Junior Rashaan Jackson will be a key man for Warsaw this boys basketball season (File photo by Scott Davidson)

WARSAW – Warsaw boys basketball coach Doug Ogle sees some encouraging signs from the 2013-14 edition of his team.

He also sees a lot of players without a lot of varsity experience on the Tigers’ roster this season.

“I think we have a lot of players who have improved their basketball skills from last season and that has me encouraged,” said Ogle. “I think that our overall skill level is better and deeper this year.

“With that being said, we don’t have a lot of players with varsity starts returning. We have a lot of inexperience at the varsity level. The seniors we lost from last year that some big holes to fill in terms of their play and their leadership.”

The Tigers lost five seniors from last year’s squad that struggled with a slew of close losses late in the regular season. Warsaw then put together an incredible sectional championship run with wins over Elkhart Central (45-44 in double overtime), heavy favorite Concord (41-39 in triple overtime) and Northridge (64-57) to claim the Class 4-A Elkhart Central Sectional title.  The Tigers finished out their 13-11 season, which included a 3-4 mark in the Northern Lakes Conference, with a 48-46 regional semifinal loss to South Bend Adams.

The key piece gone from last year is guard Jared Bloom. The clutch ace, who averaged 17.7 ppg. and led the Tigers with 48 treys, is now a preferred walk-on at IPFW. Also graduated are Taylor Cone, who started all 24 games last season, and John Swanson, who made 23 starts.  Cone averaged 7.5 ppg. and a team-high 5.6 rebounds. Swanson averaged 8.4 points and four rebounds per outing. Jason Ferguson, who made 16 starts, also graduated.

The duo of senior Jordan Stookey and junior Rashaan Jackson are big keys for the Tiger fortunes this campaign. Stookey, a 6-2 guard, averaged 9.6 ppg. while leading Warsaw in assists (115) and steals (38) last season. Jackson, an athletic 6-2, 220-pound forward, made seven starts and averaged 5.5 ppg. as a sophomore.

Senior Jordan Stookey is the most experienced and top returning scorer for the Tigers this season (File photo by Scott Davidson)

“A big focus for us is doing a better job of handling the ball this year,” said Ogle, whose team averaged 13.3 turnovers per game last season. “We have to take good shots and play more physical defensively this year.

“I think if we keep our turnovers down that our scoring will be fine. But, we can’t have the turnover numbers we had last year. We do have guys who can shoot the ball. Our interior defense will be a big key as will our rebounding since we our undersized this year.”

Ogle, who is 164-84 in his 11 seasons as the Warsaw head coach, says that Stookey, Jackson, senior guard Nate Pearl and junior forward Jake Mangas have starting spots for the opener at Valley Nov. 27. The point guard spot will be manned by either junior Peyton Long or sophomore Paul Marandet. Pearl did play in all 24 games last year with three starts.

The Tiger roster also includes senior Darren Walcott, a 5-8 guard who played in 14 games last season. Senior Moses Marandet is a first year player in the program. Also being counted on are juniors Cameron Hoskins, Tim Swanson, Nick Sands and sophomore Riley Rhoades.

Warsaw, which had 60 players come out this season, is going to be shorthanded for a while. Sands, a 5-9 guard, is out after having knee surgery and Rhoades, a 6-3 forward, is sidelined after two hip surgeries. Ogle said that Sands, who may have been a starter, is expected back in January and Rhoades, who would have been a key reserve, should return in February.

The Tigers open the season at Valley Nov. 27 and then play at Columbia City Nov. 30. The home opener is Dec. 6 versus Homestead with the NLC opener at home versus Wawasee Dec. 20. Warsaw does not play last year foes South Bend Clay, Fort Wayne South, Rochester or Kankakee Valley this season. The Tigers have replaced them with a game at Manchester, a home game with Elkhart Christian Academy and a two-game holiday tourney at Hamilton Heights.

Ogle points to Concord, which won the NLC title at 7-0 in a 19-2 overall season last year, as the favorite in the conference. He also believes that NorthWood and Northridge will be in the mix this season atop the league.

“Really, with just 1 1/2 starters back, everything is a concern to me,” noted Ogle. “I think we can become a good team. We just have to be patient with this group. It’s going to take some time for all of them to become comfortable on the varsity level.”