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2007-08 Men's Basketball Season Preview
After finishing second in both the regular season and the post-season tournament of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW), the Elmhurst College men's basketball team was left out of the NCAA Division III Tournament, despite posting a 21-6 overall record. Being overlooked by the NCAA Tournament left a bitter taste in the Bluejays' mouth, and Elmhurst and Head Coach Mark Scherer are determined to show they have what it takes to compete in the national spotlight.
Despite losing three starters to graduation, the Bluejays return 12 letter-winners from last season's squad led by a pair of all-conference performers in Brent Ruch (Farmer City/Blue Ridge) and Ryan Burks (Manito/Midwest Central).
"We are excited to have what we consider our two best players not only returning, but returning as juniors," said Scherer. "Along with 10 other returners, this group has a wealth of talent and depth. Our initial challenge will be to stay healthy and develop leadership from a junior and sophomore-laden team."
With the departure of all-conference selection Brian Lee, Scherer knows the Bluejays have a big hole to fill at point guard.
Scherer will look to sophomore returners Chris Childs (Barrington/H.S.) and Hank Lacy (St. Louis, Mo./Hazelwood East) along with newcomers Jimmy Saris (Crystal Lake/Crystal Lake South) and Mitchell Blair (St. Joseph/St. Joseph Ogden) to compete for time at point guard.
"Our biggest question mark in the preseason is at point guard," said Scherer. "We have several talented, yet unproven players that will figure into the mix."
Elmhurst also lost starting two-guard Mike Sayre, but Scherer is confident that sophomores Matt Ryder (Bettendorf, Iowa/Pleasant Valley) and Dustin Bainter (Macomb/H.S.) along with freshman Marco Macias (Cicero/Morton West) will be able to fill the void.
"At two-guard we will feature a new starter," said Scherer. "But, we'll have several players ready to step in and compete at a high level."
Burks, returning to the starting wing position, is a key to the Bluejays' success. Last season, Burks earned second-team all-conference recognition after leading Elmhurst in scoring, averaging 17.4 points per game. He gave the Bluejays a long-range shooting threat, connecting on 61-of-142 3-point attempts (43.0%). He also was solid from the charity stripe, shooting 89.7 percent (130-of-145), including sinking 83 of his final 84 free throw attempts.
"We feel like we have one of the premier players in the CCIW in Ryan Burks," said Scherer. "It will be important for him to avoid complacency after last year's success. We'll need him to continue to work hard and build upon the outstanding year he had last season."
In addition to Burks, Elmhurst also returns junior swingman Robert Strzemp (Oak Park/Oak Park-River Forest). After starting for part of his freshman season, Strzemp missed the majority of the 2006-07 campaign while recovering from injuries.
"Robert is a multi-positional player that will figure into the mix for us," said Scherer.
In Ruch and Jared Hintzsche (Kirkland/Hiawatha), Scherer has a pair of upperclassmen to lead the Bluejays in the post.
Ruch earned first-team all-conference and third-team D3hoops.com all-region honors last season after averaging 13.4 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds per game. Ruch also set a new single-season Elmhurst record by shooting 61.7 percent (140-of-227) from the floor.
Hintzsche was also a big contributor to last year's squad, playing in every game and averaging 4.2 points per game.
"In our system we look for two post players to be on the floor at all times," said Scherer. "Brent gives us a fantastic presence down low and he'll get great support from Jared. I also expect Mark Aloisio (West Chicago/Wheaton North) to contribute quality minutes down low. Sophomores Matt Duntemann (Arlington Heights/Rolling Meadows) and Aaron Hintzsche (Kirkland/Hiawatha) are also showing a lot of promise after a productive summer."
The Bluejays' squad will also feature talented returner Liam Slesinski (Champaign/Champaign Central) and newcomers Joe Acosta (Elmhurst/York), Matt Bernier (Morton/H.S.), Jason Cheeks (Matteson/Rich Central), Erik Ellingson (South Elgin/St. Charles North), Drew Pedersen (South Elgin/St. Charles North), Aaron Schroeder (Normal/University), and Andrew Smith (Elgin/Elgin Academy).
Part of the argument that kept Elmhurst out of the NCAA Tournament last season was that the Bluejays did not play enough contests against in-region opponents. Scherer and the Bluejays have made sure that won't happen with a tough non-conference schedule that features 10 in-region opponents.
"In order to make our goal of reaching the NCAA Tournament, we know that we must have a fast start in the non-conference season," said Scherer. "With the current NCAA selection criteria a CCIW team must be almost perfect in non-conference. We've adjusted our schedule to include all but one in-region opponent. Now, it will be up to us to win those games. Our non-conference schedule remains strong; highlighted by games against Hope College, the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, and Manchester College."
While Scherer and the Bluejays have a goal of making the NCAA Tournament, they're not forgetting about the CCIW Championship race either.
"I imagine that in the preseason poll, we'll be thought of as one of the teams that can contend for the CCIW title," said Scherer. "However, traditionally there seems to be a shuffling of teams in the standings each year. We expect that every game is going to be a fight. We must have the mentality that it is time to start over from scratch and prove ourselves all over again."
The Bluejays kick off the season on November 17, 2007, when they host Simpson College.
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