BY Matt Welch Staff Writer -
Published: Thursday, December 17, 2009 7:35 PM CST

PLANO - One of the more unique attributes of the Plano East boys basketball team is the squad’s length, namely in it’s frontcourt.

With three starters clocking in at 6 feet 6 inches tall, the Panthers have displayed an uncanny ability to stretch defenses with their forwards not just in the paint, but from beyond the arc.

It’s a physical intangible not many teams are equipped to handle, but the ingredients to match the Panthers inch-for-inch lie just 15 minutes away.

Wasting no time in opening district play on a note filled with history and emotions, East travels to meet Plano Senior this evening with the rivalry’s latest installment tipping off at 7:30 p.m.

“Traditionally, we always have great games against Plano Senior High,” said Doug Bleadorn, East head coach. “They have a tremendous amount of talent on that team and everyone says they’re one of the biggest teams around, physically. They’re tall and big.”

The Wildcats (4-8) and Panthers (9-4) near the close of a proverbial gauntlet of non-district outings, with both squads testing their valor against a slew of the area’s elite, and enduring the good and bad of the basketball grind.

“We’re just looking for some consistency,” said Phil Parlin, Plano Senior head coach. “We’ve had a pretty tough schedule and haven’t necessarily been able to play four quarters. We’ve had some close games that have come down to a lack of consistency, but at this point, everybody’s 0-0.”

The Wildcats will have to contest with the aforementioned size and versatility presented by the Panthers’ big men. Answering the call for Plano is the tandem of senior forwards David Thompson, Jake Martin and junior forward Rashad Smith.

The latter usually finds himself atop the Wildcat scoring ledger, with a speed and athleticism that could presumably give East fits.

“It’s difficult no matter who you put on [Smith],” Bleadorn said. “He can play outside or inside, he’s long and athletic. It’s just a tremendous matchup and all we can do is hope to do the best we can to hold him down a bit, but you never know with someone with that ability.”

The Panthers will counter with the likes of senior forwards Dmitriy Chernikov, Alec Harrison and Tyler Hysell. The tall tandem showed marked improvements from long-range in East’s victory over Garland last weekend, burying eight 3-pointers in the effort.

“[East] poses a lot of matchup problems for everybody,” Parlin said. “…They’re able to go outside on you with their size and that’s it real difficult to defend them. They can score inside as well.”

Bleadorn said while he enjoys the length his team presents, depth will also play a pivotal role in this evening’s outcome. Amidst East’s stalwart defenders in senior guard Jeremiah Moore and junior forward Lyndell Johnson, the Wildcats have seen the rise of sophomore forward Dwayne Hicks.

Triggering a welcomed surge off the bench, Hicks poured in 21 points in Plano’s last outing, a narrow loss to Seagoville and will make for one more big body set to combat down low for the Wildcats.

While the district schedule is no doubt an arduous, long-winded affair, getting the upper hand on a rival is certainly no opportunity to scoff at. For the Wildcats, tonight’s a matter of stringing together four solid quarters, while East aims to continue to grow into it’s own.

“We’ve made a lot of progress,” Bleadorn said. “That’s for sure. I think we’ve got a lot of guys who are improving a lot and understanding what everybody’s role on the team is. We just hope it continues on that way and we keep improving as a team.”