Stanton County USD452

By Gary Van Cleave 

Special to Johnson Pioneer 

An All Points Bulletin has been issued for Stanton County junior Gerardo Robles.

Not for his arrest, but for his steals on the basketball court. He’s a wanted man and the Trojan standout is loving the exposure.

Through the first four games, the man known simply as Gerdy leads Class 2A in steals. And he’s not done being Thief on the Hardwood.

“I think those numbers don’t truly demonstrate my ability or what I can do on the court,” said Gerdy, who’s averaging 14 points and five steals per game. “Looking at the stats it gives me more motivation to prove to myself and others that I can do much more like fine tuning things. I’m looking to come with a stronger foundation and emphasis to my game after break.”

“Gerardo’s impact started last season as a sophomore,” Trojan coach Leighton Grover said. “We really needed a lock down defender type of person. He stepped into that role and embraced it. Anytime we needed to shut down a great offensive player it was Gerdy who we put on them. While doing that he really built up his defensive confidence and holds himself to a very high defensive standard.”

That high standard is now expecting more results.

“Leading 2A with five steals per game looks impressive, but feels like it isn’t enough,” Robles said. “I want to do more for our team. I look for the opponent’s best player each game and fight to win every match down the court every time and hope that can be seen as an example for the rest of the team.”

“Going into this year he had already had a season of guarding other teams’ top guys under his belt,” Grover said. “He doesn’t back down from anybody and can really rattle some of the best ball handlers. He has a great sense for when they are rattled or when they will be putting a move on him and he is great at jumping that move and stealing the ball. He has a natural ability to steal the ball that just can’t be taught.”

Yet the 6-foot-1, 175-pound Robles wants more.

“It’s easy to become satisfied with that (tops in 2A) but there’s always more. I want to reach for steal leader in all classes throughout Kansas,” Robles said. “One of my goals coming into this year was to elevate and emphasize my hustle and defense. I think that’s a small milestone to build upon and previews how much more I can do and what can be down the road.”

“Gerdy is definitely one of the hardest workers on the team,” junior Arihm Gonzalez said. “I have seen how far he has come, the extra time in the gym he has put in the gym and the weight room. Gerdy is the heart and soul of the defense for our team from guarding the leading scorer on every team we play. He takes pride on defense, he watches hours of film trying to study our opponents and watch the small things they do and see tendencies that they have. Having Gerdy as a teammate helps me on the defensive side.”

When he gets a steal, it’s satisfaction guaranteed.

“The satisfaction isn’t really in the steal, but in the effect it has,” Robles said. “Offensively you get the steal and get right into transition with your team with all the momentum from the steal with you, then your team knocks down a shot to expand that momentum. That’s just a blow right to other team’s face. Defensively I can acknowledge that I’m doing something right and the offensive player will acknowledge he’s doing something wrong, that’s when they begin to hesitate, be precautious and show their vulnerabilities.

“That’s just what I need to create more turnovers throughout the game and help our team exploit their weaknesses. A lot of this comes from film and just recognizing repetitive patterns the opponent has on offense coming down the court during the game. When I said I fight to win every match down the court, I also mean the psychological part of the fight which I think is a huge part to the game and getting steals really lets you get on the up side of that against the opponent.”

Robles played summer ball with Kansas Empire which is coached by Zach McNall.

“I got to give coach a lot of credit because as much as I wanted to get better, he was on the same page as me and the players, and not every coach has that,” Robles said. “He proved to us he’ll go farther than the distance and having that relationship really motivated me and pushed me to build my skills. He had a big effect on my mental structure and focus during the summer which I’ve taken into my game today.”

“Gerdy is a very powerful athlete,” McNall said. “He has a combination of strength, size and speed that makes him an excellent defender. He is faster than big guards and forwards, he’s stronger than smaller guards so he matches up well with any player 1-4 and because of his heart and effort can guard bigs in the post as well. He gets after it every possession. As soon as he lines up with you first possession you know it’s going to be a long night.”

Braxton Munk, a summer teammate from Hoxie, called Robles a wild dude.

“He would get everything,” said Munk, who averages 12 points and two steals for Hoxie. “He could lowkey stick with any guy he’s going against no matter what while getting like three steals a game. He just always got a hand on the ball and poked it out.”

“Gerdy is a very aggressive player and at the right times is able to come up with big time steals,” Trojan junior Corey Wilson said. “It leads us to have a ton of momentum. His great defense allows him to get the upper hand on anyone and wind up getting a steal. If his role is defense for a certain game he knows what he can do and his defense really shows up. His aggressiveness can lead into confidence whether for him or the whole team.”

Junior David Crane, who’s averaging a double-double himself, called Robles the best defender in the league.

“And his steals are showing this year,” Crane said. “His steals are always huge because he is always put on the other team’s best guy, so him getting that many steals is huge for our team.”

“He has above average anticipation which allows him to get in passing lanes. Even if for some reason he is late, he is fast enough to make up for it and still forces you to rethink a pass or attack,” McNall said. “He is just a very gifted powerful athlete that works incredibly hard. Then just to make things more tough he has a dog mentality. He wants to embarrass you, he wants to wear you down, he wants you to never want to play him again. He’s just a beast.”

Seeing different players, teams and basketball structures helped Robles understand more about each tiny part of the game and how crucial attention to detail was. 

“At times I felt unconfident, uncomfortable and surrounded by pressure,” Robles said. “But going through all those emotions and visibly seeing it helped me further understand that you can’t sit around and think. Sometimes it’s just about beating yourself through times in struggle. I practiced quickly adapting to new play styles, roles, formations and pressure and have implied it into my game today.”

That game that hopes to take his Trojans far in March.

“In the last month I’ve improved my handle on as well as learning how to step up into roles that our senior starters held last year,” Robles said. “I’ve found more and more ways and continue to build up on the defensive side from finding small techniques to learning and reading the opponent. Also learning different mental strategies to help me through every part of the game.”