New season and a few new coaches for the small-school boys teams

By JASON VIOX\Daily Journal Sports Writer

This basketball season will have four new head coaches on the boys side of the small-school conference. Chad Mills of the West County Bulldogs and Eric Thompson of the Valley Vikings will return for another year as head coach. Bismarck, Arcadia Valley, Kingston, and Valle will all have head coaches entering their first year.

The West County Bulldogs found plenty of success last season. They were conference champs, district runner-ups, and finished with a record of 25-4. West County lost two seniors, including John Barnett, who broke the high school's career scoring record. The Bulldogs will have a few experienced players coming back for their senior year.

Seniors Sam Luebbers and Chris Mosier will get plenty of playing time for West County this season. Brandon Dane and Jordan Miller are also seniors who saw some varsity playing time last year, and will probably get some more this season. Junior Travis Graham received all-conference honors as a sophomore last season, and will take the floor this year. Sophomores Terry Moore and Corey Whelehon will also get plenty of varsity action.

Many teams in the conference view West County as the team to beat, so coach Mills and his team of Bulldogs will have their work cut out for them. “We're just going to try to go out and win that thing every year,” commented Mills. “We lace it up and go, but it's never going to be easy.”

The Arcadia Valley Tigers broke even at 12-12 last season and tied with Bismarck at 7-3 in conference play. Former head coach Lance Sprenkel became principle of the high school which opened a spot for the head coaching job. That gap will be filled by Mike Key.

Key came to Arcadia Valley from Milwaukee, Wisconsin to become head coach of the Tigers. Key coached a successful NAIA division II school for several years, so he hopes to put some of that experience to good use.

Junior Logan Smith has earned a point guard spot for the Tigers. Seniors Abe Warren and Jack Franklin will get plenty of floor time for the Tigers. Jake Yarbrough and Nic Benz are seniors who will play the post quite a bit. Senior Walter Spitzmiller and sophomore Derek Wilson will get some playing time as well.

The Tigers will have a better chance of success once they understand Key's coaching program. Arcadia Valley will also hurdle several obstacles over the course of the year. “We need to work on overcoming adversity a little better,” stated Key

The Valley Vikings basketball squad won only seven games last season. However, with only one player lost due to graduation, the senior-loaded and experienced Vikings will attempt to have a successful season. Coach Thompson is back for a second season as head coach for Valley.

Michael Dodd is the tallest out of all five seniors at 6'4, so he has an advantage in pulling down rebounds and could possibly end up playing in the post. Tyler Green, Kristopher Kearns, Jake Smith, and Curtis Price are the remaining seniors who will see plenty of action this year.

Valley also has a new addition to the coaching staff. Tom Wadell previously coached at Manor, Arkansas for several years and has found plenty of success. Wadell will add some depth to the Vikings program as assistant coach. “I just want us to do well and I'm not that concerned that he knows more than me,” commented Thompson. “He should know more than me. He's been at it longer and that's why I got him.”

The Bismarck Indians ended last season with a record of 14-12. Although the Indians lost a few skilled players, some experienced athletes are returning for this season. Jamey Bell is taking over the head-coaching duties for Bismarck.

Bell coached at Bunker the past two years, and he also coached at Ellington before he went to Bunker. Bell began his coaching career at Oran.

Mike Franklin had plenty of playing time as a sophomore last season. He will play as point guard for the Indians. Junior Matt Dunlap will also get some playing time as well. Senior Tyler Henson has found success in his shooting ability, and junior Tim Lincoln has earned a spot as a guard.

Coach Bell has been impressed with his team's speed. “Even our big guys have some speed,” stated Bell. “We've got decent quickness. We're trying to get out and guard the floor a little more.”

Just like some of the other teams in the conference, the Indians will have to adjust to a new coaching style. “Anytime you put in a new system, which we are, the guys are set in some ways, but at the same time they're willing to open up and take in anything I had to put in,” commented Bell. “I know they played a lot of zone last year and we won't play as much as that, but we may have to fall back on it.”

The Valle Warriors had only four victories last year. Valle will hope to return a much-experienced team since they lost only one player due to graduation. Kyle Marquart will be the new head coach for the Warriors.

Senior Sean Odneal received all-conference honors last season, and will look forward to leading Valle to a successful basketball season. Seniors Brad Sexauer and Dan Rozier will both get an ample amount of playing time. Several underclassmen will likely receive valuable experience throughout this season.

“We want to be able to handle the ball well and be in good condition,” Marquart said about his team. “We're going to work on our fundamentals. We're not going to be a real fancy ball club. We're going to come out and try to do things right fundamentally, and if we can get that done I think we're going to see some success.”

The Kingston Cougars basketball program has struggled over the past few years. Kingston has not won a game over the past few seasons, but first-year Ethan Evans hopes to fix that. One of the biggest challenges Evans will face is the task to change the team's mentality and outlook of this basketball squad.

Sophomore Nathan Boyer and junior Larry Lemons will take the floor for the Cougars. They will be joined by Brandon Merceal, Daniel Hahn, and Gary Decker.

“We're just trying to keep us competitive in every game,” commented Evans. “Our numbers are way up from the last couple of years. Hopefully our defense is going to carry us through.”

Most of the teams will kick off their season on Monday.