Metro-East Lutheran, Madison, Waltonville have loaded guns
Cairo, Okawville, could be impressive late; Mater Dei, Gibault, Mount Carmel all are dangerous

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS INDEPENDENTS

Projected Order of Finish 1. Madison 2. Breese Mater Dei 3. Metro-East Lutheran 4. Waltonville 5. Cairo 6. Okawville 7. Gibault Catholic 8. Mount Carmel

BY JACK BULLOCK For the rankings of the Independents in Southern Illinois ABV did a bit more than last season in this edition of previews. The top seven teams that are actually Independents are listed here along with Mount Carmel who plays in an Indiana conference. If you are a fan of this site and of Southern Illinois high school hoops you already know this. Waltonville is the newcomer to list of having no official dance partners as they left the Midland Trail Conference after just one season and will now "blaze there own trail." Madison and Metro-East Lutheran are both loaded Metro-East St. Louis Area Independents that will be state playoff contenders this coming February. Okawville has always “walked alone” in the Indy circuit and are used to taking on anyone who will dare play them. Gibault Catholic is in the same situation in that the Hawks take on them all - big or small. Ditto for Breese Mater Dei. The Knights of yore were in a conference but have been an Indy for over a decade now. Cairo doesn’t mind getting on the bus either. After being unceremoniously booted from the Black Diamond Conference two seasons ago – the Pilots actually have a pretty good schedule of games this season including some welcomed home contests. Mount Carmel – a former member of the now disbanded North Egypt Conference – has slugged it out with some of the best in Indiana in the past few winters. They might as well be an Independent and probably would be if they could find enough teams to play them in football each season. Not many programs will do that on a yearly basis. As for the rankings here, they are just there for folks to view. No real prediction here other than all of these teams will be tough to beat regardless of the situation – regular season or post. 1. MADISON Although they should continue to head North when it comes to the state tournament (Jacksonville 1A Supersectional Area) the Trojans are part of the ABV South Indy’s. This program has been traditionally rich in boy’s basketball with a trophy case filled with memories. This team and new coach would like to add some shiny objects to the case this season. Madison has the athletes to do just that in 2009-10. Even though the Trojans struggled at times in 2008-09 (11-17) they were in a lot of games and played a brutal schedule against some larger schools and good small programs. That schedule isn’t any easier this season and new head coach Jaime Cotto knows full well what to expect after spending time as an assistant last season at Madison. With four returning starters in place the Trojans can move forward with the goals set in front of them being very realistic. The backcourt is set with Delandis Farrar returning after scoring 8.4 p.p.g. last season as a junior. Farrar is 6-foot and quick and helps out around the basket well as he added four rebounds a game to his stats in 2008-09. At the two-spot Madison has Kendall Echols – a 5-foot-9 senior who averaged 12 p.p.g. last winter to go with 1.1 assists. Echols canned 45 3-pointers and is a zone-breaking/long-range threat for opponents to keep an eye on. Eric Mason – a 6-foot-5 senior – is the vet on this team having suited up and played varsity each of the last two seasons with his third season coming up. Mason averaged 10.5 points a contest in 2008-09 and those numbers could see a spike this year. His 5.6 rebounds were second on the team and his 2.1 assists a night were tops. Cotto calls him, “the most skilled player we have in the program.” The fourth starter is the returning leader in points and rebounds. Six-foot-three senior forward Xavier Williams averaged 15.2 points and 7.3 rebounds for a Madison squad that was upended by Lovejoy in the Lebanon 1A Regional semifinals. Williams excels around the basket and finishes well. All four of those starters bring experience and skill back to the floor for what could be a state tournament run. Coach Cotto listed three other kids that he feels will via for the other starting spot and also supply minutes off of the Madison bench. Lamont Gregory – a 5-foot-9 senior – scored 3.3 p.p.g. as a junior reserve while being the “sixth man” for the Trojans last season. Coach Cotto may keep him in reserve to add that spark again this season. Five-foot-nine sophomore Torian Gregory may start as the team’s point guard. He played in 11 varsity games last season and threw in a few points. According to this coach – Torian should be ready for the varsity action this winter. Corey Hardin – a sophomore guard with potential – should see some time in the varsity games off the bench. He is an excellent student (4.0 GPA) according to Coach Cotto. ”We play a very difficult schedule for a Class 1A team. Our schedule consists of games against teams that have double our enrollment. We play in the Lebanon, Collinsville and Massac County Tournaments,” said Coach Cotto. “We could have a special year if we do a better job of playing as a team rather than as individuals. We didn’t do a good job last year in playing all four quarters of a game. We would lose focus and let teams make huge runs at us. We must do a better job in determining the tempo that we want to play at. We want to run for all four quarters and make teams play at our tempo” OUTLOOK – This team could be sitting on something really special here and the coaching change with Cotto stepping into the lead role could help stabilize the situation. They have all the intangibles: A point guard, shooters, big kids in the frontcourt and long armed defenders. ABV believes that if they were in the Deep South part of the bracket they would have to be considered one of the top 1A teams in the area. For now they can be satisfied that they are the top ranked Independent on this list. 2. BREESE MATER DEI Head coach Brian Perkes will send to the hardwood some new faces in 2009-10 after saying “so long” to six important seniors from last winter. Justin VonderHaar, Nick Boeckmann, Austin Tschanne, Aaron Fuehne, Blake Ofstedal and Taylor Beckmann were part of an 18-13 team that made it to a 3A Regional title game before losing to Belleville Althoff on the Crusaders floor. VonderHaar was the top scorer for the Knights last winter as he averaged 15 points a night. Boeckmann was second in scoring at 14.1 and the total point production missing from graduation is 44.7 points a game. Returning for MD are some experienced kids and some players stepping to the varsity spotlight for the first time. The first vet back is point guard Tyler Detmer – a 6-foot senior. Coach Perkes should have his offense in capable hands with this one running the offense. Detmer pitched in 4.2 points a game last season as a junior while handing out 1.7 assists. Six-foot-one junior guard Trevor Richards also returns after scoring a few points (1.9 p.p.g.) as a sophomore. Six-foot-five senior Alec Kuhl got into 25 games last season and scored 3.3 p.p.g. while rebounding a bit at 2.7 per game. Coach Perkes has two kids without much varsity experience but have earned their respective ways into the starting five. Six-foot-three sophomore Corey Arentsen was moved up to the varsity late last season and scored 30 points in a pair of late games for a 15 p.p.g. average which was plenty enough to show that he fit in even though he was just a ninth grader. Another player moving up from the junior varsity this season is 6-foot-7 forward Jacob Kampwerth who Coach Perkes says has gotten better and moved up. Look for Connor Beckmann – a 5-foot-11 junior guard – to be a park of the Mater Dei plans this year. Beckmann averaged 1.4 p.p.g. last season as another of the good underclassmen that are available at BMD. The bench looks as deep as Carlyle Lake with several players warranting spots. Look for Ricky Sherman – a 5-foot-11 senior point guard – to be pair of the backcourt reserves. Senior John Dulle – a 6-foot-1 forward – should also be able to help with minutes after scoring 1.5 points a game in limited duty last season. Five-foot-eleven junior Travis Timmermann has also came up from the JV ranks. The Knights will also tackle one of those schedules that results in tough games each and every night. ”We feel like our schedule will help us get ready for the postseason and that is ultimate goal each season,” said Coach Perkes who is 87-65 in five seasons at BMD. “We have some good kids that have moved up after losing six seniors.” OUTLOOK – The Mater Dei program looks to be the same. Lots of talent ready to play “anyone and everyone.” Coach Perkes has a good mixture of size and quickness and some kids back with experience to lead the ones who don’t. The Knights – like the rest of this list – might not have a pretty mark at the end of the road but they could be a dynamic in the 3A state tournament regional level. 3. METRO-EAST LUTHERAN The Knights have two really fine returning starters and several key ingredients that should make for an excellent recipe for hardwood success in 2009-10. Head coach Chad Ambuehl has built a juggernaut of a basketball program in Edwardsville in just a short period of time and his Knights are on the cusp of something really big this season. If the IHSA keeps the regionals and the state tournament paths the same as last season – the Knights could be the toughest challenger in the sectional to Breese Central. Those two teams are entered in the Breese Mater Dei Holiday Tournament and could end up meeting in that pool play event. As for the focus of this preview about the Knights – two returning starters and some solid reserves from a year ago are back to try and improve on a 20-11 season that ended at the Roxana 2A Regional final with a 44-40 to Columbia. When two of your top three scorers and your top two rebounding horses return for a senior season – it is a good situation to begin any crusade. This is the case for MEL with both Bob Schnietz and Spencer Morris returning for their senior seasons. Schneitz was an ABV First Team 2A selection last season and 2009-10 should bring a few more accolades for this 6-foot-3 senior lefty swingman. He scored 13.0 points a game for the Knights that led a balanced scoring lineup. His game was to get to the basket and the foul line and he did both very well as a junior. He made 52 percent of his field goal attempts and hit 68 percent from the foul line. There isn’t much need to launch 3-pointers when you can get to the basket as well as this one can. Morris – a 6-foot-6 senior forward – averaged 10.2 p.p.g. last winter and crashed the boards to lead the Knights with 6.6 rebounds per contest. Morris also was accurate from the floor in hitting over half of his attempts. With these two vets returning – the leadership roles are covered for Coach Ambuehl. Metro-East Lutheran has two other letterwinners from a season ago who are expected to fill spots on the starting lineup as the Knights head into battle at their own Thanksgiving Tournament. Dan Niemeier – a 6-foot-2 senior – got into 23 varsity battles last season and helped out with 3.1 p.p.g. Six-foot-two senior Josh Verdun played in 21 contests and added a few ink spots on the book. Those two will be counted on to help out Schnietz and Morris in contributing some additional points. Coach A listed four other kids who he believes will be ready to step forward to the varsity. Senior guard Matt Hackman – a 6-footer - played in just a handful of A-Games on Knights’ nights and tossed home a few markers. Six-foot-six junior Joseph Bodenbach averaged 1.8 p.p.g. coming off the bench as a sophomore last season. Two sophomores – 6-foot-1 Nick Hoff and 6-foot Jacob Fanshier – should be part of the mix. Metro-East Lutheran has strengthened their already tough schedule by playing in three shootouts (Riverton, Pinckneyville, Tolono Unity) to go along with the Breese Mater Dei Holiday Tournament and Litchfield Invitational. There own Thanksgiving Tourney isn’t a glorified practice, either. Coach Ambuehl has eight kids that should all be looking forward to the challenges ahead in 2009-10. ”This team will be led by two of the top players and scorers from last year in Schnietz and Morris,” said Coach Ambuehl – who is 121-87 in seven previous seasons at the helm. “This team has some athleticism and length. We play a strong schedule that should prepare us for the postseason. Our role players will be the key to our success.” OUTLOOK – The Knights have grown used to winning games and would like nothing better than to take home the school’s second regional title in basketball to go with the one that the program captured in 2005 when that team went 27-5. Schnietz and Morris should carry a lot of the load for this team and the role players will be very important – especially the ones who come off the bench. Twenty-wins is a given here and ABV expects a very good won/loss mark heading into the regionals in February. 4. WALTONVILLE The Spartans – like the ones listed above – will play a brutal slate of games for a school that is barely over 100 in enrollment. But this schedule is by design. Dropping out of the Midland Trail Conference after just one season – Waltonville turned up the heat on their own thermostat with some tough competition with the goal of making this team ready for a postseason gallop. Head coach Mike Denault (122-58 in six seasons at Waltonville) has four returning starters and six major contributors from the club that went 19-10 last season with a semifinal loss to NCOE at the Zeigler-Royalton 1A Regional to finish the year. A loss that should serve as major motivational point for this team heading into the 2009-10 season. Two of the starters back from last season three-year varsity veterans. Joseph Lewis and Skyler Witges have been around the block and then some. The 6-foot-3 Lewis and 6-foot-2 Witges both averaged exactly 15.5 p.p.g. as juniors. Heading into the season both of these players are nearing 1,000-career points. Lewis averaged 5.6 rebounds a game from a year ago while Witges grabbed three boards a game. Both were 76 percent free throw shooters. Lewis shot the ball better from the field overall. As with all teams – scorers need help and Coach Denault has some other kids who have played with Lewis and Witges over the years and can be counted on. One is Brock Wheatley – a 6-foot-1 senior guard – who averaged 8.5 points a game as a junior to go with 3.6 assists. That averaged topped the Spartans. Wheatley is also a fine athlete on the football field as he was all-Black Diamond Conference as a running back for the S-VWW football co-op that went 9-1 this past fall. A fourth starter coming back is Gavin Bassett – a 6-foot-3 senior – who averaged 10 points a game. Although an erratic player at times – Bassett has a significant up side when he is playing well. Coach Denault likes the controlled Bassett better than the mistake prone player. The fifth starting spot could be filled by one of several contestants. Dylan Johnson – a 6-foot senior guard – and 6-foot junior Luke Stanhouse should fill one of the starting spots and the “sixth man” off the pine. Both of these kids could be very important to the long and grueling season ahead for this team. Two others Spartans – 5-foot-7 Levi Kabat and 5-foot-10 Brandon McCoy – are juniors that will start on the JV and help out in the big show. Six-foot-four senior Coty Compton broke his hand and missed his junior season and Coach Denault would like to get some minutes from his this winter. The Spartans will take on four teams this season on the schedule that won 20-plus games including rival Woodlawn who won 30. They could meet up with Breese Central at the Nashville Invitational or perhaps play the Hornets twice this year. Games with Herrin, Wesclin, Madison and Cairo will also test this team. This squad has won or shared the Du Quoin Tip-Off Classic title in each of the past three seasons. Good programs welcome challenges and this one will be no exception to that rule. ”We have a very experienced group of players returning from last year. Our success will be dependent upon our ability to defend and finish defensive possessions on the glass,” said Coach Denault. “It’s going to have to be a total team effort when it comes to rebounding on both ends of the floor.” OUTLOOK – Thou smallish on the height chart – this team has played bigger than they look. Sometimes tough schedules can wear down kids both mentally and physically. ABV believes that was the case late last season for this team. But what is impressive about Waltonville is that they seem to do just enough of the little things right to keep them in games against the really good teams. They handle and shoot the ball well and have dealt the pressure of expectations. Eventually ABV believes this will help them reach their ultimate goals. They played archrival Woodlawn tough twice last season and then watched the Cardinals go all the way to the state championship game in 1A. They may not say it publicly but the Spartans believed that they should have been in the Supersectional last season facing Woodlawn. Waltonville ought to come out of the gate playing really well and they had better be ready. There are very few cupcakes on the 2009-10 schedule. 5. CAIRO When you look on paper the lineup that the Pilots put on the floor last winter it is hard to imagine they finished just 10-14 with a loss to rival Meridian in the final of the Meridian 1A Regional. They had size, depth and athleticism but very little discipline and it showed in numerous close losses. Head coach Tommy Ellis – in his second year running the program – wants to change things around to begin winning those games they should in 2009-10. His Pilots look every bit as good on paper this season as last. Arthur Williams is a 6-foot-8 forward who could end up in a good college program after graduation. In averaging 15 points a game as a junior to go with 10.7 rebounds – Williams led the team in nearly every category. He had one triple-double last season in a win over Lovejoy. Williams scored 16 points, snagged 14 rebounds and blocked 12 shots in a 75-67 win in the team’s only home game of the season. Williams garnered all-tournament honors in all three of the Pilot stops last season (Du Quoin, Carbondale and Benton) and was a first team selection on the ABV Class 1A All-South Team. His up side is tremendous and he should create some scouting attention this season as Cairo travels around the state playing games. Williams should also pass the 1,000-point mark sometime this season. But he doesn’t have to carry the full load for this club. Williams isn’t alone in the search for respectability and success this season. Herschel Graham played a lot of basketball for the Cairo club last winter and scored in double figures in 16-of-24 games – averaging 11.3 points per contest. Coach Ellis showed this kids versatility by playing him at four different positions as a sophomore last season. Lee Wright is another returning player and this 6-foot-4 senior averaged 10.7 points a game. Five-foot-eleven senior guard Rodney Woodson should also be in the lineup when these Pilots travel up north to the Du Quoin Tip-Off Classic. Another 5-foot-11 guard is junior Mark Jones. Following those five the other reserve spots will up for competition between one senior – 6-foot-1 Derek Dortch – a several freshman and sophomore’s that Coach Ellis feels will make an impact eventually. “We are looking to build on last season and reload our position players we have lost to graduation,” said Coach Ellis. “We have strength, speed and we will defend because we must improve defensively because we gave up too many easy points by not contesting and denying shots.” OUTLOOK – The Pilots have the potential to be a state tournament contender this season and are athletic enough to tackle another brutal schedule. This club turned the ball over way too many times last season. Even up-tempo teams that run and gun shouldn’t turn the ball over 11 times a game on average like the Pilots did in 2008-09. Williams should be getting a lot of college letters in the mail and the rest of the team could be pushed for time by a good group of underclassmen that Coach Ellis believes could help now while planning for the future. Cairo will make a lot less bus trips this season as they have some home dates on the calendar. Cairo traveled 3,000 miles last season and never made it to “Graceland.” But if all things go as planned and the turnovers and silly mistakes can be avoided then this group could make it to the “Promised Land” of high school basketball in Illinois. This coach would like to pack for one additional trip that is about 300 miles one-way. Peoria would be a nice place to spend a weekend in March. will have taken down some good ones along the way. Being 3A hurts but they won’t back down from any of the Metro-East powers in the postseason. 6. OKAWVILLE The Rockets have relished in the sunshine that is the four-class system. Two consecutive seasons have produced two Supersectional appearances. Although they fell in both games to Nokomis and Woodlawn – at least the Rockets know the way to SIU. This season Coach Jon Kraus will have to piece together a team that will be without several important members of the 18-16 sectional title winning team from last March. Six seniors from last season – including the top three scorers Clark Weeke (12.5 p.p.g.), Devin Clary (9.4 p.p.g.) and Cullen Barkau (7.0 p.p.g.) – have left the program. But all is not lost in Okawville as one starter and five letterwinners are returning for Coach Kraus. Six-foot-four senior forward Tyler Brammeier returns after a good junior year of helping out in scoring (5.5 p.p.g.) and rebounding (4.2 r.p.g.). More points and rebounds will come his way in 2009-10. Justin Lohman – a 6-foot-3 senior – chipped in a few points and boards (2.5 p.p.g., 1.8 r.p.g.) as a junior. Six-foot-four senior Jake Frederking tossed in 4.2 points and grabbed 2.3 rebounds a night. After those three not many stats return. Brandon Wisneski – a 5-foot-10 junior guard – and 5-foot-10 sophomore Austin Schwankhaus – should get a chance to play there way into the lineup. So should Taylor Walton – a 6-foot-2 sophomore. Walton, Schwankhaus and Wisneski combined to play in just ten varsity games so that trio will “learn as they go” this season. Coach Kraus also mentioned freshman Jeremy Weeke and Ryan Burrough as potential varsity help. ”We will return one starter (Brammeier) and one key reserve (Frederking) from last season with both seeing substantial playing time for us,” said Coach Kraus who played and later coached at this, his alma mater. “We are inexperienced at the varsity level but we possess some good overall size in the middle. Our perimeter players (Schwankhaus, Wisneski, Weeke and Burrough) are young kids and it will take some time to get them ready for the postseason but our schedule and hard work will have them ready.” OUTLOOK – You can forget paying attention to the Rockets won/loss mark because of who they play these numbers will never look pretty. But when the games are played for real in February and March – this coaching staff will have these players on the right course. Although young – this backcourt could turn out to be very good and the guys up front will benefit from these kids growing up. If you look around and see Okawville back in a sectional don’t be surprised. No amount of success from this program surprises ABV. 7. GIBAULT CATHOLIC The Hawks will have deal with not having their defensive stopper on the floor for the first time in three seasons when they begin the season at the Metro-East Lutheran Thanksgiving Tournament – of which they are the defending champs. Coach Dennis Rueter lost Michael Hoffman to graduation and this 6-foot-9 center took a lot of crooked numbers with him. Trying to replace 13.6 points, 12 rebounds and 4.2 blocked shots a game will be difficult. But a good athletic group returns – as it always seems to at this school – from last season’s 14-16 squad that lost to Metro-East Lutheran at the Roxana 2A Regional last February. One of the players mentioned by this coach missed his sophomore year season due to injury but after healing up as a junior he is looking for an even better prep finale. Six-foot-four senior Kyle Prader is a good one according to Rueter and after producing 10.1 points a game last season looks to better that number in 2009-10. He was second on the team last season in rebounds with 5.3 per evening. Another starter back is Justin Rueter – a 5-foot-8 junior – who added 6.1 p.p.g. along with 1.4 a.p.g. from the backcourt. Four letterwinners return this season to add to the lineup and depth of bench. Six-foot-one junior guard Nick Kovarik (1.9 points, 1.3 rebounds) will get a look at the starting lineup as well as 5-foot-11 junior Corey Hogrefe (1.5 p.p.g., 1.1 r.p.g.), 6-foot-4 Jacob Cooper (2.2 p.p.g., 1.8 r.p.g.). Six-foot junior guard Sean McFarland (2.0 p.p.g., 1.1 r.p.g.) is also expected on the court this season for Coach Rueter who is very high on his junior class of athletes and is looking for some help later in the season from some freshman. ”I believe Prader is ready for a big season after being hurt as a sophomore and getting better last season,” said Coach Rueter – who has fashioned a 545-262 record in 29-seasons at Gibault Catholic. “We have a good junior class to go with him and two pretty good freshman.” OUTLOOK – The record didn’t look too good last season but they were a “tough out” in all of their tournaments. They are like the rest of the Indy’s. They “have game, will travel.” This coach has weaved together some fine teams over the years and this program has taken on all comers in all sports. None of that has changed this season. Although Hoffman will be tough to replace – the Hawks look solid again and if the juniors and freshman turn out to be as good as this coach believes – Gibault Catholic will be one to watch in each of the next two seasons. 8. MOUNT CARMEL Technically not an Independent – this Indiana playing conference team is always listed here. Head coach Ryan Haywood always finds time to send the ABV questionnaire back and is rewarded with this spot. Unfortunately it will be tough to move the Golden Aces off of the bottom of this list even though the rankings here don’t matter at all there is no official standings. Mount Carmel went just 4-24 last season and that included losing to Fairfield in the first round of the Carmi 2A Regional. From that club senior Tyler Browning and his 13 points a game and team leadership left the program. Jordan Hicks is another of the important players that are gone after senior seasons – joining John Schonaman as three seniors missing from the Aces team that looks to rebuild. Coming off of three seasons in a row of which Mount Carmel won regional titles – Coach Haywood will move forward with a new group of youngsters. Six-foot-one junior guard Beau Grant played on the varsity last season and averaged 10 points a game. Alex Hale – a 6-foot-2 junior – and 6-foot-3 Shea Smith also return after scoring six and five points respectively per game. Six-foot-five junior Brandon Carpenter got into the action last season as did 6-foot-3 senior Matt McCarty. Both added to the offensive totals. Coach Haywood mentioned Shawn Bumpus – a 6-foot-1 junior who is new to the program. Point guard Michael Molstad grew some from last season and stands as a 6-foot-1 senior. Six-foot junior Michael Marcotte and Pete Condol – a 6-foot-1 sophomore – should be in the starting hunt. While we’re name-dropping – throw in the moniker’s James Griffin and Bryan Kennard. Griffin is a 5-foot-11 senior and Kennard is a 5-foot-7 senior. Both will have to continue to work hard to play. “We’re looking to bounce back after a tough rebuilding rebuilding year,” said Coach Haywood . “We should be much improved from last season and we should be able to play a lot of kids this year against another brutal schedule.” OUTLOOK – Not unlike the rest of the clubs on this page the Golden Aces play a “platinum” schedule with some powerhouse teams from Indiana and a handful of good ones here in good ole Land of Lincoln. They should manage to at least double last season’s win total but double-digits will take a lot of hard work. They have a bit of size and some kids back with time spent in varsity games. If the hard work continues then the success will follow.