Three-Peat? No one is seriously talking about, or even contemplating or considering a Three-Peat for Evanston Red Devil Basketball, right? I am. At the very least, to the point of consideration, in the realm of possibility. Two things Ive learned in a quarter-century of covering high school basketball: No. 1 -- Never discount the mystique of March Madness. Upsets can and do happen, each and every year, throughout the season, but especially, or so it seems, at tournament time. No. 2 -- Never count any team out, but especially one with Red Devil pride on its side. Yes, Im wearing my blue and scarlet glasses in making that declaration, but it truly is a new season with the slates wiped clean, and ANY team which gets hot and plays their best basketball at exactly the right time, with a little luck tossed in, can put together three complete games and win the whole thing, defying the odds. It really does come down to just that, three games... 12 eight-minute quarters, with a major factor or key to success borrowed from coach speak -- one game at a time, but that too rings true. Looking past an opponent, any opponent, can produce detrimental effects. This scenario has unfolded so many times before, and was usually viewed as an under-matched Lady Red Devil or Red Devil team drawing a perennial power like Campbell County, in the opening round of the state tournament, with the Camels seemingly ranked in the top slot most of the year, fittingly entering the tournament as the number one seed from the 4A East. Evanston, on the other hand, may have finished fourth in their regional tournament, and it could be that the Red Devils faltered, were about were they were expected to be, or perhaps, on rare occasions, a fourth-place finish was a pleasant surprise. But after an opening round loss against a juggernaut like the Camels, a consolation championship was the best they could hope for, with so much emphasis on that opening round matchup. Three years ago, a 19-6 Red Devil team, believed to be the best in the West, was upset and ended up placing third in their 4A West Regional Tournament. As luck would have it, the top-ranked Camels, would also falter, placing second in their regional. So, instead of the classic one vs.four seed matchup, the two teams most fans thought should meet for all the marbles, met in the first round, instead. The Camels, led by 68 Taran Brown, got everything they wanted from the Red Devils, and more, eking out a 49-47 victory, that could have gone either way. Gillette went on to win the 4A crown with ease, while Evanston coasted to the 4A consolation championship. The fact that those two teams would meet for the 4A championship the following year, in 2012, really came as no surprise. Evanston would lose Wacey Lym, the epitome of a point guard, and fellow All-State selection, Jeff Lee, to graduation, along with some terrific role players like Scott Davis, Jack Lambert and Lance Barker. But the underclassmen who would replace the graduates had seen some valuable playtime. Matt Eddington and Tyler Chandler were standout athletes, in trio with Rocco ONeill, an understudy to Wacey, but with strengths of his own. Add in, Matt Johnson, a big-bodied, athletic junior, along with some key role players, and again, the 2011-2012 season and its resulting championship, comes as no surprise. A 24-3 Red Devil team squaring off against a 23-6 Camels squad, and requiring two overtime periods before a victor was declared -- fitting.... as it should be.... A Red Devils State Championship, the first since 2004, and the second for coach Bubba ONeill, who would go out on top, coaching a team, who also set the school record for victories in a season, with 25. Fast-forward to last season, and this one, yes, had to be viewed by most, as a surprise, with a 15-10 third-seeded Red Devil team entering the state tournament. They went to overtime against a Laramie team, who had defeated them twice, and defeated the Kelly Walsh Trojans, who closed strong as the top seed from the 4A West in another overtime game, to vault themselves to the championship, but it was the Riverton Wolverines, instead of the Camels, Evanston would have to defeat for back-to-back championships. Riverton had done Evanston a favor in knocking off top-ranked Gillette, en route to the championship, which Evanston won, 54-50. The 2013-2014 edition of Red Devil Basketball was and likely remains, not considered a serious threat as a title contender. A young team, with only one returning full-time starter, and as always, one of the smaller big schools. And their record of 11-15 would reflect that.In addition, by finishing fourth in their regional tournament, and now having to face the top-ranked, 22-3 Camels, out of the gate, at state? I doubt many are giving the Red Devils nothing more than a very remote shot at victory, but heres the deal. This Evanston team, which I have to believe, WILL BE one of the teams expected to contend for a title in 2014-2015, has proven they can play with anyone, and that includes Gillette. The Camels defeated the Red Devils by eight points, 67-59, back on Dec. 21, in the Flaming Gorge Classic, but that game, to toss in another cliché, was closer than the final score would indicate. The Red Devils have played the Trojans close in all three meetings, and either defeated, have been narrowly defeated or split with the other five teams in the 4A field of eight. If, and granted, its a great big, huge IF, the Red Devils can play the role of spoiler in their opening round game, if they can keep it close and dictate tempo against a team as diametrically opposed in basketball philosophy, as the two teams from the extreme southwest and the extreme northeast are geographically -- the run and gun, up-tempo, high-scoring Camels versus the defense-minded, disciplined, work-for-the-high-percentage-shot Red Devils -- if Evanston is in contention late in the game, and the Red Devils spring the upset, I believe their chances for a three-peat rise astronomically! The Camels boast the returning Gatorade Player of the Year in Cody Kelley, who enters his third year as a Gillette starter. Starting as a sophomore in that program speaks volumes. Kelley is a remarkable athlete, with a state-leading 25 points per game average and his 40 point performance in a single game, also tops the classification this season. Kelley is a gamer, without question. And again, my objectivity may be colored by my blue and scarlet glasses, but I honestly believe Evanstons Alek Johnson is the best overall basketball player in Wyoming, as a junior. He can play any position on the floor, and leads his team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals, and will leave his mark on both the Evanston High School Basketball record book and the state statistics, next season. But this is not Johnson versus Kelley, its Evanston versus Campbell County, and the Camels own advantages in overall team talent, experience and depth over Evanston, and probably every other 4A squad, with Kelly Walsh the possible exception. It would require a little luck, coupled with a fantastic team effort for Evanston to defeat Gillette. Sophomore Brock Ehlers will have to reemerge as a secondary scoring threat, which I believe he will, and the states leading shot-blocker, in 67 Cole Revelli, will have to stay out of foul trouble and remain on the court, as his mere presence, defensively, makes a huge difference. Solid team defense, not giving Gillette a bunch of second-chance opportunities, along with offensive contributions from other Red Devils like Gavin Whitaker, Chase Cook and Miles Piper -- if all of those factors come together, EHS could very well pull off the upset. A perfect storm scenario? In many ways, yes, but the aforementioned contributions have been demonstrated, as of late, and if the game is close in the final 3 to 4 minutes, and Evanston has weathered the storm of a couple of Camel scoring barrages, and managed to be on equal footing in terms of dictating tempo, then I like the Red Devils chances to advance through the championship side of the bracket, and for the three-peat. Does the fact that Gillette did not win either of their two games in their regional tournament, 67-62 over Cheyenne South, and 51-50 vs.Cheyenne East, in convincing fashion, point to a team who is more susceptible to suffering a loss, or does it more aptly reflect that the Camels find a way to win tight ballgames? A lot of questions to be answered, but thats what makes the state basketball tournaments so intriguing and such a blast! Go Red Devils!
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 11:31:39 +0000
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