By Anthony Robinson

The 2010-2011 Atlantic Trojans boys basketball season is well under way.  The Trojans currently hold a 1-2 record in the Hawkeye 10 conference and a 2-5 record overall through the first seven games of the season.  The Trojans are tied with Clarinda for seventh place in the conference.

The Trojans returned only one starter from last year’s seventh-place finishers.   The Trojans have started the same five players six out of seven games this season.   Junior Gunnar Blum, sophomore Dalton Franken, sophomore Sam Markham, and sophomore Chad Christensen have started every game.  Senior Derek Tjepkes has started all but one of games for the Trojans.  Franken leads the team in points per game (15.1 pg), field goals made (41), and rebounds per game (10.0 pg).  Franken ranks first in the conference in rebounds per game and fifth in points per game. As a team the Trojans average 50.4 points per game, and allow 53.0 points per game.  The Trojans rank fifth in the conference for points per game difference (-2.6).

The Trojans began the season with three tough losses to Guthrie Center (32-35), Glenwood (41-55), and St. Albert (45-62).  In the Guthrie Center loss, the Trojans had a chance in the final seconds to win, but sophomore Chad Christensen’s three-point attempt fell short and to the left as time expired.

The Trojans first win came against the Red Oak Tigers on Tuesday, Dec. 7.  The Trojans were down early, 13-7, but managed to outscore the Tigers 69-32 in the remainder of the game, on their way to a 76-45 win.  Four players finished in double figures for points during the game against the Tigers.

After their first win of the season, the Trojans traveled Clarinda.  The Cardinals defeated the Trojans 62-66.  With the loss the Trojans fell to 1-5 overall.

Most recently, the Trojans traveled to Shenandoah for a Hawkeye 10 conference matchup.   The Trojans and Mustangs played neck and neck the entire first half before the Trojans defeated Shenandoah by 13, 57-44.

Throughout the first half of the season the Trojans were inconsistent on defense, but Franken believes that they were able find out what defenses work and what defenses don’t work during the first seven games.

Franken also said, “We definitely need to improve our free-throw percentage and field-goal percentage as a team.”  The Trojans have shot only 43 percent from the field, and only 57 percent from the charity stripe.

Tjepkes, the only senior to see substantial playing time through the first seven games, said, “Our record isn’t where we would like it to be, but we have played pretty tough against good competition, so hopefully we can improve (during the rest of the season).”

Statistics from www.quikstatsiowa.com