Losing big names like Spencer Brown and Toray Davis would be enough to cripple any offense, but Fairview boys basketball had another Knight in shining armor waiting in the wings all along.
Prior to this winter season, sophomore Gus Van Matre was a virtual unknown in Colorado high school basketball, barely picking up any varsity minutes during his freshman campaign. He entered the scene with a bang in the Knights' 78-46 home win over Ponderosa on Monday night.
He alone accounted for the gap between the two teams, and was a menace from every area of the floor. His six shots from deep outpaced the next-best offensive effort -- Trevor Ochs chipped in 17 points -- as he finished his night with 32.
"I was in a big slump last year, where my shot was off," Van Matre explained. "I knew that the only way to fix that is hard work, and I know I put in work, but there's still more to come. I was very nervous, obviously, because I was a freshman. I felt like if I missed a shot, my team was going to be disappointed in me."
That certainly won't happen now. The only "what if" that Van Matre left on the floor on Monday night was a breakaway dunk that flew off the back of the rim, but that close contact was the only thing stopping him against the Mustangs.
"I didn't really have much of a 3-point shot last season, and I worked almost every day of the offseason on my 3-point shot to be able to knock it down, and I still work on it to this day," he added. "My uncle's a trainer who lives in Oregon, so I'll go out there and just shoot with him. Five spots, stuff like that. Coach (Andre) Goldberg has a good drill called 'gonzo shooting,' where you're transitioning, you get 30 shots, and see where you can get out of that."
Goldberg called him the type of "basketball junkie" that's willing to do whatever it takes to lift his team to victory, noting that he's excited to see what he can do as continues to improve in every facet of the game.
For context, Brown and Davis averaged a combined 29.4 points per game last year. Davis, who just committed to Texas for football, opted to rest during the winter season before heading off to Austin.
Two games into the season, Van Matre is already averaging 24. Ochs is right behind him with 20.
"Guys stepped up across the board," Goldberg said. "We talked about the ball movement. Everybody's sharing it well, and (Van Matre) does a good job of passing the ball too, so it's not just his scoring. It's his rebounding that really helps us and his defense. Those guys are tough to replace, but I think we've got a group that really fills those voids."
The Knights have jetted out to a fast 2-0 start, beating Prairie View 57-52 last week, but through the early games, they're still trying to establish their identity for the rest of the season. They hope to continue the upward trajectory of the last few years.
"I think they all like each other and they play for each other and not for themselves," Goldberg said. "That's why everybody's excited for him when he goes for 30-plus, and he would be just as excited for everybody else."
"You just got to be confident in yourself, and if people are putting confidence in you, then there's no reason to not let it fly," Van Matre concluded.