Ineligible player costs Weaver 3 wins
The Weaver boys basketball team has been docked three wins by the CIAC for the use of an ineligible player, head coach Reggie Hatchett confirmed to The Courant.
Weaver, which learned it used an ineligible player on Jan. 2, self-reported the violation to the CIAC on Jan. 3. The team vacated its Prince Tech, Pope Francis (Mass.) and Enfield victories. The ineligible player did not play against Waterbury Career Academy on Jan. 2, so the Beavers will not need to vacate their 84-75 win.
“We have seniors, and juniors, and leaders on this team whoareusedtoadversity,” Hatchett said. “From them, what I’ve been expecting, is for them to be even bigger leaders now.”
Weaver’s record now sits at 4-6. Prior to the forfeits, Weaver was in the top 10 of Division I, and was on its way to home court advantage in the playoffs. Now Weaver is in last place, and will either need to win out to secure a higher seed, or start the tournament on the road.
Hatchett, however, is looking to use this to moti- vate his players. Weaver doesn’t have its own court, as it plays its home games at Classical Magnet. Being forced into the role of road warriors in the playoffs wouldn’t be anything new for the Beavers.
“We’re probably going to be on the road against a formidable team in the first round,” Hatchett said. “The way that I spun it to them is, we don’t have a home court anyways. If there’s any team who’s built for not having a home court, for a firstround matchup, it’s us.”
Weaver found out about the punishment on Saturday, after its 84-65 loss to Bassick, the No. 4 team in the state. Hatchett referred to it as the lowest point of the season for the team. The Beavers bounced back on Wednesday, though, with a 110-52 win over Aerospace.
“We played terrible against Bassick,” Hatchett said. “We lost the game, but we still could have gave a better fight. Then we get the verdict that night, we hit our lowest point. Then we have a come-to-Jesus momentat practice, and yesterday we go out and score 110 points.”
This isn’t the first time which Weaver has faced internal struggles this season. In a season-opening loss to Hartford Public, Hatchett benched several of the team’s usual starters for the first half due to team violations.
“It’s my duty at Weaver to groom young men, not just basketball players,” Hatchett said. “I told all of them: If this is the worst thing to happen to you in your young adult life, you’re doing pretty well.”
Shawn McFarland can be reached at smcfarland@courant.com.