By Brennan Stebbins (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Joplin’s girls basketball team got off to a 2-3 start last season before losing senior Brynn Driver, the team’s leading scorer, to a season-ending injury.
The Eagles only won two more games after that and finished with a 4-23 record.
“That really hurt us,” head coach Brad Cox said. “She was the one that could get the ball down the court. Our team came together and we found out what we needed to get better at and we’ve worked extremely hard this offseason. I really think last season motivated us and I think you’ll see us much improved this year.”
Cox, who’s entering his second year at the helm, has noticed increased excitement around the program this year. About 50 girls have expressed interest in playing, and Joplin will field full squads at the freshman, junior varsity and varsity level.
“The excitement makes me feel good as a coach that more girls want to come be a part of our program,” he said. “We try to create a really good environment for the girls at our practices and we understand where we’re at. We’re not the greatest basketball players in the world right now but we’re getting a lot better very quickly. It’s a comfortable place for the girls to know they can come get better. If you create a good environment for kids and of course hold them accountable and have them work hard, more kids will want to be in that environment and word of mouth spreads around the school.”
The Eagles return two starters from last season: sophomore Alissa Owens and junior Riley Kelly. Owens averaged 5.2 points per game as a freshman along with 3.9 rebounds and an assist and a steal. Kelly averaged 3.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and one steal.
“Alissa started the majority of our games her freshman year and I’ve probably seen the most growth out of her,” Cox said. “She’s going to be a pretty special player by the time she’s done here at Joplin. Riley is a girl who can play 1-5 for us. She can knock down shots, she’s tough, she’ll play great defense and be a very valuable piece to our team this year. Alissa will probably be a three guard but she can play guard and forward. She’s got a guard skill set but she’s not afraid to go inside, either.”
Other returners include senior Ashley Phillips (1.5 PPG, 1.3 REB), who appeared in 26 games last year; senior Bailey Owens (1.1 PPG, 1.8 REB), who appeared in 24; junior Isabella Cruse, who played in 14 games; junior Aiyana Kroll, who played in 12 games; senior Claire Jasper, who played in 12 games; sophomore Ava Wolf, who saw action in two games; and sophomore Solei Parker, who played in two games.
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“Ashley has worked really hard to improve her game and she’s going to be a senior leader to help guide us and hold girls accountable,” Cox said. “We’ll rely on her defense and outside shooting. She’s a pretty good shooter from beyond the arc. Bailey is Alissa’s sister and it’s her second year playing basketball. She’s an exceptional volleyball player and probably one of the most athletic girls I’ve ever met. She has an incredible vertical and finishes well around the rim. She stands 6-0 or 6-1 and just super athletic. Isabella is a guard who can slash and knock down some shots for us. I’m really excited about her. Aiyana is another girl that really came along last year and she has the ability to play inside and outside and is very athletic. Claire is a senior post who does a great job defending the post and she’s a force to be reckoned with down low. Ava is such a hard worker and has a knack for finding the ball and getting rebounds and put-backs. I’m really excited about her. Solei I see possibly working her way up to being a point guard for us and kind of a floor general. She’s been working extremely hard.”
Sophomore Brylee Strickland, who Cox said is “super athletic and one of the fastest girls in the state,” could also be a contributor and can cause problems for opponents on both ends of the floor. Junior Kadence Lawson will also have an opportunity to play, as will junior Kelly Kumbier.
Cox said the team’s strength will be its defense, and the Eagles are transitioning from a zone to a man-to-man system.
“We tried zone last year and we figured out we’re more of a man-to-man team so we’re going to hang our hat on that,” he said. “The question mark will be after losing Brynn Driver, our point guard, we really struggled having someone out there at the point and how do you break a man press when you don’t have a pure point guard? It’s hard to do that sometimes. We’ve been really working hard on ball handling and defense. One area we have to improve on is our ball handling for sure.”
Joplin will play in the Monett jamboree on Nov. 14, and opens the regular season at Mt. Vernon (Nov. 21) and at Pittsburg (Dec. 1) before hosting the Freeman Lady Eagle Classic Dec. 7-9. The Eagles have added Monett, Aurora, Seneca and Glendale to the schedule.
