MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Jim Matson]

April is on a long sabbatical.

Bob, if Kent plays like he did in his last game (Calvin at Wheaton in the first round in 2004), then he sure would be odds on favorite for the best guard in the CCIW.  But things can change when you take time away from the game.

[Gregory Sager]

Martin, I couldn't agree with you more.  I can't recall a season in which there was this much uncertainty and inexperience at the guard spots across the league.  At this early stage, here are the backcourts as I see them:

Carthage
* Trey Bowens
* Scott Hood

I don't expect Hood to start. Once again, he'll have to fight his way into the lineup. It seems to be the recurring motif of his Carthage career. Barring injury or unforeseen setback, I expect Bosko to start sophomore transfer Joe Higgins at the point. Bosko loves that kid.

Elmhurst
* Brian Lee
* Ryan Burks?

It's safe to remove the question mark from after Burks' name. The job is his.

North Central
* ?
* ?

The early word from Naperville is that Raridon is considering an all-freshmen tandem of Brandon Smith (PG, Plainfield Central) and Reid Barringer (SG, Sycamore) as his starting guards. It's a gutsy move if he actually goes through with it; I can't ever remember a CCIW team starting a pair of plebes in the backcourt, and I'm willing to bet all the maize in Knuppelville that there's never been a CCIW champion that has done so. Anyone tempted to proclaim North Central as the runaway preseason favorite ought to take this into consideration. I still think the Cards will be the favorites, but I think they'll be narrow ones because of such a lack of experience at the guard spots.

North Park
* Keith Willert
* ?

Nope. Nothing's written in stone yet, but it's highly unlikely that Willert will start. Look for junior Lincoln Community College transfer (and former West Aurora standout) Sheldon Evans to run the point for the Park this season alongside the fully-healed Jason Gordon, with Willert spelling Evans off the bench. The coaches love the speed, energy, and defensive moxie that Evans brings to the table. And since he spent his high school days teamed up with Shaun Pruitt (Illinois) and Justin Cerasoli (Mississippi), he's certainly someone who doesn't have to hog the spotlight.

If there is a wild card in the mix at all in terms of starting guards, it isn't Willert; it's highly-touted freshman Antonio Stevens from Mount Carmel.

Wheaton
* Kent Raymond
* ?

The other guard spot would've gone to either veteran John Mohan or to Johnny Standard, had the latter moved from small forward in order to make room for stud recruit John Pietkiewicz. Well, Mohan's out until January and as we all know Pietkiewicz decided to leave Wheaton almost immediately after arriving on the campus. It's still possible that Standard might move, if Harris decides to play a big lineup with 6'5, 222 freshman Brad Smith at the three, but my guess is that Standard will stay at the three spot. A strong possibility for Wheaton in the backcourt is 6'3 freshman Ben Panner. Word is that Bill Harris really likes him. But the most important development might be the presence of former Northside Prep superstar Rob Eschmann on the Wheaton roster. I thought that Harris pulled off a real coup in bringing him into the fold last year, but Eschmann elected to just be an ordinary student and to not play basketball. Now, like Raymond, he's changed his mind and has decided to lace 'em up for the blue and orange. Eschmann is a scorer by trade, but his size, speed, and court vision dictate that he play point guard in college -- which may be what Harris is looking for if he wants Raymond to play off the ball rather than run the point.

This is a league that has produced a bunch of All-Americans at guard in the last few years -- Adam Dauksas (IWU), Rick Harrigan (Augie), Drew Carstens (Augie), Antoine McDaniel (Carthage), Korey Coon (IWU), Ryan Knuppel (Elmhurst).  I think Kent Raymond is the best bet to be that next CCIW All-American guard.

I agree, but I don't think that there is a shortage of emerging guards in this league who could earn some national plaudits by the end of their careers. Just off the top of my head, I can see Trey Bowens (assuming he doesn't lapse in the classroom again), Drew Gensler, and Jason Gordon as possibilities in that category. Two of them are juniors and one's a sophomore; they're already good players, and they still have time to develop into superstars.

It is early, but it seems to me like the league will be nowhere near as strong as last season (which I guess is to be expected when you lose 4 All-Americans).  I felt last year that the CCIW had 4 "Final 4 caliber" teams.  IWU made it to Salem and lost to the national champs by a basket and won the 3rd place game.  I think the game results between IWU, Augie, Elmhurst, and NCC proved just how close those 4 teams were.  And after seeing teams like Lawrence, Amherst, Wittenberg, and Virginia Wesleyan I think the CCIW's top 4 stacked up very well with the best in the nation last year.

This year, I don't see it.  NCC probably is the best team due to that frontcourt, but are they as good as last year without Teising and Vicario?  And after that, I am not sure I see a squad that has "Final 4 potential."

Again, it's early.

Too early, in my book, to discount anyone from reaching that "Final Four potential" status. Right now everyone's going by the returning players and what we saw of them last year. We don't know who has stepped up his game over the summer and fall, who has physically developed into a better athletic specimen, or which newcomers will have an impact (and how much that impact will entail). I'm just really wary of "this year the league won't be as good as last year" talk when we are all speculating with a limited amount of information.

[Titan Q]

Greg, it sounds like you have been aggressively "working the phones" here in the early going...that's a lot of inside info to have pre-November 1!

Regarding inexperienced backcourts on good teams, IWU went 13-1 in the CCIW and won a national championship with a freshman point-guard (Korey Coon) and a sophomore shooting guard (Nathan Hubbard) who was purely a JV player the year before.   That was not two freshmen, but pretty close.

Who started alongside freshman Antoine McDaniel on the 1999-00 Carthage CCIW championship team?

[Titan Q]

IWU's green/white scrimmage is this morning at 10:00 in the practice gym, for any Titan fans in the area.

[petemcb]

Who started alongside freshman Antoine McDaniel on the 1999-00 Carthage CCIW championship team?

Q, wasn't it Bart Fabian, or was he a year later?

[Titan Q]

Pete, Fabian was in the same class with McDaniel and Garnes, but I think Greg Ktistou started in the backcourt w/ McDaniel in 1999-2000.  I'm not sure about that though.  (I don't think Fabian started until his junior year...the year Carthage went to the Final Four behind Wiertel/McDaniel/Garnes.)

[martin]

Q -
I found this on an obscure website (iwuhoops or something like that) -

Since opening the season with a shocking loss to North Central in Kenosha, the Redmen are 4-0 at home. They are led by returning 1st team all-CCIW performer Jason Wiertel. The 6-8/210 sophomore from Buffalo Grove H.S. averages 22.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. High flying freshman Rob Garnes (Rolling Meadows H.S.) adds 11.0 points and 6.8 rebounds. His numbers in CCIW play only are extremely impressive - 15.0 points and 9.5 rebounds. Division 1 transfer Greg Ktistou (Eastern Illinois, pronounced "thees-two") is a defensive wiz who is also contributing 12.9 points per game in CCIW play. Freshmen guard Antoine McDaniel and senior center Bill Garner round out the starting five for Carthage.

The link is (scroll down to the 2/11/00 entry):
http://www.iwuhoops.com/2000notes.html

[Titan Q]

That is quite a resource, Martin!

I just remembered Ktistou was on that team and had editted the above as you were posting.  Those were some good Carthage teams.

[martin]

It might not be a bad move for Raridon to start two freshmen at guard.  Simmons. Walton and Krumtinger are all seniors.  That is a front court capable of winning a national championship.  How often does a coach get a front line like that?

Raridon may think none of his returning guards are capable of working with that front court for a national championship run.  Why not take a chance on a couple of very talented freshmen?  They will have their growing pains and make mistakes.  North Central may lose a game or two they should not lose.  But by the time the post season comes around, they may be sufficiently seasoned to make a big run.

Q - your comment about those good Carthage teams brought back some memories.  A lot of teams have two outstanding players.  Having three is rare.  Garnes, Wiertel and McDaniel were the best trio since Greer, Harper and Thomas at North Park.  Losing to a round mound on a pogo stick in the 2002 national semifinal was tough.  I think Gibbs had 30 points and 15 boards against Carthage.  The question is how did Carthage lose at home to Elmhurst in its CCIW opener. 

[cardinalpride]

North Central
* ?
* ?

The early word from Naperville is that Raridon is considering an all-freshmen tandem of Brandon Smith (PG, Plainfield Central) and Reid Barringer (SG, Sycamore) as his starting guards. It's a gutsy move if he actually goes through with it; I can't ever remember a CCIW team starting a pair of plebes in the backcourt, and I'm willing to bet all the maize in Knuppelville that there's never been a CCIW champion that has done so. Anyone tempted to proclaim North Central as the runaway preseason favorite ought to take this into consideration. I still think the Cards will be the favorites, but I think they'll be narrow ones because of such a lack of experience at the guard spots.

Although the freshmen have been impressive, senior guards Bob Valker and Raymond Lawrence will have something to say about that.

The guards who defend the best will be the ones who'll get the most playing time.

[kenoshamark]

I think there is agreement but yes, it was Greg Ktistou who started alongside McDaniel when Antoine was a freshman.  Fabian was starting to see quite a few minutes as a freshman when he went down with a knee injury that kept him out of action for the rest of that year and slowed him to the point where he played JV ball as a sophomore before returning to the starting lineup his last two years. 

And yes, those were some great Carthage teams and players.

Greg, Agree with your comments on the Carthage starting point guard situation but I also believe Nav Thompson (Senior) will see quite a bit of action as a backup point guard along with Hood.  Thompson gives them a special dimension of speed that can provide a change in tempo when needed.  His role reminds me of when Bosko would bring in Brett Nishibayashi during the tournament years.

As far as Higgins, although he is listed as a sophomore, that would be from an academic standpoint since he didn't play ball last year.  So technically, he is another freshman who could be starting this year.

[Titan Q]

An article from the Pantagraph regarding IWU's Green-White scrimmage...

http://www.pantagraph.com/articles/2006/10/29/sports/120510.txt


I was pleasantly surprised with what I saw yesterday.  Some general obversations;

1) IWU has 4 definite starters: Andrew Gilmore (can play either guard spot),  Andrew Freeman (F), Darius Gant (F), and Zach Freeman (C).  The competition is at the other guard spot where there are solid options. 

My guess is that senior Mike Harrigan (Brother Rice H.S.) is the favorite right now.  I've been hearing good things about him since practice started and yesterday he really shot the 3 well.  6-5 senior Tyler Smith (Tolono Unity) is also an option, but he's much more a small forward.  Sophomore Jordan Morris (Pekin) is definitely part of the guard rotation, but probably not a starter over Harrigan.  The other option is to start the freshman, Sean Dwyer (Hersey), at the point and have Gilmore play the 2.  5-11 Dwyer has a great presence on the floor -- he is smart and very tough.  And physically he's really impressive for his age...he's built somewhere between Drew Carstens as a senior and Mr. Pipes, Greg Ktistou of Carthage.  IWU's starting backcourt and entire guard rotation in 2006-07 should be really good by January.

2)  Zach Freeman is just outstanding.  He's a little bigger and stronger this year -- listed at 6-7, but looks and plays more like 6-8 or 6-9 to me.  Zach is going to force opposing defenses to focus a ton of energy on him and that will create opportunities for his inexperienced teammates.  Zach is probably one of top 2 or 3 big guys in Division III.

3) Andrew Freeman looked better than anyone yesterday.  He hit 5 3's in 6 or 7 attempts.  Like his brother, Andrew is bigger than last season.  He is a very different player than Zach -- a face-the-basket player and a good shooter from beyond the arc.  With his athleticism and versatility, Andrew has so much potential this year.

4) Darius Gant (Oswego) was so-so yesterday.  I've been saying that Gant and Andrew Freeman are the keys to IWU's season -- I left feeling great about Andrew but not sure yet on Darius.  Darius is the best leaper on a team with two of the better leapers I've ever seen (Zach, Andrew Freeman).  He is an undersized post player who will rely on athleticism to get the job done.  Like A. Freeman, just a ton of potential.  I'd like to see him play better in IWU's next scrimmage - Friday vs St. Francis.

5) IWU's biggest question this year, and it is a biggie, is post depth.  The Titans will lose a ton when Zach Freeman leaves the game.  Last year, Chris Jones and Steve Schweer came off the bench and most of the time, IWU didn't miss a beat.  This year, 6-5/210 Brett Chamernik (Benet Academy) and 6-5/190 Jason Bloom (Normal) will most likely be the two post subs.  Both have potential to be good, but they'll be giving up a lot of height/size vs opposing post players.  The loss of 6-7/220 Brian Nussbaum is really big because he'd be right in the middle of this picture.  Bloom and Chamernik will need to have good years for IWU to contend in the CCIW.

6) I was impressed with 6-2 freshman Elias Washington (Grayslake).  Washington was recruited to IWU as a high jumper on the track squad, but he may have a chance to be a good CCIW basketball player as an athletic slasher type.  He scored a couple baskets yesterday that had the fans in attendance, including me, asking who #50 is.


Overall, I left feeling like IWU has a pretty good basketball team.  A ton of questions still to answer, but the 2006-07 Titans have plenty of talent to compete.

[dansand]

My guess is that senior Mike Harrigan (Brother Rice H.S.) is the favorite right now...he really shot the 3 well...Andrew Freeman looked better than anyone yesterday.  He hit 5 3's in 6 or 7 attempts. 

Q,
Sounds like the Titans might have some trouble defending the three-point line this year.

Using quotes that way, I could write political ads. 

[petemcb]

I appreciate the effort you put into writing about the Green and White scrimmage at IWU.  I was going to wait until tonight when Pat has it on the front page of D3Hoops.com 

I am especially happy that Tharp is not the new head coach at IWU.  I am sure he was not qualified to coach in such an esteemed league.

Titan2000 making a serious run at being the first poster to break the four digit negative karma barrier.

[Mr. Ypsi]

I appreciate the effort you put into writing about the Green and White scrimmage at IWU.  I was going to wait until tonight when Pat has it on the front page of D3Hoops.com 

I am especially happy that Tharp is not the new head coach at IWU.  I am sure he was not qualified to coach in such an esteemed league.

Titan2000 making a serious run at being the first poster to break the four digit negative karma barrier.

Not even in the running!  The Liberty League football board goes crazy on karma (both directions) - there's a guy named Touchdown Tommy at -666.

But if you leave out regulars of that board, he probably has the record.