It’s time to wipe the slate clean and forget about it.

At least that’s what Oak Harbor boys basketball coach Bryan Schulle hopes his Wildcats can do in 2005-06 after going 0-20 last season.

“I think we’ve got a shot of getting out of the gate and getting our first win soon,” he said.

An early victory would no doubt gain some much-needed confidence. And with a group of experienced players who worked a lot in the off-season, Schulle thinks it won’t be a problem.

Leading the way for the returners are seniors Chris Hughes and Will Lopez. Both guards are 5-foot-10 and saw significant time as starters last season.

The Wildcats also return four juniors to the varsity lineup.

“We have juniors this year with a heck of a lot of 4A experience,” Schulle said.

Those returners include: 6-foot-1 guard James Leach, 6-foot-2 forward Marshall Lobbestael, 6-foot-2 forward Dallas Heidt and 6-foot-4 post Will Hunter.

Some younger players are also expected to move up this season, including athletic sophomores Bryce Schulle and Rodrick Rumble.

“It will be nice because I don’t think they’ll be in a situation where they have to shoulder so much responsibility like last year’s sophomores,” coach Schulle said.

With players participating in off-season camps and AAU teams, Schulle feels there should be more of an overall sense of team confidence this season.

And he has good reason to feel that way.

During the summer the Wildcats defeated last year’s second place 3A finisher Mark Morris while at team camp at St. Martin’s College. Oak Harbor also had three players, Hunter, Leach and Heidt, play AAU basketball in Los Angeles, Calif., and Las Vegas, Nev.

“Hopefully stuff like that will give our players more confidence when they step on the floor this year,” Schulle said.

Winning in the Western Conference North won’t be an easy task, however. The league presents its usual difficult challenges including the likes of last year’s league champ Marysville-Pilchuck along with Snohomish, Mount Vernon and Cascade.

“It’s going to be a challenge,” Schulle said.

Marysville returns both of its hot-shooting guards Jared Stohl and Keaton Taitngfong. Snohomish lost its All-American star Jon Brockman to graduation, but gained a 6-foot-7 transfer to fill his place. Mount Vernon and Cascade also return several starters form strong teams.

Oak Harbor begins its non-league season at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 29 at home against Anacortes.

Schulle would like nothing better than for his team to get the first win out of the way in its first game.

“The advantage is they’ve (Anacortes) got a new coach and a lot of new players, the disadvantage is I don’t know if we’re going to have all our football kids back by then.”