Braden River girls basketball is staying the course

The team might look different, but the vibe around the Braden River High girls basketball program is the same as ever.

The Pirates' defense is tighter than a vise. The subs cheer loudly on the bench after every big play. Most importantly, the Pirates still are winning. 

Don't expect the Pirates' ship to sink any time soon. 

The last four seasons have been some of the best in program history thanks to O'Mariah Gordon. A superstar the minute she stepped inside Braden River's gym, Gordon was the top-ranked player in Florida in the 2021 graduating class (and No. 31 overall) by ESPN and twice was named the Gatorade Florida Girls Basketball Player of the Year. The 5-foot-4 Gordon averaged 24.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 6 assists and 4.5 steals per game for her high school career. Her play earned her a scholarship to Florida State. 

With Gordon leading the way and fellow 2021 graduating guards Cheyenne Stubbs and Ellie DiGiacomo providing supplemental scoring, the Pirates thrived. In 2019-2020, Braden River went 17-10 while playing a challenging schedule and reached the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 6A state semifinals (Final Four) before losing 80-58 to Wekiva High. It was the deepest run the program has ever made. Last year, a Gordon leg injury held her out for a majority of the season, but the Pirates still went 12-6 before falling 53-42 to Charlotte High in the regional semifinals. 

Now, Gordon is a freshman Seminole, but the Pirates are not yet ready to fall from the ranks of the elite. Braden River head Coach Stephanie Smith said she has reset everything the team is doing offensively now that Gordon and the other guards are gone — though she expects minimal drop off in results. 

"The last few years we ran a lot of ball screens because we had guards who could come off the ball and create and be dangerous on their own," Smith said. "We are more of a mid-range jumper team right now. We do have some ball screens but we're not relying on them as much. They're coming sometimes for my post players — Bella Patterson (senior) and Aaliyah Capers (junior). They have done guard work and post work the last two, three years. Their ball handling is coming along well for post players in high school. 

"We don't have the quick hitters that we've had in the past. We have more of a continuous motion on offense that we can mirror on both sides of the court. It actually helps the kids understand the game of basketball more as far as why and how we run what we run. We have done more to beak down every detail to them."

Smith said even though the Pirates lost three of their scoring leaders, they still have experienced players who can step into the spotlight themselves. That includes Patterson, who opened the season with a 20-point, 11-rebound effort in a 64-51 road win against Sarasota High Nov. 16, and Capers, who has embraced a more guard-like role in 2021 and is averaging 15 points per game. 

The Pirates' new strategies have been working. As of Nov. 30, Braden River has started the season 3-1, the lone loss coming to Plant High, the reigning Class 7A state champion, 53-33 on the road. Yes, even without Gordon, the team's schedule is difficult, including upcoming games against perennial elites like Brooks DeBartolo Collegiate High and Riverview High. Smith wants her team to be ready for whatever awaits it in the playoffs, which remain less a goal than an inevitability. That in itself is an accomplishment. It might surprise outsiders, but not the Pirates. 

"This year has been different, but in a good way," Patterson said. "We got used to depending on 'O' (Gordon), especially if we were tired, because she's a great player. This year though, with her gone, it's pushing everyone to be the best they can be instead of always relying on her. I think that has helped us a lot. We have so much talent but we didn't always use it. We're playing more together this year even though we're also stepping out of our comfort zones. It has been a lot of fun."

The team's optimism about the 2021-2022 season is not a slight against Gordon — whom Patterson called "the nicest, most humble person ever" — or the other players who graduated. It's more a vote of confidence in themselves. The Pirates said they have what it takes to make another deep playoff run. If the team's development stays on its current trajectory, they might be right.

"We have a lot of different types of players," Smith said. "Any given night, one of them can go off. The next night it'll be someone else. It's no longer O'Mariah Gordon filling the box score. Other coaches have to pick their poison with us.

"This team wants to have something to hang its hat on," Smith said. "The players want to win and they work hard. They're still as aggressive as ever on defense and we have more length than we have ever had. We're going to be fun to watch."