A look at the Northwest Grizzlies basketball teams
SCHEDULE
December — 2, West; 6, at South; 9, Carroll; 10, Kapaun; 13, Heights.
January — 3, at East; 6, North; 10, at Southeast; 12-14, vs. TBA at Koch Arena; 17, at West (G); 19-21, at Olathe Northwest tournament (B); 26-28, at Free State tournament (G); 24, at West (B); 31, South.
February — 3, at Carroll; 7, at Heights; 14, at Kapaun; 17, East; 21, at North; 23, Southeast.
BOYS
Coach: Bryan Chadwick, third season, 12-31
Last season: 6-16
Top players
Jalen Smith, 6-0, jr., G
Michael Duncan, 6-6, sr., C
Dawson Kohlman, 6-3, sr., F
Jamir Cupps, 5-11, so., G
Javin Dixon, 6-5, jr., F
Chadwick has spent almost as much time during two years on establishing team chemistry as he has on Xs and Os.
The Grizzlies strive to become a tight-knit group away from the court, possibly the first step toward finding cohesion on it.
“We have to build that, because everybody says it but nobody does it like I want it done,” Chadwick said. “It has to be my way. When we created this family atmosphere, it was totally different for them because it was a lot of communication. It’s a lot of time together – it’s eating lunch together, it’s calling everybody or texting everybody on the phone.”
All facets of team-building might be coming to fruition. The young players Chadwick played in his first two seasons have become veterans capable of leading Northwest to victories.
Smith and Duncan both scored in double figures and they, along with other upperclassmen, have the potential to make greater strides.
“It was a blessing and it has been a curse,” Chadwick said. “We had to play Michael when he was a sophomore. We had to play Jalen when he was a freshman. …Now I think we’re going to reap the benefits of it.”
Smith, who averaged 10.4 points, could be primed to become one of the league’s top scorers. Duncan averaged 12.2 points and eight rebounds, but perhaps most telling were his 1.2 blocks after Chadwick challenged his defense.
“He’s that kid, when you tell him he can’t do something, he’s going to force his way to make it happen,” Chadwick said. “He started that when I first got there.”
GIRLS
Coach: Deitric Sanders, third season, 14-28
Last season: 10-11
Top players
Dejanae Arnold, 5-11, jr., F
Ziara Davis, 5-9, jr., G
Jayla Dennis, 5-2, so., G
Madison Surmeier, 5-7, jr., G
Cori Carson, 5-7, jr., G
A sentence that could retain long-term accuracy: Northwest returns all five starters.
None of the Grizzlies’ five returning starters is a senior, so their prospects for extended success seem positive. Arnold, Davis, Dennis, and Surmeier each made honorable-mention All-City League and have a chance to improve upon that status.
Northwest returns seven players overall – five juniors and two sophomores.
“These juniors, they were with me since the first day I was head coach three years ago,” Sanders said. “They’ve all lettered since then. That group has kind of been battle-tested the past couple years. We had some good freshmen that came in last year, so hopefully they’ll kind of gel with each other.”
To contend with teams such as South and Carroll, one of Northwest’s returners may have to become a star, a first-team all-league type. Dennis might be most likely, since she started as a freshman for a team that finished the regular season with a .500 record.
Arnold is another possibility, since at 5-foot-11 she is most certain to create matchup difficulties. If not Dennis or Arnold, though, the Grizzlies have a 1-in-3 chance to hit on another returning starter.
“They’ve all played so well together and they’re familiar with each other,” Sanders said. “They’ve been in varsity situations, they’ve been in games now. Now it’s kind of picking up where we left off last year and seeing what we need to do. We don’t have a lot of size, so we’re going to have to focus on the defense and rebounding side of things.”
Jeffrey Lutz
This story was originally published November 28, 2016 at 6:26 PM with the headline "A look at the Northwest Grizzlies basketball teams."