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The Westwood Rockets have had a stellar season this year going undefeated at home and winning the DRVC Tournament.

Leading the charge for the Rockets was eighth grader Mason Troxler, who almost always seems to have double digits by his name on a scoresheet after each basketball game.

But where did it all start for Mason? What is his favorite memory from playing basketball at Westwood? What does he plan on doing beyond his high school years? All of these questions and more were answered as I sat down and talked with Mason Troxler.

For a player of Mason’s caliber, you would have thought that he had started playing much earlier in his life, but he actually only started playing a couple of years ago.

“I was in sixth grade when some of my friends, Zeke and Zane (Jones), Brady (Christian) and Caleb (Hill) convinced me to try out,” said Mason. “Besides my teammates, I think the biggest influence in introducing me to basketball was Coach Gannon, because she took me in when I knew nothing about basketball.“

Troxler would go on to make the varsity team at Westwood in his sixth grade year, proving how much of a quick learner he was, but today, Mason is still working on improving his game.

“I don’t like playing lower competition,” he said. “I can’t get better if I’m playing lower competition. I love playing every minute and I love getting better at the game of basketball.”

Mason works on improving his game almost every day, leaving time for little else other than his family and school.

“I don’t do much else other than play basketball,” he said. “If I’m not at practice, I’m usually at the Rec Center, so basketball is what I consider to be my main hobby because I’m working on it every day. My little brother is also getting into basketball so I’m helping him out as well.”

Even when Westwood’s season is over, Troxler continues to dedicate himself to getting better at the game, playing in travel leagues, which can be a bit different then playing school basketball.

“When playing with Westwood, you have a set time and day that you play a game,” said Troxler. “With travel ball, there’s like three games a day, and if you win enough, you go and play two more games the next day, so I feel like travel ball is more about conditioning and getting your body ready for the school basketball season.”

Maybe it’s this type of dedication to the game that has fueled the Westwood Rockets to the stellar season they have had, however a great lead actor is nothing without a good supporting cast.

The Westwood Rockets featured not only Troxler, but also the likes of fellow eighth graders Zeke Jones, Brady Christian, Caleb Hill, Kaden Ingle and Bridger Gray just to name a few of the players that made up Westwood’s roster.

A great lead, a good supporting cast and an excellent director in Rockets Head Coach Anita Gannon has led to a Hollywood type of season for this team who continually performed at a high level.

“It’s great,” said Troxler. “Before a game, we’re all chatting it up about what our game plan is and then we go out there and perform and most of the time, get the win.”

The Rockets have done a lot of winning this year, closing out the regular season with a stellar 20-2 record, which includes an 8-0 record at their home stomping grounds of Joel Vinson Gymnasium, a 16 game winning streak to close out the year and the DRVC Regular Season and Tournament Championships.

However, Troxler’s favorite memory of playing for Westwood came at the beginning of the season in their first game against Cannon County.

In the game, Westwood fell behind to the Lions but came back in the fourth quarter to send the game into overtime, where the Rockets won, 72-71.

In that game, Troxler scored 39 points, including 20 points in the fourth quarter and seven points in overtime.

“I feel like that first game against Cannon really set the tone for this year and pushed everybody to be better,” he said.

Mason Troxler’s season also included winning DRVC All-Conference and All-Tournament Awards and being named Winterfest King on Homecoming Night back in November.

With his eighth grade year almost over, Mason Troxler will be starting high school next fall and looking towards the future.

“I’m looking forward to meeting new people, learning new subjects and playing high school basketball. From what I’ve heard, Coach Taylor is an awesome coach and I’m looking forward to playing for him.”

Beyond high school, Mason believes that he will continue his playing career, but he has other options lined up for himself.

“I plan on playing basketball as long as I can. I love the game, and I don’t think I’ll ever stop loving the game. I hope to play college basketball, but I’m also good at math so I wouldn’t mind being an electrical engineer if basketball doesn’t end up working out.”

Mason Troxler is, undoubtedly, one of the most talented individuals in the area playing basketball and it will be interesting to see how his future endeavors pan out on the basketball court and beyond.

However, the Westwood Rockets are not completely finished with their season just yet, as they set their eyes on the Middle School State Tournament which should take place in January.