Well, I could say the Ozark Conference is really good, but you already know that. Last year Waynesville and Kickapoo spent much of the season ranked in the top ten of Class 5, Rolla was the most dominant Class 4 squad in Missouri until Brady Petry came along and speaking of those Hornets, Hillcrest was sub .500 in the conference and still made a Final Four run and would have been the Class 4 state champ had Petry not fouled out. Glendale, West Plains and Camdenton were also competitive throughout the season. If you thought that things would change, you’re wrong. The OC returns nearly half of last year’s first-team all-conference selections and nine of 14 second-team picks. The league lost some big names, but don’t expect a less exciting conference race.
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Kickapoo is the favorite, right? How can they not be? Coach Dick Rippee is one of the best in the Ozarks and oh, by the way, did you know the Chiefs have some players? And by some I mean a lot. Junior Jared Ridder is the most highly-touted player in the Ozarks following after a monster summer with Mo-Kan Elite. D-1s love him for his size and ability to shoot the basketball. Classmate Cam Davis also had a tremendous summer and has been seen at a few major campuses for unofficial visits. Seniors Isaac Johnson and Niekie Thomas are two of the most dynamic guards in the Ozarks, especially off the bounce. All four of these guys have the potential to play Division One basketball at some point in the future. We’ll see how that plays out, but the biggest question is can they coexist this year. It seemed at times last year that it was difficult for anyone to find a consistent rhythm because of how loaded Kickapoo was. The Chiefs could experience addition by subtraction this year meaning that more minutes and more touches could help Kickapoo out, despite the loss of an unreal senior class. That JV was unreal last year and Travis Vokolek, Mitch Closser and Michael Fowler will try to legitimize the frontcourt and there are no less than five guards on Kickapoo’s bench that would average 15 a night playing for nearly any other school in the Ozarks. They are deep and they are talented, but it’ll be their hunger and leadership that dictates just how far this team goes.
If you thought Kickapoo won the league last year then you’re only half right. The Chiefs shared the OC title with Rolla, who beat Kickapoo head-to-head, 81-65, but couldn’t get past those pesky Waynesville Tigers, who beat them twice last year. Rolla lost Carter Wands and Kaleb Copeland, but the cupboard is hardly bare with Kobe Wands back to run the show (13 PPG, 3 APG). Coach Mark Miller also brings back a bevy of 3-point shooters in Sam Marshall (41 3s, 39%), Logan Short (42 3s, 40%) and Zach Brown (34 3s, 44%), all of whom will have the opportunity to get up plenty of shots this season; scary basketball with Wands being able to breakdown defense of the dribble and having plenty of people to space the floor and make you pay for helping. Rolla will have enough firepower to give anyone a run on a given night. But, let’s be honest, after a quarterfinal run last year I’m sure Rolla would take an OC title, but the Bulldogs are looking towards March. They should be. With the area and really the state of Missouri continuing to see the most parity in Class 4, Rolla will again be a team to keep an eye on at the state level. The Ozarks has had a Class 4 team play in the last four state championship games.
Waynesville had a roller coaster season last year. Going to the Tournament of Champions is never easy and it was made even more difficult due to Juwan Morgan suffering an injury. From the outside in you look at this team and think that losing a 4-star recruit makes them irrelevant, but that isn’t quite the case. I would be shocked if Waynesville isn’t around the 20-win mark again and competing for conference and district titles. Joe Johnson and Reggie Walker have played a ton of basketball for Chris Pilz at the varsity and both guys, while undersized, have played against elite competition. Both will have to take on more of a scoring role this year without Morgan, but that should be a quick fix, especially for Johnson, an innate scorer. Pilz also returns a pair of senior bigs in 6-foot-7 Cedric Williams and 6-foot-6 Sam Roberts. There may be some early growing pains with role identification, but Pilz is almost as good of a coach as he was a player (he was an elite player, Google him) and with rumors of a 6-foot-8 move-in, don’t feel bad for the Tigers following the Juwan Morgan Era.
Speaking of Class 4, the future of the class is the Glendale Falcons, but could the future be now? Glendale was extremely competitive last year, losing to Bolivar by three and Kickapoo and Waynesville by nine. Garrett Skipworth and Ryan Wester are now playing college basketball, huge losses for Coach Brian McTague, but the fact remains that he returns the most dynamic backcourt offensively in the Ozarks. Guards Jordan Walton and Monty Johal combined to average 26 PPG as freshman and they both looked young. However, neither kid appears to be at a disadvantage after having a big summer. Walton is a big-time shooter and Johal is a big-time scorer. It’ll be interesting to see if they are good enough now to carry a Glendale team that has a few holes to fill.
The rest of the conference is full of talented question marks… Billy Brown is out at Parkview, but Landon Cornish brings an exciting brand of basketball and has a few horses in the stable that could make the transition a successful one immediately. Garrett Cunningham (10 PPG, 5 RPG) showed flashes of greatness to end the season and at 6-foot-6, 230lbs he’s one of the most physically imposing players in the OC. JT Brown and Cameron Satterfield can shoot the basketball and 6-foot-8 freshman Latre Morrison is the future of SPS basketball. Finding a facilitator will dictate just how quickly this team adjusts to what Cornish wants to do… West Plains had a great run last year, but replacing Zach Flippin and Justin Davis will be tough. Senior Chase Riley is one of the most athletic kids in the conference and at 6-foot-4 he has the frame to go with it. He gave Glendale the business in last year’s district semifinal scoring 19 points; he has the tools to be a premier player in the conference. Classmate Zak Adkisson is 6-foot-3 and also has a versatile game. These two can put a tremendous amount of pressure on a defense and if they play at a high level the Zizzers will again be dangerous… Hillcrest is one of the biggest question marks. On paper you would think that the Hornets should be good considering they lost just one player from last year’s Final Four team. But, when you consider that the one guy is Brady Petry, things become a little trickier. Joel Brown takes over for Tomas Brock and he’s no stranger to developing good teams; he’s been on Kickapoo’s bench as an assistant for the last five years. If he can pull the most out of Shahn Clark and Lavell Hale, as well as continue to develop guys like Tim Washington and Cole Pryor, Hillcrest will have Final Four potential… Connor Hicks and Jack Ehrhardt are back for Adam Thornhill. In fact, Lebanon returns its top four starters. Thornhill has been patient in building his program from the ground up. After taking lumps with young kids over the last couple of years, this could be the time that the Jackets start putting it all together… Joplin and Camdenton are a bit of a mystery for me. Camdenton got off to a hot start, but kind of fizzled down the stretch. Bringing Jacob Teichmeier is huge; he will be one of the best players in the OC. Joplin struggled throughout the season under former Mizzou standout Jeff Hafer, but the Eagles have one of the most physically gifted athletes in the Ozarks in senior Darrian Guillory. His talent is undeniable, the question is can he make everyone around him better and help restore Joplin’s basketball legacy.
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Player of the Year: Jared Ridder, Kickapoo – He’s a 6-foot-6 wing and maybe the best shooter in the Ozarks. But, he’s also money in the post and stays on the glass. He also has enough weapons around him that make it nearly impossible to bring help. Kickapoo should win the league and Ridder will likely be the most productive Chief.
Most Improved Player(s): Monty Johal & Jordan Walton, Glendale – Call it a cop out, but I think both guards are in line for monster breakout seasons. McTague runs a player friendly system and Johal and Walton have games that complement each other perfectly; they've also been playing together for the better part of a decade. Johal is a bigger combo guard that can score at all three levels but is best off of the dribble and in transition when he can attack the rim with crafty, Uncle Drew-like finishes. Walton has an excellent handle and is one of the best catch-and-shoot guys in the Ozarks. They will have plenty of touches and shots to put up monster numbers and the natural physical maturation from freshman to sophomore year should allow them to do so.
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Key Games Around the Ozark Conference
Jan. 5: Waynesville at Rolla – Rolla has been counting down the days for this game to come back around. Waynesville beat the Bulldogs in their own tournament championship and the regular-season meeting, ultimately taking away Rolla’s shot at an undefeated conference run. Rolla struggles to matchup with Waynesville’s size and the Tigers will again be huge. Neither team can afford an early conference loss.
Jan. 30: Kickapoo vs. Barstow – This is one of those dream matchups. Barstow is the reigning Class 3 state champ and might have been the best team in Missouri last year, regardless of class. Senior 6-foot-6 Nebraska commit Jeriah Horne leads the attack, but gets plenty of help from fellow D-1 prospects Shea Rush, son of UCLA standout JaRon Rush, and Jacob Gilyard. The Chiefs have several marquee matchups on this year’s schedule and this team will have as much top-end talent as anyone Kickapoo will see outside of the Tournament of Champions.
Feb. 9: Kickapoo vs. Glendale – This is the best basketball rivalry in the Ozarks. Kickapoo has won three of the last four, but Glendale has been competitive despite an obvious talent gap. This game will obviously have Ozark Conference implications, but don’t be surprised to see every local college coach in attendance and maybe some not so local coaches with at least five potential D-1 prospects on the court.
Feb. 16: Waynesville at Parkview – Three days before Waynesville plays Kickapoo, the Tigers will have a trap game at Parkview. Garrett Cunningham is the best post Waynesville will see in conference play and Parkview is one of the only teams in the OC that can physically matchup in the post. Last year Waynesville stumbled against Hillcrest late, costing them a share of the conference championship. Parkview could be the team that breaks Waynesville’s heart this year.
Feb. 16: Rolla at Kickapoo – Kickapoo went to Rolla last year and took it on the chin, costing them an outright OC crown. I’m sure the Chiefs haven’t forgotten that and while both teams have state championship aspirations, the middle of February is a time to be hitting your stride. With two explosive offenses, this will be one of the most exciting games in the conference.
