By Jordan Burton (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Waynesville returns one of the best rosters in the Ozark Conference and will now have a new coach as Mike Clutts takes over the program after several years on staff.
He was previously at Belle High School before coming to Waynesville. He’s hoping his familiarity with the program and players will help make the transition even smoother.
“Waynesville is a great school district to work for and when I had the opportunity to come as a football and basketball coach I couldn’t pass up the opportunity,” said Clutts. ” I am fortunate enough that I have a great relationship with my players so I think that will help in creating the buy-in that a coach needs for success. We must continue to build the program from all levels and get buy-in from all the players.”
The Lady Tigers return four starters from last year’s team, including Virginia commit Breona Hurd. The 6-foot-1 wing is a four-star prospect that averaged 27 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.8 steals and 1.3 blocks.
She could surpass 2,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds this winter.
“Bre is a very talented player that leads our team on the court,” said Clutts. “I am expecting her to have a tremendous season and impact on our team.”
Classmate Katlyn Black returns after averaging seven points and four rebounds last year. She’s expected to take another step forward this season.
“Katlyn saw an increase in varsity minutes last year as a junior,” said Clutts. “She will be looked at to provide senior leadership both on and off the floor.”
Sophomore twins Riley & Regan Grosvenor are also back after seeing major minutes as freshmen with Riley averaging five points and five rebounds, while Regan added five points and four rebounds.
“Riley and Regan started all games last year as freshmen and did a great job of working through the challenges of playing varsity basketball,” said Clutts. “We hope to see the tremendous growth from last year continue as the season progresses.”
Sophomores Lauryn Lercher and Madison Mullholland are also expected to see significant minutes this season after coming off the bench last year, with incoming freshman Brooklyn Lercher also showing early promise to see varsity action.
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“I feel that Lauryn and Madison are ready to make the step to full time varsity contributors this year,” said Clutts. “They have great work ethic, and we look forward to seeing the growth that they will show this season as major varsity contributors. We think Brooklyn will give us ball handling stability at the point position and some added depth to our varsity team.”
Clutts expects this group to play a much faster brand of basketball than teams of the past, with tempo and pressure man-to-man defense becoming a staple of his system.
The program hasn’t been over .500 since 2018 and hasn’t won a district title since 2016. This group is eager to be the one that lays the foundation to change the trajectory of Waynesville Basketball.
“We play a very competitive schedule and in a tough conference so we have to compete hard and commit to the defensive end in order to compete with the challenges of our conference and district,” said Clutts.
Waynesville will travel to Marshfield for a jamboree on Nov. 14 before opening the 2023-24 season at Branson’s Battle at the Border on Nov. 30.
