Justin PhelpsBasketball

Patch

Last week: Phelps, a 6-foot senior forward, took to the road Friday to rip Ramstein for 28 points and seven rebounds, then stopped by Kaiserslautern on the way home Saturday to post 24 points and seven rebounds to help the Panthers to 58-47 and 60-40 victories over the defending European D-I champion Royals and the Red Raiders.

The output came as no surprise to Patch coach Bill Lassetter. “His desire to win is second to none,” Lassetter wrote in an e-mail Tuesday. “He has worked hard on his shooting and driving abilities … to be a threat from anywhere on the court. … His shooting range and accuracy are phenomenal for this early in the season, but that is due to the time he puts into practice and outside of practice.His desire to win is second to none.”

Lassetter added that Phelps, a player he said “any coach would love to have on his team,” contributes as much with his mind-set as his scoring. “His teammates feed off of his energy in practice and in games,” Lassetter wrote, “and our success will greatly depend on his providing all of his senior leadership abilities.”

Gabby WellsBasketballAnsbach

Last week: Wells, a 5-foot-6 sophomore point guard who averaged 15 points per game for the Lady Cougars as a freshman, opened her 2009-2010 season by going wild Friday night as Ansbach traveled to Baumholder and snapped the Lady Bucs’ 31-game winning streak, 55-19.

“Ms. Wells had a great game, to say the least ...” e-mailed Ansbach coach Michael Hunt. “She shot 42 times and scored 38 points.” Scoring wasn’t the whole story for Wells on Friday, however. “Not only did she outshoot her average from last year, but she outrebounded it as well. Her offensive rebounds were 15, and defensively she dominated the boards with 18 rebounds and nine steals.”

With Baumholder concentrating its defense on Wells on Saturday, the point guard who played every minute of every game last year concentrated on distributing the ball, Hunt said. “Saturday, they played a bit of a box-and-one on her, and she had a little trouble getting to the hoop,” he wrote. “So she got the ball to Stacy Thomas, who had 28 points” as Ansbach prevailed 44-18.

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