Watch the harvest in Los Altos Hills
Foothill College didn’t have a men’s basketball program in 2001-2002. The following year, Shanan Rosenberg came over from a successful tenure assisting at Canada College and began sowing seeds.
Singer Dave Mallet’s "Garden Song" is a tribute to belief, dreams and tenacity. The chorus goes:
"Inch by inch, row by row
Gonna make this garden grow
Gonna mulch it deep and low
Gonna make it fertile ground..."
However, these lines also are analogous to the Foothill College men’s basketball program, a burgeoning power in the South Bay junior college ranks.
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Shanan Rosenberg is putting Foothill on the map
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Kaigler will be gray-shirting in 2008-2009, keeping his eligibility clock in neutral. Here’s Rosenberg on his newcomer: "Kelly is a scorer/playmaker rather than a shooter and he’s explosive, with great agility and body control. He’s a tremendous competitor."
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Kelly Kaigler hopes to bring his ability as a explosive scorer and playmaker to Foothill
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South Bay basketball fans will recall that Kaigler was always good for one or two highlight plays a game at Oak Grove, demonstrating a fearlessness at taking the ball to the hoop.
So why did Kaigler select Foothill? "I chose it because Coach Rosenberg works with his players to develop them both in basketball and personally," Kaigler said. "He will help me get better on the court and also as a person."
He continued, "I am really focused on improving my game and eliminating my weaknesses on the court. I also will be working with a trainer to help with the process of improvement."
Curiously, football was Kaigler’s initial sport of favor. "Football was my first sport and I played it through the eighth grade," he said. "But I kept having a bunch of lingering injuries and it was then that I began to enjoy basketball more."
He hasn’t looked back. The gridiron is history for him although a number of people have told him he’d would make an ideal defensive back.
Like Kaigler, the Stewarts will also be on the sidelines this season. They selected a new home after spending a year at West Valley with an interim coach. Out of Sequoia High and International Studies Academy, Dominic was noted for his scoring ability and Marseilles was considered a notch or two below.
A Peninsulan by birth, Rosenberg runs a program with an emphasis on development of the whole person, offering, "We want our kids grounded and well-versed in what they need to do on and off the court and we won’t compromise our values."
As a result, all of Rosenberg’s sophomores have gone on to four-year schools, with a number earning athletic scholarships. Last season, Foothill had three players, Chris Jackson, Humphrey Jackson and Michael Weimer, garner all-conference status. Weimer returns this season while Chris Jackson is on scholarship at Westmont and Humphrey Jackson the same at Southern Oregon.
Rosenberg also emphasizes ‘shopping’ locally. This season will find 6-6 Spencer Montgomery, formerly of Menlo-Atherton, Josh Scheibley of Sobrato/Valley Christian, 6-8 Zach Masterson from Mills, 6-6 Malao Mading out of Carlmont, Kevin Denardi of Pioneer/Mitty, Matt Christman and Kent Eubanks from Serra, Santa Teresa’s Austin McQuay and Josue Gill from Gunn, among others on his roster.
The Los Altos Hills now has more than pricey houses and wonderful views -- consider Rosenberg’s enterprise his ‘farm’ as he’s growing a competitive men’s basketball team with both a bright present and an even better future.
Coach Shanan Rosenberg
c/o Athletic Department
Foothill College
12345 El Monte Rd.
Los Altos Hills, CA. 94022-4599
eMail: rosenbergshanan@foothill.edu
Phone: (650) 949-7007
