The Belmont boys basketball team has two mottos. One is written on their warm-up shirts: “We Are One.” The other is in the heads of its players, “Defend, rebound, run.”
“Our team is built off grit and grind,” senior guard Wyatt Carroll said after the Red Raiders got a big win at home against a local rival, the Winnisquam Bears, 54-31, on Wednesday night.
With the opening tip-off of the season, last year’s torch was officially passed. The championship-winning core graduated or left — leaving opportunity for rising players to step up.
Carroll stepped up with 19 points, backed up by freshman forward Evan Martinez with 18. Junior Brody Ennis had eight of his own to cap off a solid offensive night by the Raiders.
Martinez watched his older brother, Keegan Martinez, live up to those mottos last year during the championship run. His father, Tony, is the head coach and he knows the identity of the team well. Now, he has a chance to carry the legacy on.
“I’ve always wanted to be out here,” he said. “It just feels good to be out here and with my guys, we work hard every day.”
Ennis said the team is still working through kinks, but their biggest strength is their bench.
For the Bears, who finished last year without a win, this season is still about building up. They already got a win this season against Inter-Lakes, but playing against a top team like Belmont revealed vulnerabilities.
Turnovers and struggling in the paint cost the Bears, and Coach Kevin Dame knew there was room for improvement.
“Against good teams, you can’t turn the ball over. You got to get back in transition, you got to box out, all the little things,” Dame said.
The Bears were paced by Owen Poole with eight points and TJ Akers scored six to keep the team moving.
Belmont Coach Tony Martinez has liked how his team has adapted to the rigors of this early part of the season, but as many other coaches will tell you in December, the real basketball doesn’t start until January.
The guys who have come in are hungry and hard workers. They “want to write their own story,” Martinez explained.
“We’ve got a team that’s focused on competing and trying to win. Our goal is to get to Keene State,” Martinez added. “I love the way these guys come into practice every day. They’re focused and love to work.”