If the boys basketball team at Troy High decided to call themselves the Underdogs instead of the Flying Horses, no one would complain. They've admitted as much.

But senior forward Dan McLaren (pictured above) has the Flying Horses thinking big, even though they only won six games last season.

"We’re coming into the season kind of as an underdog and no one really expects anything from us," McLaren said. "We’re just trying to do as much as we can. I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people this year. We have a tight-knit group of guys. There aren’t any big names, but we’re all close."

Troy (0-1, 0-3) hosts Big 10 rival Schenectady in the Flying Horses’ home opener on Tuesday. Tip-Off is slated for 7:30 p.m.

McLaren is planning on majoring in pre-med in college and he also wants to play basketball at the next level. He's not sure where he is headed yet, but expect him to become an even better player as he ages.

"His best basketball is ahead of him," said Troy head coach Jeff Sitterly. "Last year with the wrist injury, he played, but he wasn’t healthy. He wasn’t able to do a lot of the things he wanted to do. At the college level, I think his best basketball is ahead of him. I think he’s going to develop down the road into a pretty good player."

They beat Shen in an opening round Sectional game last year - so the players know anything is possible, even in a jam-packed Big 10, as long as they keep their heads down and work hard.

"We know we have the Maginns and the CBAs," McLaren said. "We’re just going to need to play our hardest every game just to be in the game. I know our coaches are expecting a lot from us this year. Everyone from around the Capital Region isn’t expecting much from us but we know what we can do. I think we can go out on any given night and surprise someone."

Troy senior forward Dan McLaren looks to make a pass during practice in the main gym at Troy High School on Monday. (Photos by JS Carras - The Record).

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(Until I find a better way to format the standings, this will have to do)

2008-2009 BOYS BASKETBALL STANDINGS

League Overall
W L W L
Big 10
Albany 1 0 2 2
Bishop Maginn 1 0 1 0
CBA 1 0 1 0
La Salle 1 0 2 1
Amsterdam 0 0 1 1
Bishop Gibbons 0 1 2 1
CCHS 0 1 1 3
Schenectady 0 1 2 1
Troy 0 1 0 3

Suburban Council
North Division
Saratoga 1 0 2 1
Shenendehowa 1 0 3 0
Burnt Hills 0 0 0 0
Niskayuna 0 0 1 1
Ballston Spa 0 1 1 1
Shaker 0 1 1 2
South Division
Colonie 1 0 2 0
Guilderland 1 0 2 0
Mohonasen 1 0 1 1
Averill Park 0 1 0 3
Bethlehem 0 1 0 3
Columbia 0 1 2 1

Colonial Council
Voorheesville 2 0 3 0
Watervliet 1 0 1 2
Cohoes 1 1 1 2
Mechanicville 1 1 1 3
Lansingburgh 0 0 2 1
Cobleskill 0 1 0 2
Ravena 0 1 0 1
Schalmont 0 1 0 3

Wasaren League
Cambridge 0 0 0 1
Granville 0 0 3 0
Greenwich 0 0 3 1
Hoosick Falls 0 0 2 0
Hoosic Valley 0 0 3 0
Schuylerville 0 0 0 2
Stillwater 0 0 1 1
Tamarac 0 0 3 0

Patroon Conference
Ichabod Crane 2 0 2 1
Cairo-Durham 1 0 3 0
Catskill 1 0 2 1
Maple Hill 1 0 3 0
Chatham 1 1 1 1
Hudson 1 1 1 1
Rensselaer 1 1 2 2
Coxsackie 0 1 0 3
Greenville 0 2 0 2
Taconic Hills 0 2 0 2

CHVL
Germantown 2 0 2 0
Waterford 2 0 2 0
Berlin 1 0 1 1
Doane Stuart 1 1 1 1
Heatly 1 1 2 2
New Lebanon 1 1 1 1
Loudonville Christian 0 1 0 4
Berkshire 0 2 0 3
Hawthorne Valley 0 2 0 2

Independent
Albany Academy 0 0 5 0

Large Schools
1 Bishop Maginn – The Griffins are defending state champions and they remain the team to beat until someone knocks them off. They play cross-city rival Albany tonight at the Washington Avenue Armory.
2 Albany Academy – The Cadets have crushed every opponent in their path so far this season, winning their first five games by an average margin of 29.6 points. Four of those victories came over Class AA opposition and the other was against top former Colonial Council rival Lansingburgh.
3 Shenendehowa – The Plainsmen own victories over Nazareth of Brooklyn, Schenectady and Ballston Spa and find themselves sitting pretty on top of the Suburban Council’s North Division.
4 Saratoga Springs – Jordan Stevens is averaging 23 points per game and the Holy Cross-bound senior forward has the Blue Streaks poised for a big year in the Suburban Council.
5 Lansingburgh – Put aside their loss to Albany Academy and the Knights have been impressive so far. They defeated Gloversville and Mohonasen in the Averill Park Tournament – good preparation for their Colonial Council schedule.

Small Schools
1 Tamarac – The Bengals captured the Watervliet Tip-Off Tournament title and defeated New Hartford on Sunday at the Glens Falls Civic Center in a Coaches vs. Cancer event. This senior-laden team is hoping for more games in Glens Falls in February and March.
2 Voorheesville – The Blackbirds are tops in the Colonial Council at this early juncture, led by Ethan Mackey, who is averaging just over 19 points per game.
3 Maple Hill – The Wildcats are off to a quick 3-0 start thanks to sharpshooting guard Trent Tibbits, who has knocked down six three-point shots so far.
4 Waterford – The Fordians are adapting well to new head coach Jon Desso, who won his first two games at the helm. Forwards Jeff Yattaw and Mike Hilton are Waterford’s rebounding machines.
5 Cohoes – The Tigers dropped a close Colonial Council game to Voorheesville on Friday and they try to get back on track when they host Schalmont tonight.

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2008-09 Girls Basketball Standings

League Overall
W L W L
Big 10
Bishop Maginn 1 0 1 2
Albany 0 0 1 1
Amsterdam 0 0 1 1
Bishop Gibbons 0 0 0 3
Schenectady 0 0 4 0
Troy 0 0 2 1
CCHS 0 1 0 3

Suburban Council
North Division
Niskayuna 2 0 3 0
Shaker 1 0 1 0
Shenendehowa 1 0 1 2
Ballston Spa 0 1 1 2
Burnt Hills 0 1 1 2
Saratoga Springs 0 2 1 3
South Division
Averill Park 1 0 3 0
Bethlehem 1 0 3 0
Mohonasen 1 0 2 0
Colonie 0 1 0 1
Columbia 0 1 1 2
Guilderland 0 1 2 1

Colonial Council
Holy Names 2 0 2 0
Voorheesville 2 0 2 0
Watervliet 1 0 3 0
Cohoes 1 1 2 2
Mechanicville 1 1 3 1
Lansingburgh 0 0 1 2
Ravena 0 1 0 1
Cobleskill 0 2 1 2
Schalmont 0 2 0 2

Wasaren League
Cambridge 0 0 1 0
Granville 0 0 4 0
Greenwich 0 0 2 0
Hoosic Valley 0 0 2 0
Hoosick Falls 0 0 1 1
Schuylerville 0 0 1 1
Stillwater 0 0 2 0
Tamarac 0 0 1 0


Patroon Conference
Catskill 2 0 3 1
Greenville 2 0 2 0
Maple Hill 2 0 4 0
Taconic Hills 1 0 1 0
Hudson 0 0 0 0
Chatham 0 1 0 1
Cairo- Durham 0 2 1 3
Coxsackie 0 2 2 2
Rensselaer 0 2 0 3


CHVL
Blue Division
Emma Willard 2 0 2 1
Albany Academy 0 0 0 1
New Lebanon 0 1 0 1
Doane Stuart 0 2 0 2
Loudonville Christian 0 2 0 3
Green Division
Berlin 2 0 2 0
Heatly 2 1 2 3
Germantown 1 0 1 0
Waterford 1 1 1 1
Hawthorne Valley 0 1 0 1

Independent
Ichabod Crane 0 0 2 3


Large Schools
1 Averill Park (1-0, 3-0) – The Lady Warriors won their season-opening Tip-Off Tournament behind MVP Katie Duma, who scored 36 points over the two-day event. Averill Park meets Columbia, who they played on Saturday, tonight in a Suburban Council game.
2 Bethlehem (1-0, 3-0) – The Eagles are off to a great start, thanks to forward Alex McCullough and guard Meg Olsen. They’ll get a tough test from Mohonasen tonight, as the Lady Warriors were Section II Class A finalists last season.
3 Schenectady (0-0, 4-0) – Shelia Dixon led the Patriots to victory in the Burnt Hills Tournament last week and they start their Big 10 schedule when they host Troy High tonight.
4 Niskayuna (2-0, 3-0) – The Silver Warriors already have a pair of Suburban Council victories over Burnt Hills and Saratoga Springs. Emily Bayly has scored in double digits in each of Niskayuna’s three games.
5 Holy Names (2-0, 2-0) – Kierra Moore and Hannah Wilson have vaulted Holy Names to the top of the Colonial Council, but they have a tough stretch coming up this week. Holy Names hosts Mechanicville tonight and travels to Voorheesville on Friday.


Small Schools
1 Hoosic Valley (0-0, 2-0) – The Lady Indians kick off their Wasaren League title defense on Friday in Schuylerville. They’ev allowed an uncharacteristic 37 points per game in their first two victories.
2 Maple Hill (2-0, 4-0) – The Wildcats claimed a big victory over Cohoes in the Tigers’ season-opening tournament and they appear ready to defend their Patroon Conference and Section II Class C titles. Sophomore center Katie Roth has been unstoppable on the boards so far.
3 Watervliet (1-0, 3-0) – A season after losing eight of their ten players to graduation, the Cannoneers are picking up where they left off, having won their first three games. Point guard Tierney McGlynn, the only returning starter, has done a great job setting up Jen Gates and Ailaya Diamond.
4 Emma Willard (2-0, 2-1) – Sarah Hutcherson nearly missed a quadruple-double with a 14 rebounds, 10 points, seven assists and seven steals performance against Heatly on Monday night.
5 Cohoes (1-1, 2-2) – The Tigers lost a close game to Maple Hill in the championship game of their own tournament and they have a chance to come back strong in the Colonial Council this week with games against Schalmont and Lansingburgh.