Colin Bernskoetter directed Calvary Lutheran's offense down the floor.
He passed the basketball to a teammate who slid away from a defender and quickly shot it from the field. Nothing but net. The Lions teammates high-fived while coach Mark Buffington looked on during his team's scrimmage Saturday.
That was one play the Lions executed the way they planned. Others didn't go so well, including one play where a missed pass caused the ball to almost roll out of the gym.
It was an intra-squad scrimmage, after all.
"I thought it went pretty well for a first real scrimmage," Buffington said. "We moved the ball well on offense and played well together. Hopefully get a little bit of sloppiness out of it, but overall I was really pleased."
With its tallest player listed at 6-foot-2, Calvary Lutheran won't be the biggest team in Class 2. What they lack in skill, the Lions hope to make up for with speed and athleticism.
"We've got some decent athletes," Buffington said, "we're going to have to talk more and I think our offense has got some kids who can shoot and can score."
Bernskoetter, a senior, returns as Calvary Lutheran's starting point guard from a year ago. Senior center Jake Allen was Calvary Lutheran's leading scorer. Senior guard/forward Alex Flannigan was the team's second-leading scorer, and was an all-conference selection a season ago.
Seniors Keyron January and Ray Eickmeyer round out the Lions' starting lineup.
"Keyron didn't really play a lot last year," Buffington said. "No. 30. Transfer from Jeff City in and out eligibility-wise, hope to have him the whole year. He'll help us a lot."
Junior guard/forward Jimmie Wehmeyer is first off the bench for the Lions. In total, Calvary Lutheran has five seniors and four juniors on its roster.
"They've played a lot together," Buffington said. "It's one of those deals where it's now or never for them."
The hope for Buffington and the Lions is their past chemistry will improve the team's 10-14 record from a year ago. The team has individual goals they keep among themselves, though Buffington did say one goal was to finish with a winning record.
Buffington added he's confident if the players play as a team together, the wins and losses will sort themselves out in the team's favor.
Another goal set forth is to be competitive in every game, whether it is in tournaments or in individual games. Even if the wins don't always come, Buffington is looking for the team to compete.
"Not just be 'oh we're playing Calvary tonight, so it will be an easy win,'" Buffington said. "We want to be a team that other teams play against that know we're going to be a tough game with, so we want to be able to compete against everyone we play."
Calvary Lutheran starts its season at 6 p.m. today at New Bloomfield, followed by the Eugene Tournament next week, when the Lions face top-seeded School of the Osage in the first round.
The team's home opener is Dec. 9 at Belle.
"I'm excited about the year," Buffington said. "We've got a good group of kids. They've worked and I'm looking forward to it."