Reynoldsburg embraces high expectations with 3 DI signees
For the last two years, Reynoldsburg’s season has come to an end in the regional semifinals.
This year, the girls basketball team, with a loaded senior class led by three Division I signees, is intent on getting over the hump. Mya Perry, an Ohio State signee, believes a renewed focus on keeping the energy positive will make the difference.
“We started doing this new thing where after a bad play or something, we huddle and we talk about it instead of getting mad at each other,” Perry said.
“We come in and we talk about what we did wrong and what we need to work on. Everything has been positive vibes. We don’t keep anything negative.”
Being intentional about clearing the air after a mistake was something all of the seniors were thinking about, but Perry credited teammate Imarianah Russell, a West Virginia signee, as the one who vocalized the idea first.
The new approach is a shift from previous years, according to Perry.
“If somebody did something negative, it was a negative atmosphere,” said Perry. “We fixed that. We got that out of the way. We’re just being positive. I feel like when we’re a team, we’re unstoppable.”
Through the first five games of the season, the plan seems to be working. The Raiders are 4-1, including a comeback win over Pickerington Central on Nov. 30 that put their goal of always remaining positive to the test.
With the amount of talent on Reynoldsburg’s roster — Russell and Perry ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, on Gannett Ohio’s list of the top 22 players in the state — playing team-first basketball isn’t always easy. There’s a natural inclination for high-end players to want to take over.
“We’re not playing against each other when we’re playing together,” Russell said. “It’s about who can make each other better as a team. When we’re out there, it’s not, ‘I want this many points.’ It’s how many points as a team (do) we have to have more than the other team.”
Russell and Perry will headline the offense most nights as the go-to scorers, but Makiya Miller, a Wright State signee, will be the one passing them the ball and leading the team as its point guard.
“Don’t sleep on Makiya,” coach Jack Purtell said. “... She’s our general. She’s our point guard. We kind of go as Makiya goes. She’s in charge. She’s the coach on the floor.”
Purtell admitted he feels some pressure to make a deep run in the playoffs with this team, given the talented lineup and the large senior class, which has just one more chance at a state title.
Miller is ready to use that pressure as motivation.
“I feel like that makes us play harder,”
Miller said. “We know what everybody thinks of us. We can use that as a fire.” bjohnson@dispatch.com @baileyajohnson_