Preview: Hutchinson Salthawks

MEET THE TEAM

Few coaches face the same yearly problem that Nathan Henry does at Hutchinson. You can almost bet the house that Randy Dreiling will have the football team playing for the football state championship, which means many of the same athletes that Henry is counting on for basketball games are occupied with football until past Thanksgiving. Most years Henry is lucky if he has more than four or five practices with his full team before the first game.
The solution Henry has come up with is keep it as simple as possible and just survive until the Christmas break. The problem this season is that the Salthawks play six games, a little over a quarter of the season, before they go on break. That's a long stretch of the year to be playing with simplified strategies. But that's the uphill challenge Henry is left with.
It really can't be overstated the job Henry has done at Hutchinson. In his three seasons, Hutchinson has not posted a losing record. That's without much natural basketball talent. Hutchinson is known as a football school and it's not rare that you'll see the basketball team play like a bunch of football players out there. They play intense defense, body you up and don't apologize for getting in your face. In simple words, they're a team you don't want to face - no matter their record. Last season they held 16 teams under 50 points and won 12 of those games.
Expect the same old Hutchinson this season. Henry will impose his will on them once again and they'll be an extremely difficult team to score on in the half-court  But the lone difference this season might be the Salthawks' lack of size in the post. They've had a few pretty big bangers in the post the past few seasons, but that will be absent this season. Only one in the rotation is listed above 6-foot-1.
Scoring has always been a struggle for Hutchinson consistently. But those problems may be alleviated this season with two senior guards in Tanner Higgins and Trevor Turner returning. They're both way under-sized, but their will is undeniable on the basketball court and they just find ways to score buckets. Each has a deadly shot from beyond the arc and both should score a few baskets each game just from their defensive efforts alone.
The rest is a bit unknown, even to Henry. He's still learning his players' abilities in practice. It's hard to read how Hutchinson will fare this season losing so much production and size. But if we are to take anything away from Henry's first three season as coach, we can assume Hutchinson will maximize its potential, be a great defensive team and will probably steal a game or two that it probably has no business being in.

MEET THE CAST

#04 | TANNER HIGGINS | POINT | 5'8" | SENIOR
Scores more than you would think, considering his size. A top-notch perimeter defender, Higgins almost wills his way into scoring opportunities and has one of the better three-point shots on the team.
#25 | TREVOR TURNER | POINT | 5'9" | SENIOR
Missed all of last season because of a knee injury, but looks ready to go for his senior season. He was one of the best players on the team as a sophomore and should reassume his position as leading scorer this year on a team that will desperately need it.
#?? | JOE DOWER | POST | 6'4" | SENIOR
Didn't go out for the team last season, but should make an instant impact in his senior year. He's a much-needed big body down low for Hutchinson and should help the team in rebounding and defense.
#45 | COLBY TURNER | POST | 6'0" | SOPHOMORE
Played varsity as a freshman and should once again figure heavily into the rotation this season on the inside. Played linebacker in football and has the toughness to stick his head inside and fight for rebounds and is excellent defender.

#15 | REGGIE SLATON | WING | 5'9" | SENIOR
Yet another guard for Hutchinson that should see more minutes this season as a senior. He has a nice offensive game and could help out in a big way in his last season at Hutch.

#24 | KADEN FLORES | WING | 5'11" | SENIOR
Lettered last season and could see a bump up into the starting rotation this year as a senior. A nice defender that also could help with the scoring load this season with a reliable jump shot.
#30 | BRAYDON WELLS | WING | 5'7" | JUNIOR
Saw enough time to letter last season and will likely play another key role as a contributor off the bench for the Salthawks. Has a nice outside shot and can play some defense and should provide nice depth.
#11 | JEZEL PARRA | WING | 6'2" | JUNIOR
Flashed some raw potential last season as a scorer, but must become more polished and consistent to become a regular contributor in the rotation. But on a team that needs scoring, could see action early on.
#?? | BRODY ACKLEY | WING | 6'1" | SENIOR
A newcomer out for basketball as a senior that Henry thinks will see meaningful minutes off the bench. Yet another wing player that can shoot and defend for Hutch.
#25 | EVAN GAINES-GRISSOM | WING | 5'11" | JUNIOR
Played on JV last season, but will see an increase in time on varsity this season because of his athleticism. Was a nice receiver during football and will look to parlay that success into more playing time in basketball.

FROM COACH HENRY

"I think the success they've had in football helps them be more aggressive and makes them mentally tougher on the basketball court. We've always been a hard-working team. We demand a lot from our kids and that extra effort always helps. The key this season for us will be to maintain our focus at the end of the season. To do that, we're going to have to be mentally tough and be playing our best basketball in February and March." 

THE PREDICTION

I've always admired what Henry has done at Hutchinson. I love the way he always gets his teams to play hard defense and it's no coincidence Hutchinson always wins 2-3 more games than you would expect them to. Well, stop underrating them people. The Salthawks will once again post a winning record in a league that is wide open behind Derby. The sub-state also presents plenty of opportunity as long as you avoid North. If the Salthawks can do that and grab the No. 2 or 3 seed, then there's no reason why this team couldn't potentially be playing in the state tournament and everyone exclaiming them to be the overachievers as always. Maybe some day they'll dole out the proper respect this program deserves.