The Bearden basketball team has had a great start to the 2023-24 season, currently sitting at 18-4.
Sophomore Justin Nordin has been integral to that success. He has frequently led the team in scoring, and he was named the MVP of the Rhea County Christmas Classic, which Bearden won.
The Bulldogs lost to Maryville 59-46 on Tuesday, but they are looking to bounce back on the road at rival Farragut on Friday night at 7:30.
“[Wednesday] before practice, we had a team meeting,” Nordin said. “The captains talked about what we need to do and first we started with, ‘Personally what can you do for the team?’ And I said I needed to be a better leader.
“I can’t bring my teammates down. I just need to give them encouraging words and bring them back up.”
Coach Jeremy Parrott has been working to ensure that the team is learning from their mistakes, which starts with watching film.
“The biggest thing he does is talk to us in the film room,” Nordin said. “He connects with us mentally about how we can do better.”
The Farragut game has been long awaited and highly anticipated, not only by the fans on both sides of the rivalry, but the players too. The players from both teams have known each other and played with and against one another for a long time.
“Nothing matters outside the lines of the basketball court,” Nordin said. “Off of the court, we are buddies, but on the court, I need to push them, get the ball from them, and make them mad.
“Basketball is a game of runs, and they are going to go on some runs and we just need to stay focused.”
Bearden dropped both regular season games to the Admirals last season, but won the final meeting of the season in the district tournament.