Olympus title? Teams are teeming with experience

At the beginning of the 2005 basketball season, Olympus High's situation could be described by myriad cliches: "now or never" and "do or die" to name a couple.

No one can blame the coaches at Olympus for instilling a sense of urgency in their respective players. Both the boys and girls teams are as top-heavy as any of the schools in the state, boasting a remarkable 16 seniors between the two squads. The fact that half of the school's varsity players are playing their last season of prep sports leaves the Titan brass in a precarious situation.

With two teams teeming with experience and a possible rebuilding year on the horizon, the time for Olympus to make a title run is now.

Boys: The Titan boys will be hard pressed to recreate the level of success that they enjoyed last season. The 2004 crew posted an outstanding 22-2 overall record and all but ran away with the Region 6 title. Were it not for an overtime loss to Skyview in the semis of last year's state tourney, Olympus could have won it all.

This year's team, while both athletic and experienced, will be forced to play a very different type of basketball. The Titans of 2004 depended on talented big man Sean Greene, a luxury that the current squad will not enjoy.

"When Sean graduated, we lost a lot of our size," says head coach Matt Barnes. "We still have a lot of guys that can contribute, but we don't have any big guys that can dominate the way Sean did."

What the Oly boys lack in size they hope to make up in depth and experience.

Senior guards Ray Paull, Nate Vanvranken and Crosby Styles look to be the top threats on a team that features nine seniors that are all capable of scoring.

"Our depth is probably our biggest advantage right now," says Barnes. "I'll probably play nine or 10 different guys in every game."

With no true big men and a handful of talented guards on the roster, look for the Titans to play a much more speed-oriented brand of basketball, running and pressing in order to put more emphasis on their team's outstanding athleticism. "We've got high expectations for this year," says Barnes. "It should be fun."

Girls: While the Lady Titans' performance in 2004 was nothing short of respectable, this year's team, which is made up of many of the same players, hopes to prove that they are not the same group that finished 13-10 and lost in the second round of the playoffs.

"We played well last year, but I expect us to improve," says head coach Kael Ashton. "We lost three seniors to graduation, but everyone else is back."