Perusing the 2006-07 Worthington Kilbourne boys basketball roster compared with last year's squad is enough to make one yell, "Timber!"

Last year, the Wolves, laden with a vast surplus of height, lost more "trees" than a Brazilian rainforest following the graduation of five seniors who topped 6-4 or higher.

Among the players graduating were Austin Dahn (6-4), Ben Gaskill (6-9), Kevin and Jordan Lookabaugh (6-5) and Brandon Martin (6-4).

The team's other seniors -- Jordan Gafford (6-1) and Brent Keller (6-2) -- not exactly diminutive in stature, were shrimps compared to their classmates.

By comparison, this year's crop of cagers have just one player topping the 6-4 mark in junior Goran Lokas (6-6, post).

"We have a lot of new faces," Kilbourne coach Tom Souder said. "We have to turn that into a positive and think that our opposition doesn't know a lot about us."

While graduation created a vertical dearth for this year's squad, last year's unit, led by Dahn's 358 points, also provided a bulk of the team's offensive output.

Of the 1,181 points scored last year, only 69 return to the hardwood.

Kyle Lindquist returns as the team's leading scorer. The 5-11 guard tallied 42 points during the course of last season.

However, the junior has been slowed by a shoulder injury and will ease into the season as it progresses.

Other returning letterwinners include Steven Baybutt (6-0, post-wing) and Sam Phillips (6-1, guard-wing).

Baybutt, Lokas and Phillips are expected to start most games, alongside 6-1 junior guards Chris Michalski and David Scheaf.

Several other players vying for minutes include seniors Shutoku Hatakeyama (5-9, guard) and Matt Porter (5-7, guard), juniors Kevin Anthony (6-2, guard-wing) and John Batchelder (6-2, wing-post) and sophomore Nolan Samples (6-3, post).

"Right now, the guys are still trying to figure where they fit role-wise," Souder said. "The kids are constantly getting better. Everybody is playing hard, but I think we have to continue to play harder and play smart.

"We have to out-execute people and I think the guys understand that."

This year's outfit looks to build upon the success set by their predecessors.

Last year, the Wolves finished with a 13-8 record, following a 54-40 defeat against Dublin Coffman in the Division I Central District semifinals.

The 13 wins established a new school record, eclipsing the previous mark of 11, set the year prior.

The back-to-back winning seasons signal a first in the program's history.

"Every year is a new opportunity and a new group," Souder said. "We try to challenge ourselves every year to do more than the group before. Right now, I'm tickled with the kind of effort these kids have put in since last March to prepare themselves for this year."

In the most recent realignment of the Ohio Capital Conference, the Wolves enter the Cardinal Division, having played in the Central last season, where they earned a 6-4 record.

Joining the Wolves are Central Division veterans Westerville South and Mount Vernon. The Wildcats and Yellow Jackets shared the OCC Central crown by posting identical 8-2 marks.

Other conference members include Dublin Jerome, Olentangy and Pickerington Central.

Outside league play, Kilbourne's highlight game is a first-ever showdown with crosstown rival Thomas Worthington Jan. 6 at home.

"Our kids are really excited, because they've grown up playing against those kids," Souder said. "It's a neat thing for our community to showcase our basketball programs."