Lake Mills, Iowa &045; Kyle Menke chuckles when asked if the cupboard was a little bare when he took over four years ago as Lake Mills High School boys’ basketball coach.

“We had great kids who worked hard,” said Menke. “But we struggled that first year.”

But they also made progress.

From a 4-15 record that first season, the Bulldogs went 10-9 in 2000-01 and 10-12 last year.

This past season the Bulldogs had the best record of any area team, 16-6 overall and 9-4 in the North Iowa Conference, and Menke is the Tribune’s Boys’ Basketball Coach of the Year for 2002-03.

The season was special for Menke and the Bulldogs for more than one reason. There was the record, of course, and the third-place finish in the always-strong NIC, but there was also a culmination to a camaraderie that began four years ago.

“It was kind of a special year for me, because it was the first year all the kids were here since my first year and have gone all the way through the program,” said Menke. “It’s the first class I’ve seen all the way through from grade nine to 12, and they’ve just did a great job of turning it around.”

While Menke said it has been exciting and rewarding to be a part of the Bulldogs’ rebuilding process, the bulk of the credit has to go to the players.

“The younger kids have put in the time in the summer, they’ve been working hard, and it’s a very rewarding thing to see,” said Menke.

In terms of veteran coaches, Menke is pretty young himself at 26.

“I think it’s kind of an advantage,” he said. “My assistant is 28. We can relate real well to the kids. I think that’s a definite advantage that young coaches have.”

According to Menke, it was teamwork and the development of some key players that gave the 2002-03 Bulldogs an advantage on most opponents.

“We had an outstanding inside player in Mike (Stensrud) and we knew he’d have to be our go-to guy,” said Menke. “I think the real key to the success of our team was tremendous balance. The starters all averaged between 6 and 15 points per game. We had many different kids step up on different nights to lead the scoring.”

There was also some positive chemistry.

“The kids played together real well,” said Menke. “There were no egos on this team. They really bought into what the coaching staff was trying to do. We really stressed that everyone had to find a role, do what they do best to help the team.”

As for the future of the team, Menke is optimistic despite the graduation of some key players.

“I’m definitely excited about it,” he said. “It’s something I definitely love, or I wouldn’t be doing it. The kids make it a lot of fun. Hopefully, after this season, we can just continue the process and be a strong program for years to come.”