As the Trans-Valley League basketball schedule tips off this week, expectations are quite a bit different for Hughson High’s boys and girls teams.

The boys are 9-7 and had their three-game winning streak snapped Monday night in Angels Camp with a 59-42 loss to Bret Harte. Still, there is a renewed energy and optimism centered around new coach R.J. Henderson and a couple of talented freshmen.

The girls, meanwhile, with only one starter returning from back-to-back league championship teams, have struggled to a 1-11 preseason record.

Henderson – who won three Southern League titles, a Sac-Joaquin Section championship and made it to the second round of the NorCal tournament while coaching Denair – took over the Hughson program last spring. He immediately worked to change the culture by pursuing an aggressive and active offseason program that included dozens of AAU-sanctioned games against top-tier talent in places like Reno, Clovis, Rocklin and Manteca. He expects players and their parents to buy in and so far they have.

“The team has exceeded my expectations in terms of the improvement from early November to now,” Henderson said. “We lost to Bret Harte, but I thought we played our best game against Bradshaw on Saturday night (a 59-54 win in Sacramento).”

Senior guard Jackson Gehrke – the team’s second-leading scorer at 14.9 points per game – erupted for 27 points against Bradshaw and has impressed his new coach with his court savvy.

“He’s really our Swiss army knife,” Henderson praised. “He’s a strong, athletic kid who really finishes well at rim. He can absorb contact and still get his shot off.”

The Huskies also rely heavily on two freshmen – guard Karam Kang and forward James Seay – to play well despite their youth.

“They’re definitely learning,” Henderson said. “The thing I told them in November was that I need you guys to be sophomores in January.”

Kang leads the team in scoring (16.1 points per game) and assists (3.3). He’s also averages three or four three-pointers a game. Though he lives in Ceres, he was always going to attend Hughson High, where his older sister Kareena graduated last spring. She also was a top basketball player. She was the second-leading scorer for the Huskies and now leads the Modesto Junior College women’s team in scoring.

“I think the scoring gene runs in that family,” Henderson said.

Seay, the second key freshman, went to junior high in Turlock but was looking for a smaller high school to attend. He leads the Huskies in rebounds at 8.7 per game and has impressed his coach with his aggressiveness.

“He’s a good athlete who can really go and get it off the glass,” Henderson said.

Hughson opens the TVL schedule on the road this week with games Wednesday night at Ripon (7-8) and Friday night at Ripon Christian (10-4). Henderson knows the Huskies must play their best to compete for a playoff spot.

“Like any year, our goal is to make sure our last three or four league games are meaningful,” he said. “We want to be a tough out. We don’t want to get rolled over. I think we’re feisty. We’ve got a good nucleus of kids who are eager and haven’t made the playoffs in a while. We want to make a push for it.”

The girls team includes some of the key players from the flag football squad that won the Section championship last fall. So far, success in one sport hasn’t translated to the other, but veteran coach Tim May remains confident that the Huskies will be competitive in the TVL.

“We are a young team,” he said. “We do have five seniors, but they have played supporting roles up until this year. I have three freshmen, one sophomore and three juniors.”

The only returning starter from last year’s playoff squad is senior Raegan Barstow, who averages 7.3 points per game to lead the team. Seniors Morgan Bleakley, Peyton Avila and Grace Leedom and junior Leah Hobby – all of whom excelled in football – are good athletes.

“They share the responsibility amongst each other,” May said. “Morgan has been the most consistent player on defense and always brings great energy. We also have youth up at varsity so we can quickly turn this around and get back into contention sooner rather than later.”

Hughson’s only win came Dec. 12 when it defeated Johansen 41-32. The Huskies have dropped six straight since then, though they came close in a 37-35 loss at home to Argonaut on Dec. 27.

Hughson plays two home games this week to begin the TVL schedule – Tuesday against Ripon (6-9) and Thursday against Ripon Christian (4-5).

“This team is super gritty and not afraid to go hard,” May said. “We are just lacking consistency in scoring.
We will continue to work and I expect it to result in some wins.”