Coming into the 2007-08 season, expectations for the Jackson boys basketball team were somewhat tempered.
The Timberwolves didn’t return a single starter from its district playoff team. The lack of experience hampered Jackson early in the season as the Wolfpack lost five of their first eight games. But what started as a season of uncertainty turned into something far different as the Timberwolves finished 10-6 in league and grabbed the third berth to the district tournament.
Jackson won one of three games in the playoffs and figure to be a top contender next year since most of its players are back.
As a first step toward the 2008-09 season, Jackson played in four weekend tournaments and is scheduled to leave for a team camp at Gonzaga University today, Friday, June 27.
“It’s nice to have some success in the summer. It certainly is not the end all be all,” said Jackson coach Steve Johnson. “We’ve had a lot of guys in and out. Most of the core group of guys have been around for part of it. We’re trying to establish some things defensively in terms of playing hard and aggressive.”
The Wolfpack’s two main losses were Josh Gootee and Danny Oh. The Wolfpack’s three main scorers — Brett Kingma, Ryan Todd and Bryan Koch — are back.
“Those three have played really well in the summer,” Johnson said. “They’re three really good players, three good scorers.”
Kingma averaged 17 points a game during a sensational freshman season in which he earned second-team, all-league recognition. Todd, who was an honorable mention selection, averaged about 12 points, while Koch averaged eight points.
Todd was Jackson’s point guard but Johnson is looking at possibly having multiple players handle the ball next season.
One of the reasons is that Todd, at 6-foot-2, is a good rebounder.
“We were such a short team,” Johnson said. “We’re still really short.”
Kingma has handled the ball more and has done a good job of distributing it to his teammates.
“He set the tone in terms of competing and in terms of defense,” Johnson said. “Brett really shot the ball really well. He’s added the dimension of taking the ball off the dribble. With Koch, we do present some pretty good matchup problems. All three guys can really score.”
Other players who’ve made a solid impression include varsity returners Brandon Rucker, Tyler Cody, Mason Gilchrist and Trevor Bray. Austin O’Keefe, a junior varsity player looking to move up, also has been a contributor.
Jackson will look to Andy Gay, Jackson’s starting quarterback, for rebounds and an inside presence. The 6-4 Gay, who also is busy with football activities, played in the Mount Vernon tournament on May 31-June 1 and was planning to join the rest of his teammates at the Gonzaga camp.
Johnson isn’t quite sure why Jackson teams have generally lacked height but it seems to always be that way,
“We always get good guards, good perimeter players,” Johnson said. “We’ve always lack size.”
As a result, Johnson sees rebounding and interior defense as the areas Jackson will need to focus on the most.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
