Published - Tuesday, January 06, 2009

1/5 boys basketball: Viroqua thrives under Anderson’s calm control

ONALASKA — Joel Anderson makes no apologies for who he is. He’s a mellow guy who never will go bonkers over anything he sees — good or bad — on a basketball court.

You seldom will hear Anderson’s voice on any given night from the Viroqua High School boys basketball team’s bench. At times you might not see him, either. That is, unless you’ve noticed that he’s moved a foot either to the right or left from the last spot in which he was kneeling.

To Anderson, being the Blackhawks’ coach means it’s his job to maintain a stoic demeanor. He somehow managed to do this Monday night in Viroqua’s 45-40 Coulee Conference victory over Onalaska Luther. It wasn’t an easy task considering the Knights launched a fourth-quarter comeback that would push most coaches’ sweat glands into

overdrive. Onalaska Luther cut

a seven-point deficit to one

(41-40) with 48 seconds left.

But the Blackhawks survived, and because they did they’re leading the Coulee Conference at 8-0, 3-0 heading into Thursday’s league game against West Salem. Anderson’s plans for another successful night? Preparing today’s practice on the bus ride home.

“We’ve got to get better,” Anderson said. “There are a lot of good teams in the Coulee.”

Nearly two years after taking over for Vernon Daines, Anderson has turned Viroqua into one of the conference’s elite teams.

The Blackhawks have a proven scorer in junior guard Joseph Poshepny (17.9 ppg). They have two formidable post players in

6-foot-4 sophomore Ben Brooke (10.8 ppg) and 6-6 junior Beny Collins (8.1 ppg). Brooke scored a game-high 23 points Monday, including two crucial free throws with 29 seconds left to give Viroqua a 43-40 lead.

Poshepny said he sensed the Blackhawks would have a decent team this season. His intuition also told him from the day Anderson was hired that Viroqua had a guy who wouldn’t let himself, or his players, get rattled.

“He (Anderson) handles pressure well and keeps his cool,” Poshepny said. “He does a good job of keeping the whole team in check.”

It’s the teams with level-headed players and coaches that still are playing deep into March. Anderson obviously isn’t thinking that far ahead. Remember, his postgame celebration Monday night didn’t include an air guitar solo to Led Zeppelin.

Poshepny says Anderson hasn’t slipped once, not even after Viroqua rallied to beat Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau 51-50 on Friday night. And to be honest, Anderson never even thought about going crazy.

“That (staying calm) is my personality, I guess,” Anderson said. “I try to maintain my composure. I enjoy the competition. I enjoy being a part of all this. I just enjoy it.”

Yes, he really does. Even if he doesn’t show it.

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