Last season it was all about height for the Skyline boys basketball team.

The dynamic has changed for 2008-09.

“It’s a completely different team,” second-year Spartan coach J. Jay Davis said.

Three starters, Ryan McCorkle (6-foot-5), Sean Day (6-foot-7) and Travis Frame (6-foot-7) graduated from last year’s 15-11 squad.

Now, Skyline will focus on speed and quickness, starting with two returning guards, senior Nick Crossan and junior Connor Gacek.

“So far, the first couple of weeks in practice we think we’re going to be able to run a little bit,” Davis said. “We’ve got some good shooters.”

Crossan was the second leading scorer on last year’s team, averaging 12 points per game. Gacek averaged a little over three points per game.

Junior Austin Weige also received significant minutes off the bench as a guard. Davis said he’ll start at small forward this season.

“We’ll probably play a three-guard offense,” he said.

While the Spartans aren’t as tall as last year’s team, they do return height — and gain some.

Six-foot-eight junior Cory Hutsen comes back, and will start this year as a center. He saw limited minutes off the bench as a sophomore behind larger upperclassmen, but his time will increase.

“He did get an opportunity to play, especially toward the end of the year, and we really liked what we got out of him,” Davis said. “We’re really expecting big things out of him the next couple of years.”

Jared Lemke, a 6-foot-7 senior, returns to the lineup after sitting out last year with a broken toe.

Skyline also receives an athletic boost from a pair of sophomores. Kasen Williams, a highly-sought after college football recruit, is anticipated to get a boost in minutes. The 6-foot-3 forward only appeared in 12 varsity games last year.

“If he didn’t have football in his life, he’d be one of the better basketball players in the state. But, we’re just lucky we get him for the time we get him,” Davis said. “It’s a testament to what kind of athlete he is to step out of the pads and right on to the basketball court to help us.”

Michael Ford, a transfer guard from North Dakota, is also expected to provide depth.

Skyline advanced to 3A Sea-King District tournament last season, coming up two wins shy of a state berth. Davis said the road only gets tougher with a move into 4A.

The Spartans will be vying for one of eight playoff slots and will compete in the KingCo Crest with No. 2-ranked Garfield, Issaquah, Eastlake, Redmond and Newport.

“It will be interesting,” Davis said. “Every game is a chess match. I have a lot of respect for coaches in this league.”

Skyline begins its season at 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 12 at Eastlake.