More on the Macks

When we were talking about the Western Cloverbelt Conference before the season, Altoona boys basketball coach Andy Riechers told me he thought a lot of people were overlooking what could be a pretty good Chippewa Falls McDonell team.

He probably wishes he wasn't so dead on.

The Macks' 65-60 victory over the Railroaders on Thursday made them a legitimate contender in the WCC. They're now one of four teams -- along with Altoona, Augusta and Fall Creek -- at 2-1 in league play. So anyone who had didn't think McDonell was going to be a player in the WCC race better think again.

“They’re just so athletic and quick," Riechers said of the Macks. "They’re running to the corners fast. Their post players are physical and they’ve got four of them that can rotate in and out. They all step out and shoot the 3 and they know when to kick the ball out to 3-point shooters. Their 3-point shooters knock them down. It’s an impressive team.”

A few more thoughts and observations from the game:

* McDonell is for real. They have a lot of depth, some solid frontcourt players and they're athletic. They were very much an unknown coming into the season but as the Macks get better -- which they should -- they're going to be very tough. Their up-tempo game also is pretty fun to watch.

“We had a decent JV team and this summer we played together," said junior guard Jarrod Martell. "We played really well. We played just like we play now — really pushing the ball and beating on teams with our fastbreak. We’re sticking to that.”

* Martell, who played only limited varsity minutes last season, had 14 points, seven rebounds and six assists. There were times when coach Archie Sherbinow wanted him to slow down a bit, but Sherbinow knows that Martell's at his best when he's playing at a frantic pace.

* “It’s one of those coaching dilemmas," Sherbinow said. "You’ve got to let him go but at times you kind of want to rein him in. But if you start doing that, you probably get in his head and he’s not sure what he should and shouldn’t do. He did a lot of things. He’s definitely somebody who’s fun to watch out there on the floor. He can get up and down the floor and he gets to the hoop.”

* Junior Alex Rau has a chance to be a very good player for Altoona. He's 6-foot-6, has solid post moves and a nice outside touch. He was very effective in stretches Thursday, scoring 12 of his 14 points in the second quarter. As the Rails continue to feel out their new-look offense, they're going to need to get Rau involved more often.

“It’s just a matter of finding Alex where Alex is comfortable," Riechers said. "He’s a good shooter from the outside and when we penetrate, we’re drawing his guy and we’re able to kick it out to him. The guys are still getting used to where everybody is in the offense and they’re doing a better job of finding each other.”

- Joe Ziemer