Chiles boys basketball finding success under familiar, first-year head coach

There hasn't been a lot of consistency for the Chiles boys' basketball's senior class.

Their freshman season was just able to finish before the COVID-19 pandemic shut everything down. Returning to the court as sophomores, they had an abbreviated season, playing in fewer games than usual. While 2022 brought back a sense of normalcy, the Timberwolves saw the departure of then-head coach Larry Auguste, who was at the helm of the program for only one season.

Preparing for its third head coach in four seasons this October, the Timberwolves didn't have to prepare for another drastic change. In fact, it's one they've been pushing for years.

Starting up at Chiles as an assistant coach while he was studying at Florida State four years ago, Eli Phillps has been the closest thing to consistency this senior class has had. After getting passed up for the head coaching job the first time last season, the Chiles administration gave the now 24-year-old a chance at leading the program.

"He deserved it and obviously we wanted it," Chiles senior Jake Easterling said. "The administrators thought he was a little young at first, but he's proven that he's mature enough and he knows what he's doing."

With someone, they've known and have been rooting to lead them for so long, Chiles has jumped out to an 11-8 record on the season, most recently topping Leon, 56-53 on Friday. It's the best record the Timberwolves have had since going 17-12 in the 2019-20 season.

"It's meant everything," Phillips said. "This whole senior class has been through a lot. COVID hit them sophomore year and had their freshman year taken away from them toward the end. My seniors have been through a lot of adversity, going 7-19 last year and taking a lot of punches to the face. I've been with them through all of it and they've been with me as well."

Winning equation

Mentality has been the biggest change for Chiles this season, which has allowed them to excel in the win column. Even in the tight matchup against Leon, that came down the final shot, the Timberwolves were able to maintain composure from start to finish.

Impressively, junior Davis Mcneely, who had only five points in the game before the fourth quarter shot 9-12 from the line, making up half of Chiles' fourth-quarter points. The Timberwolves' last four wins have been decided by 10 points or less, notable knocking off Lincoln last week, 65-62, for Chiles' first win over the Trojans since 2019.

"Confidence is a huge thing, but the fact that we're playing together has helped us," Phillips said. "A lot of these kids sometimes forget that because they want to post their own highlights and stats, but the key is to win as a team. That's the main thing I've preaching been preaching, and we're starting to execute more and more."

Phillips echoing the sentiment of confidence has been infectious up and down the Chiles bench. Players have bought into what he's been preaching because they've known him for so long and know that he believes in them. That shared confidence is fully on display after every big Chiles play when Phillips can be seen celebrating just as exuberantly as his players.

"We trust our coach," Easterling said. "We've known him all throughout our high school careers, and we wanted him to be coach much sooner, but we're glad he's here now. We have that confidence in our coach and we're glad that he has that confidence in us. It makes a difference."

In a competitive LCS league this season, the winning formula of "confidence" has been even more important. Of the five public high schools in Leon County, three are boasting head coaches in their first season (Leon, Chiles, and Lincoln), Godby's Andonte Gennie is in his second year and Rickards Eli Bryant remains the veteran in his 18th season.

The younger coaching scene has opened up the competition between the five LCS programs, all hovering near .500. Chiles owns the best record at 11-8, followed by Lincoln (11-9), Rickards (10-9), Godby (9-10) and Leon (6-11). It's a new look for the group, giving new teams, new opportunities.

"Almost every public school has beaten everybody or almost beaten everybody. It's a new era, man," Phillips said. "I say that as a 24-year-old head basketball coach in Tallahassee. I grew up here and it's been the same old guys running the public schools, but we're here to stay."

New blood

Class 6A District 2 stands as one of the more competitive ones in the region. Gainesville has quickly jumped out as a favorite to not only win the district but the region. However, Chiles continues to edge out Lincoln for the No. 2 spot in the district tournament.

With two weeks left before playoffs, and taking on some of the hotter teams in the area, the Timberwolves are treating every game as a must-win and keeping their foot on the gas no matter who the opponent is.

"We want to keep that same intensity. Every game is a rivalry game," Easterling said. "Every game is win or go home. If we play smart and play hard, we can beat anybody."

Chiles (11-8): 14, 13, 11, 18 - 56

Leon (6-11): 13, 6, 17, 17 - 53

Chiles: Easterling 6 1-1 17, McNeely 2 9-12 14, Bundrage 5 0-0 13, Quiggins 3 1-2 9, Wilson 0 2-2 2, Campbell 0 1-2 1. Totals 16 14-19 56.

Leon: Herring 5 4-6 16, Brown, 4 1-5 9, Culpepper 2 3-5 8, Harrell 1 3-6 5, Ritter 2 1-2 5, Hewett 1 1-2 4, Hall 1 1-2 4, Shabazz 1 0-0 2. Totals 17 14-22 53.

3-pointers: Chiles 10 (Easterling 4, Bundrage 3, Quiggins 2, McNeely 1). Leon 5 (Herring 2, Culpepper 1, Hewett 1, Hall 1).

Jack Williams covers prep sports for Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at jwilliams@tallahassee.com or on Twitter @jackgwilliams. 

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Chiles boys basketball finding success under familiar, first-year head coach