By NICK SLOAN, NJSloan212@gmail.com
One of the best teams in KCK Preps' coverage area will be hoping to thwart an upset bid from the most improved basketball team in Kansas City, Kan.
KCK Preps for the first time will bring Turner Golden Bears basketball to your living room, as we're set to broadcast the Turner-Basehor game Friday evening from Basehor-Linwood High School High School.
As always, no prediction, just a look at some of the key points of this game.
1. Turner's players will not be intimidated by Basehor's advantages. The Turner football team was one of the few teams in the KVL to give the Bobcats a run for their money last season in football. Turner played Basehor to within a touchdown and was one or two plays away from tying the game in the fourth quarter. Basehor eventually scored a final touchdown to make the score differential larger, but make no mistake - the Turner team fought hard. Many of those same student-athletes are on the basketball team. Nick Rodriguez, De'Andre Fenrick, Eric Dougherty, Will McKnight and De'Andre Walters are all key players for the Golden Bears. They've helped Turner get a lot better from last year and while the sport has changed, the players and characters of those guys did not. Basehor better expect a fight tomorrow night. It may not be enough, but those athletes from the football team have pride. Former football head coach Allen Terrell installed a "Faith and Service" motto for the football program. It shows with those aforementioned players.
2. Turner looks to overcome its most heart-breaking loss of the season. Turner had Mill Valley, one of the top four teams in the Kaw Valley League, down by 10 points on their home-court in the fourth quarter. They lost that lead late. Seeing how Turner responds to it will be interesting. Turner was one good quarter away from pulling a shocker in the KVL. Will they fade the rest of the season, or will they use the game as a learning experience to get better.? If they choose to keep fighting and get better, there could be more wins down the road for Turner.
3. Basehor has been a great "takes care of business" team. Basehor has lost two heartbreakers this year to Hayden and Lansing (Ottawa controlled most of the game against Basehor), but Basehor has squashed teams when they were supposed to. They killed Piper, Ward, Tonganoxie twice and Pembroke Hill. Turner could be better than those teams, but Basehor generally has not overlooked teams this season. If Turner wins this game, it probably won't be because they snuck up on Basehor.
4. Basehor will have the size advantage. Ben Johnson, Ryan Murphy and Colin Murphy present a very difficult match-up for Turner. Two of Turner's leading rebounders are under six-feet, meaning the Bobcats have a great opportunity to control the boards.
5. Turner's strength of schedule will help them some entering the game. Turner is one of the few teams in the metro area who's played Olathe Northwest, who's considered the number one or two team in the metro area. It doesn't mean much, but it means Turner has seen a team of Basehor's caliber before. I think that'll help them in terms of nerves and limit any potential chance of intimidation.
6. Turner will need to work hard on defense to make-up for shooting woes. Of course, Turner can come out and just rip the nets and have a good shooting night. However, they've struggled from the field. They shoot just 29 percent from three and 48 percent from the free-throw line. They're around 40 percent from the field overall, which isn't terrible, but not a good number against Basehor. That means Turner will probably have to create some steals - they average 10 a game - and some ball deflections. Turner's guards will need to find a way to create turnovers, especially when the ball gets into the hands of Brad Waterman, Chase Younger and Basehor's other non-6'6" players. The Golden Bears will need to create at least 10 turnovers to win this game - and even 10 may not be enough.
7. Turner's Will McKnight is one of the best freshman players in KCK. Just as I did a shoutout to Wyandotte's Dionte Nunnally, here's one for McKnight. He's a starter on Turner's team despite being just a freshman and he's averaging 10 points and 6 rebounds. McKnight should be a tremendous player for Turner over the next three years in both football and basketball. He's already 6'2" in size, meaning he could grow up in more than one way.
One of the best teams in KCK Preps' coverage area will be hoping to thwart an upset bid from the most improved basketball team in Kansas City, Kan.
KCK Preps for the first time will bring Turner Golden Bears basketball to your living room, as we're set to broadcast the Turner-Basehor game Friday evening from Basehor-Linwood High School High School.
As always, no prediction, just a look at some of the key points of this game.
2. Turner looks to overcome its most heart-breaking loss of the season. Turner had Mill Valley, one of the top four teams in the Kaw Valley League, down by 10 points on their home-court in the fourth quarter. They lost that lead late. Seeing how Turner responds to it will be interesting. Turner was one good quarter away from pulling a shocker in the KVL. Will they fade the rest of the season, or will they use the game as a learning experience to get better.? If they choose to keep fighting and get better, there could be more wins down the road for Turner.
4. Basehor will have the size advantage. Ben Johnson, Ryan Murphy and Colin Murphy present a very difficult match-up for Turner. Two of Turner's leading rebounders are under six-feet, meaning the Bobcats have a great opportunity to control the boards.
5. Turner's strength of schedule will help them some entering the game. Turner is one of the few teams in the metro area who's played Olathe Northwest, who's considered the number one or two team in the metro area. It doesn't mean much, but it means Turner has seen a team of Basehor's caliber before. I think that'll help them in terms of nerves and limit any potential chance of intimidation.
6. Turner will need to work hard on defense to make-up for shooting woes. Of course, Turner can come out and just rip the nets and have a good shooting night. However, they've struggled from the field. They shoot just 29 percent from three and 48 percent from the free-throw line. They're around 40 percent from the field overall, which isn't terrible, but not a good number against Basehor. That means Turner will probably have to create some steals - they average 10 a game - and some ball deflections. Turner's guards will need to find a way to create turnovers, especially when the ball gets into the hands of Brad Waterman, Chase Younger and Basehor's other non-6'6" players. The Golden Bears will need to create at least 10 turnovers to win this game - and even 10 may not be enough.
7. Turner's Will McKnight is one of the best freshman players in KCK. Just as I did a shoutout to Wyandotte's Dionte Nunnally, here's one for McKnight. He's a starter on Turner's team despite being just a freshman and he's averaging 10 points and 6 rebounds. McKnight should be a tremendous player for Turner over the next three years in both football and basketball. He's already 6'2" in size, meaning he could grow up in more than one way.
