March 3, 2005 in Voices

Ryan Shelby brings drive to Saxon hoops

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File/Spokesman-Review photo

Ferris High School’s Ryan Shelby, No. 20, battled for a loose ball in a game a year ago against Pasco.
(Full-size photo)

If there is one word to describe the boys basketball program at Ferris High School, it is tradition, and no one is more aware of that than senior guard Ryan Shelby.

“They hold you to a higher level,” Shelby said. “There have been so many good teams that have gone through there, you feel like you have to work hard and achieve what they’ve done in the past.

“Everybody always respects us. It seems like every day we go out and play, it seems the other teams are trying that much harder.”

In a rare season in which the Saxons weren’t picked to win the league crown, Shelby has helped lead Ferris to the Greater Spokane League title this year and is determined to have the Saxons defend their district championship.

“Nobody really talked about us, but we had only lost three games all year, and one was to U-Hi (University),” Shelby said. “Last year, we weren’t picked to be very good, and then we came and won the district championship.

“Ferris this time of year always comes around and gets it together and wins. It’s just a natural thing. It’s expected for us to win.”

His fellow captains are different.

Jeremy Templeton may score more, and Steve Stockton may be the vocal leader on the floor, but Shelby is the quiet competitor who helps drive the Saxons.

“With Ryan, he’s just more I would say, unflappable,” said first-year coach Barry Olson. “He’s just steady.

“You’d never know if he’s overly upset with something, or overjoyed. He’s just steady and calm.

“Whether the game’s on the line and there’s 50 seconds to go and he hits both his free throws, or nailing a big three-pointer, he just calmly goes about his business. The competitiveness is more of an internal type thing where he’s got the internal drive to do things.

“It’s more for keeping him going than generating the rest of them.”

While he’s unflappable on the offensive end of the floor, on the defensive end Shelby is the ultimate pest.

“He’ll just kind of mess with people and do things to get them off of their game,” Olson said. “He’s not nasty; he’ll just give a little bump here or there as they cut through.

“He just finds a way to get the other player off of their game a little bit and lose focus.”

“A lot of kids don’t like me because I’m kind of a punk out on the floor, but it’s basketball,” Shelby said. “I was taught you don’t really judge a man when he’s out on the floor, because he has that competitive drive going.

“On the court, I hate losing so much, I’ll do anything to win. Off the court, I got (named) the ‘biggest flirt’ at school.

“I don’t know what that’s about. You can’t judge me by how I act on the court.”

As the youngest of three brothers, Shelby’s scrappy style of play started in his own driveway.

“I have two older brothers (Craig and Matt) who were a lot bigger than I, so I had to scrap and push for every loose ball whenever I played against them. If you look at a lot of families, the youngest is usually the best because he has to play up to their level even though he’s younger.

“They always beat up on me too, so I had to learn how to fight.”

Those battles have made Shelby ultracompetitive in everything.

“My family won’t play board games with me anymore because I always end up cheating,” he said. “When my friends and I would play Super Nintendo at my friend Joel’s house, I accidentally damaged his controller because I lost and threw it on the ground and kicked it.”

Shelby has learned to control that drive on the court, though, becoming the defensive ace of the Saxon team.

“You look at him, and he’s not huge – nobody on our team is – but he’s our third-leading rebounder,” Olson said. “He’s got great hops, and sneakiness, that gamesmanship that allows him to get position for offensive rebounds.”

Offensively, Shelby is the total team player.

“He’s got a good pull-up jumper,” Olson said. “He’s got a good three-point shot, and he drives to the basket well. If he’s on, he can score a lot.

“With the group of kids we’ve got, it’s so balanced; he doesn’t have to score a lot. If he had to step up and score 20, I think he could, but he’s playing within the framework and taking what is being given.”

Shelby is more than willing to sacrifice scoring for winning, though, particularly in his last season as a Saxon.

“Making it to state – that’s the biggest goal, to play in state,” Shelby said. ” We haven’t been able to make it to state yet since I’ve been on the varsity.

“When I was a little kid, we would always go over and watch the state tournament, so I’ve been looking forward to getting to state since I was in fifth grade.”

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