Five starters aren’t enough for the Westmont College men’s basketball team. The Warriors will be going with 11 this season, although their opponents may object to the idea.
“We have 11 healthy players and and we have 11 starters — any of them could start,” said 16th-year head coach John Moore, who picked up his 300th win in the season opener on Nov. 14. “That competitive piece of having 11 starters means that every day in practice you are going against someone who is close to your ability. There isn’t much of a drop-off on our roster.”
Westmont is coming off a 15-13 season that ended with a disappointing tie for eighth in the GSAC. The Warriors failed to make the postseason for the first time in 32 years.
“When you finish the season where we did last year, you either put your tail between your legs and say, ‘Woe is me,’ or you say, ‘I’m going to pick myself up and work harder,’ ” said Moore.
Three starters return from last year — 6-6 sophomore Dan Rasp, 6-3 senior Tyler Dutton and 6-3 junior Andrew Schmalbach, a former Santa Barbara County Player of the Year from St. Joseph High.
The Warriors suffered a pair of tough losses to Embry-Riddle, Fla. (75-72) and Bellevue, Neb. (79-73 in OT) on Nov. 28-29 in San Antonio, Texas. “It’d be nice to be 5-1 and we easily could have won our last two games,” Moore noted. “We kind of fumbled the ball on the 1-yard line a couple of times.”
Westmont (3-3) makes its home debut in the renovated Murchison Gym on Saturday against Hope International. The new Kammerer Court, named after Hall of Fame coach Chet Kammerer, will be dedicated on Dec. 13 when Cal State San Bernardino comes to Montecito.
“The new court is really nice to play on, it’s a big difference from last year,” said Rasp, who’s shooting 58 percent and leads the team in scoring (15.3) and rebounding (5.5).
Dutton, a 6-3 guard from Boerne, Texas, scored 22 and 21 in his last two games, boosting his average to 14.2. He’s made 56 percent (14-25) from the 3-point line, which moved back a foot this year to 20 feet, 9 inches.
“Our 3-3 record doesn’t do justice to how we’re playing,” said Dutton.
The Warriors have a new home court, new seats and a new logo but only one new player in Chris Jackson. The 5-9 point guard, a transfer from Foothill JC, is averaging 7.3 assists and 4.5 points.
“We’re bigger and more athletic than we’ve been in a long time and we’re deeper,” said Moore, whose team has been running a Princeton-style offense since 2000. “We have good size and a very, very good point guard in Chris Jackson.”
Evan Haines, a 6-8 sophomore who shot 57.6 percent in limited action last year, is the fifth starter. “He has the potential to be a very dynamic player,” said Moore. “In fact, we are revamping our offense so that Evan can be more a part of it. We’ll be running more plays out of the low post than we will out of the high post.”
Dutton and Nasa Sete are the only seniors on a squad that has no freshmen. Bobby Fenske, a 6-8 forward, who’s averaging 6.5 points and 4.8 rebounds and 6-7 Blake Bender give the Warriors more size. Schmalbach (8.3 ppg) and junior guard Matt LeDuc (8.2) are also capable scorers.
“Our keys to success will be winning close games and the fact that we now have some stars,” said Moore. “I used to say we’ve got a star or two. Now, we’ve got three guys who can be All-GSAC players and, depending on how we do, we have two who could be Player of the Year (Rasp or Dutton).”
Three Golden State Athletic Conference teams are ranked in the top 17 of the NAIA poll. Cal Baptist is No. 1, Concordia No. 9 and Azusa Pacific No. 17.
“I know I say this every year but this year may be the strongest for the GSAC,” said Moore. “Cal Baptist is No. 1 in the country and returns the (GSAC) player of the year. Azusa Pacific, Biola and Vanguard all look to be better this year. And look at Fresno, they just beat Biola, who was 3-0, by 24 points.”
Westmont has changed its conditioning program this year by hiring Dr. Marcus Elliott, a Harvard-trained physician, and Peak Performance Project.
“Dr. Elliott has a resume like very few people we’ve ever worked with before,” said Moore. “Instead of running on the track, we have a program that is much more scientifically sound and has a biomechanical approach to it. He is a cutting-edge guy who is well ahead of the curve in terms of how to be effective.”
Sean Park, a 6-3 freshman from Dos Pueblos High, will redshirt after having shoulder surgery last summer. Park led DP to an unbeaten Channel League season and was the league MVP.
Moore wants his team to be smart and strong.
“Our motto used to be, ‘The smart will take from the strong,’ ” he stated. “Now, we’re taking it a step further. We want to be smart, but we also want to be strong.”
