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| PHCC men's basketball |
Members of the PHCC men’s basketball team are (front row, from left): Ross Williams, Nick Goforth, Darius Echols, assistant coach Marvin Wimbush, Head Coach Kenneth Wade, Student Assistant Leroy Ellington, Christian Jones, Joshua McGill, Devonte Davis, (second row, from left) Rafael Christian, Thomas Scott, Sterling Martin, Marcus Johnson, Anthony Jones, Tonneiko Robinson, Hunter Cullen and Todd Manly. (Kenny Webster photo) |
Sunday, November 1, 2009
By JOHNNY BUCK - Bulletin Staff Writer
The men’s basketball team at Patrick Henry Community College exceeded expectations last year by winning a Region X title and ranking as high as No. 11 in the national polls.
It was quite the debut for a program in its first season as a member of National Junior College Athletic Association, and it may be tough to recreate.
First-year head coach Kenny Wade was promoted from assistant after Chuck Moore left during the offseason, and only one player is back from last year’s team, which finished with a 24-6 record.
Still, Wade isn’t trying to lower expectations for the Patriots.
As he put it, “I don’t ever like to say ‘rebuilding.’ I like to say ‘reloading.’
“There were some high expectations from last year, and they’re gonna be placed on me this year, but with one guy returning, sometimes that can be good and sometimes that can be bad,” he continued. “I am a new coach, and I’m trying to lay the foundation of my program down with this set of guys.”
Bassett High School graduate Josh McGill is the only returning player from last season’s team, which was upset in the first round of the Region X Tournament after going unbeaten in regional play during the regular season.
McGill averaged almost nine points and five rebounds per game last winter, meaning Wade needs to replace about 91 percent of the scoring and 87 percent of the rebounding from the 2008 team.
He’s hoping an athletic, though slightly undersized, recruiting class will help in that regard.
“We’re still going to be a very up-tempo team,” he explained. “We’re going to try to push it as much as possible, but we’re going to try to stay in control.”
Point guard Darius Echols will guide the Patriots’ attack this season. The 5-foot-10 Echols, who graduated from Carlisle School in May, plays much bigger than his size, according to Wade.
“He’s a special player. He’s got the heart of a lion,” said the head coach. “He’s going to be a really good leader for us. I expect him to contribute major minutes to this team and lead this basketball team from the point guard slot.”
Nick Goforth is expected to start at shooting guard, where the 2008 Bassett High School graduate can be a perimeter scoring threat.
“Nick is the type of kid who can shoot the lights out of the ball. He’s an exceptional shooter,” said Wade of the 6-foot freshman who enrolled at the school and began practicing with PHCC in January. “He’s really picked it up on the defensive end of the court, and he’s also going to surprise a lot of people with his ability to get to basket.”
McGill will man the combo guard/forward spot, and he’s already stepping into the leadership role that’s expected of him.
“We can be good. If we work together and do what coach Wade says, we should do what we did last year and come out on top,” said McGill.
Sterling Martin and Taneiko Robinson will man the forward spots, and though both are somewhat undersized, Wade is hoping their versatility and athleticism will lead to mismatches as the Patriots push the tempo.
Martin (6-6, Richmond) won the team’s 3-point contest earlier this month. He played for Meadowbrook High School last year.
“Sterling can step out and knock that 3-pointer down consistently,” said Wade. “Right now, we’re working on developing him in the post to where he can have an inside-outside game.”
A season ago, Robinson (6-7, Culpeper) played shooting guard at Palomar College in San Diego, Calif., where he averaged 5.9 points and 5.6 assists per game before transferring to PHCC this fall. This year, he’ll be asked to battle in the post with the opposing center.
Wade said his team will play primarily man-to-man defense and try to deny the ball’s entry to the post against bigger centers.
“With our quickness, its’ going to be hard for him to get it in the post because of our style, and the way we’re going to play it,” said Wade. “If the guards can’t get it in the post, then (a big center is) ineffective.”
Like McGill, Robinson thinks this year’s Patriot team has the makings of a quality squad.
“We’ve got plenty of athletes. We’ve got the makings to be a great team,” he said. “We could do a lot with this team as long as everybody buys into what the coaches are saying.”
This year’s roster has 14 players. Wade expected Ross Williams (6-3 guard, Bealton, Seward County CC), Devonte Davis (6-2 guard, Roberta, Ga., Saint Francis School) and Thomas Scott (6-4 forward, Newport News, Woodside High) to contribute off the bench immediately.
Marvin Wimbush will serve as the Patriots’ assistant. He has coaching experience with Dan River, Chatham and Gretna high schools, according to Wade.
PHCC will tip off its season at home against Masanutten Military Academy at 7 p.m. Wednesday. |
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