Stepping away from basketball the way Jake Mosemann did last summer wasn’t his idea.
That isn’t to say positives didn’t come out of it.
In June, Mosemann, a senior guard who finished as Greenwood’s top scorer last season, underwent surgery to rectify a herniated disc in his lower back.
The procedure, called a microdisectomy, involved a half-inch incision where the vertebra is, then removal of the portion of disc that had been protruding into Mosemann’s nerve.
A total of two months were required for him to fully recover and be medically cleared to do shooting and dribbling drills with teammates. Mosemann couldn’t engage in scrimmages until mid-October.
Hardly the offseason he envisioned, but one that ultimately enabled him to grow in other areas.
“It just taught me a lot of things, like perseverance and never taking things for granted,” Mosemann said. “It helped me jell better with the team, and let me help everyone out with the drills.”
Mosemann’s return gives first-year coach Keith Witty a sound starting point. Beyond that, however, the Woodmen juggle a great deal more question marks than exclamation points based on the number of varsity newcomers.
The defensive-minded Witty, who in six seasons at Edinburgh assembled an 86-60 record with a pair of Class A sectional championships, knows getting Mosemann back this close to the start of the regular season is a far superior option than not at all.
“Jake had a rough summer, but it allowed him to take that leadership role from the sideline, initially,” Witty said. “Just having his stability, and a guy who has been through the battles, it’s been great.”
Mosemann — who anticipates breakout seasons from the likes of teammates Ethan King, a junior guard, and two of his classmates, John Ollanketo and Jude Thompson — worked on his game, when possible, after the conclusion of the 2022-23 season.
He feels good, and is ready to be the team leader.
“Last year, I was pretty good at scoring the basketball,” Mosemann said. “I’ve tried to improve my off-the-dribble shooting, and driving with my left hand. Since I’ve been cleared to practice, those were the first two things I started working on.”
Greenwood opens the season at home against Center Grove on Nov. 22.
SCOUTING THE WOODMEN
Coach: Keith Witty
Last season: 8-15, lost to Center Grove in first round of Class 4A sectional
Key returnees: Jake Mosemann, senior; Ethan King, junior
Top newcomers: John Ollanketo and Jude Thompson, seniors; Isaac O’Neal and Sam Thompson, juniors; Parker Doolin, sophomore
Outlook: After six seasons as coach at Edinburgh, Witty is still in the process of learning names and the various skill sets of his new players now that he’s succeeding former Woodmen coach Joe Bradburn. The return of Mosemann makes for a great first building block. After that, Witty has his work cut out trying to develop the kind of supporting cast that could make Greenwood a viable contender in the Mid-State Conference.
Playing a strong man-to-man defense is at the core of any Witty-coached team, and that won’t change this season. Bradburn’s final two clubs were a combined 17-29, so returning Greenwood to the level of the COVID-halted sectional championship season of 2019-20 will require some work.
“My style of play is different than coach Bradburn’s style, so there is going to be an adjustment,” Witty said. “Night in and night out, we’re going to compete. Our goal is to be firing on all cylinders by the end of February. My big thing early is that we build chemistry early in the season, and build on that.”
