BLACK MAGIC: Princeton High boys’ basketball star Davon Holliday-Black heads up the court in a game last winter. The Little Tigers will be looking for senior guard Holliday-Black to provide some magic in his final campaign. PHS tips off the 2011-12 season by playing at Nottingham on December 16. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

Over the past few years, the Princeton High boys’ basketball team has utilized a run-and-gun approach to develop into a consistent winner.

With less depth in the frontcourt, PHS head coach Jason Carter acknowledges that he may have to slow down things a little bit this winter.

“We are going to count on the big guys to play a lot of minutes and we have got to keep them on the court,” said Carter, whose team went 12-13 last winter in making it to the sectional quarterfinals.

“We may not press as much; we will play more of a deliberate game. We will still fast break when we get 2-on-1 opportunities.”

Lanky 6’6 junior Lior Levy could emerge as the key big man for PHS if he can get up to full speed after being sidelined by a knee injury for much of last season.

“Physically he is getting there,” said Carter, whose team tips off the 2011-12 season by playing at Nottingham on December 16.

“He is working his way back to play more, we have modified things for him as to drills. Mentally, he is there with his basketball IQ and his skills. It is a marathon and we would rather have him at full speed in March than doing too much in December. He is dying to get out there.”

The Little Tigers will also be relying on juniors Jordan Phelps and Christian Giles to come up big in the frontcourt.

“Phelps is coming off a good soccer season; I am hoping he can bring his soccer savvy to the basketball court,” said Carter.

“He made some clutch plays this fall. He can finish. Christian Giles has shown some progress; he can really jump. He is really hungry. He was on the JV at the beginning of last year and he has improved dramatically.”

PHS features a trio of guards in seniors Davon Holliday-Black and Matt Hoffman together with junior Scott Bechler who have shown an ability to come through in the clutch.

“Davon can play in the backcourt and we can also post him up,” said Carter, who will also be using juniors Peter Schulman and Ellis Bloom at guard.

“Davon and Matt are seniors and have played in some big games. Matt shot the ball well at times last year. He also had a big fall; he ran well for a cross country team that won a sectional title. Scott made a lot of progress last year; he had a big win over HoVal in our win in the states. He is coming off a fantastic run in soccer where he was an outstanding contributor.”

In Carter’s view, PHS could have a good run if his veterans get on the same page.

“The five starting guys need to play together and step up at opportune moments,” said Carter. “If those guys can trust each other at crucial moments, we could be good.”

That trust will result if the team can develop a resilient nature. “Overall character is the key to the season,” asserted Carter.

“How hard do we work in practice?; can we hit clutch free throws?; can we hold onto the ball when we are up by two points?; can we come back when we are down by four?; and can we persevere through adversity?”