Eagle Ridge turns to a solid returning core

Eagle Ridge Christian School's goal this season is a simple one: Get the ball into the hands of 6-foot-4 senior Andrew Mellies and see how far he can go.

After a .500 season, Eagle Ridge will have a strong core coming back. The Eagles will look to freshman point guard Joel Powell, junior small forward Daniel Ellinghouse, sophomore guard T.J. Crowden, junior power forward Phillip Brock and senior small forward Derek Rose to pick up the rest of the scoring duties.

With the Eagles only going seven deep, the scoring these role players provide will be a big key to the success of the Eagles.

Coach Tony Hammack makes no allusions about the importance of Mellies.

"Mellies is definitely our key guy," Hammack said. "If we can get him the ball he can do his thing on the block."

Hammack said if Mellies plays to his potential there isn't a team in the conference that can stop him.

"He hasn't even really come out yet," Hammack said. "He could really do a lot more than he's doing."

The Eagles as a team will try to slow things down this season, concentrating on a zone defense. Eagle Ridge will run some half-court and full-court traps though.

"I would say we're pretty conservative defensively," Hammack said.

The Eagles are still struggling to pick up new zone schemes Hammack has introduced and could have problems on defense to start the season.

"We've got to pick it up defensively," Hammack said. "We're working to improve."

With an enrollment of 25 the Eagles, like many teams they compete against, have a few players that have to be taught the game of basketball. Hammack said most of his players are at least in their second year of basketball, but many of them are still raw.

"Some of my guys are really new to basketball," he said.

Although some of the players may not have a great deal of basketball experience, the players don't let on in their attitude.

"They come in real positive every year," Hammack said. "They're obsessive with basketball. They're really excited about the season, which is good."

One player that embodies that excitement is guard Luke Armbruster, an eighth-grader. Armbruster, who weighs in at around 80 pounds, is a spark plug for the team.

"He's so small, but he's good and he's got a lot of heart," Hammack said.

The Eagles are hoping their excitement will translate into victories.

Hammack said he expects them to hover around .500 at the least.

"We're gonna really compete I think," Hammack said. "I expect us to work hard, play hard and execute what we have in our scheme."

jjoffray@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 171