March 13, 2019 at 12:56 p.m.
Howard, Schickert voted Hodag Hoops co-MVPs
Howard, Schickert voted Hodag Hoops co-MVPs
Point guard Junior Howard and forward Bryce Schickert were honored by their teammates Sunday, voted as co-most valuable players for this year's Hodag hoops squad.
Howard was the team's leading scorer - averaging 13.5 points per game during the season - and finished his career with a flurry, scoring 62 points combined in Rhinelander's two playoff games. Schickert was a steady presence inside for Rhinelander. He scored 9.5 points per game and led the team, averaging 4.6 rebounds a contest.
"I think both of these two were incredibly valuable to our team their senior year. They carried us the best that they could," coach Derek Lemmens said during the team's banquet Sunday in the RHS commons.
Not only were Howard and Schickert recognized for their play, they were recognized for their impact on the program as co-recipients of the team's Hodag Award.
"This is the person we feel represents the team in a positive way, on and off the court," Lemmens said. "They're doing their best in school. They're doing what we ask on the court and they're just a positive representative of what we want our culture to be."
Schickert won a third award from his teammates - the team's hustle award.
"This person, you just watch a little clip of a game and he was always giving 100 percent, giving up size," Lemmens said. "We're not a very big team and he really had to do a lot inside. We really relied on him defensively and rebounding."
In all, the Hodags handed out six individual awards, the majority of which were voted on by the players. Ross Skeen was voted the team's most improved player, Payton Johnson earned the Mr. Defense award and senior Patrick Stone won the coaches' award for dedication to the team.
"I'm always have mixed feelings on individual awards because it's a team sport, it's a team game," Lemmens said. "So many people sacrifice so many things for the betterment of the team, sometimes their true ability doesn't always get noticed. But, in these situations, these people really stuck out."
Skeen, who joined Schickert and Howard on the all-Great Northern Conference team, averaged 7.5 points per game for the Hodags and broke into the starting line two thirds of the way through the season. Lemmens pointed to a Jan. 11 game at Antigo, where Skeen scored 16 points off the bench in a Hodag win, as the turning point in the sophomore's year.
"I think if there was a conference most improved, he might have been considered as well. It only took one game, and that was that Antigo game, to get things going," he said. "Once they got going, they got going ... He really, as the year went on just continued to get better and better."
The Hodags went 10-13 on the season, their first sub .500 record since the 2010-11 campaign, and finished tied for fourth in the Great Northern Conference.
"The record wasn't what we wanted it to be but, when you look at what a season entails - the two-a-days that first week, the amount of hours they spend, the amount of Sunday and all the time and effort they pour into a season - win or lose, I hope that everyone understands that these guys gave everything they had," Lemmens said.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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