March 28, 2024
Sports - Kendall County


Sports

Kendall County MVA Male Athlete of the Week: Micah Schnyders, Yorkville Christian, basketball, senior

Image 1 of 2

WHY HE WAS SELECTED:

Schnyders scored 36 points in the Mustangs’ 93-64 win over Sandwich and 32 points in a loss to Wheaton Academy.

Schnyders talked to sports editor Joshua Welge about the start to his season and more. Here is an edited version of the transcript:

Welge: You guys are 4-1, and a buzzer-beater away from being unbeaten. What are your thoughts on the start to the season?

Schnyders: We started off well at the Thanksgiving tournament; our goal was to win it and we did. We had a great home opener, and then Friday against Wheaton Academy there were about 27 things that could have gone wrong and they all did. We didn’t handle the lead well. They hit a couple buzzer-beaters. It’s frustrating not sitting at 5-0, but it’s a great learning experience. Better now than in February or March.

Welge: What was going on in those games last week? You were scoring quite a bit.

Schnyders: I’ve had a few 30-point games before, but none over 35. We implemented in practice the day before a lot of ball screens I played well off of. Sandwich decided they didn’t want Jaden [Schutt] to touch the ball and they face guarded him. It really opened up some driving lanes for me. I was able to get to the basket and opened up the 3-point shot. When I’m playing with four other guys that can shoot the ball it really opens things up for me.

Welge: When did you decide to transfer from Lincoln-Way West?

Schnyders: We made the transfer at the beginning of August. I played summer ball for Lincoln-Way West, and when coach [Eric] Long took the job at Yorkville Christian and decided to move Brayden [Long] here, we looked into it and decided it was the right fit. Brayden was on my first basketball team. We looked into the school and decided let’s go with it and make something happen.

Welge: Your team scores a lot, over 80 points per game. How fun is it to play in that system?

Schnyders: Our goal every game is to break the scoreboard. We want to score as much as we can, get over the 100-point mark. All five guys on the court can shoot the ball from 3. When you got me getting in gaps, whomever I am passing to will knock the shot down so it’s easy for me to get 10 assists in a game. It’s easy to score points.

The last three games we’ve hit 44 or 45 3-pointers. Coach put in a system that suits all of us well and puts us in a position to succeed. It’s a fun brand of basketball to watch and play in for sure.