Gaffney High senior guard Josh Corry will lead the Indians into their season opener Friday at home against Union. Corry is one of five returning players from last year's team which advanced to the Class 4A state championship game. The Gaffney High boys’ basketball team has relied on its quickness and full court defensive pressure to develop into one of the top Class 4A programs in the state.

Gaffney advanced to the state championship game last season, falling 63-58 to Goose Creek. This year’s team returns five players, including Class 4A player of the year senior guard Josh Corry.

Gaffney will face an early challenge in its season opener tonight at 7:30 p.m. in a home game against Union.

Union graduated star center Devin Booker, who is now playing for Clemson.

The Yellow Jackets still have size inside and have shown the same preference for full court defensive pressure that has been a hallmark for Huff’s teams at Gaffney.

“Union is very athletic,” Huff said. “They like to run full court pressure and shoot a lot of three pointers.”

Gaffney will counter with a deep rotation which will run 10 players into the game to create defensive pressure and turnovers. The Indians return post players Chase Smith and Bo Wray inside to complement the outside shooting ability of Corry.

Corry, a Wofford commitment, was selected one of the Elite 5 players in the state recently at its annual preseason banquet at Seawell’s Banquet Center in Columbia.

Huff will have the rare luxury of starting the season with his regular basketball team.

Gaffney has often found itself missing several players due to football commitments when the football team has gone deep into the playoffs in championship seasons. This factor would not have changed Huff’s outlook for this year’s basketball season.

“I feel we’ll be similar to last year’s team. We’ll rely on our quickness and play uptempo with full court pressure,” Huff said. “We need to execute well on offense and defensively. We can’t have a bunch of turnovers and have to shoot the ball well.”

Huff expects his team will play with great intensity and a hunger to finish the 2009- 2010 season with the ultimate goal of a state championship still in sight.

The climb towards a shot at the state title starts with tonight’s game against Union.

“The kids will play hard, and if we do that I feel good about our chances,” Huff said.