Sauk Prairie has high hopes

Three seasons ago, Sean McGann was the freshman coach at Sauk Prairie High School. McGann loved the fight and tenacity of that team. When the Eagles begin their 2020-21 campaign, McGann will have much of that gang back together again. McGann is beginning his third season as the Eagles’ varsity coach, while his freshman team from 2017-18 are now seniors. When Sauk Prairie begins its year Tuesday against Reedsburg, McGann is excited to have many members of his old team back together again. “This will be the most coachable group I have had,” said McGann, who is 20-26 in his first two years. “We will have eight or none seniors on this team and it’s a special group for me because I was their JV2 (freshmen) coach three seasons ago.” After going 8-14 in McGann’s first year, Sauk Prairie went 12-12 last year. McGann knows that matching — or exceeding — that win total could be tough, but he’ll put nothing past this team. “Our weaknesses will be just our overall experience,” McGann said. “We don’t have a lot of kids who have played meaningful varsity minutes, so it will take kids stepping into unfamiliar roles.” Leading the way will be senior forward Brandt Wilson, who was named honorable-mention all-league last season. Wilson, a two-year starter, led the Eagles with 30 three-pointers made. Wilson was second in scoring (12.0), rebounding (6.6) and assists (2.0) and also shot 31.3% from 3-point range (30 of 96). A full-time starter all season after cracking the lineup late in his freshman season, Wilson recorded four double-doubles with recorded highs of 24 points against Reedsburg on Feb. 7 and 12 rebounds against Portage on Feb. 27. “Brandt got a lot better this summer after playing AAU,” McGann said. “He has the ability to shoot it, but will have to step up into a much bigger leadership role this year.” The Eagles will also count on big things from senior guard/forward Isaac Breunig. A year ago, Breunig averaged 7.0 points per game and reached double figures in five of his last 10 contests. “Isaac Breunig had some big games for us a year ago and has worked hard in the weight room this summer,” McGann said. “He also has the ability to stretch the floor with his shooting, and should be our best rebounder.” Sauk Prairie also expects big things from Devin Breunig, who didn’t go out for basketball last year. “Devin Breunig is a kid who would’ve probably gotten significant minutes for us a year ago,” McGann said. “He is coming out this year, and I’m excited because he’s a great kid who works extremely hard in practice.” Others hoping to contribute include Fadil Ahmetaj, Kyle Been, Tyler Uselman, Kyle Bruenig and Elliot Drew. The Eagles were picked to finish in fifth place in the Badger North, and McGann knows he might not have the most talented team in the league. So effort and intensity will be critical for Sauk Prairie. “To take a jump this season, we will need to really focus on the defensive end and take care of the ball,” McGann said. “Our worst defense last season was our offense because of how many live turnovers we had that lead to translation layups for our opponents.”