Lakeland College

Men's basketball season preview: First-year head coach, young Muskie squad hope to "get better every day"

Athletics - posted on 11/12/2008

It will be hard enough for the 2008-09 Lakeland men's basketball team to follow up the Muskies' improbable, magical run to the Northern Athletics Conference Tournament championship last season. The 2007-08 team defeated three higher-seeded opponents, all on the road and in overtime, en route to the title.

It's even harder to do after losing five contributing seniors and the head coach.

First-year head coach Aaron Aanonsen looks to continue the program's success this season despite losing four starters, including four-time all-conference guard Kris Saiberlich, who remains with the program as an assistant coach. Last season's team finished 17-11 overall with a 10-8 mark in conference contests.

"With losing five seniors, we lose roughly 70 percent of every statistical category," Aanonsen said. "However, what we have lost in experience, we have gained in enthusiasm, and I am excited about the future of Muskie basketball."

Aanonsen, who has been the program's top assistant the past two seasons, will look to the team's lone senior, forward Peter Worth, and junior guard Khendal Andrews to take leadership responsibilities on the court this year. Considering the team has 10 freshmen, guidance from the upperclassmen will be important to the Muskies' success.

"It's going to be very important for Pete and Khendal to step up and be leaders of this team, because they've had some great people to feed off of the last two years," Aanonsen said. "They've been the recipients of a couple great leaders. If there's one thing that I understand, it's that when times get tough, great leaders emerge."

The play of Worth, a Sheboygan native, will be vital to this team's success. The team's only returning starter averaged 7.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in 22 starts last season. Worth led the Muskies with 39 offensive rebounds in conference play and shot over 61 percent from the field. The 6-foot-2 Worth is a converted point guard who compromises for his lack of height with his work ethic and hustle.

"Offensively, he's a lot more aggressive, and we're trying to focus more on playing through him," Aanonsen said. "We'll play the inside-out game with him because he's great at catching it inside or outside, and creating shot opportunities for his teammates. He understands how to play the game, and we're going to try and use that to our advantage."

Andrews is a 5-9 combo guard who shot just over 39 percent from 3-point range and 96 percent from the free throw line last season, averaging 5.8 points in 28 games played. The Kankakee, Ill., native will look to provide scoring punch playing mostly as a shooting guard.

"Khendal's a great shooter," Aanonsen said. "We will need to keep him involved in our offense, finding opportunities for him to come off screens and make plays. I feel that teams won't be able to double in the post because you have dead-eye shooters like Khendal on the perimeter."

Junior forward/center Anthony Cobb also returns from last season's rotation. The Milwaukee native averaged 3.4 points and 2.8 rebounds in 24 games played a year ago. The 6-6 Cobb will be an enforcer down low with his above-average rebounding and defensive skill.

"He's going to block shots, take charges, get rebounds, and he'll probably be looked on to guard the opposite team's best post player this year," Aanonsen said. "He's also improved his ability to finish around the basket, and is more confident playing with his back to the basket."

Sophomore Sam Schroeder, a 6-2 guard who appeared in just 12 games last season, also projects to be in Aanonsen's rotation. Schroeder, a Shawano native, is a good shooter who has improved defensively during the preseason.

"With Sam, it's going to be his confidence," Aanonsen said. "If he plays confidently, he's going to be a really good player. We just have to make sure we're giving him the ball on the offensive end in the right situations where he can succeed."

Sophomore forwards Jay Freerking (6-10, Mauston) and Trevor McKown (6-7, Hot Springs, S.D.) will look for playing time in the frontcourt. Freerking is a face-up post player and a good shot-blocker who has been out for much of the preseason with a back injury. McKown is known for his hard work and finishing ability down low.

Junior guard Phil Sontag (6-0, Altoona) also returns, but is sidelined for the season with a knee injury. Sontag appeared in 25 games a year ago, making seven starts.

Several freshmen will be relied upon to add depth and support to the returning cast.

One player who has been particularly impressive to the coaching staff is point guard Josh Regal. The 5-10 Suring native is the brother of Aaron Regal, Lakeland's starting point guard the past two seasons who received all-conference honorable mention last year as a senior. Josh Regal is a playmaker, using his quickness and floor vision to shred opposing defenses.

"He was a phenomenal player in high school, and has really stepped it up coming to the college game," Aanonsen said. "His ability to see the floor is much better than any other point guard we've had in our program since I've been here."

Jake Schwarz, a 6-5 forward from Sheboygan, has also caught the eye of the coaches. Schwarz is an inside-outside talent who can shoot, post up and rebound. As is the case with many freshmen, Schwarz will need to adjust to the college game to be a force for the Muskies.

"Jake's a super-talented kid," Aanonsen said. "He's going to have to adjust to the college game, but once he does, he will be a deadly inside-out scoring threat."

A pair of freshmen guards, Eric Vandivier (Mt. Prospect, Ill.) and Brandon Young (Milwaukee), will also compete for a spot in the rotation. Vandivier is a 6-3 wing who can slash to the rim and shoot from the outside. The 6-foot Young is an athletic combo guard.

Freshmen forwards Germell Heard (6-5, Milwaukee) and Eric Strzok (6-5, Thorp) will also look to contribute immediately. Heard is one of the better athletes on the team, while Strzok has a knack for the ball and finishing around the basket.

Freshmen Andrew Gussert (5-10, G, Crystal Falls, Mich.), Brandon Bray (5-11, G, Waukegan, Ill.), Hunter Wolf (5-11, PG, Menasha) and Matt Pioch (6-7, F/C, Mundelein, Ill.) round out the Lakeland roster and will fight for playing time as well.

"Like any other team, we've had great days, average days, and bad days in practice so far," Aanonsen said. "It's going to be important for this young team to minimize their off-days and come together, battle through, grind it out, and focus on getting better each day, which is our theme for the season."

Lakeland will be tested early in the season with non-conference games at Lake Forest (Nov. 22), a member of the Midwest Conference, and a pair of games over winter break against Trinity (Texas) and Southwestern (Texas) in Georgetown, Texas, on Dec. 18-19.

For the first time in league history, the NAC has been divided into two divisions, the North and the South. The Muskies will play in the North Division, along with Concordia Wisconsin, Edgewood, Marian, Maranatha Baptist and Rockford. Lakeland will play each team in its division twice during the regular season, and each team from the South Division once.

Players and coaches around the league are excited about the new scheduling.

"I like having divisions, because our guys will miss less class time and it gives us a set rotation in our schedule," Aanonsen said. "The last couple years, we've had some problems with uneven scheduling, where some of the top teams would have a weaker schedule. So this just makes it more uniform for everyone."

Lakeland was picked to finish third in the conference's preseason coaches' poll, receiving a pair of first-place votes. Marian was picked first, receiving eight of the 12 first-place votes, while Edgewood was tabbed second in the league. Last season's regular season champion, Aurora, was selected first in the South Division.

Share This Story