BELOIT—Beloit Memorial sophomore Amare Hereford took a gigantic leap after a promising freshman season to become both a scoring machine and defensive menace while helping lead a Purple Knights’ program stuck in a cycle of losing to its first regional title in 10 years.
Sound familiar?
Down in South Beloit, a similar story has been unfolding with junior Ross Robertson.
Robertson followed up a strong freshman season, where he helped guide the SoBos to their first IHSA 1A regional championship in 12 seasons, with an outstanding sophomore season that included a second-straight regional title, an all-state honorable mention by the Associated Press, a spot on the IBCA’s All-State Second Team and helped him earn the Beloit Daily News All-Area Player of the Year.
The 6-foot-8 center managed to elevate his game even higher in his third season. He worked his way up to the IBCA’s All-State First Team, repeated as the Northeastern Athletic Conference’s MVP and was named an All-State First Teamer by the AP. He also helped South Beloit earn a third-consecutive regional title.
Two outstanding players who have helped their programs grow exponentially under their work while touting unbelievable resumes of their own.
For their marvelous seasons, Robertson and Hereford are the 2023-24 Beloit Daily News All-Area Co-Players of the Year.
The duo are joined on the All-Area First Team by Beloit Turner seniors Zay Howard and Tyshawn Teague-Johnson and Clinton junior Reagan Flickinger.
Knights’ head coach Todd Marks is the Beloit Daily News Coach of the Year after leading Beloit to a sectional semifinal and a 21-6 overall record, its first winning season since 2016-17.
“It starts with Ross’s work ethic and attitude,” South Beloit head coach Matt Stucky said. “He’s a guy that is physically and mentally prepared to play. He approaches every practice and every game the same by just going out there and playing his game.”
Robertson’s game really shines in his ability to dominate opponents with his sheer athleticism. He uses his tall frame to hit bucket after bucket from under the rim while touting a capability to outwork almost anyone on the boards.
“He’s got a lot of different ways he can put the ball in the hoop,” Stucky said. “He’s able to post guys up and make a move off on the block and score that way. He’s able to shoot from the outside. He’s able to handle the ball and create his own shot. If teams really load up on him, try to limit his catches and just run guys at him, he can also stand by the basket and go get put backs.”
He averaged 25 points per game this season with a 14.24 average in rebounds. He passed the 2,000 career point mark and sits at 2,082. And Robertson is all over the IHSA record books. He currently is 12th in IHSA history in career rebounds with 1,273 and his 470 rebounds this season are the 16th most in IHSA all-time for a single season. He made 128 field goals this season, the seventh most in a single season, and he sits at 780 career field goals, good for 12th all-time.
“You can’t just completely eliminate him because he does so many different things on the basketball court,” Stucky added.
And Robertson is a menace on the defensive end. In addition to snatching rebounds, he can use his height to deliver booming blocks. Stucky credited his junior with becoming great at providing good backcourt possessions without fouling and being patient with his timing, allowing players to make their decision and then firing out a response to make a play.
In a similar vein, Hereford is mighty hard to completely eliminate from the court. His three-level scoring ability is remarkable with a shooting percentage of 65% (256-394), a free-throw percentage of 78.4% (98-125) and a 3-point mark of 44.7% (42-94). He averaged 25.1 points per game to rank 21st overall in scoring in Wisconsin.
“You never take it for granted, but you kind of forget he’s really just gotten into his high school career,” Purple Knights’ head coach Todd Marks said. “He’s wise beyond his years with his basketball IQ and you combine that with his talent — it’s also not something where he just shows up on game night and plays. He’s put tons of time into his game in the off season and spending time after practice.”
Hereford was named to the Southern Lakes Conference First Team and was a WBCA Division 1 All-State honorable mention. Whether it was with quick and aerobatic drive through the post or a step-back midrange jumper, the 6-foot-1 point guard found ways to score.
“Amare is so efficient and he just knows angles so well,” Marks continued. “He’s got this incredible body control to get to the rim. He’s got a next-level burst that helps him get from one level to the next, whether it’s in the full court or in the half court. The other part is he’s a fantastic passer. He’s a playmaker that always makes the right play, that’s who he is.”
Hereford scored a season-high 34 points twice this season. He averaged 5.2 rebounds per game in addition to his 100 assists (four per game). A key factor in Beloit’s up-tempo, in-your-face defense, he added 86 steals to his stat sheet.
Howard rewrote Turner’s record books with his passing ability. The 5-foot-11 point guard holds the mark for career assists (470), assists in one season (211) and most assists in one game (15). Howard was the co-Rock Valley Rock Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year while earning a Division 3 All-State honorable mention.
Howard averaged 17 points per game on a 48.1 shooting percentage and contributed 4.7 rebounds per game and 63 total steals.
“We asked him to take care of the ball, to find and get other guys involved, tell other guys where to be, and then guard the other team’s best player,” Turner head coach Ken Watkins said. “I don’t know that there were too many players in the state that were asked to do more or who did more for their team than Zay.”
Teague-Johnson, 6-foot-5 wing was an all-state honorable mention and recently committed to Division 3 UW-Stevens Point. He was often the recipient of Howard’s work and was fourth in the conference with 19.8 points per game this season. He was dominant at using his length and physicality around the rim whether it came to putting in buckets or snatching rebounds. He paced the conference in boards with 11 per game. Defensively, he contributed 66 steals and 30 blocks.
“Tyshawn’s toughness really evolved,” Watkins said. “He became a player that was more than just an offensive threat. The things that stand out are the dunks and some of the rebounds that he’s taken off the rim. But, he really was an extremely consistent scorer for us.”
Flickinger, a 6-4 junior guard, ended the season in a tie for 26th in Wisconsin for points per game with an average of 24.7. He shot 44.1% from the field and 74% on free throws while making 44 3-pointers. He was also fourth in the conference with 6.8 rebounds per game, added 67 total assists and recorded 65 steals and 11 blocks.
“Reagan’s work ethic is top of the line and it shows,” head coach James Spry said. “You can’t get him out of the gym. What makes him great is his ability to score at all three levels. It is hard for any defender to guard someone who can score from anywhere.”
The All-Area second team is made up of Big Foot senior Hudson Torrez, Brodhead junior Cullen Walker, Hononegah senior Isaiah Houi, Parkview sophomore Aiden Crane and Beloit Memorial senior Jyrell Cousins.
Torrez, a 6-foot guard who will play soccer at Division I Marquette University in the fall, missed the final five games of the season due to an injury. He was second in the conference with 20.6 points per game, and he eclipsed 1,000 career points this season. He grabbed 4.7 rebounds per game while leading the team with 89 assists and adding 49 steals.
“Hudson was so dynamic because he has generational speed and quickness,” head coach Hunter Price said. “No player we played could stay in front of him. We played some elite teams and not one could keep him from scoring.”
Walker placed third in the RVC Rock by pouring on 20 points per game. He shot 46.6% from the field and went 60-for-162 on treys. The 6-1 guard, who had a being able to shoot it from anywhere in the gym, averaged 6.5 rebounds each game, putting him fifth in the conference, and he added 89 total assists and 28 steals.
“Cullen’s just so difficult to defend because he can score at all three levels,” head coach Tommy Meier said. “He’s nearly a 40% shooter from outside, can get to the rim and score and has a great mid-range game as well. He just sees the court so well and I feel the game has really slowed down for him this past year.”
Houi averaged 10 points per game on a shooting percentage around 40%. The 5-foot-10 point guard not only was a threat to take it into the paint and score at the bucket, but he developed into a dependable shooter from the perimeter as well. He dished out over 120 assists, grabbed over 80 rebounds and recorded around 60 steals while often shadowing his opponent’s best player.
“Isaiah not only had a great season for us but a great career,” head coach Tom Schmidt said. “He did a great job handling the ball and creating shots for both himself and his teammates. He is leaving behind some big shoes to fill.”
Crane improved on a strong frosh season by building on his ability to rack up the buckets. The 5-foot-11 point guard averaged 14.5 points per game while shooting 39% from the field and splashing 39 3-pointers. He dished out 68 total assists and snatched 81 steals.
“Aiden is a threat from outside and at attacking the rim,” head coach Mary Crane said. “He has a quick first step and can create shots off the dribble so he is very hard to defend. He put hours in the gym working on his mid-range pull-up jumpers and that became an easy way for him to find points for his team.”
Cousins absolutely dominated the boards for the Knights. He paced the conference with 10.3 rebounds per game and was a strong finisher at the rim to help put his scoring average at 13.4 points per game on 52% shooting. The 6-foot-6 forward also delivered 21 booming blocks.
“To average a double-double is really impressive,” Marks said. “I don’t know where we would be without him just because of his ability to rebound the ball.”
• HONORABLE MENTION: AJ Dotson, Beloit Turner (so.); Diego Perez, Beloit Memorial (sr.); Cole Warren, Hononegah (sr.); TreyMon Payton-Ruff, South Beloit (jr.); Jaxon Dooley, Brodhead (sr.); Oliver Friedrich, Parkview (so).
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