Donny Johnston, Cayden Lucas and the rest of the Pinelands Regional boys basketball team’s players don’t seem to mind working hard. In fact, they’ve realized the benefit of practicing how they intend to play.

“When we’re at practice, everybody gets equal reps and works hard, so when we come out for games we’re not flat-footed and (are) ready to go,” Lucas said after the Wildcats took a 30-12 lead into halftime and went on to beat Manchester, 56-40, on Feb. 3.