On Norwich’s Section IV championship basketball team a year ago, seniors Grant Brightman and Danny Carson were the consummate role players off of the bench. Neither player averaged two points a game, but they each supplied consistent effort whenever called upon. More often than not, in big moments, they were leading the cheers from the sideline.

Head coach Tom Collier knew what to expect out of Brightman and Carson coming into this year, but he’s getting more than he possibly imagined. Not known for their scoring, Brightman and Carson both are averaging nearly 10 points a game through nine games. More than that, on a team that has been riddled by injury and illness, they are the only two players among the top six in the lineup to have played in every game.

“They’ve really been the calm in the storm,” Collier said of his two senior captains. “Last year we were pretty clean (with injuries and sickness), but everything has hit us this year.”

From the outset, Carson was cast as the defensive stopper of the opponent’s point guard. He is picking up over two steals a game, and has about that many deflections per contest. He continually harasses opponents into poor decisions with the basketball, and helps set up the rest of the Tornado defense. “To me, Danny is the best defensive guard in the league,” Collier said. “He has always had that ability to make things happen, and it seems like every time down the court, he’s getting a hand on the ball. He’s always scrapping, and he takes the opposing guard out of his comfort zone.”