The rebuilding process has been going for several years for the Loudonville boys’ basketball team, but Coach Jim Bates sees the work the team has put in paying off this season with a group of talented juniors with varsity experience under their belt leading the charge. 

“Two years ago we were in a rebuild mode,” said Coach Bates. “We played four freshmen who lettered and a very young roster overall. We are hoping that we will start seeing the results this year. Brady Gessner, Dilan Wade, Lane Mack and Judah Layton are all juniors and have varsity experience. Six-foot-four Dakota Shook could be the difference in how good we could be. We are hoping he puts it together.”

Last year the Redbirds went 4-15 and were 1-6, good for fifth in the Mid-Buckeye Conference.

Shook is coming off a season where he led the team with averages of 10 points and 8.5 boards per game. Wade averaged eight points per game and should also help with the scoring for the Redbirds. Gessner is a top defender for the squad, and also averaged five points and three assists during his sophomore year.

“The strength of our team is these are really good boys and fun to coach and watch how they’ve grown,” Bates said. “Our weakness is our team depth is not there yet we are hoping to develop a couple more boys to give us some depth.”

Looking at the schedule, Bates sees Lucas as being a tough matchup, saying they have been on a roll with a good run of athletes. He also sees Mansfield Christian as being a team to beat, as they are experienced and have plenty of talent, but Bates has hight hopes for the team this winter

“Team goals keep improving like we have,” said Bates. “Working hard and good things are coming.”

Loudonville kicks off the season at Mount Gilead on December 1 at 7:30 p.m.