After last year’s Region V victory for Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé boys basketball, returning senior Orion Dybdahl said expectations for this year are high.
“We expect to do well this season,” Dybdahl said. “We’re returning with a lot of good players and brought a good deal of youth in, so I expect us to do well and win another region. I’m just looking forward to being able to compete with all these guys and hopefully win regions and compete at state.”
The Crimson Bears won the Region V tournament last year against Thunder Mountain High School and Ketchikan High School in Ketchikan. From there, the JDHS boys team went to the state tournament where they faced off with the top-seeded Bettye Davis East Anchorage High School, and were eliminated in the first round.
JDHS head coach Robert Casperson said that while winning the Region V championship was a lot of fun and taught the team a great deal, it’s now in the past and they’re not looking back.
“This is a brand-new season and this team is looking forward to the opportunities it presents,” Casperson said. “We know that the region tournament is a long way off and there will be a lot of growth for us during our journey. We expect things will be very competitive when the region tournament rolls around, especially when you consider people believe we’re the third best team in our three-team conference.”
JDHS junior Jonathan Sleppy practices 3-point shots early on Wednesday before practice. (Jonson Kuhn / Juneau Empire)
Casperson said within the offseason the team was primarily focused on getting to know one another better and holding each other accountable for meeting expectations of the program in practice. Additionally, Casperson said that fans will see a lot of familiar faces and names on this year’s roster and he’s excited to be welcoming back every player that led the team in any of the major statistical categories back this year.
“I believe that any number of our guys could stand out or surprise folks in games as we move through the year,” Casperson said. “No matter what, I know that we will play the type of tough-nosed, team first, competitive basketball that brings excitement to the fans.”
Roster
1: Gavin Gerrin, sophomore
2: Bodhi Nelson, senior
3: Alwen Carillo, junior
10: Jhowel Esitogy, junior
11: Sean Oliver, junior
13: Jonathan Sleppy, junior
15: Alex Mallott, junior
20: Orion Dybdahl, senior
21: Caden Mesdag, senior
23: Joseph Aline, senior
24: Kai Hargrave, senior
31: Brandon Casperson, freshman
• Contact reporter Jonson Kuhn at jonson.kuhn@juneauempire.com.
JDHS Boys Basketball varsity schedule
Dec. 17 Alumni Scrimmage, home
Dec. 19-22 Tarkanian Classic, Las Vegas
Dec. 28 Soldotna, home tournament
Dec. 29 Haines, home tournament
Dec. 30 West Valley Fairbanks, home tournament
Jan. 1-5 Service, home, non-conference
Jan. 18 Colony, home non-conference
Jan. 19-21 TBA, South Anchorage High School O’Brady’s Invitational
Jan. 26 Soldotna, away tournament
Jan. 27 Anchorage Christian, neutral tournament
Jan. 28 Kenai Central, neutral tournament
Feb. 1 Thunder Mountain, home conference
Feb. 2 Thunder Mountain, away conference
Feb. 10-11, home conference
Feb. 17 Palmer
Feb. 24-25 Ketchikan, away conference
Feb. 28 Thunder Mountain, away conference
March 1 Thunder Mountain, home conference
March 8 Region V Tournament
