Classic Suburban Conference Preview

Overview:
In past years the Classic Suburban has been one of the best conferences around and this year it won't disappoint. At the top you have 2 heavyweights in St. Thomas Academy and Henry Sibley. Tartan returns a pair of very good guards, Richfield returns a bunch of guards from last year's team and Hill-Murray returns 6-8 Peter McKeown for new coach Dick Ghizoni.

Team Previews:
Defending 3A state champion St. Thomas Academy returns big man Alex Schneider, sharpshooter Mike Fitzgerald and pesky Fritz Valdvogel. The losses of Nate Burr and Jared Gray will hurt on the defensive end, but this team will still be solid defensively and shoot lights out from 3.

Henry Sibley returns 4 noteworthy players from last year including Chris Halvorsen, PG Peter Leslie, Noah Kaiser and soph big 6-11 Jake Krueser. Look for Litchfield transfer 6-6 Jr Mike Bruesewitz to make a big impact for them by giving them interior toughness.

Tartan returns guards Sam Ryan and Mark Sonnen. Sonnen is a D1 prospect who can really fill it up. Ryan has been a 4 year starter on varsity at the point but he broke an ankle during the football season which could be a major factor.

Richfield returns a bunch of guards from last year's team but loses star Santino Clay. Can they make outside shots on offense and will they be able to rebound and stop people on the defensive end with their lack of size. They'll be small and quick. Jim Dimick's teams are usually sound defensively but last year's roster couldn't stop people. Look for a bunch of high scoring games against them this year.

Hill-Murray returns 6-8 Peter McKeown who I think is the best big man in the league (apologies to Alex Schneider at STA and Jake Krueser at Sibley). With Troy Larson returning and new coach Dick Ghizoni, I think they could make a run at a top half finish in the league.

Simley loses star big man John Hutchins so I expect them to rebuild around a couple of returning starters.

North, Mahtomedi and South St. Paul will also be looking up at the rest of the league.

Synopsis:
Conference Champion: St. Thomas Academy
Teams you must see: St. Thomas Academy, Henry Sibley
Other teams to watch: Tartan
Surprise Team: Hill-Murray
Team you don't want to see: South St. Paul.

Games that will determine the conference title

• STA at Sibley Fri Jan 25th
• STA at Tartan Fri Feb 22nd
• Sibley at STA Tues Feb 26th
• Sibley at Tartan Fri Mar 7th

Noteworthy Non-Conference games

• Sibley at Osseo Tues Dec 11th
• Duluth East at Tartan Fri Dec 14th
• Sibley at Marshall Sat Dec 15th (Breakdown Tip-off Classic)
• Duluth East at STA Tues Dec 18th
• Minnetonka at Sibley Tues Dec 18th
• Sibley at Hopkins Fri Dec 21st
• Cretin-Derham Hall at STA Fri Dec 21st
• Rochester Mayo at Tartan Fri Dec 21st
• STA vs Washburn Th Dec 27th at Hamline (1st round Joe Hutton tournament)
• STA vs Hopkins (projected) Sat Dec 29th at Hamline (Joe Hutton title game)
• Eden Prairie vs Sibley (projected) Sat Dec 29th at Bethel (Bethel tournament title game)
• Tartan at Verona, WI Sat Jan 26th (Border Battle)
• Stillwater at Sibley, Sat Jan 26th or Mon Jan 28th
• St. Thomas Academy at De La Salle Fri Mar 7th