The current Seymour girls basketball team is better than the team that lost to Bedford North Lawrence on Feb. 20 in sectionals.
Let it be known.
The Owls won their third-straight Seymour shootout, which hosted 12 teams, on Saturday with a 58-41 victory over one of two Carmel teams in the championship.
During the two days, the Owls went 6-0. They downed North Central, Western Boone, Austin, Southport and Carmel twice.
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All of their victories were by double digits.
During the two day event; Columbus East, North Central, Western Boone, Austin, Carmel (two units), Silver Creek, Salem, East Central, Southport and North Harrison competed in the Owls’ tourney.
If you attended any of the games, you saw a new-and-improved Owls offense.
An offense with a clearer sense of direction, crisper and smarter passes and stronger possessions.
A brand new offense that also competed on a running clock by shootout rules.
Owls varsity coach Jason Longmeier has abandoned the drive-and-dish and adapted to a much more efficient scheme that works better with his roster.
“Last year, we kind of went to the dribble drive,” Longmeier said. “As coaches, in the offseason, we think that to reach our goals, which are huge, it wasn’t in our best interest.
“We thought (our offense) got stagnant at times, and there was a lot of standing around. We have gone to a lot of screen action and getting the post involved. We have four really solid post players that can cause some mismatches. It just made a lot of sense for us to do that. It’s just one weekend, but I think we already look better than we did last year.”
The Owls were in control the entire tournament.
They’re still stingy on defense, which will remain their strong suit and pay dividends.
Oh, and they will be returning their entire starting lineup that went 17-7 last season.
If this offense continues to develop, this team could be a powerhouse in the Hoosier Hills Conference.
This Owls squad has only practiced for short time, so the formations and play calling are still new. There is a ton of time to master and transform the offense.
Most of the kids have worked on their game since the end of the season.
Above all else, Longmeier was most impressed with his bench play.
“A lot of these kids have put the AAU and individual work in during the offseason,” Longmeier said. “I think, more than anything, what I was most pleased with the entire weekend was when we went to our bench there wasn’t a drop-off. Those kids came in and held their own against pretty good teams. If we can get that from our bench during the season we’re just going to be able to wear people down.”
Its been 106 days since the Owls’ final game, but don’t tell them that.
“Since school is out we’ve had individual and team workouts,” Longmeier said. “You can tell, skill-wise, a lot of our kids are coming in better. All-around, I couldn’t be more pleased for the first weekend of the summer.”
Jordan Morey is the sports editor for The Tribune. Send comments to [email protected].