Players joined hands after a hard practice to show unity. The CCHS boys’ basketball team plays their first game against Silver Bay at Silver Bay on Nov. 30 and plays their first game at home on Friday, Dec. 14 at 6:30 p.m. Staff photo/Brian Larsen
Head basketball coach Colin Everson welcomed 18 boys out for practice as the team kicks off its 2018-2019 season.
Most of last year’s starters and top reserves are back: Will Ramberg, Jordan Porter, Pete Sutton, Dyami Blackwell, Trusen Gordon, Adam Dorr and other younger players who received some varsity minutes last year are working hard under Everson’s tutelage.
In his first year of coaching, Everson said he likes what he has seen so far.
“The kids have a lot of buy in here. It’s exciting for me to be back where I grew up.”
As a high school senior, area basketball coaches named Everson to the Polar League All Conference First Team.
And when he graduated from Cook County High School in 2013, he had every intention of enrolling at Minnesota Morris to go to school and play basketball.
But somewhere along the line the Morris football coach found out that Everson was more than just a great basketball player, that he was also an All-Conference football player for CCHS, and the coach invited him to join the team. Once on the football team, Everson decided two sports in college were too much, and his basketball career ended.
Until, that is, he came back home to teach math and coach.
On offense the Vikings will work with a “continuity offense,” said Everson. “We will keep the ball moving, run a lot of off-ball screens and double ball screens, hand offs on picks, find the open man.
“Our first goal is to get shots in paint, but we will kick it (ball) out for three-point shots. We will take what the defense gives us.
“On defense we will play a basic man. Sometimes we will press, or play three-quarter man. Switching things up will give the other team something to think about. We want to put pressure on the offense and make them think, keep them unsettled.”
The boys’ first game is against Silver Bay on Friday, Nov. 30 at Silver Bay. The first home game is against Moose Lake/Willow River on Friday, December 14 at 6:30 p.m. in the Pam Taylor gymnasium. Come out and cheer for your Vikings!
Leave a Reply