Tiverton High Boys' Quintet on Comeback Trail

A bumpy learning process last year is expected to pay dividends this winter for the Tiverton High School boys' basketball team, which may be a "sleeper" in the hunt for the Division II state championship. After missing the state playoffs for the first time in about a decade, the Tigers return a wealth of talented and experienced players this year and have added an unexpected bonus.

"We had a very young team last year, but I like to think that we have grown and matured," said veteran coach Gerry Arcouette, beginning his 18^th season. "We've got good size this year and our main goal is to get back to the playoffs."

The Tigers will try to punch their ticket to the postseason with a roster of veterans hungry for redemption after last year's travails. Leading the returnees are burly senior forward Ben Bergandy (6-foot-3), who was a second-team All-Division selection last year, and senior guard Ken Welshman (5-9).

"Ben is a strong low-post player and we're expecting big things from him this season," Arcouette said. "Ken is a good shooter and has great basketball sense, so we can play him at multiple positions."

Up front, Tiverton will also feature junior Jeff McNally (6-3) and shot-blocking specialist senior Terrance Caldwell (6-1) and junior Jordan Hancock (6-2) as well as senior Gunnar Bjornson, who returns to the Tigers after spending the last two years at St. George's School of Middletown. As a freshman three winters ago, Bjornson was an All-Division pick with the Tigers.

"Gunnar is really a complete basketball player, a great scorer and a complete player," Arcouette said. "He should make our team a whole lot better."

Also competing for starting spots are senior guards Jordan Moniz (5-8), Tyler Mulcahy (5-8) and Matt Correia (5-10) along with junior guards Alex Rosa (6-1) and Adam Lavoie (5-9), junior forward Kyle Vasconcellos (6-0) and sophomore swing man B.K. Kiser.

Under Arcouette, Tiverton traditionally plays an up-tempo style, relying on defensive pressure to force mistakes which can be converted into scoring opportunities. With a year of maturity under his team's belt, Arcouette said he expects its execution to be vastly improved this time around.

"We committed too many turnovers last year, so we're stressing protecting the ball this year," he said. "We hope to be able to press and run a lot this season, but that will depend on our ability to avoid turnovers."

 Tiverton is bracketed in Division II-East this winter with Barrington, Pilgrim and Rogers. Arcouette said Rogers is the team to beat, but also figures Barrington and Pilgrim to provide stiff competition. The Tigers will also face the likes of Shea, Tolman, Cumberland, Ponaganset Regional, Westerly and Chariho Regional along the divisional trail this winter.

"There are many goods teams throughout Division II, so we'll have to play hard and play well every night to compete," Arcouette said.

The Tigers will launch their 2010-11 campaign Thursday, Dec. 2, at East Providence High in an Injury Fund contest before visiting Cranston East on Tuesday, Dec. 7, for a non-league battle. Tiverton will make its home debut Saturday, Dec. 11, against Catholic Memorial High of West Roxbury, Mass., in another non-league clash.