2002-03 WIAC Men's Basketball Preview

2002-03 WIAC Men's Basketball Preview

Madison, Wis.--University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, the defending Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) tri-champion, is favored to win the 2002-03 men's basketball title, according to the league's sports information directors.

The Titans, who are ranked second in the country according to Street & Smith's magazine, received eight first-place votes in the conference poll and will attempt to win back-to-back league titles for the first time since the 1966-67 and 67-68 seasons.

UW-Stevens Point, which also earned a share of last year's title, received the remaining first-place vote in the conference poll. The Pointers are ranked ninth nationally in Street & Smith's and are seeking their fourth-straight WIAC crown.

UW-Whitewater, the remaining piece of last season's tri-champions, is picked to finish third this year and has sights on a third-straight conference title.

The 2001-02 campaign marked the first season since 1947-48 that more than two schools shared the men's basketball crown. Additionally, the last time three teams shared the WIAC title was the 1938-39 season when UW-Eau Claire, UW-Oshkosh and UW-Superior divided the league honor.

Following is a brief preview of each WIAC men's basketball team, in alphabetical order, and their 2001-02 overall and league record.

UW-Eau Claire (11-14, 3-13 WIAC)

With 78 percent of its offense returning and eight letterwinners back in the fold, six of which will be
sophomores, UW-Eau Claire head coach Terry Gibbons is excited about directing what might be the youngest team in the conference.

All-WIAC Honorable Mention performer Jason Larson returns after leading the Blugolds in points (20.9), field goal percentage (47.5) and steals (34), while shooting 78.8 percent from the free throw line during the 2001-02 campaign. Dan Archambault will start at point guard for the second consecutive season after coming off an impressive freshman campaign where he started 24 games and averaged 10.5 points and 3.6 assists, while ranking second in the WIAC with an 86.1 free throw shooting percentage.

Senior Andy Witte will move to power forward after starting last season at center, where he was fourth in the league with 7.6 rebounds per contest and chipped in 12.1 points per game.

Sophomores Will Jefferson and Casey Drake gained valuable court experience last year and will look to improve on last season's numbers. Jefferson will move to the perimeter after starting 25 games a year ago at power forward. He averaged 4.7 points and 3.2 rebounds per game, while shooting 51.8 percent from the floor. Drake started 14 games last season, averaging 4.3 points per game and shooting 85.0 percent from the free throw line. Additional sophomores expected to contribute include Nate Beck and Jesse Breidenbach and Ryan Wietor.

The Blugolds addressed a lack of size with a group of newcomers that includes 6-9 Buck Smith, 6-8 Tyler Birkel, 6-7 Nate Pinkham, 6-6 Kale Proksch and 6-5 Chad Honl.

UW-La Crosse (17-9, 10-6)

First year head coach Brad Nadborne welcomes back seven letterwinners as the UW-La Crosse men's basketball team looks to remain near the top of the league after last year's squad recorded the most overall wins since the 1987-88 campaign (18-10) and most conference victories since 1982-83 (12-4).

Enter Nadborne, who comes to UW-La Crosse after serving as an assistant coach at DePauw (Ind.) since 2000. The Tigers were 43-10 in Nadborne's two seasons as an assistant, including a 24-4 mark in 2001-02. Nadborne has also served as an assistant coach at the University of Colorado (1986-88) and at Cornell (NY) (1981-86).

Junior guard Casey Taggatz returns to lead Nadborne's offense after he started 24 of 26 games a year ago. He averaged 9.5 points and 3.3 assists per game, while ranking second on the team in three-point percentage (41.0) and third in free throw shooting (73.6%).

Junior forward Ben Bemis returns after missing all but five games last season with an ankle injury. He started the first five games last year, averaging 12.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per contest. Bemis played in 18 games as a freshman, averaging 8.1 points and 4.7 rebounds, while shooting 55.0 percent from the field.

Senior forward Calvin Thornton played in seven games for the Eagles last year after transferring at mid-season from Kentucky State University. He averaged 4.9 points per game and shot 50.0 percent (15-of-30) from the field. Sophomore center Scott Klaas saw extensive playing time as a freshman. He played in all 26 games with four starts, while averaging 2.1 points and 2.9 rebounds per contest. Also expect freshman guards Kyle Boland and Ryan Robarge, who could also see time at forward, to provide depth for the Eagles this season.

UW-Oshkosh (24-6, 11-5)

A veteran squad, fresh off one of the most successful seasons in the 104-year history of the program, will lead the UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team in the 2002-03 season. The Titans finished with a school-best 24-6 record a year ago, racking up accomplishments that included a WIAC regular season championship, a WIAC tournament championship and advancement to the "Sweet Sixteen" of the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Individually, last year's team was well-recognized, as well. Senior Tim Dworak leads the list of eight returnees (all five starters) for the Titans, and nobody racked up more attention then the 6-7 forward.

Dworak returns this season after posting some incredible numbers a year ago - 30 games of double-digit scoring, 10 games of double-digit rebounds and a WIAC-high 23.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per contest. In addition, his 64.8 field goal percentage paced the WIAC and ranked among the NCAA Division III leaders. And his three-point shot to beat UW-Whitewater at the buzzer for the WIAC Tournament title will be remembered in Oshkosh for many years to come.

In addition to his statistical superlatives, Dworak also received numerous accolades. Among them were All-America First Team by the NABC, All-America Third Team by D3Hoops.com, NCAA Division III West Region Player of the Year by the NABC and WIAC Player of the Year.

But, no one can do it alone and like the stretch run of last season, this year's success will depend on the play of the other four returning starters - seniors Nate Miller, Nick Scherer and Scott Sowinski and sophomore Andy Fernholz. Miller and Scherer added to the accolades of the Titans last season by receiving All-WIAC Honorable Mention status.

Other lettermen back for the Titans are sophomores Ryan Bowers, Dain Christensen and Andy Heyrman.

UW-Platteville (14-12, 7-9)

A trio of UW-Platteville four-year players will lead head coach Todd Landrum's experienced Pioneer team into the WIAC battles this season. Tyler Selk, Bryan Stangel and Will Carter are back for their last go-rounds and look to lead the Pioneers on their quest to improve upon last year's record.

Selk is a two-time All-WIAC First Team forward, coming off consecutive seasons of averaging 17.5 points per game. The All-West Region Second Team player has 1,168 career points to rank 16th in the rich Pioneer basketball history.

Stangel scored in double figures in 25 of the 26 games last season, including a career-high 28 vs. UW-Eau Claire, to average 14.4 points per contest. Carter averaged 7.2 points per game, while running the team from the point position. He also had a huge blocked shot at the end of the game to preserve a win over league champion UW-Oshkosh.

Junior Frank McGettigan started all 26 games at shooting guard and averaged 5.4 points per game, while seniors Mario Boyd, Jeremy Harrison and Krayton Nash provide experience on the front-line. Sophomores Brad Reitzner, Brandon Temperly and Tom Uppena all saw extensive action last year, while sophomore point guard George Highshaw returns after taking a redshirt year. He played in 25 games as a freshman. The Pioneers also have several newcomers who could make positive impacts on the program this year.

UW-River Falls (17-9, 9-7)

UW-River Falls has some talented players returning for the 2002-03 season in which the Falcons hope to advance well into the annual WIAC Tournament.

One of the league's top big men, Rich Melzer, returns for his junior season at UW-River Falls. He received honorable mention to this year's Street & Smith's All-American Team. Melzer averaged 21.6 points and 7.8 rebounds a game last year and was named to the All-WIAC and NABC All-West Region First Teams. He finished second in scoring and third in rebounding in the WIAC. Also returning are starters Brian Mathison and Matt Kukla. Mathison, a senior, averaged 8.6 points and 3.4 rebounds per game, while Kukla, a junior, averaged 5.2 points and 1.3 rebounds per contest.

Rick Bowen, the dean of WIAC head coaches in his 17th season, will have to find replacements for All-WIAC First Team pick Kent Becker and honorable mention selection Edmund Johnson. Becker averaged 14.1 points and 3.5 assists a game, while Johnson, who finished ninth in NCAA Division III with a 63.6 field goal shooting percentage, averaged 12.2 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.

UW-Stevens Point (21-6, 11-5)

The Pointers return four starters and 15 players overall (including redshirts) from last year's team that shared the WIAC title for the third straight year. However, just one senior returns in two-time All-WIAC First Team performer Josh Iserloth. The 6-8 center averaged 20.6 points last season and became the first player in school history to score 40 points in a game, accomplishing the feat against both UW-River Falls and UW-Whitewater. He enters this season with 1,080 career points to rank 17th on the school's all-time list and 569 points behind all-time leader Tim Naegeli.

Joining Iserloth in the frontcourt is 6-7 sophomore forward Jason Kalsow, who led all WIAC freshmen in both scoring and rebounding last year, while earning All-WIAC Honorable Mention honors. Junior guards Neal Krajnik and Ron Nolting lead the backcourt as Krajnik led the WIAC in assists last season at 4.5 per game and Nolting led the conference in three-point shooting at 53.7 percent.

A talented group of sophomores will aid the lineup as forward Nick Bennett, center Eric Maus and guard Tamaris Relerford each played in all 27 games last season. Justin Mallett played in 23 games last year to provide more depth in the post.

UW-Stout (12-13, 7-9)

Long time UW-Stout basketball fans will definitely need a scorecard to follow the Blue Devils this year. While the Blue Devils return several solid players, third year head coach Ed Andrist hit the recruiting trail hard and landed some top-notch talent.

Returning for the Blue Devils are senior guards Casey Chapman, Barrington Smith and Tyrone Rhone and junior Jeff VandeBerghe, along with junior post players Andy Bray and Nate Templer. Chapman averaged 17 minutes per game at the point and chipped in 7.3 points per contest. Vandenberghe returns as the Blue Devils' top three-point shooter, hitting 31-of-74 chances at a 42.0 percent clip, while Smith started all 25 games a year ago and averaged 6.6 points and led the team with 36 assists. Rhone is expected to join the Blue Devils after the football season is completed.

Templer, a two-year starter, returns with a 9.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game average to go along with his 33 blocked shots. Bray came on for the Blue Devils during the second half of the season last year, playing in 14 games and averaging 9.0 points.

Transfers Julian Greer, Charles Taylor and LaMorris Wallace should be the impact players Andrist is looking for. Greer, a junior forward, played at Central Lakes Community College in Brainerd, Minn., where he averaged 16.0 points and 9.0 rebounds per game. Taylor, a sophomore point guard, played a year at NCAA Division I Louisville and Wallace, a freshman, redshirted last season at Redlands Community College.

UW-Superior (11-15, 3-13)

The expectations are high for the UW-Superior program as they begin the 2002-03 campaign. Despite losing three seniors who made major contributions to the recent success the team, seven players with substantial experience return to the roster and 12 newcomers look to make major contributions.

The Yellowjackets have built a reputation of being tough to play against due to their intense pressure defense and consistently being one of the top rebounding teams in the WIAC. With the return of seniors Tony Peterson and Don DeFoe and junior Cody Kastern on the front line, UW-Superior's inside game should be a major strength this year.

Peterson is one of the most versatile players on the roster. Last season, he started all 26 games and ranked second in the WIAC with 1.92 steals per contest and third in the league with 3.92 assists per game. Kastern started 19 games last season and led the squad with 6.2 rebounds per game and chipped in 9.7 points, while DeFoe was second on the team with 12.2 points per game and added 3.8 rebounds. UM-Duluth transfer Bob Riley, along with junior John Allagh and freshmen Joe Massoglia, Derek Pederson and Luke Sargent will add quality depth for the inside attack.

Returning on the perimeter for the Yellowjackets are senior Adam Maier, junior Matt Bailey and sophomore Clay Dean. Maier played in all 26 games and averaged 4.7 points per game, while Bailey added 2.7 points per contest.

The Yellowjackets added two significant transfers on the perimeter. Point guard Curtis Anderson, transferred from Sauk Valley Community College, while Andrew Browning comes to the program from DuPage (Ill.). Newcomers Mike Austin, Adam Berlin, Floyd Nyemeck-Bayiha and Brian Uehman will look to make contributions as well.

UW-Whitewater (21-7, 11-5)

UW-Whitewater loses just one player from its primary rotation of nine that led the Warhawks to a share of their second straight WIAC championship last year. This year's team has a chance to do what no other team in school history has accomplished - three consecutive league titles.

Headlining the list of returnees is senior forward Aubrey Lewis-Byers, an All-WIAC First Team pick each of his first three seasons. He averaged 18.8 points and 6.0 rebounds last year, while shooting 57.2 percent from the floor and 80.9 percent from the free throw line. He is sixth on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,479 points, within reach of becoming just the second Warhawk to reach 2,000 career points.

Also back from the regular rotation is junior forward Londen Donlow, who garnered All-WIAC Honorable Mention status after registering 12.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, while shooting 37.7 percent from three-point range.

Senior Craig Harden, and juniors Danny Saunders and Damon Garrett all started at least 11 games at guard last year, and senior forward Jonathan Hodges was also a regular member of the starting rotation averaging 7.0 points per game. Harden averaged 4.8 points per contest, while Saunders added 2.8 points and 2.4 assists per game. Garrett contributed 7.9 points per game. Junior guard Ernest Williams will return to the squad this season after he averaged 16.4 points in 1999-2000.

Transfers Dion Perkins (SIU-Edwardsville), Matt Jones (Minnesota State-Mankato) and Tony Smith (Carroll) are all proven college players and newcomers Josh Atkinson, Mark Carter and Nate Newson should give the Warhawks plenty of depth.

2002-03 Preseason Predictions--Voted on by WIAC Sports Information Directors

1. Oshkosh (8)
2. Stevens Point (1)
3. Whitewater
4. River Falls
5. Platteville
6. Stout
7. Eau Claire
8. Superior
9. La Crosse

( )--First-Place Votes

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