Photo courtesy of Edwin Gonzalez
Abdul Bashir(left) and Bin Basil(right) celebrate during a win on November 1 against North Idaho College.
By Tim Hubert
As the regional action of the regular season winds down, the Thunderbirds basketball programs look forward to playoffs. Both teams have eyes set on a Region 9 championship, which would also clinch a berth into the NJCAA National Tournament. There, the teams would enter bracket-style play along with 23 of the most talented junior college teams in the nation. The NJCAA tournament draws attention from fans and national media, as well as college scouts.
On the women’s side, the Lady T-Birds are in first place of the North subregion standings, with a record of 9-1 in conference play. The team’s one conference loss came at the hands of the Western Wyoming Mustangs back in mid-January. Since then, the Lady T-Birds won the last 7 conference games, with 5 of the 7 being double-digit victories. The Lady T-Birds most recently came off of a home victory against in-state rival Central Wyoming College on Homecoming weekend.
The Lady T-Birds team success is a group effort, but like all great teams, winning requires team leaders. The current group is led by sophomores Andi Schissler and Adama Badjie Coly. A Colorado native, Schissler was named to the Region 9 First Team last season, and she saw her hard work pay off even more this season. This past year, she announced her plans to continue her basketball journey at the D1 level by committing to University of North Texas after an outstanding freshman season with Casper College. As a freshman, she averaged 13.1 points per game, shooting 42% from the 3-point line. She continued to grow and get better this season, as she averages 18.4 points per game, almost 7 rebounds per game, and over 2 steals per game. Schissler and Badjie Coly are the only two primary starters from last season that returned to the Lady T-Birds team from last season. This required both to take on a new role on the team, as well as forced them to mesh with the new players.
“They [Schissler and Badjie Coly] attribute that to our team,” Assistant Coach Nate Macy said of their success this season. “Our team has continued to get better and that’s why they have succeeded.”
He also praised them for their hard work in practice, as well as the endless extra hours in the gym.
“We need to finish the season out strong,” said Macy. “In order for us to do that we have to take every game seriously.”
Photo courtesy of Edwin Gonzalez
Andi Schissler shoots over Air Force Prep player during a November 16 game.
A first place finish would give the team a bye in the first round of the region tournament, likely to be located in Nebraska. Coming out of the region tournament on top would clinch the Lady T-Birds the team’s sixth consecutive National tournament appearance where the team looks to bounce back after a crushing loss last year to the eventual National runner-up, Northwest Florida State College. The Lady T-Birds may have the unique opportunity to play in front of a home crowd, as the National tournament will be hosted in Casper in late March. This season, the team plays under the direction of Head Coach Dwight Gunnare for the final season of his career, as he plans to retire after this season.
On the men’s side, expectations are just as high, as the T-Birds look for the team’s first region title in six years and just the second region title in nearly 30 years. Head Coach Tom Parks also looks to make his first NJCAA National tournament appearance as a head coach. He led the program the past two seasons. The team is coming off of a loss last season against Western Nebraska Community College in the semifinals of the tournament.
The team is currently sitting with a 20-6 overall record and a 7-2 conference record. The biggest win of the season thus far came in a home game against rival Gillette College. At the time, both teams boasted an undefeated record in conference play. The hard fought game was neck and neck for the majority of the game and quite literally came down to the last fraction of a second. Following a missed layup attempt from freshman Bin Basil, the ball was knocked out of bounds. Pending review, two tenths of a second were added back onto the clock, as this was how much time was remaining when the ball landed out of bounds. Coach Parks proceeded to draw up a play to have sophomore Abdul Bashir throw a lob pass to Freshman Stephen Osei. However, in the process of the play, sophomore Ethan Connery was hit in the head by a Gillette player, which after review was called a flagrant foul, granting Connery two free throws. He needed to make just one to win the game. He made the first of two, clinching the win to give the T-Birds sole possession of first place in the Region 9 North standings. Since that game the T-Birds faced ups and downs and are currently tied with Gillette for the number 1 seed in the region.
The race for the number 1 seed is an important one, as the team that stands alone as the number one seed will host the Region 9 tournament and gain home-court advantage.
“There are a ton of benefits associated with hosting, obviously playing in front of your home crowd and having them be supportive at every game,” Assistant Coach Deion Andersen said when asked about the importance of hosting.
The playoffs are not the only thing the T-Birds are looking forward to. Junior Colleges look to provide players with high-level coaching and solid competition in order to achieve the players’ dreams of playing at a higher level. Casper College already helped two players commit to Division 1 programs next year. Ethan Connery is headed to William and Mary University next season; Abdul Bashir recently committed to Auburn, the number one ranked college basketball program in the nation. Both play crucial roles in leading the team toward success.
Bashir, who is considered by some to be the best JUCO prospect in the country, is averaging 26.4 points per game and four assists per game.
“We have Abdul Bashir,” said Anderson. “There’s not anybody else in the entire country that has a player of that caliber.”
Coach Anderson, as well as many fans and supporters, believe that Bashir can be a big piece in Casper College’s success this year down the stretch. He’s only one piece of many that makes this team great, however. Ethan Connery contributes in many other ways. Along with averaging 12.8 points per game, Connery leads the team in rebounds with 7.7 per game, despite being one of the shortest players on the team. Coach Anderson explained how rebounding and hard work on defense is what he believes sets this team apart from others. Connery impacts the game immensely in that way, while also averaging 3.8 assists and nearly 2 steals per game.
Both teams will close out the regular season with Senior night at home against Eastern Wyoming College on March 1 before beginning the region tournament the following week.