HOLLY POND, Ala. — Last season saw Holly Pond have one of their best seasons that they’ve had in a long time as they collected over 20 wins, won their area, and hosted their Sub-Regional game. Junior Kollin Brown recapped that season and talked about what all he learned from this year’s seniors.
“When we had our first practices, I could tell we were going to have a great season because everyone showed up and went hard every rep. Coach Cory Glasscock and Coach Yearwood were great this year; they challenged us to be better on and off the court every day. When we started winning games, they reminded us where we were last year and not to lose sight of our goal of winning a state championship. It felt awesome to be no. 1 for most of the season, but I knew and the team knew that we had to keep working if we were going to win,” Brown said. “I love all the guys and coaches on our team and I’m so glad I was a part of this team with this group of seniors. We made so many great memories together this year and it sucks that we couldn’t play a few more games together, but this season was one I’ll never forget.”
He added,
“This season was awesome because some of my best friends were the seniors on this team. I’m sad that I won’t ever get to play with them again, but we made so many memories this year with each other and they were awesome people that I will never forget. If my attitude got going in the wrong direction, the seniors were the first ones to straighten me up. They always made sure we had fun no matter what and I’ll be taking that into next year, because not everyone gets the chance to play this game.”
Kollin has learned a lot playing for coach Glasscock the past two seasons.
“I see coach Glasscock as a person I can come and talk to any time. I have learned many things from him and it’s not just basketball. He’s taught me how to be a better man. He has helped me so much the last two years I have played for him. Any time I need someone to talk to or ask for anything, I always go to him. If it wasn’t for him, I would not have had the season I had,” Brown said. “He helped me with my attitude and my confidence so much last year and I give him a lot of credit for how I performed last year.”
Kollin learned so much from making that deep run in the postseason and will work on some things to get ready for next season.
“Making a postseason run this year makes me want to work even harder so that it doesn’t end this soon next year. I’m going to continue to work as hard as I can. I’m going to push my teammates as hard as I can so that we can make an even deeper run next year and get to have the experience of playing in Wallace for a Sweet 16,” he said. “I will continue to work on my game, but I’m really going to focus on getting stronger and having a better attitude when things aren’t going my way.”
Kollin has seen his game grow tremendously from two years ago until now and talked about his goals for the upcoming season.
“My game has grown tremendously over the last two years. I have gotten stronger, smarter, and all-around better over the last two years. My game has matured a lot. I feel like I’m making reads that I wasn’t making and I’m making shots that I wasn’t making. I’ve worked really hard on my skill, but I have come really far with my attitude and confidence and it has boosted me to another level. All the hard work that I’ve put in finally feels like it’s paying off and it just makes me want to work even harder so I can play even better next year.”
He added,
“I really just want to be the best teammate I can be and give my team the best chance at winning possible. I really want to make it to the Sweet 16 next year as a team and see if we can make a postseason run.”
Kollin talked about what will make the Broncos special to watch next season and shared some of the best advice he’s been given.
“We will be fun to watch because we play with a ton of energy, and we have fun when we play. We have a bunch of good players on our team and when we’re clicking and working together, we will be super fun to watch,” he said. “I started training with Bailey Smith when I was in elementary, and I went to all of their games, and I loved the way he played. He played with so much energy and was always going hard. When I see myself play, I see a lot of him in me. He was definitely my biggest role model basketball-wise, and I still look up to him to this day. The best advice I’ve ever been given is definitely forget about what happened on the last play and focus on what your job is.”
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