When you graduate four of five starters off the previous year’s roster, there’s always some uncertainty as to how the next team will fare.

A coach can feel good about the talent he or she has, but until those players prove themselves in their expanded roles, all projections are merely best guesses.

Such was the case this year for Stephenville girls basketball coach Alan Thorpe, who returned just four lettermen from last year’s 19-14 squad. So even he’s a bit surprised to see his Honeybees sitting at 20-6 with a top-10 ranking in Class 4A on Jan. 18.