Boys basketball preview: Eli's not bummin' ... Amherst staying positive after suffering another shoulder injury during football

Eli Solak knew immediately what had happened as he laid on the ground during a game at Buckeye the second week of Amherst's best football season in years. "All I could think was this is God's plan," Solak said. "God really has a plan for me. I've got to stay positive. The last time I was really negative and I really didn't have the best attitude. This time around, I've been very positive about it. My friends have been there for me. I just got back in the gym recently, trying to get my body back in shape for basketball." It was the second year in a row Solak suffered a separated shoulder. "Last year, he put on a few pounds after he got hurt," Comets basketball coach Pat Bray said. "He didn't do much. This year he said that's not happening." Solak was just cleared to play Monday, two days before Amherst's first game against North Olmsted as part of the DiFranco Memorial Classic, named for Bob and Troy DiFranco. Bray is just glad he's back. "It's huge 'cause he's 6-3 and he can shoot it," Bray said. "Right now, we don't have any other bigs who can shoot it. He's a big mismatch. He goes outside and somebody puts a guard on him or we sit him down inside. It's a really nice mismatch to have." Not being able to play football was difficult for Solak, especially since the Comets went 6-4 and qualified for the playoffs, theirs best season since 2019. "Oh, yeah, it was tough," Solak said. "Definitely heartbreaking. I worked all summer with that team. We built that bond together. Going out in Game 2 definitely sucks. "It was one of our best seasons in Amherst in a long time. My freshman to my junior year was tough. My junior year wasn't too bad, 3-7, but I missed playing with our best group in a while. Sucks not to be out there. "(Coach Tom) Thome came in with a team that went 0-20. He's really turned this franchise around. With Pat, it's always been a good thing to be around Pat. He just develops players so well." Bray begins his 10th season with the idea that the Comets can make a run at the Southwestern Conference championship. "We are a good team," Bray said. "Something special could come out of this if we do it the right way. That's what we're trying to get them to believe in right now." Everyone figures Elyria and Berea-Midpark to be the favorites. Elyria is the defending champion, having edged out the Titans and Avon by one game last year. Amherst won only two conference games but one was against the Pioneers late in the year. The Comets also took Berea-Midpark to the wire before losing. That gave Bray something positive to build from. "And we only graduated two," Bray said. "We talk about it all the time but we still have to stay humble and say 'we really haven't done nothing yet.' We've got to prove that. We're a good team. We've got to try to become great." Bray has a deep team with six solid seniors, three returning starters, a good crop of sophomores and a couple of experienced juniors. "We've got a great senior class," Solak said. "We're all leaders. We have sophomores, freshmen on varsity. The sophomore class is very good. They're very competitive. They're all basketball players. They may play other sports but basketball is their main sport. They really focus on it and it's just really nice to have those kids on the court with us." The returning senior starters are Solak, Tristyn Young and Ashton Draga. David Dudziak, a junior, started most games last year until an injury sidelined him. Back out for basketball this year is senior Cole Norris, who is fresh off a spectacular football season as the Comets' quarterback. Junior guard Stanley Robinson, 6-foot-6 sophomore Gavin Beckler and Elyria Catholic transfer Brady Engle should all help as should freshman Jack Coleman, who has impressed Bray so far. Norris started as a sophomore but didn't play last year, focusing on football instead but he's back this year. "All of his friends really helped him with that decision," Solak said. "We'd go to the gym or just be hanging out. We'd say, 'Hey Cole, you want to come play some basketball?' He was always on the fence until the very end and then he decided to play." "We go 12 deep," Bray said. "We could run some teams down. It's looking good for us. Really, we're excited." "It all starts with Pat," Solak said. "He's a really good coach. He has us in here doing all the hard stuff. He never lets us take any breaks. It starts really with him. The team we have, we just compete. We aren't the biggest team. We might not be the fastest or most athletic but we're going to put the work in." Bray teaches defense and his players — especially Solak — have bought in. "It's the talk of the town in Amherst," he said. "Defense is the best offense. It just translates really well. We're a fast-pace team and that fast-pace defense turns into fast-paced offense. We don't even set up plays, we just go, go, go." "It could be a special year for us," Bray said. "We'll see how it goes." "I'm just going to try my best and be a leader out there for everyone else," Solak said. "I want to be able to space the floor, talk on the floor. Even if I'm on the bench, talk to my teammates. I don't want to get down on them and make them just play worse. I want to build them up." Contact Tim Gebhardt at (440) 329-7135 or timothygeb@msn.com.