*** College Basketball Preview - Mid-Continent Conference ***
The My Sportsbook
OUTLOOK: For close to a decade now the Mid-Continent conference has been dominated by Valparaiso and that includes last season when the Crusaders went 11-5 in conference play en route to yet another conference championship. The team should be one of the elite in the Mid-Continent once again, however, it will have to do battle with a very strong Oral Roberts squad to remain at the top. The Golden Eagles enter the 2004-05 campaign as the favorite to unseat Valpo and a large part of that prediction is due to the super tandem of Ken Tutt and Caleb Green. If coach Scott Sutton can keep his team focused throughout the season, Oral Roberts has a very good chance at being there when the dust settles in early March. Another team that can compete for the conference title will be IUPUI, which despite losing its best player from a year ago, Odell Bradley, has enough talent in its starting lineup to give Oral Roberts and Valpo a run for their money. After those three teams there is a huge drop-off. Chicago State returns a couple of starters from last season, but the rest of the lineup will be riddled with youth which could be trouble considering help from the bench will be hard to find. As for the Golden Grizzlies of Oakland, they have the ability to create some headaches for the top teams due to strong play from its starting lineup, but with just three seniors on the roster, inexperience could be their downfall. As for UMKC, Centenary, Southern Utah and Western Illinois, they will round out the bottom of the conference, as they fight for victories against each other.
CONFERENCE CHAMPION: Oral Roberts
PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH: 1. Oral Roberts; 2. Valparaiso; 3. IUPUI; 4. Chicago State; 5. Oakland; 6. UMKC; 7. Centenary; 8. Southern Utah; 9. Western Illinois
TEAM BY TEAM ANALYSIS:
ORAL ROBERTS: The Golden Eagles come into the 2004-05 campaign with high expectations and those expectations are largely due to Tutt and Green. The duo enters the season as the best one-two punch in the Mid-Con. Last season, Tutt averaged a team-high 20.7 ppg, while Green was second with 17.1 ppg, but led the team in rebounding with 9.9 boards per game. The two super sophomores will be joined by Luke Spencer-Gardner, who missed last season due to an injury. Tutt and Spencer-Gardner along with Jonathan Bluitt, who led the team in assists a year ago, averaging 6.1 per game, give the Golden Eagles depth and considerable punch in the backcourt. The level of talent in the frontcourt, however, declines tremendously after Green. Matt Gastel, who started 15 games last season, led the Golden Eagles with 16 blocked shots and could see himself in a starting spot if he can play at a high level on a more consistent basis. Coach Sutton knows his team will go as far as Tutt and Green take it, and with a year of experience behind them, they could take Oral Roberts straight to the top of the Mid-Continent.
VALPARAISO: Coach Homer Drew's Crusaders have been the cream of the crop for close to decade in the MCC, but their ability to repeat as conference champs might be tough with the improvement of the other teams in the conference. The play of Dan Oppland is one of the major keys for Valpo if it's to be serious about repeating. Last season, Oppland was one of the better players in the MCC, ranking in the top ten in scoring (15.7 ppg), rebounding (7.2 rpg), field goal percentage (.546) and free throw percentage (.781). The scoring ability of Oppland gives senior guard Miguel Ali Berdiel, who was second in the league in assists (6.0 apg) last season, someone to dish the ball to throughout the season. Although Berdiel and Oppland are a tremendous one-two punch, the rest of the team is riddled with inexperience. The Crusaders enter the season with just one senior and four juniors on the roster.
IUPUI: There is no doubt that the Jaguars will miss star Odell Bradley this season, especially the 23.1 ppg along with the 8.5 rpg he averaged last year. But his departure gives way to senior guard Akeem Clark, who has been picked as an All-MCC First Teamer in the preseason. Clark was extremely impressive last year, averaging 15.8 ppg and he set a school record with 109 three-point field goals, giving the Jaguars a definite threat from behind the arc. Brandon Cole, who averaged 11.7 ppg last season, should supply help to Clark in the backcourt, while David Barlow should see quality minutes at the point. The addition of Michal Vavrek from Joliet junior college should give the Jags good size underneath. Last year, Vavrek averaged 18.6 ppg along with 11.1 rpg. Overall, the Jaguars come into the season with an experienced squad, as the roster features four seniors and six juniors.
CHICAGO STATE: 7-1 center Deji Akindele is integral to the success of the Cougars in 2004-05, and that is why he must learn to be more disciplined on the court. Last season, Akindele averaged just a little over 20 minutes a game, mainly because of foul trouble, including nine contests in which he fouled out. While Akindele is causing trouble for opponents inside the paint, the tandem of Tony Weeden and Craig Franklin in the backcourt give coach Kevin Jones' Cougars the ability to score inside and out. Last year, Franklin averaged 14.3 ppg, while Weeden posted 13.6 ppg and also led the team with 46 steals. Sophomore guards Kevin Jones and Royce Parran should give Chicago State solid depth in the backcourt. For Chicago State to have a strong season, Akindele must find a way to stay in every contest and keep himself out of foul trouble, if he can't the Cougars will struggle at points during the season.
OAKLAND: The Golden Grizzlies enter the 2004-05 season with one of the best players in the Mid-Con in Rawle Marshall. Marshall is the complete package and proved that last season when he averaged 17.6 ppg along with 4.5 rpg and 2.0 steals ppg. Despite his solid play, the senior guard will have to take his abilities to the next level, since Mike Helms has departed. Helms led the Golden Grizzlies with 23.1 ppg a year ago, but with him gone it is Marshall's year to lead the Grizzlies. He will have help from senior forward Cortney Scott. Scott finished last season as one of the best offensive rebounders in the conference, averaging 7.8 rpg to go with his scoring average of 12.4 ppg. Unfortunately for Oakland, the rest of the team is far too inexperienced, leaving Marshall and Scott with the burden of carrying the load all season long.
UMKC: Four starters return for the Kangaroos this season in hopes of making a run at the top spot in the MCC. Unfortunately one of those players is not the MCC's all-time leading scorer, Michael Watson. Last season, Watson led the 'Roos with 23.4 ppg, but with his departure, head coach Rich Zvosec must look for another team-leader and he feels Mike English can be that guy. English, who is a preseason All-MCC selection, had a strong season in 2003-04, averaging 12.4 ppg while leading the team with 7.3 rpg and 31 blocked shots. Brandon Lipsey will join English in the frontcourt once again, giving coach Zvosec and the Kangaroos strength underneath. Quarterbacking the team will be senior guard Brandon Temple, who last season led UMKC with 112 assists, while posting 8.9 ppg. UMKC has played solid defense throughout the years and for the team to continue to make noise in the MCC, it will have to be extremely tenacious in that area once again.
CENTENARY: The Gents enter the season with a lot of questions that need to answered, mainly who is going to lead the team both on the floor and in the locker room. Four of the top five scorers from a year ago are gone, including Andrew Wisniewski who averaged 21.9 ppg and 4.3 apg. Coach Kevin Johnson has no choice, but to look at Chad Maclies as the guy who can take the squad under his wing. Maclies was among the league leaders in rebounds (6.3 rpg) last season, but must improve on the 7.4 ppg he averaged. Although Centenary's roster is filled with eight upper classmen (two seniors and six juniors), there is not one player on the team, with the exception of Maclies, that seems able to instantly contribute on the floor.
SOUTHERN UTAH: Last season the Thunderbirds finished last in scoring (64.4 ppg) and rebounding (28.1 rpg) and this year should not be much different considering the team lost its leading scorer from a year ago in David Palmer (15.1 ppg). Jason Baker does return, but he must be more consistent on offense than he was last year when he netted 10.8 ppg. Southern Utah may struggle on the glass this season despite the return of DeAngelo Newsom who led the team with 6.9 rpg while averaging 10.2 ppg last year. Newsom will be joined by forward Tim Gainey under the basket and hopefully he can improve on the 3.5 rpg he grabbed a year ago. Overall, the Thunderbirds should show minimal improvement, but that won't be good enough for the team to make that long climb up the MCC ladder.
WESTERN ILLINOIS: Not much went right for the Leathernecks last season as they finished with just a 3-25 overall mark, along with a league-worst 1-15 conference record. T.J. Gray, who averaged 10 ppg last season as a freshman, is back, along with senior forward Will Lewis. Last season, Gray showed signs of brilliance and was an All-Freshman selection, but more pressure will be on the youngster since three of the top five scorers from a year ago are gone. Lewis, who averaged 9.9 ppg last year, will need improve on the glass, as the 6-6 forward averaged just 4.7 rpg in 2003-04. Gray comes into this campaign with more experience, but with little help around him, this should be another long season for the Leathernecks.
