Warsaw Tigers 'Starting Over'
November 21, 2017 at 2:15 p.m.
Warsaw Tigers 'Starting Over'
By Dale [email protected]
Graduation took its toll on the Tigers, who played in the regional finals for the second straight year.
Gone are eight seniors from a team that went 7-0 in the Northern Lakes Conference for a third consecutive year, including Indiana All-Star Kyle Mangas, who finished his prep career fourth on Warsaw’s all-time scoring list with 1,450 points.
Mangas, Jeremy David, Jaceb Burish, Braxton Minix, Sam Miller, Shane Powers, Aaron Sandoval and Kyle Skeans – all lost to graduation.
Six-foot-7 Asher Blum started 22 games for the Tigers last season, but moved to Fort Wayne and is playing his senior campaign at South Side.
Ross Johnson started 10 games a year ago for Warsaw but left the team and enrolled at Triton. He will play his senior season for coach Jason Groves and the Trojans.
Needless to say, there will be plenty of new names in Warsaw’s varsity lineup.
“It’s fair to say that we’re pretty much starting over,” said Ogle, who takes a record of 236-111 into his 16th varsity season with the Tigers.
“We have four returning lettermen. Offensively, when you return 12 percent of your points from the year before, it’s going to be an area of concern.
“I’m anxious to see where our points come from. I think we’ll be able to score some , but I’m not sure how it’s going to shake out. We’ll for sure be more balanced.”
The Tigers scored a total of 1,438 points last season, averaging 51.4 points per game.
Of that total, only 182 were scored by players on this year’s roster.
Nolan Groninger, now a junior, scored 57 points last season, while current seniors Jack Rhoades and Zach Riley scored 55 and 54, respectively. Senior Jack Grose tallied 14 points last season, while classmate Landen Ferber netted two points in varsity competition.
“Groninger needs to be aggressive trying to score,” said Ogle, whose team opens the season Wednesday with a trip to county rival Tippecanoe Valley.
“We want all of our players to be aggressive and try and score, it’s just being able to be good enough to judge when you can get a shot off, and when you should reverse it, or pass it.
“I think a lot of our players have improved. It’s not exactly quantifiable yet how much they’ve improved, because when you turn on the lights and actually play games it’s a lot different than in practice. My sense is that we’ve had a quite a few players make good skill jumps, and they seem to be more confident.
“That’s why this season is extra interesting for me to get started. Expectations aren’t as high, there’s no way they can be. It’s just a different dynamic. I like our players, I like how they’re approaching practice. I’m surprised at myself at how much I’m looking forward to the start of the season. I don’t have any predictions of any type, because I just don’t know.”
Warsaw’s freshmen team was 18-3 last season, while the JV was 17-4.
The Tigers’ 13-man varsity roster includes seniors Rhoades, Riley, Grose, Deondre Adkins, Dane Stookey and Nick Marsh; juniors Groninger, Ferber, Trevor Rumple, Trenton Sands, Tyler Metzinger and Jaylen Reese; and sophomore Brian Elliott.
Metzinger is the tallest player on the roster at 6-7, while Elliott is 6-5 and Reese 6-4.
Ogle said his starting lineup will likely consist of Groninger, Riley, Metzinger, Reese and Ferber.
“Last year, there weren’t many games Kyle Mangas wasn’t the best player on the floor,” said Ogle. “And then two years ago, most games we had the two best players on the floor with Kyle Mangas and Paul Marandet.
“This year, we’re trying to have the best player in a game, and it could be different guys. Trying to fit it all together is like a human puzzle. You’re trying to fit the pieces together in a way that works and they can be effective, and can score, and can defend, and get some rebounds.”
After Wednesday’s season opener at Valley, the Tigers travel to Columbia City Saturday.
Warsaw plays back-to-back home games on Dec. 1 and 2 against Homestead and Huntington North.
The Tigers open defense of their NLC title and look to extend their conference win streak to 22 when they host Wawasee on Dec. 15.
New opponents on the schedule this season include Whitko (Dec. 20) and Westview (Dec. 23), and a one-day classic format at Grace College against Zionsville and Fishers (Dec. 30).
“I do find it enjoyable,” Ogle said of starting over in a number of ways. “It’s a challenge to try and be better. I know people see us as vulnerable, and that’s fair. I like the idea of when people think we’re vulnerable, to still win the conference, to still win the sectional, to have a good season. We want people to say ‘man, where did they get these guys? Where did these guys come from? They’re still good.’
“I think that drives our players, it drives me ... the idea of kind of being a surprise team.”
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Graduation took its toll on the Tigers, who played in the regional finals for the second straight year.
Gone are eight seniors from a team that went 7-0 in the Northern Lakes Conference for a third consecutive year, including Indiana All-Star Kyle Mangas, who finished his prep career fourth on Warsaw’s all-time scoring list with 1,450 points.
Mangas, Jeremy David, Jaceb Burish, Braxton Minix, Sam Miller, Shane Powers, Aaron Sandoval and Kyle Skeans – all lost to graduation.
Six-foot-7 Asher Blum started 22 games for the Tigers last season, but moved to Fort Wayne and is playing his senior campaign at South Side.
Ross Johnson started 10 games a year ago for Warsaw but left the team and enrolled at Triton. He will play his senior season for coach Jason Groves and the Trojans.
Needless to say, there will be plenty of new names in Warsaw’s varsity lineup.
“It’s fair to say that we’re pretty much starting over,” said Ogle, who takes a record of 236-111 into his 16th varsity season with the Tigers.
“We have four returning lettermen. Offensively, when you return 12 percent of your points from the year before, it’s going to be an area of concern.
“I’m anxious to see where our points come from. I think we’ll be able to score some , but I’m not sure how it’s going to shake out. We’ll for sure be more balanced.”
The Tigers scored a total of 1,438 points last season, averaging 51.4 points per game.
Of that total, only 182 were scored by players on this year’s roster.
Nolan Groninger, now a junior, scored 57 points last season, while current seniors Jack Rhoades and Zach Riley scored 55 and 54, respectively. Senior Jack Grose tallied 14 points last season, while classmate Landen Ferber netted two points in varsity competition.
“Groninger needs to be aggressive trying to score,” said Ogle, whose team opens the season Wednesday with a trip to county rival Tippecanoe Valley.
“We want all of our players to be aggressive and try and score, it’s just being able to be good enough to judge when you can get a shot off, and when you should reverse it, or pass it.
“I think a lot of our players have improved. It’s not exactly quantifiable yet how much they’ve improved, because when you turn on the lights and actually play games it’s a lot different than in practice. My sense is that we’ve had a quite a few players make good skill jumps, and they seem to be more confident.
“That’s why this season is extra interesting for me to get started. Expectations aren’t as high, there’s no way they can be. It’s just a different dynamic. I like our players, I like how they’re approaching practice. I’m surprised at myself at how much I’m looking forward to the start of the season. I don’t have any predictions of any type, because I just don’t know.”
Warsaw’s freshmen team was 18-3 last season, while the JV was 17-4.
The Tigers’ 13-man varsity roster includes seniors Rhoades, Riley, Grose, Deondre Adkins, Dane Stookey and Nick Marsh; juniors Groninger, Ferber, Trevor Rumple, Trenton Sands, Tyler Metzinger and Jaylen Reese; and sophomore Brian Elliott.
Metzinger is the tallest player on the roster at 6-7, while Elliott is 6-5 and Reese 6-4.
Ogle said his starting lineup will likely consist of Groninger, Riley, Metzinger, Reese and Ferber.
“Last year, there weren’t many games Kyle Mangas wasn’t the best player on the floor,” said Ogle. “And then two years ago, most games we had the two best players on the floor with Kyle Mangas and Paul Marandet.
“This year, we’re trying to have the best player in a game, and it could be different guys. Trying to fit it all together is like a human puzzle. You’re trying to fit the pieces together in a way that works and they can be effective, and can score, and can defend, and get some rebounds.”
After Wednesday’s season opener at Valley, the Tigers travel to Columbia City Saturday.
Warsaw plays back-to-back home games on Dec. 1 and 2 against Homestead and Huntington North.
The Tigers open defense of their NLC title and look to extend their conference win streak to 22 when they host Wawasee on Dec. 15.
New opponents on the schedule this season include Whitko (Dec. 20) and Westview (Dec. 23), and a one-day classic format at Grace College against Zionsville and Fishers (Dec. 30).
“I do find it enjoyable,” Ogle said of starting over in a number of ways. “It’s a challenge to try and be better. I know people see us as vulnerable, and that’s fair. I like the idea of when people think we’re vulnerable, to still win the conference, to still win the sectional, to have a good season. We want people to say ‘man, where did they get these guys? Where did these guys come from? They’re still good.’
“I think that drives our players, it drives me ... the idea of kind of being a surprise team.”
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