Wawasee turns up the heat with aggressive 3-PT barrage
At first it appears as a misprint.
Did Wawasee High School sophomore Logan Hatfield really take just five two-point attempts this past season even though he averaged over 14 minutes per game?
"It's true," said the 5-foot-11 guard who missed all his two-point attempts but made 36-of-119 three-pointers.
Located in Syracuse, Ind., Wawasee High School boys team plays a run-and-gun style—defensive rebound, two passes and a three-pointer. The Class 3A school attempted 773 three-pointers compared to just 557 from inside the arc.
Coach Phil Mishler said the team tries to average about 100 possessions a game.
"We like to push the pace and shoot as many times as we can," said Mishler, who led the Warriors to the Indiana State Tournament Final Four in 2005. "We're very guard-oriented so this style complements our talent and skill."
Wawasee averaged 76 points per game and had six players with more than 60 three-point attempts. One player, Grant Ruch, tried 211 three-pointers.
Mishler credits the Noah Select Shooting System for helping his team become better perimeter shooters.
"In the past, we've always told our shooters to concentrate on things like preparing for the shot and thinking about shot selection," Mishler said. "We didn't want them thinking too much about their shooting form. Noah helps them believe they are shooting with the best form possible. They learn it through repetition and feedback."
The Wawasee program has had Noah for two seasons and work with it primarily on three-point shooting. Since integrating Noah into the program, Wawasee players have used it in 1,729 sessions. Hatfield has practiced 147 times with Noah and has an average of Expert I average with a best of Expert III.
"Before I got on Noah, I was very inconsistent and my shot would miss every which way possible," Hatfield said. "But now I have consistency with my arc and my distance."
Hatfield and his teammates do 10 Noah sessions per week totaling 250 three-point shots. The team practices so much on Noah that Mishler uses the system's grading scale as a way to allow or limit his players from shooting during a game.
"I hate to tell a player that he's a shooter or not a shooter so we developed a numbering system for three-pointers," Mishler said. "If a player averages Expert III, he has the green light to shoot anytime he wants to in a game. If a player is below Expert III, then he has to get a pass reversal first before shooting and so on down the skill levels.
"This pushes players to concentrate on obtaining a high level on Noah. Since we shoot so much during a game, we really need to figure out our highest percentage shooters. Noah allows us to identify them."
Senior Ross Stichter was one player who had the green light. He used Noah 82 times and reached the level of Master I shooter. However, he was hurt the majority of the season, but the benefits of Noah showed in his limited stats—22-of-62 three-pointers, 16-of-20 free throws and 7-of-12 on two-pointers in eight games.
Hatfield loves the numbering system and said it allows the players to set a goal and work to achieve it.
"My shot keeps getting better because of Noah," Hatfield said. "I'm real excited about the next two years."
Hatfield said he is surprised that many teams in the region and state don't have a Noah. He's also glad in a way because he believes it's such an advantage for Wawasee.
"If I coached a team, one of the first things I would do is buy a Noah," Hatfield said. "It not only helps on three-pointers, but also free throws. If a team can shoot the ball well, then it's probably going to be very successful."
Noah also has inspired a future generation of Warriors. Call the Wawasee High School athletic department and it's likely you'll hear the kind voice of Tammy Hutchinson. Ask her about Noah, and she'll tell you how much her 12-year-old son just loves shooting on the system after trying it out at a Wawasee basketball camp.