Battle Tested Bison Ready For New Season

SHAWNEE – The battle scars of last year's young, injured and inexperienced Oklahoma Baptist men's basketball squad are no longer open wounds.
 
The Bison's tender skin is now calloused and youngsters never intended to play substantial freshman minutes are tested veterans in the Great American Conference.
 
"One special thing about this group is that it's the same group we went to war with last year," said Bison Coach Quinn Wooldridge. "We've got eight guys back from last year and that's given us a little continuity. We feel like well be much improved with versatility and ability to attack the basket and on the defensive end."
 
Depth and experience this year could be a crucial cog in OBU's improvement.
 
"The biggest thing this year is we have more depth," Wooldridge said. "We were so dependent last year on three or four guys. If those guys played well on the same night we had a chance to win."
 
One of the most anticipated returns is a Bison who never saw game action last year. Kevin Franceschi had his season end before it started last year with an injury.
 
"He's a guy that we had with us last year and came on strong for us before getting hurt," Wooldridge said. "That hurt us last year as far as depth. We had younger guys we wanted to develop. His impact coming back and do a lot of different things on the perimeter for us will really help us."
 
Steven Green is one of the top returning scorers in the GAC this season and will be counted on again this year.
 
"Steven basically tied for leading returning scorer in the GAC," said Wooldridge. "He'll be freed up this year to do the things he's really good at. He'll be one of the most talented guys back in the GAC."
 
OBU also owns the luxury of having its point guard back with Vladimir Nemcok ready to run the show again as a junior.
 
"Vladimir is a guy that led the GAC in assists by a wide margin and I really don't think he was at the top of his game last year," said Wooldridge. "It took a little bit of adjustment, but roughly the last 10 games he looked good. We really look for him to lead the charge for us with the ball in his hands most of the time. He's kind of a catalyst for us."
 
Also returning in the back court are sophomores Tyler Lester and Caleb Norris, who shared time as starters last year.
 
"Two guys who gained a ton of experience for us last year were Tyler Lester and Caleb Norris. Those two guys got pressed into action last year in more stressful situations for us than expected," said Wooldridge. "They really handled the ball well for us and shot it well and gained a lot of experience as far as trying to guard people at this level and create shots for themselves. That's one area I've noticed them improving in this preseason."
 
OBU also benefits from a pair of new guards in Travon Moore, Dee Henry and Tyler Zivney.
 
"One guy I think is going to help us in a lot of different spots in Travon Moore," Wooldridge said. "He is a big guard out of Oklahoma City. He is capable of playing 1, 2 or 3 on the perimeter. He's kind of a jack of all trades guys who can do a little bit of everything.
 
"Darnival Henry is a left-handed, strong-bodied point guard who is really good out of the pick and roll, which will be a bigger emphasis for us this year, and Tyler Zivney who is a catch and shoot player with a little surprising athleticism and competitiveness will be important for us this year."
 
Sophomore Logan Gragg and Freshman John McBroom also will fill vital roles.
 
"Those guys are great practice guys," Wooldridge said. "They come to work every day and work as hard as they can for us."
 
Up front, the Bison return starters Chandler Rickey and Timotis Kuckailis, part-time starter Janzen Hight and key reserve Cagney Roberson. Added to the mix are Niko Travica and Marko Zelic.
 
"Chandler last year really made a huge jump for us," Wooldridge said. "We used him as a four last year and he found new confidence in shooting from the three and creating plays. We expected him to make some improvement last year, but he really went above and beyond what we thought he was going to do."
 
"Kuckailis back as a senior and he's very mature and his strengths fit perfectly for how we want to play," Wooldridge said. "He's 260 pounds or so and primarily a pick and pop guy, but when we were able to get him posted he was very efficient there, too. He was also a veteran presence on the defense."
 
Used outside much of last season, Hight is expected to move to a more familiar role this season.
 
"Janzen Hight played a lot of minutes for us last year," Wooldridge said. "We kind of asked some things of him he was an unaccustomed to but this year we plan to have him go back to his strengths inside."
 
The team has seen little of Roberson, who is a starting receiver on the football team.
"Cagney Roberson came on really strong for us at the end of the year once we found out what we had in him," Wooldridge said.
 
Newcomers Zelic and Travica give the Bison a few added weapons.
 
"Marko Zelic is 6-8 and very mobile and athletic," Wooldridge said. "He will be really good for us defensively. One of the major things in our league is to be able to defend the pick and roll.  He's a big guy who can move his feet and he's very agile. Travica will be able to bang around the paint for us."
 
All of those Bison components will be key as OBU embarks on a journey they hope ends deep in the postseason.
 
"This year is a different situation," said Wooldridge. "Last year it we were new coaches in a new conference in a new division and so we were hesitant about goal-setting. We didn't have a lot of ideas about how we were going to be. The goal for us right off the bat is the make the NCCAA Tournament. That's our championship and our postseason. We also want to make strides in the GAC standings."
 
OBU won a few games in the GAC last year after being picked last in the preseason.
 
"The main thing we learned was that every night you have the opportunity to win or lose. Every team is good. Everybody has a good coaching staff. If your guys aren't where they need to be, you've got a chance to lose every night," Wooldridge said.