In 49 states, it is just basketball, but in Indiana, it is a pillar of the wintertime that helps bring communities together. Greenwood is no different.

At GHS, basketball activities include boys and girls teams, intramurals, and the Hoops for Health 3 on 3 tournament.

Senior Zaire Gillis, one of two seniors on the girls team and starting guard, said “I feel like as a senior not being intimidating and talking to everyone is the main thing. Eliana (Anderson) and I have done a good job of getting people out of their shell and creating a good team environment. We create a good environment mostly because we make everyone feel like their voice is heard and be friends with everyone.”

On the boys side with the season nearing its midway point, they are already seeing progress in their play.

“Honestly, it has just been preparation and wanting to get better. Our offense has been great all season but continuing to work on defense and playing together as a team has definitely helped us evolve and gives us the ability to compete with anyone,” Owen King, junior guard, said.

With the girls season starting earlier in the fall, they are currently gearing up for a potential sectionals run.

“We’ve been watching a lot of films to correct a lot of our mistakes. We’re also locking in on the defensive side of basketball. Adding new offensive concepts is also something that’s been big for us heading into sectionals” Eliana Anders, senior guard, said.

At 9-5 on the season the boys team has shown grit with the way they have been able to bounce back and get a win following the loss at Shelbyville and after both losses to Whiteland.

“Focus on what we did bad in the last game and focus on that in practice. We really try to do better on it the next game to become complete all around,” Braden Reynolds, starting Center, said.

While oftentimes the boys and girls varsity teams are the focus, the other basketball events at GHS play a key role in bringing the school together through competition against one another instead of rooting on the school’s teams against rivals. Intramurals is where students can compete amongst each other.

“I’ve reached out to all my teammates and we all have a group chat together. We also have come up with game plans along with help from our coach Owen King,” senior Anthony Scarmazzo, intramural team captain, said.

The Hoops for Health 3 on 3 also saw its inaugural tournament benefiting mental health bring the community together for a common cause. The tournament raised upwards of $600 for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. The event also brought awareness to suicide prevention through educational Instagram postings and student activists speaking at the event.

Junior Cory Tiller, tournament participant, said, “I feel like the tournament was successful. Mental health awareness is something that everyone is always pushing for and for good reason. It was just really fun to see how basketball could bring everyone together how it did and raise the money it did for mental health.”