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33 dicted. "His vision and feel are very good now and that will only get better," he said. "You'll see a monumental jump in him next year. He'll know what to expect and he'll be more at ease. That holds true for maybe the most gift- ed passer on the team, Bronson Koenig. "He sees a lot of things that other peo- ple don't see," Dekker said. "He has quick hands and a quick mind and he can fit the ball into holes where they really shouldn't fit. "He made some passes to me (in AAU games) that to this day I still wonder how they got there. He made me look really good a lot of times. You'll be seeing special things from him." Koenig recalled winning a Best Passer Award when he was in the second grade. He was playing in the Happy Hoops League at the YMCA and he said, "It's al- ways been pretty instinctual for me." During his formative years, he used to watch video of the late Pete Maravich, a true magician. "I saw clips of him and other good passers and I tried to emulate their games a little bit," he said. It's a simple game, Koenig contended. "I always try to read the defense and I try to be one step ahead," he said, adding that some of his no-look passes "might have given a few people bloody noses." Gard knows exactly what Koenig was talking about. "The other four guys have to be ready or he'll bounce it off the side of their head," he said. "You have to be alert when you see him start to make a play; get your hands ready and move into position. Koenig, by his own admis- sion, is still adjusting to the speed of the game and the length of the defenders at this level of competition. "I haven't thrown my best passes yet," he said. While conceding Hayes is talented passer ("He al- ways jokes around with me on how he should be a point guard"), Koenig singled out Gasser for being "really good at finding those open seams." He mentioned that Gasser was a high school quar- terback and it shows in his anticipation. Gasser has credited the experience that he gained on the grid- iron for helping shape his game on the hardwood. Those football instincts are relative Gasser said, "If you're in transition and you have to lead a guy or someone has a defender sealed and you have to lob it over the top. "You're not throwing to where the guy is now but you're leading him and throwing the ball to where he's going to be. Anticipation is huge. "You have to know where the defense is and where they're going to be. It's one thing that Coach Ryan preaches a lot and it's something you have to have as a player." Especially in March when you can anticipate the rewards being far greater if you pass the tests. "YOU'RE NOT THROWING TO WHERE THE GUY IS NOW BUT YOU'RE LEAD- ING HIM AND THROWING THE BALL TO WHERE HE'S GOING TO BE," GASSER SAID. "ANTICIPATION IS HUGE." "I ALWAYS TRY TO READ THE DEFENSE AND I TRY TO BE ONE STEP AHEAD," KOENIG SAID. DAVID STLUKA