NHS Boys Basketball looking to improve

Niwot boys basketball coach Clay Wittrock enters his fourth season at the helm with a solid group of seniors who came to Niwot High when he did.

Two of those seniors are returning full-time varsity players, as is sophomore guard Jack Jarvis. Several other players return with varsity experience, "This is the most experience we've had," Wittrock said. "For the first time, these guys had a full offseason to grow and develop trust with each other. We have a better understanding of where our strengths are."

Wittrock, who teaches language arts at Trail Ridge Middle School, is pleased by what he has seen last summer and fall during workouts. He's expecting a breakout season for 6'6" senior Jerek Funkhouser, who averaged around 10 points per game last season. "He puts in so much time and hard work," Wittrock said. "He will give a lot of teams trouble. He can score inside and out. He's confident, he's a team guy and he wants to win."

Point guard-shooting guard Jack Jarvis, only a sophomore, played with the varsity most of last season. "Jack has a lot of trust from his teammates," Wittrock said. Senior Julian Lettow also played varsity last season as a guard and small forward. Lettow, who also plays baseball, is expected to provide senior leadership.

Another senior, Mateusz Swat, played some varsity minutes as a sophomore. "Both of them have matured," Wittrock said. He has seen them provide leadership to the squad in the early days of practice.

Senior guard Drew Buckingham is currently injured, but Wittrock expects him back at full strength soon. Buckingham transferred from Silver Creek last season and had to sit out under transfer rules. "He's a great hustle guy, great ball handler," Wittrock said.

Sophomore guard Drew Stapp also played some varsity minutes last year as a freshman. "He's a natural leader, with great hustle," Wittrock said.

Jackson Carano, who stands approximately 6'5", played some on varsity last year as well. The center/power forward is a junior who transferred from Shining Mountain, which shut down its program a year ago. Another junior, Brighton Langenegger, who is also listed at 6'5", is another center/power forward who transferred from Shining Mountain. Both will provide needed height for the Cougars.

Two other seniors, Alex Long and Zach Dawson, are expected to contribute as well. Long, a forward who saw some varsity action last year, is described by Wittrock as "coachable, a vocal leader, and a leader by example." Dawson, a small forward, is expected to help with rebounding. "He has a good basketball IQ," Wittrock said. Campbell Horning has also been practicing with the varsity in preseason action.

"They learned a lot from last year's struggles," Wittrock said. "We had to learn some hard lessons. We have to be the most disciplined team every night."

Wittrock lost two assistant coaches who moved up to head coaching positions, including Tyler Cronkite, who is now the head coach at Lyons High School. The Niwot staff this season has Charles Trowbridge as JV coach, Mike Gossett as C Team coach, and Lamar West as D Team coach.