CJ Sweitzer attempts to lift a pass through an array of Shipley defenders last Monday night (Photo by Jonathan Vander Lugt).

By Jonathan Vander Lugt

 As has been the theme in an up-and-down season for the Springside Chestnut Hill Blue Devils, there remains a good deal of work to be done for head coach Jamie Chadwin as he hopes to mold his team back into a contender.

After going into the new year above the .500 mark with hopes high, the Blue Devils have stumbled in their first week of 2016, losing big to Shipley last Monday and capping the week with a 70-37 blowout in their league opener against Episcopal Academy on Friday night.

Their game against Shipley was marred by inconsistent shooting, lack of physicality, and overall sub-par play.

“Honestly, I don't think we were physical enough,” Chadwin said after the team's 65-51 loss. The refs made it clear that they weren't going to call a lot in the way of fouls, and Shipley took advantage and established themselves as the more physical presence for the evening.

“I thought we backed away a lot once they started asserting themselves,” Chadwin said. “We didn't respond early, and what we did in the second half was too little, too late.”

They had just 17 points through the first two frames on Monday. After praising the team's adaptation to a ball-movement-centered offense toward 2015's end, Chadwin said that the team regressed a bit.

“We got away from what we were doing well,” he said. “Which is moving the ball, cutting, using our offense to get guys open as opposed to relying on individual play.”

That's what they need to do, because as it's been harped on, the Blue Devils are not a particularly large or experienced team, and they're not loaded with a lot of athleticism. Sticking to plays and following through with ball movement is how their bread is going to have to be buttered. Freelancing won't work when they other teams are bigger, faster, and probably stronger.

They fared a little better in the second half Monday, where the offense flowed a little better. They scored 34 in the last two quarters, cutting it to single digits twice at around the seven-minute mark in the fourth, and again with about two left.

Shots from the hands of Sean Simon and Connor McAdoo started falling, and overall, the offense looked a bit more fluid.

“We didn't give up,” Chadwin said. “We had some opportunites, so that's a positive.”

“But,” he went on, “there were were a few key plays where we hung our heads, rather than focus on getting in position on transition.”

“That took away the opportunity to go from down nine to down seven or less,” he said, “where it's tighter and a one-or-two-possession game.”

McAdoo overcame an initially-rough night to finish in double digits with 10. Simon led the gym with 23.

“Sean has a very high ceiling when it comes to his offensive production,” Chadwin said. The sophomore guard is a capable shooter, and is able to make mid-air adjustments when he cuts to the hoop. It's a potent combination, but he still needs to work on piecing it all togheter on both ends of the floor.

“He hasn't even started to scratch the surface of what he can do defensively and how he can impact the team in different ways,” Chadwin said. “One of the things about being young and growing is that you learn how to be consistent.”

“It was there in spurts tonight,” Chadwin said. “But he also can't do it on his own. We need to finish plays—the ball just didn't go down.”

The Blue Devils have other, developing options as well. Zuri Peyton, a tall, lanky junior forward has a diverse offensive skillset, but is still working to unlock it.

“He's got a dynamic game, but he's got training wheels on right now,” Chadwin said. “He's learning how to balance it, how to read it, and how to take the turns. When he figures that out, he's going to do some really good things.”

Now into their league schedule, SCH will have to put some of those pieces together if they hope to improve on the one conference win they acquired last season.

“Our transition defense is going to be much better than it was today,” Chadwin said. “We're not comfortable playing at a fast pace right now.”

“We're going to have to improve that, because they tempo's going to pick up,” he went on. “It's just about execution, both on offense and defense.”

“It's that simple.”