WINTER PREVIEW-Knappa Boys Basketball
LEAGUE: Northwest League (2A)
Realignment has done the Loggers few favors. Gone are perennial patsies Vernonia and Neah-Kah-Nie along with a talent-sapped Warrenton team. Riverdale will scare nobody this year, but the Mavericks opted to play up a level at 3A. Portland Adventist is now playing at 3A, but the Cougars are not the scary force they've been in years past. Portland Christian is very scary, but the Royals are obviously focused on championships and elected to stay at 2A when many of their coaches (and most other 2A coaches in the state) would have rather stepped up a level. PC will begin the season ranked number one and Portland Lutheran, which actually has a 1A level enrollment, returns a strong nucleus of talent. De La Salle will also contend for a state tournament berth with Corbett also bringing back a competitive team. Of the newcomers, Nestucca is the most likely to compete with the upper division. This has become a stronger league in boys basketball.
HEAD COACH: Craig Cokley (13th year, 200-112)
ASST COACH: Dana Ferguson (JV), Bryan Lempea, Will Isom
Recent graduate Will Isom joins the bench this year to help coach his younger brothers. Cokley is as upbeat about his team's prospects has he has been in the last five years, but the Loggers will have a challenge to get out of their league playoffs to state.
2005 RECORD:12-16 (6-8 NWL West Division 3rd)
LAST PLAYOFFS: lost to Clatskanie 76-50 in winner-to-state league playoff
LAST LEAGUE TITLE: West champs in '05, NWL champs in '99
CURRENT COLLEGE/PRO ATHLETES:Brian Jackson (NBDL Arkansas Rimrockers), Derek Jacobson (OIT baseball, FR)
KEY GRAUDUATES/LOSSES:Curtis Olds (1st-team NWL), Sean Ferguson (both players 4-year varsity)
RETURNING ALL-STARS: none
Olds and Ferguson both started games as freshman and have made considerable contributions for four years. Also gone is senior guard Brian Anderson, who transferred to Astoria. Anderson, whose career has been plagued by knee injuries, has started in parts of two seasons, but may have come off the bench had he stayed. He will be lucky to see much of the floor in Astoria's deep backcourt
RETURNING STARTERS: Brian Riffe (G, SR), Ryan Isom (G, SR), Steven Bokor (P, 6-1, SR), Gary Aho (P/W, 6-0, JR), Nate West (P, 6-2, JR),
RETURNING LETTERMEN: 6
OTHER KEY RETURNEES: Paul Isom (PG, SR)
The Loggers will try to make the extra step back into the state playoffs with an experienced core of returning players, five of whom started at one time or another. Brian Riffe and Steven Bokor are the most experienced returners. Riffe, an aggressive slashing guard, has improved his outside shot enough to get the green light to fire away when open. Ryan Isom, a deadly 3-point shooter, always has the green light on. Brother Paul Isom will take over the point guard position after showing strong ballhandling and decisionmaking during the Loggers' typically rigorous summer regimen. Steven Bokor, who missed a chunk of last season with academic difficulties, combines with Gary Aho, who also lost a string of games to injury, giving the Loggers a pair of agile, versatile post players. Nate West is a strong 6-2 with an improving shooting stroke and gave the Loggers valuable muscle in the middle after being called up from the J.V. team last year. With some valuable depth in the post, Aho will move to the wing on occasion.
KEY NEWCOMERS:Jesse Moreland (P/W, 6-5, SO)
TEAM STRENGTHS: physically stronger, ability to score, experienced
TEAM WEAKNESSES: free throw shooting
TOP NWL CONTENDERS:PORTLAND CHRISTIAN
TOP 2A CONTENDERS: PORTLAND CHRISTIAN
TOP NWL PLAYERS:ELIJAH MONNES (PC), Daniel Crofoot and Jesse Severson (PC), Matt Dressler, Scotty Burris and Cody Stiller (PLS), Bruce Farrell (DLS)
TOP 2A PLAYERS:MONNES, Daniel Martin (Western Mennonite)
PROJECTED FINISH: strong team will have to contend with tough district
You know this team will compete every night against whatever competition comes its way. That never changes. The changing face of the Northwest League means that rural Knappa will still have to contend with urban private powers Portland Christian, De La Salle and Portland Lutheran and now adds suburban Faith Bible of Hillsboro to the mix. Nestucca will, more than likely, have something to say come playoff time and Corbett will be in contention. This Logger team can run, defend, shoot and rebound, but are they deep and talented enough to crack the top three in the league? Keep an eye on Moreland. At 6-5, he has the ball skills to play on the wing and has his sights set on playing after high school. His emergence could be a wild card in determining Knappa's fate.
COACH COKLEY SAYS: "I think we're going to have a nice team if we continue to improve defensively. But, we'll be fortunate to to get out of our district and whoever gets out of our district as a number two or three, I would imagine would bode pretty well in the crossover stuff."
"If we can win half of our games in the non-league, that's usually a pretty good sign for league play."
Realignment has done the Loggers few favors. Gone are perennial patsies Vernonia and Neah-Kah-Nie along with a talent-sapped Warrenton team. Riverdale will scare nobody this year, but the Mavericks opted to play up a level at 3A. Portland Adventist is now playing at 3A, but the Cougars are not the scary force they've been in years past. Portland Christian is very scary, but the Royals are obviously focused on championships and elected to stay at 2A when many of their coaches (and most other 2A coaches in the state) would have rather stepped up a level. PC will begin the season ranked number one and Portland Lutheran, which actually has a 1A level enrollment, returns a strong nucleus of talent. De La Salle will also contend for a state tournament berth with Corbett also bringing back a competitive team. Of the newcomers, Nestucca is the most likely to compete with the upper division. This has become a stronger league in boys basketball.
HEAD COACH: Craig Cokley (13th year, 200-112)
ASST COACH: Dana Ferguson (JV), Bryan Lempea, Will Isom
Recent graduate Will Isom joins the bench this year to help coach his younger brothers. Cokley is as upbeat about his team's prospects has he has been in the last five years, but the Loggers will have a challenge to get out of their league playoffs to state.
2005 RECORD:12-16 (6-8 NWL West Division 3rd)
LAST PLAYOFFS: lost to Clatskanie 76-50 in winner-to-state league playoff
LAST LEAGUE TITLE: West champs in '05, NWL champs in '99
CURRENT COLLEGE/PRO ATHLETES:Brian Jackson (NBDL Arkansas Rimrockers), Derek Jacobson (OIT baseball, FR)
KEY GRAUDUATES/LOSSES:Curtis Olds (1st-team NWL), Sean Ferguson (both players 4-year varsity)
RETURNING ALL-STARS: none
Olds and Ferguson both started games as freshman and have made considerable contributions for four years. Also gone is senior guard Brian Anderson, who transferred to Astoria. Anderson, whose career has been plagued by knee injuries, has started in parts of two seasons, but may have come off the bench had he stayed. He will be lucky to see much of the floor in Astoria's deep backcourt
RETURNING STARTERS: Brian Riffe (G, SR), Ryan Isom (G, SR), Steven Bokor (P, 6-1, SR), Gary Aho (P/W, 6-0, JR), Nate West (P, 6-2, JR),
RETURNING LETTERMEN: 6
OTHER KEY RETURNEES: Paul Isom (PG, SR)
The Loggers will try to make the extra step back into the state playoffs with an experienced core of returning players, five of whom started at one time or another. Brian Riffe and Steven Bokor are the most experienced returners. Riffe, an aggressive slashing guard, has improved his outside shot enough to get the green light to fire away when open. Ryan Isom, a deadly 3-point shooter, always has the green light on. Brother Paul Isom will take over the point guard position after showing strong ballhandling and decisionmaking during the Loggers' typically rigorous summer regimen. Steven Bokor, who missed a chunk of last season with academic difficulties, combines with Gary Aho, who also lost a string of games to injury, giving the Loggers a pair of agile, versatile post players. Nate West is a strong 6-2 with an improving shooting stroke and gave the Loggers valuable muscle in the middle after being called up from the J.V. team last year. With some valuable depth in the post, Aho will move to the wing on occasion.
KEY NEWCOMERS:Jesse Moreland (P/W, 6-5, SO)
TEAM STRENGTHS: physically stronger, ability to score, experienced
TEAM WEAKNESSES: free throw shooting
TOP NWL CONTENDERS:PORTLAND CHRISTIAN
TOP 2A CONTENDERS: PORTLAND CHRISTIAN
TOP NWL PLAYERS:ELIJAH MONNES (PC), Daniel Crofoot and Jesse Severson (PC), Matt Dressler, Scotty Burris and Cody Stiller (PLS), Bruce Farrell (DLS)
TOP 2A PLAYERS:MONNES, Daniel Martin (Western Mennonite)
PROJECTED FINISH: strong team will have to contend with tough district
You know this team will compete every night against whatever competition comes its way. That never changes. The changing face of the Northwest League means that rural Knappa will still have to contend with urban private powers Portland Christian, De La Salle and Portland Lutheran and now adds suburban Faith Bible of Hillsboro to the mix. Nestucca will, more than likely, have something to say come playoff time and Corbett will be in contention. This Logger team can run, defend, shoot and rebound, but are they deep and talented enough to crack the top three in the league? Keep an eye on Moreland. At 6-5, he has the ball skills to play on the wing and has his sights set on playing after high school. His emergence could be a wild card in determining Knappa's fate.
COACH COKLEY SAYS: "I think we're going to have a nice team if we continue to improve defensively. But, we'll be fortunate to to get out of our district and whoever gets out of our district as a number two or three, I would imagine would bode pretty well in the crossover stuff."
"If we can win half of our games in the non-league, that's usually a pretty good sign for league play."
posted by Matt Richert at 9:28 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home