j&c hoops classic (boys)

Sunday, November 29, 2009 Journal & Courier • jconline.com

J&C Hoops

5 nights8 teams12 games1 champion

Classic

2 Boys J&C Hoops Classic Sunday, November 29, 2009 | jconline.com

Tournament schedule

At Lafayette JeffMonday

West Lafayette vs. Benton Central, 6 p.m.

Central Catholic vs. Harri-son, 7:30 p.m.

TuesdayLafayette Jeff vs. Frankfort,

6 p.m.McCutcheon vs. Twin Lakes,

7:30 p.m.Thursday

Monday’s losers, 6 p.m.Tuesday’s losers, 7:30 p.m.

FridayMonday’s winners, 6 p.m.Tuesday’s winners, 7:30 p.m.

SaturdaySeventh-place game, 4 p.m.Fifth-place game, 4 p.m.Third-place game, 6 p.m.Championship, 8 p.m.Note: The seventh-place

game will be played in the auxiliary gym.

Team previewsBenton Central ...........................3Central Catholic ........................ 4Frankfort ..................................... 5Harrison ..................................... 6Lafayette Jeff ............................. 7McCutcheon .............................. 8Twin Lakes ................................. 9West Lafayette ....................... 10

On the coverFront row: West Lafay-

ette’s Zach Waters, Twin Lakes’ Tyler McAchren and McCutcheon’s Alantae Crawford.

Second row: Lafayette Jeff’s Roddy Richardson, Central Catholic’s Elliot Zak and Frankfort’s Troy Porter.

Back row: Benton Central’s Aaron Kult and Harrison’s Jacob VanArsdel.

Special thanks to Chris and Dawn Schakel of Mil-lennium Farms near Oxford.

— Photo by Michael Heinz/ [email protected]

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Sunday, November 29, 2009 | jconline.com Boys J&C Hoops Classic 3

BENTON CENTRAL BISONQuick shots

Coach: Eric Wiley (first season at Benton Central, 31-96 in seventh season overall)

2008-09 results: 12-10, lost to Northwestern 53-52 in sectional opener

Conference: HoosierSectional: Class 3A, Sec-

tional 20Sectional opponents:

Frankfort (host), North-western, Twin Lakes, West Lafayette and Western

Returning stat leadersScoring: Aaron Kult (6.5)Rebounding: Kult (1.9)Assists: Zac Geswein

(2.0)Steals: Geswein (1.3)

RosterNo. Name Pos. Ht. Yr.10 Zac Geswein G 5-10 Sr.12 Ty Fischbach F 6-0 So.14 Kyle Bird G 6-0 Jr.20 Benny Myers G 5-10 Sr.22 Michael Strasburger G/F 5-11 Sr.24 Aaron Kult G 6-1 Sr.30 Tyler Featherston F/C 6-2 Sr.32 Jordan Johnson G 5-11 So.34 Eddie Hall F 6-1 So.40 Jeremy Ohanis F 6-1 Jr.44 Kameron Fischbach F/C 6-1 Sr.

Last seasonOffensive average: 54.3Defensive average: 51.8

It was a heartbreak-ing end for the Bison’s six seniors a year ago, losing to Northwestern on a last-second shot in the Frankfort Sectional.

Senior Taylor Schoen became the school’s sixth 1,000-point career scorer. He earned All-Hoosier Conference honors after averaging 15.5 points and 6.3 rebounds.

Coach Kyle Spray depart-ed after five seasons to take over at Western Boone.

ON GUARDThe backcourt has all of

the Bison’s varsity experience with returning starter Aaron Kult and part-time starting point guard Zac Geswein.

“Zac will be our floor lead-er,” said first-year coach Eric Wiley, a longtime BC assis-tant and former head coach at North White. “He probably is not going to be asked to score a whole lot, but he will be one of our best defenders.”

Kult shot nearly 37 percent from 3-point range last season, and Wiley expects a signifi-cant boost from last season’s 6.5 scoring average.

“He’s going to be asked to carry a lot of the scoring load, and I think he understands that,” Wiley said. “We’ll do some things to try to get him some shots.”

FRONT LINETyler Featherston and Ka-

meron Fischbach lack size and varsity experience, but that duo — along with fellow se-niors Kult, Geswein, Michael Strasburger and Benny Myers — are a reason why Wiley ac-cepted the job in the offsea-son.

“That senior class is a very hard-working class, good stu-dents,” Wiley said. “I’ve been around them the last four years. These kids when they were eighth-graders won 13, 14 games. They’ve been split up ever since then but now they’re back together.”

KEY NEWCOMERSPlenty, starting with Stras-

burger, who will be a 3-point threat. Myers, Featherston and Fischbach also played ju-nior varsity out of necessity last season.

“We had no choice,” Wiley said. “We had to do that be-cause they needed to play. We

needed to have them play this year.”

Kyle Bird will be the backup to Geswein at point guard, and Wiley says there may be times he plays both point guards at the same time. Jordan John-son will also see playing time on the perimeter.

Jeremy Ohanis is a transfer from Scottsburg who may see playing time as he grows ac-customed to the Bison’s style of play.

OUTLOOKDon’t be surprised if at times

the Bison use a four-guard lineup. With their tallest play-er standing 6-foot-2, the Bison will have to play solid defense and exploit mismatches on of-fense.

“I’m looking forward to the challenge,” Wiley said. “They’ve responded well. I know they’ll play hard and do the things I ask them to do. As a coach that’s all I can ask for. The wins and losses will take care of themselves.”

— Ken Thompson/[email protected]

By Michael Heinz/Journal & Courier

Aaron Kult is Benton Central’s top returning scorer.

Wiley Geswein

Featherston Fischbach Strasburger Myers


CENTRAL CATHOLIC KNIGHTSQuick shots

Coach: David Barrett (78-27 in fifth season)

2008-09 results: 20-7, lost to Triton 50-47 in semi-state

Conference: Hoosier Heartland

Sectional: Class A, Sec-tional 53

Sectional opponents: Clinton Prairie, Frontier, Rossville and Tri-Central (host)

Returning stat leadersScoring: Chris Mills (9.7)Rebounding: Connor

Mackey (4.9)Assists: Elliot Zak (6.2)Steals: Mills (1.8)

RosterNo. Name Pos. Ht. Yr.10 Elliot Zak G 5-11 Sr.12 Chris Mills F 6-4 Sr.*12 Cowan Olinger G 5-10 Fr.14 Danny Anthrop G 6-0 So.20 Niall Noonan F 6-4 Jr.*20 Matt Bouggy G 5-8 Fr.22 Adam Zimmerman G 5-10 Sr.*22 Drew Dienhart G 510 So.24 Cody Christopher G 5-11 Jr.*24 Chase Thieme F 5-10 So.30 Brett Haan G/F 6-4 Jr.32 Jason Aldridge F 6-2 Sr.*32 Joe Tharp G/F 5-11 So.34 Jake Talley C 6-1 Sr.*34 Nick Zak F 6-1 So.40 Cole Smith G 5-10 Sr.42 Connor Mackey F/C 6-3 Sr.*42 Ian Winningham F 5-11 Jr.44 Hayden Gloyeske C 6-3 Jr.50 Nick Hilligoss C 6-5 Jr.

* Due to the football team’s success, CC will begin the season with a sepa-rate roster until football players are eligible to compete in basketball.


The Knights advanced to semistate for the third year in a row, but failed to reach the state finals yet again.

After losing consecu-tive games to Frankfort and Lafayette Jeff in late January, the Knights strung together 12 wins in a row before los-ing to Triton 50-47 in the semistate.

It was the 12th straight season CC won at least 18 games.

ON GUARDElliot Zak returns for his

second season running the point. He’ll be joined in the backcourt by Brett Haan and Cole Smith at the wings.

When football players be-come eligible, Danny Anthrop, Adam Zimmerman and Cody Christopher also will rotate in.

“This is good for Elliot be-cause now he has to step up and be a leader and look to score, which he hasn’t in the past,” coach Dave Barrett said.

Six-foot-4 Chris Mills is also a capable guard if need be.

“Chris Mills can play just about any position on the floor,” Barrett said.

FRONT LINEJake Talley and Connor

Mackey return from last year’s team that advanced to semi-state.

Early on, juniors Nick Hil-ligoss and Hayden Gloyeske will fill the slots.

“They’ve played pretty well in practice so far,” Barrett said.

Mackey is the leading re-turning rebounder and sec-ond-leading returning scorer. Talley averaged three points and two rebounds last season.

KEY NEWCOMERSWhen the football players

become eligible, which could be Friday if the Knights de-feat Harrison in the opening round, the lineup completely changes.

With most of last year’s team returning, there will be very little room for newcom-ers. Gloyeske may stick with the varsity, however.

“Hayden Gloyeske has got-ten bigger and stronger this summer,” Barrett said. “He has some talent and can run.”

OUTLOOKDespite losing four seniors,

including freshman Purdue guard Dru Anthrop’s 23 points and seven rebounds a night, the Knights keep the same goal as every other season — play for the Class A state champi-onship.

Last season, the Knights lost in the semistate for the third straight year.

“It’s like a bad taste left in your mouth,” Zak said. “Our goal has always been to make it to state and we haven’t been

able to do that yet.“I am confident with the

guys we have that we will be able to do that.”

— Sam King/[email protected]

By Brent Drinkut/Journal & Courier

Elliot Zak drives around Brett Haan during a recent practice.


FRANKFORT HOT DOGSQuick shots

Coach: Jason Good (37-32 in fourth season)

2008-09 results: 16-7, lost to West Lafayette 43-40 in sectional championship

Conference: SagamoreSectional: Class 3A, Sec-

tional 20 (hostSectional opponents:

Benton Central, Northwest-ern, Twin Lakes and Western

Returning stat leadersScoring: Troy Porter (12.6)Rebounding: Porter (5.4)Assists: Korben Shirar

(2.9)Steals: Justin Spears (1.1)

RosterNo. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. 4 Troy Porter F 6-3 Sr. 5 Roger Acevedo F 5-10 Jr.12 Stanley Moore G 5-8 Jr.20 Alex Isgrigg G 5-10 So.21 Tanner Svoboda G/F 6-1 Jr.22 Tim Eason F 6-0 Sr.23 Justin Spears G 6-0 Sr.32 Evan Hall F/C 6-3 Sr.33 Grayden Gilmore F 6-3 Jr.34 Alex Stuard G/F 6-0 Jr.40 Dakota Isgrigg F/C 6-5 Fr.42 Chad Strong C 6-8 Jr.


The Hot Dogs claimed a share of the Sagamore Con-ference title and appeared to have their first sectional championship since 1997 in their grasp before a fourth-quarter comeback by West Lafayette.

Frankfort’s first four losses last season came to Class 4A teams, including Lafayette Jeff in the J&C Hoops Classic champion-ship.

Gone from that team was top scorer and rebounder Stevie Loveless, who now plays for Purdue.

ON GUARDJunior point guard Korben

“Snoop” Shirar returns for his third season as the Hot Dog floor general.

“That’s one of the rea-sons we started trying to play Snoop there as a freshman,” coach Jason Good said. “If you can have a solid kid at that po-sition and you know you can count on him, it takes away a lot of other worries.”

Ballhandling should be a strong point as Shirar and Jus-tin Spears provide a potential dual threat.

“Snoop is really good be-cause he creates so much, he gets in the lane,” senior Troy Porter said. “With Justin be-hind him, it is a 1-2 punch.”

Tanner Svoboda will be a wing player for the Hot Dogs, while junior Stan Moore adds depth to the backcourt.

FRONT LINEPorter is a fourth-year var-

sity player, who is starting for the third full year. He also had starts sprinkled in as a fresh-man.

“Troy is a leader,” Good said. “He has been our best team defender since his sophomore year. He is not necessarily our best one-on-one defender, but as far as being in the right place, he is No. 1.”

Six-foot-3 Evan Hall also will start in the post after re-turning last season following a one-year hiatus from the sport.

“I am hoping Evan is going to be our surprise guy,” Good said.

KEY NEWCOMERSSix-foot-5 freshman cen-

ter Dakota Isgrigg can score, run the floor and has length. Moore and senior Tim Eason will have increased roles after playing varsity sparingly last

year. “Tim Eason is a hard-nosed

kid and plays harder probably than any kid we have,” Good said.

OUTLOOKThe Hot Dogs will have to

find rebounding after losing a player who averaged 12 a night last year to graduation. If Frankfort finds a way to re-bound, it could again contend for the Sagamore Conference title and be a contender for a sectional crown.

The Hot Dogs have out-rebounded 80 percent of their opponents during Good’s three seasons at the helm, but now will have to do so without Stevie Loveless.


By John Terhune/Journal & Courier

Troy Porter.

Shirar Spears

Hall Good

ON GUARDBJ Bennett returns for his

third varsity season. Although he averaged 3.7 points a year ago, Bennett is one of the Raid-ers’ top 3-point shooters at 35 percent.

Jacob VanArsdel presents matchup problems for most teams at 6-foot-5. VanArsdel is a good 3-point shooter (35 percent), but he also is a high percentage shooter overall (49 percent) and at the free throw line (73 percent).

FRONT LINESeniors Blair Banker and

Patrick Cutter should give the Raiders an offensive and de-fensive presence inside. Bank-er averaged 10 points and 4.2 rebounds per game, while Cut-ter contributed 5.6 and 4.0.

Zach Williams gives coach Jeff VanArsdel another big body inside at 6-4.

“They worked really hard this spring in the weight room,” said VanArsdel of the Raiders’ big men, including his son. “Once we got to the summer where we could work with them, the kids put in a lot of hours.”

KEY NEWCOMERSWilliams is the “one who

may have the most impact,” VanArsdel said. Williams av-eraged 2.4 points in varsity ac-tion as a sophomore.

“Zach is very athletic, runs well, strong. We think we could have some good things happen with Zach.”

Junior forward Josh With-ers will get significant min-utes after averaging 2.6 points as a sophomore. Junior Brock Burkhalter returns to the pro-gram after sitting out last sea-son. Burkhalter saw time on the junior varsity and varsity as a freshman.

VanArsdel also sees poten-

tial for perimeter players Ryan Mundy, Ben Trapp and Corbin Richter.

OUTLOOKVanArsdel was blunt in as-

sessing the Raiders’ offensive performance the past few sea-sons.

“We haven’t scored enough points,” he said. “That puts way too much pressure on your defense. You’re not al-lowed to ever make a mistake. We’ve put a lot emphasis on our ability to score. Hopefully that’s a strength of ours this

year.”The coach is hoping that the

J&C Hoops Classic prepares the Raiders for a brutal Hoo-sier Crossroads Conference schedule that includes last season’s sectional finalists La-fayette Jeff and McCutcheon.

Zionsville (No. 4), Nobles-ville (No. 7), Hamilton South-eastern (No. 8) and Avon (No. 11) are in the Indianapolis Star’s preseason Top 15. VanA-rsdel notes that Avon has three players with Division I offers, and the Orioles are Harrison’s first opponent after the Clas-sic.

“Just because we have some experience and size, we don’t take that for granted,” VanArs-del said. “We know the sched-ule is loaded, and we have to be ready to play.”

— Ken Thompson/[email protected]


HARRISON RAIDERSQuick shots

Coach: Jeff VanArsdel (229-150 in 18th season)

2008-09 results: 9-13, lost to McCutcheon 66-41 in sectional semifinals

Conference: Hoosier Crossroads

Sectional: Class 4A, Sectional 7

Sectional opponents: Ko-komo (host), Lafayette Jeff, Logansport and McCutcheon

Returning stat leadersScoring: Jacob VanArsdel

(10.8)Rebounding: Blair Banker

(4.2)Assists: BJ Bennett (1.6)Steals: Bennett (0.7)

RosterNo. Name Pos. Ht. Yr.10 Brock Burkhalter G 5-7 Jr.11 Jonathan Wolfschlag G 5-9 Sr.12 Jacob VanArsdel G 6-5 Sr.15 BJ Bennett G 5-8 Sr.21 Ben Trapp G 5-10 Jr.22 Ryan Mundy F 6-0 Jr.23 Corbin Richter G 5-9 Jr.25 Josh Withers F 6-1 Jr.30 Brian Holden F 6-2 Sr.31 Will Barr F 5-11 Jr.33 Blair Banker C 6-7 Sr.35 Desmond Rias F 5-11 Jr.41 Patrick Cutter F 6-5 Sr.42 Zach Williams C 6-4 Jr.43 Kevin Holden C 6-4 Jr.45 Cameron Brown F 6-0 Jr.


The Raiders’ lack of of-fense caught up with them at the end of last season, when they lost four of their final five games. Harrison did not surpass 60 points in a game after a 71-67 over-time loss against Logansport on Jan. 10.

Jacob VanArsdel earned second-team Journal & Courier Big School All-Area honors, and Blair Banker was an honorable mention selection.

Bennett Banker

By Jamie Lynn Chevillet/Journal & Courier

Jacob VanArsdel is a big presence on the perimeter.

Cutter Williams

ON GUARDJesse Berry emerged as the

area’s scoring champion, top-ping 40 points on six occa-sions and breaking his own school record with 55 against Fishers on Jan. 16. The Day-ton signee is prolific while pulling up from the perimeter or slashing to the basket. For the second half of the season, Berry helped with point guard duties, and the attention he draws can open up scoring opportunities for the rest of Jeff ’s shooters.

Roddy Richardson’s hustle and defensive pressure often set the tone at both ends of the floor. He and Berry will both stretch defenses with their long-range shooting abil-ity. Due to a lack of team size, Richardson will need to be a significant rebounding force.

“I’ve always thought Roddy was a good defensive player, but I think he’s even gotten better this year,” Jeff coach Scot Bunnell said. “He’s be-come an even better team de-fender. Jesse I think has got really good focus right now and concentration on the de-fensive end.

“Even thought they’re our two guards, the thing that they’re going have to do is re-bound the ball for us.”

Nick Stacy worked his way into the starting lineup last season as a sophomore thanks to his shooting touch and solid fundamentals.

“We need Nick Stacy to be a playmaker and be aggressive with the ball and make good decisions on the court,” Berry said.

FRONT LINEShane Wyant’s graduation

deprives the Bronchos of 15.5 points and 11.6 rebounds per game. Though Jeff will remain a perimeter-oriented team,

someone will need to step up and assist with defense and re-bounding under the basket.

Jason Washington is expect-ed to help fill the big man void. But the junior center recently underwent surgery for a left (non-shooting) wrist fracture and is not expected back until Christmas.

Junior forward Colin Bultinck, more naturally a small forward, will be asked to provide help in the post un-til Washington returns. The Bronchos’ football quarter-back during the fall, the left-handed Bultinck steps up from his role as a part-time starter last season.

“Obviously we wish he was bigger,” Bunnell said. “He’s

got the toughness to do it; he’s smart enough to do it. He plays hard enough, he’s aggressive enough.”

KEY NEWCOMERSRashad Richardson could

be a difference-maker. While the sophomore is more suited for the perimeter, he could help a Bronchos team in need of rebounding help and front-court defense.

“He can get to the basket and finish,” Bunnell said. “He’s 6-31⁄2 but he plays bigger than that because he’s got really good length.”

Courtney Waldon, RJ Lay-ton and Akayla McClatchey, a Kokomo transfer, will come off the bench to add depth to the guard rotation. Chris Nes-tleroad, a bigger guard, might be asked to help up front.

OUTLOOKWith four starters back, the

Bronchos are optimistic about making another run at a sec-tional championship. While the non-conference schedule is not as demanding as last season, the Hoosier Cross-roads Conference is expected to be among the state’s pre-mier leagues.

The lack of size is a concern, and it will be up to the expe-rienced guards to keep the pressure on and prevent teams from attacking the basket.

“We’re pretty small, but we can get through it,” Berry said. “We’re tough. Everybody on our team has heart.”

— Nathan Baird/[email protected]

LAFAYETTE JEFF BRONCHOSQuick shots

Coach: Scot Bunnell (67-28 in fifth season)

2008-09 results: 17-8, lost to Kokomo 63-59 in sectional semifinals



Sectional opponents: Harrison, Kokomo (host), Logansport and McCutcheon

Returning stat leadersScoring: Jesse Berry

(27.3)Rebounding: Roddy Rich-

ardson (7.3)Assists: Richardson (3.3)

(2.8)Steals: Richardson (2.3)

RosterNo. Name Pos. Ht. Yr.10 RJ Layton G 5-7 Jr.11 Rashad Richardson F 6-4 So.12 Courtney Waldon G 6-0 Jr.22 Nick Stacy G 5-11 Jr.24 Roddy Richardson G 6-1 Sr.30 Colin Bultinck F 6-0 Jr.32 Jesse Berry G 6-1 Sr.34 Justin Ulmer G 5-10 So.40 Akayla McClatchey G 6-0 Jr.44 Chris Nestleroad F 6-0 Jr.50 Jason Washington C 6-4 Jr.


Jeff opened last season by winning its third straight J&C Hoops Classic cham-pionship. But soon after the Bronchos lost seven of their next 10 against a tough non-conference schedule. During that span, point guard Bran-don Williams was dismissed from the team and leading scorer Jesse Berry was briefly benched.

Berry returned to com-plete the most prolific scor-ing season in Broncho his-tory, and the team won nine straight through the opening round of the sectional.

But Roddy Richardson broke his foot in practice on the eve of the sectional semifinals, and without him Jeff lost to eventual cham-pion Kokomo.


By Jamie Lynn Chevillet/Journal & Courier

Jeff’s Jesse Berry is the area’s top returning scorer.

Ro. Richardson Bultinck

McCUTCHEON MAVERICKSQuick shots

Coach: Rick Peckinpaugh (353-197 in 25th season at McCutcheon and 405-247 in 31st season overall)

2008-09 results: 10-13, lost to Kokomo 63-60 (OT) in sectional championship



Sectional opponents: Harrison, Kokomo (host), Lafayette Jeff and Lo-gansport

Returning stat leadersScoring: Alantae Craw-

ford (11.7)Rebounding: Clint Thayer

(4.6)Assists: Crawford (2.1)Steals: Crawford (1.5)

RosterNo. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. 4 JT Yocum G 5-5 So.12 Devonte Parker G 5-9 Sr.14 RJ Dixon G 5-6 So.20 Alantae Crawford G 5-11 Sr.22 Brady Knoy F 6-1 Jr.24 Jon Zanker G/F 6-2 Sr.30 Myles Bell F 6-1 So.32 Austin Price G 5-7 So.42 Clint Thayer G/C 6-2 Jr.44 Vince Hunsicker F/C 6-3 So.50 Juan Del Real F/C 6-3 So.54 Jackson Timmons C 6-4 So.


The Mavericks experi-enced one of the strangest seasons in Rick Peckin-paugh’s 25 years at the TSC school.

Center Ethan Peabody (14.2 points, 6.3 rebounds) was suspended for the season’s first 11 games, and guard Nick Wittgren (14.9 points, 4.9 rebounds) suffered a broken foot and missed six games.

Those two seniors returned in time to help the Mavs reach the sectional championship, but they fell to Kokomo in overtime.

Another senior Peckin-paugh must replace is steady point guard Cory Rush (6.1 points, 3.4 rebounds).


ON GUARDIt starts with leading return-

ing scorer Alantae Crawford, who according to coach Rick Peckinpaugh, has improved more in one year than any player he ever has coached.

Crawford is quicker and stronger and has improved his outside game. Crawford shoots the 3-pointer well and will be a difficult player to defend.

Crawford will play some point guard, but he also will play shooting guard and small forward. He is only 5-foot-11 but plays 6-4, according to Peckinpaugh.

“He really is going to be a key for us,” Peckinpaugh said.

Peckinpaugh said the Mav-ericks are in a little trouble at point guard, because there is little experience.

At this point, Clint Thayer is the main player McCutcheon is looking to at point guard.

“He is an interesting player in that he really is a good ball-handler and really sees the court,” Peckinpaugh said. “Be-ing the football team’s quar-terback, he sees the floor well and is a leader.”

Jon Zanker has been hob-bled by a knee injury and has not been able to practice full go.

“The point is going to be by committee,” Peckinpaugh said. “That isn’t ideal. You want to have an established, solid point guard that you know is going to be like a coach on the court. It’s going to take time for us to gain that experience.”

FRONT LINEOn defense, Thayer will be

guarding the opponent’s pow-er forward or possibly center.

He will have to make a tran-sition from offense to defense.

“In my 25th year here, I don’t ever remember doing that,” Peckinpaugh said of the

role Thayer will be asked to play.

The rest of McCutcheon’s front line is inexperienced.

Brady Knoy, who did see some varsity action last sea-son, should help at forward. Knoy is quicker, stronger and more aggressive.

Knoy, who shoots the 3-pointer well, should be a weap-on against zone defenses.

Sophomores Vince Hun-sicker and Juan Del Real are vying for starting roles. Hun-sicker is a solid defender and rebounder. At center, Del Real could be the starter. He has gotten bigger and stronger.

“It’s very fair to say our front line will be a work in progress during the first half of the sea-son,” Peckinpaugh said.

KEY NEWCOMERSSophomore guard Austin

Price is a good 3-point shooter, and sophomore forward Myles Bell should provide depth.

“Right now, Price and Bell are just really raw,” Peckin-

paugh said. “After that, I don’t know. We could end up play-ing some freshmen.”

OUTLOOKProtecting the basketball

and avoiding turnovers will be huge for McCutcheon.

“We can’t turn the ball over 20 times, which I’m concerned could happen early in the year just because of our inexperi-ence and kids getting out of position,” Peckinpaugh said.

“Secondly, we have to re-bound. We’re not big at all. We also have to develop a third scorer.”

Peckinpaugh likes his team’s ability to play together.

“The kids I’ve got, I love them,” Peckinpaugh said. “They play hard and get along well. The chemistry is great. To me, team chemistry is one of the most underrated rea-sons why you can have a good season.”

— Jeff Washburn/[email protected]


McCutcheon’s Alantae Crawford works on his dribbling.

Thayer Knoy

ON GUARDMost of the varsity experi-

ence for the Indians comes in the backcourt.

Four of the six returning letterwinners are guards with Drake Danford, Niall Breed-love, Tyler McAchren and Kendal Glotzbach all coming back.

“When you want to be able to press and attack, which we like to do, that is important,” coach Kent Adams said.

Danford started as a fresh-man last year and Breedlove, McAchren and Glotzbach all provide senior leadership. That could bode as an advan-tage since Twin Lakes lacks height.

“We don’t have the biggest guys so we are going to have to condition and try to outrun people,” Glotzbach said. “We are going to have to find other ways besides our height.”

FRONT LINESean Gardiner and Gar-

rett Howe return down low. McAchren and Glotzbach also could rotate in as forwards as well as two others.

“We have Sean Fite and Taylor Elizalde who will be playing our two post positions almost all the time,” Adams said.

Elizalde is the tallest player on the roster, listed at 6-foot-3.

With a lack of size, the Indi-ans know rebounding will be a point of focus.

“We’re going to have to box out on the boards and do what we are supposed to do,” Glotz-bach said. “All the small things to make up for what we’re lacking.”

KEY NEWCOMERSSophomores Brian Moore

and Sam Johnson played ju-nior varsity as freshmen and

had productive summers, Ad-ams said.

“We are looking for them to contribute right off the bat from the guard position,” he said. “They hustle, they are good fundamentally and have a good sense for the game.”

OUTLOOKIt looks like speed and will-

power will be key for the Indi-ans’ success.

If Twin Lakes can find a way

to rebound, it can be success-ful. At all costs, the Indians want to avoid another disaster like last year’s 3-19 record.

“What happened last year we want to put out of our minds and start fresh,” Adams said. “We seem to have improved a little bit everywhere.”


TWIN LAKES INDIANSQuick shots

Coach: Kent Adams (159-129 in 14th season, 229-234 in 22nd year overall)

2008-09 results: 3-19, lost to West Lafayette 62-46 in sectional semifinals



Benton Central, Frankfort (host), Northwestern, West Lafayette and Western

Returning stat leadersScoring: Tyler McAchren

(6.4) Rebounding: Kendal

Glotzbach (2.6)Assists: Drake Danford

(2.0)Steals: Niall Breedlove

(0.8)

RosterNo. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. 3 Brian Moore G 6-2 So. 5 Sean Fite F 6-0 Jr.10 Garrett Howe F 6-0 Jr.20 Sam Johnson G 6-0 So.22 Niall Breedlove G 5-10 Sr.23 Drake Danford G 5-11 So.25 Taylor Elizalde F 6-3 Jr.31 Kendal Glotzbach G/F 5-10 Sr.33 Tyler McAchren G/F 6-2 Sr.40 Sean Gardiner F 6-2 Jr.


The Indians struggled out of the gate, losing their first five games. They also suffered an 11-game losing streak while going 3-19 and losing to eventual champion West Lafayette in the sec-tional semifinals.

Eight times Twin Lakes surpassed 60 points, but won just two of those games, including one by forfeit.

Prior to last season, the Indians had posted double-digit wins in every season since 1996-97. In the four seasons prior to last year, Twin Lakes was a combined 57-36.


By Brent Drinkut/Journal & Courier

Tyler McAchren is Twin Lakes’ top returning scorer.

Danford Glotzbach

ON GUARDThe team begins the year

with three players who have significant varsity experience.

All three play the guard po-sition in Zach Tudor, Jordan Leturgez and George Zhang.

“They’ve got to be our lead-ers,” coach David Wood said. “The other five (players to start the season) have to fol-low effectively. There is noth-ing wrong with following as long as you are doing it the right way.”

Daniel Wodicka will return as the floor general beginning Saturday.

“I look for some guys off the football team like Jonah Green and Sean Busch to play out-standing minutes on the pe-rimeter as well,” Wood said.

FRONT LINEZhang doubles as a guard/

forward due to his ability to score in traffic and shoot from the outside. He was WL’s sec-ond-leading scorer a season ago behind Matt Lancaster.

Zach Waters was second to Lancaster in rebounds last season and also averaged five points.

“Zach Waters is a guy I think is going to be a huge key for this team,” Wood said. “He got better and better as the season went on last year and I thought he had a great summer.”

KEY NEWCOMERSBusch didn’t see a minute of

varsity action last season and will be counted on in the guard rotation this year.

Tudor played in just 13 quarters, but will see a lot of action in the Red Devils’ first two games.

Ben Thomas will be count-ed on in the post in his first varsity season.

WEST LAFAYETTE RED DEVILSQuick shots

Coach: David Wood (187-148 in 16th season)

2008-09 results: 18-7, lost to Gary Roosevelt 59-48 in regional semifinals



Benton Central, Frankfort (host), Northwestern, Twin Lakes and Western

Returning stat leadersScoring: George Zhang

(13.1)Rebounding: Zach Waters

(4.0)Assists: Daniel Wodicka

(3.0)Steals: Wodicka (1.1)

RosterNo. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. 2 Sean Busch G 6-2 So. 3 Jonah Green F 6-3 So. 4 Phillip Smith G 5-8 So. 5 Daniel Wodicka G 6-0 Sr.14 Thomas Fisher F 5-11 So.20 Zach Tudor G 5-10 Jr.22 Matt Peck F 6-1 Jr.24 Zach Waters F 6-4 Sr.30 George Zhang G 6-4 Jr.32 Jordan Leturgez G 6-0 Sr.34 Ben Thomas F 6-3 So.40 Michael Ooms F 6-2 So.44 Brian Ghiselli F 6-2 So.


The Red Devils went 18-7, including a sectional cham-pionship.

After going 8-5 in its first 13 games that con-cluded with a 48-31 loss to Frankfort, WL closed by winning 10 of 12, including a five-overtime game against Western. The only losses in the final 12 games came in double overtime at Lafayette Jeff and against Gary Roos-evelt in the regional.

The Red Devils claimed the sectional title by aveng-ing a regular season loss to Frankfort with a 43-40 win at Case Arena.


Tudor Waters

See DEVILS, Page 11


WEST LAFAYETTE RED DEVILS

OUTLOOKDue to the success of West

Lafayette’s football team in the state tournament, the basket-ball team will begin the year with eight players.

“I feel like Gene Hack-man in the movie ‘Hoosiers,’ ”

Wood said. But when the defending

sectional champions get back to full force, Wood’s squad has a lot of returning talent.

“We have a chance to be much better at the end than we are at the beginning and that is a really good thing,” Wood said.


DEVILSFROM PAGE 10


George Zhang (left) battles Jordan Leturgez during practice.

j&c hoops classic (boys)

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