RICHMOND, INDIANA — With a virtually brand new roster, the National Trail boys basketball team came into the season lacking experience on the varsity level and Seton Catholic’s Desmond Bane welcomed them to it with a triple double, leading the Cardinals to an 82-38 victory over the visiting Blazers on Friday, Nov. 27.
Bane tallied 29 points, 12 rebounds and recorded 10 assists as Seton had five other players combine to go 10-20 from three point land in the convincing win.
National Trail head coach Mike Harrison spoke high praise of his opposition after the game.
“Bane’s ability to get anywhere he wanted on the court was too much for us,” he said, explaining how Bane’s play opened space for the rest of his team. “We had to really commit to trying to keep him from getting to the basket, and when we over-committed he found shooters and open cutters constantly.”
The Blazers had a strong showing from post player Dalton Mason, who scored 17 points and pulled down seven rebounds in the opening night loss.
Harrison knows his team is still adapting to life on the varsity level.
“A lot of our kids got their eyes opened a bit to just how much of a sense of urgency there has to be on every play, particularly on the defensive end,” he said.
“We played a very, very good offensive team,” he added. “I’m not sure we will see a kid quite like Bane all year.”
Harrison saw signs his team has the ability to improve throughout the season. “I told the kids I thought they played with good effort and their focus was indeed good throughout the game. Our execution has to be better for us to be able to compete, but we can build and improve if we continue to get the physical and mental energy we got.”
Things won’t get much easier for the Blazers, who play Cross County rival Twin Valley South (1-1) on Friday, Dec. 4 and face Brookville on Saturday, Dec. 5.
