Cowan boys basketball coach Lee Ingles said his seniors have been working “extremely hard.” So even after an 0-6 start in Ingles’ first year leading the Blackhawks, the new coach still hasn’t turned his attention solely to long-term goals, instead continuing to hope for success for the players who will graduate this spring.
“I want to have them have some success before they leave this program,” Ingles said. “That’s our goal every day we go in. We’re working on getting better, and our goal is to, still by the end of the year, have a successful year and figure out how to win games that we should win and keep competing in every game. So as much as it is a long-term process, I also want the short-term fix that we can help these kids be successful.”
Ingles’ team (0-1 Mid-Eastern Conference) will get its next chance to pursue its first win Friday at longtime rival Daleville (2-7, 0-3 MEC). Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. following a girls game between the two schools.
Ingles took the Cowan job after his family elected to relocate to Indiana for his wife to accept a job at Indiana Wesleyan. Since taking over the Blackhawks, he said he hasn’t had reason to question that his players have bought into his system. He’s seen his players maintain their work ethic every day and has noticed they are keen listeners when he is introducing his system.
“There’s been one time where I wasn’t happy with the effort,” Ingles said. “Which, with high school kids, it happens once in a while. But other than the one time, I just think we’ve played with a great effort and continued to put ourselves in situations where we’re going to break through one of these times.”
Cowan’s closest calls this season have included a 10-point loss to Hagerstown and an 11-point defeat against Shenandoah. Ingles said he is focused on helping his team better handle late-game situations in its quest to get a first victory. A lot of time is spent talking about improving in late-game situations.
He notes his team still has a tendency to give up costly 10-12-point runs, so there is talk of how to limit opposing spurts. The Blackhawks also work on shot selection and avoiding turnovers to help limit those runs.
When Ingles took over at Cowan, he saw several similarities between his last coaching job (at Western High School in Parma, Michigan), and his new position with the Blackhawks. At Western, he was also charged with rebuilding a struggling program. He still sees those similarities after spending some time at his new school south of Muncie.
“That’s why I’m still encouraged,” Ingles said. “The kids understand, they’re working hard. And we are going to get that breakthrough win, and hopefully that sends us on the right direction when we get it.”
Contact prep sports reporter Sam Wilson at (765) 213-5807. Follow him on Twitter @SamWilsonTSP.
This Weekend’s ECI Boys Basketball Action
Friday
•Randolph County Tournament: Union vs. Randolph Southern at Randolph Southern, 6 p.m.
•Blackford at Madison-Grant, 7:30 p.m.
•Cowan at Daleville, 7:30 p.m.
•Lafayette Jeff. at Central, 8 p.m.
•Burris at Eastern Hancock, 7:30 p.m.
•Seton Catholic at Wes-Del, 7:30 p.m.
•New Palestine at Delta, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday
•Randolph County Tournament: Winchester vs. Monroe Central at Randolph Southern, 1:30 p.m.
•Randolph County Tournament: Union City vs. Randolph Southern/Union at Randolph Southern, 8 p.m.
•Yorktown at Blackford, 7:30 p.m.
•Henry County Tournament: Blue River vs. Shenandoah at Blue River, 6 p.m.
•New Castle at Mt. Vernon, 7:30 p.m.
•Adams Central at Jay County, 7:30 p.m.
•Central at Noblesville, 7:30 p.m.