#HLMBB League Preview
By Joey Yashinsky, Horizon League Contributor. Follow on Twitter @OneSeatOver
There’s an old axiom in sports: “Defense always travels.”
That small piece of wisdom says that on any particular day, maybe the deep pass won’t connect and maybe the 3-point shot won’t fall, but as long as an outstanding effort is given on the defensive end, teams can stay competitive in just about every single game.
Scott Nagy and the Wright State Raiders were the Horizon League’s best defensive team a year ago and rode that rugged style of play all the way to a conference championship at Motor City Madness. They held Green Bay to 72 points after the Phoenix had just won three straight averaging 99 in those games. To close the tournament, Wright State permitted just 53 points to Milwaukee, then a scant 57 to Cleveland State in the finals.
Preseason All-League first-teamer Loudon Love returns after a tremendous freshman year in which he averaged nearly a double-double (12.9 PPG, 9.7 RPG), while shooting 53 percent from the field. Love will get plenty of support from veteran guards Mark Hughes and Cole Gentry. Hughes is one of the top perimeter defenders in the Horizon League and the Raiders become near-unbeatable when Gentry is scoring as well as distributing.
Wright State loses leading scorer and emotional leader Grant Benzinger, but adds Drake transfer Bill Wampler, a 6-foot-6 deadeye shooter that should fit very nicely into Benzinger’s spot in the lineup. Sophomore Jaylon Hall could find a larger role after a very solid first year.
Right behind the Raiders in preseason voting are the Northern Kentucky Norse, last year’s Horizon League regular season champions. Senior Drew McDonald returns as the Preseason Player of the Year in the conference, and for good reason. He is the Horizon League’s leading returning scorer at 17.0 PPG and finished second only to Love in the rebounding department with his 9.6 RPG.
John Brannen’s club will look a little different with the graduations of 2017 Motor City Madness Most Outstanding Player Lavone Holland II and ace defender Jordan Garnett, but sharpshooting guard Tyler Sharpe is back, as is rising sophomore Jalen Tate. A preseason all-league second-team pick, Tate can lock up just about anyone and will be a candidate for Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year. Norfolk State transfer Zaynah Robinson will take on much of the ball handling duties and junior forward Dantez Walton pairs nicely with McDonald up front.
Steve McClain led his club to 20 wins in 2017-18 and if the primary pieces stay healthy, that number could rise even higher this season. The Flames were hurt last year by an injury to point guard Tarkus Ferguson. A preseason All-Horizon League second-team selection, Ferguson is capable of controlling games with his adept playmaking and scoring abilities.
Fellow junior Marcus Ottey averaged 13.8 PPG last year courtesy of a sparkling 52 percent mark from the field. Ottey was rewarded with a place on the All-Conference first-team heading into this season. Godwin Boahen and Dominique Matthews, also juniors, look to have breakout years as the Flames easily boast one of the top guard quartets in all of college basketball. Jordan Blount will anchor the inside and versatile 6-foot-8 sophomore Michael Diggins looks to pick up where he left off after a strong finish during UIC’s run to the CIT title game.
It’s year 35 for Greg Kampe at Oakland University and it might be one of his most challenging to date. He says goodbye to Player of the Year Kendrick Nunn, standouts Jalen Hayes and Martez Walker, shot blocker extraordinaire Isaiah Brock and scoring point guard Nick Daniels. He welcomes back the junior frontcourt tandem of Xavier Hill-Mais and Brad Brechting, both returning after redshirt years. Kampe believes Hill-Mais and Brechting have only scratched the surface of their potential and that there are star qualities in both.
The Golden Grizzlies get the rocksteady Brailen Neely back at the point after a late-season injury derailed his sophomore campaign. Sophomore James Beck could take a leap in year two and freshman Tray Maddox Jr. might already be one of the best athletes in the Horizon League.
It was a bit of a transition year in 2017-18 for Linc Darner and the Green Bay Phoenix, but now with Sandy Cohen III ready from day one and Kam Hankerson coming into his own, the possibilities are endless. Cohen is a preseason first-team selection and he will likely fight tooth and nail with McDonald and Love for Player of the Year honors at season’s end. He and Hankerson combined for 26.8 PPG last year; don’t be surprised if that number inches closer to 40 this winter.
Darner’s trio of sophomores in PJ Pipes, Manny Patterson, and Hunter Crist could all see their roles increase. Pipes started 28 games as a freshman and shot free throws (85.5 percent) like a battle-tested fifth-year senior. Patterson was dearly missed late in the year when he went down with a shoulder injury. A pair of junior transfers, Cody Schwartz and Tank Hemphill, provide Green Bay with much-needed depth as Darner looks to push the pace and reignite his RP-40 (Relentless Pressure - 40 Minutes) style of play.
Jason Gardner and the IUPUI Jaguars finished their maiden season in the Horizon League tied for fifth in the standings with a respectable 8-10 conference mark. They enter year two looking to improve upon that and gain a foothold in the upper echelon of the league. The Jaguars lose their top three scorers from a season ago, but bring back a dangerous inside-outside combo of senior Evan Hall and sophomore Jaylen Minnett. Hall is a nightly threat to put up a double-double and Minnett should flourish with more opportunities on the offensive end.
Junior guard Camron Justice looks to play a major role for Gardner’s club. The transfer from Vanderbilt was Mr. Basketball in Kentucky in 2015 and possesses a lethal stroke from beyond the arc. It would be very surprising if senior D.J. McCall is not on the Horizon League’s All-Defensive team at season’s end. Junior point guard Nick Rogers will battle for the conference assist crown.
Cleveland State begins the year picked to finish seventh in the Horizon League despite a courageous run to the Motor City Madness title game this past March. Dennis Felton brings back the explosive Tyree Appleby, a breakout star in that tournament and now a preseason all-conference first-team selection. Appleby will team with fellow sophomore Stefan Kenic, a multi-talented 6-foot-9 forward who seems ready to take the conference by storm. Kenic had stretches at the tournament when he appeared unstoppable and he’ll look to carry that momentum forward into 2018-19.
Junior guard Kash Thomas brings a veteran presence and tough defensive mindset to the Vikings’ backcourt. Freshman Seth Milner is an all-court player at 6-foot-6 and will contribute in a variety of ways for Felton’s rising young team.
The Milwaukee Panthers will feature an intriguing trio of guards with 5-foot-11 junior Bryce Barnes, 6-foot-5 sophomore Carson Warren-Newsome, and 6-foot-8 redshirt junior DeAndre Abram, a transfer from George Mason. Barnes and Warren-Newsome are Milwaukee’s top returning scorers at 6.5 and 6.0 points per game. Both should see an uptick in their production now that more of the offensive responsibility will fall on their shoulders. Warren-Newsome posted double-figures in three of four contests late in the Horizon League season. Abram’s size at 6’8” will make him a difficult cover on the offensive end.
Senior bruiser Vance Johnson (6-8, 230) will patrol the paint for Milwaukee, playing the role Brett Prahl had perfected over the last couple of years. Pat Baldwin’s team surrendered just 68.5 points per contest last season, third-best mark in the Horizon League. It’s where Baldwin hung his hat as a player at Northwestern and where he’ll look for the Panthers to become even stingier in his second year as head coach.
Preseason All-Horizon League second-team selection Naz Bohannon leads the way for Youngstown State as they look to improve upon last year’s 6-12 conference mark. The ultra-aggressive Bohannon pulled down 108 offensive rebounds in 2018-19, more than any other player in the league. Sophomore guard Garrett Covington is the Penguins’ leading returning scorer at 8.3 PPG, a number that could see a healthy bump with Youngstown great Cam Morse having graduated.
Junior guard Devin Morgan comes over from Delaware State and will be one of the more exciting scorers to watch in the conference. Darius Quisenberry is a true freshman point guard, and while there is often a period of adjustment for players at that position, he might just be too good to keep on the bench for long. Calhoun comes from the Bob Huggins school of full-court pressure, trapping, forcing turnovers, and we’ll likely see more of that style begin to bleed through as he kicks off his second year with the program.
Veteran head coach Mike Davis takes over at Detroit Mercy after a very successful six-year run at Texas Southern, where he led the Tigers four times to the NCAA Tournament. Davis coached the Indiana Hoosiers all the way to the National Championship game in 2002 before bowing out to Juan Dixon and the Maryland Terrapins.
The Titans might have the best-shooting backcourt duo in the Horizon League with senior Josh McFolley and freshman Antoine Davis (son of Mike). Seniors Jacob Holland and Derrien King, both graduate transfers, give Detroit Mercy added depth and versatility within the roster. The 6-foot-7 King was once a Washington State Cougar and will torch the opposition if left unguarded. Upperclassmen Gerald Blackshear Jr. and Cole Long are two of just three returning Titans, along with McFolley. The two forwards will be key members of Davis’s rotation.
The last five seasons have seen five different schools emerge with the Horizon League tournament championship. Top seeds have rolled through conference play and then got zapped early at Motor City Madness.
Horizon League men’s basketball can be crazy, unpredictable, and dramatic. It’s not a show you can leave when it’s half over and assume you can predict the ending.
Wright State and Northern Kentucky were the top dogs in 2017-18 and return several key pieces. Love and Hughes; McDonald and Tate; all will be in the hunt for major postseason accolades.
UIC has a championship in its sights with a loaded backcourt. Linc Darner has two preseason all-conference selections and the depth necessary to really hound opponents again. Greg Kampe is an underdog for a change and the Golden Grizzlies could draw inspiration from that unfamiliar feeling.
The only safe prediction you can make in the Horizon League is that any preseason prognostications are likely to wind up in the paper shredder by the middle of January.
Grab some popcorn and settle in. It’s about to be a wild ride.