By Michael Cignoli (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
From an incredible run through the Blue & Gold Tournament to the end of a long district title drought, 2022-23 was a year to remember for the Sparta boys basketball program.
It also has the power to be a transformative one.
Head coach Deric Link said the accomplishments of last winter’s team could benefit the program for years to come — motivating not just the Trojans who will take the court this season, but all of the future Trojans who had the chance to witness it.
“It has a great potential to spark a dream for an elementary student to want to be a Sparta Trojan basketball player and do those similar things,” Link said. “It brought a desire for our younger guys to want to do the same things. I am hopeful that our players learned how hard it is to win at that high of level, how important the tiny details are, how important connecting as a unit is and how much fun it is to play in the atmospheres we were blessed to play in.”
The Trojans return two starters from last season’s 24-6 team, which advanced to the Class 3 quarterfinals before falling to a Thayer squad that went on to place third in the state.
Forward Jacob Lafferty and guard Walker Loveland will be tasked with leading a talented new contingent of Spartans, who are largely inexperienced at the varsity level, as the team moves from the Southwest Central League to the Summit Conference.
The seniors have been impact players since their freshman season, holding de facto leadership roles since their sophomore years. Now, those jobs will be a lot more defined.
“They are tremendous competitors,” Link said. “They hate losing. That attitude is brought every day in practice. They know that if they are not competing in practice, then our team is not getting better. We go as they go. What we need them to do now is emotionally lead us. They will have a new group of guys who have not played a lot of varsity basketball. They will need to show them how to prepare, how to work and how to play at the varsity pace.”
The 6-foot-5 Lafferty averaged a double-double in his junior season, leading the Spartans with 23.3 points and 11.6 rebounds per game. The all-state honoree has 1,612 career points and is fewer than 100 rebounds away from eclipsing the 1,000 mark in his decorated career.
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Lafferty is also the reigning SWCL player of the year, though he won’t have the opportunity to defend that title with Sparta’s conference realignment.
Loveland, a 5-foot-5 point guard, earned all-SWCL honors after averaging 5.4 points and a team-leading 4.2 assists per game.
“He has identified areas of his game he knows that need to be better and has worked hard all summer on those,” Link said. “He knows that what he already does makes us a better basketball team. He is a tremendous leader on and off the court. He will free up others around him to shine in their own way.”
Classmates Mason Letterman and Rowdy Ball also return to Sparta’s lineup, giving the Trojans a four-player senior class.
“Mason is going to bring that competitive gritty edge every night,” Link said. “He is a tough-nosed defender with an ability to get in the paint and create for himself and others. Rowdy has worked extremely hard this offseason to get stronger and better mentally. He has a great ability to shoot the basketball and take care of the ball.”
The duo will see some additional work this season as Sparta works to replace the Class of 2023 — Caden Roller, Dexter Loveland, Kavan Walker and Steven Brown.
“We will not be able to individually replace what they were able to do for us,” Link said of the four graduates. “We are not looking to do that either. This just provides our guys moving into new roles to define who they are going to be.”
Five varsity newcomers — juniors Otis Gilliam, Lee Mayes, Mason Roller and Braylen Luttrull and sophomore Trenton Ingle — will also have the opportunity to thrive in new roles this winter. All are listed as guards.
“I am excited to get a front-row seat to watch this group grow and become their own,” Link said. “I am excited for the memories we have the potential to make.”
The Trojans will travel to Ozark for a November 14 jamboree with the Tigers, Mansfield and Hillcrest. They will open the regular season at the Strafford Invitational Tournament, which begins November 27. Other notable games include a trip to the Twelve Courts of Christmas Tournament in Kansas City and a chance for another storybook run through the Blue & Gold.
“I hope we are known for outworking people (and) playing the game unselfishly,” Link said. “I hope that can be seen by how we play. I want us to be a team people can watch say we are bought in for each other and the betterment of the group.”
