Article Tag: austin-porter

INSIDER: Preseason All-COC Small (Boys)

Posted on November 27, 2017 by -

All-COC Small

Jake Branham, 6’0, PG, 2019, Catholic

One of the area’s most underrated point guards, Branham was a first-team all-conference selection a year ago and is our early-season favorite to earn Player of the Year honors in a crowded field of potential award winners. He is a smooth ball handler who can shoot from the outside whose best attribute might be his leadership skills and basketball savvy.

Lane Carroll, Reeds Spring

A talented offensive player, Carroll is among the league’s returning leading scorers from a year ago as he averaged 14 points and knocked down 46 3-pointers. Carroll brings good size to the court for a guard, can handle the ball a little and is a good shooter and moves well without the ball.

Ian Cochran, 6’7, PF, 2018, Catholic

One of southwest Missouri’s few true stretch 4 type players, Cochran brings good size to the court at 6’7, is a strong rebounder in the paint and can knock down jumpers out to the 3-point line. He has also shown the ability to be the roll man in the high pick-and-roll and is a good finisher around the basket. We look for him to have a breakout season and likely earn a spot at the next level.

Ian Jones, 6’0, PG, 2019, Bolivar

One of the better all-around guards in the area, Jones will have some big shoes to fill this season as Bolivar will look to him and others to step up and take the place of Conley Garrison and others. Jones is a good all-around athlete who is quick with the ball and has the ability to get to the bucket.

Triston Letterman, 6’5, F, 2019, Marshfield

A strong, athletic forward who can play in the post where he uses his length and quick jumping ability to make buckets around the basket look easy, or step out to the perimeter and knock down outside shots. Letterman is a mismatch for most opponents due to his all-around skill level.

Charlie O’Reilly, 6’2, G, 2019, Catholic

A smooth all-around player, O’Reilly has been a big part of the Catholic varsity since his freshman season. A year ago, he averaged a little more than 12 points per game while showing a diverse skill set. He is a capable ballhandler, can shoot from the outside and brings terrific length to the court as well. O’Reilly brings a high basketball IQ to the court.

Logen Plumb, 6’6, PF, 2018, Reeds Spring

Plumb has a terrific feel for scoring around the basket as evidenced by the fact he shot 70 percent from the field a year ago. He combines good size and athleticism with a soft touch and a willingness to play within himself, seldom taking bad shots. He averaged 13.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game last season.

Austin Porter, 6’4, G/F, 2019, Marshfield

Porter is a terrific inside-outside wing type player who can handle the ball a little and shoot from the outside, but is perhaps at his best taking advantage of size mismatches and going into the post where he has a good feel for scoring the ball around the basket. Porter has long arms and plays bigger than his listed height.

Andrew Scott, 5’11, PG, 2018, Rogersville

One of the area’s most underrated point guards, Scott brings strong leadership qualities to the court and a steady hand to the ball handling duties. He is a solid outside shooter and has the ability to lead a team and set up an offense.

Ryker Strong, 6’5, F, 2019, Rogersville

A skilled inside-outside forward, Strong is a terrific ball handler who can play on the wing and whose best attribute might be his passing ability. Has the ability to make slick passes and has terrific court vision, as well as the size to see over defenders. Strong is definitely a player that is flying a little under the radar in area hoops.

Luke Vandersnick, 6’5, PF, 2019, Rogersville

A starter and a key player since his freshman year, Vandersnick is an athletic forward who competes in the paint at both ends of the floor. He has a lot of bounce in his step and plays bigger than his listed height and has added an outside shot to his offensive game.

Player of the Year

Jake Branham, 6’1, PG, 2019, Catholic

Defensive Player of the Year

Corey Spindler, 6’6, F, 2018, Bolivar

Newcomer of the Year

Jacob Villines, 6’2, G, 2019, Marshfield

Freshman of the Year

Kanon Gipson, 5’6, PG, 2021, Rogersville

Catching up with … Marshfield Blue Jays (B)

Posted on November 19, 2017 by -

ROLLA — Coming off a .500 season a year ago, the Marshfield Blue Jays opened the 2017-2018 season with a convincing win over Salem on Friday at Rolla’s Key Sport Shootout.

After losing several key players to graduation, including all-conference performer Jarrett Paoni, Britt Hill and others, this year’s Blue Jays are a junior heavy team with nine juniors and a senior rounding out its top 10.

“We only have three guys who saw varsity action last year,” Marshfield head coach Damon Seiger said. “Basically we just saw seven kids out there who just played JV last year. The more games they get under their belt, the better they are going to be in the long run and this was a good stepping stone for us.”

Marshfield jumped out to an early lead over Salem on Saturday and led the entire way.

“I thought our kids energy was really where it needed to be (on Saturday). Sometimes you go into the first game of the season and you don’t really know exactly what you are going to get.

“We came out with some good energy on the offensive end and we got some good flow early on and our defense was able to turn them over and create opportunities for us and some easy opportunities. We rolled with that.”

Marshfield features a lot of depth this season and it showed on Saturday as ten players got an opportunity to contribute.

They were led by juniors Austin Porter and Triston Letterman, the team’s most experienced varsity players.

At 6’3, Porter is a dual threat player capable of playing inside and outside. He can knock down perimeter shots and is a tough match-up on the block where he uses his length to score around the basket.

At 6’4, Letterman is a similar player to Porter. He is also long and rangy, can put the ball on the floor a little and is a tough cover in the post as well.

The Marshfield guards handled the ball well under pressure and created good angles to feed the post.

The Blue Jays jumped in a full court press against Salem on Friday and Sieger says it is something he can use when necessary.

“It is something that can help us control the tempo a little bit and make the other team do what we want them to do and not the other way around,” Seiger said.