’Dawgs Try To Reload
Frye, Cook Bring Act To Hardwood
Posted: December 13, 2012
HARRISONBURG – If you’ve seen the Walmart commercials of two guys engaging in competitive banter over the latest “Call of Duty” video game for Xbox, then you’ve basically caught a glimpse into the relationship between Malcolm Frye and Braden Cook.
The Luray High School basketball players began bickering online over headsets about two years ago, beginning with “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.”
Now, they’re going to battle together on the hardwood for the first time as varsity starters for the Bulldogs, a team once again tasked with replacing a talented graduating class in order to remain a top contender in the Shenandoah District.
Best friends since middle school, Frye and Cook don’t reserve their competitive smack talk for virtual reality.
“We’ll mess around and joke around,” said Frye, a star receiver in football for Luray who caught three touchdown passes in one game against Buffalo Gap from Cook, the starting quarterback.
“We always joke around and pick on each other in how we can improve in our sports,” added Cook, who pointed out that Frye isn’t a refined ball handler. “… He can’t really come back with me much.”
Frye would probably have something to say about that. But on the court, the guard-forward pair has been a pleasant surprise for LHS coach Jim Sanders, who used both primarily as substitutes off the bench last season.
The Bulldogs (3-2 overall, 1-0 in the district) graduated several key pieces from last season’s 22-6 team that reached the Division 1 state quarterfinals, including Shenandoah District Player of the Year Monty Dickson, a stellar shooter and point guard.
“After losing Howard [Harsher] and Jacob [Griffith] and Andrew [Ponn] from last year, I knew I’d have to step my game up,” Frye said of Luray’s former trio of forwards.
Adding a jump shot to his repertoire this offseason, Frye – who will spend part of his 17th birthday today practicing for Friday’s game at East Rockingham – is no longer just relying on his rebounding prowess and ability to score on putbacks.
“This year was the first time I made a jump shot in a game in my career,” Frye said.
The 6-foot-1, 165-pound forward leads the team in steals (about 4 per game), rebounding (about 8 per game) and is neck-and-neck with Cook for the scoring lead, too, averaging about 15 points through five games.
Luray has seemed to make a living out of transforming backups into talented starters in recent years. Sanders said the Bulldogs’ success over the last few years has been a direct result of having “players who really get along.”
The small-town atmosphere at the Group A school, he said, has lent itself to having more of those kinds of players, with Cook and Frye being prime examples.
“Braden is white. Malcolm is black. And they call each other ’cuz,’” Sanders said.
The shared nickname came about in middle school when Cook and Frye began a rumor among their peers that they were related as cousins. Many of their fellow students bought it – and some still believe it, they said – perhaps based on their athletic ability.
“Braden is probably the best athlete in our senior class [at LHS],” Sanders said. “And I think Terius [Grandison] and Malcolm are the two best athletes in the junior class. We’ve been very fortunate.”
But the Bulldogs still have plenty of work to do.
A young group overall in terms of varsity experience, Luray (0-2 on the road) is still settling into new roles and learning the nuances of the game. For Frye, that has meant picking up his head while dribbling and improving overall court awareness while becoming a more versatile scorer.
“He’s definitely improved,” Grandison said of Frye. “He’s definitely upped his game to a whole new level.”
“He’s really confident,” said Cook, who admitted Frye’s probably faster than him while Cook is probably the team’s top shooter. “Like last year, he wasn’t really sure he could play. We all knew he could play. He’s really athletic and [strong] on the boards.”
As Sanders put it, Frye and Cook are both no longer “second options.” They are on the front lines, together. And if the tandem works together as well as they did on the football field, Luray could once again be a force in the Shenandoah.
“I think it’s carried over on the court and everything,” Grandison said of the former QB-WR duo’s chemistry. “I think it’s just building even more.”
The Luray High School basketball players began bickering online over headsets about two years ago, beginning with “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.”
Now, they’re going to battle together on the hardwood for the first time as varsity starters for the Bulldogs, a team once again tasked with replacing a talented graduating class in order to remain a top contender in the Shenandoah District.
Best friends since middle school, Frye and Cook don’t reserve their competitive smack talk for virtual reality.
“We’ll mess around and joke around,” said Frye, a star receiver in football for Luray who caught three touchdown passes in one game against Buffalo Gap from Cook, the starting quarterback.
“We always joke around and pick on each other in how we can improve in our sports,” added Cook, who pointed out that Frye isn’t a refined ball handler. “… He can’t really come back with me much.”
Frye would probably have something to say about that. But on the court, the guard-forward pair has been a pleasant surprise for LHS coach Jim Sanders, who used both primarily as substitutes off the bench last season.
The Bulldogs (3-2 overall, 1-0 in the district) graduated several key pieces from last season’s 22-6 team that reached the Division 1 state quarterfinals, including Shenandoah District Player of the Year Monty Dickson, a stellar shooter and point guard.
“After losing Howard [Harsher] and Jacob [Griffith] and Andrew [Ponn] from last year, I knew I’d have to step my game up,” Frye said of Luray’s former trio of forwards.
Adding a jump shot to his repertoire this offseason, Frye – who will spend part of his 17th birthday today practicing for Friday’s game at East Rockingham – is no longer just relying on his rebounding prowess and ability to score on putbacks.
“This year was the first time I made a jump shot in a game in my career,” Frye said.
The 6-foot-1, 165-pound forward leads the team in steals (about 4 per game), rebounding (about 8 per game) and is neck-and-neck with Cook for the scoring lead, too, averaging about 15 points through five games.
Luray has seemed to make a living out of transforming backups into talented starters in recent years. Sanders said the Bulldogs’ success over the last few years has been a direct result of having “players who really get along.”
The small-town atmosphere at the Group A school, he said, has lent itself to having more of those kinds of players, with Cook and Frye being prime examples.
“Braden is white. Malcolm is black. And they call each other ’cuz,’” Sanders said.
The shared nickname came about in middle school when Cook and Frye began a rumor among their peers that they were related as cousins. Many of their fellow students bought it – and some still believe it, they said – perhaps based on their athletic ability.
“Braden is probably the best athlete in our senior class [at LHS],” Sanders said. “And I think Terius [Grandison] and Malcolm are the two best athletes in the junior class. We’ve been very fortunate.”
But the Bulldogs still have plenty of work to do.
A young group overall in terms of varsity experience, Luray (0-2 on the road) is still settling into new roles and learning the nuances of the game. For Frye, that has meant picking up his head while dribbling and improving overall court awareness while becoming a more versatile scorer.
“He’s definitely improved,” Grandison said of Frye. “He’s definitely upped his game to a whole new level.”
“He’s really confident,” said Cook, who admitted Frye’s probably faster than him while Cook is probably the team’s top shooter. “Like last year, he wasn’t really sure he could play. We all knew he could play. He’s really athletic and [strong] on the boards.”
As Sanders put it, Frye and Cook are both no longer “second options.” They are on the front lines, together. And if the tandem works together as well as they did on the football field, Luray could once again be a force in the Shenandoah.
“I think it’s carried over on the court and everything,” Grandison said of the former QB-WR duo’s chemistry. “I think it’s just building even more.”