Dave Beery hopes his 12 varsity players love basketball, because they’re going to get plenty of it through Saturday, Dec. 12.
At least 12 games’ worth, to be exact, starting Thursday, Dec. 3, in Sedona with the Red Rock Hoops Classic.
“Top to bottom, by far, a tougher schedule than we played last year,” said the second-year Mingus Union High School head boys basketball coach. “The toughest team we played last year was Flagstaff, and they’re a perennial State contender.”
Flagstaff High School was the first team on the MUHS schedule this year, with the Marauders the Eagles’ first victim, 59-37, Nov. 24.
“We’ve got five guys who can shoot the heck out of the ball,” Beery said. “Getting those shots off in varsity games is harder.”
Tri-captain Fabian Navarro had six rebounds and hit three three-pointers, while junior forward Miles Tapija was a perfect six-for-six from the free-throw line to help lead the Marauders with nine points.
“Miles is still our 5[-foot], 10[-inch] post guy,” Beery said. “Ryan Nash is another big body, a football player who’s got room for growth. We’ve got Joe [Doerksen], who’s raw — he’s got good timing on blocking shots, but not a natural basketball player. Both of those guys are working their butts off right now in practice.”
Nash and 6-foot, 2-inch starting post Kyle Houston combined for five points, with junior Issac Escalante finishing off the scoring with six against the Eagles.
“On the other end of the court is where, hopefully, we’ll have an advantage,” Beery said. “I don’t see a lot of big guys who can guard those [players] either.”
Senior tri-captain Evan Snyder had eight points and five rebounds, but the Marauders shot just 27 percent from the field and turned the ball over 22 times to seal their fate.
“What we’re trying to improve on, from last year, is making three to four extra passes per possession,” Beery said. “Figure out which shots I can get anytime I want, versus which shots are really good shots.”
Beery hopes the return of Doerksen and senior tri-captain Ashton Loring can help the Marauders shoot over another Flagstaff high school, Coconino, and 6-foot, 11-inch senior center James Hampshire, to open the Red Rock Hoops Classic.
Nine hours after that tip, the Marauders return to the Sedona Red Rock High School auxiliary gym to face Lee Williams High School, from Kingman.
Over the following two days, the Marauders will play at least three more games in Sedona, then play four games in three days at a tournament in Page High School — juggling a home game with the Sand Devils, a game at North Canyon High School, coursework and a college signing in between.
“It’s like a gauntlet,” Beery said. “So health is going to be hugely important — taking care of those bumps and bruises, those ankles that would cause anybody to miss a game.”
Snyder’s calendar may be the busiest of all the varsity players, as he will be signing a Division III scholarship offer Friday, Dec. 4, to play basketball at Concordia University, in Chicago.
“He worked out for them on his own, and they liked what they saw,” Beery said. “He’s not one of those kids I have to push a lot or challenge, sometimes, to get stuff done. You almost have to tell him to back off a little bit.”
That is what Beery let the team do at Flagstaff, figuring the Marauders were expected to lose anyway and therefore could play with nothing to lose.
“No doubt in my mind, our team is better than it was last year,” Beery said. “We’re deeper.
“But our section, in my opinion, is the toughest in the state this year. We’ve got to push the ball and score more than we did last year to be successful.”
For the full Mingus boys basketball schedule and more photos, please see the Wednesday, Dec. 2, issue of the Cottonwood Journal Extra.
