2004-2005 Boys Basketball  Preseason Renegade Poll A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith (11-27-2004)

Let's set it out right up front that no Class 4A team from Northwest Indiana is going to win the state title. Lawrence North (29-2 last season), one of the top-10 teams in the nation, with the nation's No. 1 junior in 7-foot-1 Greg Oden (14 ppg, 9.8 rebounds, 3.2 blocks), is a prohibitive favorite to repeat as 4A champ. Pike high of Indianapolis is also overly talented as is Fort Wayne Snider. So, barring a series of injuries, a Lake or Porter County team has about as much chance of winning the state 4A crown as Nicolette Sheridan does of co-hosting the '700 Club' with Ron Artest.

But local battles will still be intense with Merrillville and Chesterton looking over their shoulders at Crown Point and Valparaiso in the DAC and many contenders battling for two trophies in the LAC. The ultimate showdowns in the Porter County Conference (PCC) should come down to Boone Grove and natural neighbor and 100-year rival Hebron.

1.) East Chicago (13-10)

EAST CHICAGO – East Chicago has the region's best sophomore in 6-3 E'Twan Moore (15.1 points, 6.3 rebounds), a fine all-around player. The Cardinals will benefit from senior guard Kyum Gillis (7.0 ppg.) and may get senior lead guard David Connor, a true point guard, back by midseason. I'm not sure what Connor's situation is but he is a key to this team which becomes the top team with Connor, another skilled guard. Senior Efrem Simmons (7.2 points, 4.7 rebounds), a 6-3 forward, will join 6-4 Ron Martin up front.

East Chicago, reportedly, is going to stick to the traditional EC style of four quarters of full court pressure defense. That's what you want to see when you go watch an East Chicago team play.

Obviously, EC is volatile and this ranking is tenuous. But there are no obviously great teams in NW Indiana this year. There are greatly talented teams that could develop into great squads and this is one of them.

2.) Merrillville (9-12)

MERRILLVILLE – The Pirates have the region's best lead guard in 5-10 Josh Mayo (16.1 points, 3.1 assists) and he'll join 6-3 junior Greg Hill (8.0 ppg.) and 6-4 senior Jimmy Reitz up front with 5-11 Dennis Howell (3.9 points) and 5-9 Tristan Dawson in the backcourt.

Mayo has become a better distance shooter, which consistently is Merrillville's weakness. But this will eventually be a strong defensive team.

There's a lot of talent here including 6-4 senior forward Dwayne Mormon, 6-6 sophomore Mike Stokes, 6-3 senior Aaron Marcus and 5-10 baseball star Darryl Evans. Merrillville hosts the sectional and might again be the favorite. Here's another team that could be great, this time because of the floor leader and all the veteran players.

3.) Chesterton (13-9)

CHESTERTON – Here's why Merrillville might NOT be the Merrillville Sectional favorite. Chesterton has as much talent on one team as they've had in at least 15 years. 6-4 senior Casey Martin (11.5 points, 7.5 rebounds) leads the way with 6-2 junior Curtis Bradford (8.3 points, 3.0 rebounds) and 5-9 senior guard Matt Maple (6.0 points, 3.0 assists). But the big force might eventually be at the center position with 6-11 Evan Schmidt and 6-6 Chase Saylor, both sophomores. Schmidt, who should eventually be taller than 7-feet, can be an intimidating defensive center with a chance to be a contributor on offense. Senior Chris Allison, a 6-5 forward, will get lots of time if inexperience shows with the two sophs.

I don't know if anybody has more players but the guards will be what defenses attack. In 4A in the DAC, you see everything imaginable defensively. But few teams in Indiana have this size. Not even the Pacers anymore. Of course, Chesterton boys won't run into the stands and fight the fans. The Pacers have a clear edge there.

4.) Crown Point (6-16)

CROWN POINT – The Bulldogs are not on anyone's list, but they will be very soon. CP returns 10 seniors off a team that lost 11 games by 11 points or less. They have a chance to turn around all of those losses. Senior guard Chachi Albrecht (11.0 points), 6-2 forward Sam Henderson (7.0 points, 3.0 rebounds), and 5-11 lead guard Mark Patrick (4.0 points). Up front, 6-4 center Mike Brown (8.0 points, 4.0 rebounds) and 6-5 power forward Brian Maloney (4.0 points, 5.0 rebounds) have plenty of experience. Brown has added 30 pounds while Maloney, who is coming off a broken foot, had a very competitive summer.

Add 5-10 shooter Jordan Ham and strong 5-10 lead guard Mike Smith along with a bench full of role players, including 6-1 soph Matt Ernest. Crown Point, as always, will push the ball up the sidelines and shoot the '3', when Maloney and Brown aren't getting an edge inside. This team worked together much of the summer and is primed for a big year. This is a team that could start and finish the season without even one all-area player. But they could be a great team. This is as much returning experience and potentially balanced scoring as CP has had in 20 years. The problem in the DAC will be to deal with Chesterton's size and Merrillville's full court speed. Crown Point probably has the best chance of any of the other six schools to do both.

5.) Gary West Side (13-6)

GARY – West Side probably has the best junior offensive player in NW Indiana in Jamil Tucker (15 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists) and he'll be a wing with senior DeShawn Wright (10.0 points, 7.0 rebounds). No one has more athletic ability than 6-5 high jump champion David Bell (8.0 points, 8.0 rebounds) and it will be interesting to see who is the lead guard.

This team creates wild mismatches and can run the floor or play a half court game. West Side also lists 6-5 freshman center Gerald Campbell on the varsity. You rarely have varsity freshmen at West Side unless they can bring something to the table. It will all come down to who is the point guard after junior Robert Hall moved to Indianapolis (Pike). They better find out before they take the floor against East Chicago in the sectional.

6.) Valparaiso (22-3)

VALPARAISO – Every year, some say Valpo doesn't have much coming back. And every year, folks need to be reminded that some players don't really get a varsity shot till their senior year at big schools.

Guard Jon Moon (11.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists) will get the ball to 6-8 senior center John Hanselman, who has waited his turn. There is a lot in the sophomore class including 6-6 Rob Hummel and 6-0 Marcus Biggs but seniors Ryan Osburn and Kevin Tran will be counted on to lead. 6-5 junior Scott Martin and 6-3 junior Paul Coburn will be asked to contribute.

They don't have the returnees that match the other DAC schools but three senior guards and a 6-8 center is a good foundation. This selection is largely based on this program and not obvious assets.

In the season-opening 61-54 win over PCC favorite Boone Grove, Valpo shot 19 of 24 from the foul line. With a team of new varsity starters against a rival. That does not happen by accident.

7.) Lake Central (17-6)

ST. JOHN – The core of the team returns with senior point guard David Hoffmaster and 6-6 shooting guard Brett Summers. Add 6-1 Jon Maida on the wing and this team has a foundation. They'll need a lot of help up front from 6-3 Adam Short and 6-4 juniors Jason Goins and Ranko Ivetic. Chesterton, Valparaiso and LaPorte all have players at 6-8 or taller and everybody else in the DAC has to deal with that.

Summers' shooting ability and his size makes him unique in his league. That could be how LC beats teams with the big centers like Chesterton, Valpo and LaPorte.

8.) LaPorte (21-4)

LaPORTE – Senior Troy Tonagel (8.0 points, 3.5 rebounds) will lead and guards Brent Herwehe and 6-2 Jon Burger have experience. 5-10 soph guard Airrence Shark (5-11) is coming off a 1,000-yard season in football and 6-8 senior center Josh Corey has the size you need in the DAC this year. There is a lot of depth here and they'll need it. Tonagel is out until January with a broken wrist.

The Slicers always shoot well and this year's team is no exception. Teams with returning guards cannot be ignored. Teams without good guards in the DAC can most definitely be ignored because there's just too much talent for big or fast players to overcome without quality direction. LaPorte has quality and experienced direction. It's still going to be a very tough place to play.

9.) Hammond (13-10)

HAMMOND – Point guard Jere Taylor (15.0 points) and shooting guard Chris Moore (9.0 points) return with 6-8 senior center Jermaine Brooks and 6-6 Aaron Wright (9.0 points). The Purple Boys have a lot of depth and they must use 10-12 players to wear other teams down. No one in the LAC has more talent and no one has as much speed. Taylor might be the best offensive guard in the LAC and Brooks can be an intimidating center.

10.) Andrean (15-7)

MERRILLVILLE – The good news is that 6-7 Luke Harangody, wing Frank Provenzano plus guards Jake Kocal and Tommy Finn all return. The bad news is, Harangody is probably not 100% after back surgery at the start of the calendar year while Kocal and Finn are still with Andrean's state finalist football team. There are eight seniors listed on this team but we won't know much until after the first of the year. Usually, at a small school, going deep into the football playoffs does not help the boys basketball team. Maybe Andrean can be an exception.

OUTSIDERS...

Outsider No. 1 - Portage (12-11)

PORTAGE – A strong guard line returns with Buster Battreal (14.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists), 6-9 senior Anthony Leal (4.7 points) and 5-10 senior Milton Rivera (8.6 points). 6-5 Jake Bryan and 6-4 AJ Repay will have to deal with much bigger DAC forwards.

The lack of size and an injury to Rivera have clouded Portage's sunny skies, but when you return your top backcourt players, you have will win more games than when you don't.

Outsider No. 2 - Bishop Noll (15-10)

HAMMOND – The speed is at guard with Sam Watts and Greg Jones returning at guard. Carlos Velez will be counted on at forward along with 6-2 Eric Pelletier but there are no tall boys here. Noll will have to run and press because easy rebounds will be scarce. But in Class 2A, this team certainly appears to be the favorite at sectional time, if only because of the quality and experience of their guards.

Outsider No. 3 - Boone Grove (12-11)

PORTER TOWNSHIP - Boone Grove is the favorite in the Porter County Conference with 6-4 forward Danny Borys (17.3 ppg.), 6-4 junior center Jon Shurr and 6-3 guard Will Mitchell (7.1 ppg.), creating matchup problems in most games. Schurr will allow Borys to face the basket and shoot over smaller defenders. Jake Pivarnik, a sophomore guard, should develop into a double figure scorer.

6-1 senior Joe Faron has experience at lead guard. Nobody better get hurt on this team, because I don't know about the rest of these players. But if the aforementioned five are 100% for the South County, PCC and Sectional tournaments, Boone certainly has a chance to win all three.

Outsider No. 4 - Munster (20-2)

MUNSTER - Munster will have to be a surprise because they do not have a true returning starter. But 6-8 center Scott Rutkowski is a good start and 5-10 guard Brent Banach can be a steadying hand as a senior lead guard. The sophomore class includes 5-10 guard Steve Luptak and 6-4 soph Joe Wingis. In the season-opening 80-36 win over Clark, the Mustangs made 14 of 17 from the line with Luptak scoring 12 and seven players scoring eight or more. Munster appears to have a lot of potential but it will come as a surprise to us 'outsiders'.

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Revised: November 27, 2004 .