Gonzaga Prep put parts together to make state

When Mike Haugen came back aboard as Gonzaga Prep’s boys basketball coach, he converted Jake Sayman from guard to forward because of a knee injury that altered his mobility.

It wasn’t the only change at G-Prep with Haugen at the helm following a two-year retirement. The Bullpups went from 7-18, albeit a regional qualifier last year, to this year’s 18-9 record and berth in today’s State 4A tournament in Tacoma.

G-Prep plays at 3:30 p.m. against Bethel, a team with four third-year state participants and a third-place finisher last year.

Sayman is blunt when he said the Bullpups shouldn’t have been in regional last year.

“Basically, we kind of got there on luck,” he said. “We pulled together at district and played two really good games.”

Sayman was equally candid in explaining why the team reversed its record and is playing at state this year.

“It is definitely (coach Haugen’s) influence,” Sayman said.

For G-Prep’s success, Sayman cited the structure of the no-nonsense practices and demands of hard work, which admittedly took some adjustment to accept.

Haugen and his Ferris counterpart, Barry Olson, have their teams back in state a year after the GSL was blanked. Ferris opens at 7 against Mountlake Terrace

Both coaches deferred credit, saying the players – as Olson has reiterated all season – are responsible for the trips.

“To me, it’s a nice prize and a good way to finish the season for this group of kids,” said Olson. “Hopefully, they can go over and do well.”

Both coaches were not hesitant to go deep into their benches, using 10 and sometimes more players liberally in the games.

Haugen ticked off the names of 11 players, including Sayman, who he said is only at 70 percent of full strength.

“He’s taking treatments every day to control pain and we had to reinvent him because of limited mobility,” said Haugen. “But he’s really handled the role well and I’ve never seen a guy who can rebound like him.”

The 6-foot-2 senior was undercut in a summer game, dislocating his left kneecap in the fall and splitting two pieces of bone off the back. Surgery would have ended his high school career. He opted to postpone it until after the season and play hurt in an unfamiliar position.

“I’m at 50 to 65 percent and playing through pain,” Sayman said. “I’m not as fast and can’t jump.”

Sayman couldn’t play until the season’s eighth game because of his injury. Leaping off his right leg, he still is a force on the boards – a Bullpups strength – and his guard skills have made him an excellent post passer.

It took a while for the Bullpups to gel, said Haugen, because of the long football season and new inside-out system. Once it developed an identity, G-Prep put together a nice run, including a victory over Ferris.

But it took a late-season loss to Central Valley to shake the team from its complacency, Haugen said.

“I thought it was a defining moment for us and things started turning around,” Haugen said.

Haugen pointed out that Brandon Kennedy’s maturity at point guard, adapting to the game’s flow and involving his teammates rather than trying to rely on his athleticism, was a major factor.

Leading Bullpups scorer Michael Johnson became a more complete player, rather than 3-point shooter, Haugen said. Travis Walker showed early in practices that he could be a defensive stopper.

The presences of Ryan Murphy, who has 3-point range and post-up skills, and KC Anderson, a defensive force, were huge.

But Haugen also lauded the contributions of backups Mike Ogrin, Scotty Alexander, Houston Stockton and Ian Parry. Parry broke his hand and missed four games after starting the first five. As the football players worked their way into the lineup, Parry came off the bench to become a valuable scorer and rebounder.

The sum of those parts is today’s state game in Tacoma.

“These guys have tremendous heart and don’t put limitations on themselves,” said Haugen. “It probably doesn’t surprise most of them (that they are a state qualifier), when you get right down to it.”