Last season, the varsity Boys’ Basketball team surprised a lot of people.  Many of the predicted starters either suffered season-ending injuries or transferred to other schools.  Even with their setbacks, the team was still able to be competitive in a tough Jefferson District, losing in the second round of the conference playoffs to Charlottesville.  In addition, forward Aamir Simms was an All-State player, and head coach Munro Rateau earned District Coach of the Year.  So many felt that the team exceeded expectations last year.

But this year’s basketball team appears to be stacked with talent, too.  Even with Simms transferring to Blue Ridge, they will still be an incredibly strong team.  One of the reasons that they’re expected to perform well is because of senior Vinny Agee’s return to Fluvanna.  After spending a year at Virginia Episcopal, he decided to finish his senior year with the Flucos, and will be their starting shooting guard.  Senior point guard Hunter Deforge is also making his on-court return after missing the previous season with a torn ACL.

On the court, they will be joined by seniors and veteran team members Talavious Hughes, Julian Bonner, and Nafeese Simms, as well as a deep bench which includes seniors Jake Mooney and Kashawn Anderson, juniors Chris Washington, Gavin Patrick, Nick Washington, Tyler Marshall, Kaleb James, and Jason Lee, and sophomores Jameel Wilson and Shemar Williams.  Many of these players have varsity experience, so they’ll definitely be used to the fast-paced competition.  “Going into the season we worked our butts off, and we’re not going to take anyone lightly,” said Agee.  Assisting them in their quest for States will be first-time team manager Shane Bowman and Ben Sheridan, who brings four years of team management to the table.

So far, the team has been pretty successful. They’ve already won two regular season games, in impressive fashion, including a 14-point win against Harrisonburg, and a nine point win against Amherst.  “We’re doing well, but we just need to follow our shots and we’ll keep being successful,” said Williams.  They have lost one game, however, to the talented Albemarle Patriots, with a score of 70-49.  The Flucos struggled in the first quarter, but got better as the game went on.  Despite a slow start, they’ve shown that they can compete with the best opponents.

On Dec. 12, the Flucos will travel to Orange to face off against the Hornets and on Dec. 13, they will play the Waynesboro Little Giants in Waynesboro.  In Fluvanna’s conference, Conference 23, teams the Flucos will have to watch out for this season include the Charlottesville Black Knights and the John Handley Judges.  Though it won’t be easy in the playoffs, the players have high hopes.  “We want to make it to the regional title game and hopefully make a state run,” said Wilson.  With as much talent and depth as they have, as the great Kevin Garnett once said, “anything is possible.”