ECC men a mix of talent, experience
Elgin Community College men's basketball coach Reed Nosbisch believes his Spartans have the potential to be an excellent team if they focus and remain dedicated.
Buoyed by three returning starters, some key transfers and an excellent recruiting class, ECC could develop into a contender in the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference.
"Our expectations are pretty high," said Nosbisch, who enters his third season as head coach. "Our work ethic has to match the expectations and we're not there right now. We have a lot of transfers and a lot of talent. We just have to put all the pieces together now."
The Spartans are 0-3 after Wednesday's 77-75 home loss to Harper College in overtime. They opened the season with a 66-55 loss to Triton and a 64-57 loss to College of DuPage.
Leading a group of eight returning players is 6-foot-1 guard Johnny Paden. As a freshman he averaged 11.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists and was named a unanimous first-team all-conference pick.
Paden will be a co-captain along with David Bernard, a second-team all-conference selection who averaged 8.9 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. He switches this season from the post to the wing, his natural position.
Brett Manning (6-2, G), a St. Edward alum is the team's "designated shooter," Nosbisch said. Last year Manning sank 46 3-point shots. Also returning are part-time starter at point guard Andrew Smith (6-0), off-guard Eddie Gray, Jr. (5-10), shot-maker Ryan Mattes (5-10), defensive-minded guard Tommy Krueger (5-10), Tarnell Davis (6-0), who played the first semester last season, and Jon Suire (6-0).
The transfers will play a key role. D'Angelo Stewart (6-6, 238 pounds), who played center for the Elgin High supersectional team of 2008, has transferred to ECC from Sauk Valley C.C. He contributed 2 points and 5 rebounds in the team's first two games and 9 points against Harper.
Another key forward is Marty Hutchinson, Paden's cousin. The 6-3 sophomore transfer averaged 6.5 points in his first two contests. Cameron Sanchez (6-6, 210) of Woodstock will lend rebounding help after transferring from MCC, and Mike Bertrand (6-5, 220) of St. Charles will contribute when he becomes eligible in the second semester.
Nosbisch made a point on the recruiting trail last winter of bringing in players from winning programs. Heading that list are Aaron Reams (6-4, F) and Marcus Henry (6-0, G) from Dundee-Crown. Their high school team finished fourth in the state in Class 4A. Henry has been slowed for a week with the flu, but Reams has taken to the college game quickly. He averaged 10 points in his first three games to go with 12 offensive rebounds.
"He's more aggressive, he's put on weight and his vertical is unbelievable," Nosbisch said of Reams. "He has a very, very high ceiling if he keeps working at it."
The rest of the recruiting class includes: Marquis Lobdell (6-5), an impact freshman forward from highly ranked Peoria Limestone; Jeff Lewis from South Elgin got his first start against Harper; Hampshire's Mike Kozenczak is a strong wing guard; and Larkin's Terell John will add muscle in the post.
"One of our goals was to start getting guys who come from winning programs, players that know how to win and know the kind of work ethic it takes to win," Nosbisch said. "Getting those two guys from Dundee-Crown set the stage a little bit."