Highland High School boys basketball team focusing on big season this winter

There is a definite buzz surrounding the Highland boys basketball team heading into the 2022-23 season.

Highland returns all five starters from last year’s team that went 14-17 and advanced to the IHSA Class 3A Cahokia Regional championship game and Bulldogs coach Deryl Cunningham is excited about this group.

“They’re good kids and they’ve got experience and it seems like I just had them when they were freshmen and now they’re seniors. They know how to play and they have spent a lot of time in our program. And we look for them to be leaders — not just for our team but for our up and coming players in the program,” Cunningham said.

Senior guard Cade Altadonna, junior guard Jake Ottensmeier, senior posts Joe Jansen and Gunnar Mackey, and senior guard Brendan Gelly will comprise the core of Highland’s lineup.

“Playing Joe and Gunnar together certainly gives us some size. I’m not totally satisfied with that lineup because the stats have shown we play a little bit better with a smaller lineup and one post, so so we’re still working on that,” Cunningham said.

Sophomore forward Grant Fleming also returns for the Bulldogs. Fleming averaged 5.1 points per game off the bench last year and figures to have a bigger role this season with his rebounding and scoring ability.

“Grant brings a lot to the table,” Cunningham said. “He’s a heckuva rebounder for his size and his speed on the court and his knowledge on the court and his ability to score, shoot the basketball and even pass and defend is huge for us.”

Ottensmeier — along with Altadonna — is expected to run the team from the point guard spot and that will be a strength for the Bulldogs.

“Cade and I will definitely share that responsibility and we’re definitely looking to get everybody involved and make sure we’re all together and we’re all focused on the same goal,” Ottensmeier said.

Newcomers expected to contribute and help the Bulldogs include 6-3 sophomore wing Braxdon Decker, sophomore Garrion Stone (6-2), and senior Bryce Hires (6-1).

“Braxdon Decker is doing really well and he’s playing well in practice,” Cunningham said.

Stone is projected to get work in as a backup post player behind Jansen and Mackey.

“I’m trying to see if we can play two bigs on the floor — whether it’s Gunar and Garrion, or Joe and Garrion — but Garrion will play kind of an inside four-five position,” Cunningham said.

Ottensmeier weighs in

Hires is expected to be a swing player who can work against guards and forwards.

“Bryce will play maybe a four or three and he can move around a lot. I’ve seen him guard guards and have seen him guard forwards,” Cunningham said.

Ottensmeier — who led the team in scoring last year at 13.9 points per game — said the team has been very sharp in practice the first two weeks.

“It’s been great,” Ottensmeier said. “The energy has been really high and I think this is the best team morale that coach DC has seen here at Highland. We’re all expecting a big year here. All five of our starters have been starting since we’ve been freshmen, so we’re looking forward to a lot of chemistry and a lot of experience here.”

Final thoughts

Cunningham said this club is poised to excel on the floor again this season and have regular season and postseason success. He believes their path to prosperity this year comes down to one simple thing.

“They need to be the Highland Bulldogs,” Cunningham said. “They just need to follow the program and we need the leadership and they know who they are.”

Highland opens the season Monday, Nov. 21, at the St. Anthony Thanksgiving Tournament in Effingham.