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  • Strong to the hoop: North's #40, Ross Sponsler, drives the ball and scores during game action in December against Owen Valley.

    SPT 122811 SPONSLER TWO.jpg

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January 20, 2012

North's Sponsler becomes 'complete player'

Senior guard's game has evolved from specialist role as shooter

Andy Amey The Tribune-Star

TERRE HAUTE — Nearly 50 years ago, Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones was lamenting the fact that he “can’t get no satisfaction.”

Ross Sponsler, on the other hand, doesn’t even want any.

Terre Haute North’s 6-foot-2 senior guard has been a varsity basketball player since his freshman year, when he had a role a lot of basketball players would consider a blessing — designated shooter and zone-buster.

He could have been satisfied with that assignment and continued to fire the ball from beyond the 3-point arc for the rest of his high school career. Instead, Sponsler — who still isn’t left alone by any team that’s scouted the Patriots at all — has expanded his game and with it his role on the team.

“It’s changed a lot,” Sponsler said of his position on the team as a senior. “The past three years I’ve been a role player. This year I’ve got to score a little bit more and be out on the floor more. It’s exciting. There are more responsibilities, but it’s a fun challenge.”

While almost all his points came from long range in his earlier Patriot seasons — “I couldn’t do much of anything else,” Sponsler said this week — he’s learned to attack the basket this year. Slashing to the basket and drawing fouls has been a nice complement to his outside game, and he’s a better player for it.

“I worked on [taking the ball to the rim] … it’s something I had to do this year … but it’s also a confidence thing,” Sponsler claimed.

“My coaches trust me to do more … they give me great confidence, and my teammates do as well.”

There’s a little more to it than that, said coach Todd Woelfle of the Patriots — who indicated Sponsler should be giving himself a little more credit.

“He’s gone from strictly a catch-and-shoot player to a complete player,” Woelfle said, “and he always has a team-first mentality.”

That “complete player” tag isn’t just for the offensive end of the court either, Woelfle added. In last Friday’s win at West Vigo, Sponsler got to guard the dangerous and elusive Jordan Houser of the Vikings, and did a more than commendable job.

“That comes with his evolution as a player,” said Woelfle — who agrees Sponsler has made himself a better athlete with his hard work — when asked about the defensive improvement. “He’s really put in a lot of time on his strength, and he’s deceptively athletic.”

“I’ve worked on [defense],” Sponsler said. “My freshman year I couldn’t guard a blind man, but the coaches trust in me; that’s the reason.”

Sponsler’s improvements are certainly one of the main reasons for the success of this year’s Patriots, who take an 11-2 record into a crucial weekend that begins with tonight’s Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference game against Warren Central.

The evolution of his game also creates a firm analogy for what he and his teammates are trying to accomplish offensively, he agreed. Rather than being satisfied with readily available jump shots, the Patriots want to shoot some layups.

“We’re all taking the ball to the basket a lot more this year,” he said this week. “We’ve had games where we haven’t shot as well and still won [because of that].

“[Going to the basket] is how you get shooters opened up, and we know we’ve got to take smart shots. One pass and a jack isn’t going to work,” Sponsler continued.

“This team has really taken on the personality of the two seniors [Sponsler and Matt O’Leary],” Woelfle noted. “A lot of our success can be attributed to the leadership Ross and Matt have provided.”

Tonight’s game marks the start of the last five weeks of the regular season that have been troublesome to the Patriots in past seasons, and the players are aware.

“We know our first 13 games, although they were good, don’t compare [with some of the upcoming opponents],” Sponsler said. “But as a team, we’ve come together so much, we really feel the second half [of the season] is going to go well for us.”

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SPT052612NvBB decker.jpg

Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Winner: Northview pitcher T.J. Decker rejoices as his team records the last out in their semi-final win. The Knights defeated Terre Haute North in the first game Monday at Plainfield.

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SPT052612NvBB decker.jpg

Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Winner: Northview pitcher T.J. Decker rejoices as his team records the last out in their semi-final win. The Knights defeated Terre Haute North in the first game Monday at Plainfield.

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