The Arlington boys basketball team’s inconsistency has been a concern for coach Nick Brown this season, but nonetheless the Eagles are firmly in contention for a 3A district playoff spot.
“This is the most athletic group we’ve ever had,” Brown said. “We had a run of scoring more than 80 points (several) games in a row, and we were high-flying — dunking, shooting 3s. It was obvious last summer that we weren’t going to be a one-trick pony, and that we’d have multiple scoring weapons.”
Arlington (11-5 overall, 5-2 Wesco 3A) has been led by point guard Anthony Whitis and wings Jaren Cary and Griffin Gardoski, and has an intriguing collection of post players, including Dele Aribibola, Max Smith and Will Abram, a 6-foot-9 sophomore who “changes the whole complexion of the game defensively for us when he’s in,” Brown said.
“Anthony is tough-nosed and doesn’t give up. He gets to the rim, shoots, distributes the ball and plays defense,” Brown said. “Jalen is a junkyard dog. He gets loose balls and rebounds and his share of garbage points, but he can also shoot and drive to the hole. He’s upped his game.”
