1/25 – Andover: 66, Deerfield: 62
1/29 – Andover: 84, Milton: 68
Boys Basketball (6-7) bounced back with two consecutive wins after a three-game losing streak. On Saturday, they defeated Deerfield by four points after trailing by 12 points late in the game. The team went on to comfortably secure its second victory against Milton on Wednesday.
Before competing this week, the team held a meeting to address their recent challenges. Kosi Udeh ’27 reflected on how it motivated and reminded them of their abilities to perform at championship-winning level.
“We had a meeting without the coaches and basically laid everything out on the table. We talked about the problems we were facing, and I think we got closer as a team after that. That definitely helped shift our mindset. The fact that we were the championship team last year and want[ed] to maintain that standard, really pushed us. We can’t afford any more losses,” said Udeh.
David Fridia ’25 elaborated on the team’s change in mental game, emphasizing morale and staying persistent.
“We worked on always being confident, but still coming together and learning how to communicate. Sometimes, when things aren’t going our way, we just fight ourselves instead of the opponent. We were down by 12 [against Deerfield], but then we came down and got a steal, which was really crucial,” said Fridia.
The team’s communication-centered game plan allowed them to ultimately prevail on Saturday. Yet, despite defeating Deerfield, Udeh noted the difficulty in overcoming the point deficit, resulting in the team’s efforts to set the tone early on Wednesday.
“Coming off the Deerfield game, we knew we still had some things to work on… But really, we just wanted to put them on their heels first. In previous games, it felt like we were playing catch-up and responding to their points, but I feel like teams should be adjusting to us because we’re the more offensive team,” said Udeh.
Hunter Peabody ’27 attributed the team’s win on Wednesday to a renewed focus on defense and its consistency in forcing turnovers, a key factor in their back-to-back victories.
“I remember getting a steal that led to a pump fake, and then I got fouled and hit some free throws. [Xavier Abreu ’25] also made a lot of [three-pointers]. We had a lot of great defensive stops that really crushed the other team’s momentum. That’s what helped us secure the win, just stops and scores, stops and scores,” said Peabody.
Moving forward, the team hopes to use their recent victories to restore confidence and their past losses to serve as fuel, pushing them to put in maximum effort both on and off the court.
“We’ve had injuries, players getting sick, but we came together as a unit and said, ‘We’re sick of losing. We need this week. We need to go 3-0.’ That was our biggest motivation. TI had a lot to do with it, pushing us in practice, and I feel like we were just hungry. We wanted to win, and we knew we could,” said Peabody.
Boys Basketball will travel to Loomis Chaffee this Friday, looking to continue their momentum and extend their winning streak.