A year ago, Salisbury boys basketball players were just trying to get to know each other on the court.

All five starters from the previous season had graduated and the guys taking over had little varsity experience with each other. The result was some tough times and a 5-17 record at the end of the year.

This season, the team has a couple more new starters with the graduation of starters Josiah Day and Luke Graver, along with Zeven Adamcik. The good news is that the top three scorers from last season all return this season.

Jake Zellin (8.3 points per game), Thomas Lovelidge (7.9 PPG), and Jack Foley (5.2 PPG) are all back and are going into their senior seasons. Fellow seniors Andrew Grejda (4.5 PPG), Brady Leiner (4.5 PPG), Jairo Suarez (3.4 PPG), and Marcus Thomas (1.1 PPG) give the Falcons a number of varsity players who have had some success on the court and are hungry for wins in their final high school season.

With Day out of the line up for most of last season, the team often started just one senior.

Coach Jason Weaver had his team working together over the summer and the team got off to a nice start with a 44-42 win over Oley Valley in the season opener. Foley and sophomore Drew Petrie both scored 11 points to lead Salisbury to the win. Both players hit two three-pointers in the game. Grejda, Leiner, and another sophomore, Steven Lozada all hit one from outside the arc.

If Petrie and Lozada continue their play offensively, it will give Salisbury’s offense a big boost as the Falcons look to replace some of the scoring they lost to graduation. Lozada came off the bench last season to play in 19 games and averaged just under three points per game.

Salisbury plays its first league game against Catasauqua before playing its first home game Thursday night against Kutztown in a nonleague contest.