Team Preview:
In their first season as 5A Southern Idaho Conference members the Columbia Wildcats finishing with a 0-22 record. It was a rough year for the Wildcats to say the least. They struggled taking care of the ball, rebounding, and getting consistent play on a nightly basis. The good thing about these struggles is that they are all fixable. Second year head coach Jeff Hoseley wants his team to put last year behind them and focus on getting better every day.
Offense: The Wildcats will be without Luke Vaarstra this season, who was Columbia’s leading scorer and rebounder. Returning for the Wildcats are sophomore guard, Bret Ashcraft, junior guard, Kaiden Miller, senior post, Colin Rawlings, and senior guard, Nathan Rodriguez. All of these boys bring 5A Varsity experience, and have the ability to be leaders and lead the team in an up-tempo offense Coach Hoseley wants them to run.
Newcomers include sophomore post, Mike David, freshman guard, Jake Poulton, junior guard, Derrick McCandless, and junior guard, Luis Perez. With a mix of returners and newcomers this season Columbia will have many kids that can handle the ball and help increase the pace of the game. Areas the Wildcats would like to see improve are free throw shooting and cutting down on the turnovers.
Defense: Last season, Columbia played a mix of man and zone defenses, and they plan to continue that this year. We want to be better at keeping our opponents off balance by showing them different looks throughout the game. We want our defense to control the game and do better on the glass this season so it can fuel our offense, said head coach Hoseley.
Wrap-Up: The outlook for this season for Columbia is another cloudy one, but they will have increased depth this season and better basketball IQ. If the Wildcats can take care of the ball, stay healthy, and limit second chance points, they should be rewarded with a renewed confidence in themselves to build up their winning column.
GAMES TO WATCH: Columbia has two natural rivals in Nampa and Skyview that they will only play once this season. January 15 they will travel to Nampa. Check the team pages for times.
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