Youthful Blue Devils to follow Talton’s lead as they turn page looking for future success

QUINCY — It’s been nearly half a century since Bob Seger released “Turn the Page,” a song often covered by bands as acclaimed as Metallica that continues to be heard on classic rock radio stations.

It might even be adopted by the Quincy High School boys basketball team as this season’s mantra.

After enduring a winter to forget, the Blue Devils clearly need a fresh perspective.

They are doing so with a renewed vigor and some significant changes on defense, a roster featuring seven freshmen and sophomores, and an NCAA Division I recruit ready to further elevate his game. The hope is that combination buries the memories of a 3-12 season, which resulted in the program’s worst single-season winning percentage ever.

“Honestly, we move on,” said QHS coach Andy Douglas entering his eighth season at the helm with a 113-65 career record. “This is almost a completely new roster. We’re not bringing back a ton of experience. So it’s adjusting to so many things.

“We don’t take a lot from last season, but we look past it and look forward to this season.”

The Blue Devils believe there is a reason to be encouraged.

“We play hard,” senior swingman Jeremiah Talton said. “We have good chemistry. We all like playing with each other. We communicate well. It’s a good mix.”

Even the newcomers sense it.

“From the first time we walked into the gym until now, we’ve become a lot closer and communicate better with each other,” said junior guard Reid O’Brien, who moved with his family from Troy, Ill., back to Quincy last spring.

‘We’ve all bought into it’

With some changes defensively, communication is vital.

The 1-2-2 zone defense Douglas learned from former QHS coach Loren Wallace — Douglas played for Wallace from 1997-2000 — will continue to be a staple. However, the Blue Devils are transitioning to more man-to-man defense to highlight their quickness and ability to create scoring opportunities in transition.

“I like the way we get up the floor,” senior point guard Terron Cartmill said. “Everybody plays as one.”

Defensively, that continues to be a process.

“We’re trying to get in the passing lanes and get deflections,” Talton said. “I think that’s going to help us a lot, especially when getting out and running in transition.”

Each day, the Blue Devils see growth in how they play man-to-man defense.

“If we’re good on defense, it’s going to lead to a better offense for us,” O’Brien said. “Defense does everything for us. We’ve all bought into it.”

It should help improve the overall defensive numbers. Last season, Quincy allowed 55.5 points per game and saw opponents shoot 51 percent from the field. The Blue Devils were outrebounded by 5.4 boards per game and gave up 134 offensive rebounds.

“We have to be better at taking things away,” Douglas said. “We have to be more active and more in-your-face to make things happen.”

The hope is aggressiveness defensively leads to aggressiveness offensively.

“That’s the goal,” Douglas said. “We talked early on last year in postseason workouts that everybody wants to run. Not everybody wants to do the things it takes to run, which is getting in shape. But this is a team that is more than capable of having three or four or in some situations five guys bring the ball up the floor.

“We’re trying to look to get early offense as much as we can.”

‘He’s helping everyone come along’

Douglas realizes this may be the youngest roster in QHS history.

Four freshmen earned varsity uniforms with Bradley Longcor III likely to be in the starting lineup Thursday night when the Blue Devils open against Lake Forest Academy in the 50th QHS Thanksgiving Tournament. Keshaun Thomas also figures to see time in the frontcourt.

Three sophomores are part of the mix, too, although it is uncertain if Camden Brown will play at any point this season after suffering a knee injury playing football. Ralph Wires, who saw significant minutes late last season, will be part of the backcourt rotation, and Tyler Sprick is going to be a shooter off the bench.

“For us, it’s about relying on guys who do have experience,” Douglas said. “If you’re not going to have a team full of guys who have played, it’s good to have a guy who has been here now four seasons.”

Talton needs to provide guidance for everyone.

“When I came up as a freshman, I had Jirehl (Brock) and (Jaeden Smith), who were great leaders for me, welcomed me to the program and taught me the way to do things,” said Talton, the only senior in the starting lineup. “I’m just trying to do that this year for the younger guys.”

Even the older players see it.

“He knows how (Coach Douglas) wants it run and what to expect from Blue Devil basketball,” O’Brien said. “He’s helping everyone come along.”

Talton led the Western Big 6 Conference in scoring last season at 17.8 points per game and averaged 17.5 points overall, earning all-state special mention from the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association. He also averaged  6.4 rebounds per game, while shooting 63.3 percent from the field inside the 3-point stripe and 78.2 percent from the free-throw line.

He’s picked up an NCAA Division I scholarship offer from Western Illinois University and made several other mid-major visits over the summer. All the while, he worked to improve and extend his game knowing all eyes will be on him.

“I worked really hard during the offseason just so I could live up to those expectations,” Talton said. “I don’t want people to see me and say, ‘Oh, he got worse.’ I want them to see something different every year, see some growth. So that’s what I’m trying to do.”

Cartmill played in all 15 games last winter, averaging 4.3 points to go with 32 assists. He also committed 39 turnovers, a number that needs to decrease as he takes on additional responsibilities running the point.

O’Brien played in 13 games as a sophomore for Troy Triad, a Class 3A school that went 9-4 last winter. He averaged 7.6 points, made a team-leading 15 3-pointers and had 47 assists against 26 turnovers. He also had a team-high 15 steals.

“Reid is a basketball mind, and that helps more than anything in the world,” Douglas said. “He’s a guy who can immediately step in to some situations and be able to explain things on a high school athlete’s level. When he’s out on the floor, he might not be the best athlete, but he’s probably going to be the smartest kid. He studies the game.

“He’s that basketball mind every team needs.”

It’s especially vital when the remainder of the roster has 35 total varsity points among them.

“We’re just leading them and making sure everybody is on the same page,” Cartmill said.

If they are, the memories of last winter will be gone with a turn of the page.

“We’re working on being more fluid with our offense and just being a better team overall,” Talton said. “We’re working on it day to day.”