Scouting Leyden
LeydenCoach: Bill Heisler
Last year: 18-11 overall
Top returners: DeAndre Williams (6-4, sr., C), Robert Wisniewski (5-9, sr., PG), Jason Timmerhaus (6-2, sr., GF), Adrian Guerrero (sr., G)
Key losses: Marcos Herrera, Adam Braxton
Key additions: Michael Wilms (jr. G), Antonio Lemon (sr. F), Jose Alvarado (jr. F)
Outlook: It's one of those seasons when coach Bill Heisler would prefer you judge his team toward the end of the season, rather than at the beginning. His starting lineup and substitution patterns will likely look a lot different sometime after Thanksgiving, as a variety of players will, theoretically, be helpful and able to contribute by then. In the short term, Leyden will lean heavily on powerful 6-foot-4 senior forward DeAndre Williams - or, as Heisler calls him, man-child. He averaged 10 points as a junior and will be a tough cover for the majority of opponents Leyden sees. Others with varsity experience and available right away include senior point guard Robert Wisniewski and Jason Timmerhaus. Heisler thinks senior guard Adrian Guerrero can also be productive as a scorer. But it's an open question as for how to replace last season's standouts, Marcos Hererra (the program's all-time leading 3-point shooter) and Adam Braxton. And patience may be the only way to get an answer. Two players expected to eventually start are nursing fall sports injuries - junior guard Mike Wilms, the football team's QB, and junior forward Jose Alvarado, a soccer standout. Another footballer, Antonio Lemon, is expected to make a difference after he's healed. "We have 85 percent of our scoring gone from last year," said Heisler, whose brother Wade is Schaumburg's first-year head coach this season, "but I'm really anxious to play and see how we look." One key early in the season will be getting the ball to Williams enough - while at the same time keeping him out of foul trouble. "He's really tough to stop around the basket," Heisler said. "We've got to keep him on the floor, absolutely. He was just one of our pieces last year, so it will be a little bit of a new role for him as he takes on some more leadership."