Lots of suburban and state talent in NCAA tourney

Posted March 20, 2013 11:57 am

By Mike Spellman

Wisconsin guard Ben Brust from Mundelein High School helped the Badgers get to the Big Ten title game last weekend, and he'll lead them in their NCAA first-round match Friday against Mississippi. George LeClaire/gleclaire@dailyherald.com

Illinois has its share of basketball talent spread across the country for the start of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.

The suburbs can lay claim to some talented players expected to make a mark in the tournament as well, such as Mundelein’s Ben Brust and Benet’s Frank Kaminski at Wisconsin, Warren Township’s Brandon Paul at Illinois, and Neuqua Valley’s Dwayne Evans at Saint Louis. For our own starting five, we’d draft Glenbrook South’s Jack Cooley at Notre Dame.

After glancing at the rosters, here’s a look at players who hail from our state, and a few head coaches with ties to the Land of Lincoln as well:

Akron

Deji Ibitayo: Guard (S0), Chicago (Rich Central) Stats: 1.8 rebs, 3.0 pts

Albany

Mike Black: Guard (SR), Chicago (Fenwick) Stats: 3.2 rebs, 14.9 pts

Dave Wiegmann: Forward (JR), Breese (Southwestern) Stats: 0.6 rebs, 0.4 pts

Boise State

Derrick Marks: Guard (SO), Chicago (Plainfield Central) Stats: 3.7 rebs, 16.3 pts

Bucknell

Ben Brackney: Guard (JR), Lincoln (Lincoln) Stats: 1.0 rebs, 1.8 pts

Butler

Roosevelt Jones: Forward (SO), O’Fallon (O’Fallon) Stats: 5.7 rebs 10.1 pts

Davidson

Clay Tormey: Guard (JR), Chicago (Henderson) Stats: 0.2 reb, 0.1 pts

Duke

Todd Zafirovski: Forward (SR), Lake Forest (LF Acad.) Stats: 0.5 rebs, 0.8 pts

Harvard

Alex Nesbitt: Guard (SO), Chicago (UC Laboratory) Stats: 0.1 rebs, 0.4 pts

Illinois

D.J. Richardson: Guard (SR), Peoria (Central; Findlay (Nev.) Prep) Stats: 3.9 rebs, 12.4 pts

Joseph Bertrand: Guard (RS JR), Sterling (Sterling) Stats: 4.2 rebs, 7.6 pts

Brandon Paul: Guard (SR), Gurnee (Warren Township) Stats: 4.4 rebs, 16.6 pts

Mike LaTulip: Guard (FR), Arlington Heights (Prospect) Stats: 0.1 rebs, 1.2 pts

Tracy Abrams: Guard (SO) Chicago (Mount Carmel) Stats: 3.5 rebs, 10.6 pts

Mike Shaw: Forward (SO), Chicago (De La Salle) Stats: 0.8 rebs, 0.9 pts

Myke Henry: Guard/F (SO), Chicago (Orr) Stats: 2.2 rebs, 3.4 pts

Rayvonte Rice: Guard (JR), Champaign (Centennial) Stats: none

Kevin Berardini: Guard (RS JR), Lake Forest (Lake Forest) Stats: 0.2 rebs, 0.5 pts

Nnanna Egwu: Center (SO), Chicago (Saint Ignatius) Stats: 4.6 rebs, 6.4 pts

Kansas

Jamari Traylor: Forward (RS FR). Chicago (IMG Acad. Fla.) Stats: 2.2 rebs, 2.1 pts

Kansas State

Michael Orris: Guard (FR), Crete (Crete-Monee) Stats: 0.1 rebs, 0.3 pts

Louisville

Wayne Blackshear: Guard/F (SO), Chicago (Morgan Park) Stats: 3.2 rebs, 8.0 pts

Marquette

Dylan Flood: Guard (RS SO), Lemont (Benet Academy) Stats: 0.0 rebs, 0.0 pts.

Steve Taylor Jr.: Forward (FR), Chicago (Simeon) Stats: 2.2 rebs, 3.4 pts

Memphis

Stan Simpson: Forward (SR), Chicago (Simeon), left Illini after one redshirt season Stats: 1.1 rebs, 1.6 pts

Michigan

Matt Vogrich: Guard (SR), Lake Forest (Lake Forest) Stats: 0.9 rebs, 1.0 pts

Josh Bartelstein: Guard (SR), Highland Park (Phillips Exeter Academy, N.H.) Stats: 1.8 minutes per game after returning from ankle surgery

Max Bielfeldt: Forward (RS FR), Peoria (Notre Dame)

Stats: 1.6 rebs, 1.2 pts

Ohio State

Lenzelle Smith Jr.: Guard (JR), Zion (Zion-Benton) Stats: 4.9 rebs, 9.5 pts

Sam Thompson: Forward (SO), Chicago (Whitney Young) Stats: 3.2 rebs, 7.4 pts

Oklahoma

D.J. Bennett: Forward (JR) Chicago Indian Hills (Iowa) CC Stats: none

North Carolina A&T

Corvon Butler: Forward (FR), Champaign (Central) Stats: 1.0 rebs, 0.9 pts

Notre Dame

Jack Cooley: Forward (SR), Glenview (Glenbrook South) Stats: 10.3, 13.1 pts

Saint Louis

Mike McCall: Guard (JR), Chicago (Foreman) Stats: 2.5 rebs, 5.7 pts

Dwayne Evans: Forward (JR), Bolingbrook (Neuqua Valley) Stats: 7.7 rebs, 13.7 pts

South Dakota State

Joshua White: Guard (FR), Edwardsville (Edwardsville) Stats: none

Valparaiso

LaVonte Dority: Guard (JR), Chicago (Foreman) Stats: 1.3 rebs, 9.0 pts

Alex Rossi: Guard (RS SO), Winnetka (New Trier) Stats: 0.4 rebs, 2.1 pts

Western Kentucky

Eddie Alcantara: Forward (FR), Chicago (Hales) Stats: 1.6 rebs, 1.6 pts

Wichita State

Fred Van Vlett: Guard (FR), Rockford (Auburn) Stats: 1.9 rebs, 3.9 pts

Wisconsin

Ben Brust: Guard (JR), Hawthorn Woods (Mundelein) Stats: 5.2 rebs, 11.2 pts

George Marshall: Guard (RS FR), Chicago (Brooks Prep) Stats: 0.7 rebs, 4.2 pts

Dan Fahey: Guard (SR), Chicago (St. Ignatius) Stats: 0.6 rebs, 1.1 pts

Duje Dukan: Forward (JR), Deerfield (Deerfield) Stats: Redshirt season

Frank Kaminsky: Forward (SO), Lisle (Benet Academy) Stats: 1.7 rebs, 4.2 pts.

Coaches with ties

Bill Self: former Illini coach now at Kansas (29-5)

Bruce Weber: former Illini coach at Kansas State (27-7)

Lon Kruger: former Illini coach at Oklahoma (20-11)

Jim Crews: Born in Normal, now interim head coach at Saint Louis (27-6)

Thad Motta: Born in Hoopeston, now head coach at Ohio State (26-7)

Fred Hoiberg: Former Bulls player at Iowa State (22-11)

Mike Krzyzewski: Born in Chicago, now in his 34th season at Duke (27-5)

Guard Ben Brust, here celebrating another 3-point basket, is one of the top scorers and rebounders for a balanced Wisconsin team. The Mundelein grad from Hawthorn Woods averages more than 13 points per game for the Badgers. George LeClaire/gleclaire@dailyherald.com

Wisconsin 6-11 forward Frank Kaminsky, who played at Benet Academy in Lisle, has been a key contributor to the team's success this season. George LeClaire/gleclaire@dailyherald.com

Saint Louis forward Dwayne Evans, right, is the leading scorer for the Billikens, who open the NCAA tournament Thursday against New Mexico State. Evans played at Neuqua Valley High School. Associated Press

Illinois senior guard Brandon Paul, who was a star at Warren Township High School, will lead his team into the NCAA tournament on Friday against Colorado. JOE LEWNARD/jlewnard@dailyherald.com

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