Teamwork is the name of the game for all-GTNS boys

In the true spirit of the game, team success dictated many of the individual selections for the 2009 all-Golden Triangle News Service boys basketball ? and rightly so.

Teams of the 12 players combined to average nearly 17 wins ? compared to less than seven losses ? this season led by a whopping 26 from Iowa Mennonite School, which ended its season with a third-place finish at the state tournament. The two leaders of IMS, coach Dwight Gingerich and versatile captain Jesse Ney, also lead the all-GTNS small school squad.

The state tournament appearance was No. 10 for IMS, all of which have been under the guidance of Gingerich. Gingerich?s squad had an outstanding season, going 18-0 in Southeast Iowa Super Conference North Division play, losing only one regular season contest and finishing the year with an 81-71 win over Laurens-Marathon in the consolation game. IMS finished with a 26-2 record, and Gingerich now has a career mark of 461-134 in 27 seasons.

The senior Jesse Ney was listed as a power forward this season, but did a lot more than one would expect from a post player. He could catch the ball at the perimeter and either shoot (33.9 percent from beyond the arc) or slash to the basket. On the way to the basket, he could either score (20.2 points per game) or dish it off to a teammate (3.9 assists per game). He also averaged 8.3 rebounds a game.

The senior received a heap of awards after leading IMS to a 26-2 record and a third-place finish in Class 1A at the state tournament, including the 1A all-tournament team, Class 1A first team all-state from the Iowa Newspaper Association and first team all-conference honors.

Right behind IMS in the SEISC North Division was Pekin with a 20-4 mark led by its senior workhorse of a center Cody Millikin. Millikin played much bigger than his generous 6-foot-3 listing on his way to averaging 14.3 points and 8.3 rebounds per game for the Panthers. Millikin has now been a part of two straight 20-win seasons at Pekin and has been a first team all-conference selection both of those years.

Keota also tallied 20 wins on the year with a big helping hand from athletic junior Cody Uphold. Uphold was the leading scorer on a squad that ran through the regular season ? and a tough South Iowa Cedar League ? undefeated before falling to Burlington-Notre Dame in the district finals. Uphold was quick enough to get to the basket, and his 6-foot-3 frame enabled him to finish when he got there. Uphold averaged 12.7 points and six rebounds per game, and was a first team all-conference player in the SICL.

Next is Mid-Prairie?s Tanner Miller, who may have been the best scorer in the area this past season. The junior wasn?t the best shooter, only hitting 46.3 percent from the field, 27.9 percent from beyond the 3-point arc and 67.4 percent from the free-throw line, but when the game was on the line ? and it often was with the Golden Hawks ? there?s nobody else you?d want with the ball. He averaged 17 points per game, and a good deal of those came in the fourth quarter of games. He also averaged 3.7 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 1.8 assists per game, and was selected to the Cedar Valley Conference?s first team.

Winfield-Mount Union senior Jacob Tolander was the heart of the Wolves basketball team this season, putting out an average of 16.1 points and 11.1 rebounds every time he stepped on the court. Those numbers ranked him fourth in the conference in scoring and put him at the top of the list in rebounding by nearly two per game. Tolander was also very tough for opponents to score on this season as he used every inch of his height to record 54 blocks.

Rounding out the small school squad is Van Buren big man Jordan Hervey, or double-double machine, as he?s known as around Keosauqua. The junior put together 12 point-rebound double-doubles this season on his way to nearly averaging one with 18 points and 9.5 boards a game. As the numbers indicate, Hervey was very good around the basket, making 60 percent of his field goal attempts.

At the head of the large school team is Mount Pleasant Head Coach Paul Rundquist, who led a very talented young team to a Southeast Conference championship and a 19-5 record, tying the Mount Pleasant record for most wins in a season. The Panthers also went on a 12-game run from Dec. 12 through Jan. 30 that tied the school record for most consecutive wins set by the 1973 Panthers squad.

This season, the Panthers nearly completed an 18-point fourth quarter comeback before falling to Marion in the sub-state game for the fourth consecutive year. In his nine years as the head coach at Mount Pleasant, Rundquist is 120-83 overall and 46-26 in conference.

Four of Mount Pleasant?s five starters have been named to the all-GTNS team beginning with captain Henry Kreiger-Coble. The sophomore was a force to be reckoned with under the basket this season, scoring 17.2 points while pulling down 8.5 rebounds per game. Kreiger-Coble led the Southeast Conference in total points with 412, steals with 53, free throws made with 123, field goal percentage (71.4) and was one shy of leading the SEC in total rebounds.

With Krieger-Coble manning the paint, one of the fastest players seen in the state of Iowa, senior Jordan Cotton, was free to roam. Cotton used that speed to steal 36 balls, often outracing opponents for a quick layup at the other end of the floor. Cotton averaged 14.5 points per game, shooting 49.8 percent from the floor.

Along with Cotton, Scott Hahn played a large role in running the Panthers offense this season as a sophomore, dishing out an SEC best 85 assists while averaging 12.8 points per game. Hahn connected on 60.5 percent of his shots from the floor and 31.4 percent from behind the arc. Hahn also was a game changer on defense, stealing 45 balls and blocking nine shots during the course of the season.

Continuing the run of Mount Pleasant backcourt players, senior Blake Heitmeier was the Panthers lead sniper this season, hitting 44 three-pointers and averaging 12.3 points per game. Heitmeier also dished out 57 assists and forced 36 steals for the Panthers as a swingman on both ends of the court.

For complete story, read the Friday, March 20, 2009 Fairfield Ledger.