2021-22 NCC Men's Basketball Preview

Yesterday was a busy day, and today it continues as the men make their season debut.

It'll be another evening at Merner Fieldhouse for me, which I'm excited for once again. It should be an interesting campaign on this end as well, so let's take a look at what to expect on the other side.

North Central Cardinals

2021: 5-5 (5th in CCIW), DNP in CCIW Tournament

2021 Recap
How do you follow up making the Sweet Sixteen and getting your tournament run getting pulled out from under you by a global pandemic? The Cardinals started strong depite losing significant pieces from that title contender, then a couple weeks into the abbreviated season an announcement came out that there would be no NCAA Tournament for Division III. I don't want to say that that took the wind out of the Cardinals' sails, but it may have had an impact as the team finished decently for the year, though their end of the season, including Senior Day and their CCIW Tournament run were cancelled due to COVID.

Key Returners
Most of the main faces from that Sweet Sixteen are gone now; this is Blaise Meredith's team. The Naperville native made First Team All-CCIW in the abridged 2021 season and only needs 152 points to join the 1000 Point Club; hopefully he'll get to do it at home. The other main face from that squad is guard Matt Helwig, who will probably start just about every game for the Cardinals. Other key pieces from last year's outfit include guard Shea Cupples and forward Brian Johnson, and based on playing time last year probably a little bit of Elijah Moreno-Winston as well.

New Faces
The most notable among the new Cardinals is that a second Helwig joins the fray: Matt's younger brother Ethan cracked the opening night roster after transferring in from Merrimack College. Four freshmen are also among the initial 16 assigned numbers who will likely suit up for the opener; we'll have to see what Todd Raridon's rotation looks like in the early going and how deep he'll go. Perhaps the other most notable "new" face is the Cardinals' new GA: an old friend and former All-American in Alex Sorenson.

Non-Conference Schedule
The out of conference slate looks pretty decent this year. The Cardinals get their season opener the night of this post as they welcome in Cal Lutheran for the first game of their three game Chicago swing to open the Kingsmen's campaign. This is followed up by more local, but still strong challengers, as a few days after the opener the Cardinals' stamina will be tested by Greenville and its use of The System. The Battle of Chicago-Maple Avenue gets renewed in Lisle right before Thanksgiving, followed by the other NACC rival in Aurora coming calling right after the holiday. Breaking up conference play is a trip north to take on UW-Oshkosh for the first time since Mike Pollack made the Greatest Backdoor Cut of All Time. Right before Christmas the Cardinals make a two game swing into Michigan to take on Kalamazoo and Olivet, and between Christmas and New Years North Central will head to Orlando to take part in the RDV Sportsplex Classic, going up against Hope and Central to round out non-league play.

CCIW Outlook

Every year I make mention of how the CCIW is a gauntlet, and I'd say this year is no exception, but I don't know that "Gauntlet" is a strong enough descriptor for this season. This may arguably be the strongest the league has ever been thanks to eligibility extensions and some medical waivers in places. Illinois Wesleyan brings back most of its squad that won the conference tournament last year, is off to a 1-0 start already, and will test itself in the inaugural Jack Sikma Hall of Fame Invitational this weekend. Wheaton also brings back a significant chunk of a group that lost only once in the shortened campaign, and that came to the aforementioned Titans in the conference title game. Elmhurst, meanwhile, gets a healthy Jake Rhode back as well as Lavon Thomas, only two of the best guys in the CCIW, to challenge for that top spot and creating a really strong triumvirate at the top of the conference. Given North Central's youth, I think it's fair to slot the Cardinals right below them, but ahead of just about everyone else. Carthage is looking to build off a decent first year under Steve Djurikovic, and his dad Bosko returns to the Firebird sideline as an assistant this year. Augie is in a weird position after Grey Giovanine's heir Steve Schafer decided to take another opportunity shortly after his first campaign concluded; longtime assistant Tom Jessee will take the helm for the Vikings. The other coaching change takes place at the bottom, as after Mark Scherer was not retained at Millikin, assistant Kramer Soderberg takes over in Decatur. Carroll and North Park should both challenge for end of the tournament spots as well.

Final Thoughts
The big thing for me is "How quickly will the new guys acclimate?" You know you're going to get good efforts out of the leaders of this team, but we'll need to see continued development out of Brian Johnson and Shea Cupples as well. I think this team will compete for a conference title, though whether they'll challenge for that top spot remains to be seen. Still, I think there's some reason for optimism in Naperville this year.

2021-22 Prediction: 17-8, 11-5 CCIW (3rd)