By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Last year was a banner season for Buffalo basketball.
The Bison finished with a 19-10 record and captured the school’s first district championship since 1970.
Head coach Kyle Gawlowski, entering his sixth year at Buffalo, hopes to continue building on the team’s recent success. To do so, Gawlowski will first need to find replacements for graduates Jamen Smith, Bode Abraham and Dominic Miller.
“All three players led us in multiple statistical categories last season, but the most important thing they did was establish a culture of hard work, intensity, and grittiness that made sure our team would overachieve,” Gawlowski said. “I really can’t understate how great of a job this senior class did over the years helping turn around the program here in Buffalo.”
A quartet of talented upperclassmen return to lead the Bison this season in Jaren Smith, Pierce Obernuefemann, Cameron Portis and Joseph Horinek.
“We will return a few important players from last season’s team, so going through the process of winning elimination games was a great experience for them to get used to the increased pressure and intensity,” Gawlowski said. “The culture and leadership around that team set a great example for our younger players to pick up and carry on.”
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Smith, a 5-foot-9 senior, averaged 1.6 points and 1.1 rebounds last season.
“Jaren is a physical defender and a great rebounding guard,” Gawlowski said. “He is an incredibly unselfish player who prides himself on setting up his teammates and shutting down opposing guards. His leadership both on and off the court will be essential to the success of our team.”
Obernuefemann, a 5-foot-10 senior, averaged 10 points and 2.3 rebounds last season.
“Pierce is our top perimeter scorer,” Gawlowski said. “His shooting ability will help open up the paint for the rest of the team. Pierce has improved his physicality and speed in order to be a more dynamic scorer and a stronger defender. We expect him to take another big step forward for his senior year.”
Portis, a 5-foot-11 senior, averaged 4.1 points and 3.5 rebounds last season.
“Cameron is an exceptional athlete,” Gawlowski said. “He did a great job of providing bursts of scoring and defensive pressure last year. This year, he will be one of our best perimeter defenders, and we will rely on him to be a major threat driving and slashing through traffic. With his strength and explosiveness, he will be a tough matchup for most guards to handle.”
At 6-foot-7, the junior Horink averaged 8.0 points and 6.4 rebounds last season, earning all-conference honors.
“Joseph has been our most improved player over the summer,” Gawlowski said. “Not only has he improved on the court, but he has done a great job in the weight room. We expect him to have a breakout role as the central pillar of our defense and key point for all of our guards to play off of on the offensive end of the floor.”
5-foot-9 junior Brett Schwanke and 6-foot senior Eli Potter also return for the Bison.
“Brett is an intelligent guard with a high motor which will allow him to contribute to our team even when he isn’t touching the ball,” Gawlowski said. “Eli has worked hard this summer to become a knock down shooter and a great glue guy who will be comfortable filling in for any position on the floor.”
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Newcomers to Buffalo’s varsity roster include juniors Easton Skinner, Rilye Phillips, Steven Cox and Cole Potter.
While the Bison must replace a considerable amount of scoring and leadership from departed graduates, Gawlowski believes that his returning squad is up to the task.
“This year will feel like a completely new team with everyone being asked to take a major step up in what we ask them to do, so each player will have to make improvements to their game,” Gawlowski said. “Starting with this summer, we have seen the guys come in and really concentrate on stepping up to this challenge. There are several guys that will be in the running for most improved player this year, but more importantly this mindset has led to some great competitions in our practices.”
For Buffalo to capture another district title this season, Gawlowski believes perimeter scoring and rebounding will be critical factors.
“As a team, we have been concentrating on building up our scoring abilities on all three levels, but especially from the perimeter,” Gawlowski said. “Shot selection has been a skill of ours in the past, but we want to knock down a higher percentage of 3-point shots to put more pressure on teams. As we will now be a smaller team than many of the teams on our schedule, our guards especially will have to improve on their rebounding.”
Buffalo opens its season Nov. 29 with the Strafford Invitational Tournament.
