Wow, talk about a league in a down year. DeLaSalle is loaded and Concordia gets some help from the closing of St. Bernard's but otherwise, not a good year in the league.
Blake Bears (2009-10 season 10-18, 5-11 Conference, 5th West)
Those 10 wins are deceiving as there really wasn't a good win on the schedule. Sophomore Kebu Johnson is rapidly improving. He was last year's second leading scorer at 11.6 PPG and is their do everything player. Senior forward Tim Zellmer is the other returnee of note.
Breck Mustangs (2009-10 season 7-19, 2-14 Conference, 6th West)
Long time Larry McKenzie assistant Matt McCollister takes over as the new coach. 3 of their 7 wins were against Trinity so 4-19 against everyone else. Top scorer Jeffrey Lurie returns with his 14.8 points a night. Juniors Austin Lommen and Tyler Hudson saw big minutes last season along with guards Nick Hoffman and Joey Yared.
Brooklyn Center Centaurs (2009-10 season 16-11, 11-5 Conference, 3rd West)
Huge loss for the Centaurs with their star point guard Freddie Young leaving for a prep school. Demetrius Anthony is the top returner at 11.1 PPG. Without Young I expect a long season.
Concordia Academy Beacons (2009-10 season 15-13, 9-7 Conference, 2nd East)
The Beacons lose forward Jordan Schneidermann, Chad Koepke and shooter Nik Novitsky.One of the few bright spots in the league. Point guard Shane Taylor comes over from St. Bernard's. Junior Cutler Finneman returns inside. Guards Jeff Weber and Lorenzo Davis also return.
DeLaSalle Islanders (2009-10 season 25-6, 15-1 Conference, tied 1st West)
There's D and everyone else despite the loss of star forward Jalen Jaspers. Jonah Travis returns in the middle and should have a monster year. Bretson McNeal had a breakout summer for Howard Pulley. He's one of the top shooters in the state and can explode for a handful of triples in a very short time. Marcas Dorsey and Robert Ndondo-Lay will see minutes inside. Sophomore Riley Dearring comes over from Hopkins. He should see time on the other wing along with the athletic Marvin Collins. Lamonte Hall is another shooter and he'll see time at the point. Keep an eye on the DLS play at the point. They'll probably do it by committee as there really isn't a true PG right now.
Minnehaha Academy Redhawks (2009-10 season 26-5, 15-1 Conference, tied 1st West)
No team in the league has bigger losses than the Redhawks. Their big 3 of Austin Brown, Parker Hines and Taylor Hansen combined for 48 points a night and all are gone. 3 other seniors are also gone. Joel Reinhardt and Zach Nipper are the top returning players.
Mounds Park Academy Panthers (2009-10 season 3-23, 0-16 Conference, 6th East)
Guard Peter Wright and forward Nate Burstein are back but they struggle to score more than anyone in the league and there's no help coming up to improve them. Expect another very long season.
St. Agnes Aggies (2009-10 season 13-16, 7-9 Conference, 4th East)
Besides 1 senior, the entire roster is back. Though talk has it that 1 of the 3 double-figure scorers transferred out. Even then you'd have 5 back from last year's rotation. With the tons of losses in the rest of the division besides Concordia, expect them to be near the top of the East.
St. Anthony Huskies (2009-10 season 16-11, 13-3 Conference, 1st East)
If Minnehaha doesn't have the biggest losses in the league, the Huskies do. The entire backcourt of Aaron McCrossan and leading scorer Josh Pratt is gone. Forward Derek Jahner is also gone along with Jordan Sayers and Karuza Cook. Guard Stephen Couillard is the top returner at 3.8 PPG.
St. Croix Lutheran Crusaders (2009-10 season 7-21, 2-14 Conference, 5th East)
This is a hard team to figure out. Their only league wins were against Mounds Park Academy despite some talent. But they were young. The junior guard duo of brute Wesley Tucker and Cameron Cummings is back and both averaged double-figures last season. Junior shooter Mark Lawrence is back. Fowards Kyle Prelgo and Michael Galler saw front line minutes last year. Its another year of experience as they should be improved, but I think they're a year away.
St. Paul Academy Spartans (2009-10 season 16-12, 9-7 Conference, 4th West)
The losses are huge here too. SPA has 11 seniors who are gone including their star forward Evan McMillan and point guard Santano Rosario. It seems like they both played varsity for 10 years. Sophomore Spencer Egly saw plenty of minutes last year and is the top returner. He averaged 4.6 a game and will man the point. Expect to see lots of youth on the court.
Predicted Order of Finish
West
- DeLaSalle
- Minnehaha
- Blake
- Breck
- St. Paul Academy
- Brooklyn Center
- Concordia Academy
- St. Agnes
- St. Croix Lutheran
- St. Anthony
- Mounds Park Academy
Underclassmen to watch:
Kebu Johnson - Blake
Riley Dearring, Reed Travis, Sean Fitzgibbons - DeLaSalle
Mario Franco - St. Agnes
Spencer Egly - St. Paul Academy
Games that will determine the conference title
- Concordia at St. Agnes - Dec 7th
- Concordia at DeLaSalle - Jan 25th
- St. Agnes at Concordia - Feb 4th
- DeLaSalle vs Chaska - Dec 11th (Breakdown Tipoff Classic)
- Concordia at St. Cloud Cathedral tournament - Dec 28-30
- DeLaSalle vs Superior at UW-Superior - Jan 8th
- Eden Prairie at DeLaSalle - Jan 29th
- DeLaSalle at Waunakee (WI) - Feb 4th
- DeLaSalle at Benilde-St. Margaret's - Feb 8th
- St. Paul Central at Concordia - Feb 11th
- St. Agnes at Maranatha - Feb 14th
- Cretin-Derham Hall at DeLaSalle - Feb 26th
- Minneapolis Henry at DeLaSalle - Mar 1st
- Concordia at Mayer Lutheran - Mar 4th
Are you kidding me????? No Riley Dearring as underclassmen to watch? Wow!!!!! i guess you guys will have to see.... I guess if you dont play for pulley or pump you get no love... I understand.. I think..Sad
ReplyDeleteTotally meant to include him. I was thinking about the DLS JV kids and since he's a varsity kid it just slipped. He's the top one on the list.
ReplyDeleteI have fixed the Dearring thing. Ballguy as to your charge on Pump/Pulley. Stop already. Did you not read me picking Deonte Blakemore as Mpls City MVP and mentioning Latrell Love?
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