A healthy fusion of experienced upperclassmen and new faces look to build off of Coach Witty’s first season as head coach of the varsity team.

The Woodmen are noticing a stronger connection between teammates and coaches.

“Last year was still everyone feeling Witty out, as it was his first year here. Last season we spent a lot of time together at team dinners, and we grew closer to our coaching staff as the year went on, but even in the open gyms that we have had so far this year, I feel a much stronger bond between Coach Witty and the team,” senior Isaac ONeal guard said.

The Woodmen understand the task at hand for their season opener but feel good about the outcome.

“We know it might be challenging opening our season against a team that reached the Semi-State round in last year’s State tournament. It is one of our biggest goals to start our season off strong with a win,” senior Travarius Nolan guard said.

The Woodmen enter this season only losing four seniors, which is minor compared to other conference and county opponents. One 2024 graduate in particular, Jake Mosemann, was an impactful player last season.

“With our leading scorer from last year graduating, we are going to need to find some more scoring from younger players this year. I am looking at playing solid varsity minutes this season, and I feel like my shooting ability will help fill the role,” sophomore Joey Ortman forward said.

Some players said the move down to 3A and the Sectional realignment opens a door for the school’s first Sectional championship since 2020.

“We have been facing much bigger schools in Sectionals for a long time. Moving down to 3A allows us to play schools of similar size and gives us a much better chance at a Sectional final. New Pal will be a challenge as they reached the Regional last year in 4A, but everyone else is in the same situation as us,” junior Acen Swain guard said.

Other players view the switch as the easy way out.

“I feel like the change is soft. I do not think that we need an easier schedule or move down to an easier division to be a good team. I feel like the wins do not mean as much if you have to go down a level to get them,” Nolan said.

Coach Witty has made some additions to the coaching staff this season. These coaches bring different backgrounds and experiences to the table for the Woodmen

“I hired Coach Ramey as an assistant for this season. He is younger and leads a lot of our skills training, and is also a big help in demonstrating drills. He brings a completely new perspective to the staff. Coach Ramey played college basketball and was a 1,000-point scorer at Franklin Community,” Witty said.

During the season, preparation is about the same from game to game, even in the season opener against county opponent and reigning Semi-State qualifying Center Grove.

“We approach each team similarly. Each game we make a detailed game plan and scout the opponent. Something different for me this year is it is my second year. Most of the teams on our schedule were opponents last year and I have an idea of what they like to do,” Witty said.

The Woodmen travel to Center Grove for their season opener on Tuesday. Junior varsity will begin at 6 p.m. and varsity will follow at 7:30.