Announced as undefeated in conference, the Boys Basketball team of BHS has grown used to shooting their shot with great diligence. Ranked #75 in the nation and #1 in Arkansas as of Feb. 2024, according to Max Preps, it’s no secret that the team has been undoubtedly thriving.
Junior Kellen Robinson plays as point guard for the team. First joining the team in the summer, Robinson says that his team expects him to make the right plays to benefit the team — whether that is running offense or shooting the ball a far distance alongside other players.
”My coach said he needed somebody to come in and be able to handle the ball,” Robinson said. “It really just comes down to making the best play for the team.”
Coach Michael Abrahamson says that — alongside other players — Robinson is valuable when making plays.
“He’s a great teammate and he’s very coachable,” Coach Abrahamson said. “Kellen is always trying to make the right play so he is not selfish by any means. He believes in himself and he has a lot of confidence in himself.”
Additionally, Coach Abrahamson says that Robinson’s role as the point guard is vital to making good plays with the rest of the team.
“We start with two point guards,” Coach Abrahamson said. “We just try to put our best players out there and figure it out.”
Although the team has reportedly had a good year, hurdles still arise. Robinson says that while playing with his team and being on the court, they still face adversity.
“We played down a few times, but we just came together as a team to get the job done.” Robinson said. “Our first win meant a lot because we knew we wanted to win a lot, so that first win motivated us to keep moving.”
After unfortunately losing their first two games, the team collectively got back up and had persistence, Coach Abrahamson says.
”It gave us the opportunity to learn and grow,” Coach Abrahamson said. “We were taking bad shots, we were not playing very smart, we were giving up a lot of lay-ups. Those first two losses, which were back-to-back days, we didn’t have a chance to practice in-between. This really opened up the eyes of our players that we need to do in games what we do in practice.”
While the players were upset at the loss, they immediately got right back to work to improve.
”They re-established what we call Bryant basketball, our way of playing.” Coach Abrahamson said.
Recognized as a family for their endurance through hardship and celebrations, the team has strived to be the best they can be.
”In our program, we pursue excellence,” Coach Abrahamson said. “We’re about trying to pursue excellence and that is simply being the best that we can be in all the things that we do all the time. We wanna win, but it’s more about being the best that we can be and that doesn’t always mean win or lose. I expect us to really be good at the things we can control and that’s our attitude, that’s our effort, that’s our communication.”
Coach Abrahamson says that habit-building and concentration are major expectations when on the court, and also says that he is very proud of his players.
”I know I could talk all about stuff that I expect,” Coach Abrahamson says. “But, one we have some talented players and two they really buy into the team and project. They buy into pursuing excellence.”
