By Chris Parker
Neosho boys basketball will have a new look this year after graduating a decorated senior class that included seven of the team’s top eight scorers from last season’s 19-win team.
“They were a very special group,” Neosho head coach Cody Culp said. “The seniors last year meant so much to our program and had worked really hard to get us to the best record we’d had in 20 years. They are all missed.”
Collier Hendricks is the lone returning top eight scorer from last season’s team. The senior averaged 5.3 points per game.
“He (Hendricks) is going to be our best player and can score at all three levels,” Culp said. “He has worked really hard to get his game to where it is at. We are looking forward to the opportunity to get to coach him this year.”
No other returning player saw action in more than 14 varsity games last season or averaged more than 2.1 points per game.
Among the players Culp is looking to for production the varsity level are Colton Southern (senior), Brodie Arthur (junior), Ty Harris (junior), Kanten Smith (junior), Coleman Deines (senior), Kaiden Asberry (sophomore) and Quincy Simpson (junior).
Culp on Southern: “Colton is going to be one of our leaders. He competes at every level of the game and is going to have a great year for us on both ends.”
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Culp on Arthur: “Brodie is a shot maker. He is one of the best shooters in our program and we are expecting big time production from him.”
Culp on Harris: “Ty is a guy that can score in bunches. He has the ability to score a lot of points. He has put in the time this summer to prepare himself for our season.”
Culp on Smith: “Kanten is an absolute bulldog. He goes into every game like it is a fight. We are expecting him to be one of our toughest competitors.”
Culp on Deines: “Coleman is a smart player that will look to hit shots and be a senior leader.”
Culp on Asberry: “Kaiden is a great shooter and has the ability to get teammates the ball and get them a good look. He also has worked really hard to improve his defense so we will task him with being one of our better defenders.”
Culp on Simpson: “Quincy is an athletic kid, and we will look for him to give us minutes playing hard and creating some opportunities for himself.”
Neosho boys basketball opens the regular season on Nov. 30 at Nevada.
“I am really excited for this upcoming season,” Culp said. “After losing seven seniors, we are ready for a fresh start and a new page for Neosho Basketball. We have a great mix of upper and underclassmen. The boys are hungry to prove they are a competitive strong basketball team. We are going to play with a chip on our shoulder and with something to prove every game.”
