8
Rutland Herald Winter Sports Guide 2018-2019
Boys Basketball Preview continued from page 6
man, could be shouldering more scoring
load earlier than later. For that reason
the Raiders would like to keep them out
of the point guard’s role, where Lorman
could certainly be a good fi t.
Enter sophomore Evan Pockette,
who showed a lot of poise running the
offense in a scrimmage against Drury,
Massachusetts, and hit a pair of 3s as
well.
“For a sophomore, he’s got good
composure,” said Wood.
The Raiders ran the fl oor well and
were very good at fi nding the open man.
“(Sharing the ball) is a huge point
of emphasis early like it was last year,”
Wood said. “We’ve got a lot of really
good pieces in place but it’s taking
that next step and making sure if we’re
fi nding the open man and getting shots
for everybody.”
Coughlin, who also had a strong
scrimmage, stays active around the paint
on offense and defense, and can change
a lot of shots with his long reach. The
6-foot-3 Evans is a fl ashy inside player
while his outside shooting gives him a
balance that is tough to defend.
The Raiders had a half-dozen players
hit 3s on Saturday, including Pockette
and Alex White with a couple apiece.
Malik Hendrickson, Noah and Alex
White, Ryan Moore and Kyle Del Bianco
could also be seeing regular minutes.
“Everybody brings different things
to the table,” Wood said. “It’s up to us
to put them in the right place to be
successful but it’s up to them to embrace
the roles we set for them.”
Springfi eld
The Cosmos did not go to the 2018
tournament so understandably they
are champing at the bit for this season
to begin, even if the opener is at Fair
Haven on Friday.
“There’s no one I would rather open
against,” said coach Mike Ruppel. “We
always know Bob (Prenevost’s) teams
are well coached and well organized. We
expect them to be one of our biggest
tests. It gives us a chance to see where
we’re at. If we can play with them we can
play with anyone.”
The Cosmos expect a vastly improved
season with three starters and three
of the top scorers back. The Cosmos
looked good in a scrimmage Monday
with Fall Mountain (New Hampshire).
“Our on-ball defense was really good
and when we settled down on offense we
moved the ball well,” the coach said.
One of the key matchups Friday
night will be the Cosmos’ Noah Zierfus,
a third-year varsity player, defending
Slaters’ scoring leader Cam Coloutti.
Both are inside-outside players.
In addition to being their best defen-
sive player, the Cosmos expect Zierfus
to be a guy “who is scoring a bunch for
us. He is a kid we try to create matchup
problems with,” Ruppel said.
Damian Warner moves from point
guard to shooting guard while the key
task of taking good care of the ball falls
to Brendan Drinell, who takes over the
point and has looked good with his
decision making. The Cosmos will have
a motion offense, run some pressure
defense and also try to get up and down
the fl oor.
Rugged Jake Stepler is up from the JVs
after recovering from an injury. “He’s a
big, strong kid. We like his speed and his
rebounding,” said Ruppel.
Colby Downing, the only senior,
brings a good outside shot to the table
and backcourt mate Owen Thibodeau
has a good outside shot and had greatly
improved his defense.
Ruppel says the Cosmos can go 10
deep without losing much in scoring.
“I think they are excited,” Ruppel said.
“We had them everywhere we could go
this summer. Their energy has been
great.”
West Rutland
The Golden Horde managed only one
victory last season, but with nearly the
entire roster back, much better things are
expected at Hinchey Gym this winter.
“They’re working hard and are pretty
excited to get after it,” said second-year
coach Jordan Tolar. “We have a lot com-
ing back for the next couple of years.
ALBERT J. MARRO / STAFF PHOTO
Rutland’s Jacob Lorman playing tough defense during a basketball scrimmage
against Drury, Ma.
The core of the team is staying together.”
Westside’s boys stayed busy with AAU
basketball and other off-season work
and are eager to shake off the mistakes
committed by last year’s very youthful
mix. Much of Westside’s success
hinged on the performance of scorer
Kyle Laughlin and while he’s back,
the Golden Horde will aim to strike a
good offensive balance and drastically
reduce turnovers. Thirty turnovers in a
game was not uncommon last year.
“We hope to cut that in half,” said
Tolar. “It was a little overwhelming last
year facing varsity pressure and handling
the basketball.”
Ryan Smith, Tyler Serrani and Tim
Blanchard are among the prospective
point guards but freshman Levi Petit
could well win the position before the
season is over. He played JV ball as an
eighth-grader last winter.
That would allow Smith, Serrani and
Blanchard to go elsewhere on the fl oor
on a team where versatility is a strength.
Westside’s top eight players are
Smith, Blanchard, Serrani, Laughlin,
Liam Beaulieu, Mike Barrett, Petit and
Ryley Dow.
Tolar thinks Beaulieu will be a force
down low and Dow, who will also play in
the frontcourt, is a good passer who will
have a role in a high-low offense.
“He’s really good at seeing the court,”
the coach said.
“What I want to focus on this year is
ball movement and being able to work
off looks instead of individual play,”
Tolar said. “I think we have some really
good depth and on defense we want to
create pressure and get out and go.”
The Horde opens at Mid-Vermont
Christian on Tuesday.
[email protected]