By SAM McDOWELL
smcdowell@islandpacket.com
843-706-8123
Published Sunday, Nov 30, 2008 12:00 AM
Often a basketball coach knows what kind of team he has before the season even begins. He can prepare for it based on the personnel returning from a year ago.
Not so for Bluffton High School boys basketball coach Jim Finlen, who lost his entire starting five from last season.
"It's too early to tell what we'll be," Finlen said. "There's a lot that remains to be seen. I think the first 10 games will teach us a lot about our team, because there's things you can't duplicate in practice. You have to see it in a game."
They'll get that first taste of game action Tuesday night, when the Bobcats host Estill in their season opener.
Only three Bobcats have experienced much varsity playing time -- Ryan Combs, Matt Sandusky and Patrick Mack -- though none started regularly last season.
The inexperience, and the lowered expectations that come along with it, is something Finlen knew he would be dealing with this year. But he had no idea it could bring such positive aspects as well.
"It's a good thing, because this team is very enthusiastic," Finlen said. "I got some kids that hang around late after practice. They really want to be successful. They don't want to lose because people think they're going to lose."
To avoid that, however, there's plenty of work to do.
The first priority will be for the Bobcats to find scoring options. Finlen estimates that last year's senior class accounted for roughly 85 percent of the team's scoring.
Mack and Combs will be the primary threats from the guard positions, but the offense will largely be based around Sandusky, a 6-foot-7 center. It presents a unique situation for the Bobcats, an undersized team without Sandusky, but a team that is ready to build its offense around the big man while he's on the floor.
"It's a whole different offense with me on or off the court," Sandusky said. "We have the guys that can run and fast break when I'm not in there, but we slow it down when I'm on the court. We're basically practicing two completely different styles."
The concept has somewhat slowed the offensive learning process for the Bobcats, who finished 14-10 a year ago. Finlen said his team still needs to improve other aspects on that end of the court -- namely, its ball-handling skills.
Mack, a senior, said he's already noticed improvement in that area.
"We've adjusted to facing (defensive) pressure," Mack said. "Taking care of the ball wasn't something we were doing early on, but we're getting there. We're adjusting. It doesn't get to us as bad as it used to.
"Hopefully it was more defensive effort than (it was) poor offense, anyway."
More than ever, the Bobcats will be depending on that defensive effort, especially early in the season as the team gauges its offensive ability. Finlen and his players have called it the team's biggest strength.
"We've got a great defense," Mack said. "We're going to have to rely on it a lot when we're learning what we can do offensively. We can't take breaks on defense this year."