Schools
Boca Ciega Girls Basketball Squad Looking Strong
Though the season doesn't begin for another four months, the Pirates girls basketball team has been dominate in summer league play.
If this summer is a window into this year's basketball season, then Boca Ciega will have a strong girls basketball team.
But that's like suggesting Floridians will have to wear jackets in the winter.
The Pirates have had one of the best girls basketball programs in Florida for years. Just in the past four years, Boca Ciega has advanced to the state tournament semifinals three times.
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But this year, there is a major change. Former Pirates coach Will White resigned earlier this year. Boca Ciega hired Michael Hall from the east coast of Florida to guide the Pirates, preferable to another strong season.
Boca Ciega should be a good team again. The Pirates return four starters. But Hall is changing things a little. Unlike years past, Boca Ciega will play almost exclusively man-to-man defense. So far, so good for Boca Ciega.
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The Pirates, in 17 summer league games, won 16 times. The lone loss came when several starters were out of town on vacation and unavailable to play, Hall said.
The girls are not only learning how to deal with their new coach, but to play a slightly different brand of basketball.
"What I have learned is to stay back on defense," Qytiesha Middlebrooks said of after a change of possession following a bucket. "I'm learning to keep my man in front of me and most of all, play hard. Defense means winning. Winning is shutting [an opponent] down on defense, which will lead to more offense."
Olivia Hester also has accepted Hall's sermons on defense.
"Defense wins games and defense wins championships," Hester said. "But stopping a team on defense also helps with our fast breaks."
The Pirates defense showed brightly in the final summer league game against Pinellas Park when Boca Ciega held the Patriots to just two baskets the entire game.
Even Hall seemed impressed with both the game, and his players' attitudes.
"I think everything so far has been positive, but like anything else there are bumps in the road," Hall said. "My biggest job is to contain the bumps in the road and make things as positive as I can. That's what I have done here: make it a positive atmosphere so when we hit the bumps in the road, our family atmosphere will bring us back to where we are supposed to be.
"Otherwise, negative [vibes] culminates." "Yeah, we are more together now," Hester said.