Adams Basketball Returns With Strong Defense and Postseason Goals

The Highlanders are back on the court after a deep postseason run in the spring.

“Last year we finished so strong, but this year we want to make our own identity," Adams senior John Neidhart said.

The Highlanders are off to a 1-0 start with a 59-42 win against Lake Orion High School, but it's a long road back to the regional championship game where the team's last year.

"We want to be district champions again, but we know that will take a lot of hard work, so we have to work towards that every practice,” Neidhart said.

What they're made of

The Highlanders have two returning starters and several players that were a big part of the rotation last season.

“Our youth and inexperience may cause us some issues early in the season, but overall this will be a very deep team that will play nine or 10 players a night,” Adams head coach John Hall said.

The Highlanders are known for their tough defense, and their speed and agressiveness plays into their defensive strategy.

The offense will benefit from the Highlanders' youth and speed, but it will have a different look.

“We are looking to score more in transition than in past seasons due to the development of sophomore guards Akhemji Williams and Press Kampe,” Hall said.

Williams and Kampe are returning sophomores who were part of the Highlanders' regional championship run last season.

“This team will look to create mismatches and then take advantage of them,” Hall said.

The Highlanders' strategy involves spreading out on offense, drawing the big players away from the basket to create scoring opportunities and mismatches on defense.

Off-season progress critical

“We return very little leadership and graduated a senior class full of intangible skills that are not easily measured on the court,” Hall said.

Hall admits the Highlanders lack experience, but their depth and will help take care of that problem early in the season.

“Most of our bench players have very limited varsity experience.  How quickly these players adapt to the speed and challenges of varsity basketball will decide our fate early in the season,” Hall said.

The Highlanders had an off-season full of conditioning to ensure they will be able to keep up on the court.

“We did a lot of conditioning in the off-season to get us in shape.  There’s a lot of young guys who didn’t play a fall sport so they were working hard,” Adams senior Jacob Foor said.

Foor knows the level of conditioning it takes for a long run into the postseason.

Adams senior James Berger, who led the Highlanders with 14 points against Lake Orion and is the best 3-point shooter on the team, worked on his defense and getting to the hole faster during the off-season.

“We have a lot of new players, but we do have great chemistry so I think we’ll do well and get the wins,” Adams junior Zack Littleson said.

Littleson, Neidhart, Berger and Foor will lead by example.

 “They must prove they are ready to handle all the responsibilities necessary to be a championship level team,” Hall said.

The Highlanders host Utica Eisenhower at 7 p.m. Friday.