MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[AndOne]

We'll see Jahns only after he returns from a knee injury. He is not projected to return until late December.

I also think the loss of John Mohan will hurt the Thunder. The explanation I've heard  is that he is suspended until Jan due to his partaking of alcoholic beverages. Again, this is only what I've heard. Anyone else know something different?

[petemcb]

I think AO has something with his thoughts on Wheaton.  I had asked about the #3 pick being interpreted as so obvious because I'm not sure what kind of season they'll really have.  Wiele is and has been a strong player but has also demonstrated inconsistency.  And Ben Panner has also be up and down in his performance (no pun intended).  Also consider that Wheaton has a grand total of 1 senior and 4 juniors - this is a young squad.  We may see a lot of young Andrew Jahns from Wheaton North.

Hiker, did you (or any other posters for that matter) get to see Andrew Jahns play at Wheaton North?  I only saw him in a couple of games last year, but he  looked like he had the potential to be a solid CCIW guard within a year or two.  I would expect him to get some decent minutes from Bill Harris once he's fully healthy.

[petemcb]

Greg, what time is that NPU @ Dominican game Friday night?  That should be a fun one.  Both NPU and Dominican played some of the most exciting, up-tempo basketball in the Deerfield league this past summer.  If my work schedule permits, I might try to squeeze that game in before my son's and daughter's basketball schedule begins to dominate my winter.   

It's at 7 pm, Pete. NPU's second scrimmage will be in the crackerbox against Benedictine next Wednesday, also at 7 pm.

Tonight's scrimmage should be a good one. I think that Dominican's gonna have a very good team this season.

Work schedule just cleared up.  Time to lobby on the domestic front.  Any other posters going to make it to this scrimmage?  Maybe a pregame meal at the original Johnny's Beef, or Russell's Barbeque.  We wouldn't be too far from Robinson's Ribs in the Oak Park area.  Is that place still around?  Portillo's is available not too far away as well.

[Sakman 1111]

Elmhurst vs. Whitewater in a scrimmage tonight at 6:00 at Elmhurst.....Will the Bluejays find the point guard they need. Has Strzemp after knee surgeries returned to 100%..... if so that will be an awesome junior threesome with Ruch and Burks. Go Bluejays!!!......

[AndOne]

I think AO has something with his thoughts on Wheaton.  I had asked about the #3 pick being interpreted as so obvious because I'm not sure what kind of season they'll really have.  Wiele is and has been a strong player but has also demonstrated inconsistency.  And Ben Panner has also be up and down in his performance (no pun intended).  Also consider that Wheaton has a grand total of 1 senior and 4 juniors - this is a young squad.  We may see a lot of young Andrew Jahns from Wheaton North.

Hiker, did you (or any other posters for that matter) get to see Andrew Jahns play at Wheaton North?  I only saw him in a couple of games last year, but he  looked like he had the potential to be a solid CCIW guard within a year or two.  I would expect him to get some decent minutes from Bill Harris once he's fully healthy.

Pete-----

Yes, I did see him about 3 x. Solid player. Sees the whole floor and has a "head" for the game. Fairly decent ball handler. Primary asset is prob his ability to knock down the jumper from midrange to well out past the arc.

[AndOne]

Elmhurst vs. Whitewater in a scrimmage tonight at 6:00 at Elmhurst.....Will the Bluejays find the point guard they need. Has Strzemp after knee surgeries returned to 100%..... if so that will be an awesome junior threesome with Ruch and Burks. Go Bluejays!!!......

Will be very interested to hear how the Bluejays did tonight.

I may be behind the times on this one, but I recently heard Pat Bacon is not playing for EC this year. Can any EC fan and/or other poster confirm this and add the reason why if its true? Thanks.

[Sakman 1111]

Bacon is enrolled at Elmhurst but not playing.....

[petemcb]

I think AO has something with his thoughts on Wheaton.  I had asked about the #3 pick being interpreted as so obvious because I'm not sure what kind of season they'll really have.  Wiele is and has been a strong player but has also demonstrated inconsistency.  And Ben Panner has also be up and down in his performance (no pun intended).  Also consider that Wheaton has a grand total of 1 senior and 4 juniors - this is a young squad.  We may see a lot of young Andrew Jahns from Wheaton North.

Hiker, did you (or any other posters for that matter) get to see Andrew Jahns play at Wheaton North?  I only saw him in a couple of games last year, but he  looked like he had the potential to be a solid CCIW guard within a year or two.  I would expect him to get some decent minutes from Bill Harris once he's fully healthy.

Pete-----

Yes, I did see him about 3 x. Solid player. Sees the whole floor and has a "head" for the game. Fairly decent ball handler. Primary asset is prob his ability to knock down the jumper from midrange to well out past the arc.

AndOne, that was exactly my impression of the kid and his game.  He'll be a nice CCIW player.  Thanks for the feedback.

[petemcb]

That UW-WW @ Elmhurst is tempting as well.  I'm thinkin' start with that one and do the relatively quick drive across North Ave to River Forest for most of the NPU @ Dominican scrimmage.  A double header two days after Halloween!  That's awesome.  This board is great.  Keep the info coming.

[cciwgrad]

Seems like many are schools are covered so far as to opening scrimmages.  To add, I know Millikin will be scrimmaging at Wabash [Indiana] on Saturday.  What's the next chance to see Carthage??

[AndOne]

Greg, what time is that NPU @ Dominican game Friday night?  That should be a fun one.  Both NPU and Dominican played some of the most exciting, up-tempo basketball in the Deerfield league this past summer.  If my work schedule permits, I might try to squeeze that game in before my son's and daughter's basketball schedule begins to dominate my winter.   

It's at 7 pm, Pete. NPU's second scrimmage will be in the crackerbox against Benedictine next Wednesday, also at 7 pm.

Tonight's scrimmage should be a good one. I think that Dominican's gonna have a very good team this season.

I'll second that Greg. A close battle between 2 pretty evenly matched teams. Dominican was lights out this summer. They lost one game to North Central on a last second 3. All Dominican can do is run fast, jump high, and shoot straight. If they have a weakness, it might be their ball handling. Keep an eye out for that.

[Gregory Sager]

Tonight's North Park @ Dominican scrimmage was a glimpse of two programs that are definitely on the rise. I've been watching NPU and DU square off in the preseason for a number of years now, and this was clearly the most talent that either has put on the floor in any of those years.

NPU was fairly dominant in the first half, winning 36-27. The second half was much more back-and-forth, but NPU prevailed in the end, 34-33. What was particularly gratifying about that from the standpoint of the Vikings was that Paul Brenegan, who had 21 players on his bench tonight (with the injured Dan Oziminski and Trevor Hanzen in street clothes), put in his third-teamers with about seven minutes left in that second half. DU only had 13 players suited up, so Mark White stuck with his rotation players throughout both varsity halves. NPU had a slight lead when Brenegan went to his third team, and they managed to hold that lead against players who will be logging heavy minutes for DU this season. That was a great indication of North Park's depth.

According to my informal stats, Nick Williams led the Vikings in scoring with 17 points, followed by Bruce Durham with 11. Ed Whitaker chipped in seven, all coming in action with the third-teamers, and Antonio Stevens, Mike Ventura, and Jorge Gonzalez each added five. I had Gonzalez leading the Park with five boards.

Ventura, who has emerged as a very strong defender in the low post, did a superb job of handling Dominican's star center Mike Haiduc. Nick Williams and Jay Alexander, who started the second half with two putback layups, also played very well. The PG combo of Bruce Durham and Chris Brown was as uneven as you'd expect at this early phase of their varsity careers, but each had his moments as well. Both showed flashes of being able to break down the defense, which was great to see against a defense as quick as the Stars'. Jorge Gonzalez, who has very little experience in organized ball (one year in HS, one year at a juco), is as raw as sushi, but, man ... once that guy's had more time to refine his game he will be an immense impact player. His athleticism is awesome, and at 6'5, 210 he can play some center and allow the Vikings to go small and run the floor.

The starting lineup included Ventura, Williams, Stevens, Jason Gordon, and Durham. Those five and Gonzalez, Joe Capalbo, Brown, Alexander, and Jon Chimino played in both varsity halves, with Whitaker, Glenn Woodside, Christian Alsing, Phil Schniedermeier, Lukas Dahlstrom, and Kendall Greer all getting in at the end of the second half as well.

In between halves, the two teams also worked on various end-of-game scenarios, as has been their custom during this scrimmage series over the past few seasons.

The caliber of play was about what you'd expect two weeks into practice. But even through all the mistakes and miscommunication, you could tell that these were two pretty good teams in the making.

NPU also won the JV half, 28-22. Clayton Cahill led the Vikings with 11 points.

[Gregory Sager]

Elmhurst vs. Whitewater in a scrimmage tonight at 6:00 at Elmhurst

Any report on that scrimmage? Anyone?

Bacon is enrolled at Elmhurst but not playing.....

First I've heard of that. This could be a huge development.

Seems like many are schools are covered so far as to opening scrimmages.  To add, I know Millikin will be scrimmaging at Wabash [Indiana] on Saturday.  What's the next chance to see Carthage??

Millikin will also be hosting a scrimmage against Dominican next week.

[Gregory Sager]

I think AO has something with his thoughts on Wheaton.  I had asked about the #3 pick being interpreted as so obvious because I'm not sure what kind of season they'll really have.  Wiele is and has been a strong player but has also demonstrated inconsistency.  And Ben Panner has also be up and down in his performance (no pun intended).  Also consider that Wheaton has a grand total of 1 senior and 4 juniors - this is a young squad.  We may see a lot of young Andrew Jahns from Wheaton North.

As I said before, the reasons why I called Wheaton an obvious pick for third in the coaches poll were because of Kent Raymond and the respect that the coaches around the league have for Bill Harris and his knack for maximizing his team's abilities. I do not ever recall a team that had a returning CCIW MOP being picked lower than third the following year; and with (admittedly inconsistent) returning starters Wiele and Panner, solid and experienced bench players in Phil Denham and John Mohan, and a strong transfer coming in in Jacob Carwell, it's not as though the men in blue and orange are bereft of players aside from Raymond.

Also, I suspect that North Park figured into the calculations of the CCIW head coaches. As much as the Vikings appear to be on the upswing, the fact remains that they were only 5-9 in the league last season. They have yet to prove that they can finish out games consistently, or beat the upper echelon of the league. More specifically where Wheaton is concerned, it's important to note that in the 25 games NPU played last season, there were only five that the Vikings didn't either win or were in a position to win in the last minute of regulation. Two of those five non-nailbiter losses were to Wheaton. I'll bet that the coaches took note of those two double-digit losses NPU suffered at Wheaton's hands last season when they decided to slot Wheaton third and NPU fourth.

I think that Vikings fans are justified in feeling good about their chances to finally get some satisfaction this winter against their dear brothers and sisters from Jumbotron College. But be that as it may, in the meantime it makes sense to me for the coaches to have picked the Wheaties over the Park.

[kenoshamark]

Carthage scrimmages Aurora at home Tuesday night at 7:00.

Interesting tidbit.....Aurora played NIU last night and lost by 17 points....one of the starting forwards for NIU is former Carthage player, Mike Hart.   Not to often you see a player transfer up.   Hart would have been a senior last year for Carthage but left school midway through his junior year.   The kid had great potential to be a real star by last year.   Would have been some kind of frontline if not for Hart leaving, Jeffreys transferring playing along side Schlemm.