CHARLOTTESVILLE -- In the second year under head coach Brett Bechtel, there's plenty for Eastern Hancock's boys basketball team to build off.

A 14-11 record and a trip to the sectional championship highlight Bechtel's first season at the helm and give him some building blocks as the 2024-25 season gets underway.

"The experience of the sectional was really good for us and it was important for us to finish the season like that. We had been up and down but competed with good teams. That showed us that what we were doing kind of paid off in the end," Bechtel said. "It was a real honor to get that far and to finish with 14 wins. That group found a way to always compete. Those seniors had a winning record their entire careers."

That group laid the foundation of what Bechtel wants his program to be - physical and defensive-minded.

Last year's team allowed an average of 46 points per game. This year's key is getting back around that number.

"I think we can be better offensively this year, but the key is going to be if we can defend. Can we be as close to what we were defensively last year," Bechtel said. "I'm not a fan of hoping other teams miss open shots or getting into shootouts. We have to be able to defend and rebound this year to go with what should be an improved offense."

To do so, the Royals will have to replace their top two on-ball defenders from last season, Luke Morris and Charlie Halcomb, along with Caiden Willis who led the team in steals per game and brought size to the lineup. Morris set the school record for charges taken in a season and spearheaded the team's physical nature.

"Charlie and Luke were two really good on-ball defenders. They loved basketball, that was their thing. Caiden allowed us to match up with people because of his size and athleticism," Bechtel said. "Those kids had played with me for a while on JV, so we all naturally just moved up together. Replacing them is going to be hard, especially defensively."

It wasn't just defense that the three brought. Willis was second on the team in scoring at 8.6 points per game, Morris was just behind him at 8.4 points and Halcomb was fourth on the team at 6.4 points.

Morris was the team's primary ball-handler as well, averaging a team-high 3.0 assists per night.

Stepping into that role controlling the offense, is junior transfer Landyn Loring.

At Horizon Christian last year, Loring averaged 12.3 points and 4.3 assists per game.

"Landyn's taken over that spot and has done a good job of adapting to the system and what we want to do," Bechtel said. "He's a good kid, works really hard and loves basketball."

While he controls the backcourt, the frontcourt will be anchored by 6-4 senior Kayden Ruble.

The team's center is coming off a season in which he averaged a team-high 14.2 points and team-high 11.1 rebounds per game. He was 10th in the state in rebounding and 16th in the state with 14 double-doubles. His rebounding mark was third-best in Class 2A.

"Kayden's going to be huge for us. People are going to be really focused on him. Just by the sheer presence, he's going to draw a crowd whenever he catches the ball. That creates problems for other teams," Bechtel said. "There are not many guys like him still around that are true post guys. Sometimes that's not the easiest thing to guard. How he can affect the game on both ends is going to be very important for us."

Around them will be three role players from last year's team who will be thrust into bigger roles - Luke Schilling, Caden Powers and Eli Manship.

"Those three kids are very hard workers. If we got something from them last year, that was great, but if not, we could somewhat deal with it. Now, there's a lot more on their shoulders," Bechtel said. "Those guys will have to take a step forward, and they've been doing a good job of that so far."

Schilling, a senior, will spend time with Loring as the team's primary guard and will be tasked with being the top on-ball defender. Last year, he averaged 4.4 points and 3.3 rebounds.

Manship will be another of the team's top defenders but has been focusing on improving his offensive game as well this offseason after averaging 3.8 points last year.

"Eli was a wrecking ball last year and was mister energy. We need him to be less of a wrecking ball this year. If he got two fouls in the first half last year, it was whatever, but that's a much bigger deal this year. He's going to need to still be him, but find ways to not do the silly, reckless things," Bechtel said. "He's been doing a great job with that so far and has really been working on his offensive game too."

While those two handle defensive duties, Powers enters the year with much more on his shoulders offensively. The junior averaged 5.8 points and made a team-high 31 3-pointers.

"Caden was a guy who could kind of sneak into games and if he got a 3 off, he made it. It's not going to be like that this year. He's going to be at the top of scouting reports. Teams are going to know to not let him get a shot," Bechtel said. "If you've never been that guy, it's a lot harder and takes some adjustment. He's going to have to be able to find ways to counteract that."

Rounding out the rotation are freshman Luke Manship and juniors Caleb Retherford and Zach Stephens.

The Royals open up the season today at 7:30 p.m. on the road at Centerville.