Bishop Gorman sees void Robotham left behind at point guard

“It’s surreal to think that Noah won’t be here next year. We’re going to miss him like crazy when he’s gone. It’s not just four years of varsity. It’s 10, 11 years of him being around all of us. He has been as big a part of this program as any player we’ve had.”

— Bishop Gorman basketball coach Grant Rice in January 2014

It would be an easy assumption to make that any prep basketball team featuring a frontcourt with two McDonald’s All-Americans might breeze through its opposition with little resistance.

That having players such as Duke-bound Chase Jeter and soon-to-be-known-bound Stephen Zimmerman attacking and protecting the rim would be enough against the best a national-level schedule offered.

Sometimes, it’s unwise to assume.

Bishop Gorman opened play in the Sunset Region playoffs Tuesday night in a manner you would expect, defeating Cimarron-Memorial 76-47. The Gaels, who advanced to Thursday’s region semifinals, are favored to win their fourth straight state championship and sixth in seven years.

Any time now, they’re going to have as many trophies as assistant coaches.

It’s not a journey that has been traveled this season without being reminded of a reality that touches all levels of basketball, no matter how regarded those up front are: Point guard play is ridiculously important.

The Gaels were spoiled to no end in recent years, when Noah Robotham was in charge of playing with a purpose and leading by example and creating for himself and others, the one who calmed others in times of chaos. He was born and raised on Bishop Gorman basketball, as beloved as any who has worn the uniform, a three-year starter and four-year varsity player.

But all great prep careers come to an end, and Robotham is now leading by example for Akron, the only player to have started all 25 games for the Zips while averaging 9.9 points and 3.3 assists in a team-high 30.8 minutes. He’s making a huge impact for a team that is 17-8 and a game out of first place in the East Division of the Mid-American Conference, this a young man whom many colleges passed on because he was thought too small or too slow or too this or too that or, well, you’ve heard the story thousands of times.

Akron, and those schools that fell among Robotham’s finalists, understood the obvious: He is a winner.

“I was talking to someone recently and said, ‘It’s funny. When you see someone every day for four years, do you really appreciate how good they are or do you not know until they’re gone and not on the floor anymore?’ ” said Rice, who has won seven state championships in 14 years as Gorman’s coach. “Noah just brought so much to the position. We’re excited about the guys we have now, but it’s hard to replace all he meant to us. There have been times when we have definitely missed his experience.”

Those times came against the better opponents on what was arguably one of the country’s toughest nonleague schedules, when the Gaels felt the pressure of teams such as Simeon (Ill.) and Montverde Academy (Fla.).

Rice’s team has lost six games, five to out-of-state teams and one to Findlay Prep.

The point guard duties have fallen to senior Richie Thornton and junior Julian Payton, the latter whose father, Hall of Famer Gary Payton, knows a little about playing the position. The two have improved as the season progressed, each having his productive moments. There are no national-caliber games remaining, only another expected run through the Division I playoffs. They should be fine from this point forward.

Rice also feels pressure to win it all again, only it’s a different sort of stress than his brother (Dave) might be experiencing at UNLV. Grant Rice isn’t coaching for a contract and doesn’t endure the personal wrath of social media disapproval after losses. At least not to the level of the guy across town.

“It’s different than what college-type pressure is,” Grant said. “We put all the pressure on ourselves. To be honest, it was probably a coaching mistake on my part to over-schedule a little this season. We showed some weaknesses here and there. We’re not into moral victories, but we definitely learned who we are and what adjustments we needed to make to get us ready for these playoffs.”

He also learned this: That while those in the program running the point today are gifted — you don’t play significant minutes for the Gaels at any spot and not possess some level of talent — all the intangibles he thought the Gatorade Player of the Year from 2014 brought were even more important than first imagined.

Robotham never has been a player whose contributions are measured solely by a box score.

“I think that because Noah always played with high-level kids on high-level teams, what he meant to us might have been overlooked by some,” Rice said. “But as coaches, we knew Noah could be great at the next level. I’m as proud of him as any kid we have had. A lot of it comes down to a kid choosing the right school and situation for him. In Akron, Noah made the perfect choice.”

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday on “Gridlock,” ESPN 1100 and 100.9 FM. Follow him on Twitter: @edgraney.