Boys Hoops: Wharton Expected To Challenge Again; Freedom? Maybe

Since taking over the Paul R. Wharton High boys basketball program in 1997, coach Tommy Tonelli has had nothing but success.

Only one time have his Wildcats not won at least 18 games. And, Tonelli has guided the Wildcats to eleven straight 20-win seasons, seven district titles and nine playoff appearances.

But last year, despite going 21-5, the Wildcats did not make the playoffs, losing in the District semifinals to arch-rival Freedom High in Tampa Palms.

The two teams renew their rivalry tonight in a Class 8A, District 8 clash at 6:30 p.m. at Wharton, with the Wildcats looking to get back to the postseason and Freedom looking at a rebuilding year.

“I feel this team definitely has a real good outlook and can achieve whatever they want,’’ says Tonelli, who is just another 20-win season shy of 400 career wins with the school. “They just have to earn it and pay the price and go out and compete for it. It is a talented group. We have the necessary pieces.”

Three of those pieces are returning senior starters: Tray Gildon, Dae’son Barnes and Isaiah Thomas. Another big piece should be transfer Reggie Jennings, a 6-3 senior guard who averaged 20.1 points and 10 rebounds a game last year for Wesley Chapel High.

Gildon started every game as a junior, and the 6-foot-1 point guard is poised to have a big season. Tonelli said Gildon shined during the offseason, showing leaps forward in maturity and leadership. Combine that with a smooth handle, great vision and a solid jumper, and Gildon could emerge as one of the Tampa Bay area’s top point guards.

“He has good natural point guard ability,’’ Tonelli says. “He has all the intangibles.”

Barnes, a 6-2 shooting guard, also played a lot as a junior. He has improved his jump shot and his defense and Tonelli thinks Barnes can raise his scoring average into double digits.

“He can put the ball in the basket a lot of different ways,’’ the coach says.

Thomas is a 6-3 forward who started last year as a reserve and played his way into the starting lineup midway through the season. He provided a lift for the ‘Cats on offense, and is a tremendous leaper who plays above the rim.

Wharton, which is 2-0, isn’t a very big or physical team this year, but they are athletic and fairly long, with players like 6-2 sophomore guard Darin Green,  6-5 junior point guard D.J. Henderson and junior varsity call-up Renaldo Williams all expected to play big roles this season.

“I’m real excited about our guys,’’ Tonelli says, “and what I think we can accomplish.”

Freedom Hoping To Reload

Freedom coach Cedric Smith is taking a more muted tone with the Patriots as he waits to see how his team gels.

The Pats lost seven seniors from last year’s team, including about 41 of the 57 points per game the team averaged in winning a school-record 23 games.

Freedom, which is 1-1 after beating Gaither to open the season and then dropping a close 60-56 decision to Wiregrass Ranch in a pair of Class 8A, District 8 games, will rely on Chase Creasy, a 6-4 senior wing player that Smith thinks can be better than he has been. Last year, Creasy averaged just 6 points per game in limited minutes but was third on the team in three-pointers made.

The Patriots also return 6-8 junior Alek Rojas and 6-7 senior Nicola Maganuco, two centers. Neither player made a big impact last year, averaging a combined 5.7 points and 2.8 rebounds, but Smith is counting on them to put up bigger numbers in 2016-17.

Gerald Fleming, an athletic 6-4 senior forward, and 5-8 sophomore point guard Nicholas Butler round out the starters for Freedom.

“We have some work to do,’’ said Smith, the former USF star who took over the program in 2011 and finished 8-14 his first season, but has improved the team’s win total every year since then.