Pre-season Capsules:

The '03/04 season kicks off on 12/9, and I will give my 2-cents worth in regards to teams with Camp Darryl Players, and a few without(NO ONE WILL BEAT DETROIT RENAISSANCE).

MARSHALL: maybe the best team in the 269. A likely choice for a 2nd place finish(State Finals). All of the Varsity players on this squad played AAU/Travel ball last Spring & Summer, and the best Athlete(JR., Evan Sharpley) is a Major prospect in Football and Baseball, oh, and he can shoot the ball.... The front line is the key to their success, and in McCloskey & Bailey, they have a good one.
-Camp Darryl connection: JR. RYAN STOREY, and Frosh. SHANE STOREY-

THREE RIVERS: SHAWN EARL will carry more of an offensive burden for the Wildcats in this, his Senior year. TR, fresh off of a State title in Football, will try to use the Football teams success to propel the hoop squad to success in '03/04. The Wildcats also feature YANNICK MILLETT, a 2/3 combo with a lot of heart, and will bring mental toughness to the court. JASON RATERING, is to start his 3rd year on the Varsity, and will be counted on for more scoring in addition to his leadership this season.
Three Rivers is MY pick to win the Wolverine this year, just because SHAWN wants it so bad.
TR has a match-up with Marshall at some point this season(I don't have a schedule yet Shawn, so I don't know if I'll attend...)
-Camp Darryl connection: SHAWN EARL, YANNICK MILLETT, and JASON RATERING, all Seniors-

MIDDLEVILLE THORNAPPLE-KELLOGG: Ahhh, the Trojans... They will feature 80% of their starters as CDBA Folk. BRETT KNIGHT, MARK ROLISON, CHASE VANDENBERG, and JON YEAZEL.
M-TK, now in a tougher Conference, will face the likes of NEITZEL & KOOL this year. They should have a better year than last. YEAZEL is Top-10 in the CLASS OF '05, and KNIGHT has one of the sweetest strokes around. Look for these guys to make a run this year in the O-K Silver.
-Camp Darryl connection: BRETT KNIGHT, MARK ROLISON, CHASE VANDENBERG(all Seniors), and JON YEAZEL.-

ST. JOSEPH: The Bears will be tough this year. I'd never bet against Kyle Etter, and with Tyler Whittaker, and Knuth(Ben or Jake, I don't remember), they have lots of experience in these Seniors. The key to the Bears success will be how much love that the uperclassmen show for "Robo Clore". The Varsity welcomes 6th man extraordinaire DAVID CLORE(Soph) in '03. Based on what I witnessed in the scrimmage at/against Mattawan, "DC" will be at or near a double-double on each Tuesday & Friday night. If you can, go see these guys play, Etter & CLORE are worth the $3.00 themselves....
-Camp Darryl connection: 6'5" Soph, DAVID CLORE-

MATTAWAN: definately should improve on the 6 wins last season. AMPEY & LARSON have improved. Wilbur has developed a mid-range jump-shot, and Mark is becoming a classic "Euro"(as Steve Bell calls him), by extending his range out to the 3pt line(oh, and he can knock them down!). The Wildcats' lack of a consistent outside shooter will hurt them, as teams will pack it in on the 2 big guys. DAVID "SHAQ" CULTRA is the key here. He will need to take(and make) a few outside shots to open up the middle for the big guys. Look for Soph CORY WAGONMAKER to provide some scoring, and serve as help for the soon to be overworked CULTRA.
NOTE: no regular season game scheduled with Marshall. The "people" would love to see this matchup.
-Camp Darryl connection: WILBUR AMPEY, DAVID CULTRA, MARC LARSON, and CORY WAGONMAKER-

WYOMING KELLOGGSVILLE: In Anthony Townsend & RYAN SIMONSON, the Rockets have 40pts per outing in these two, and that's based on last years stats. Townsend is a tough scorer who's on his way to either the Big-10, or the MAC to play Wide Receiver(I hear Toledo).
$IMO, as most of you know is a "straight up scorer"(Michigan Preps), who also can pass the rock. I don't know if this dynamic duo(Simo is 'Robin') will get much help this season, but expect them to 'get theirs'...
-Camp Darryl connection: RYAN SIMONSON-

Players to watch: MATT DEEMER/Centreville; OMAR ESCAMILLA & DREW KRAGT/Schoolcraft;
EVAN BROWN/Lake Michigan Catholic(St. Joseph); JASON COPELIN/Lakewood; MATT SMITH/Lawton; JOHN GAJOR/Gull Lake; RYAN STEWART/Portage Central; SEBASTIAN JACKSON/Kalamazoo Central; and DARIO UGHETTI/Battle Creek-ST. Phillip.

-More to come...

-Darryl

[ December 08, 2003 11:38 AM: Message edited by: GoatCow#1 ]

[ December 08, 2003 02:32 PM: Message edited by: GoatCow#1 ]