Guest Woolybugger Report Share Posted December 8, 2003 By CRAIG WORRELL Sports Editor HILLSVILLE –– John Ayers had a hard time saying goodbye to the five seniors who departed from his 2002-03 team. Whether bidding farewell to the class of 2004 will be as emotionally straining remains to be seen, but one thing’s for certain –– it sure will take a lot longer. A two-year maturation process has prospects of paying off with a big year for Carroll County, which will have nine seniors on its 15-man roster, including six with at least three years of varsity experience. “There’s been a lot of review, and not a lot of new stuff,†said Ayers, who enters his fourth year at Carroll County. “And the juniors who are coming up, [the seniors] coach them.†The Cavaliers hoopsters hope to follow the trend set by the Carroll football team this past fall, in which this year’s senior class went 0-10 as sophomores, 5-5 as juniors and 10-2 as seniors. “I think it will help tremendously,†Ayers said. “They took some lumps when they were sophomores and got better as juniors, and they should be pretty good this year.†The curve may even be a little accelerated for this team, which finished 16-6 last year and reached the Region IV tournament for the fifth time in six years. Of last year’s six losses, five were to teams that were either a regional champion or a runner-up. “The guys have played together for so long they know what each other does – shoot or pass – before they do it. They are one step ahead.†The Cavaliers took a heavy hit in the losses of guard Tee Jackson, the school’s all-time leading scorer, and center Nikola Lakatus, but a balanced roster should help absorb the loss of those two. “We have a good player at every position,†Ayers said. “We’re pretty well balanced. Any one of the first five could lead us in scoring on a given night.†A jumpshooting team for the most part each of the past two years, the Cavaliers will be more physical and look to go inside more often this year. “Brad [Hiatt], Carlos [Ruiz] and John [Chapman] are all a lot bigger and stronger,†said Ayers. “Our first option will be to go to John and feed off of him.†A 6-foot-5, 220-pound senior center, Chapman runs the floor like a deer and showed flashes of being a dominant player as a junior. Not that the Cavaliers will abandon the perimeter game. “All of them can shoot,†he said. “I never passed up too many shots when I was playing, and if anything I’ll get onto them for not shooting. You can’t score if you don’t put it up. “We talk a lot about shot selection. The kids know who I’ll let shoot, and they have to earn that.†Joining Chapman in the post will be Ruiz, a 6-foot senior forward whom Ayers describes as “sneaky.†“You look at him and think he can’t play, but you check the book after the game and he’s got 20 [points] and 10 [rebounds],†he said. A 6-2 former point guard, Hiatt is the top returning shooter, averaging 12 points per game while hitting 40 percent from long range. Brandon Horton (6-1) will run the floor at point and 6-0 Elijah Bond will be the 2 guard in Carroll’s three-guard offense. As solid as Carroll’s first five seems to be, what could the Cavaliers apart is their depth. Caleb Jackson (6-1) can play all five positions, and Ayers said he’s like a coach on the floor. Junior Cory Schlesinger is a true point guard and a good ballhandler, and senior Zak Worrell (6-2) could be a big key. “He could be a double-figure scorer off the bench,†Ayers said, “and he’s relentless on the boards.†Ryan Harvey is the Cavaliers’ most athletic player, and Travis Combs will provide offensive punch off the bench. Other juniors include Brad Shockley, Johnny Gardner, Brad Easter, Brandon Bowman and 6-foot-5 Eric Hall. Despite having no glaring weak spots, Ayers doesn’t single out shooting or experience or depth as the team’s strength, but rather togetherness. “They’re more close-knit than last year,†he said. “They look out for each other on the floor, and if somebody’s not doing his job, somebody lets him hear it.†The team has shown more toughness in the preseason as well. “In our scrimmages there weren’t a lot of fouls called, and they played right through it,†he said. “They didn’t bat an eye.†Graham has been the thorn in Carroll’s side in the Southwest District in recent years, with three of last year’s six losses coming to the G-Men. Carroll trailed 19-4 and 15-0 in the first quarters in two regular-season losses, and lost a three-point lead in the final half-minute of the tournament finals. Accordingly, toughness will be the key this year. “Teams were tougher than us last year,†Ayers said. “When it came time to hit a clutch shot or make a big stop, we didn’t. Hopefully we will this year…Last year a couple of guys did all the dirty work. This year we all will.†Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.png.01bb665814ffc257795fe158cb2045c7.png.8a531ac878a82772b21014d7a6167582.png){kind=logo}
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.