2007-08 PAC Men's Basketball Preview

BETHANY BISON (19-9 Overall, 9-3 PAC in 2006-07)
Obviously there aren’t too many people who remember the first year of Bethany College men’s basketball in 1905-06.

However, with this being the 100th year of Bison basketball, head coach Aaron Huffman will have a roster that has many players who weren’t even part of the 99th year in 2006-07.

That’s because Huffman, the three-time Presidents' Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, has 10 newcomers on his roster of 18 and for the second straight season, will be trying to replace the winningest senior class in Bethany history. After having to deal with losing Matt and Mike Drahos and Josh Polantz following the 2005-06 campaign, now he has to find a way to replace Chris Stephens and James Wallace, who helped BC record an 84-27 mark over the last four years and earn two NCAA and one ECAC Tournament bids.

“You really don’t replace players like Chris and James,” said Huffman, who at 95-42 for his career, is just five wins away from becoming only the third coach in Bethany history to win 100 games. “We look at it as replacing roles more than replacing players and we know what roles we need to fill. Anything I talked about last year about rebuilding, you multiply by five this year. We are going to have a fresh, new look and a completely different identity.”

With so many new faces, Huffman says his team is coming along, but is still figuring out what it will take to win in the college game.

“The team has been progressing,” said Huffman. “We are still trying to learn the continuance effort level it takes to win at the collegiate level. I could use all the clichés about coming to work every day but it really comes down to learning what it takes to win at this level.”

Two of Bethany’s returning lettermen are in the backcourt, where seniors Marcus Adams and Brody Jackson (left) are back. Adams started 27 games at point guard and ranked second in the PAC in steals (2.52/game) and fourth in assists (4.07/game) while putting up 7.6 points per game.

Jackson started all 28 games and earned Second Team All-PAC after averaging 14.0 points and shooting 41.7 percent (83-199) from the arc and 90.5 percent (67-74) from the foul line.

“I really consider a veteran someone who has played at least two years with significant minutes,” said Huffman. “So Marcus and Brody are really the only two veterans we have back. Because they have so much experience, we are looking to them to provide leadership this year.”

The third starting guard spot will likely be either junior Tyler Morando, who transferred from Marietta (Ohio) College where he was the Pioneers’ second-leading scorer last year (9.2), or freshman Dakota Matz.

“Tyler and Dakota are the early favorites to earn the other starting spot,” said Huffman. “Tyler shoots well, is pretty scrappy and has college experience, having played at Marietta. Dakota comes from a winning high school program, plays solid defense, handles the ball well and we like his decision making.”

Three others are also vying for minutes, including junior Carey Palermo, who played in 13 games last season, sophomore Jay Lyonett, who appeared in 22 contests, and freshman Dustin Opalka. Huffman may also bring a couple guard-forward combos in for time, including sophomore Jonas Ankrom and freshman Ryan McFadden.

“Carey has worked hard in the program for two years and has a chance to prove he can handle minutes,” said Huffman. “Jay could also earn some time and Dustin might work his way into the rotation. Like Dakota, he’s a freshman, so it’s hard to say what you’re getting, but Dustin is a good shooter and moves well without the ball.”

“We may also use McFadden and possibly Ankrom at guard,” said Huffman. “They are ‘tweeners and we could use them, depending on what the situation dictates and if they are versatile enough to learn both spots.”

Providing depth for BC at guard is sophomore Austin Walters and freshmen Teddy Alemu and Nick Thomas.

There may be a lot still to be decided in the backcourt, but Huffman says the post is a little more settled. Two sophomores are back in Ryan Besancon, who started every game last season and averaged 10.4 points and 5.8 rebounds, and Joe Testa, who came off the bench in all 28 contests and put up 7.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.

Their roles may stay the same this season, as junior transfer Pete Petkovski, a 6-7 forward who started 20 of 28 games at Division II Wheeling Jesuit a year ago and averaged 5.4 points and 3.4 rebounds, may get to start. McFadden is also expected to log a good amount of minutes up front.

“Our starters will probably be Ryan and Pete, with Joe and Ryan (McFadden) seeing a lot of time,” said Huffman. “Besancon seems to have gotten stronger from last year and runs the floor well. Pete has tools and is in the process of learning how to use them in our system.”

“Like Ryan, Joe has a lot of experience from last year and even though he’s a little undersized, he has a lot of versatility, with his ability to shoot, drive and post up a little,” said Huffman. “Ryan has a good deal of potential. He’s pretty skilled and seems to be a quick learner. Ryan’s also a little undersized but he makes up for that with how smooth he is on the floor.”

Additional depth down low will be supplied by Ankrom and freshman Mike Barlow, while the post players are rounded out by freshmen Ken Barrows and Mike Hrivnak.

“Jonas has improved significantly and put himself in position to compete for minutes,” said Huffman. “Mike Barlow is a smart, strong player who listens and does things the way they are supposed to be done.”

Although Bethany will play their toughest schedule since Huffman arrived, their goals have not changed. After finishing in the top two in the PAC during the regular season each of the last four seasons, the Bison want to be at the top of the league again, especially since there is an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament awaiting the champion. But Huffman also realizes that is a long way off and his team has to do a lot of work to get there.

“This is without question the toughest schedule we’ve played since I’ve been here,” said Huffman. “We have five games against scholarship programs this year, including two against Saint Vincent, two against Geneva and one against Wheeling Jesuit. Plus, we play Lake Erie, a team that was ranked number one in the region through all of last year. And the PAC is as balanced as it gets, so there will be no easy wins this year.”

“Despite that, our goals are the same as they’ve always been and those are to win the PAC and earn an NCAA bid,” said Huffman. “This year with the automatic qualifier, those goals go hand-in-hand. But our focus also has to be improving throughout the year. We will not have our best product on the floor early on. No team does, but it will be more pronounced for us this year more than most. We are very young and very inexperienced, but we just need to keep working every day and focus on being the best team in February.”

GENEVA GOLDEN TORNADOES (14-16 Overall in 2006-07)
Geneva College head men’s basketball coach Jeff Santarsiero feels as though his team is being called to a challenge for the upcoming season. Santarsiero and his Golden Tornadoes are starting in a new conference with several new players and the challenge ahead of his club is to find consistency with a new group of players against a crop of new teams.

”We will first and foremost have to find a way to replace 30 points that we lost to graduation,” said Santarsiero. “Jermaine Ferguson and Kyle McDermott both had a knack for scoring and we will have to find a way to fill that void.”

In addition to his new faces, Santarsiero will have 14 returning players to choose from to help with his scoring concerns. Led by three returning starters, Geneva will have the luxury of experienced depth at every position.

“I am very excited about some of our young guys coming back with a year of experience under their belt,” said Santarsiero. “We asked a lot from our freshman class last year and hopefully those experiences will go a long way in helping them to be more relaxed this year.”

Geneva will look to veterans such as Greg McDivitt for on the court leadership. McDivitt averaged 12.2 points per game last year and also pulled down 6.4 rebounds per contest. McDivitt should reach the 1,000 point plateau early in his senior campaign. Along with McDivitt, other returning starters include point guard Justin Nardi (right) and shooting guard Bryan Hill.

“Justin is a true point guard, but we will ask him to pick up his scoring production this year,” said Santarsiero. “He will need to run the team from his point guard spot and direct things as another coach on the floor.”

Nardi’s backcourt mate, Bryan Hill, could be one of the most prolific long range shooters in the conference. Hill opened his college career by knocking down 68 treys with a shooting percentage of almost 40% from outside the arc.

Geneva has experience everywhere you look, including Richard Colick, who came into his own late in the year as Geneva’s leading post-season scorer. Colick posted 26 points in Geneva’s one-point loss to Notre Dame College in the AMC semifinals a year ago.

Colick, along with sophomores Matt Blocki and Kyle Frohnapple make up a very impressive second year group. Even more experience can be found on Geneva’s bench with seniors Ryan Burns, Mike Ross and Zac Northen, all of which have played a significant role in Geneva’s program over the last three years.

“Our strength is clearly our depth and experience, but I also think our quickness as a team will surprise some people, because we are much quicker than in years past.”

Geneva will welcome six newcomers into the program that will also challenge for playing time among an already experienced group.

“We have been very pleased so far with the progress from our young guys. They have a good grasp of our system and should help our program with some immediate impact.”

The Golden Tornadoes will need an immediate impact from many players as it embarks on the first season as a member of the Presidents' Athletic Conference and NCAA Division III. The renewal of old rivalries already has the campus buzzing with excitement.

“When we made the move to Division III and the PAC, everyone could envision the special nights that would be ahead against some of our old friends,” said Santarsiero. “Rivalries are what make college athletics fun and I think the students and fans on College Hill are in for the time of their lives because we are getting ready for some big rivalry games to start this year.”

Geneva’s men’s program has hovered around the .500 mark the last few years and coach Santarsiero and company are ready to make a move out of that arena.

“I am tired of being considered a .500 team,” said Santarsiero. “We are looking forward to an exciting and productive season and I would hope our guys would be ready for this challenge.”

Geneva’s men are being called to a challenge and the question remains as to whether they will respond to that call in 2007-08.


GROVE CITY WOLVERINES (16-13 Overall, 6-6 PAC in 2006-07)
With nine returning lettermen back, including a well-stocked backcourt, the Grove City College men’s basketball team appears to be in prime position to challenge for another Presidents’ Athletic Conference championship.

The Wolverines are the defending conference champion after emerging as a late-season darkhorse in 2006-07. Now, as one of the preseason favorites to win the PAC, Grove City will not sneak up on anyone this year. But the Wolverines do return one of the most experienced squads in recent memory and will be well-equipped to handle the spotlight.

A quartet of seniors will lead Grove City in the 2007-08 season. Senior guard Shawn Carr (left) is a three-year letterman and two-year starter while guards Joe Capotosta and Ryan Gerber are both two-year lettermen.

Meanwhile, senior Bobby Turner is also a two-year letterwinner at the forward positions.

Carr fired in a school-record 65 three-point goals last year and averaged 11 points per game. He could become Grove City’s 22nd all-time 1,000-point scorer this season.

Like Carr, Gerber also eclipsed the 300-point mark last season in averaging 10.5 points per game. Gerber led Grove City with 44 steals and added 38 three-pointers.

Capotosta started 12 games last year but settled into the sixth-man role as the season progressed. He provided instant offense off the bench in that role and finished the season with 30 three-point goals.

Turner, one of the strongest players in the PAC, will be counted on again for rebounding and defense this season. A 6-foot-3, 215-pounder, Turner appeared in 24 games last year after an early-season injury.

Grove City also returns a pair of junior lettermen in the backcourt in Ryan Gibson and Joe McCoy.

Gibson set a new Grove City single-season record by playing 936 minutes last year. He led the Wolverines in scoring and assists and earned Second Team All-PAC honors. Gibson averaged 12 points per game while shooting 50 percent from the floor.

McCoy made an immediate impact in his first season of action. He shot 47 percent behind the three-point line while appearing in all 29 games as a reserve. McCoy will challenge for a starting position this season.

Junior forward John Scheller will bolster Grove City inside this year. A gifted passer, Scheller posted a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio last year.

Junior guard David Crosby is a returning veteran who will battle for time in the backcourt.

Grove City also welcomes back a pair of sophomore lettermen in Andy O’Keefe and Luke Tomaselli. O’Keefe has the inside track to start at center this year after playing in 28 games as a reserve last year. The 6-7 O’Keefe shot 65 percent from the floor during his rookie season will be counted on to be a presence inside.

Tomaselli may be Grove City’s most versatile player and will play a variety of roles this season. He played in all 29 games last year and finished second on team with nine blocked shots.

Grove City also has a six-player freshman class that will provide needed depth this winter.

SAINT VINCENT BEARCATS (14-11 Overall in 2006-07)
The Saint Vincent men’s basketball team is preparing for its second year of competition in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference, and has set it sights not only on having a solid campaign this year, but building for the future as well.

“We have two main goals this year,” said coach D.P. Harris. “We are looking for improvement over last year, and we want to have a healthy season. By that, I mean that we have worked extensively with our strength and conditioning coach, John Bell,and our training staff and I think we have our guys on track.”

Harris is referring to the fact that three key players last year were plagued by injury. Ian McCollough lost what was supposed to be his senior campaign in 2006-07, suffering a knee injury after just two games. He was granted a medical exemption and returns healthy this year. Billy Bains (right) suffered a wrist injury against Thomas More in January and ended up in a cast at the end of the season, while Jim Ewing was bothered by a thumb injury throughout much of the year, missed several games and played several others with a protective covering over the injury.

Harris has named two junior captains this year – Bains and Mike Medved. 

“Billy comes from Sanford School, which also produced Tony Washam, and has been here for four years now after redshirting his freshman year,” said Harris.  “He is a quiet leader, a humble leader. He’s very consistent and steady. If we could have 10 Billy Bains on the team, life would be easy.  Mike is your typical Western Pennsylvania kid – he is a very hard worker. He has a bad knee, but is going to get everything out of it that he can. He’s a tough, in-your-face player that wants to win and is passionate about basketball and being a student. I’m very proud of what Mike does both on and off the court."

In addition to his captains, Harris sees depth as a main strength of the Bearcats this year. “We will be able to play 9-10 guys. We are very deep, deeper than any year that we’ve had since I’ve been here. We have a good balance to our team, not one superstar. We are very consistent across ten guys.”

Harris is equally happy with his new recruits. 

“We have good balance with our freshmen, too. B.J. McGill from the Washington, DC area is a very talented player, and we were fortunate to be able to pick him up late. He has explosive quickness and is one of our better shooters. He will get on the court early, he’s definitely going to be in the rotation to play. He will be one of our better players in future years. We also will be looking for some contributions from Andy Ostach, a local player from Blairsville. He is probably the most complete player in our freshman class. He can play both inside and outside. We were very fortunate.  Andy had a lot of choices to go other places in both football and basketball, and he chose Saint Vincent.   Andy and B.J. are the future of our basketball program as we continue through the transition to Division III.”

Harris, along with new assistant coach Kenny Roberts, who was a two-time All-American during his playing days at SVC, sees several challenges ahead. 

“We need to improve on shooting the basketball, plain and simple. Also, we’re probably going to face a lot of zone defense this year and need to be ready for it.  With only two seniors on the team (McCollough and Ewing), experience is a question. We also have a new point guard (transfer Joey Butler), and Tre’sor Kalambay is moving from point guard to shooting guard. Ewing and Medved will also play major minutes this year compared to what they have played over the years.”

“We have really focused on conditioning,” said Harris. “Our team goal is to play 40 minutes, up and down the court, pressing and running the basketball, with limited turnovers. It’s going to be exciting for our fans and our players. If I had to set a number, I’d say we want to win 20 games. That’s the bar for us. That’s not saying that if we don’t win 20 it’s a failure, but that’s our ceiling.”

The Bearcats begin play on Friday, November 16, hosing Penn State-Fayette at 7 p.m. in the Robert S. Carey Student Center.

THIEL TOMCATS (5-20 Overall, 2-10 PAC in 2006-07)

The Thiel College Men’s Basketball team is coming off of two consecutive five win seasons, but with the maturation of last year’s returners and the addition of a large crop of young talent, things seem to be looking up for the Tomcats and second-year head coach Tim Loomis.

“I think we set a great foundation for what we want to do here last season,” said Loomis.  “The guys we have coming back are much better players than where they were last season and are really helping the younger players, both on and off the court.”

“One thing that remains consistent is what we ask our players.  We want them to play hard and play together.  This team really seems to like one another and feels comfortable with the personnel we have.  From the first guy to the last guy on our bench, this is a really nice group to be around,” said Loomis.  “All I demand is that we play harder than our opponent.  If they don’t they will suffer consequences, not just losing the game but from us.”

The Tomcats have seven returning players from last season, four of which saw starting time in at least half of the games.  Senior forward Joe Herrmann (left) is coming off of a season where he led the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots, and was third in field goal percentage and minutes played.  Herrmann also scored his 1000th-point last season and will come into this season 577 points away from becoming Thiel’s all-time leading scorer.  He was selected first team all-PAC last season and named preseason honorable mention all-American pick by DIII News this season.

“I expect a great season out of Joe.  We really recruited this year’s class around him; I saw the double and triple teams that he faced last year, which was a similar situation to Michael Wilson when I was at Cal (Pa.), and felt it was our responsibility to go out and get him help,” said Loomis.  “It’s really up to Joe now to go out and just focus on playing instead of focusing on the double and triple teams people threw at him over the last few years.”

“Joe has worked extremely hard in the weight room and is much more physical than what I have seen in the past.  He has really stepped up as a leader on our team, practicing hard and focusing on academics.  He had to learn how to take me as a coach last year, and now that we’re past that, I expect him to have a career year.”

Also returning are senior guard Gary Gates, junior guard Brandon Mirizio and sophomore guard Wes Siko, each of whom logged significant minutes for the Tomcats last season.  Gates, a three-year letter winner and two-year starter, played in every game for the Tomcats last season and averaged 3.4 points and 2.9 rebounds.  Mirizio started in 23 games last season and led the team in minutes played while averaging 12.4 points and 4.1 assists.  Siko made 11 starts as a freshman and scored a career-high 10 points against Thomas More College on February 10.

A group of 18 newcomers will provide Loomis with much-needed bench support, something the Tomcats were without a year ago.  Headlining the incoming players are freshman center Tommy Hall, freshman guard Devon Adams, freshman guard Nick Matviko, freshman forward Scott LaBelle, junior center Keebo Dowe  and sophomore guard Nick Sefscik.

“Tommy has already improved two-fold from what we expected.  His work ethic has him playing like a veteran.  He’s much more aggressive that what we expected.  He has worked hard in the weight room, gaining 20 pounds, and I would be disappointed if he was not one of the top freshmen in the league,” said Loomis.

“By February Devon can be as good of a player as he wants to be.  Over the years I have recruited some pretty talented guards, and with what we’ve seen so far, he is in the top five.  We do a lot of complicated things with our point guard but with Brandon teaching him and with his high basketball IQ, by February he should be helping us get to where we want to be in the conference,” said Loomis.

“Nick (Matviko) is multi-position player, a very athletic player that is going to fill a void we had last year.  He will begin the season in our top-eight rotation, mostly because of his maturity.  Physically he is beyond his years; he looks like a junior out on the court,” said Loomis.

“Scott will also help us fill a void with our threes.  Last season we had a tough time scoring, handling the ball, passing and defending with our three spot; Scott fits all of those needs.  Of all the players we brought in Scott has improved the most.  He was extremely well coached in high school and has been able to pick things up pretty good,” said Loomis.

“Despite being a little behind skill-wise, we know what we are going to get with Keebo.  We recruited him to help us rebound, block shots and defend; that is his niche on this team.  Eventually he will be able to score around the hoop, but what we need out of him this season is to be an anchor around the hoop with Tommy and Joe.  He’s a little older and very mature and knows what he has to do to help this team be successful,” said Loomis.

“Nick (Sefscik) played last season at Mount Union and was second on their team in three-point field goal percentage.  He can really shoot the basketball.  He’s a big guard and we’ll eventually count on him to put the ball on the floor and rebound.  He has been a great team guy so far and has fit in well with the guys.  He will definitely get better as the year goes on,” said Loomis.

“We are definitely young, but we are also talented.  We’ve got a number of veterans that will be able to come off of the bench and give us good minutes.  Last year these guys learned how to play to be within striking distance at the end.  I think this year they will learn how to play to win and how to finish,” said Loomis.

So what can we expect out of the Tomcats this season?

“With the guys we have this year there will be a difference in our ability to put pressure on teams.  We will go to more full-court pressure as opposed to the half-court we had in place last year.  With the 12-13 guys we expect to have on our bench we not only have guys who can make plays but guys who want to make plays,” said Loomis.

“We aren’t going to go up and down the floor shooting threes, that’s for sure.  We’ll continue to play from the inside out, similar to the Big East and Big Ten style of basketball.  I think our guards will be able to compete with anyone at this level, but our goal will still be to get the ball inside,” said Loomis.  “We will push the ball more off of the glass and off of turnovers.”

The Tomcats open their season on Friday, Nov. 16 at La Roche College’s Cron Classic.  They will take on Marymount University (Va.) at 6 p.m. in the opening round.

THOMAS MORE SAINTS (3-23 Overall, 3-9 PAC in 2006-07)

 It’s the second season of the John Ellenwood era, and the Thomas More Saints are striving to earn ‘One for the Wall.’

With a lot of new faces littering the roster – and four returning starters – the Saints feel now is as good a time as any to earn the program’s first Presidents' Athletic Conference  championship and advance to the program’s first NCAA appearance. Despite the fact that TMC has posted five wins over the last two seasons, Ellenwood isn’t deterred from the team goal.

“It’s not easy, but it can be done,” said Ellenwood. “We want to compete for a conference championship, and that is what our team is striving for. We have take steps in the right direction and we’re getting the right type of talent.”

“We don’t have an NCAA banner or conference banner hanging on the walls,” Ellenwood continued. “It would be a huge springboard into everything: recruiting, alumni relations. We want to get back on track and getting into the NCAA Tournament would bring respect back to the program.”

In order to achieve its top mission, Ellenwood feels the winning needs to start from day one.

“We need to win everyday … not just games, but practice as well,” said Ellenwood. “We want to get to the point where we are respected by everyone we play.”

Thomas More returns four starters off last season’s team, including PAC honorable mention Brad Buckner (right). Buckner led the team in scoring 10 times and finished the season with a team high in points (9.1 ppg) and rebounds (5.4 rpg).

“Buck was our best offensive threat last season,” said Ellenwood. “He has done a great job of coming back to school in great shape, and he is looking forward to a big year.”

Ellenwood cautions that none of the returning starters, including Buckner, will be guaranteed starting positions for this season.

”Nobody’s position is safe, everyone has to earn it,” said Ellenwood. “When you win two or three games, you have to earn your spot every year. Every year is a new beginning.”

The Saints return one starting point guard from last year. Erik Marting returns for his senior season. Others vying for a spot include sophomore Romell Salone, junior Daniel Ellis, freshman Kurt Bovard and freshman Luke Inman.

While Marting is technically the returning starter, early indications have Salone starting the season guiding the team. Salone, who joined the team during winter break, played through some injuries most of the second half of the season, as he started in 10 of the 16 games he played.

Salone averaged 19.6 minutes per game and 4.3 points, and is the only returnee with a positive assist-to-turnover ratio.

“Romell is our most consistent point guard and he is healthy,” Ellenwood said. “A healthy Romell makes us better. We have some newcomers that will definitely challenge for some minutes as well.”

Jeremy Abell, Todd Jacobs, Eddie Tyree and Johnny Bovard will battle for the starting shooting guard spot.

“Abell is one of those guys where this could be a make or break season for him,” said Ellenwood. “He has to be more consistent shooting the basketball.”

Thomas More will look to Matty Owens, Aaron Miller, Eddie Brown, Tony Phillips and Jordan Griffin for production at the small forward position.

The Saints return four starters and nine letterwinners in 2007-08 and begins its season Nov. 16-17 when it hosts the Thomas More Classic.

WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON PRESIDENTS (14-14 Overall, 8-4 PAC in 2006-07)

When head coach Glenn Gutierrez arrived at Washington & Jefferson College last season, he vowed to develop a hard-working mindset within the men’s basketball program. 

However, 11 games into the 2006-2007 season, the Presidents held a 1-10 record. The season could have been lost, but W&J righted the ship, won 13 of its last 17 games and hosted the PAC Championship Game in front of 1,200 fans at the Henry Memorial Center. Although W&J dropped a close decision to Grove City, Gutierrez feels that the first step towards the rebuilding process was accomplished. 

“The end of last season was definitely step one for us as a program,” said Gutierrez.  “Our goal hasn’t changed though.  We want to create a hard-working environment and we want our opponents to know that they are in for a fight when they play W&J.” 

The Presidents will have to replace their starting backcourt, including 2007 PAC Player of the Year Jon Koch. Koch started every game over the past four years, while his backcourt mate, Brandon Studer, started all but one contest. 

“Our returners gained a lot of experience and learned how to handle adversity last year, but last year’s finish really won’t have too much of an impact on this year’s team because we have so many new faces,” added Gutierrez. “It was great to end our season in front of a large crowd like that and I hope we can get those people out to see us this year.”  

Two players who had a major role in helping the Presidents turn their season around return for their junior years as Wahab Owolabi (left) and Josip Lucic-Jozak will once again form one of the league’s top frontcourts.  

Owolabi began to dominate the low post midway through the season, scoring in double figures 13 times during the final 16 games. He averaged 11.5 points and 7.5 rebounds (3rd in PAC) per contest, while shooting 58 percent (2nd in the PAC) from the field.  

One of the tallest players in the conference, Lucic-Jozak (6-foot-8), averaged 10.7 points and 5.6 rebounds. He scored 25 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the Presidents’ PAC Tournament semifinal win at Bethany and finished the year with 15 double-digit scoring games.  

“There is no question that these two guys are our foundation,” said Gutierrez.  “They don’t have to put us on their shoulders and carry us night in and night out, but they need to have a presence on both ends of the floor. Wahab’s eagerness to learn and his work ethic are very impressive. Combine that with his athletic ability and he could turn into something special. Josip’s transformation since I arrived here has been tremendous. His approach and demeanor have helped him improve dramatically as a player.”  

The Presidents will look to juniors Nathan Burton and Derek Syrylo and sophomore Matt Drakeley to fill in the open spots in the backcourt. Burton battled through inuries last season, but still managed to play in 13 games as a reserve point guard. He handed out 21 assists and averaged 1.3 rebounds per game.  As a freshman, he started 21 times and led the team with 82 assists. 

Syrylo has seen action as a reserve guard in each of the past two years. He has shown the ability to knock down open jump shots and will be asked to increase his scoring production. Drakeley proved to be a capable reserve point guard last year, appearing in 25 games and finishing with 22 assists.  

“We need perimeter leadership from these three players,” noted Gutierrez. “They need to take care of the basketball and give us a voice on the court. Derek is a guy who is going to have to make some outside shots for us.” 

Gutierrez is also going to rely on eight new players to the program. The head coach believes all eight new faces will play a role at some point in the season.  

“I expect all of the new guys to be ready to play,” said Gutierrez. “The good thing is that we have guys who can do a number of different things. We have an athletic group and they have shown that they are ready to work hard.”  

The 2007 senior class helped the coaching staff set the foundation for the future of W&J basketball.  Now, Gutierrez and new assistant coach Jeromy Yetter are determined to help this young nucleus to make that next leap.  

“We have a number of new people and we are going to have a totally different look,” concluded Gutierrez. “There is a lot that goes into working hard every day at practice.  If we can accomplish that goal, everything else takes care of itself.”

WAYNESBURG YELLOW JACKETS (12-13 Overall, 4-8 PAC in 2006-07)

Waynesburg finds itself in a similar situation this season after being picked to finish sixth in the pre-season conference poll. Two years ago, the Yellow Jackets were predicted to finish near the lower half of the Presidents' Athletic Conference, only to make an appearance in the conference championship game.

However, several key players that team graduated from the program last year, including four-year starters and 1,000-point scorers Marc Lodovico, Jeff Nero and Beau Wilson. Also gone are veterans Shawn Coleman and Jeff Linden, both of who were key contributors off the bench in previous years.

Fifth-year head coach Frank Ferraro will look to a trio of seniors to help lead an inexperience Waynesburg squad with five freshmen and four sophomores this season.

Senior Josh Parisi (right) returns as the most experienced starter and proven rebounder on the team.

A two-year starter at forward, Parisi doubled his career highs last season with 37 blocks and 46 assists, while averaging 6.9 points/game and 4.7 rebounds/game.

Joining Parisi in the starting line-up will be senior guards Tim Drakeley and Jered Gamble.

Drakeley provided the team with quick points off the bench last season, scoring a career-best 8.6 points/game in 17.7 minutes/game last season. The Trinity graduate features a clutch shot and ranked among the league leaders in assist-turnover ratio.

Gamble started 17 games last season and will likely direct the offense this season after collecting 144 assists in his first three years with the program. Gamble also can shoot from long range, making 40.3 percent of his shots last season. A West Virginia native, he is also skilled on defense, forcing 47 steals least season.

Junior swingman Dan Happe, along with a handful of other returners, looks to vie for time at the other two starting positions early on while the freshman develop and learn the system.

Happe averaged 11.8 minutes off the bench last season in 24 games with three starts. He also has shown the ability to shoot from beyond the arc, making 29-of-65 attempts in his brief career.

If the new starters can adjust to their new roles and the young players develop, Waynesburg could again prove the pre-season skeptics wrong.

WESTMINSTER TITANS (18-9 Overall, 10-2 PAC in 2006-07)

Typically when you ask a coach what kind of team he expects to have for the upcoming season, the response lies in how many starters are coming back.

For the 2007-08 Westminster College men's basketball team, the prognosis doesn't sound too promising. The Titans return just one starter from last year's banner season in which they qualified for the NCAA Division III Tournament for the first time in school history. Westminster also compiled its best record in six years of 18-9, including a 10-2 mark in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) to earn the top seed in the league's postseason tournament.

But, really, the Titans have the potential to be just as good as last season.

"Someone may see that we have one starter coming back and say, Boy, we're in trouble,'" said fifth-year head coach Larry Ondako. "But we've got three of four guys that could've easily started for us last year."

That, and the one starter that is coming back, senior guard Craig Hannon (left), will likely become one of just seven 1,500-point scorers in school history. Hannon, a 6-foot-2 guard who earned second-team all-conference honors last year, enters the season ranked 16th in school history with 1,233 career points after averaging 12.7 points per game last year.

The players vying to fill out the rest of the Titans' starting lineup include senior point guard David Richards, who started 11 games last year but his minutes were limited because he played behind Greg Rosatelli, the catalyst of last year's team who averaged 15.6 point per game and was considered by many as the best point guard in the region.

Senior Chauncey Whitlow, a 6-4 guard/forward, averaged 9.4 points and 3.0 rebounds per game last year and earned ample playing time (18.4 minutes per game) for a reserve. Senior center/forward Jake Zatchok, who played in all 27 games while making four starts, is also back giving the Titans four returning letter-winners.

Two additional players that Ondako considers as players that could've started for Westminster last year are junior guard Bobby Glass  and sophomore forward Ryne Murray.

Glass played at conference rival Grove City in 2004-05, but, after sitting out a year because of transferring restrictions, he had to sit out a second year because of a heart condition in 2006-07.

Murray was in fact a starter who averaged 12.8 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, but he had to sit out the final 14 games of the season for academic reasons last year.

Westminster will also welcome a freshmen class of nine players to the team. The biggest concerns for Ondako are lack of height and how young the Titans will be in 2007-08.

"We might struggle early before we get it going," Ondako said. "We'll be alright. We've won with young, small teams before."

One of the reasons the Titans will be smaller is because they will be playing without 6-foot-8 forward Steve Bielich, who averaged 11.6 points and 4.7 rebounds as a sophomore last year, but is off the team after suffering another knee injury during the off-season, a problem that plagued him during the season as well.

"We will jell a little more and play a little more up-tempo," Ondako added. "We played more zone (defense) last year to protect Steve and to keep Rosatelli out of foul trouble."

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