The basketball team is off to a hot start this year, with its first win over Friends Central, 67-46. A standout storyline from the game is Fifth Former Silas Graham’s 42-point game.
“I hadn’t realized that I scored that much until Christian Joachim, one of our managers, told me I had 29 of our 31 at half. I didn’t do anything different in the game; the ball was just finding me in good spots, and my teammates and coaches were able to put me in positions where I could succeed,” Graham said.
Sixth Form starting forward Emmanuel Butts believes his performance set the tone for the rest of the game and season.
“I feel like for us as a team, it definitely was a tone-setter Tuesday with the incredible game Silas had… and once everybody else picks up the pace, it’ll really set the tone for everybody else in the area that we play against,” Butts said.
The Fords have had a long preseason, dating back to May of 2025, to prepare for this season.
“It was fun to get back out there after the preseason,” Butts said. “Building off of the summer and everybody having fun competing while playing together definitely carried over to this season.”
This year, the Fords want to emphasize playing a tougher defense than in previous years.
“We want to be more gritty on defense,” Butts said. “We definitely have a more gritty defense than we had my last four years here.”
Graham said, “This year we are really trying to emphasize our defense, being low off the ball, knowing who you’re guarding, and keeping guys in front have all been focal points so far.”
The players are holding themselves to a high standard, with their biggest goal being to win the PAISAA Championships.
“PAISAA is the last draw for us. In the last couple of years, we have always gotten out of PAISAA in the first or second round. So, even just making it to the championship this year in PAISAA will be pretty big for us. I feel like we can do that and definitely win it,” Graham said.
“We’re going to play hard, and we’re gonna bring it every night.” – Manny Butts ’26
The team looks forward to their game against Malvern, which will likely be this season’s biggest matchup.
“I wouldn’t say I’m necessarily scared of anybody we play this year, but a contender that’s going to compete with us and try to give us a hard time is Malvern,” Butts said.
Ultimately, Butts is confident in his team.
“In a nutshell, we’re some dogs this year,” Butts said. “We’re going to play hard, and we’re gonna bring it every night.”
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