Nov 23, 2015 5 min read

No one can accuse Rick Bell of looking calm while coaching. Canon-McMillan’s boys basketball coach never sits, often standing with legs spread and watching intently while shouting quick adjustments.

Though his demeanor might look the same this season, on the inside Bell will be more collected. Having a talented, selfless point guard can ease any coach’s stress, even Bell’s.

The Big Macs lost two starters from last season, but for the first time since 2013, they’re experienced and it starts at the point with junior Britton Beachy.

A two-year starter and Canon-McMillan’s leading scorer last season, Beachy will shift from shooting guard to lead the program’s charge toward possibly its first playoff appearance in two years.

“Whenever the ball is in Britton’s hands and he’s making decisions and running the show, I am at peace because he’s not a selfish kid,” Bell said. “He’s not one of those point guards that’s constantly looking to get his. As a matter of fact, if anything, we’re challenging him at times to be more aggressive.”

Beachy will attract plenty of attention from opponents this season. Averaging 15.4 points per game in one of the WPIAL’s most difficult sections will have that affect, but how he handles those situations could determine C-M’s fate.

Instead of acting as simply a facilitator, Bell wants his point guard to play aggressive in order to draw defenders to him and create opportunities for the rest of the Big Macs’ experienced starting lineup.

Beachy, senior forward Jordan Smith, junior forward Carson Miller and junior forward RJ Bell will be joined by either junior Jake Davey or sophomore Kenyon Lewis at shooting guard. Senior Dom Eannace will be the team’s sixth man. It’s a group that will play fast, but Bell’s focus isn’t on offense. It’s defense that wins games in Section 4-AAAA.

“We’re going to be pretty good defensively, and I think we’ll have the ability to score,” Bell said. “One of the reasons we’re focusing on defense and rebounding is you can be a great shooter, but you can have a bad shooting night. You should never have a bad defensive or rebounding night.”

Defense wasn’t always the issue for Canon-McMillan last season. The Big Macs allowed 53.3 points per game – third-best in the section – but the offense lagged at times, finishing seventh out of eight teams in the section in points per game.

Other than Beachy and Sam Bohn, no other player averaged more than 6.1 points per game for C-M. Like the 2013-14 season, young players were thrust into action after injury and it led to the Big Macs missing the postseason.

With a talented point guard and a roster filled with knowledgeable players after two difficult seasons, Canon-McMillan’s goal is the same as its new mantra: find a way. In a section that includes Chartiers Valley – the defending WPIAL champion – Bell believes that mentality, coupled with the Big Macs’ talent, will make the difference.

“We’re trying to talk to our kids about mental toughness, about being the best in the section at the things we can control,” Bell said. “We can be the toughest team, we can be the most hard-working team. We may not be the most experienced team or the team that has the greatest history or tradition. Try to control the things we can control.”

Like Canon-McMillan, the Indians return plenty of talent, but they are trying to break a playoff drought. Though Peters Township finished seventh in the section last season with an 8-14 overall record after losing eight of its final 10 games, head coach Gary Goga believes the Indians will compete for a playoff spot.

Senior guard Nick Valentic will lead the offense after he averaged 10.2 points per game last season. He’ll be joined in the starting lineup by junior Mike Cortese, senior Kelson Marisa, senior Clayton Yeates and senior Ben Doyle.

Though Valentic and Cortese are the Indians’ top scorers, Goga believes wins will come with a more well-rounded offense.

“Those two are going to have to carry us a little bit, but we have other guys who can score too,” Goga said. “Hopefully, we’ll have a well-balanced team with scoring. I don’t want to have to have games where Nick and Mike have to score 15 or 20 points each for us to be successful.”

The Indians will need more than that to compete in the section, which includes Chartiers Valley, Bethel Park, Upper St. Clair and Mt. Lebanon.

“It’s brutal. It’s going to be as good as its been in a while, not that its’s ever been bad, but this year it’s going to be really good,” Goga said of the section. “Everybody in the section probably can legitimately think it has a shot at the playoffs. Night in and night out you need to bring it.”