Young team looking to step up in '09-'10
By George AstephanSports Reporter, The VOICE
As the 2009-2010 men's basketball season is about to begin, head coach Dave Hodges is holding late evening practices to help improve his team.
Surrounded by youth, Hodges continues to preach defense to the team.
The majority of the practices have been focusing on this.
With only a handful of returning players from last years team, the squad is very young.
The team has named the three captains who are, James Ellisor, Mario Danogean and AJ Sherant.
They are all sophomores and now considered veterans of the team.
Ellisor was a force for the Gauchos last season, as he averaged 13.1 ppg and 5.1 rpg.
Danogean averaged 7.5 ppg last season.
Lance Fite, Glendale's most powerful scorer from last season, has moved on to play for Mesa State College in Colorado.
Even considering the inexperienced roster, the team has continued to stay optimistic.
When asked about the captains of the team, assistant coach Kevin Williamson says "James is the kind of star to put up big numbers. Mario is our engine and keeps the team going and AJ is our guy that brings intensity and steps up in the clutch."
These three players are a triple threat and could have an explosive game on any day.
This year will be one of the toughest challenges for Hodges and the coaching staff as they work to prepare the freshmen for college ball.
Discussing the challenges the team may face, Hodges points out "Rebounding is a problem because of size. Defensively we're inconsistent and that is a factor of having a young team."
Every freshmen on this team will have a chance to prove himself to the coaching staff.
The question is: Who will step up?
One new member on the team that is expected to step up is six-foot-ten, Ryan Kinnell.
As the biggest man on the roster, he will have plenty of playing time and is expected to produce when on the floor.
The team plans to play at a high-paced offense just as they did last season. A year ago, GCC averaged about 95 ppg.
They will continue to work on their rotation and see who will earn more playing time as the season progresses.
As for the three captains, they have continued to work on improving their game during the off season.
Throughout the summer months, they spent a lot of time running drills and working on becoming leaders of the team.
They continue to keep in top physical shape, becoming faster and stronger and focusing on bringing a higher intensity to the game.
When asked of the approach the team is taking to each game, coach Hodges was simple in his response as he stated, "We're going to play teams one way: we're just going to get after them."
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