Wheetley returns to Advance sideline

DEXTER STATESMAN/Kyle Smith Advance coach Bubba Wheetley talks to his players at halftime in a matchup against Kennett at the Rib City Shootout on Friday at the Bearcat Event Center. Wheetley, who planned to retire after last season's run to the state quarterfinals, changed his mind and is coaching the Hornets again.

After watching his Advance boys basketball team lose in the state quarterfinals in March, Bubba Wheetley thought his coaching days were behind him.

Wheetley had decided that his fifth year as Advance coach would be his last and made it official when meeting with the media after the game.

However, the summer season has begun, and Wheetley, who played for the Hornets in the 1970s, is still patrolling the sideline for his high school alma mater.

“A couple of the kids had something to do with it,” Wheetley said. “I don’t know. I guess it was the challenge. I just want to see if I can get these kids to want to play again, get hungry. Right now, it’s not working so far. I sure don’t have them here right now.”

The Hornets, who lost five starters from a year ago, have competed in two Rib City Shootouts this summer.

“I think we’re playing hard right now, but just getting everybody here. That’s the problem right now,” Wheetley said. “We lost so many kids from last year, and all those kids loved to play. Just hard to get enough kids here to play. If we do that, I think we’ll be alright.

“They’ve got other things they want to do. I’m hoping to kind of turn that around and get them fired up about wanting to play ball.”

The Hornets lost six seniors, including all-staters Armani Vermillion and Michael Hood, from a squad that went 24-7 and reached the Class 1 state quarterfinals where they lost to eventual state champion Eminence 78-62.

Vermillion, Hood and classmate Carson Miles helped the Hornets finish third at state as freshmen and finish second at state as juniors. The Hornets won four district championships and reached the state quarterfinals three times while compiling a 93-30 record over that stretch.

Vermillion hasn’t committed to play basketball but plans to play for a junior college, Hood has committed to Hannibal-LaGrange and Miles decided not to play collegiately.

In Wheetley’s first season as head coach, the Hornets won a Class 2 district championship and reached the state quarterfinals while going 21-10.

“I know we’re down,” Wheetley said. “I hear everyone say we’re not going to be very good. Well, I take that to heart a little bit. These kids, I’m hoping they will. I know we’re not going to be a state-ranked team, but I do believe if I can get the kids to come out and play, I do believe we’ll compete in 1A and 2A.”

The Hornets opened their second shootout with a 46-42 loss to Class 3 Kennett, who held a significant size advantage at most positions.

“They’re playing against a lot of good competition here,” Wheetley said. “That’ll help us. We’ve got to get used to it because that’s the way it’s going to be every game. It’s going to be tough every game. The teams we play, we’re going to have to play hard, get down and do the fundamental stuff. Dig in and block out and rebound better. We don’t have the offense we had last year. We just don’t have it.”

The Hornets went 2-4 last weekend, beating La Plata and Portageville. Besides Kennett, Alton, Rector (Ark.) and St. Pius X (Festus) beat the Hornets.

“We played them pretty close,” Wheetley said. “The worst we got beat by was 17. We didn’t do too bad.”