Early-season test: Jimmies open up at home against Brandon tonight

Starting the season this early does have benefits, according to new Jamestown College men’s basketball coach Justin Wieck.

With two weeks of practice in the books, the Jimmies tip it off for real tonight, and with limited time to get ready, the early work went well.

“The guys knew they needed to be focused and pay attention to detail because of the faster timeline, so that was good,” Wieck said. “With that short-term goal of being ready to play a couple games, I think we were able to get a lot accomplished.”

The roster has seen a lot of turnover from top to bottom.

Wieck’s two assistant coaches are new in Nav Mahal and Danny Neville.

Those attending today’s game at 7 p.m. against Brandon University (Man.) will recognize Mark Hoge, Davon Thomas and Jared Sutherland, but from there, a program will come in handy.

That does not mean the cupboard is bare, however, far from it, in fact.

“I feel like we got 10 or 11 guys that are in the mix,” Wieck said. “We have a lot of young guys, and there is a huge difference between high school and college, but I like what we have on our roster.”

Wieck wasn’t ready to commit to a starting five on Thursday, but Hoge and Thomas will be counted on heavily. The two combined for 20 points per game last year. Sutherland is the lone senior on the roster and is poised for a strong season.

Wieck said Hoge is “playing tremendous,” and spoke highly of all five returners, which also includes guard Taylor Newton and Beny Collins, one of several players competing for time inside.

Wieck and the Jimmies won’t unveil a lot tonight Xs- and Os-wise; there will be plenty of time for that later.

“We’re not going to be a perfect product. A lot of it will be how we show up mentally. How we compete and we adjust when things go wrong,” Wieck said.

The Jimmies won’t play again for three weeks after Saturday’s game, so they’re trying to pace themselves in a marathon of a season.

“The season is so long. We’re not going to kill them this early, so we’ll kind of take a little step back after these two games and see where we’re at,” Wieck said. “We’re excited to get out there and see where we’re at.”

2012 Jamestown College Men’s Basketball Roster

Breshion Tucker, Fr., G; Andre Maund, Fr., G; Taylor Newton, Soph., G; Davon Thomas, Jr. G; Dyllan Anderson, Fr., G; Mark Potter, Fr., G; Aaron Stemen, Fr., G; Mark Hoge, Jr., G; Mateusz Janiewski, Jr., F; Jared Sutherland, Sr., F; Dan Janu, Fr., F; Beny Collins, Soph., F; Jesse Behm, Soph., F; Nate Willer, Fr., F.

Sun sports editor Dave Selvig can be reached at (701) 952-8460 or by e-mail at daves@jamestownsun.com

Tags: sports, jimmies, basketball