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Scots blend solid core with talented newcomers Release Date:
November 11, 2009
MONMOUTH, Ill. —
Entering his third year at the helm, coach Mark Vershaw has
been waiting since March to begin the 2009-10 season. Vershaw is
hoping to blend a mix of youth and experience into a successful
season.
“The key will be for our newcomers to jell quickly with our
veterans,” said Vershaw. “We’ll have to depend on some first-year
players to make significant contributions.”
Not that the Fighting Scots don’t return some talent. Four starters
are back from a year ago, including Eric Cogdill (East
Moline, Ill./United Township) and Zach Ott (East Peoria,
Ill./East Peoria), who were two of the Scots’ top three scorers and
rebounders last season. Assist leader Eric Grant (Roseville,
Ill./Monmouth-Roseville) and tough defender Corey Gruber
(Galesburg, Ill./Abingdon) at guards round out the returning
starters. Guard Tyler Morrow (East Peoria, Ill./East Peoria)
will return for his final campaign after a year-long study abroad
stint and will join Ott as the only seniors on the squad.
“Grant and Gruber have been our starters at one and two for the past
two years and bring a lot of experience with them,” said Vershaw.
“As players get into their junior year with that amount of minutes
under their belts, you tend to see them really improve their
performance. Gruber has done a great job of being a defensive player
for us on the perimeter and we expect that to continue.”
If Gruber were to defend his teammates, he might have his hands full
with Cogdill and Ott, a dangerous inside-outside combination. The
6-foot-5 Cogdill scored the majority of his points last season in
the paint and ripped down 55 defensive rebounds, adding to his
reputation as a blue collar post player. Ott – a versatile 6-foot-7
forward – can take the ball to the hole, or hit the long-range bomb
as witnessed by his 16 three-pointers last season.
“We’re counting on Cogdill to be a consistent post presence,”
reported Vershaw. “His athletic ability and strength will offset any
advantage taller posts may have. Ott has good ball-handling skills
and can take it inside, or pull it out and hit the three. He’ll
probably take a few more outside shots and Cogdill will be more of
an inside threat. They complement each other very well.”
Vershaw also expects 6-foot-4 sophomore guard Curtis Oler
(Fox Lake, Ill./Grant) to step into a key role after finishing
strong as a freshman. Oler and Ott received praise from Vershaw for
their roles as team captains in the off season and have gotten
everyone on the same page. That’s especially important with so many
new ingredients, including highly touted junior transfer Joel
Dieterich (Galesburg, Ill./Galesburg).
“Joel’s greatest asset is he’s got a great basketball IQ,” praised
Vershaw of his guard. “He does the little things that make his
teammates better. You like being on the floor with that type of
player. He’s not interested in how many points he scores, he’s only
interested in how well the team does. He’d be just as happy if he
scored zero points and we won as if he had a 20-point night. He does
a lot of things well.”
No less than eight other newcomers form a “very athletic” group that
gives the Scots a variety of scoring options. That mix includes
“good-sized” guards Michael De Decker (Carbondale,
Ill./Murphysboro) and Kevin Fay (Hennepin, Ill./Putnam
County) – son of former multisport MC athlete Harold Fay. At
6-foot-3, the younger Fay offers another outside threat that will be
hard to stop. De Decker possesses the ability to penetrate, giving
Vershaw another offensive option.
“We’re very happy with our recruiting class,” said Vershaw. “They’re
going to get the opportunity to gain experience and develop into
some very good college players. We’re expecting them all to
contribute.”
Other expected contributors at guard are Bryce Donaldson
(East Peoria, Ill./East Peoria), Brady Cremeens (Hopedale,
Ill./Olympia) and Kendall Cox (Paxton,
Ill./Paxton-Buckley-Loda). Donaldson plays “all out” and gives the
Scots a three-point shooter who can also drive. Vershaw describes
Cremeens as a shooter with good range who should be able to stretch
the defense. Cox may be classified as the “banger” among the guards,
using his physical play to muscle his way to the basket.
Adding muscle at the forward spots are a pair of freshmen wrapping
up their fall season on the gridiron – Jake Willis (East
Peoria, Ill./East Peoria) and Garrett Youngren (Princeton,
Ill./Princeton). Willis joined the team after a stint as a backup
defensive lineman for the conference champion football team.
Youngren will hit the hardcourt after wrapping up football’s
postseason.
“We’re expecting Willis to step right in,” said Vershaw. “He’s
physically ready – a solid 6’6 and he’s a tough kid. We think his
defense and rebounding abilities will be his main attributes in the
early season.”
Junior Austin Andrews (Galesburg, Ill./Galesburg) – who
enters with junior college experience – is expected to also see
plenty of action. A “late bloomer,” Andrews adds more perimeter
power and experience.
“I’ve really been impressed with the ability of our new guys to
score in a variety of ways,” praised Vershaw. “We’ll have a very
deep bench and we’ll use it. Guys won’t have to play for long
stretches. You’ll see guys going harder and more substitutions to
keep our intensity up. With the players we have, we’ll want to get
into an up tempo.”
“Up tempo” doesn’t mean the Scots will be a run-and-gun team.
Instead, they’ll use their bench strength to wear down opponents.
“We want to create intensity with our offense and defense,” said
Vershaw. “We want to get into transition on both ends of the court.
Our bench is deep enough that our guys can go harder for shorter
periods. This is extremely important in our league that plays
back-to-back games on weekends.”
Vershaw hopes the faster pace will result in more possessions, more
points, and ultimately, more wins.
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