By Chris Parker
Seymour bounced back from a nine-win season in 2020-21 with a 19-win campaign last winter. A senior-laden group will look to lead the team past the 20-win plateau for the first time since 2009-10 this season.
Those seniors include Chade Noble, Kason Richards, Dylan Henry, Eli Nunnally and Bill Daily.
Noble earned first-team all-conference honors last season. He averaged 11.2 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.1 steals per game.
“We will rely on him (Noble) to set the tone for us offensively,” said Seymour head coach Chris Hastings. “He has worked extremely hard this offseason to score on all three levels. We expect nothing less than a stellar year from him.”
Richards returns after averaging 5.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.
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“The most well-rounded player on the team. Kason is willing to do whatever the team needs for us to win that night,” Hastings said. “He can guard the other team’s best player while also leading us in many offensive categories as well. He impacts the game in many ways that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet.”
Henry is the team’s second-leading returning scorer. He averaged 8.4 points and 4.4 rebounds per game as a junior.
“We expect Dylan to have a breakout season,” Hastings said. “He will go from a role player to somebody we look to carry us in many games this year. He can score in bunches and does a great job using his length on the defensive end.”
Nunnally brings strong shooting.
“Eli has the ability to shoot the ball from deep which spaces the floor out for others,” Hastings said. “Much improved defender and rebounder that will impact our team heavily down the stretch.”
Daily is a key defender for Seymour.
“(Daily is a) gritty defender who won’t back down from a challenge,” Hastings said. “He brings a toughness to our team that wouldn’t be there without him.”
These five seniors and their experience will be key for Seymour.
“The biggest strength for our team will be our experience,” Hastings said. “Now that they have all played together for a year and know our system things will be a lot smoother. We also have some big game experience under our belt that I hope will carry us into a playoff run.”
Derek Helms (sophomore), Cooper Bunch (senior) and Luke Rasmussen (sophomore) are newcomers to the Seymour varsity team.
Hastings on Helms: “We expect Derek to have a big year for us. He is a guy who can score in bunches while giving us energy on the defensive end with his ability to pick up the other team’s best guard.”
Hastings on Bunch: “Cooper is our utility guy. He is a great defender with the skill set to step outside and hit shots. He will give us some big minutes this year.”
Hastings on Rasmussen: “High energy guy who sets the tone for us defensively.”
Seymour will need to improve its play in the paint on the defensive end to find success this year.
“We will need to improve our interior defense and rebounding,” Hastings said. “We aren’t a very big team so we will have to be able to gang rebound on the defensive end.”
The Tigers open the regular season on Nov. 18 at Niangua.
“We always want to be the team that is playing the hardest each night we step on the floor,” Hastings said. “We will have to balance that with being a well-disciplined and smart ball club.”
