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That belief reached a new level at regionals, where the Trojans beat Green River (73 36), Evanston (54 45) and Riverton (57 48) to win the regional title as the No. 3 seed.

The Trojans have done it with a mix of youth sophomores Marcus Nolan, Drew Petrie and Ethan Applegate all play important minutes off the bench Nike Free Beige

Still, it was a process to get to this point.

competitive.

That attitude starts at the top with coach Randy Roden, Nike Free Edmonton who won four state titles at cross town rival Natrona County before taking over at KW two years ago. Despite the fact that the Trojans were a combined 4 46 the two years prior to him accepting the job, Roden expected his new team to be Nike Fs Lite Run 3 Black And White

his optimism. But when Kelly Walsh beat Evanston at regionals after going 0 2 against the Red Devils during the regular season, Roden became a believer.

KW has relied on defense the Trojans are No. 3 in scoring defense, allowing 47.1 points per game and a ball control offense to reach this point.

Two years after going 1 24, the Trojans (15 11) open the Wyoming State High School Basketball Championships on Thursday as one of the favorites in Class 4A.

"So I thought we had to make a dent immediately. Last year we made a creeping dent, and this year I thought would be one where we could solidify our expectations and really try to ramp things up."

"It's great to see it change like this. And to be a part of it couldn't be better."

While the players continued to gain confidence in their abilities, Roden remained guarded in Nike Lunarglide 6 Mens

Roden said he thought he might have to temper his early season expectations following a 65 54 loss at Rock Springs on Jan. 25.

"We went down to Rock Springs and got run out of the gym," Roden said. "Then the next day we go to Riverton, which is one of the best teams in the state, and we win 37 32.

The Trojans, who won the West Regional this past weekend, play Cheyenne Central at noon at Casper College's Swede Erickson Thunderbird Gym.

"Now we expect to win," KW senior guard Jacob Tapp said. "During my sophomore year, we didn't expect to win but we've just kind of pushed that season aside. Now that we've gotten a taste of winning we want more."

The regional title was just the latest step forward the Trojans have taken. Last year, they ended a six year losing streak to Natrona and qualified for state for the first time in three years while finishing 10 17. This year, KW swept NC winning its first Peach Basket Classic since 2002 and has the added pleasure of knowing that the rival Mustangs will be watching from the sidelines this weekend for the first time in 15 years.

and experience with senior starters Tapp and Marco Sanchez. Throw in a talented junior class Kirk Durtsche, Beecher Strube and Kooper Adams and KW could have what it takes to win the program's first state title since 1981.

"The kids really believed that they could beat Evanston," he said. "Coaches are always looking at matchups and we didn't know if we could beat them, but I don't think our kids had that view of Evanston. I don't think they have that view of anybody."

Kelly Walsh boys set sights on state title

"We've kind of found our style and how we like to play," Durtsche, the starting point guard, said. "We were ready for a change. We wanted to stay away from the one win season. We knew we wanted to work harder and make the change that Kelly Walsh needed.

"At that point, our kids really started believing in what they could do offensively and especially defensively. Since then, it's been building slowly and we're getting better. The kids are starting to believe in their roles."

"I thought we could be here in our second year; I really did," Roden said. "I don't have a lot of patience. Besides, you wait three years in Wyoming and a cycle of kids goes through, and then you're back at the beginning.