By Chris Parker
Courtney Roth takes over the Sarcoxie boys basketball program this year. He enters his fourth year as a head coach. He inherits a team that finished 7-16 last year.
Two starters graduated from that team.
Roth expects seniors Terio Asterio and Tyler Cupp along with junior Jaron Malotte to be team leaders. Malotte will miss some games early in the season recovering from a football injury. He was the most productive of that group last year with 7.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3 assists per game.
Roth on Malotte: “Jaron will be called upon to be the leader of the team this year and pick up more of the scoring left behind by Misner. Jaron is recovering from a broken arm sustained in Week 6 of the football season. Jaron is our most versatile and skilled player.”
Roth on Asterio: “Terio is a great perimeter defender who uses he’s speed and agility to wreak havoc on opposing ball handlers. Terio is a streaky shooter who could drain 3-5 threes on any given night. He will need to grasp our offense and learn how to score efficiently in order for us to stay competitive in conference play. His athletic ceiling is very high.”
Roth on Cupp: “Tyler plays with a high IQ and makes a lot of the right decisions that don’t always show up in the stats. Tyler will be one of our senior leaders.”
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Junior Tyler Hirtz along with sophomores Garret Smith, Blake Heckmaster, Matt Swayne and Dugan Pogue all return after seeing varsity action last year.
Roth on Hirtz: “Hirtz will compete to be one of our top rebounders and shooting percentage leaders. He plays very well close to the rim and competes at a very high energy.”
Roth on Smith: “Garret has a lot of size and athleticism for his age. He will have the opportunity to be one of the team’s top 2-3 scorers and rebounders.”
Roth on Heckmaster: “Blake will see a huge increase in playing time as he’s proven to be a very effective guard both offensively and defensively. He will be competing for a starting position and help our team establish some depth that we did not have last season. Blake is creative and athletic.”
Roth on Swayne: “Matt is a capable scorer from the perimeter and will see an increase in his varsity playing time this season. As his size and playing experience increases so will his contributions to the team’s production.”
Roth on Pogue: “Dugan is a fierce competitor who will eventually have a strong presence around the rim. He will be competing for valuable varsity time off the bench this season.”
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Chris McGriff will be a junior newcomer to watch.
“Chris is a late bloomer to basketball but has a unique offensive skill set that can be a huge asset to the team,” Roth said. “He will be competing for a lot of playing time and potentially some starts.”
Sarcoxie will travel to McAuley Catholic on Nov. 15 for a jamboree with College Heights, Marionville and McAuley Catholic. The Bears will open the regular season Nov. 29-Dec. 4 at the Diamond Tournament.
