Men’s and women’s young basketball teams prepare for new season

Men’s Basketball

The men’s basketball team will be different this year in a good way, according to Head Coach Geoff Gibor.

Gibor said this year’s team is stacked with talent, though the players are young.

“We have a high ceiling this year, as far as talent. We have a young team, only two returning players from last season. But the new guys have picked up things quickly, they work hard and have a high basketball I.Q.,” said Gibor.

Last season the team finished fifth in the NWWACC playoffs, and first in the South Region with a record of 12-2 and an overall record of 24-8.

Asked how far he thinks this year’s team can go, Gibor said, “I think we can get pretty far this season and have a good year.

“These guys already have good chemistry and as the year goes on it will only get better,” he said.

Gibor expects Colby Mitchell, Mac Johnson and Landon Rushton to have a big impact this season and to be leaders. Mitchell is one of two returning players.

“Colby is athletic, tough, hard, and has good leadership skills,” said Gibor.

The team had its first scrimmage Oct. 24 against Warner Pacific.

“We played well, I thought. We still have a lot to learn, but we are a young team and it will take time but I have confidence in them,” said Gibor.

The team plans on running an up-tempo offense this season.

“Our players are athletic and have toughness and great discipline,” said Gibor. “Our team is young and developing but they do have a lot of sense on the court. We plan on creating excitement for everyone who comes to the games this year.”

The team has 16 players on the roster this season. Two will be redshirting and will sit out the season.

“We don’t have as much depth as we did last season with our post players, but we make it up with our deep backcourt,” said Gibor.

Coming up Saturday, the team heads to Oregon City for a jamboree tournament from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. On Wednesday at 4 p.m., the team has a scrimmage against Portland Bible at MHCC.

The team will attend its final tournament before the regular season Nov. 23-25 in Longview, Wash., for the Red Devil Classic.

The team opens its regular season Nov. 30 against Walla Walla Community College in Washington.

 

Women’s Basketball

The women’s basketball team has a new look and increased athleticism, and is ready to take on the new season.

An aggressive approach will be the key to a successful year, said head women’s basketball coach Jocelyn McIntire.

“We will definitely be looking to push the ball offensively as well as increasing the pressure we apply defensively,” she said.

“I have always been a believer in having a balanced attack. I want to push the ball every time down the court, but if we can’t get a quick, easy, high percentage shot, then we need to be able to run a half court offense and be patient for a good shot.”

This season the team has 15 players, with only four returning from last year.

“We have a young, athletic team. I think players Hannah Mocaby, Kelsey Barnes, Sydney Mendanoza, Chanel Celis, and Whitney Warren will play a big role this year and be leaders for our team,” McIntire said.

According to McIntire, having more depth this year will help the team signifi cantly.

“We struggled last year with both numbers and experience. We only started with 10 players, a few got hurt, and that forced many of our players to play in positions that they were not experienced at. With 15 players on the roster, I feel we have much more depth than we did last year so that should help us get some more wins,” she said.

“So far, I think the girls have been getting along very well. Chemistry has been growing bit by bit each week. We are starting to establish whom our starters potentially might be, getting groups to play together and see what they can do. We have some very high-energy players on our team. We just need to make sure we get that energy channeled in the right direction.”

Today, the team has a scrimmage at Lewis and Clark College. They also will scrimmage at home against Lower Columbia Community College at 6 p.m. Thursday, and again at 7 p.m. Nov. 16 at Reed College.