Scouting DuPage County men's basketball teams
Top area teams: Wheaton, Elmhurst, College of DuPage.
Top area players: Wheaton: G Kent Raymond, jr.; G Ben Panner, So.; C Jacob Carwell (Timothy Christian), so.; Elmhurst: G/F Ryan Burks, jr.; C Brent Ruch, jr.; College of DuPage: G Tim Niles, so.; G Otis Scarver (Naperville North), so.; G Ryan Tyszkiewicz (Willowbrook) so.; Benedictine: G Tim Swanson (Wheaton North), sr.; G Dan Klecan, so.; G Jared Bailey, jr.; North Central:
Scouting report: Wheaton and Elmhurst will be among the contenders for the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin title and could both achieve national ranking. The Thunder will be led by the CCIW Player of the Year and All-American Raymond, who led the conference in scoring with a 22.4 points a game average.
"Kent is a special player," said Wheaton coach Bill Harris. "He's as good as any player we've had. He is competitive, he is a leader, he understands the game and on top of all that, he has tremendous talent." Panner, who had a great freshman year, joins Raymond in what could be an all-star backcourt. A stronger and improved Wiele and Carwell, who transferred from Benedictine, give the Thunder a strong duo inside. Veterans Phill Denham and Jeremy Berntsen will be key contributors, but one or two others must step up in supporting roles to give Wheaton the depth it needs to be truly outstanding.
Elmhurst, which finished second in conference, lost four-year starter Nick Michael (West Chicago) to graduation but returns a pair of all-conference performers in Burks and Ruch. There are 10 other returnees, including experienced big men Jared Hintzsche and Mark Aloisio (Wheaton Academy) and guards Chris Childs and Matt Ryder. "Our biggest question mark in the preseason is at point guard," coach Mark Scherer said. "We will also feature a new two-guard, but we'll have several players ready to step in and compete at a high level." The Bluejays have the CCIW title and the NCAA Division III Tournament as their goals.
North Central is in a rebuilding year after losing all five starters, but there's still some talent with key reserves Drennan and Raridon leading the way. There are many questions, but if a few of last year's backups step up at guard and several talented transfers contribute, the Cardinals can be competitive in the DVC.
Benedictine has a solid group of starters led by a deep and experienced backcourt, including Swanson, Klecan and Bailey. The loss of Carwell hurt, but returning starter Rob Bridgeman anchors the front line, while younger players develop. "The newcomers have been impressive in the early going," coach Keith Bunkenburg said. "The key will be melding them with our veterans."
College of DuPage comes off a great year (25-10) with seven coming back from one of the best defensive teams in the NJCAA. Niles was an All-America and the North Central Community College Conference Player of the Year, and Scarver was all-league second team. "We are a small, but smart team," coach Don Klaas said. "I'm very optimistic."
-- Neil Shalin