By Chris Parker
Stockton boys basketball has a new head coach in Ryan Pate this season. Pate is new to head coaching, but not to Stockton. Pate has been coaching at Stockton for the past six seasons with two years each as an assistant for the boys and girls high school teams.
“I’m looking forward to this opportunity,” Pate said. “I have coached most of these guys at some point over the last six years, so I think that has helped a lot with this transition. It’s a great opportunity, and I’m really excited to take on this new challenge. Stockton has always been a special place for me, and I’m looking forward to helping this group compete as we continue building on the strong foundation that’s already here.”
Pate has an experienced core to lean on in his first season.
“We return quite a few upperclassmen this winter that have been playing most of our varsity minutes the last two or three years,” Pate said. “I think that experience is going to be a big factor for us as we get into big games/situations throughout the year. We also have a good mix of underclassmen that I think will be able to step up and help us this winter.”
Stockton returns one of the area’s best players in senior Jax Baxter. Baxter, the reigning Southwest Conference Player of the Year, averaged 22.3 points, 10 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game last season.
“Jax is a very long and athletic kid. He spends a lot of time in the gym and can score at all three levels. He has a great feel for the game and has led us in most categories over the last couple of years. Defensively, he has great instincts and alters a lot of shots around the rim,” Pate said. “He is going into his third year as a captain for us, so our expectation for him is to continue to grow as a leader. He does a great job of leading by example, and we will look for him to be more vocal for us this season.”
Colter Woods returns for his senior season after missing his junior year due to an injury. He averaged 12.5 points and 4 assists per game as a sophomore.
Logan Reser (senior), JD Flora (senior), Carter Thornton (senior) and Justus King (junior) all return after seeing varsity action last season.
Reser averaged 7.1 points, 7 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.
“Logan Reser (is a) high motor kid that does a lot more than what stats show,” Pate said. “Great rebounder for being an undersized forward. We will look for him to add to his scoring totals from last year.”
Flora contributed 2.5 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.
“JD Flora (is a) high IQ player, who is going into his third year getting varsity minutes,” Pate said. “We will look for him to be a vocal leader for us as well as add to his scoring totals from the last two years.”
Thornton averaged 2.6 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.
“Carter Thornton came off the bench for us last year,” Pate said. “We will look for him to take a big step forward this winter as well.”
King carved out varsity minutes late last season.
“Justus King (was) primarily a JV player for us last year,” Pate said. “(He) came off the bench and gave us some really good minutes during the second half of last season.”
Kale Rader was also slated to return for his senior season, but an ACL injury in the fall will keep him out all season.
Wesston Garver (junior), Cannon Brown (sophomore), Ethan Pettit (sophomore), Jace Norman (sophomore) and Jace Fisher (freshman) are all newcomers who could have an impact.
Overall, numbers are good for the Stockton program.
“We had really good numbers throughout this summer and during the fall for preseason workouts,” Pate said. “Numbers wise, this is the biggest team we have had in quite a while. We have guys that are willing to work hard and put the time in to be successful.”
Stockton opens the season Nov. 25 at home against Butler.
“We were able to claim a share of the conference title last year. This senior group has played in quite a few meaningful games over the last few years. We are confident that our experience will show when things aren’t going our way or when we get into big games/situations,” Pate said.
