kirk – is also expected to play extensively.
“He got heavy minutes in the summer, and he’s turned into a pretty good defensive player and an offensive player,” Carney said.
Sophomore guards Bryce Keith and Dawson Simmons are also expected to be among the rotation.
“(Simmons) stated for us all summer long, and he’s really solid,” Carney said. “He’s a hard-working guy. He will take four or five charges a game, and he’s also worked really hard on his shooting. We know people are going to double-team Caelum. These other guys are going to have to be able to step up and make shots.
“(Keith) is a kid who had a phenomenal J.V. (junior varsity) season for us last season. He’s very ready to come in and make an impact. He handles the ball well, and he has a really quick first step. He can get to the rim and finish with the right and left (hand), and he also shoots it well. Those two guys are going to play a big factor in our year. We have a good crop of sophomores. They haven’t had a ton of varsity experience, but they’ve all worked hard.”
The team recently had four players join the team after they competed with the Portland High football team, which was eliminated last Friday following its first-round playoff loss at Kenwood. Among those who could see action are sophomore forward Sevonte’ Sumpter-Bey and freshman forward Kobe’ Dutcher.
“He’s 6-foot-4 and a really good athlete, and he’s benefitted from having the football year he’s had” Carney said of Sumpter-Bey. “As a freshman, (Dutcher) has been pretty dang good for the football team. Because of his intensity and the way he plays, he’ll have a chance to play for us too.
“There’s a ton of competition. We had a really good summer. The summers have been pretty indicative of how our year has gone.”
One of the biggest question marks for the team involves who will handle the ball following Radcliffe’s transfer.
“(Preseason scrimmages) are the first time we’ve played without those guys,” Carney said. “We have a couple of different things we’re going to try.
“Our fail-safe is Caelum. If some of these guys can’t handle some things, we may let Caelum bring up the ball. He’s a heck of a player. We’ve done that with him in the past. He makes good decisions. He makes the right plays, and he’s pretty sure with the basketball. He has the ability with his ball-handling and passing to make the right decisions.”
Carney expects defending District 9-AAA and Region 5-AAA champion Station Camp to be the favorite again.
“Station Camp is loaded,” Carney said. “After that, you have Mt. Juliet and a pretty good league. It’s going to be pretty wide open (after those two teams).
“I don’t think a lot of people have a lot of expectations for us. That’s not the way we’ve worked since I came in three years ago. We have kind of raised the expectations. The expectation – no matter who we play – is to play harder and work harder than the other team and give ourselves a chance to win. The goals haven’t changed in the four years. We are trying to advance out of the district tournament and make the region tournament for the first time since Corey (Brewer) graduated in 2004.”
The Panthers host West Creek for a Tennessee Secondary Schools Athletic Association (TSSAA) Hall of Champions (TSSAA) game on Tuesday, and they will open the regular season with a game at Westmoreland on Tuesday, Nov. 24.
Portland opens district play by hosting Gallatin on Friday, Dec. 4.
Reach Craig Harris at charris@mtcngroup.com or at 615-575-7138. Follow him on Twitter @HarrisGNESports.