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LAFAYETTE - North Vermillion senior Andre Buchhaas struggled to stay on the floor during his first three seasons.
He was tall and strong, yes. Plenty of strength and size to possibly make the Falcons formidable if he could combine his attributes with the kind he lacked at times as a basketball player. With that being footwork, a functioning pivot foot that would stay balanced and steady under pressure, along with head fakes and moves with his back to the basket that could create scoring opportunities.
"It was hard work always in the mornings in the spring and summer," Buchhaas said. "I came a long way from not getting many minutes to starting this year."
Buchhaas finished his career with 19 points and 11 rebounds in the first IHSAA class 1A semistate finals appearance that ended in a 53-47 loss to Triton.
More: 11 fascinating Lafayette area high school sports rivalry trophies
More: Mindset change key for Harrison rebounding machine Jake Schremp
Some of the credit by Buchhaas and his teammates went to longtime Lafayette area trainer Elisha Chimbanda. Chimbanda was a 2013 graduate of Lafayette Jeff in 2013 and graduated from Vincennes University. Now he's a head coach for September's Very Own, an AAU program based in Lafayette.
Chimbanda started training senior North Vermillion starter Lane Thomann.
"(Thomann's) mom started asking if I did group training and told us she had a group for us," Chimanda said. "We all got together and then had a group of kids, a group of boys and a group of girls."
Chimanda had with him Thomann, Buchhass, junior Graham Young and rising sophomore Teagan Leonard.
Leonard scored 35 points in his team's first semistate game against Monroe Central to reach the semistate after helping North Vermillion beat Rossville last Saturday to capture its first IHSAA regional title since 1969.
More: How childhood games shaped Central Catholic basketball legend Tom Cutter
While North Vermillion sits 41 miles southwest of Lafayette near the border of Illinois close to Danville, there's been a trend of Falcons' players who have seen Tippecanoe County as a resource to receive basketball training.
Leonard being one of those players having done workouts in the area. He's a 6-foot-4 shooting guard with Division I potential having averaged 17.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists per game and shot 52% from the field this season.
"I feel like I've learned to score the ball in Lafayette and coaches give me the confidence to do what I want to do and make my own decisions," Leonard said.
Coaches like his father, Phil, who is in the first year as the head coach of North Vermillion, after previously holding roles at South Vermillion, Fountain Central and South Central (Union Mills).
Leonard will be among the group of players that will make the trips back to Lafayette to compete with Chimbanda and others in the Lafayette area and look to build on the longest playoff run in program history.
Ethan Hanson is the sports reporter for the Journal & Courier in Lafayette. He can be reached at [email protected], on Twitter at EthanAHanson and Instagram at ethan_a_hanson.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: North Vermillion boys basketball falls to Triton in Class 1A semistate
Continue reading...
He was tall and strong, yes. Plenty of strength and size to possibly make the Falcons formidable if he could combine his attributes with the kind he lacked at times as a basketball player. With that being footwork, a functioning pivot foot that would stay balanced and steady under pressure, along with head fakes and moves with his back to the basket that could create scoring opportunities.
"It was hard work always in the mornings in the spring and summer," Buchhaas said. "I came a long way from not getting many minutes to starting this year."
Buchhaas finished his career with 19 points and 11 rebounds in the first IHSAA class 1A semistate finals appearance that ended in a 53-47 loss to Triton.
More: 11 fascinating Lafayette area high school sports rivalry trophies
More: Mindset change key for Harrison rebounding machine Jake Schremp
Some of the credit by Buchhaas and his teammates went to longtime Lafayette area trainer Elisha Chimbanda. Chimbanda was a 2013 graduate of Lafayette Jeff in 2013 and graduated from Vincennes University. Now he's a head coach for September's Very Own, an AAU program based in Lafayette.
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Chimbanda started training senior North Vermillion starter Lane Thomann.
"(Thomann's) mom started asking if I did group training and told us she had a group for us," Chimanda said. "We all got together and then had a group of kids, a group of boys and a group of girls."
Chimanda had with him Thomann, Buchhass, junior Graham Young and rising sophomore Teagan Leonard.
Leonard scored 35 points in his team's first semistate game against Monroe Central to reach the semistate after helping North Vermillion beat Rossville last Saturday to capture its first IHSAA regional title since 1969.
More: How childhood games shaped Central Catholic basketball legend Tom Cutter
While North Vermillion sits 41 miles southwest of Lafayette near the border of Illinois close to Danville, there's been a trend of Falcons' players who have seen Tippecanoe County as a resource to receive basketball training.
Leonard being one of those players having done workouts in the area. He's a 6-foot-4 shooting guard with Division I potential having averaged 17.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists per game and shot 52% from the field this season.
"I feel like I've learned to score the ball in Lafayette and coaches give me the confidence to do what I want to do and make my own decisions," Leonard said.
Coaches like his father, Phil, who is in the first year as the head coach of North Vermillion, after previously holding roles at South Vermillion, Fountain Central and South Central (Union Mills).
Leonard will be among the group of players that will make the trips back to Lafayette to compete with Chimbanda and others in the Lafayette area and look to build on the longest playoff run in program history.
Ethan Hanson is the sports reporter for the Journal & Courier in Lafayette. He can be reached at [email protected], on Twitter at EthanAHanson and Instagram at ethan_a_hanson.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: North Vermillion boys basketball falls to Triton in Class 1A semistate
Continue reading...
