Northside freshmen earning playing time as coach Buck Harris searches for buy-in from team

Northside boys head coach Buck Harris praised his team’s defensive potential after their home win against Rutland on Tuesday, but also said there’s a need for more buy-in on defense.

Harris has expectations for his players, and when they don’t meet them that production has come from elsewhere in the early season.

“We got some guys in some areas that I thought didn’t come to play tonight, but we got some other guys that stepped up and played well for us,” Harris said after Tuesday’s win over Rutland. “But that’s why it’s called team basketball and collectively, it was a total team effort. Some guys that I was counting on didn’t play well, some other guys did. I’m glad we can do that.”

Whenever something like that happens it opens the door for players like freshmen Caden Lowe and Kingston Allen.

Lowe played more out of the two on Tuesday, and despite fouling out, garnered praise from Harris.

“Freshman Caden Lowe played well for us with the exception of fouling out,” Harris said. “We’re still young in some areas, but we’re getting better. We just try to hang our hat on playing defense and getting better defensively each and every night.”

Getting varsity minutes as a freshman is a big deal almost no matter the program, and getting Harris’ seal of approval as a guard means those two provide something to the team and have great upside.

“Caden Lowe is physically ready for high school on the defensive end. He can defend,” Harris said. “He’s too aggressive sometimes, proved tonight when he fouled out, and he’s confident, and you can’t take that away. If some of my other guys were just as confident as him, ain’t no telling how good we could be, because he believes he belongs on the court…He earns it every day.”

Allen isn’t quite the defensive stopper that Lowe is, but he provides a boost to the Eagles’ offense.

“He can score the ball. He can put the ball in the hole,” Harris said. “He can shoot when he gets ready to shoot, but it’s just the mindset.”

That mindset Harris is referring to is focus, which he said Allen didn’t have on Tuesday. That kind of thing is what separates freshmen from upperclassmen, though Harris said he’s not scared to play either Lowe or Allen despite the ups and downs that’ll inevitably bring.

“Both of them are typical freshmen. It’s gonna be a roller coaster ride all year because you’re gonna be up and down,” Harris said. “Kingston Allen tonight [Tuesday], was a typical freshman. Just up and down, not ready. I told him, ‘You’re not focused, you’re not ready to play…’ I’m patient with him and I understand freshmen being freshmen, [they’re] gonna have days like that. But when they’re on and locked in they got a chance to be pretty good for us.”