The following article is also featured on the Northwestern Montana A Conference website < www.nwmta.ihigh.com > operated by Terry Werner. Area basketball fans may also wish to consult the Lake County Leader and Valley Journal issues for 9 December 2010 for additional preview information in printed format.
2010-11 Preseason Boys Basketball Preview:
Northwestern A Ronan Chiefs
by John Heglie
Last season the Ronan Chiefs (2-6 conference, 9-14 overall) tied for fourth place with Whitefish at the end of the regular schedule in light of their identical conference records, but were relegated to the bottom rung of the standings on the basis of point differential from head-to-head encounters. While their record may not have been the kind of report card one takes home to show off and brag too much about in front of one‘s relatives, the qualification needs to be made that two of their conference opponents were state ranked teams a majority of the season. Had the Chiefs performed at the level they did last year against conference competition from previous seasons, their record would likely have reflected much more appealing numbers if not have migrated north of the .500 demarcation. Highlights included a sweep over valley rival St. Ignatius, a pair of victories over Whitefish and Libby within one of the more brutal conferences around the state, an overtime thriller over state-ranked Class B Bigfork at home and a very close contest against then 2nd-ranked Columbia Falls on the road. At divisional it became evident that many of the team dynamics that had inconsistently emerged over the course of the regular season began to coalesce for the Chiefs entering the postseason. After their first-round victory over Whitefish, they were forced to engage top-seeded Columbia Falls in the divisional semifinal, the Wildcats relegating the Chiefs to the consolation bracket like the basketball behemoth did every other team they faced in the conference. Ronan was once again victorious over the Whitefish Bulldogs in loser out action, qualifying them for the consolation championship, where they dispatched the Libby Loggers to secure third place at divisional. That victory set up a challenge match with valley rival Polson for the right to go to state, but fatigue from so many games played prior to that match may have taken its toll as the Chiefs were unable to put together one of their better performances that would have been needed to qualify for the big dance at state.
GRADUATES & ADAPTATIONS TO THE ROSTER FROM LAST SEASON
The Chiefs graduated a pair of players from their roster last season. One of those was 6-3 post Colton Cheff, who saw action during all of their games last year and provided the team with an inside presence where he made contributions in multiple categories. The other was 6-3 post John Buckendahl, who made appearances in three-quarters of their games mostly in relief of starters.
The other adaptation to the roster from last season will be the absence of Jordan Franklin from the lineup, one of their relief specialists who made contributions to the team in every stat category.
2010-11 RONAN CHIEFS VARSITY ROSTER
The Orange & Black return their entire starting five from last year’s roster as well as their key relief personell. A trio of their starters received all-conference accolades and were a statistical presence in five categories among the TOP TEN of the Northwestern A conference.
All-conference 2nd-team senior 5-11 guard Justin DustyBull finished the regular season last year ranked 2nd in steals, 3rd for 2-point field goals, 6th for field goal percentage, 7th in assists and 8th in total points scored. Dustybull turned in 11 games in which he scored double figures, led the team in steals and was their second leading playmaker with assists.
All-conference 2nd-team senior 6-2 forward Kevin Wroblewski was the team’s leading scorer, rebounder and shot blocker last season. He turned in a dozen double-digit game performances with a season high of 20 points scored against Valley Christian and came the closest to almost posting a double-double on a couple of occasions. Wroblewski enters the season in superb condition, having been a competitive part of Ronan’s cross-country program during the Fall. Among the TOP TEN stats of the conference, KW was 3rd in 3-point shooting, 4th in field goal percentage, 6th in total points scored, 7th for rebounds and tied 7th in blocked shots.
All-conference 2nd-team senior 5-9 guard Lucas Black led the team in assists and was their second leading rebounder and shot blocker. He turned in nine double-digit game performances by the end of last season. Black placed in multiple categories among the TOP TEN of the conference: 5th in steals, 6th in assists, 9th for rebounds, tied 9th for 2-point field goals and combined field goal percentage.
Senior 5-11 guard J.J. Tanner was the third-leading scorer as well as playmaker for number of assists dished to teammates and third-leading pincher of basketballs for steals on the team last season. Among the TOP TEN of the conference, Tanner was ranked 3rd for steals, tied 7th for treys and placed 10th for free throw percentage. J.J. turned in ten double-digit game performances last year with a season high of 16 points scored in the Chiefs’ victory over Whitefish. He had the second-leading success rate for launching treys from behind the arc.
Junior 5-11 forward Marcus Hungerford turned in a pair of double-digit game performances last season with a season high of 20 points scored against Superior. His end-of-the-season numbers added up to double-figure contributions for the team in every stat category with the exception of blocked shots. He was the fourth-leading playmaker for the team in terms of assists dished to teammates.
Senior 6-3 forward Gordon North Piegan III saw action in all games last season and was their most effective sixth man inserted onto the court. His end-of-the-season numbers reached double-figure proportions for 2-point field goals, free throws, rebounds and steals.
Senior 5-10 guard Jackson Jore saw limited action last season, but turned in one double-digit game performance during the Tip-Off tournament against Corvallis. He also breached double-figures for rebounding before the season came to a close. Jore has an athletic background that includes quarterbacking the football team a season back, which indicates he has a strong arm, a good eye for hitting targets and has developed some quick moves to evade defenders.
Junior 6-1 forward Brady Oakland saw court time in just over a third of the games last season and showed a penchant at the free throw line, where he sank half of his attempts. He also displayed a fairly decent shooting hand inside the arc, posted double-digit numbers for rebounding and made a handful of steals.
Junior 5-11 guard Robert Gauthier saw action in just over half the games last season, connecting on half of his trey attempts as well as scored within the arc and behind the free throw line. One of the quarterbacks for the Chiefs during football season, his quick step not only scored points on the gridiron but also accounted for a handful of steals on the basketball court last season.
Junior 6-1 power forward Robert Faoa hails from American Samoa, a set of islands in the Pacific reputed for turning out a high number of skilled NFL football players. Faoa would like nothing better than to expand the athletic reputation of his homeland with a superb display of basketball prowess on a hardwood court for the Chiefs. Endowed with great leaping ability and quick moves, Faoa injects an added dimension into the lineup at both the offensive and defensive end for the Orange & Black.
Junior 6-1 power forward Marley Tanner saw action in about a quarter of the games last season, where he scored, connected from behind the charity stripe, gathered in some rebounds and dished some assists. When Marley is on the court simultaneously with J.J., together they inflict the conference with acrobatic displays of the reputed Tanner skill sets which double the pleasure for the Chiefs.
Junior 6-1 power forward Chris Clary saw limited action on the basketball court at the varsity level last season, but anyone who can rack up over a hundred yards in a football game and can gather in more than half of his passes betrays that he has pretty good hands and some quick moves that could cause opponents trouble. Clary is a solid rebounder, has sharp court presence and is a good offensive passer.
Sophomore 5-8 guard Dallas Jore was the ninth leading rusher in the conference during football season, an indicator that he has quick moves and breakaway speed that integrates well with the Ronan attack.
Senior 5-10 forward R.J. Hesselgesser saw action in one game at the varsity level last season, where he managed to make both of his free throws, gathered in a trio of rebounds and made three steals.
JUNIOR VARSITY & FROSHMORE ROSTERS
Some players among the junior varsity and froshmore rosters may be called upon to contribute at another level as the season progresses when more seasoning and broader range of skill development indicates they could hold their own with the competition on the court.
The Junior Varsity is comprised of junior 5-9 guard Edmund Dupuis, junior Danish exchange-student 6-3 post Kristian Andersen, sophomore 5-9 guard Carston Baertsch, sophomore 5-11 forward Jalen Bell, sophomore 5-8 forward Matt Burke and freshman 5-7 guard Tim Woll.
The froshmore roster is loaded with talented sophomores that includes 6-1 forward Payton Adams, 5-8 forward Lucero “Lane” Clairmont-Perez, 5-8 forward Wendell Howard and 5-10 forward Cody Mock. Incoming freshman include 6-1 forward Keilon Adams, 6-3 post Daniel Aylesworth, 5-7 forward Jerred Dupuis, 5-10 forward Stone Garfield, 6-2 post Justin “J.T.“ Probst, 6-1 forward Logan Soukkala and 5-9 guard Joseph “Zeke” Webster-Yaqui.
Team managerial duties will be conducted by Jake Janssen, Katie Andrews, Tuesday Salmon and Alex Dulmes.
ANALYSIS AND SEASON PROGNOSIS
Head coach Steven Woll enters his third year (11th overall) at the reins of the Ronan program, assisted by coaches Rich Janssen Jr., Gale Decker and volunteer assistant coach Bob Neiman (Montana-Western 06/07-07/08, 2005 Class B all-state / District 8B all-conference 1st-team). The Chiefs return their entire starting rotation as well as their key relievers, strengths which could spell trouble for the conference with the continuity and experience they are capable of injecting onto the court.
In reviewing the cumulative performance of the team from last year, certain trends emerged which could lend some insight into how Ronan might fare with the inception of a new season. The rubric of Clint Eastwood’s renowned spaghetti western film title would seem to provide a fitting structure for organizing such an examination.
THE GOOD - Team Speed. The Chiefs finished at the top of the conference for steals last season, a trend that is likely to be repeated this season around given the return of their entire starting rotation. With multiple players transitioning from the football gridiron to the hardwood court, injected with cross-country trailblazers who will be in exceptional shape, the Orange & Black attack is going to be laden with quick feet and blazing speed. Ronan has tended to gravitate toward a high octane fast paced offense in recent years, and given their lack of a dominating post presence, why fix something if it isn’t broken. If the Chiefs can get all their pistons firing in sync and their engine gets tuned to a harmonic hum, opponents are liable to be hard pressed to keep pace with their attack.
THE BAD - Free Throw Vulnerability. Last season the Chiefs finished fourth in the conference from the free throw line as a team. Some individual players actually shot quite well in terms of shooting percentage over the course of the entire season, but the team as a whole would be advised to improve in this area if they are to make a foray into the upper eschalon of the conference standings. Several of their losses last season fell victim to an inability to convert freebies with nobody guarding them at the charity stripe.
THE UGLY - Turnovers. There is one category among team statistics that one doesn’t want to find oneself in first place, and that is regarding turnovers. The Chiefs led the conference by a large margin in this department, accumulating too many multiples of a dozen more than the number posted by the next highest team. This critique needs to be qualified, however, because the nature of the Chiefs’ high octane offense lends itself to leading in this category. Generating a few extra turnovers or offensive charging fouls is not necessarily completely disconcerting in and of itself, but it is the margin of separation between the leader in this category and the next team that is cause for concern. The Chiefs would be advised to shrink the margin of separation between them and the next highest team total if they want to tighten the scoring in some of their closer contests and position themselves for a run at the lead as the end of the game approaches. Improvements in body control during fast paced ball handling, crisper passing and adjusting vectors of approach to the basket when clogged by defenders would likely lend to higher conversion percentages over the course of the season. On a more positive note on the flipside of the scale, the Chiefs also led the conference in forcing offensive charges at the defensive end by a margin that was more than twice that of the next highest reporting total. Hungerford was ranked 1st in this TOP TEN category by a margin that was more than twice his closest competitor, not completely unexpected from a football TOP TEN running back who has not only demonstrated he can absorb punishment, but also like a Timex watch, can take a licking and keep on ticking.
One other observation that derives from viewing a handful of their games last year may be of benefit as the Orange & Black embark upon a new season. That pertains to 3-point shooting, a category in which Ronan placed 2nd as a team among the conference. One of the strengths inherent to the Chiefs roster is that they are laden with good shooters, but sometimes that strength has gravitated toward a liability during the course of some games when their outside shots are contested. One can anticipate that about a third of the treys that a team launches will find the net as a rule of thumb, an average prone to deviate some with fluctuations above and below that margin over the course of different games. Sometimes outside shooters would benefit from exercising a little more patience if their look at the basket isn’t as clean or open as it might be if they work the ball around a little. This seems to be the case particularly when players are more tired during the later stages of a game and there is less spring in their step. When such scenarios should materialize, looking either for something with a higher percentage of success inside the arc even though it might yield less points or working the ball around for a better view of the basket would seem preferable to throwing up a hail Mary shot with an accompanying prayer that it might find its target. From this viewer’s perspective, patience might prove to be a virtue that yields better results.
The basketball season for Ronan opens with the Tip-Off Tournament jointly hosted by Corvallis and Hamilton the weekend of December 10-11.
stats courtesy of Terry Werner culled from nwmta
player input provided courtesy of the basketball coaching staff
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