Memorial boys eager for a fresh start

Last season was a disappointment and the Memorial Tigers aren’t going to talk about it.

They didn’t win a Southern Indiana Athletic Conference game and finished 7-15 — their fewest wins since 2010-11. But they haven’t dwelled on their shortcomings because they feel they’re poised to make a turnaround this year.

That doesn’t mean Memorial is trying to forget about last year.

“It’s hard to think about but it works well for motivation,” 6-foot-7 sophomore Sam DeVault said.

Coach Rick Wilgus hasn’t mentioned last season and doesn’t plan on it. Instead, he’s taken proactive measures by changing the way the Tigers play and his assistant coaches instruct. He wants to see improvement.

Dylan Penn, a 6-1 junior, is the team’s top returning scorer after averaging 13.5 points per game. He felt the Tigers had chances to win "a lot more games" but they took their opposition lightly at times.

Friday, a new season begins when Memorial plays at Boonville (1-1) at 7 p.m.

“We’re not there yet,” he said. “I told them we’re not playing hard enough, but we’ll get there. It’s a good group of kids to work with.”

DeVault was one of three freshmen to start at least once last season. He played in all 22 games and averaged 10.0 points and 3.7 rebounds. He spent his offseason getting stronger by lifting and taking protein shakes in order to compete with the rest of the SIAC’s big men.

“I’m not as strong as some of those other guys yet,” DeVault said.

But the overall consensus — from Memorial and other coaches — is the Tigers will be improved this year. They’re still young but they’ve matured. They spent the summer together attending open gyms almost every day to come together as a team.

They expect to finish in the top half of the SIAC and, if all goes right, win their sectional.

“The experience isn’t going to do us any good just because we’re more experienced,” Wilgus said. “If they don’t do the intangibles of talking, playing together, you can take those other things and just erase them.

“We’re trying to become a complete basketball team every day.”

Thursday was Memorial’s 21st practice because the football team advanced to regionals. Once they joined, the football players brought energy to practice that’s affected everyone.

Perhaps they’ll draw parallels from the football playoff run and carry it into basketball after both teams had meager seasons last year.

Memorial’s season ended with a 67-66 loss in its sectional opener against Bosse, which made a game-winning 3-pointer and eventually finished as the Class 3A runner-up.

The Bulldogs are ranked No. 3 in the latest Associated Press poll and are expected to contend for the SIAC title. Memorial saw first-hand the difference between making a postseason run and watching from home.

The Tigers are aiming to make one themselves this year.

“We want to beat Bosse in the sectional, but that’s a big step,” DeVault said. “We’ll have to work very hard but if we put our minds to it we can do it. … We want to win sectionals. We want to prove ourselves.”