Prospect Spotlight: Spencer Schaefer (2020)
The Pillager Huskies have fought their way to a 10-7 record overall, and a 6-2 mark in the Park Region Conference. They have been guided largely by the varsity experience of a roster that includes nine seniors, however, it is…
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Continue ReadingThe Pillager Huskies have fought their way to a 10-7 record overall, and a 6-2 mark in the Park Region Conference. They have been guided largely by the varsity experience of a roster that includes nine seniors, however, it is one sophomore standout that has been coming into his own recently.
Spencer Schaefer is currently averaging 10.5 PPG, 9.2 REB, and 2.1 BLK per game through 17 games. However, with one of their senior leaders, Braeden Wangsness, being sidelined for the last month with a foot injury, the 6’4” big-man has stepped up as of late.
In a very important game last Tuesday between two teams battling atop the conference, Schaefer had a huge night. He scored 28 points and grabbed 16 rebounds as Pillager defeated Henning in overtime by a score of 83-82.
Schaefer’s rebounding and defense are huge assets to the Huskies, when asked what makes him a solid rebounder, Schaefer said “a good rebounder has knowledge, skill and determination. Due to my height and vertical I feel that I am good at rebounding.”
Pillager head coach Jim Bentson elaborated on the sophomore saying that he “always has had a good left and right hand with good footwork and post moves. Very good passer from his post position. Unselfish and a team player.”
For a sophomore, finding confidence on the basketball court amidst older, more seasoned players can be a challenge, but Schaefer is committed to putting in the work. “Personally, I hope to attain more confidence in asserting myself into multiple offenses. This is something that I have continued to work on by listening to my coaches and teammates. I have put in many hours outside of the basketball season and will continue to do so. I feel this too will help strengthen my leadership and confidence” says Schaefer.
Coach Bentson has been pleased with Schaefer’s development, and is excited to see it continue, adding that he needs to “continue to develop his 18-21 foot jumper and court awareness. As a big man, he is a good ball-handler and continues to insert himself in the offense.”
Schaefer is committed to developing his game, over the summer he played AAU basketball with the Minnesota Matrix and has seen improvements to his game. “We had a team of 9 players from around the surrounding area. During my first season of AAU, my dribbling skills improved immensely” he said.
In addition to playing with the Matrix, Schaefer has kept himself in the gym a number of different ways as well. “I have also played in numerous tournaments through Pacesetter, attended multiple 3 on 3 tournaments in the past 2 years and will continue to do so, and attended basketball camp at the University of St. Thomas for 2 summers” says Schaefer.
Schaefer has not had any contact with colleges up to this point, but his future plans are pretty simple. He says “my future plans are to go to college and hopefully play basketball. I will be looking at colleges that have strong academic and athletic programs.”
It is clear that there is a lot of potential for Schaefer. Given his work ethic and team-first demeanor, it will a lot of fun to see how this 6’4” sophomore develops in the next couple of seasons.