The wait is almost over. With less than two weeks until the Hall High basketball season begins, the boys’ and girls’ basketball teams are excitedly preparing for the upcoming season. The highly anticipated basketball season for the varsity teams will heighten the energy and the anxiety with the newly added shot clock coming into play.

This 2023-24 season “will be worth watching,” said Maddie Maxwell, one of the girls’ team’s senior captains. There will be some interesting games to watch, with roughly 12 returning varsity players from the girls’ team and about seven returning varsity players from the boys’ team.

Despite the many returning players, Maxwell says she is still “hopeful to see new faces at tryouts this year” and is looking to get “a lot of fun” out of this season.

On the boys’ side, Chase Hanawalt, senior captain of the boys’ team, hopes his team can gain more wins than last year and “hopefully make it deep into the state playoffs.” Last year, the boys’ state playoff run was cut short when Killingly defeated them in the first round, but this year, Hanawalt is hopeful. Hanawalt also hopes to grow closer to his friends during this season and wants to focus on “working hard together to achieve our seasonal goals.”

Similarly, Brain Moretti, Hall’s boys’ basketball coach, says, “We want to continue what we did last year, like playing as a team, defensively and offensively.” Both teams are looking to improve their game as a team, as well as having a good time.

Along with basketball’s intensity and focus, the new 35-second shot clock will make a difference for these high school players on the court. Coach Moretti comments on this topic with high expectations, saying, “It’s going to be very different this year because we are getting a shot clock, which will definitely make some changes.”

The new shot clock will undoubtedly speed up play during this basketball season and eliminate constant time wasting, Moretti alludes.

The shot clock isn’t the only thing that affects the intensity of play. While playing games with a lot of fan support, Hanawalt states, “It’s always fun when fans come out to watch us play. It gets electric.” Hearing the screams from people in the stands and raw emotions from plays pushes Hanawalt and the team to play their best.

Contrary to the football season or other outside sports, Hanawalt believes that having fans so close to the action encourages them immensely while on the court. Hanawalt states, “It’s a lot different than football and turf sports where the students are so far away. I mean, they [the fans] are right there talking to you, both good and bad; it really fuels us.”

In response to fan support, both team captains- Maddie and Hanawalt- encourage spectators to attend the Hall/Conard games. Hanawalt says that these games will be, “huge.”

Moretti also says that their ​​”Conard and Northwest [games] are going to be a big challenge this year.”

With all this talk about the upcoming year and hopes to see new faces in the gym, Coach Moretti sends a message to the new players, “Just prepare. Prepare the right way. Everybody has a will to win but more importantly, a will to prepare.”

Want to get in on the action? Girls’ basketball will begin Monday, November 27, 2023, and boys’ basketball will begin on November 30, 2023. Whether you are on the team or a fan, Hanawalt says this season could be a “special season as a player and as a spectator.”