Wasilla girls, boys have high expectations

WASILLA — Longtime Wasilla girls basketball mentor Jeannie Hebert-Truax has had some special teams during her 21 seasons as head coach of the program.

Throughout the years, her squads have won four state titles and 11 Northern Lights Conference crowns. As great as those teams were, there are a few characteristics of her current squad that might separate the 2015-16 edition of the Warriors from the pack.

“This is by far the deepest (team),” Hebert-Truax said recently. “I’m suiting 12, playing 10 of them.”

Hebert-Truax has consistently used nine or 10 players throughout the first eight games of the season. And it hasn’t mattered if the score is close, or not. In the past, Hebert-Truax said, the best may have been eight. This season, Hebert-Truax is not seeing a great drop off when she goes to the fourth or fifth player on the bench. There’s a mix of youth and experience, but the positive attitude and skill set are there regardless of the player’s class.

Wasilla’s 12 varsity players includes only two seniors, forwards Leya DePriest and Kellie Lindeman. There are a half-dozen juniors, and about four underclassmen on the varsity squad. Two of those underclassmen, sophomore Azlynn Brandenburg and freshman Olivia Davies, are starters.

Along with the depth, comes versatility.

“We can give opponents a lot of different looks,” Hebert-Truax said.

That’s on both sides of the floor. Hebert-Truax said the Warriors can show multiple looks with both the press and the half-court defense. On offense, the Warriors can create problems for opposing defenses in a multitude of ways.

A challenge entering the season was replacing the leadership of graduated seniors Cassidy Edwards and Machia Toews. Hebert-Truax said her current seniors, DePriest and Lindeman, are stepping up to fill that role.

“They’re getting people doing what they’re supposed to be doing,” Hebert-Truax said. “They’re very vocal.”

DePriest is a leader on both ends of the floor for the Warriors. The Division I recruit who committed to the University of Denver prior to the season, is a first-team all-state player.

Wasilla’s regulars also include juniors Kaylyn Kelly, Natalia Heath, Catherine Baham and McKenna Dinkel, and sophomore Taylor Anderson.

The Warriors are off to a 7-1 start. Five of Wasilla’s first six games were against out-of-state opponents. Wasilla started its season by winning the girls title of Doc Larson’s Roundball Classic at Wasilla High. In late December, the Warriors finished second in the girls’ bracket of the KSA Holiday Tournament in Florida.

Wasilla’s lone loss of the season came to a team from Oklahoma.

The Warriors opened their Northern Lights Conference schedule last week with wins over Soldotna and Kenai.

The Wasilla boys squad do not sport the depth of the varsity girls squad. The Warriors are currently suiting up only nine players. But Wasilla boys head coach Ryan Engebretsen is excited about his team. Following a dominating performance during a win over Kenai last week, Engebretsen said his players’ recent work during practice has shown their commitment to success.

“They really want to do something special this year,” Engebretsen said of his team. “They’ve bought into each other’s determination.”

Engebretsen said he is seeing leaders emerge.

“We’ve found a couple of quality leaders, which is what we really need as young as we are,” Engebretsen said.

Of the nine players on the varsity squad, there are only two seniors, Justin Lee and Deven Davidson. The majority of the players on the team are juniors, and Wasilla has two underclassmen starting, freshman Daniel Headings and sophomore Aeron Milliron.

Junior Isaac Houck is arguably Wasilla’s most seasoned veteran, seeing ample time at the varsity level since his freshman year with the Warriors. Junior Reilly Devine is Wasilla’s chief presence inside.

Engebretsen has seen junior guard Kobe Brown continue to emerge as a leader on both sides of the floor.

“He’s a phenomenal athlete, becoming a really solid kid,” Engebretsen said.

The Warriors also have the intriguing underclassmen starting. Milliron enjoyed a breakout performance against Kenai, scoring a career-high 19.

“Milliron has turned it one quite a bit. He’s a great kid. He’s decided he’s going to take on another role on this basketball team with leadership responsibilities,” Engebretsen said of the sophomore. “With that confidence he’s playing with right now, the sky’s the limit with that kid.”

Milliron has already shown his ability to score inside and on the perimeter.

“He’s a really tough match,” Engebretsen said of the 6-foot-2 Milliron. “He’s super athletic, and really in control of his body, really in control of his frame. You try to guard him with a big, and he’s going to go by. Put a guard on him and he’s going to bang around on you inside.”

Saturday, the Wasilla boys improved to 2-0 in the NLC with a 52-29 win over Soldotna.

The Wasilla girls and boys travel to Colony to face the Knights Tuesday at 6 p.m. and 7:30.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.