Pleasant Home boys basketball coach Jerry Davis said Thursday that team experience heading into this season is the only thing that matters.

“”We’re facing a lot of new things with an inexperienced bunch,” Davis said. “You say you’ve got four seniors back — two of them have played all four years. They’ve got to step in and fill shoes now. Experience has everything to do it.”

Davis is starting his seventh year as the boys coach, and the Eagles are coming off a 17-10 2009-2010 season, where Pleasant Home made it as far as the area tournament.

PHS is made up of four seniors, six juniors and one sophomore this season, and returns to players that make up the starters for the Eagles.

The returning starters are seniors Cory Sims and Colter Poole. The other two seniors are Sid Newby and Justin Holt.

“Both of them have improved quite a bit,” Davis said about Newby and Holt. “They’ll be pushing for a starting spot, or will be in the top seven. So far, in these last four days, they’ve stepped up.”

Pleasant Home will begin its season Fri., Nov. 19 on the road against Class 4A W.S. Neal in East Brewton. Then, the Eagles will travel to Dothan Nov. 22-24 to make their first appearance in the Houston Academy tournament.

“That’s going to be a good indicator of how we handle that type of environment,” Davis said of the Houston Academy tournament.

After Thanksgiving, Pleasant Home will cap off November by traveling to Straughn on Tues., Nov. 30.

The Eagles’ first home game of the season will be against Class 4A’s Andalusia on Dec. 2.

This season, Pleasant Home will compete in Class 1A, Area 2 with rival Florala, Geneva County and Kinston.

Davis said he believes the boys will be “competitive” when area play starts up in January.

“I think in our league we’re going to be competitive, but at what point in time?” he said. “The people in our league are pretty good, too. I feel like Kinston’s way ahead of the game than everybody.

“You’ve got Florala with everybody back,” he said. “They’re going to stick five to six kids out there that stayed on the floor all year last year. Their record didn’t show it, but they were competitive and playing good people.”

Between the Dec. 2 game against Andalusia and the start of area play, the Eagles will be competing in the Straughn Boys tournament at SHS, and the Alabama-Florida Shootout at PHS.

“The Straughn tournament is loaded,” Davis said. “On paper, we’re probably the weakest team in the tournament, but don’t get me wrong — I’m not saying we can’t walk out of here and play.

“We’re happy that the football kids had the experience playing in the playoffs, and hopefully that’ll carry over to the basketball season,” he said. “I’d love for us to be highly successful because that can be brought into this.”