Heights duo named all-league

Wisconsin Heights’ boys basketball team didn’t win as many games as it hoped for this season. But the Vanguards were still recognized when it came to all-Southern Capitol Conference honors. Junior wing De’Shawn Barsness was named first-team all-conference. Sophomore post Devin Brabender was named honorable-mention all-conference. “Both had really nice seasons in a once again very competitive Capitol South Conference,” Heights coach Zack Colby. “I thought Brabender was going to have a good shot at second-team all-conference and it appears he was the first guy left off. But it’s very promising for our future indeed.” Barsness averaged 16.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. He also averaged 2.3 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.0 blocks per contest. Barsness shot 55.5% on field goals and 33.3% on three-pointers. And his top conference game came in the second meeting against Cambridge, when he erupted for 29 points and 18 rebounds. “De’Shawn was a force all season long, and he’s only going to keep improving this off-season as his work ethic is top notch,” Colby said. “The amazing thing about him, in our conference games especially, is how much attention he consistently drew and was still able to average a double-double in those games as well. I see no reason he won’t be a 20 and 10 guy next year.   “He improved his three-point shot a lot last off-season, so we’re going to look at him hopefully about doubling his volume of three-point attempts shot for us next season. When he’s knocking down that shot, he’s nearly impossible to guard 1-on-1. I’m excited to have him on our team and not have to game plan around stopping him as most teams are forced to do.” Brabender averaged 10.0 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. He added 1.8 assists, 1.1 steals and shot 45.9% from the field. “Devin did a really nice job stepping into a starting role this season as a sophomore. That’s not an easy transition to make,” Colby said. “The good news is he’s a great kid, too, and is very coachable, so if he grows another inch or two, the sky is the absolute limit in regards to what he could do these next couple years.   “I see him being a double-double guy for us next year for sure. The experience he was able to gain this year is so paramount, and will help in his development tremendously. I’m looking forward to seeing the type of player he develops into.   “If he becomes a nightmare match-up in the post where you’re forced to double team him, we’re going to be hard to stop at times next year. I think we have some young shooters who are going to step up next year and compliment him and DeShawn well.”