2006-07 Horizon League Men's Basketball Prospectus
Sept. 6, 2006
2006-07 Horizon League Prospectus in PDF Format
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The 2006-07 season could mark a changing of the guard in the Horizon League, with both defending loop champion UW-Milwaukee and runner-up/NIT participant Butler heading into the new season with a total of eight new starters while a group of other teams tries to take the next step and climb to the top of the League ladder.
Loyola, UW-Green Bay, and Detroit each carry high expectations into the new year after sharing third place in the League standings a year ago. Both Loyola and UW-Green Bay have all five starters returning in 2006-07, while Detroit attempts to rebound from an injury-filled campaign with one of the League's top backcourts.
UIC and Wright State also tied for third place in the League standings last season---the first-ever five-way tie for a position in League annals---with each of those teams touting one of the League's top players in hopes of moving up in the standings.
UW-Milwaukee captured the regular-season League title for a third consecutive year in 2005-06, posting a 12-4 loop ledger to edge Butler by one game in the standings. The Panthers then added the League tournament crown, racing to an 87-71 triumph over BU in the final before a hometown crowd of 10,021 at U.S. Cellular Arena. For UW-Milwaukee's five senior starters, that run meant a second straight appearance in the national summit.
The championship was UWM's third in the last four years, and paved the way for the Panthers' 82-74 victory over Oklahoma in the first round of the NCAA Championship. Eventual national champion Florida ended UW-Milwaukee's run with an 82-60 verdict two days later, but the Panthers' 22-9 overall ledger marked a fourth consecutive 20-win campaign.
Butler also enjoyed postseason success, slipping past Miami (Ohio) 53-52 in the NIT to reach the 20-win plateau for the eighth time in the past ten seasons. The Bulldogs finished at 20-13 following a 67-63 loss at Florida State in the second round of the nation's oldest postseason tourney.
The five-way logjam in third place left each of those teams---UW-Green Bay, Loyola, Detroit, UIC and Wright State---at 8-8 in the League, with Cleveland State at 5-11 against loop foes and Youngstown State at 4-12.
UW-Milwaukee coach Rob Jeter made an auspicious debut last fall, but knows things will be different this year as he looks to replace seven seniors including the top four scorers. But the cupboard isn't exactly bare, as the Panthers gain the services of junior forward Paige Paulsen along with redshirts Kaylan Anderson and Ricky Fanklin. Jeter also added to his depth inside with the signing of junior-college veterans Sam Mauldin and Marcus Skinner.
Among the Panthers returning to action this season, junior guards Avery Smith and Allan Hanson own the most experience under Jeter's direction. Smith averaged 4.7 points in just over 14 minutes per game last season, while Hanson shot nearly 47 percent from three-point range in limited action and contributed 2.7 points per contest. Senior forwards Kevin Massiah (2.3 ppg.) and Tyrone Young (2.0 ppg.) are among the other members of last year's supporting cast who look for more extensive roles this season.
Butler also was hit hard by graduation, with the loss of three starters. Reigning League Coach of the Year Todd Lickliter must find a way to replace the 42.3 points-per- game output of League Player of the Year Brandon Polk, Bruce Horan and Avery Sheets if the Bulldogs hope to duplicate last year's total of 20 victories.
Junior guard A.J. Graves anchors the backcourt for the Bulldogs, after averaging 13.4 points per game a year ago. The six-foot-one junior---who begins the season with a streak of 56 consecutive starts---also tallied 80 assists and 43 steals as a sophomore. Inside, senior Brandon Crone (9.8 points and a team-high 5.0 rebounds per game) provides veteran leadership along with junior Drew Streicher.
Butler likely will rely heavily on a pair of transfers in junior guard Mike Green and sophomore forward Pete Campbell. Green started 56 games in two seasons at Towson University, averaging 11 points plus 4.3 assists per game in his time at the school. The six-foot-seven Campbell was the second-leading scorer at IPFW as a freshman (11.1 points per game in 2004-05).
Those graduation losses at UWM and Butler could open the door for the rest of the League. UW-Green Bay is at the opposite end of the spectrum, with all five starters back from last year's 15-16 squad. In fact, the players on the 2006-07 roster combine for 435 games in a UWGB uniform, compared to only 154 last year.
Senior guard Ryan Evanochko earned Second-Team All-League honors last winter, finishing second in the League with 5.16 assists per game to supplement his own 15.8 points-per-contest output that was eighth-best in the circuit. He is one of the loop's most versatile performers, posting 30 points in one game and handing out 14 assists in another last season.
Sophomore forwards Terry Evans and Mike Schachtner each made dramatic impacts as freshmen. Evans was an All-Defensive Team choice after finishing sixth in the League in both blocked shots (0.94 per game) and steals (1.61 per outing) while averaging 6.9 points and 5.2 rebounds per game, while Schachtner landed on the League's All-Newcomer Team with his 10.3 points-per-game scoring pace.
Loyola also returns all five starters, led by senior guard Blake Schilb. The six-foot-seven Schilb was second in the League with his 19.1 points-per-game norm a year ago, earning All-America Honorable Mention from the Associated Press after leading the Ramblers to a 19-11 overall ledger---the school's best in 21 years. Schilb also ranked among the loop leaders with 5.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists per contest as a junior.
Backcourt mate Majak Kou also contributed at both ends of the floor, providing 12.8 points per game and finishing among the top five in both blocked shots (second at 1.50 per game) and steals (fourth at 1.57 per appearance) to win a spot on the League's All-Defensive Team. Kou's 51 three-pointers were second only to Schilb's 68 on the team charts last season.
Two other Ramblers had impressive debut campaigns last season. Guard J.R. Blount started 22 contests as a freshman, averaging 11.3 points and 2.33 assists per game while forward Leon Young posted five double-doubles and finished with norms of 10.4 points and 7.2 rebounds per game (fifth in the League). In addition, his .837 free-throw mark topped the loop charts.
Detroit endured a series of injuries, finishing at .500 both in the League and overall (16-16). Titan coach Perry Watson overcame the loss of center Ryvon Covile (who sat out the season as a medical redshirt), as senior guard Brandon Cotton finished fifth in the League with his 17.5 points-per-game scoring pace, and stepped that pace up to 18.8 per outing in League competition. Cotton earned Second-Team All-League notice for the second year in a row despite playing most of the season with pins in his non-shooting hand following a car accident the previous summer.
Junior guard Jon Goode (10.9 points per game) provided UDM's long-range shooting threat with 59 treys last season. Incoming transfer Brandon Bell could add another weapon to the Titans' perimeter attack.
Up front are the questions for Detroit, with Covile coming back but the Titans losing three key players---Torvoris Baker (an All-Defensive Team pick), Chuck Bailey and Ethan Shaw---who combined to average 22.6 points and 16.9 rebounds per game in 2005-06.
UIC isn't far behind, with four starters back---including the League's Newcomer of the Year---after posting a 16-15 record last season.
Junior guard Othyus Jeffers earned that honor in 2005-06, providing 11.6 points, 7.6 rebounds and a team-best 2.97 assists per game while starting 30 of 31 contests in his debut campaign. That carom count put him third in the League, with his set-up rate ranking eighth. The Chicago native also posted seven double-doubles a year ago, and joins sophomore point guard Josh Mayo in the backcourt. Another member of the League's All-Newcomer team in 2005-06, Mayo stepped into the starting lineup to produce 10.1 points per outing, improving to 13.3 in his final nine games of the year.
The Flames will be a lot taller this year, with the addition of six-foot-nine sophomore Scott VanderMeer (a transfer from Bowling Green who sat out last season) joining a cast of veterans in the front court. Jovan Stefanov (10.1 points per game last year) and Danijel Zoric (8.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per outing) combine to bring senior leadership up front.
Wright State slipped to the seventh seed in last year's League Championship despite sharing third place during the regular season. Brad Brownell takes the reins of the Raider program after guiding UNC Wilmington to a pair of NCAA Tournaments in his four-year run there, and inherits a program which features multi-talented guard DaShaun Wood.
The senior backliner earned First-Team All-League honors last season, leading the Horizon League with 1.82 steals per game while also ranking third in assists (4.68 per outing) and fourth in scoring (17.9 points per game). He had a career-high 35 points versus Youngstown State and added 33 more against defense-oriented Butler last season.
WSU's front line features a pair of veteran starters in senior Drew Burleson and junior Jordan Pleiman. Each started all 28 contests last season, with Burleson posting a rate of 12.5 points per contest a year ago. Pleiman made his own mark, though, with 10.5 points per game and a 57.5 percent accuracy rate from the field which was second-best on the final League charts.
Cleveland State brings back four starters among eight returning letterwinners, with new Viking coach Gary Waters looking to erase memories of last year's 10-18 record. Waters, who has guided teams to postseason play six times in his ten-year career, will rely on the senior quartet of guards Carlos English, Victor Morris, Raheem Moss and forward Patrick Tatham to provide veteran leadership.
Moss averaged 10.0 points per game a year ago, while Tatham led the team with 6.0 rebounds per contest and English handed out 4.64 assists per outing to rank fourth in the League. J'Nathan Bullock topped the CSU scoring charts with his 11.3 points per game as a freshman.
Youngstown State made strides in a 7-21 showing last season and attempts to climb the League ladder behind First-Team All-League pick Quin Humphrey. The six-foot-four guard became only the second player in loop history to lead the circuit in both scoring (19.2 points per game) and rebounding (8.3 per outing) in the same year, with the former rate buoyed by three consecutive 30-point performances.
The Penguins bolstered their backcourt in the offseason, adding freshman Devron Bostic and junior Byron Davis, a junior who sat out last season after transferring from New Mexico State. They join a group which also includes senior Keston Roberts, who provided 14.0 points per outing in 2005-06.
A trip to the NCAA Tournament is on the line at the 2007 Horizon League Championship, which begins Feb. 27. The fourth through sixth seeds host seeds 7-9 that evening, with the winners joining the top three schools for the remainder of the tourney. Action continues at the site of the number-one seed on Friday-Saturday, March 2-3, with that NCAA ticket awarded to the winner of the (Tuesday, March 6) championship showdown.
Valparaiso joins the League in 2006-07, after making one final trip through the Mid-Continent Conference this season. The Crusaders face a tough road this year as veteran coach Homer Drew must replace the top five scorers from last season's 17-12 unit. Junior guards Shawn Huff (7.5 points per game) and Jarryd Loyd (5.4 ppg.) pace the group of returnees.
