November 19, 2018 at 11:35 a.m.
Team preview: RHS boys' basketball
New team, same goals for Hodag hoops
Team preview: RHS boys' basketball
"I think there's no reason we can't be a conference champion and we can't be visiting the sectionals," said coach Derek Lemmens, who is entering his ninth season at the helm of the squad.
In order to reach that goal, the Hodags have some big shoes to fill. All-state forward Owen White is now playing at Michigan Tech and six seniors in total graduated from last year's rotation.
The biggest things the Hodags lack right now, according to Lemmens, are leadership and communication from players who will have to get accustomed quickly to expanded roles. The team opens the season tonight at home against Shawano, and has two more home non-conference contests against Stevens Point and Marshfield before opening the GNC season Dec. 7 at Lakeland.
Lemmens said the team is trying to speed the process along but, ultimately, it's up to the players to establish leadership and communication on the court.
"Everyone's got to take a leadership role. Everyone's got to be communicating and have a sense of urgency," he said. "I'd say if there's one thing that's lacking with this group right now, it's that. It's one of those things that it's got to come from them. I can try, I can yell, I can do those things, but it has to come from them. And, if it doesn't come, we're going to have to accept mediocrity at best."
The Hodags welcome back three players from last year's rotation, including two starters, in seniors Junior Howard, Brock Lieder and Bryce Schickert.
Howard, a 6-foot marksman, averaged 10.7 points per game last year while shooting 42.2 percent from 3-point range. He was the team's third leading scorer last year behind White and Brad Comer, but will take on a larger role this year as the starting point guard and primary scorer.
"Junior, I need him to take an aggressive role," Lemmens said. "Offensively, I need him to kind of be our go-to. He's got to be strong with the ball. We've go to know when the ball's in his hand, that we're going to be safe, and he also has to look to score. Defensively, he has to be there as well. If he's had a flaw in the past, he's kind of lost focus on one end of the floor or the other from time to time. He really needs to be there the entire game."
Both Lieder and Schickert are listed at 6-3 and will be two of the taller players on the roster. Lieder averaged 6.2 points per game last year and figures to be an inside-outside presence. Schickert will be looked upon to fill White's role in the post. Schickert averaged 4.9 points and 2.8 rebounds last year while playing roughly 14 minutes a game in a reserve forward role.
"Bryce, right now, is my best leader, vocally, and he's going to need to be a presence inside," Lemmens noted. "He's going to be undersized and he's not going to have big guys around him. He's going to have to be the guy that's the boss inside, owns the paint and is really our one presence inside."
Beyond those three, it's basically a whole new cast for the Hodags. Juniors Peyton Erikson and Drake Martin were used sparingly on varsity last year while splitting time with the JV squad. Lemmens said Erikson will be looked to in the backcourt and may help take the ball up the floor at times to allow Howard to move to shooting guard. Martin, like Lieder, has the size to post up smaller defenders and the speed to beat larger defenders off the dribble.
Several others are jockeying for spots in the rotation as well.
"Payton Johnson has great defensive intensity and plays hard," Lemmens said. "He just needs to be more confident and strong with the ball. I've got sophomores Quinn Lamers and Ross Skeen that are coming along. They can do things offensively. They both need a lot of work defensively. Then Jason Huseby is playing well. He's hitting the glass and continue to grow."
As for the GNC, Lemmens figures the conference is up for grabs this season. Rhinelander was not the only school in the conference affected by graduation. All five first-team all-conference recipients graduated and there are only five players returning who received some sort of all-GNC recognition last year.
"I think if there's a team that returns the most, it's Mosinee," Lemmens said. "They return some good young guards. They have some nice bigs coming up from their JV that complement them. But all teams took a big hit in terms of star power. We don't have the excuse to say we lost a lot, because all the teams did. It's going to be who can rebuild the fastest to start."
Rhinelander plays only two conference games before the first of the year. The team hopes that a tough non-conference schedule prepares it for a conference push come January and February. The Hodags will once again play every Wisconsin Valley Conference school, except D.C. Everest, along with five non-conference sectional opponents.
"We're playing non-conference games to get ready in the conference and in the tournament," Lemmens said. "We want to see the type of team we are and we want to expose weaknesses. We do that by challenging ourselves and putting good teams on the schedule."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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