Fresh off big individual improvements in her basketball skills, junior Novea Brandon looks forward to leading team from the point guard position in Thursday opener at Highland

Tom Keegan
Onwardtrojans.com

No need to ask Chesterton junior girls basketball player Novea Brandon if she hit the weight room hard, retooled her shot, and played a ton of AAU basketball games in the offseason.
All that was needed as proof of all of the above was to watch her play in the Maroon & Gold scrimmage. Her shot, released from a higher spot with more consistent mechanics, appears to be a major upgrade from where it was last season.
Her added strength has enabled her to extend her range to well beyond the 3-point line, as well as helping her to become a stronger defender. She already was the team’s best player at drawing charges as a sophomore.
Brandon will get a chance to put her improvements to test against players she doesn’t see in practice every day when the Trojans open their season on the road against the other Trojans on their schedule, the Highland Trojans on Thursday night.
Brandon’s the only junior on a roster that includes two seniors (Addison Glossinger and Allison Van Kley), six sophomores (Paige Clancy, Reese Dilbeck, Ruby Dudek, Taylor Kisic, Lindsi McGuffey, Addison Pack) and three freshmen (Ella Boyanski, Chloe Murzyn and Macie Pack). Young and short, the Trojans don’t have any 6-footers on the roster.
Even so, especially for a team that had so many athletes coming off fall sports, the intrasquad scrimmage looked clean.
“It was a really good night, probably one of the best Maroon & Golds that we’ve had in a long time,” Brandon said. “It’s Maroon & Gold, we’re supposed to have fun, but at the same time, I still think we brought a really competitive nature to it.”
To hear Brandon talk about how things have gone so far, the Trojans have the potential to compensate for a lot of what they lack in experience and size with a lack of drama.
“The good thing is, this year we have so many people who just want to show up and want to do what’s best for the team,” Brandon said. “We’re very competitive. We just want to win and do what’s right for the team. Especially this year, we have so much fun, even in practices because we know everyone around us, you know, wants to be here. We’re competitive. We support each other very well. Our chemistry is getting better and better each day.”
Brandon and McGuffey, who project as the starting guards, will play both on the ball and off it. Conscious of being one of the veterans and a point guard, Brandon is determined to make her voice heard more than last season.
“I’ve been working hard on trying to become more of a leader because to be a point guard, you have to be a big leader,” she said. “So, it’s like one of the most important roles to have because you have to make sure everyone knows where to go on the court, where everyone’s situated and all that.”
Serious basketball players commit to working on their games and never stop trying to improve, but whereas that is almost the entire focus in the offseason, the main focus shifts to blending improved players into a team once the season gets underway.
Given the calendar, Brandon tended to shift the conversation to team topics, but when asked to look back on her offseason, she addressed how she improved so much.
Brandon played with McGuffey on City Elite, which is part of the AAU Puma Tour, “so we just drilled a bunch of games in tournaments, so on that end, practicing and having highly competitive AAU tournaments will make you better. And then on my own for a while, I had a (basketball skills) trainer, and then going to open gyms and working on my craft on my own.”
Brandon’s shot looks different at both ends, when released and when it swishes through the net from way downtown.
“I’ve been working on my shot a lot,” she said. “I think my shot has come a long way and my handle and kind of just reading things, I’ve gotten better at that, too. And I think my defense has gotten a lot better. We’ve been working with (strength and conditioning coach Matt) Wagner a lot on agility and stuff, so I think defensively I’ve gotten better too, and just getting stronger from the weight room, my range has pushed farther and farther back. I’m comfortable shooting it from anywhere.”
Brandon also pointed to sharp-shooting McGuffey’s improvement at driving and at defending. Brandon has been particularly impressed with how teammates who played fall sports made such a smooth transition to basketball, mentioning volleyball players Dilbeck (caught fire from the corner in the Maroon & Gold scrimmage) and Murzyn, cross country runners Clancy and Van Kley, and Kisic, a smooth driver on the golf course and basketball court.
“We’re very excited about the season,” Brandon said.