MBN Roundup: Winter sports

It was only the first week and there’s certainly no need to begin entertaining state-championship ideas.

Then again, early promise, a wave of returnees and increased interest has Mullen winter-sporters and their followers rather excited.

To wit:

--- Boys basketball is off to a 2-0 start. The Mustangs waxed two Jefferson County teams through a combination of improved and tight seniors, plus a dab of newbies. At first glance, they seem to be able to regularly offer the full gamut of an inside-outside game, easily getting into transition, defending and containing a rotation without losing much whoever is on the floor.

--- Girls basketball won a season-opening tournament, is dominated by underclassmen with a sprinkling of talented freshmen, and looks as if it’s playing without fear. Even better, the Mustangs also offer height, a glaring void in 2017-18. It’s no small point – they can now play man-to-man defense instead of sitting in a zone. Height matters.

--- Hutchison Fieldhouse was fairly crowded for the first two boys hoops games and it appears attendance will remain on the upswing, including for girls. Coaches and athletes are sincerely following – and rooting for – peers in other games and events.

--- Girls swimmers and divers have gotten a bunch of state-qualifying out of the way and showed well in an eight-team meet in which the other seven school entrants were Class 5A (the Mustangs are 4A). They were sixth at the state meet in 2018 and are staring at getting higher,

--- Wrestlers have more than two dozen Mustangs on the roster and they contain some experienced and newer talent. There are still some holes in assorted weight classes, but there’s quality to offset the lack of quantity.

--- On the ice, Mustangs hockey players now number enough to field something of a junior-varsity team and all of the underclassmen from a season ago are back to seriously challenge for a playoff spot. You should have seen their opener, in which they fell late to Columbine – the stands were packed and students lined one side of the boards.

--- And as for the winter coaches? If there is a more-excited group around Hampden Avenue and Lowell Boulevard, show us. From the head folks to the assistants, there’s bounce in their steps, purpose in their direction, and life in their statements.

Of course, it was only the first week, there are many more to handle, there’s a holiday break to deal with and nothing’s promised.

But for openers, it was the kind Mustangs winter-sporters and their followers needed.

The buzz around school is real.