Muskego boys basketball preview

Last year

Overall: 9-14

League: 5-9

Playoffs: Lost in regional final to Franklin, 68-54

Conference: Southeast

Personnel

Coach: Andy Capes

Key returnees: David Mlachnik, sr. (14.8 ppg); Jim Mock, sr. (5.0 ppg); Jeff Glisch, sr.; Sam Weier, sr.; Alex Tesch, sr.

Key losses: Danny Frawley (14.0 ppg), Max Miskowiec (13.3 ppg)

The lowdown

Capes is looking for his team to bounce back from last year's losing record behind the guard play of Mlachnik and junior point Josh Breider, a fine all-around athlete who won all-state honors as a defensive back in football this fall. He has to replace the 27 points per game scored by the graduated Frawley and Miskowiec, but believes players such as Weier and Glisch can provide more scoring than last season.

Three pointers

1 Mlachnik was a tremendous shooter last season, connecting on 57 3-point goals, but this year, he has been working on other parts of his offensive game, such as taking the ball to the basket and going more into the post area. "He is one of the better shooters in the state," Capes said, "and he is going to be a special player this year."

2 Capes knows he has a good shooting team overall but also is aware that the Warriors must play well on the other end of the floor. "We need good team defense," he said, "and we need to stay aggressive on defense."

3 The coach is also hoping that Weier can provide a solid inside game for Muskego. He stands 6 feet, 4 inches, has a strong, powerful body and played tight end and defensive end on the football team. "He can give us an inside presence that we have been looking for the past few seasons," Capes said.

Schedule

Nov. 22 - Oconomowoc; Dec. 2 - Waukesha North; Dec. 6 - at Bay View; Dec. 9 - Racine Horlick; Dec. 13 - at Kenosha Tremper; Dec. 16 - at Racine Park; Dec. 22- Shorewood; Dec. 27 - at New Berlin West Tournament; Dec. 28 - at New Berlin West Tournament; Jan. 3 - Franklin; Jan. 6 - at Racine Case; Jan. 10 - Kenosha Bradford; Jan. 13 - at Oak Creek; Jan. 17 - New Berlin Eisenhower; Jan. 20 - at Racine Horlick; Jan. 31 - Kenosha Tremper; Feb. 3 - Racine Park; Feb. 7 - at Franklin; Feb. 10 - Racine Case; Feb. 14 - at Kettle Moraine; Feb. 17 - at Kenosha Bradford; Feb. 23 - Oak Creek