CM Girls Basketball: Nowhere to Go But Up
BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP – Central Mountain’s long road back in girls basketball is about to get underway and if new coach Scott Baker has any say, it will be happening.
If you measure a program by wins and losses, recent years have been a struggle: last season the CM girls went 0-22, capping off a four year stretch with a 3-84 mark. The last win came in February of 2017.
But this is a new year with a new, but veteran coach in Baker. He ended a long run as the Central Mountain boys coach two seasons ago, stepping down after achieving that program’s first-ever District 6 title. When he left, Baker did not rule out returning to courtside at some point; that point has arrived.
Baker knows what he is getting into, telling The Record, “We are in fact essentially starting over. At this point, we are working daily on fundamentals and I have been generally pleased with the progress that we are showing in that regard. Obviously we are also installing a new offensive and defensive system so there are growing pains along the way.”
There are 17 on the Wildcat roster, 11 of them either freshmen or sophomores, Baker noting there’s not a lot of experience. But he is upbeat about the long-term prospects with what he has seen so far: “I do feel that we have some young girls that are going to be very good players at some point.”
There are some letter-winners back and Baker said he is pleased with the improvement of his veterans and looks to them for leadership along the way. But he is realistic when he stated, “We are cognizant of the fact that the turn-around of the program is part of a difficult process and will not happen overnight. We are simply working daily to change the culture of the program, get better and ultimately the results will begin to eventually show. We will not get caught up on wins and losses at this point but rather on the process. At the same time, along the way, we will play every game with the intention of winning. In doing so, we want to win the day, every day.”
Baker is buoyed by what he sees among his younger players and acknowledges the program’s eighth grade team is off to an 8-0 start, what he calls “a good sign,” adding, “Between our 8th, 9th, and 10th grade groups, we have what appears to be a real solid group of young girls who will soon make an impact at the varsity level. While our 7th grade is struggling to find wins right now, I’m encouraged by some of the athletes that we have at that level as well. Give us time and better days are on the horizon; could be sooner than some expect. Who knows? What I do know is that we will work, play hard and improve.”
Relative to play in the Heartland Conference this season, Baker said he knows little about the competition at this point. Instead, he said, “My focus has been and will continue to be on us and getting us better. “
Central Mountain will start its season this Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Philipsburg-Osceola. Home opener will be Monday, Dec. 10 with Milton.
