2013-2014 Mont Alto Men's Basketball season preview from Head Coach Jack Schenzel…
This season the Mont Alto Men's Basketball team hopes to follow up on a great season from last year by taking the next step in their basketball journey.
The team will be led by a group of upperclassman who had made it to the PSUAC Final Four as freshmen.
This group is led by Devonte Merritt (Chambersburg, PA/Chambersburg), Collin Easter (Middletown, PA/Middletown) and Gerry Earle (Washington, DC/Booker T. Washington). Along with these three who have been elected captains by their peers, we add Bobby Ingram (Frederick, MD/Tuscarora), Corey Myers (Greencastle, PA/Greencastle-Antrim) and Sharif Welton (Sullivan County, PA/Sullivan County). The team also added transfer Evan Ehrhart (York, PA/Red Lion) from Penn State York as well. To add to the upperclassmen, six freshmen joined the team this year, all of which will be looking to step in and fill in crucial roles with the squad this year.
As a group, last year Mont Alto Men's Basketball led the PSUAC and was in the top three in the USCAA in several defensive categories including field-goal percentage and points allowed. Mont Alto Basketball has a foundation of playing stellar defense and pushing the ball in transition.
The guards will be led by Gerry Earle, Bobby Ingram, Corey Myers, Sharif Welton, and Evan Ehrhart. This group creates a diverse set of talents in relation to their size and scoring ability. The additions of freshmen Chad Smitz (Carlisle, PA/Carlisle), Jamaal Carter (Harrisburg, PA/Harrisburg), Siele Johnson (Harrisburg, PA/ Central Dauphin), and Makenly Miller (Shippensburg, PA/Shippensburg) allow us to have a great rotation at the guard position and not lose anything when we go to the bench. All these players are able to shoot the ball from three-point range and put the ball on the deck and create offense for themselves or their teammates. Each has shown through the early practices that they are more than capable defenders. Keven King (Washington, DC/Dr. Henry A. Wise) is currently rehabilitating a knee injury, if Keven is able to make a return in January as he hopes he will greatly enhance the depth of our backcourt.
The forwards and post players will be led by Devonte Merritt and Colin Easter. Each of these players have experience being a starter from last year and are more than capable of having a double-double on any given night. They will allow us to play at a high tempo without losing a beat on defense or offense. They will be joined by freshman Jerome Evans (Carlisle, PA/Carlisle) and Jheran Dunbar (Harrisburg, PA/Susquehanna). Both of these players come from high level basketball programs at the high school level and are ready to step in at a moment's notice to provide solid consistent minutes. Jerome is a scorer and an agile defender, whereas Jheran is a strong player and has great footwork to score with either hand in the low post.
The team has set lofty goals for this season and our goal is to play at Bryce Jordan for the PSUAC championship and make it to the USCAA Championship Tournament. We have a very difficult schedule both in the PSUAC and non-conference games including a trip to San Juan, Puerto Rico.
