Hard-Working Tigers Searching For Identity
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
Sitting in a pressbox following practice last week, fifth-year Warsaw boys basketball coach Doug Ogle said he doesn't know the identity of this year's team.
"I don't know the identity of the team," said Ogle, whose Tigers finished last season with an 11-12 record but won the program's first sectional championship since 2000. "I think people will appreciate this team because the players are going to work hard and give everything they have. The strength of this team is that they work hard."
The Tigers open the 2006-2007 season Wednesday when they host Kosciusko County opponent Tippecanoe Valley, a program that has thrived since hiring veteran coach Bill Patrick, who owns a 145-35 record with three sectional championships in eight seasons with the Vikings.
"I think they'll be pretty good," Ogle said when asked of the season-opening matchup with Valley. "(Chad) Hoffer is talented. (Shane) Salyer is good. We're going to have to play well. We'll be excited. We'll be ready to compete."
Warsaw opened the season with a double-digit win at Valley last year, as the Tigers returned four starters and a wealth of experience from the year before.
That's not the case this year.
Gone from last year's Warsaw squad that lost in the regional to eventual state runner-up Muncie Central are seven players.
Starters Shaun Cabrera, Colin Clemens, John-Wesley Maierle and Mitch Reinholt all graduated.
Bench player Jordan Fuller graduated.
Brothers Miles and Mason Plumlee transferred to a prep school in North Carolina.
"Shaun Cabrera and Collin Clemens are both playing college basketball at Indiana Tech," said Ogle. "John-Wesley Maierle is at Bethel. Mitch Reinholt isn't playing basketball, but he's taking classes at IU. We're going to miss those four. Jordan Fuller didn't play much, but he showed leadership."
Clemens led the team with 14.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Cabrera was second in scoring at just under 10 points per game and dished out four assists per contest.
Through a 23-game season last year, the Tigers averaged 52.4 points per game.
Warsaw returns just 12.7 points per game from last season and only four players who saw the floor in a varsity game.
The rest of the Tigers' varsity team will be made up of players from the freshmen and sophomore classes and from an Aaron Wolfe-coached junior varsity team that posted a 12-8 record.
The vast majority of Warsaw's experience lies in seniors Tommy Reinholt and Steve Lemasters.
The 6-foot-3 Reinholt started 12 games last season and averaged four points and four rebounds per contest, while Lemasters started 11 games, shot 53 percent from the field and averaged six points and two rebounds per game.
"Tommy Reinholt and Steve Lemasters both started half the games last year," said Ogle. "Both those guys have quite a bit of experience. (Ben) Truman doesn't have as much experience but he did play in 17 varsity games. (Eric) Blanton has some experience, but not a lot."
Truman, a 5-10 senior, will join Lemasters and Reinholt in the starting lineup and will be in charge of running the team from the point guard position.
As a junior, Truman played in 17 varsity games but only averaged nine minutes of playing time per game. Truman, who started two games, scored one point per game and dished out 15 assists throughout the season.
Ogle said Blanton, a 6-1 senior, will also be in the starting lineup, playing the other wing position.
As a junior, Blanton played in nine varsity games and averaged 1.2 points per contest.
The fifth starting position, Ogle said, could be filled by 6-4 sophomore Ryne Robinson or 6-3 freshman Justin Clemens.
Other seniors on the roster include Scott Harman and Spencer Plummer, who at 6-5 is Warsaw's tallest player.
Other juniors on the roster include Scott Perry, Brad Waikel, Ben Higgins and Daniel Conrad.
Ogle put Higgins and Waikel on the varsity roster, though both suffered knee injuries during football season and aren't expected to play this season.
Other sophomores listed on the varsity roster include Jesse Sharp, Taylor Long and Chase Byerly.
Freshman Andy Conrad is also listed on the varsity roster.
"I don't think we're a team that's going to outscore people 76-73," Ogle said when asked whether he thought his team would win games more with offense or defense. "We're going to be physically outmatched in some games. We're going to try and get better and we're going to work hard every day. We're going to play together as a team."
After hosting Valley Wednesday, the Tigers will return to the Tiger Den Saturday against Columbia City and Tuesday against South Bend Clay.
Warsaw will hit the road for the first time Dec. 1 for a contest at DeKalb.
The Tigers will open Northern Lakes Conference play Dec. 15 at Wawasee.
WARSAW TIGERS
No. Name Grade
3/41 Andy Conrad 9
5 Justin Clemens 9
11 Ben Truman 12
13 Jesse Sharp 10
15 Scott Perry 11
21 Tommy Reinholt 12
24 Ryne Robinson 10
25 Eric Blanton 12
31 Steve Lemasters 12
34 Taylor Long 10
35 Brad Waikel 11
40 Chase Byerly 10
51 Ben Higgins 11
52 Daniel Conrad 11
53 Scott Harman 12
55 Spencer Plummer 12 [[In-content Ad]]
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Sitting in a pressbox following practice last week, fifth-year Warsaw boys basketball coach Doug Ogle said he doesn't know the identity of this year's team.
"I don't know the identity of the team," said Ogle, whose Tigers finished last season with an 11-12 record but won the program's first sectional championship since 2000. "I think people will appreciate this team because the players are going to work hard and give everything they have. The strength of this team is that they work hard."
The Tigers open the 2006-2007 season Wednesday when they host Kosciusko County opponent Tippecanoe Valley, a program that has thrived since hiring veteran coach Bill Patrick, who owns a 145-35 record with three sectional championships in eight seasons with the Vikings.
"I think they'll be pretty good," Ogle said when asked of the season-opening matchup with Valley. "(Chad) Hoffer is talented. (Shane) Salyer is good. We're going to have to play well. We'll be excited. We'll be ready to compete."
Warsaw opened the season with a double-digit win at Valley last year, as the Tigers returned four starters and a wealth of experience from the year before.
That's not the case this year.
Gone from last year's Warsaw squad that lost in the regional to eventual state runner-up Muncie Central are seven players.
Starters Shaun Cabrera, Colin Clemens, John-Wesley Maierle and Mitch Reinholt all graduated.
Bench player Jordan Fuller graduated.
Brothers Miles and Mason Plumlee transferred to a prep school in North Carolina.
"Shaun Cabrera and Collin Clemens are both playing college basketball at Indiana Tech," said Ogle. "John-Wesley Maierle is at Bethel. Mitch Reinholt isn't playing basketball, but he's taking classes at IU. We're going to miss those four. Jordan Fuller didn't play much, but he showed leadership."
Clemens led the team with 14.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Cabrera was second in scoring at just under 10 points per game and dished out four assists per contest.
Through a 23-game season last year, the Tigers averaged 52.4 points per game.
Warsaw returns just 12.7 points per game from last season and only four players who saw the floor in a varsity game.
The rest of the Tigers' varsity team will be made up of players from the freshmen and sophomore classes and from an Aaron Wolfe-coached junior varsity team that posted a 12-8 record.
The vast majority of Warsaw's experience lies in seniors Tommy Reinholt and Steve Lemasters.
The 6-foot-3 Reinholt started 12 games last season and averaged four points and four rebounds per contest, while Lemasters started 11 games, shot 53 percent from the field and averaged six points and two rebounds per game.
"Tommy Reinholt and Steve Lemasters both started half the games last year," said Ogle. "Both those guys have quite a bit of experience. (Ben) Truman doesn't have as much experience but he did play in 17 varsity games. (Eric) Blanton has some experience, but not a lot."
Truman, a 5-10 senior, will join Lemasters and Reinholt in the starting lineup and will be in charge of running the team from the point guard position.
As a junior, Truman played in 17 varsity games but only averaged nine minutes of playing time per game. Truman, who started two games, scored one point per game and dished out 15 assists throughout the season.
Ogle said Blanton, a 6-1 senior, will also be in the starting lineup, playing the other wing position.
As a junior, Blanton played in nine varsity games and averaged 1.2 points per contest.
The fifth starting position, Ogle said, could be filled by 6-4 sophomore Ryne Robinson or 6-3 freshman Justin Clemens.
Other seniors on the roster include Scott Harman and Spencer Plummer, who at 6-5 is Warsaw's tallest player.
Other juniors on the roster include Scott Perry, Brad Waikel, Ben Higgins and Daniel Conrad.
Ogle put Higgins and Waikel on the varsity roster, though both suffered knee injuries during football season and aren't expected to play this season.
Other sophomores listed on the varsity roster include Jesse Sharp, Taylor Long and Chase Byerly.
Freshman Andy Conrad is also listed on the varsity roster.
"I don't think we're a team that's going to outscore people 76-73," Ogle said when asked whether he thought his team would win games more with offense or defense. "We're going to be physically outmatched in some games. We're going to try and get better and we're going to work hard every day. We're going to play together as a team."
After hosting Valley Wednesday, the Tigers will return to the Tiger Den Saturday against Columbia City and Tuesday against South Bend Clay.
Warsaw will hit the road for the first time Dec. 1 for a contest at DeKalb.
The Tigers will open Northern Lakes Conference play Dec. 15 at Wawasee.
WARSAW TIGERS
No. Name Grade
3/41 Andy Conrad 9
5 Justin Clemens 9
11 Ben Truman 12
13 Jesse Sharp 10
15 Scott Perry 11
21 Tommy Reinholt 12
24 Ryne Robinson 10
25 Eric Blanton 12
31 Steve Lemasters 12
34 Taylor Long 10
35 Brad Waikel 11
40 Chase Byerly 10
51 Ben Higgins 11
52 Daniel Conrad 11
53 Scott Harman 12
55 Spencer Plummer 12 [[In-content Ad]]