MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[oldknight]

It appears Calvin is getting two players from the Chicago area. My brother-in-law knows Jeff Powers, head coach at Naperville North HS (that's Nap-uh-vill Nort' for those fluent in Chicago-ese), who said his top player, Derek Westman, is going to Calvin. I'm told Westman is a strong, aggressive, attack-the-basket kind of player, who checks in at 6'3", 200 lbs. I had never heard of the kid but he started and excelled for a very large high school (3000 students) that finished 9-5 this past season in the competitive DuPage Valley Conference. Other conference members are of similar size and include athletic powerhouses such as Glenbard North, Glenbard East, Naperville Central, West Aurora and Wheaton North among others. Westman started out his prep career as a two guard but was moved to the three position his junior year. There's a lot of video of him and his team and I give a link below (Westman wears #1). I must say he does bear some resemblance to Tom Snikkers (check out his post up skills) though he seems to need some work on the defensive end as evidenced by poor positioning. A summary from the Daily Herald says this about Derek:

"A two guard as a freshman and sophomore, Westman converted to power forward his two varsity seasons for the benefit of the team. The 6-foot-3 senior was a remarkable rebounder for his size, averaging 6.9 a game. Westman averaged 14.4 points as he shot 52 percent from the field and 80 percent from the line. "We expect so much out of him, and he delivers," coach Jeff Powers said".

http://www.highschoolcube.com/students/derek-westman/highlights


The other Chicago area player going to Calvin is 6' guard, Danny Leach of Timothy Christian. I couldn't remember the last time Calvin had a Timothy grad on its roster but I'm told it was Ken Stange. If you remember that wily southpaw from the Chicago suburbs you're older than dirt. I remember him. Here's the link to the team photo his senior year at Calvin (Stange is in the front row, #34). http://library.calvin.edu/hda/sites/default/files/hh511h.jpg
Leach was the leading scorer on a not very good Timothy team that I'm told had only one other good player, junior Connor VanderBrug--yup, that's Kyles' son. I don't know enough about Leach to know if he scored a lot because he was on a team bereft of talent or if he might be a player easily overlooked because of a lack of team success. Here's the Daily Herald report on Danny:

"The 6-foot guard capped a three-year starting time with 1,219 points. A two-time Metro Suburban all-conference pick, Leach played point and shooting guard this year, averaging 17.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.2 steals and 2.1 assists. Following his personal-high 33 points against Stillman Valley he scored 27 against Riverside-Brookfield. Leach made 66 3-pointers and scored in double figures 27 of 28 games. "He's been a tremendous heart-and-soul player," said Trojans coach Jack LeGrand."

[Gregory Sager]

My brother-in-law knows Jeff Powers, head coach at Naperville North HS (that's Nap-uh-vill Nort' for those fluent in Chicago-ese)

A dialect that's as relevant to Naperville as an inner-city Detroit dialect is to Grosse Pointe Woods.

[Gregory Sager]

(Also, the working-class-white dialect of Chicago's Bungalow Belt, as popularized on SNL's immortal "Superfans" sketches, is strongly rhotic rather than non-rhotic. That is to say, it's not "Nap-uh-vill Nort'", it's "Nape-errr-vill Nort'.")

Now, if you'll excuse me, my friend, it's time to go inhale some cheese fries and Polish soss-edge.

[arena]

It appears Calvin is getting two players from the Chicago area. My brother-in-law knows Jeff Powers, head coach at Naperville North HS (that's Nap-uh-vill Nort' for those fluent in Chicago-ese), who said his top player, Derek Westman, is going to Calvin. I'm told Westman is a strong, aggressive, attack-the-basket kind of player, who checks in at 6'3", 200 lbs. I had never heard of the kid but he started and excelled for a very large high school (3000 students) that finished 9-5 this past season in the competitive DuPage Valley Conference. Other conference members are of similar size and include athletic powerhouses such as Glenbard North, Glenbard East, Naperville Central, West Aurora and Wheaton North among others. Westman started out his prep career as a two guard but was moved to the three position his junior year. There's a lot of video of him and his team and I give a link below (Westman wears #1). I must say he does bear some resemblance to Tom Snikkers (check out his post up skills) though he seems to need some work on the defensive end as evidenced by poor positioning. A summary from the Daily Herald says this about Derek:

"A two guard as a freshman and sophomore, Westman converted to power forward his two varsity seasons for the benefit of the team. The 6-foot-3 senior was a remarkable rebounder for his size, averaging 6.9 a game. Westman averaged 14.4 points as he shot 52 percent from the field and 80 percent from the line. "We expect so much out of him, and he delivers," coach Jeff Powers said".

http://www.highschoolcube.com/students/derek-westman/highlights


The other Chicago area player going to Calvin is 6' guard, Danny Leach of Timothy Christian. I couldn't remember the last time Calvin had a Timothy grad on its roster but I'm told it was Ken Stange. If you remember that wily southpaw from the Chicago suburbs you're older than dirt. I remember him. Here's the link to the team photo his senior year at Calvin (Stange is in the front row, #34). http://library.calvin.edu/hda/sites/default/files/hh511h.jpg
Leach was the leading scorer on a not very good Timothy team that I'm told had only one other good player, junior Connor VanderBrug--yup, that's Kyles' son. I don't know enough about Leach to know if he scored a lot because he was on a team bereft of talent or if he might be a player easily overlooked because of a lack of team success. Here's the Daily Herald report on Danny:

"The 6-foot guard capped a three-year starting time with 1,219 points. A two-time Metro Suburban all-conference pick, Leach played point and shooting guard this year, averaging 17.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.2 steals and 2.1 assists. Following his personal-high 33 points against Stillman Valley he scored 27 against Riverside-Brookfield. Leach made 66 3-pointers and scored in double figures 27 of 28 games. "He's been a tremendous heart-and-soul player," said Trojans coach Jack LeGrand."

About time my HS sent some one to Calvin to play ball.  Seems its more of a Trinity or Hope pipeline.  If I recall, Powers coached at Timothy after Don Greenfield was removed, hence that potential connection from Naperville.

[Knight2Day]

It appears Calvin is getting two players from the Chicago area. My brother-in-law knows Jeff Powers, head coach at Naperville North HS (that's Nap-uh-vill Nort' for those fluent in Chicago-ese), who said his top player, Derek Westman, is going to Calvin. I'm told Westman is a strong, aggressive, attack-the-basket kind of player, who checks in at 6'3", 200 lbs. I had never heard of the kid but he started and excelled for a very large high school (3000 students) that finished 9-5 this past season in the competitive DuPage Valley Conference. Other conference members are of similar size and include athletic powerhouses such as Glenbard North, Glenbard East, Naperville Central, West Aurora and Wheaton North among others. Westman started out his prep career as a two guard but was moved to the three position his junior year. There's a lot of video of him and his team and I give a link below (Westman wears #1). I must say he does bear some resemblance to Tom Snikkers (check out his post up skills) though he seems to need some work on the defensive end as evidenced by poor positioning. A summary from the Daily Herald says this about Derek:

"A two guard as a freshman and sophomore, Westman converted to power forward his two varsity seasons for the benefit of the team. The 6-foot-3 senior was a remarkable rebounder for his size, averaging 6.9 a game. Westman averaged 14.4 points as he shot 52 percent from the field and 80 percent from the line. "We expect so much out of him, and he delivers," coach Jeff Powers said".

http://www.highschoolcube.com/students/derek-westman/highlights


The other Chicago area player going to Calvin is 6' guard, Danny Leach of Timothy Christian. I couldn't remember the last time Calvin had a Timothy grad on its roster but I'm told it was Ken Stange. If you remember that wily southpaw from the Chicago suburbs you're older than dirt. I remember him. Here's the link to the team photo his senior year at Calvin (Stange is in the front row, #34). http://library.calvin.edu/hda/sites/default/files/hh511h.jpg
Leach was the leading scorer on a not very good Timothy team that I'm told had only one other good player, junior Connor VanderBrug--yup, that's Kyles' son. I don't know enough about Leach to know if he scored a lot because he was on a team bereft of talent or if he might be a player easily overlooked because of a lack of team success. Here's the Daily Herald report on Danny:

"The 6-foot guard capped a three-year starting time with 1,219 points. A two-time Metro Suburban all-conference pick, Leach played point and shooting guard this year, averaging 17.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.2 steals and 2.1 assists. Following his personal-high 33 points against Stillman Valley he scored 27 against Riverside-Brookfield. Leach made 66 3-pointers and scored in double figures 27 of 28 games. "He's been a tremendous heart-and-soul player," said Trojans coach Jack LeGrand."

About time my HS sent some one to Calvin to play ball.  Seems its more of a Trinity or Hope pipeline.  If I recall, Powers coached at Timothy after Don Greenfield was removed, hence that potential connection from Naperville.

Arena you're correct, Powers coached after Greenfield until I believe 2008 and then LaGrand took over after being a longtime assistant. Powers was blessed with tremendous talent for a 3 year span, the final year had John Huizenga from Trinity (6'7), Jake Carwell who played at Wheaton (6'7), Josh Crittle who has had stints at UIC, UCF, and Oregon (6'9), and a pretty good guard front before losing to North Lawndale Prep in the state quarters.

Saw Danny Leach play a few times. Good decision maker on the floor, limits the turnovers (at least at the high school level). Shoots the 3 really well and does a pretty good job creating his own shot. The lack of talent definitely played a role in his scoring but even on a talented team I'd see him averging 12-14 pts, with probably more assists. Good get for Calvin for sure. Good news for Danny (and Connor if the Knights can get him), he wont have to/get to play as many minutes as he did in high school. Can't say I saw either players come out of the game for more than 2 minutes a game.

[sac]

About time my HS sent some one to Calvin to play ball.  Seems its more of a Trinity or Hope pipeline.  If I recall, Powers coached at Timothy after Don Greenfield was removed, hence that potential connection from Naperville.

Today is a bad day for my basketball memories but I can only think of Ryan Klein who's ended up in orange and blue.

anyone else I'm forgetting?

[Flying Dutch Fan]

About time my HS sent some one to Calvin to play ball.  Seems its more of a Trinity or Hope pipeline.  If I recall, Powers coached at Timothy after Don Greenfield was removed, hence that potential connection from Naperville.

Today is a bad day for my basketball memories but I can only think of Ryan Klein who's ended up in orange and blue.

anyone else I'm forgetting?

David DeYoung - played a single year of JV ball (99-00) - same JV team as Charlie Klienheksel, Mike Van Hekken, and Cody Flemming.

Yes - I had to look up his name, but I knew there was a Timothy Christian guy on JV back then

[Gregory Sager]

North Park had one of Timothy Christian's better basketball alumni, Denny Keizer, for four years in the late '90s. He scored 1,377 career points as a Viking, and is now a teacher at Elmwood Park HS and an assistant varsity coach at Oak Park-River Forest HS in Chicago's western suburbs.

[arena]

About time my HS sent some one to Calvin to play ball.  Seems its more of a Trinity or Hope pipeline.  If I recall, Powers coached at Timothy after Don Greenfield was removed, hence that potential connection from Naperville.

Today is a bad day for my basketball memories but I can only think of Ryan Klein who's ended up in orange and blue.

anyone else I'm forgetting?

I mentioned Trinity Christian College as well.  A couple of Timothy's big guys went there who would have looked good at Calvin.   One of the Huizenga boys can't recall his first name.  Matt I think

[Flying Dutch Fan]

About time my HS sent some one to Calvin to play ball.  Seems its more of a Trinity or Hope pipeline.  If I recall, Powers coached at Timothy after Don Greenfield was removed, hence that potential connection from Naperville.

Today is a bad day for my basketball memories but I can only think of Ryan Klein who's ended up in orange and blue.

anyone else I'm forgetting?

David DeYoung - played a single year of JV ball (99-00) - same JV team as Charlie Klienheksel, Mike Van Hekken, and Cody Flemming.

Yes - I had to look up his name, but I knew there was a Timothy Christian guy on JV back then

I knew there was someone else (had been bugging me that I couldn't think of it, and also couldn't find rosters with high schools listed for a number of years).  Thanks to a PM from Hopefan -with the appropriate shaming for not remembering -  that nagging, it's on the tip of my tongue, driving my crazy cause I can't remember it feeling is gone.

Jeff Heerdt - 80-84 - 28th on the all time career scoring list for Hope with 1111 points.  Also should be listed as 5th all-time in blocked shots with 123, and just outside the top 10 in rebounds with 569.

It's even a bigger shame that I couldn't remember this, since I just talked to Jeff about a month ago. 

[realist]

OK  Did Bill De Horn  65-66 play h.s. ball at Timothy?  I recall he was from the Chicago area, but not which h.s.  Those were the days when Trinty College was only a 2 year program.  Bill De Horn shares the rebounds per game MIAA record (17.1 for 12 games)  with an Alma player. 
Bill was about 6'4", and 220 lbs.  He loved to do two handed reverse slams during warmups from a standing flatfooted start directly under the basket.  Played like a bulked up Snikkers or M. Lodewyk on steroids.

[oldknight]

OK  Did Bill De Horn  65-66 play h.s. ball at Timothy?  I recall he was from the Chicago area, but not which h.s.  Those were the days when Trinty College was only a 2 year program.  Bill De Horn shares the rebounds per game MIAA record (17.1 for 12 games)  with an Alma player. 
Bill was about 6'4", and 220 lbs.  He loved to do two handed reverse slams during warmups from a standing flatfooted start directly under the basket.  Played like a bulked up Snikkers or M. Lodewyk on steroids.

DeHorn was a Chicago Christian graduate. Rugged, tough as nails and a terrific player who no doubt would fit seamlessly into the modern game.

[realist]

OK  Did Bill De Horn  65-66 play h.s. ball at Timothy?  I recall he was from the Chicago area, but not which h.s.  Those were the days when Trinty College was only a 2 year program.  Bill De Horn shares the rebounds per game MIAA record (17.1 for 12 games)  with an Alma player. 
Bill was about 6'4", and 220 lbs.  He loved to do two handed reverse slams during warmups from a standing flatfooted start directly under the basket.  Played like a bulked up Snikkers or M. Lodewyk on steroids.

DeHorn was a Chicago Christian graduate. Rugged, tough as nails and a terrific player who no doubt would fit seamlessly into the modern game.

Thanks.  I remember his playing, but not the h.s.  Yes, he would do quite nicely with a more "physical" style of play.  Not that he did poorly in his day.  I have always thought he would have more records if he had played more than the one year at Calvin.

[wiz]

OK  Did Bill De Horn  65-66 play h.s. ball at Timothy?  I recall he was from the Chicago area, but not which h.s.  Those were the days when Trinty College was only a 2 year program.  Bill De Horn shares the rebounds per game MIAA record (17.1 for 12 games)  with an Alma player. 
Bill was about 6'4", and 220 lbs.  He loved to do two handed reverse slams during warmups from a standing flatfooted start directly under the basket.  Played like a bulked up Snikkers or M. Lodewyk on steroids.

DeHorn was a Chicago Christian graduate. Rugged, tough as nails and a terrific player who no doubt would fit seamlessly into the modern game.

Thanks.  I remember his playing, but not the h.s.  Yes, he would do quite nicely with a more "physical" style of play.  Not that he did poorly in his day.  I have always thought he would have more records if he had played more than the one year at Calvin.

Bill had a great freshman year and it was fun to see him go up against Brady.  He left for Taylor and returned to Calvin in his senior year but was in the doghouse with coach Vroon too much to get meaningful minutes.  When he returned, the Lew Alcindor "no dunk" rule was in effect.  The first time Bill got his hands on the ball in his senior year, he immediately went to the hoop for a two-handed jam and delightfully took the technical.
While DeHorn attended Chicago Christian, another player from the Chicago area was Bill VanDyke, who graduated from Timothy and was a year behind DeHorn.  VanDyke started on a good team with Taatjes, Wiers, DeKuiper, and Phelps.  Who can forget that goofy 1-4 offense?

[Knight2Day]

About time my HS sent some one to Calvin to play ball.  Seems its more of a Trinity or Hope pipeline.  If I recall, Powers coached at Timothy after Don Greenfield was removed, hence that potential connection from Naperville.

Today is a bad day for my basketball memories but I can only think of Ryan Klein who's ended up in orange and blue.

anyone else I'm forgetting?

I mentioned Trinity Christian College as well.  A couple of Timothy's big guys went there who would have looked good at Calvin.   One of the Huizenga boys can't recall his first name.  Matt I think

Arena- see my previous post following you're statement about Timothy players and coach Powers....John Huizenga was the player who went to Trinity. Played there with Ross Stuursma from Chicago Christian who spurned D1 football preferred walk on status and low end offers to play hoops at Trinity.