The Westside boys varsity basketball team opened the 2021-2022 season with a dominant win over Columbus on Thursday, Dec. 2.  The Warriors rolled past the Discoverers 89-30, behind 17 three-pointers. Westside was led by Logan Wilson with 17 points, after hitting five 3-pointers.

Westside is ranked No. 2 in the Omaha World Herald’s preseason high school basketball ratings. The Warriors look to make it back to the NSAA State tournament this season, after being one shot short in the district final last season.

The Warriors return all five starters, including four seniors. Westside head coach Jim Simons is excited for the potential the Warriors have this season. 

“I am excited to watch our seniors leave their mark on our program,” Simons said. “We have several seniors who have been multi year varsity players and I’m looking forward to seeing them use the experience they have gained over those years to help us work to become a great team.  Our team plays very hard and is an unselfish group that roots for each other and plays well together and it’s always fun to be on a team that is willing to do those things.”

Junior forward Tate Odvody started for the Warriors’ last season, but suffered an injury which put him on the sidelines during a key state run for Westside last season. Odvody looks forward to this season and is working towards playing at Pinnacle Bank Arena in March.

“I don’t think we are doing anything different. I feel like we are just building off of what we did last year and we have gotten better,” Odvody said.

Westside athletics pride themselves on having a strong culture. The boys basketball team has made an effort on building their bond and creating a strong work ethic this offseason, while trying to get every player to excel in their designated role. Simons said they should be one of the top teams in the state this season. 

“Our goal this year is to get to the end of the season knowing that every player and coach did the most he could to maximize our team by embracing their role and doing it to the best of their ability,” Simons said. “We have a significant amount of experience and several talented players returning from last year and we believe if we stay healthy and everyone maximizes themselves in their role we will have an opportunity to compete with the best teams in the state.  It will require us to be hard working and be disciplined and focused on the details involved in getting better each day.” 

Westside’s next game will be against the defending state champion Millard North on Saturday, Dec. 4. The Mustangs are ranked No.3 in the Omaha World Herald’s preseason basketball ratings. Tip off is set for 3:45p.m. at Columbus High School in the finals of the Kickoff Tournament.