Prep boys basketball: Season preview

High school boys basketball squads are off and running as they reach the midpoint of the 2022-23 season’s first month.

Below is an in-depth look at the local boys basketball scene:

WESCO 4A

COACHES POLL

The predicted order of finish as voted on by the league’s coaches. Included are the average points per vote, with first-place votes in parentheses.

1. Jackson (3) — 1.25

T2. Kamiak (1) — 3

T2. Mariner (1) — 3

T2. Lake Stevens — 3

5. Glacier Peak — 3.75

Note: Coaches were not allowed to vote of their own team.

FAVORITE

Jackson

The Timberwolves were a top contender in a wide-open Wesco 4A last season and spent time in ranked in the state’s top-10 during a 9-1 start, but a four-game slide to end the regular season dashed their title hopes and led to a 2-6 finish in conference play. Jackson ultimately finished fourth in the five-team league and entered the Wes-King Bi-District tournament with the 10th and final seed. The team took advantage of the opportunity and bounced back with three wins in the bi-district tournament to earn its third straight state regionals berth, finishing the season 13-9. The Timberwolves return seven players from last year’s squad with senior Sylas Williams leading the way. The 6-foot-7 standout averaged 18 points and 14 rebounds and was the only non-senior named to The Herald’s All-Area first team. He’s had a terrific start to his senior season with 27 points against Meadowdale, 30 points versus Mark Morris and 20 points and 16 rebounds against Mount Tahoma. Senior Harris Kampe, a 6-foot-3 guard, reached double figures in each of Jackson’s first two games and adds to an experienced group that features seven seniors. He averaged seven points and two assists last season. Jackson also sports plenty of size on its roster with eight players listed at 6-foot-3 or taller, including three at 6-7. The Timberwolves are 3-1 with a victory over 2A state regional qualifier Mark Morris.

CONTENDERS

Kamiak

The Knights appear ready to challenge in Wesco 4A after finishing in last place a season ago with a 2-6 record in league play. However, the Kamiak wasn’t a typical bottom-of-the-league team last season as it went 9-8 overall and even held a non-league win over eventual Wesco 3A/2A champion Arlington. The Knights welcome back 6-foot-5 senior swingman Josiah Pierre, a first-team all-league pick who averaged 18 points and five rebounds, and a strong group of experienced varsity players. Senior point guard Jaytin Hara, a three-year captain, shot 48% from 3-point range while averaging six points and three assists last season. Senior forward Chance Loudenback, a University of Army rugby commit, adds a physical presence down low. He posted six points, four rebounds and two steals per game as a junior. He’s upped his scoring average to 11.5 through the first two games of his senior campaign. The Knights also expect to get some added contributions from junior guard Elijah Pierre, a new addition from the junior-varsity team. Kamiak is 1-1 after playing a pair of one-point games, which includes a buzzer-beater by Josiah Pierre to beat Wesco 3A/2A contender Everett.

Mariner

The Marauders have been the team to beat in recent years with a combined 22-5 record against Wesco 4A opponents over the previous three seasons, and they were the only squad from the league to reach the Tacoma Dome last season. But Mariner is tasked with replacing four seniors from its 16-10 squad, including all-league picks Naser Motley, Tijan Saine and Dakota Joseph, who all played key roles for the team for multiple seasons. The Marauders return a trio of impact players with varsity experience in seniors Jailin Johnson and Makai Bloomfield and junior Isaiah Cuellar. Johnson, a four-year starting point guard who averaged 15 points and five rebounds last season, and Cuellar, who averaged 9.5 points, lead the backcourt. Bloomfield, a 6-foot-3 forward, paces the frontcourt and averaged 11 points. Coach Tevin Dillon said his squad, which features just two players above 6-foot, is a “scrappy” and “hard-working group” with a mix of youth and experience. Mariner opened the season with a victory over Wesco 3A/2A favorite Shorecrest but followed with three straight losses. The Marauders entered Tuesday 1-3.

Lake Stevens

Lake Stevens recovered from a slow start last season and delivered an impressive run of three straight wins over Jackson (twice) and Glacier Peak that pushed the team into the bi-district tournament. The Vikings, who finished 9-11, are under new leadership with Lake Stevens alum Alex Iverson taking over for longtime coach Mark Hein. Iverson led the Stanwood girls program to a sixth-place finish at the 3A state tournament last season. Iverson inherits a squad that features plenty of new faces with just three varsity players returning. Lake Stevens is led by sharpshooting senior guard Maddox Preder, who connected on 40% of his 3-pointers and averaged 15.5 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists last winter. The Vikings are 2-2 this winter with senior guard Marshall Adams providing a breakout performance with 29 points in a win over Burlington-Edison.

WESCO 3A/2A

COACHES POLL

The predicted order of finish as voted on by the league’s coaches. Included are the average points per vote, with first-place votes in parentheses.

1. Shorecrest (9) — 1.8

2. Mountlake Terrace (2) — 2.4

3. Arlington — 3.3

4. Stanwood (1) — 3.5

5. Everett (2) — 4.1

6. Marysville Getchell — 6.4

7. Monroe — 7.5

8. Cascade — 8.6

9. Snohomish — 8.9

10. Archbishop Murphy — 9.2

11. Cedarcrest — 9.8

12. Edmonds-Woodway — 10.3

13. Marysville Pilchuck — 11.7

14. Shorewood — 12.8

T15. Lynnwood — 13.5

T15. Meadowdale — 13.5

Note: Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team. Two coaches did not participate in the voting.

FAVORITE

Shorecrest

The Scots went 20-5 and qualified for a 3A state regionals play-in game last season. Shorecrest ripped through Wesco 3A/2A on its way while averaging a league-best 71.7 points and winning 13 games by an average of 23.6 points, but two losses by a combined four points kept Shorecrest from claiming its first league title since 2016. Parker Baumann, a 6-foot-6 forward, leads a senior-heavy group for the Scots. He averaged 20 points, nine rebounds, four assists and was a second-team All-Area selection. Shorecrest has a massive void to fill in the backcourt after graduating star point guard Elijah Johnson, a first-team All-Area selection, but that transition should be eased a bit by the addition of junior Anthony Najera. The Marysville Pilchuck transfer earned second-team all-league honors for the Tomahawks last season. Shorecrest stumbled out of the gates with losses to defending Wesco 4A champion Mariner and Wesco 3A/2A contender Stanwood, the latter of which could be costly later on in what should be a tight race in Wesco 3A/2A. But the Scots have responded with a pair of wins to even their record at 2-2.

CONTENDERS

Mountlake Terrace

The Hawks carried the torch for Wesco boys basketball teams last March with a sixth-place finish at the 3A Hardwood Classic. Terrace, which went 19-4 and won the 3A District 1 tournament, was one of just three Snohomish County boys squads to advance to their respective Hardwood Classic and the only to win a game after doing so. The Hawks graduated a strong six-man senior class, which includes the steady hand of first-team All-Area pick Jeffrey Anyimah, but figure to be right back in the thick of the Wesco 3A/2A title hunt. High-motor junior forward Zaveon Jones leads a solid core of returning varsity talent. He played particularly well down the stretch last season and averaged 18.0 points and 6.3 rebounds on his way to a first-team all-tournament selection at the Hardwood Classic. Senior guard Chris Meegan and junior guard Jaxon Dubiel return as key pieces on the perimeter around Jones. The trio is averaging a combined 48.5 points through Terrace’s first four games. The Hawks, who entered Tuesday 2-2, recently earned a signature non-league win over 1A powerhouse King’s.

Arlington

The Eagles went 18-6 and 13-1 in league play on their way to winning the Wesco 3A/2A crown last season, the team’s first conference title since winning a Wesco 4A North championship in 2014. Arlington reached the state regionals for the third time in the past four postseasons but couldn’t quite break through for its first trip to the Tacoma Dome since 2013. The Eagles graduated a whopping nine seniors from a season ago, including Wesco 3A/2A Player of the Year and first-team All-Area pick Ethan Martin. Senior David Zachman is the team’s leading returning scorer. The 6-foot-6 center averaged 10.4 points and 6.4 rebounds last season. In total, Arlington is tasked with replacing 76.1% of its scoring from a season ago. But the Eagles have shown they’re ready to supplement that production with a balanced attack early on this winter. Four different players entered Tuesday averaging at least 9.8 points during a 3-1 start with 13.8 points from Zachman to lead the way. Silas Miller, Leyton Martin and Zachman have each scored 20 points or more once, including eight 3-pointers during a 26-point effort from Miller in a win over Camas.

Stanwood

The Spartans were the only Wesco 3A/2A team to beat league champion Arlington during the regular season last winter and posted a 14-8 record. Stanwood made it to the district semifinals but failed to punch its ticket to the state regionals with back-to-back losses in qualifying games. The Spartans welcome back three key contributors around the perimeter in senior Owen Thayer and juniors John Floyd and Max Mayo. Floyd, who averaged 12.5 points and four rebounds as a sophomore, eclipsed 20 points in two of Stanwood’s first four games and entered Tuesday averaging a team-best 19.8 points. The Spartans hold the biggest win for a Wesco 3A/2A squad in the opening weeks with a 59-57 victory over league favorite Shorecrest. Stanwood reached the state regionals in seven straight seasons from 2013-19 and is in search of its first trip to the Hardwood Classic since taking fourth in 2017. The Spartans were 4-0 heading in to an important league tilt with fellow contender Mountlake Terrace on Tuesday night.

Everett

The Seagulls appear ready to rise to the top of the pack after an 11-10 campaign that ended a run of four consecutive losing seasons. Everett brings back a trio of starters who averaged double-digit scoring and six varsity players overall. The Seagulls’ backcourt is led by senior Daniel Savovic and junior Isaiah White. Savovic, a point guard, was a first-team all-league selection and averaged 16.4 points, five rebounds and 2.9 assists. White, a 6-foot-4 combo guard, provided 14.7 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists. Senior Hayden Conaxis, a 6-foot-7 swingman, added another 12.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.7 blocks. Everett also welcomes the services of 6-foot-5 junior wing Mo Jaiteh, an inside-out threat who played junior varsity last season due to transfer rules. The Seagulls, who last reached the state tournament in 2000, suffered three straight losses to start this season, but have bounced back with a pair of wins to improve to 2-3.

STORYLINES TO WATCH

How does new-look Glacier Peak fare in wide-open Wesco 4A?

Oftentimes the conversation in Wesco 4A starts with the Grizzlies. Since moving up to 4A before the 2016-17 season, GP has won three of five conference titles, made five straight state regionals appearances and four trips to the Tacoma Dome. Although, this may be a bit of a transition year for the Grizzlies, who were picked to finish last in the five-team Wesco 4A. Longtime coach Brian Hunter is taking a year away from the program and assistant Steve McCary has taken over interim head coaching duties this winter. Hunter said he plans to return next season. GP also brings back just two varsity players with the departures including All-Area Player of the Year Bobby Siebers and standout forward Torey Watkins. But it’s also never wise to count out the Grizzlies, who have shown the ability to reload rather than rebuild when graduating many impact players in the past. Sophomore point guard Jo Lee looks to build off a promising freshman season after averaging 10.5 points, three rebounds and three assists. Senior Paxton Bigby figures to take on an expanded role after working his way into the rotation and delivering some strong minutes as a junior. The Grizzlies also should be able to bring some size and physicality to the table with Pac-12 football recruits Cooper Jensen and Trey Leckner, both seniors, joining the squad. GP is off to a 3-1 start and is holding opponents to just 43.3 points per game.

Will someone surprise in Wesco 3A/2A?

Navigating a 16-team league with a 15-game, round-robin schedule is tough for any team, even a clear favorite. The room for error is slight when a loss in the opening weeks of the season could end up being the tiebreaker that decides who wins the league championship or who gets a more favorable seed at the district tournament. But the sheer volume of teams in Wesco 3A/2A also means there’s plenty of candidates to break out and unexpectedly challenge for a conference crown or a top district seed. With 11 teams in Wesco 3A/2A already suffering a league loss, including three of the top five in the coaches poll, it’s shaping up to be a wild race in the conference. Marysville Getchell has put its best foot forward with a 5-0 start and 2-0 record in conference play. The Chargers picked up a key win over Mountlake Terrace last week and have a chance to really cement themselves this Friday when they face Shorecrest. Snohomish has also made some noise early this season under new coach Jeff Larson. The Panthers picked up their first-ever win against crosstown rival Glacier Peak in a non-league game to open the season, ending a seven-game skid against the Grizzlies, and delivered one Wesco 3A/2A’s biggest early upsets by topping Everett. Monroe and Cascade figure to be in the mix for breakout candidates as well. Monroe is unbeaten through three games and 2-0 in league play. The Bearcats will be tested down the stretch with a loaded back half of their schedule. Cascade ended last season red-hot and finished just one win shy of a state regionals berth. The Bruins are 4-1 overall and 1-1 in Wesco 3A/2A, with the lone loss coming to contender Stanwood after taking a lead into the fourth quarter.

Is it Sultan’s time to shine in the Emerald Sound Conference’s Coho Division?

Over the past two seasons, the Sultan girls program greatly benefited from the tiered-league system used by the Emerald Sound Conference. The Turks won back-to-back titles in the 1A conference’s lower-tier Coho Division, which led to a promotion to the upper-tier Chinook Division this season. After finishing 14-9 and falling only one win shy of a state regionals appearance last season, the Sultan boys could be ready to follow suit. The Turks entered Tuesday 4-0 overall and 2-0 in Coho Division play, recently knocking off 2B state qualifier Coupeville in overtime. Sultan is led by junior guards Toby Trichler and Eli Trichler. Toby Trichler is averaging 21.8 points per game and has reached at least 21 points in all four of Sultan’s games. Eli Trichler has added another 18.8 points per game. The Turks’ top challenger in the Coho Division is defending champion Eastside Prep, which has won both its league games this winter by an average of 37 points.