WEST SALEM — The players and coaches for the West Salem High School boys basketball team are having fun this season.
Every one of them has enjoyed being part of a program that won 95 games and lost 15 over the past four seasons, but beginning a new one together brought with it a different level of excitement.
The Panthers made three straight trips to the WIAA state tournament — two resulted in Division 3 runner-up finishes and one a Division 2 semifinal loss — from 2022-24 and advanced to a Division 2 sectional final last year. The team was a state power for a nice stretch before the inevitable changeover came.
Mark Wagner stepped down as coach, and three of the top four scorers graduated.
Would the offensive philosophy of creating as many possessions as possible continue with a new coach? Could it with the makeup of a new lineup?
Former assistant coach Shane Schmeling hasn’t veered too far away from what made the Panthers the Panthers in previous seasons, but he is — maybe surprising to some — working with a group of players that can execute most of the same things previous teams did.
Experience was what some outside the program questioned during discussions of just what should be expected of this group, which continues to speak with its play, an overall record of 14-2 and a perfect 7-0 record in the Coulee Conference.
“People expected us to take a step back this year,” senior 6-foot-6 forward Tyson Labus said. “We just have to go out and show them we can take a step forward.”
In the big picture, that will be tough to do, but Labus and his teammates are proving it could happen with an aggressive style that has emphasized defense a bit more than it has in the past.
Senior Nathan Dillaber, a 6-foot guard, said at the beginning of the season to expect that, and the Panthers have been doing a good job of pressuring opponents and allowing that to feed a transition game that has helped them average 80 points per game and make 135 3-pointers for an average of 8.4 per game.
Just four opponents have been able to score more than 60 against the Panthers, and Schmeling said that phase of the game has been progressing nicely.
“I’m really happy with (the defense),” he said. “I feel like we’ve turned a corner with it over the past two weeks. Teams aren’t getting free possessions, we’re getting the loose balls and doing the little things we have to do.
“We aren’t quite the offensive team we’ve been the last three or four years here, so we have to do those little things like rebound and get the 50-50 balls. When we do that, we can be pretty good.”
While Dillaber (15.1 points per game, 6.1 rebounds per game, 2.6 steals per game) and McConkey (15.3 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 2.4 spg) have provided just what people probably expected — possibly more — they have been able to do so in a pretty relaxed manner. Instead of absorbing more on their own shoulders, the two have been able to play their games without having to help teammates along.
Labus (16.3 ppg, 8.0 rpg) and 6-3 senior Spencer Kammel (7.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 3.1 assists per game) both played in just about every game last season but have been asked to do much more this winter. Elliott Corcoran (8.7 ppg), a 6-4 guard, was hardly on the radar as a sophomore and has stepped into a significant role as has 6-1 senior guard Will Schmidt (4.9 apg).
The balance that may not have been anticipated is here.
“We have definitely grown as the season has progressed,” Labus said. “Coming out to start the season, I knew we had some talent, and I knew that if we could put the pieces of the puzzle together, we could be a great team.”
The Panthers have used this depth to beat teams like Holmen, Caledonia, G-E-T and New Richmond this season. They just beat Luther twice in three days and really showed in Saturday’s 86-51 victory the true team concept.
Corcoran made all five of his attempts from the 3-point line and scored a team-high 18 points. Dillaber added 17 and McConkey 10, but Labus and McConkey also helped West Salem dominate the boards.
The Panthers entered the second Luther game averaging 17 offensive rebounds per game for regular opportunities at second-chance points when the perimeter shots or drives to the hoop don’t materialize.
“We definitely think that if we dominate the glass, we can win the game,” Labus said. “We really try to reinforce that in practice with boxouts and other things.
“We have the size advantage and want to control the boards every game.”
With eight regular-season games remaining, Schmeling knows he needs to see even more from his players before the postseason.
The Panthers have a return matchup against G-E-T (15-2, 6-1) on Friday and a good Westby team coming up before a home game against Division 2 top-ranked Onalaska (13-1) on Feb. 19 and road game at eighth-ranked Central (13-2) on Feb. 26.
The Panthers beat the Red Hawks 80-58 after 21 points and eight rebounds from McConkey, 20 points from Labus, 13 from Kammel and 10 rebounds from Dillaber.
Onalaska, Central and West Salem have been Division 2 powerhouses together and are sure to butt heads in some form when the postseason begins. But Schmeling looks forward to seeing how his team stacks up against the Hilltoppers and RiverHawks before the tournament begins.
