MUSKEGON TOWNSHIP – The Reeths-Puffer boys basketball program has experienced some very good fortune in the player personnel category over the past two seasons.
The first bit of good fortune was expected and has lived up to advance billing. Jaxson Whitaker burst onto the varsity scene as a standout freshman last season, and his presence alone made the future seem more promising for the R-P program.
The second bit of good luck came in the form of Travis Ambrose, who moved into the school district from California last year and brought his immense skills with him.
The last bit of good fortune occurred when Whitaker and Ambrose quickly became close friends and started working in tandem to help improve the team.
Sports history is littered with stories about talented teammates who can’t get along because they don’t want to share the spotlight. That’s definitely not the case at Reeths-Puffer.
[1]“I feel we started bonding so quickly because we started hanging out when he first got here, since his cousin and I are really good friends,” Whitaker said. “We’ve gotten closer and closer. He’s one of my best friends, and our bond has gotten better and better, which I think helps on the court.”
“We hang out all the time,” Ambrose added. “We play AAU together, too, and his family took me in almost like one of their own. It’s nice to have him as such a close friend.”
Now in their second season of working together, the sophomore standouts are quickly becoming two of the best players in the area, if they aren’t there already.
Their potential as a deadly tandem started to become obvious during their freshman season, when Ambrose averaged 9.8 points and 10.1 rebounds per game, and Whitaker averaged 9 points per game.
This season they’ve both taken big steps forward. Ambrose is averaging 16 points, 11.9 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game while Whitaker is averaging 15.1 points and 4.2 assists per game.
[2]Other Rockeets are having good seasons as well. Logan Brooks is averaging 7.7 points per game, while Coby Mitchelson is averaging 2.5 assists.
They’ve all helped Reeths-Puffer get off to a 10-5 record so far this season, with a 7-3 mark in the challenging O-K Green conference, after going 9-10 overall season. The Rockets will try to claim their 11th victory when they face off against rival Mona Shores on the road on Tuesday night.
The season has been very fun for first-year head coach Nate Aardema, who left his longtime post as the head coach at Whitehall to take over the R-P varsity.
“I’m so fortunate to have this job,” Aardema said. “I’m really lucky to have guys like them who lead the team. They deserve all the success they have because they are in the moment together and put the work in.
“It starts with the kids. I’m not doing anything special. It’s the kids leading.”
The work ethic on the team goes beyond Whitaker and Ambrose. A good example is Mitchelson, a senior who has also embraced a leadership role.
“Coby coached an open gym,” Aardema said about Mitchelson. “He just did it. Those player-led workouts are so valuable. They’re setting the tone for what the right workout is. Whitaker and Ambrose both played football and would come into the gym for 30 minutes, then go practice football and come back to shoot for an hour after.”
California’s loss is R-P’s gain
It’s hard to say that anything positive could come from COVID, but the fact is that Ambrose is living in Michigan and attending Reeths-Puffer because sports were cancelled in California in 2020-21, and he knew he couldn’t afford to skip a crucial season of development.
That’s why he decided to move to the Muskegon area and live with his aunt Stacy Johnson and his cousin Brooks Johnson.
“COVID shut down everything,” said Ambrose, who grew up in Huntington Beach, California. “My goal was to play high school sports and they weren’t going to happen in California my freshman year. My family pushes me to be my best version, and they thought it would be best for me here.”
Ambrose admits that from time to time he feels homesick and misses his family, but says he sees them fairly often.
[3]“They visit as much as possible,” he said. “It’s tough, but I believe it’s best for me. My mom and dad are both caring people and love me a lot. It’s hard to be away from them, but this is exactly where I need to be.
“I’ve fallen in love with it here. At first I didn’t think I would stay here (throughout high school), but now I believe I will.”
Whitaker and Ambrose bring different strengths to the court, which is one reason they click so well.
Whitaker does a lot of damage with his perimeter shooting. A very good example came on Feb. 8 against Zeeland East, when he sank seven three-pointers in an R-P victory.
“I feel like I’m way more comfortable this year,” Whitaker said. “I’m shooting pretty well, and I feel like I’m driving (to the hoop) a lot better this season. I can get by people if they come up tight or shoot it if they back off.”
Ambrose, who is 6-foot-8 and still growing, literally dominates down low in the paint. He’s amazing at snagging offensive rebounds and getting putbacks, which leads to a lot of points for the Rockets.
[4]“He’s got an ability to get every rebound,” said Aardema about Ambrose. “I look at our stats and he’s leading us in shots by a lot. But that’s because he’s averaging six offensive rebounds a game. He’s worked on his faceup game a lot and can step back to the three-point line, too.”
While the two sophomores have two more seasons ahead of them at Reeths-Puffer, both are impatient about getting more victories and winning championships as soon as possible.
The Rockets are currently in second place in the O-K Green, three games behind first-place Muskegon. They lost to the Big Reds 55-47 earlier this season, and will get another crack at them on Feb. 22, and perhaps again in districts.
“I feel like our goal coming in was to have a better record,” Whitaker said. “Another goal we have is to win a district and keep moving along with beating Muskegon, which is a big rivalry for us.”
“Personally, I really want to win our district,” Ambrose said. “I also want to beat Muskegon in the upcoming game and show that Reeths-Puffer belongs. that we’re one of the top teams in the state, for sure.”
Ambrose said he and Whitaker are gaining more confidence every game and developing their skills at a rapid rate.
“I’m right where I need to be,” Ambrose said. “We’re both doing really good right now. It’s not because we’re lucky, it’s because we both have good work ethics, in my opinion. I think we’re right where we want to be.”