BOYS BASKETBALL TEAM CAPSULES 2010-2011

BOYS BASKETBALL

TEAM CAPSULES

2010-2011

Below are the 2010 boys basketball team capsules for schools in the coverage area for www.northoaklandsports.com.  To submit additional information, e-mail senior editor Dan Stickradt at www.northoaklandsports.com.

Auburn Hills Avondale

COACH: Jeff Borja, first season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 8-13, 4-8 OAA Red Division (sixth).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class A districts to Waterford Kettering.

RETURNING STARTERS: Tony Harris Jr., 5-8 sr. PG; Ray Tillman, 5-011 sr. SG; Tre Webb, 5-10 jr. G.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Ryan Brancheau, 6-4 sr. C/F; Eric Garrison, 6-1 sr. F; DJ Ratcliff, 5-7 sr. G; Darius Hall, 5-11 sr. G/F.

KEY NEWCOMERS: A.J. Susick, 6-6 jr. C.

NOTABLES: The Yellowjackets drop down to the OAA White Division, where they are instant contenders with a veteran lineup; there were only three seniors on last year’s roster and only one that saw significant minutes; this team has plenty of experience, speed and athleticism with several football and track and field athletes running the basketball court; Tillman and Harris make up one of Oakland County’s top backcourts; Borja takes over for Tim Webb, who resigned following last season.

Auburn Hills Christian Academy

COACH: Chip Hall, first season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD:

STATE TOURNAMENT:

RETURNING STARTERS:

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS:

KEY NEWCOMERS:

OTHER NEWCOMERS:

KEY LOSSES:

NOTABLES:

Auburn Hills Oakland Christian

COACH: Dennis Hopkins, sixth season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 15-8, 8-8 MIAC-Blue Division (tied-third).

STATE TOURNAMENT: District champs; lost in Class D regional semifinals to Birmingham Roeper.

RETURNING STARTERS: Josh Peterson, 6-5 sr. C/F; Drew Perrin, 5-9 jr. PG; Chad Snyder, 6-0 sr. F; Tyler Piasecki, 6-1 jr. F.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Andrew Kern, 6-0 sr. G/F.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Charles Heyden, 6-3 jr. SG (transfer from Pontiac Notre Dame Prep); B.J. Stevens, 6-1 fr. G; John Van Noord, 5-10 fr. G.

KEY LOSSES: Chris Perrin, 5-11 PG.

NOTABLES: The good news for Oakland Christian is that they escaped a rebuilding campaign with a third-place finish in their league, 15 wins and a district championship. With five of the top seven players returning, plus two very good freshman prospects and a transfer who is expected to make a major impact in mid-January when he becomes eligible; Oakland Christian was a very solid program in the 1990s and into the early portion of the 2000s; this could be one of its better teams.

Clarkston

COACH: Dan Fife, 29^th season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 19-6, 10-4 OAA Red Division (tied, first).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class A regional finals to Southfield.

RETURNING STARTERS: Nick Tatu, 6-1 jr. G; Marcus Hardy, 6-6 sr. F/C; Max Collins, 6-3 sr. F.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Matt Dellinger, 6-1 jr. G/F; Mitch Baezinger, 6-1 jr. G/F; Matt Rodgers, 6-3 sr. F; Jordan Dasuqi, 6-1 soph. PG; Scott Cousino, 6-3 sr. F; Travis Smith, 6-0 jr. F; Alan Kamieniecki, 6-3 jr. F/C; Tyler DeCoster, 6-5 jr. C.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Jaren Jones, 5-8 jr. G; Stacy Murray, 5-9 sr. G; Nick Dahl, 5-10 jr. G; Mark Tynan, 5-11 jr. G/F.

KEY LOSSES: Matt Kamieniecki, 6-7 sr. F/C (Ball State); Tyler Scarlett, 6-2 PG.

NOTABLES: Clarkston has reached at least the Sweet 16 every season dating back to 2002 and with most of its team returning, there’s reason to believe the Wolves

Clarkston Everest

Collegiate Academy

COACH: Ann Lowney, second season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 14-6, independent.

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class D districts.

RETURNING STARTERS: Donald Allen, 6-4 jr. C; Ben Marcial, 6-2 soph. F; Sam Bellestri, 5-10 jr.G; Patrick Nalepa, 5-10 jr. G; Richie Cross, 5-10 soph. G.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Blake Beauchamp, 5-9 soph. G; Davis Smith, 6-0 soph. F; Mitchell Lasecki, 5-10 soph. F.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Noah Beauchamp, 5-11 fr. F.

KEY LOSSES: None.

NOTABLES: This is the third year of the school and second of the varsity boys basketball program; although there are no seniors in the building, this team could be a sleeper squad with a year of playing mostly varsity teams under its belt; last season the Mountaineers played an independent schedule of various Class C and Class D-sized schools, and this year will play in the eight-school CHSL A-West Division; there will be a varsity and junior varsity team of nine players each.

Clarkston Springfield Christian

COACH: Pat Wagner, second season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 7-8, 2-6 FBAC Red Division (fourth).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in MACS Division I opener to Burt Lake Northern Michigan Christian (60-54).

RETURNING STARTERS: Alex Trull, 5-11 sr. PG; Kevin Bettinger, 5-11 sr. F; Steven Lowery, 6-1 sr. F.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Colin Rutland, 6-4 jr. C; Ben Matthews, 6-2 soph. F/C.

KEY NEWCOMERS: David Alonzi, 6-0 sr. G/F (transfer); Daniel Alonzi, 6-0 sr. F (transfer).

OTHER NEWCOMERS: Andrew Alonzi, 5-7 fr. G; Ben Nelson, 5-6 jr. G; Kyle Trull, 5-6 fr. G; David Matthews, 5-4 fr. PG.

NOTABLES: The Eagles have started slow with a 1-5 record, but mainly as it works in several new players, including two transfers and three freshmen; since winning back-to-back MACS Division I state titles in 2000 and 2001, Springfield Christian has faded away from being a premier team in the MACS; with several young players in the mix, perhaps that climb back up can begin again.

Lake Orion

COACH: Mike Shafkalis, second season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 14-9, 9-5 OAA White Division (tied-third).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class A district finals to Clarkston.

RETURNING STARTERS: None.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Connor McKormick, 5-10 sr. PG; Chris Eaton, 6-4 sr. F; Evan Dreem, 6-4 sr. F; Blair Williams, 6-0 sr. F.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Bradley Watterworth, 6-6 jr. C (transfer from Lake Orion Baptist); Andrew Shafkalis, 6-2 jr. F (transfer from Rochester HS); Don McArty, 6-6 fr. C/F; Demonte Cruse, 5-7 soph. PG; Chaz Miller, 6-5 soph. C/F; Roman Kuster, 6-5 soph. F; Sean Charette, 5-10 jr. SG (currently injured).

KEY LOSSES: The Dragons graduated eight of 16 players off last season’s team, including Alex Mayo (6-1 PG) and Derek Schrauben (6-4 F), the team’s top scorers, and shot-blocker Ian Monk (6-8, Saginaw Valley).

NOTABLES: This team has some young and new talent, but it will take some time with several newcomers and transfers in the mix, some that won’t be eligible until the second semester; The dragons may have better basketball talent than in recent years and have very good size and court awareness; look for the shot-blocking Watterworth and Shafkalis, the coach’s son, to have an impact on the boards and defensive end, plus freshman McArty is one of the better ninth-grade prospects in the area; the Dragons also have good size with five players between 6-4 and 6-6.

Lake Orion Baptist

COACH: Joe Bullen, ninth season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 17-4, 7-1 FBAC Red Division (tied-first).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Michigan Association of Christian Schools Division I state semifinals to Temperance Stateline Christian (51-40).

RETURNING STARTERS: James Noruk, 5-10 jr. SG (eligible second semester).

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Nathan Shefcyk, 6-0 sr. F; Connor Welby, 5-7 sr. PG; Elijah Cone, 5-11 jr. F; Ben Case, 5-11 soph. F.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Mark Dewar, 5-10 fr. G; Jason Noruk, 5-10 fr. F; Nick Gardiner, 5-2 fr. PG; Jacob Noruk, 5-3 fr. G.

KEY LOSSES: Treavor Halleck, 5-11 G; Chris Hojnacki, 6-2 F; Matt Carmeron, 6-2 F; Bradley Watterworth, 6-6 jr. C (transferred to Lake Orion HS).

NOTABLES: The Lions face a major rebuilding year, with three starters graduating, one transferring to Lake Orion and a fifth not eligible until the second semester; of the four returning reserves from last season, only one saw significant minutes and all of those players scored less than five points an outing; the Lions will feature only nine players, eight in December, and have started 0-2; the team’s tallest player is only 6-foot and the squad features four freshman and a sophomore.

Oxford

COACH: Paul Marfia, second season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 7-14, 7-11 Flint Metro League (sixth).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class A district opener to Rochester.

RETURNING STARTERS: Mark Hazelwood, 5-9 jr. G; Chris Calvin, 6-5 sr. F.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Max George, 6-6 sr. C; Tyler Rose, 6-3 sr. G; TJ Bearse, 6-1 sr. G; Ken Coffman, 6-2 sr. F; Josh Bell, 6-1 sr. F.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Jacques Toussaint, 5-10 jr. G; Michael Kitchner, 6-3 jr. F; Vincent Hailburton, sr. G; Ben Magdeleno, jr. G; Collin Goetz, 6-7 sr. C.

KEY LOSSES: Lost six players to graduation.

NOTABLES: The Wildcats were inconsistent under Marfia last season, due to a new system and injuries; this season Oxford is in the OAA Blue Division after 27 years in the Flint Metro League, so there is a clean slate with plenty of optimism; Oxford has only won a handful of league and district titles since 1950, the last district coming in 1992; Marfia has the daunting task of trying to change the culture of basketball at the school; Oxford had 73 players try out for the school’s three teams, an unusually high number for a school not known for its basketball program.

Rochester

COACH: John Pleasant, fourth season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 7-15, 3-11 OAA White Division (seventh).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class A districts to Lake Orion.

RETURNING STARTERS: Billy Klotz, 6-2 sr. F; Taylor Perry, 6-4 jr. F (committed to Western Michigan); Paris Pereria 5-5 jr. PG.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Nick Bradley, 6-0 sr. G; Elisha Marshall, 6-2 sr. F.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Matt Klotz, 6-3 jr. G; Sean McCann, 5-11 jr. G; Kurt Apostol, 6-2 jr. F; Jason Lee, 5-5 fr. G.

KEY LOSSES: Nick O’Neil, 5-11 G; Alante Thompson, 6-2 sr. C (transferred); Sean Herbon, 6-3 F.

NOTABLES: The Falcons drop down to the OAA Blue Division and will enter that league as instant contenders, along with Hazel Park; the Falcons have a solid starting five but must develop some depth if it is to remain in the league title hunt and win its first league since 2000; Rochester is also shooting for its first district since 1988; Falcons have had a dose of bad luck, with as many as seven players transferring in the past three years that might have been on this year’s roster.

Rochester Adams

COACH: John Hall, 12^th season (133-106).

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 15-6, 11-3 OAA White Division (second).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class A district opener to Clarkston.

RETURNING STARTERS: Andrew Hammett, 6-3 sr. F (13.6 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 2.7 spg; all-league).

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Matt Nestor, 6-2 sr. G (committed to Western Michigan for baseball); Nick Zekaj, 6-2 sr. G (4.2 ppg); Mario Roveda, 6-4 sr. F; Brad Nylen, 6-6 sr. C (being recruited for football and lacrosse); Desante Dinkins, 5-1 sr. G.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Kyle Pelayo, 6-1 jr. G; Zack Littleson, 6-3 soph. F; Press Kampe, 5-6 fr. G.

KEY LOSSES: Joey Dillion, 6-1 PG (playing soccer at Georgetown); Conor Boyle, 6-2 SG; Austin McClelland, 5-10 SG.

NOTABLES: Adams will be a different team than last season, when it was all about heady guard play and crisp shooting and distribution; this team will play point guard by committee and look to have more of an inside presence; the development of the post players will go a long way in determining if the Highlanders will be a top contender in the league and a middle of the pack team.

Rochester Stoney Creek

COACH: Steve Norgrove, first season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 15-6, 9-5 OAA White Division (third).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class A district opener to Lake Orion.

RETURNING STARTERS: Taylor Rawlings, 6-4 sr. G/F (4.6 ppg, 4 rpg; started 13  games).

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Alex Jones, 6-1 sr. PG (6.1 ppg); Tyler Curtis, 6-3 sr. F.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Stephan Makowski, 5-10 soph. PG; Caleb Smydra, 6-5 jr. F/C; Greg Binder, 5-11 jr. G; Blake Wiseman, 5-011 sr. G; Ben Temorowski, 6-0 soph. G; Joe Stephan, 6-2 sr. F.

KEY LOSSES: Graduated 11 players, including Arie Elder (5-8 PG), Jake Fortner (6-4 F) and Carter Curtis (6-8 C).

NOTABLES: Ken Belote retired from being a head coach and Steve Norgrove moves over from Farmington; he has some familiarity of some of the teams as he has coached in the OAA for eight seasons; the Cougars are inexperienced but are athletic and could be a dangerous team if they gel and build some cohesiveness and depth before season’s end; team is off to a 1-1 start.

Rochester Hills Christian

COACH: Jon Bronsing, sixth season (non-consecutive).

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 4-13, 3-5 FBAC Red Division (third).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in MACS Division I opener to Saginaw Community Baptist (58-39).

RETURNING STARTERS: D.J. Szydlowski, 6-4 sr. C (four-year starter); Josh West, 5-11 sr. F.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Nick Patton, 6-1 sr. F; Jon Becker, 5-10 sr.  F; Nathan Simon, 5-11 jr. PG; Aaron Berry, 6-1 soph. SG; Jason Lee, 5-11 sr. SG.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Marques Hatcher, 5-10 fr. PG; Jered Brown, 6-2 fr. C.

OTHER NEWCOMERS: Luyanda Mlengeni, 6-0 jr. F; Charles Kalajian, 6-0 soph. SG; Ashton Drew, 6-1 soph. F.

NOTABLES: Bronsing, who was an all-league player for the Eagles back in the late 1990s, returns to the sidelines after a one-year hiatus; his team is already off to a 3-2 start after winning just four games last season; there is more talent, a deeper bench, a quality freshman class and perhaps the league’s top big man in Szydlowski, a four-year starter in the paint; expect the leagues to give Troy Bethany Christian a run for the league title.

Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest

COACH: Dan Pontillo, fourth season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 12-01, 9-7 MIAC Blue Division (fifth).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class C districts.

RETURNING STARTERS: Nathan Drews, 6-0 soph. G/F.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Mike Miller, 6-3 sr. F; Luke McCatty, 6-2 sr. C; Ryan Joseph, 5-8 sr. G.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Gusher Rathore, 6-1 jr. G; Dan MAcCourtney, 6-3 jr. C; Christian Woodfin, 6-0 jr. F; Greg VanderVoord, 6-2 sr. F/C; Joey Kalusmeier, 6-2 jr. F; Chad Cook, 5-11 jr. G; Alex Irwin, 5-8 jr. G; Joshua Morrison, 5-9 soph. G/F.

KEY LOSSES: Stephen Miskovich, 6-1 F.

NOTABLES: The Crusaders fared reasonably well in their first season in the MIAC-Blue and could join Auburn Hills Oakland Christian and Allen Park Inter-City Baptist in the hunt this season with good size, depth and solid guard play; although the Crusaders don’t have a ton of experience, there is a good group of newcomers that could bode well.

Troy

COACH: Gary Fralick, 17^th season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 6-15, 3-11 OAA White Division (tied-seventh).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost In Class A districts.

RETURNING STARTERS: James Young, 6-5 soph. (14.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg; missed second half of last season); Evan Mahone, 5-8  jr. SG (7ppg, 3.5 aprg);

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: John Stibich, 5-11 sr. (7.5 ppg); Tarae Strozier, 5-7 sr. G; Mike Sully, 6-3 sr. F; Alex Wise, 6-2 sr. F; Jeff Holmes, 6-4 jr. C.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Joe Leonard, 5-7 jr. G; Maceo Batson Jr., 6-1 fr. G (son of former Michigan player Maceo Batson); Leo Aryault, 6-4 jr. F; David Eicher, 6-0 jr. G.

KEY LOSSES: Lost several players from the rotation to graduation, including leading scorer and rebounder Bobby Wunderlich (6-2 F) and post threats Cam Lafayette (6-4 and John Dawkins (6-10).

NOTABLES: This team suffered through a rare rebuilding campaign last season, saddled with multiple injuries, eligibility and disciplinary issues; this season the Colts should be back on track with a very athletic squad with pure scorers; look for Troy to be in the upper echelon of the OAA-White with Auburn Hills Avondale, Ferndale and Rochester Adams this season.

Troy Athens

COACH: Dave Scott, first season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 9-12, 6-8 OAA White Division (tied-fifth).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in Class A district opener to Pontiac.

RETURNING STARTERS: Jake Duzey, 6-4 sr. F/C; Christian Conley, 6-3 sr. G; Tyler Channell, 6-1 sr. G.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Alex Faubel, 6-3 sr. F; Aaron Fox, 5-10 sr. G.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Antonio Mitchell, 6-0 jr. G; Lonnie Bolden, 5-10 jr. G; Jolly Gerwal, 6-3 jr. F; Caleb McIntosh, 6-2 jr. G/F.

OTHER NEWCOMERS: Mike Gashaj, 6-9 sr. C; Marcarius Zachery, 6-3 jr. F; Tim Freiman, 6-4 jr. F; Paul Cherry, 6-1 jr. G; Robert Dema, 6-2 jr. F.

KEY LOSSES: Mike DeVita, 6-8 F.

NOTABLES: Scott moves over from the head coaching position of the Athens varsity girls team to take over the Red Hawks’ boys team; there is plenty of athleticism, size and quickness but a lot of work needed to harness it all in and make it a winning formula.

Troy Bethany Christian

COACH: Jack Walker, 26^th season.

LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 14-7, 7-1 FBAC Red Division (tied-first).

STATE TOURNAMENT: Lost in MACS Division I quarterfinals to Lake Orion Baptist.

RETURNING STARTERS: Travis Woodham, 6-0 sr. PG; Daniel Sprankle, 6-1 jr. F; Jono Gronow, 5-10 sr. F.

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Tyler Parsons, 6-3 jr. F/C; Mark Bishop, 6-1 jr. F; Luke Combs, 5-10 sr. C/F; Ryan Woodham, 6-1 soph. G/F; Clayton Thompson, 5-10 sr. G.

KEY NEWCOMERS: Ajay Solomon, 6-0 jr. F; Everett Cook, 6-1 jr. F/C.

KEY LOSSES: Greg Thomas, 6-1 C.

NOTABLES: A significant majority of this team is back and off to a 5-2 start; like many Bruins teams of the past, there is not a lot of size but this team has  bulk in the middle and plenty of heady guards who are not afraid to drive and dish; most of these players were on the Bruins’ MACS state championship team in October and eight of them played on Bethany’s league championship basketball team last winter.

Troy Christian

Leadership Academy

COACH:

LAST SEASON’S RECORD:

STATE TOURNAMENT:

RETURNING STARTERS:

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS:

KEY NEWCOMERS:

OTHER NEWCOMERS:

KEY LOSSES:

NOTABLES:

Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes

COACH:

LAST SEASON’S RECORD:

STATE TOURNAMENT:

RETURNING STARTERS:

OTHER RETURNING LETTERWINNERS:

KEY NEWCOMERS:

OTHER NEWCOMERS:

KEY LOSSES:

NOTABLE

Tags: boys basketball, high school basketball, team capsules

Category: Auburn Hills Avondale, Auburn Hills Christian Acadamy, Auburn Hills Oakland Christian, Clarkston, Clarkston Everest Catholic, Clarkston Springfield Christian, Lake Orion, Lake Orion Baptist, Lake Orion Shalom Baptist, Oxford, Prep Wraps, Rochester, Rochester Adams, Rochester Hills Christian, Rochester Hills Lutheran NW, Rochester Stoney Creek, State Rankings, Stats / Area Leaders, Troy, Troy Athens, Troy Bethany Christian, Troy Christian Leadership Acadamy, Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes