Making A Case For Casey Kellogg’s Fiercely Competitive 6-Foot-7 Star Center Could Be The Best A-2 Player In The State

Off the basketball court, Casey Fisher enjoys his privacy. Perhaps that’s a product of being an only child, the Kellogg High School standout says.

On the basketball court, though, Fisher’s a different person. The 6-foot-7 senior center is in a league of his own.

But if there’s one thing that forges a bridge between the private and public Fisher it’s this: He hates losing.

“I could lose to a friend playing checkers or video games and I’d be up at night analyzing how I could have won,” he said.

When he was reminded of his team’s final loss last year - in the first round of the State A-2 Tournament - Fisher quickly pointed out that his team should have played in the state title game.

“I was pretty angry (after the loss),” said Fisher. “It was pretty disappointing because we were by far the better team.”

That bitter defeat still haunts him. But it was also what motivated Fisher and his teammates to regroup and take home a state trophy last winter.

The Wildcats bounced back to win their final two games, capped by a thrilling 87-85 double-overtime victory over Intermountain League rival Bonners Ferry in the consolation game.

Fisher played perhaps his finest game of the season, scoring a career-high 39 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. The game also featured Fisher’s finest individual moment, too, when he made a 3-pointer at the end of regulation to send the game into overtime.

He finished the year averaging 16.3 points and 9.5 rebounds per game.

Fisher has improved on those numbers this season. Through Kellogg’s 7-1 start, he is averaging a league-leading 20.3 points, 14 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 2.3 steals. He’s shooting a sizzling 64 percent from the field in making 70 of 109 attempts.

Fisher, at 6-7 and a solid 215 pounds, is able to position himself close to the basket for easy shots, and the fact that he’s pulling down one more offensive rebound than defensive board per game affords him a number of high-percentage shots.

But Fisher doesn’t solely reside in the low post. He has terrific agility and runs the floor like a guard. He frequently shoots beyond the free-throw line, in the 12- to 15-foot range, and deep on the baseline.

“He’s carried us when things get tough,” first-year coach Tony Kerfoot said. “He gets the big hoop when we need it.”

Fisher’s former coach - David Roberts, who coached Kellogg the past two years before taking a job at Meridian - remembers several instances when Fisher toted the Wildcats on his sizeable shoulders.

But the game that stands out most in Roberts’ memory was Fisher’s first varsity start, as a sophomore.

Fisher had missed most of the first half of the season recovering from an injury. But in that first game at Priest River, he scored 26 points and grabbed a career-high 23 rebounds.

“It was just a sign of things to come,” Roberts said.

“I thought it would take me a while to get used to varsity,” Fisher said.

Fisher, not only the leading candidate for the IML’s most valuable player honor but perhaps the state’s, represents the perfect blend of student and athlete, Kerfoot and Roberts agreed. Fisher carries a 3.9 grade-point average.

While Kerfoot appreciates Fisher’s offensive skills, the coach has high regard for his defensive abilities, too.

“He’s as good a defensive player as an offensive player,” Kerfoot said. “He’s had some monstrous blocks. He intimidates a lot inside.”

Fisher turns a lot of 8-foot jumpers into 7-3/4-foot shots.

“You better believe that when people drive in the middle they’re looking for where Fisher’s at,” Kerfoot said.

Fisher has been especially effective lately on the back end of Kellogg’s presses. He nearly had a triple-double in the Wildcats’ league-opening 74-52 win over Lakeland last week when he scored 16 points, had 13 rebounds and gathered nine steals.

But the other thing that had Kerfoot smiling about the win was that four other players joined Fisher in double-figure scoring and a fifth had nine points.

Kellogg was a preseason pick to defend its league championship.

But just like last year, Fisher has heard the whispers that the Wildcats will not beat athletic Moscow. Last year, the Wildcats weren’t given much chance against Bonners Ferry, but only ended up beating their rival in three of four games, including the district championship and state consolation contests.

The first of two Kellogg-Moscow games will be Jan. 20 at Kellogg.

“We don’t have as much talent as last year, but we’re together more as a unit,” Fisher said.

Had Roberts stayed at Kellogg, his expectations wouldn’t have been any less this year than last season.

“The Kellogg kids expect to win; they have a lot of confidence,” Roberts said. “It would have been a fantastic opportunity to return to state with Casey leading the way. I would have expected us to do better than last year.”

Fisher expects nothing less than improvement, too.

But that isn’t surprising. Not for a kid who abhors losing in checkers.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo