The North Butler girls and boys basketball team will open the season in friendly confines of home gym as they take on Northwood-Kensett in Top of Iowa Conference-East doubleheader on Tuesday.
The North Butler girls went 4-18 last season. Jady Thorne returns as the second leading scorer averaging 4.4 points per game last season and added 44 assists as the Bearcats floor general. Colby Wix averaged 4.2 points per game and had the third most rebounds on the team at 68 last season.
Head Coach Jordan Nolz on the Bearcats’ daily on-court mindset this season.
“Every single day, we teach them, when you’re on the court, come full speed ahead, come pay attention, focus. Everyone’s here, everyone’s together. There’s no reason to do anything but give your best effort both mentally and physically. That’s really what we look for every day, says Nolz.”
The Northwood-Kensett girls (0-1) were overpowered in a season opening loss 67-18 at North Iowa on Monday, November 25. The Vikings were plagued by 26 turnovers in the loss. Bailey Thorson led the team with seven points.
The North Butler boys went 7-15 last season. Ryan Austin, as a starter last season, averaged eight points per game and defended the boards with second most rebounds on the team 147 last season. Kamdon Boos, as a starter, averaged 5.2 points per game and added a team-leading 54 assists last season.
Bearcats Head Coach Austin Guerrero on facing a well-established Vikings team on opening night.
“They’re going to be experienced and we’re ready for that challenge. They got several guys that have really played a lot of basketball in the offseason and we kind of know what they bring to the table,” says Guerrero. “Understanding is it’s going to take all of us to be able to contain them. We’re looking to put some things at them that maybe they haven’t seen in the past, to help us compete in that game.”
The Northwood-Kensett boys went 10-13 last season. The Vikings return all five starters from last year’s team. Leading scorer and rebounder Colby Eskildsen returns after averaging 20.6 points per game and 12.3 rebounds last season.
Action begins at 6:15 p.m. in Greene.
