The Monroe boys basketball team has spent the month of June playing a familiar schedule.
Every Monday and Wednesday of the last month the Hornets have played in the Kingdom Sports Center summer league against Southwestern Buckeye League foes Madison, Carlisle, Waynesville, Dixie and Preble Shawnee.
“It’s a good way to get them to show up, touch a basketball and play together as a team throughout the summer,” Monroe coach Denny Ferguson said. “They all got to play a lot of games against league opponents and teams that are local to the area. It’s just good to get them out and get them playing.”
Fenwick, out of the Greater Catholic League is also in the league.
In between summer league games on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, the Hornets have been playing scrimmages against some alumni in open gym sessions held at Monroe High School.
“The alumni are more physical,” Ferguson said. “I think it’s helping our younger kids in the varsity program. Getting beat around a little in the open gyms, it helps them play harder.”
Monroe’s June schedule also included a trip to Wilmington College to participate in a shootout with Loveland, Franklin-Monroe, Williamsburg and Summit Country Day.
“We’re seeing good effort,” Ferguson said. “We don’t have a lot of experience coming back next year. It’s good to see these kids playing with the younger kids coming up from the JV squad. ”
This week Ferguson and his staff have been focused on the long term future by hosting the youth basketball camp for kids in kindergarten through sixth grade.
“We just want to get them playing,” Ferguson said. “We want to get them excited about basketball. We have our youth league that went from 20 or 30 the first year to 120 or 130 last year. It’s getting bigger and better and I think camp helps that.”
The camp was run by Ferguson and former Monroe basketball players Jared Ferguson and Mike Pennington.
