It's tourney time for local prep hoops squads

March 20, 2007

By MATT TUNSETH/ Frontiersman

WASILLA - All eyes will be on Anchorage for this weekend's ASAA 4A State Tournament - but everyone's focus will be squarely on the Valley.

Specifically, on the Wasilla Warriors, whose boys and girls teams enter the tourney as the No. 1 seeds and the top-ranked teams in the statewide media poll.

That's a lot of pressure to live up to, but according to Wasilla girls coach Jeannie Hebert-Truax, her team is simply focused on getting back on the court after nearly two weeks off.

ASAA does not schedule the state event on the weekend following conference tournaments, a situation that Hebert-Truax said has been a little tough not only on her team but all of the state participants.

&#8220I think the best basketball would be the weekend after regions,” she said.

Still, the Warriors have to play with the hand they're dealt, and the head coach said she's been using the extra time to put her players up against higher-level competition -specifically, the coach's city league basketball teammates.

&#8220I've given them a little tougher competition,” she said.

As for players their own age, Wasilla will return to the task at hand Thursday afternoon, when they take on the South Wolverines at 5:10 p.m. at Service High School.

Hebert-Truax said Wasilla won't do much different this time around than when they first ran into South earlier this season, a 47-44 victory for the Warriors.

&#8220It should be a good game,” she said.

As for Wasilla's chances of capturing the program's first state title since 1982, Hebert-Truax said she believes her group of hard-nosed, experienced players has a good shot at making that dream a reality.

&#8220That's our ultimate goal right there,” she said. &#8220They've just got have everything come together and don't break down.”

Although the Wasilla girls will be among the biggest stories at state, they're not alone among Valley teams hoping to make a run. In fact, five Mat-Su teams advanced to the state tournament, including the Wasilla boys and girls, the Palmer boys and girls and the Colony boys.

Wasilla boys vs. Palmer

Thursday, 6:50 p.m.

Service High School

Records don't matter once state rolls around, and that's particularly true for an all-Valley tilt in the first round when top-ranked Wasilla takes on Palmer.

The Warriors are riding high following an undefeated Northern Lights Conference season and NLC tournament championship.

Wasilla is strong and deep, with solid players both inside and out. The Warriors are led by senior guard Jesse Bean, who was recently named the NLC Player of the Year for the second straight year. Helping Bean in the backcourt will be senior defensive stopper Jeremiah Collins and versatile swingman Dexter Pearce. Inside, forwards Jack Troshynski, Matthew Stearman and Logan Williams eat up plenty of room in the paint.

While everyone expected Wasilla to be a big player at state, Palmer is the surprise team of the tournament. The Moose fought their way through the NLC tournament as a No. 4 seed to earn a trip to the big dance. They'll again be an underdog at state as the lowest-seeded team in the boys' bracket.

Palmer head coach Greg Fullmer told the Frontiersman last week the Moose know they are the underdogs, just as they were in the NLC tourney, but it's a role they relish.

&#8220There really was not any pressure on us,” Fullmer said of his team's play in the conference tournament.

Fullmer said Wasilla has all of the pieces of the puzzle to win a state championship, but the team that is supposed to win does not always win. After playing the Warriors tough in two regular season meetings, Fullmer said he hopes the third time is the charm.

Just because the Moose are unheralded doesn't mean they don't have talent. Junior guard T.J. Fullmer shot the lights out during the conference tournament to lead the team in scoring, while big men Nate Svedin and Quinton Fiscus have the size to go toe-to-toe with Wasilla's front line.

Colony boys vs. Juneau Thursday, 11:20 a.m.

Service High School

Colony head coach Jeff Bowker doesn't know much about the state's No. 2 team, but what he does know is they're likely going to be a handful.

&#8220I guess they're super big,” Bowker said.

The Knights aren't big - forwards Grant Niver and Josh Moseley are the only Colony regulars listed at taller than 6 feet - but they play a controlled style of basketball that could give the Crimson Bears fits. Against Soldotna in the NLC tournament, junior guard Doug Gray went off, hitting four three-pointers en route to a 28-point performance. Colony's win over Soldotna is notable in that the Stars suited up the tallest player in the conference, 6-foot-9-inch center Tony Besse.

Juneau, however is a step up from SoHi. The Crimson Bears have five players listed as taller than the tallest Knight, including state player of the year candidate Will Egolf, a 6-foot-9 senior center.

Still, Bowker said he doesn't think his squad is the type that is easily intimidated.

&#8220They certainly won't back down to anyone,” he said.

Palmer girls vs. East

Saturday, 9:40 a.m.

Service High School

If any team is prime for a Cinderella run through the state tournament, it could be the Palmer girls.

The Moose gave top-ranked Wasilla all they could handle in the NLC tournament, eventually falling 45-39 to the conference champions. Palmer then went on to knock off Colony and deny the Knights a trip to state for the first time in 14 years.

Palmer will face East in the first round in a rematch of a January contest that saw the Moose survive victorious in double-overtime by a 61-54 margin.

East finished the season 20-7, including a 12-2 record against Anchorage-area competition and won the Cook Inlet Conference tournament. They're led by Jazzie Gaddy, a junior forward who was named the top girls' player in the conference.

Between junior forward Ashley Swetzof and senior post Stephanie Houser, the Moose have the presence down low to handle the T-Birds' inside attack. On the outside, guards Kelsey Campbell and Matti Cox have the ability to score both off the dribble as well as with outside jumpers.

Contact Matt Tunseth at 352-2265 or matt.tunseth@

frontiersman.com