'An embarrassment of riches'

WESLEY CHAPEL -- Try to scout the Wildcats for Saturday's regional final against Avon Park, and you're asking for trouble.

Wesley Chapel defies the confinement of a scouting report: When the Wildcats go big, they still are dangerous from outside; when they go small, they still rebound. They rotate 10 players in and out, toggling between five presses and a half-dozen defensive sets, shifting again just as the other team has figured things out.

"You have to prepare for everything," said senior point guard Spencer Honeycutt, who also plays shooting guard or small forward when necessary. "I think what makes us so good is that we're so versatile. We're not real big, but everybody can play different positions. Our post players can play guard, and our guards can play down low."

The lineup has been amazingly liquid, quickly adjusting to the shape of the opponents it goes up against. When Bartow's press gave the guards trouble late in the district championship game, first-year coach Kent Mills had his big men bring the ball up, and they handled the press well enough to spark the team to its first-ever district title.

"That'll probably never happen, other than that game," said Mills, whose team is one win away from making only the county's second final four appearance in the past 35 years. "It worked there, though, and there's a combination that can work against everything we see."

The Wildcats normally operate with a three-guard lineup -- Honeycutt and juniors Zach Mills and Eric Sorensen. The current starting frontcourt is Sandor Riholm and David Simpson, but starting doesn't necessarily mean more playing time.

"Just because you're not starting, that doesn't necessarily change your minutes," said Mills, who made wholesale five-for-five substitutions in the closing minutes of the playoff opener against Tampa Catholic, burning all his timeouts even while up 10 points in the final minute to keep his players focused on the importance of having the best five on the floor at all times.

Nine players have led Wesley Chapel in scoring in games this season. In the playoff opener against Tampa Catholic, the guards dominated, with Mills, Honeycutt and Sorensen combining for 38 points. Next time out against Immokalee, Sorensen struck for 23, but the Wildcats also had double-figure efforts from forwards Simpson and Marcus Stewart.

"Anyone can step up -- we just look for the hot hand," Riholm said. "We all have the green light, so it's just whoever is playing good that night. That can be any of us."

That offensive flexibility has allowed the team to survive losing Tomlin, their leading scorer and rebounder for much of the season, to a knee injury before the district tournament.

Gulf coach Steve Feldman said the Wildcats have an offense that showcases their depth, allowing an uptempo style that few teams can keep up with. Gulf allowed an average of 51 points a game this season, but in two losses to Wesley Chapel, it gave up 83 and 86 points, despite holding the Wildcats without a 3-pointer in one meeting.

"They will roll out at least 10 guys, and you don't see a big dropoff with anyone that's coming in," Feldman said. "I think it's a combination of versatility and depth. It's what some would call an embarrassment of riches, but it doesn't look like it's going to drop off there any time soon, either."

Riholm and Honeycutt are the only seniors on roster, leaving Mills to boast his team could be just as solid and 12 deep next season, with another year of experience under its belt.

"Teams we play, they can't just isolate just one player, and if they do, somebody else steps up," Sorensen said. "It's been that way for us all season."

CLASS 3A, REGION 3 FINAL

WHO: 3A-10 champion Wesley Chapel (24-8) at 3A-11 champion Avon Park (12-13).

WHEN: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.

DIRECTIONS: Take State Road 60 to Lake Wales. Take a right at U.S. 27, travel south for 23 miles to Highway 64. Take a left onto 64. The school is 1.6 miles on the right.

ADMISSION: $5. FHSAA passes only.

AT STAKE: The winners of Saturday's elite eight round advance to the Class 3A Final Four at the Lakeland Center. The semifinal is March 6, against the winner of Nease-Eustis. The state championship game is March 8.

NEED TO KNOW: Well, here we go again: The Wildcats love to swarm on defense and love to shoot. Wesley Chapel's transition game is fed by the pressure it can put on a team from the inbounds pass on, and in its regional semifinal upset of No. 3 Immokalee on Tuesday, the Wildcats did an even better job of playing halfcourt defense, rotating in whenever an opposing player beat the first defender. It was a hallmark defensive performance, one that could carry Wesley Chapel to the school's first final four. Another asset is the Wildcats' deep bench: They can rely on any number of players to score in double-digits. Three players average that: 3-point specialist Eric Sorensen (12.9 ppg), center David Simpson (11.8) and point guard Zach Mills (10.7). Senior point guard Spencer Honeycutt is the team's heady leader, Greg Harrison is a fleet-footed sixth man, and Sandor Riholm beat Immokalee at the line. But rebounding is still a weakness without injured forward Tyrone Tomlin, out for the season with sprained knee ligaments. Avon Park is similar to Wesley Chapel in that it is a quick, guard-oriented team that likes to press and likes to shoot. After a 4-10 start, the Red Devils turned it around in January and have gone 8-3 since, winning seven straight games along with the 3A-11 title. Coach James Whitney has been very successful in the postseason with a four-guard rotation, using 5-foot-9 Robert McCrae, 5-6 Kevin Faison, 5-8 Damion Young and 5-4 playmaker Kirk Taylor, who sank the game-winning 3-pointer to beat Jesuit in the regional semifinal. Dustin Chamberlain, the 6-5 center, could pose matchup problems for Wesley Chapel, but Whitney said he would likely start 6-2 Alfonso Williams in the middle, who is faster and even better suited to press.

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