Calling his point guard over, Timothy Wells took a knee. Keeping eye-to-eye contact with his player, he gestured toward the court. His intensity never let up despite a consistent lead throughout the game, giving the Hillsdale Academy Colts a 59-27 win Friday night.
Last spring, Wells replaced Rick Milligan as the head coach of Hillsdale Academy’s varsity boys’ basketball team. Since 2011, Wells has worked in Administrative Affairs as the college’s energy specialist and was an assistant coach for the Hillsdale College women’s basketball team from 2006-2011.
“He is doing a great job getting players to work hard, to reach their potential, and to play together,” Hillsdale Academy Athletic Director Mike Roberts said.
Striving to reach their potential is exactly what Wells defines as success to his team.
“Better is almost always possible,” he said. “Success is about the constant drive. As a team, we aren’t going to hide from weaknesses. We write them down, make mistakes in practice, and learn from them.”
Wells sees the court as an opportunity for the boys to grow in maturity by adhering to strict rules — no profanity or tardiness from his players.
“Life lessons can be taught in this environment,” he said. “It’s great to be taught when the consequences are minimal, like running.”
Following the win Friday night against the Camden-Frontier Redskins, senior player Noah Kalthoff said:
“Coach Wells has stressed fundamentals. For example: defense wins games. We took control of this game because we came with a game plan on defense. I actually look forward to games because practices are so much harder.”
Wells brings his love of Christ to the court. The team says a prayer before every practice and game.
“My source of ultimate truth is the Word of God. In everything we do, God gets the glory,” Wells said.
When asked to describe his coach, Kalthoff paused before he said, “A godly man — very focused, yet laid-back.”
Wells plans to keep pushing his boys until March 1 when they begin competing in the district finals.
“By March 1, I want to put them on the floor with any Class D team and I want them to compete,” he said. “That’s our goal. I tell them, don’t stay the same, don’t stay stagnant. Set goals for every week. Don’t be satisfied and always ask, ‘Was better possible?’”
