Recruiting Report: Koln Oppold (2018)
Six-foot-4 Koln Oppold out of Sioux Falls Christian and the Dakota Schoolers is one of the top prospects in a talented year of South Dakota basketball players.
Today Oppold ran through his junior year at Christian, his recent games with the Dakota Schoolers, and his future in basketball both high school and college.
“I think this season I matured a lot as a leader,” Oppold said about this past winter. “I gained a lot of confidence that I will carry over and play with next season.
“The experiences I will never forget are the memories made with all the guys. We had an amazing group of guys that were so much fun to be around on and off the court.
“The feeling of losing in the semifinals is something I will also never forget. As a team we had big goals and it sucks not being able to send the seniors out the way we wanted to.”
Sioux Falls Christian was 20-6 this winter taking third place in state but that loss to Madison in the semi-finals still stings. It’s motivation that Oppold is using for his final year. So where is he placing that motivation? Everywhere.
“I’m working on everything, I’m in the gym everyday working on something.”
Another way Oppold is working on his game is with the traditionally strong Dakota Schoolers program. The Schoolers 17u team is 13-5 this season after four events.
“They (the Schoolers) have been a really good challenge for me,” Koln said. “Every game is a battle and nothing comes easy.
“One thing that coach (Kent) Mueller stresses is that everyone is a defender and everyone is a rebounder. So that’s one thing that I’ve learned, I can have a big impact on the game with those twp things and let the offense come to me.”
Will Koln look to play college basketball? That was an easy question for Koln to answer as he is one of the state’s best talents.
“I love the game too much to quit so 15 months from now I definitely see myself playing somewhere,” Oppold told PHD. “I am keeping an open mind and not choosing anything yet.
“I want to visit as many schools as I can and see what fits me best. I also have two months of summer basketball left to hopefully impress some coaches and show them what I can do!”
There is also the matter of a senior year to think about .
“My first priority right now is coming together as a team and bringing Sioux Falls Christian our second state championship!’