Prospect Spotlight: Zach Westphal (2018)
Six-foot-2 guard Zach Westphal has grabbed the attention of Prep Hoops writers over and over. Westphal is today’s North Dakota prospect spotlight.
“Pesky defender”, “pretty stroke”, “sees the floor well”, “good shooter”, and “talks like a veteran on the floor”. These are some of things said by writers Tony Roe, Matt Bigelow, and Ryan James.
This winter Zach was injured but got some varsity time for the 17-10 Mustang club.
“I grew the most this last winter as a high school basketball player mentally,” Zach said. “I broke my foot early in the season, which sidelined me. I had the choice to feel sorry for myself or to make a negative into a positive.
“I learned to love and appreciate the game of basketball even more than I already did, which I didn’t think was possible. Game nights were the hardest because I missed playing so much and mentally it was draining. However, I went to practice everyday and worked on ball handling, form shooting, along with strength and conditioning.
“Through Coach Kirchoffner, I learned to take mental reps and I saw the importance of being a supportive and a good teammate. I learned I could have a direct impact on the game and I wasn’t even playing.”
Westphal learned to appreciate the game and took some different experiences from the season as he of course was sidelined.
“The experiences that I will take away from this past season that I will always remember has to be about our journey to the state tournament. This was the first time in West Fargo Sheyenne’s short history that we qualified for the state tournament.
“I will remember the time we spent together as friends, teammates, and with a great group of coaches. I will remember the tireless work we put in both as players and coaches. I saw and understand the sacrifices our coaches made to put us in the best position to win each game.”
Zach is healthy again and competing this spring both with teams, and working on his own.
“Above all I want to become a shut down on the ball defender,” Zach said. “I want to be more active on the boards both offensively and defensively. Offensively I would want to improve on my mid range pull up jumper.”
ECI Select is once again tougher than expected. Westphal is one of those players making this a tough team to beat. Zach has earned all tournament honors a couple times already.
“The challenges at the AAU level is the speed of the game and the caliber of player you see every time you step on the court. At the same time, this is also what is great about AAU. Playing with/going against kids who have the same desire and passion as you do.
“Best on best and coming out on top at the end is what I strive for.
“I have learned a lot about myself and the game of basketball playing AAU. ECI coaches are constantly stressing team basketball and to have the mindset to outwork the teams we play against. This is what makes ECI Basketball successful.
“I have learned to play smarter, faster, and to be more aggressive both offensively and defensively. I have learned to play with confidence no matter the situation and to continue to compete.”
It is a dream of Zach’s to play basketball at the next level.
“It has always been a goal and dream of mine to compete at the next level. I have been on a visit and been in contact with coaches but to say I have options might be premature,” Zach said.
“My dream and goal for as long as I can remember is to play college basketball. As far as schools I’ve been in contact with. I’ve been on a visit at the University of Minnesota Morris. I’ve been in contact with coaches from University of Northwestern (St Paul), University of Jamestown, North Central University, St Scholastica, and Mayville State.”
For now Westphal is working towards physical improvements as well as helping his team reach state once again. If those goals are accomplished college basketball could be next in line.
“My basketball goals in the next 12 months are to get physically bigger and stronger to help me achieve the goal of becoming a complete player,” Westphal said.
“I want to improve every day. I would like to help lead our high school team back to the state tournament. Ultimately my goal is to achieve my dream of playing college basketball.”