The following originally appeared in Juniata High School’s newspaper The Arrowhead. 

With the tough loss in the District 6 Championship Game, also known as the first round of States, 2 weeks ago, football is over and basketball season is rolling along. (Congratulations to all of the football players on a great run.) Now it’s December, it’s getting colder, and it’s time to hit the hardwood. I sat down with Coach Rheam and asked him a few questions about the upcoming season.

Q: A lot of Juniata basketball fans around the community are concerned about the loss of 4 seniors. How are you going to replace them?
A: The loss of 4 good seniors is definitely a loss, but we've been developing depth. We have a good nucleus coming back, the younger kids are filling in roles very well, and overall I think this will be a very exciting team to watch.

Q: You’ve had Tyler Clark and Josh Parson for 4 years now. How is that translating to the court?
A: They have a lot of experience and knowledge of the game. Their skill levels are very high, they especially bring a lot of leadership onto the court, and you can really see how they’ve matured over the years.

Q: How is the competition in the Tri-Valley League looking this year?
A: In the western conference, I think the toughest will be Newport with their 4 good starters. Greenwood will also be good, as Coach Houser over there always gets them to play tough. In the eastern conference, Millersburg returns two very good, key starters and will be tough. Halifax and Upper Dauphin are young, but talented. I think these are the 5 teams in the mix with us.

Q: We’ve had success in the TVL the past 2 years. What are we doing this year to have success in the District 6 playoffs?
A: We have upgraded our schedule with good District 6 teams like Tyrone, Penn’s Valley, and Bellefonte. We are going to keep pushing hard in practice to get to the level of the other District 6 teams. The district win from last year will also bring confidence into this year. District 6 3A has lots of very tough teams under the new 6 class format.

Q: After having the team for a couple of weeks, how do you think the team is coming together?
A: I think we are coming together very quickly. I think that is attributed to all the work we put in the offseason and going to tournaments throughout the spring and summer. Also, this group has been playing together since they were young.

I think it is safe to say this is a well-coached, talented team, and they should be fun to watch this year. The Indians first game was Friday, December 9th at the Southern Huntington Tip-Off Tournament.

By: Jeremiah Parson