LOWER LAKE >> When the Lower Lake Trojans allowed a tournament-record 88 points in a loss to the Kelseyville Knights in the opening round of the 22nd annual Record-Bee Hoop Classic boys’ basketball tournament on Dec. 17 in Middletown, a despondent Lower Lake varsity coach Shannon Tubbs said, “We’re a much better team than this.”
Little did Tubbs know how right he was.
While the Trojans entered the 2016 North Central League I race as an afterthought behind such teams as Cloverdale, Kelseyville, Fort Bragg and Clear Lake, they turned things around in a flash and made a serious run at Cloverdale for the title before finishing in second place. Oh, yes, and they beat Kelseyville in both league meetings along the way.
Tubbs, the first-year coach of the Trojans, is the Coach of the Year on the 2015-16 All-Lake County boys’ basketball team as selected by the Record-Bee.
Also spearheading Lower Lake’s turnaround season on the floor — from 5-9 in league and 11-15 overall in 2014-15 to — 10-4 in league and 14-12 overall — was none other than a sophomore, second-year varsity player Hokulani Wickard, who averaged nearly 30 points a game during an incredible three-game stretch in league play. Wickard is the MVP on this year’s All-County team, the second sophomore in a row to accomplish that feat — following Kelseyville’s Kyle Ellis last season.
Wickard, who averaged a team-best 14.4 points a game for the Trojans, leads an All-County first team that includes the aforementioned Ellis, one of Kelseyville’s top players and its leading scorer at 14.8 points a game; Kelseyville senior Nick Pfann (13.9); Lower Lake junior Marlon Jones Jr. (12.5); Upper Lake senior Isaac Nevarez, the county’s leading scorer at 20.5 a game; and Clear Lake’s leading scoring, junior guard Max De Leon (13.0).
Second-team All-County players are Kelseyville senior Hunter Beatty, Lower Lake junior Ethan Watson, Middletown senior Jake Rivera, Upper Lake sophomore Cody Rybolt, Clear Lake junior Ryan Damiata and Clear Lake sophomore Tanner Hutton.
