The Brentwood boys basketball team lost almost 40 points per game to graduation from the 2024-25 scoring column.

Two of the seniors on last year’s team, Forrest Betz and Colton Rosing, tossed in 21 ppg and 18 ppg for the Spartans.

“We lost a lot of scoring from last year’s team,” coach Dan Thayer said. “We have added Deng Mu, who will give us the inside presence we haven’t had for a couple of seasons. We are not returning many starters, but we will have some depth and believe that role players from last year will emerge to lead us.

“After last year, we thought this season would be a rebuilding year. However, we had a great offseason with a great deal of player development. We have also benefited from a strong freshman class and a transfer. All of this has really changed our expectations for the season. We feel like we could be a difficult matchup for teams and will hopefully be in the mix for a playoff berth.”

Orland Johnson, a 6-foot junior forward, is a returning starter for the Spartans and is joined in a starting role by Mu, a 6-8 senior forward, and X’havier Nunez, a 5-10 junior guard.

Mu transferred from Trenton, N.J., where he lived for a brief time.

“Before going to New Jersey, Deng was in Africa,” Thayer said. “Deng’s sister, Athing Mu, won two gold medals (in track and field) in the Tokyo Olympics.

“We are real excited to see Deng play. He is raw but improves every day.”

Other integral players at Brentwood include 6-1 junior guard/forward Mike Satler, 5-10 senior forward Wyatt Wooten and 5-9 freshman guard Griffin Betz.

Brentwood advanced to the WPIAL playoffs last season and split decisions in two games, defeating West Greene, 59-49, in the preliminary round and losing to eventual champion Jeannette, 91-42, in the first round.

“We have been trying to improve our shooting on offense,” Thayer said. “We feel if we can be more efficient shooting the ball this season, we can open the floor up. Last season, we weren’t a very strong defensive team. We are working hard to fix that. We are trying to create a more physical and hard-nosed team.

“Lastly, we had a lot of trouble rebounding last season. Even with our team having a lot of success, we were getting outrebounded by large margins. We have added a lot of size and have been working to get our entire team to better rebounders.”

Brentwood’s veteran coach said Sewickley Academy, Winchester Thurston and Eden Christian Academy should be considered the early frontrunners in Section 2-2A.

Sewickley Academy rolled through the section with a 12-0 record last year and finished as the PIAA runner-up.

The Panthers were followed in 2-2A by Northgate (10-2), Winchester Thurston (8-4), Brentwood (5-7), Eden Christian (5-7), Leechburg (2-10) and Propel Braddock Hills (0-12).