Keeping it in the family. Connor, Tony Amundsen highlights The Bee’s All-Star team
Clovis North saw plenty of success on the basketball court this past season.
Connor Amundsen did plenty of his share for the Broncos, hitting clutch shots when his team needed it the most. Even more, providing leadership when his team faced adversity.
Case in point: when the Broncos lost to Clovis West in the regular season finale to share the Tri-River Athletic Conference title, he gathered his team to say let it go and refocus for the Central Section playoffs.
The Broncos took Amundsen’s words seriously and went on a run in the playoffs that was capped by a 69-60 victory over St. Joseph in the Division I championship at Selland Arena.
In that game, Amundsen finished with 21 points, giving the school’s its first section title since 2011, according to section historian Bob Barnett.
Amundsen cited a strong schedule that helped prepare his team for the Knights.
“We weren’t surprised by their length and athleticism,” said Amundsen, named The Fresno Bee’s Player of the Year. “We played against that all year. That’s definitely one thing that sticks out to me ... just our strength of schedule and how challenging our schedule was. It got us ready for the playoffs.”
Amundsen came back strong this season after missing his junior season because of an injury and finished with a school-record 669 points in 35 games played, and also had a school record 178 assists.
For his career, he set four other school records (1,441 career points, 356 assists and was 84.2% from the free-throw line. His 190 steals was second best in school history.
His dad, Tony Amundsen, said his son did “an amazing job” by pushing his teammates and also credited Jordan Espinoza by saying they were his “hardest workers.”
“I’ve coached him for so long,” he said. “He’s been in our program for so long. He could actually teach it. That’s how well he knows it. Having a player like that on the court and having a leader like that, especially at the point guard position is crucial to your success. He was a great floor leader for us because he understood everything that was going on and he was usually 2 to 3 steps ahead of the opponent.”
Connor Amundsen will be playing Division I basketball at Dartmouth next season.
He said earning the scholarship to play at the next level started at home when he learned from his dad and his brother, McKae.
“Playing against McKay all these years in my front yard definitely pushed me,” he said. “I feel like he probably guards me the best on our team because he’s played me so much and knows all my moves.”
Coach of the Year: Tony Amundsen, Clovis North
The Broncos solely had success because of the players, but Amundsen and his coaching staff prepared the players all season.
Amundsen saw a lot of success in his career, but being named Coach of the Year was a joy to him.
It just wasn’t about him.
“It’s nice to be recognized,” he said. “I really feel like the players and my coaching staff ... they’re the ones that get the job done. We put it all together, but the kids ... it’s no different every year.”
His coaching career at Clovis North spans 10 seasons (2014-2024) going 208-120 with three Tri-River Athletic Conference championships and this past season’s section championship, Barnett said.
He also coached Central and Bullard with an overall record of 392-208 in 20 seasons that saw nine league championships and four section championships.
“We’re teaching, we’re coaching,” Amundsen said. “We’re doing the things that we do. What I loved was how good our guys were at taking what we taught and implementing it in the game, and not every team does that. Even though you’re teaching the same things, these guys were amazing at that and any game plan that we put together, they were great at getting out there and executing it.”
Large School Player of the Year: DJ Stickman, Clovis West
Stickman was instrumental for the Golden Eagles.
He drove down the paint and scored points. His jumpers were even lethal for Clovis West.
Stickman helped the Golden Eagles to a share of the TRAC title with Clovis North.
This season, Stickman had 471 in 35 games and also had 100 steals, 231 rebounds and 173 assists.
Clovis West coach Vance Walberg described Stickman as a “special player” and said “he made a jump this year and I still believe he’s got a really big jump the following year.”
Medium School Player of the Year: Logan Kilbert, Sierra
Kilbert was the go-to player of the Chieftains all season.
He led his team to a Northwest Sequoia League title and later a spot in the section championship.
Kilbert set a section record in points scored for a career. He finished with 3,333 points.
Small School Player of the Year: Jaden Pena, Coalinga
Pena paced the Horned Toads this season.
He capped it with a Division IV championship performance when he scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in a 48-47 victory over Mendota.
For the season, Pena averaged 15.2 points per game.
Bee All-Stars
G Remy Barnes, Jr., Hanford West
C/F Javon Bragg, Jr., Corcoran
G Ray Brown, Sr., Edison
F Dre Davis, Sr., San Joaquin Memorial
G Jordan Espinoza, Sr., Clovis North
G Malachi Ficher, Jr., Tulare Western
C/F Cole Gilcrest, Jr., Redwood
G Santana Guijarro, Sr., El Diamante
G Javon Hicks, Sr., Selma
G Keon Hill, Soph., Hoover
F Jensen Hirschkorn, Soph., Kingsburg
F Timothy Hurt, Sr., Caruthers
G Jaleel Jackson, Sr., Bullard
G Loukas Jones, Jr., Clovis North
F Kyshawn Johnson, Sr., Bullard
G Kayden Lopes, Sr., Lemoore
G Aden Millwee, Jr., Fresno Christian
G Josiah Ochoa, Jr., Dinuba
G Julius Olanrewaju, Jr., San Joaquin Memorial
G/F Jeremy Pierro, Sr., Clovis East
G Jared Pimentel, Sr., Hanford
F Caleb Ramirez, Jr., Sanger
G Ronnie Roche, Sr., Kings Christian
G Diego Sanchez, Sr., Orange Cove
G Connor Sheets, Jr., Buchanan
G Brayden Stevenson, Soph., Tulare Union
G Javier Torres, Sr., Dinuba
F Tad Tibbett, Sr., Immanuel
F Brice Watley, Sr., Dinuba
G Jackson Young, Sr., Clovis West
