Clayton Ellis was given the task of putting together a cohesive girls basketball team in just a few weeks.
The third different Bear Creek girls coach in three years wanted to instill confidence in his new team from day one.
“I wanted to keep everyone happy. Everyone is going to play and we’ve been substituting a bunch,” Ellis said after the Bears’ 48-46 home opener loss Thursday, Dec. 7, to Littleton. “We have a lot of numbers and a lot of youth. Hopefully they are going to work their way right up.”
The departure of Nick Barnes, who was at Bear Creek for just a season after taking over for longtime coach Kaylyn McIntosh, brought another wave of adjustment for the Bears. Ellis spent time as an assistant coach at Grandview and Aurora Central high schools before making the move to Jeffco.
“It has been a big change because how his strategy is,” Bear Creek senior Whitney Ashford said. “It’s hard getting used not being able to run the plays that we did last year, but I think we’ve adjusted really well.”
Ellis has inserted an aggressive pressing style of defense to create an up-tempo pace. The graduation of last year’s Class 5A Jeffco League MVP, Rae Bean, has forced Bear Creek to go away from a strong half-court set on offense. The 6-foot center is a freshman playing basketball a Metro State College.
“You are always looking for the tall post to lob it in to. We definitely don’t have that this year,” Ashford said. “We’ll try to move it around the outside and hit some 3-pointers.”
Ashford and junior point guard Kacey Mitchell will carry much of the offensive load. Sophomore Mallorie Sulaski and senior Leana Scherer also will be counted on.
“I think they are adjusting really well,” Ellis said. “We are keeping everything positive in practice. They are working really hard.”