By Mike Moore
Sports Correspondent
It turns out the cupboard was far from bare for the Burlington High School boys’ basketball team.
When seven Demons players — including all five starters — graduated after the 2012-13 season, the prospect of adding to the school’s three straight Southern Lakes Conference titles grew darker. Nearly halfway through the 2013-14 season, however, a ray of hope has broken through those clouds.
After a rocky start, Burlington remains in the thick of the conference race. The team stands 3-2 in SLC play, with one of those defeats coming by a single point to conference co-leader Union Grove.
The boys are coming off an 82-55 trouncing of Delavan-Darien on the road Jan. 9. Ben Geiger led the charge with 24 points. Nate Sibley added 15, and Mitch Klug had 13.
Head Coach Steve Berezowitz isn’t dwelling on won-loss records. With a relatively inexperienced team, his goal is to have the Demons display continuous improvement. Lately, he has begun to see it.
He credits a trio of senior guards for lessening the growing pains that normally accompany such a major roster turnover: pure-shooting Geiger; Nate Klug, who has become a major contributor after appearing in just five games last year; and Luke Dahl, who Berezowitz said has solidified the point guard spot since joining the rotation for the first time.
The younger players have assembled into a solid supporting cast. Junior forward Frankie Hozeska is the team’s No. 2 scorer and leading rebounder.
After an 0-4 start, the Demons (4-6 overall) have gained ground in recent weeks. Berezowitz sees indications that they’re leveling out the peaks and valleys that young teams are prone to endure.
“I’m proud of the guys so far, for moving through those struggles,” Berezowitz said. “If we could play some of those early games over with some more experience, we maybe could have done a little bit more.”
Not only have the faces changed, but the Demons’ formula for success also has undergone some alterations. Each of the three previous conference-winning squads had the luxury to lean on the SLC Athlete of the Year. First came Travis Crayton, followed by Eric Gerber and Carson Biedrzycki.
Without an obvious candidate to reprise that role, the team came into this season determined to spread out the production.
“We’ve got to do a lot of things together to be successful,” Berezowitz said. “It’s not going to be one guy leading us in a bunch of categories.”
He believes the pure-shooting Geiger still has time to become that steady force. After averaging 8.8 points per game last season, he was the only Burlington player who returned with extensive varsity playing time.
It seemed to Berezowitz that Geiger pressed too hard in the early going. But the senior has made strides to become a more consistent and complete player, according to his coach. He’s averaging 15.5 points per game, nearly doubling last year’s output.
“He’s had to figure out how to do it without others scoring around him,” Berezowitz said. “(Last year) he wasn’t getting the best defender. The main focus of the defense wasn’t to take him away.”
The Demons return to action with three games in five days. That begins with a home matchup Friday against Wilmot, which features the 1-2 punch of conference-leading scorers Brandon Schattner and Nate Hensel. Originally scheduled for Dec. 20, the game was postponed because of dangerous road conditions.
Wilmot is fresh off a 49-46 victory over Union Grove Tuesday. Both teams are atop the SLC at 4-1.
Farther down the line, a rematch with Union Grove looms — along with some difficult nonconference matchups. Berezowitz knows this stretch will determine how much his team has developed.
With so long to go and so many unknowns, there’s no chatter about a four-peat. But he was willing to say this much: “I’m liking the direction we’re going.”
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