Oct 17, 2021

KWU men building off of last year's end-of-season success

Posted Oct 17, 2021 3:34 PM
Photo courtesy <a href="http://kwucoyotes.com">kwucoyotes.com</a>
Photo courtesy kwucoyotes.com

Anthony Monson wasn't happy with the way some things transpired last season for his Kansas Wesleyan basketball team.

The Coyotes finished 12-14 overall, 9-11 in the Kansas Conference, and it was a rollercoaster ride. The COVID-19 pandemic was a big factor and they endured an eight-game losing streak second semester before turning the corner and finishing strong.

KWU won five in a row, including a KCAC tournament game for the first time in 11 years, before losing to No. 22 Oklahoma Wesleyan 64-63 in the quarterfinals in Bartlesville, Okla.

Monson wants this year's team to avoid the missteps of last season. 

"We've got to make sure we limit the mistakes we make and do some things differently culture-wise in the program and make sure that it stays strong through adversity," said Monson, who enters his sixth season. "That's something I think we let slip a little bit just because we were dealing with other things."

The Coyotes had to deal with two lengthy quarantine periods during the season.

"We'll never make an excuse about that," Monson said. "It was just a different year last year and it threw us a little bit and I don't think we were prepared to handle it as well as we could have.

"We had a lot of lows last year – that losing streak was a big low. We had some highs, too. We beat (KCAC champion) Bethel, won at their place and were the only team to win there last year. We played Oklahoma Wesleyan pretty tough twice (two one-point losses in Bartlesville) but weren't able to get over that hump."

Getting back to basics helped the Coyotes regain their stride.

"Accountability and holding guys to a higher standard," Monson said. "Throwing excuses out the window and saying we've got to get the job done and that's what we were doing down the stretch."

Monson's eager for the 2021-22 season to begin – the return of four starters, several other key contributors and a promising recruiting class the main reasons.

The list of veterans begins with post player AJ Range (SR/Junction City, Kan.) and shooting guard Easton Hunter (FR/Colwich, Kan.). Range was a Second Team All-KCAC selection and Hunter Third-Team and All-Freshman choices.

"We've nicknamed A.J. 'Grandpa' this year just because I feel like he's been around forever, which he has," Monson said. "He's been good, Easton's been a lot better."

Six others return who started at various times and saw considerable duty a year ago – forwards Trey Duffey (SO/Topeka, Kan.), Ethan Speer (SR/Salina, Kan.) and CJ Weathers (JR/Allen, Texas), guards Micah Lovett (FR/Tulsa, Okla.), Gabe Mack (JR/Milwaukee, Wis.) and Jackson Maupin (FR/Argyle, Texas) and swingman Tyus Jeffries (SR/Oklahoma City, Okla.).

Duffey, a rugged power forward, sparked the turnaround after he was inserted into the starting lineup. His presence made life easier for Range, who routinely drew added attention from opposing defenses.

"Trey brought us a lot of energy and toughness when we put him in the starting lineup," Monson said. "He took a lot of pressure off A.J. Trey's been Trey all preseason, knocking guys around, throwing his body every which way. He's got one speed and it's go-hard. He doesn't back down from anybody."

Jeffries, a junior college transfer a year ago, was injured late in the season.

"I think it was good for him, I think he started to see things in a different light," Monson said. "He's been a much more under control player, is playing with a lot more confidence than he had and is asking a lot of questions this year."

Six transfers are expected to provide immediate and significant help – Jun Murdock (SO/Wichita, Kan.) from Friends, Jake Potthoff (SO/Shawnee Mission, Kan.) from MidAmerica Nazarene and junior college transplants Cory Kaplan (SO/Merritt Island, Fla.), Marcel Dean (SO/Tucson, Ariz.), Izaiah Hale (FR/Wichita, Kan.) and Kevin Mars. Kaplan's a shooting guard who played at McCook (Neb.), Dean a shooting guard from Pima (Ariz.), Hale a point guard from Hutchinson and Mars a guard from Chattanooga State. Murdock, a point guard, and Potthoff, who plays the wing, were redshirts at KWU last season.

Murdock is the key. He was a standout player in 2019-20 at Friends and will be the Coyotes' starting point guard.

"It starts with Jun Murdock," Monson said. "He's been really, really good. He's shooting it well; he's gotten bigger and stronger. He's gotten better in the areas he needs to get better in."

The 6-foot-6 Kaplan and 6-6 Potthoff are deadly perimeter shooters as is Dean, who's 5-10.

"Cory can really shoot it; he was a 40 percent 3-point shooter and 56 percent shooter (overall) last year," Monson said. "He's really efficient on the offensive end and at 6-6 he can come off ball screens and that's something you don't a lot of in our league.

"(Potthoff) is shooting it really well, he's very good getting to the basket. He's kind of skinny and snakes his way through there. Dean had 40 against Eastern Arizona last year and he just really, really shoots it and shoots with range. Izaiah played at a pretty high level in high school at Wichita Heights. He just gets it, is very smooth as a point guard. Mars is a 6-3 lefthanded athletic guard and just does things at a different pace and different level than a lot of guys we have."

Two freshmen have emerged during preseason camp – forwards Alex Littlejohn (FR/Newton, Kan.) from Wichita (Bishop Carroll) and Gabe Phillips (FR/Valley Center, Kan.) from Valley Center.

"(Littlejohn) has got a lot of Duffey in him, he's a high motor kid but has the ability to knock down shots from the perimeter," Monson said. "And when I say perimeter, I'm talking past the 3-point line.

"(Phillips) works hard and might be one of the hardest working guys in the program. He does a lot of the unrequired work; he pushes himself hard in every drill we do."

Monson has made some changes to the offense and defense.

"We're sticking with some things that worked (offensively) at the end of the year for us," he said. "We have a team we feel like can play a little faster so we're doing some of that stuff as well.

"Defensively we weren't very good last year and that was a little bit of frustration. We want to get back to being who we are defensively – being tough, being physical with teams, making it difficult. Our goal is always contested jump shots and keeping guys out of the paint. We'll see if we can be a little better this year."

Monson said the Coyotes' approach this year is more day-to-day.

"You have to figure out what your team needs to do to get better that day," he said. "We've kind of stopped worrying what are we going to do here, here and here and let's just be good at a couple of things now and continue to build on it as we go through the year and try not to overwhelm our guys."

-kwucoyotes.com-