Sawyer Clemett capped his final season of boys basketball at Hood River Valley with first-team, all-league recognition — an unusual feat for a player on a non-state playoff team.
The postseason honor — voted on by the Class 5A Northwest Oregon Conference coaches — attests to Clemett’s skill level. He led Coach Christopher Dirks’ Eagles in scoring at 18 points a game, often drawing opponents’ best defenders.
Hood River Valley’s 10-14 season included the tragic death of a player, a school-closing, week-long snowstorm, along with the grind of playing in the tough NWOC.
Clemett was joined on the postseason honor list by fellow HRV seniors — as well as fellow co-captains — Aidan Smith and Ethan Rivera, who each received honorable mention.
The Eagle girls basketball program was represented by first-team senior Marina Castaneda, and honorable mention picks Megan Griggs, a senior, and junior Julia Rowan. Coach Steve Noteboom’s three girls’ team starters, along with Rivera, are multi-sport athletes, while Clemett’s high school sports focus has been basketball.
“Without Sawyer I don’t think we’re in that many games at all this year,” Dirks said. “Just going back to where we ended last season — as a coach you’re like we have these pieces coming back and this is what we can look for from these different guys — from that moment to where we wrapped up league play … just the weight of basketball that we had to put on Sawyer was crazy.
“He answered the call every time; seeing the best defender; drawing double teams. I think, had things gone differently, even from a strategic point from the coaching staff, I think we could have loosened things up for him.”
Clemett is comfortable playing off the ball — a wing player in college, Dirks said. But situations this season demanded that he handle the ball more.
“Right now, I’m planning on going to Orange Coast College,” Clemett said. “I haven’t signed yet, but that’s where I’m planning on going.”
“I met with the coach and played a little with their team in the summer and I thought they had a pretty good program,” Clemett said of the Pirates, who were 12-16 this past season.
Orange Coast College is a two-year school in Costa Mesa, CA., south of Los Angeles. Clemett met Coach Steve Spencer this past summer when the HRV standout was playing AAU basketball in California.
Dirks said it will be good for Clemett to get away and added that the 6-foot-5 wing appears to be heading to the next level of play.
“He’s going into it with the mindset like, if I need to redshirt, I’ll redshirt. If I need to sit on the bench, I’ll sit on the bench. He’s going there to learn and to get better,” Dirks said. “I think a lot of players have trouble transitioning into college; they’re being the top dog on their team and it’s an awakening, an eye-opener when you get there. We’ve had some conversations of just enjoying every moment. Don’t waste time being frustrated because it’s going to be gone.”
Clemett said the season was challenging, on and off the court.
“It was pretty hard. As a team, we had stretches where we were pretty good, but we just never really quite put it together,” he said. “Obviously (there was) the off-the-court stuff. It was hard. I’ve never gone through something like that with a team.”
Clemett said next season he needs to be a more consistent shooter, which will complement his ability to get to the basket on slashing drives. “College is a completely different physical level,” he said.
His strength will improve if he sticks to his plan to lift weights throughout the spring, similar to how his jump reach got better working with jump trainers prior to this past season. Clemett said he continually works on new dunks to add to his offensive arsenal. “I actually just got a new dunk today,” he said of this past weekend’s pickup game. The shooting consistency will come with more repetitions, he added.
While basketball is in Clemett’s future, the HRV girls all-league honorees are now on to softball season. Noteboom said Castaneda and Griggs were the team leaders on and off the court. “Both of them have been playing varsity basketball since their freshman year,” he said. “They really provided a foundation for where our program is at, right now. The younger girls just looked up to them for their leadership because they’ve been through so much.”
Commented