On the road again: La Conner hoops at Coupeville today

School's out for Winter Break, but La Conner High basketball players are still doing their homework.

Make that away-from-home work.

Most notably, in geography.

Since students were dismissed for the holidays, La Conner hoop teams have visited Mount Baker andLangley. They return toWhidbey Islandtoday, Wednesday Dec. 30, for a non-conference twinbill at Coupeville.

The Lady Braves tip off at 5:15 p.m. The Braves follow at 7.

La Conner has been on the road much of December and won't return to Landy James Gym until Jan. 5 opposite NW2B rival Darrington.

La Conner head coach Scott Novak says the slew of early away games is basically payback for what was a home-friendly pre-league slate a year ago.

This afternoon's ride to Coupeville is shaping up as strictly a business trip.

"You never know quite what to expect with that first game after Christmas," Novak noted. "But one thing you can usually count on with Coupeville is that on the boys side it should be a pretty physical game."

Novak says the Wolves are noted for their scrappy, hard-nosed style of play.

"It could be a tough game," said Novak. "They play very hard."

La Conner is coming off a heartbreaking loss to South Whidbey last week, a game in which the Braves trailed by 10 points in the first period, rallied to take a nine-point halftime lead, and then fell prey to a late Falcon spurt.

South Whidbeyheld on for a 55-54 win, surviving Terrance Fornsby's three-pointer with a second left to play, his team-best fourth trey of the night.

The Braves will need to create separation for their perimeter shooters at Coupeville, no easy task given the Wolves' typical aggressive play on defense, said Novak.

South Whidbey overplayed passing lanes and challenged outside shots at the start of the first and third quarters, but La Conner was later able to free up shooters by showing patience and making the extra pass in their half-court sets.

That extra pass more often than not went to an open three point shooter – either Fornsby, Scott Lindeman, Riley Stewart, Cameron Hansen, or Felix Lester.

The Lady Braves, meanwhile, will have to contend with returning Olympic 1A Most Valuable Player Makana Stone, a 5'-11" senior who is averaging 19 points and 14 rebounds per outing.

She has been Coupeville's Player of the Game multiple times this season, perhaps most impressively with a 23-point, 11-rebound effort againstMount Baker.

Stone and the Lady Wolves own a 5-2 mark entering today's action.

"She's an outstanding player, no doubt about it," Novak said. "She played a great game against us over there two years ago in a game they won, but we beat them last year."

Stone is the lone returnee from last season's Lady Wolves squad.

La Conner is retooling after a third place State 2B Tournament finish last March, relying on the outside shooting of Kamea Pino and sisters Nakiya and Nakeesha Edwards and the inside play of Ashley Watkins and Matty Lagerwey.

"The key for us against Coupeville," said Novak, "will be to contain Stone. If we can do that and play the way we're capable of, we'll be alright."

In a related note:

*Novak, who last summer was inducted into the State Coaches Hall of Fame, is scheduled to receive a similar honor in February fromCentraliaCollege, where he played prior to transferring toSimonFraserUniversity.CentraliaCollegeinducts into its Sports Hall of Fame those who have made outstanding contributions to the school via intercollegiate, interscholastic, or professional sports or through exemplary performance in their public lives. Novak was informed of his selection earlier this month byCentraliaCollegeathletic director Bob Peters.