MBB: Bobcats gearing up for league run
during action last week against Overton. (Photo by John Krueger)
After posting a 16-12 season mark and a third-place finish in the District 22-1A race a year ago, Gary boys head basketball coach Tony Wood felt his program had 'turned the corner' and gained some respect in the league. After graduating three seniors off that squad, Wood is looking for his team to fine tune in the next two weeks as it prepares to open up league play this season.
The Bobcats which posted a 7-3 district mark a year ago, will head into battle with what many feel is a wide open playoff chase in 2012. Other than 2011 State finalist Tenaha, which returns all of its players off a 28-10 team and is the odds-on favorite to replace as district champs, the rest of the district could be a 'dog fight' to see which two teams will grab the second and third spots.
Gary entered play this week with an 8-8 season mark and has three games before beginning 22-1A action. The Bobcats travel to Harleton Tuesday night (7:30 p.m.), will host Mount Enterprise on Friday (JV,V - 6 p.m.) and then travel to Douglass next Tuesday (JV,V - 6 p.m.) on their upcoming schedule. The Bobcats' first district game will be against Beckville at home on Jan. 13.
"We were a little rusty coming back from the Christmas break, but I think once we get back on a routine we'll have a chance to get things going before district," said Wood. "I don't feel like we're one of the more experienced team heading into district this year, but if we can get rolling and play on an even keel we'll have a good shot at a playoff spot."
Wood wasn't overjoyed at his team's offense play in the last two games, a 35-24 loss at Zavalla on Dec. 16 and a 44-39 setback to Overton last Thursday.
"We've got to do a better job of taking care of the basketball," the coach stated. "Like other teams, turnovers kill us and we've got to give ourselves a better opportunity to score by taking care of the ball.
"I've also noticed that when we take a day off - or days off for the holiday - we play sluggish and it takes us a while to bounce back. So I think once we get back on a routine where we're playing every Tuesday and Friday we can get into a rhythm. And if we're on a roll we won't be taking any days off to keep it that way."
Another aspect of the team that Wood would like to see sharpened before district is the defensive rebounding.
"Against Overton we didn't do a good job of anticipating. I can't fault the effort of the kids, but defensively we just weren't putting ourselves in the right position before the ball is thrown. In other words we weren't anticipating what they were going to do next. That made us playing a 'step behind' and it hurt us.
"That also hurt us in our defensive rebounding, and Overton killed us on the defensive rebounding in the second half."
Junior Stephen White currently leads Gary in the rebounding department, pulling down 6.9 per game. He has 78 defensive boards and 33 on the offensive end. Senior Connor Coligan is second with 6.5 boards per game, with 35 of his 104 coming on the offensive end. Senior Levi Cohorst is third with 5.2 rebounds a game and sophomore Josh Bowen averages 4.1.
On the offensive end, senior Luke Thornton is the leading scorer for the 'Cats, averaging 10.4 points per contest. He is hitting 41% of his two-point field goals and 71% of his free throws. White is second on the team with an 8.8-points per game average, converting 43% of his two-point field goals. Junior Matt Wood is third on the team in scoring at 7.7 points a game, with Coligan is scoring 6.7 points and Cohorst is scoring 6.4 for the balanced attack.
"We need to work the ball better. Against Overton they took Matt 'out of the game' and, of course, we didn't do a very good job of getting the ball to him," Coach Wood said. "We've got to do a better job of dictating how we run the offense instead of letting our opponent do that."
Wood is averaging 1.9 steals per game for Gary, while the Bobcats, as a team are averaging 17.8 turnovers a contest.
Members of the District 22-1A race include Tenaha, Beckville, Garrison, Timpson, Shelbyville, along with the Bobcats.