Last Friday (12/17/21) Nauset Middle School played their first four basketball games since the pandemic began in March, 2020. The A and B Boys’ Teams played Mattacheese here at home, while the Girls’ A and B Teams played the same school away. 

     Coming back to play was a huge deal considering some of the people playing hadn’t played a basketball game in almost two years! Even though the teams hadn’t played for a while, they certainly didn’t disappoint! The Nauset boys A Team won against Mattacheese’s boys A team with an ending score of fifty-four to twenty-seven.The Nauset boys B team lost to Mattacheese’s boys B Team with a score of thirty-one to forty-four. Meanwhile, the Nauset girls A Team won against the Mattacheese’s girls A Team with a score of forty-six to nineteen. Last, but certainly not least, the Mattacheese game pitting the Nauset girls B Team against the Mattacheese girls B Team ended with a win from Mattacheese with the final score twenty to eighteen. 

     After watching some of these games, I was curious about how some of the players adapted to going back to NRMS basketball. To find out, I asked Jake Doherty, an 8th grader (Nauset boys A Team), what it was like for him to adapt to going back to having schoolwork and practice all at once. 

     He said “Usually I do homework before practice. It’s really helpful. It’s a lot to deal with but I’ve learned to balance it because of the fact I’ve been playing since first grade.” I also asked him a question about his playing preferences. He responded that he liked scrimmaging and defense. 

     After hearing from a player, I was curious about a coach’s perspective, So I emailed the Nauset boys A Team coach Mr. Barr a few questions about adjusting to the differences that COVID-19  has brought to games and practice. 

     Barr responded by writing, “The hardest thing for players to adapt to is playing with a mask. But so far the players are doing a great job! I think they are excited to be playing again.” 

     Hearing this, I then wondered truly how important it is to wear a mask while playing. He responded by saying, “It is important to play with a mask to do our part in minimizing the spread of COVID. While it does present a whole new set of challenges, we do the best we can so that we can keep playing.” 

     It definitely is very important to wear a mask; even though it may bring some challenges, the reward it can bring is outstanding. It is nice to see the Nauset school basketball teams up and running again after so long. I will one hundred percent want to follow up with more information later on to see how the season is going.