Second Team All OAC:
Brian Pollock
Maurice Haynes
Chris Switzer
Andrew Bene
Tyler Felt
Rudy Kirbus
6. Baldwin Wallace: Projected OAC Finish: 6th Projected Wins: 9 Floor: 6-12 Ceiling: 12-6 Players to Watch: Andrew Bene, Kyle Brown, Denny Santiago Analysis: Duane Sheldon returns to his alma mater to coach the new look Jackets in 08-09. They lose several catalysts (Bub, Tyler) from a 4 year run of consistent play that brought with it an OAC championship and two NCAA tournament appearances. The loss of two of the top 5 journeymen of the last four years leaves many lingering holes in the back court. One could pose the question: how do you lose two OAC journeymen, and even have the ability to field a team the next year? We will find out this year as Andrew Bene leads the charge through the conference. BW is a team that can really have a great year, or get on a bad run and struggle. They have a lot of tough guys, its just a question of getting the chemistry together under a new coach and system. Kyle Brown is a great shooter and scorer, same goes with Tumblin and Santiago. Its just a question of whether they can play well at the point guard position and whether they can defend well enough against the good teams. BW is definitely a skilled team, with a lot of talented guys that are hard to stop. Good teams have good point guard play, and thats a question for BW to answer.
5. Mount Union: Projected OAC Finish: 5th Projected Wins: 11 Floor: 8-10 Ceiling: 12-6 Players to Watch: Dave Pellrite, Chris Switzer, Sam King Analysis: Mount is a sexy pick this year. They have jumped out to a 5-0 start. They have good players that have been playing well in this league for a long time. They are pretty balanced. But never in my right mind am I gonna put a Mount Union team anywhere near the top of the OAC Conference. I dont care if they start 11-0. I would still bet on them falling apart. They hate their coach. Hes like the Byron Scott of the OAC. He has some credibility, hes coached some good guys, but in time teams just begin to resent him and stop playing hard for him. Chris Switzer is a really cool guy, and a shoe in for the All OAC Party Team, and I am positive he would have a lot of things to say about his coach. It would be funny to hear. But bottom line, I think Mount is good but just not good enough to get over that hump. There a tough matchup at the guards though. Dave Pellrite is a Rudy Kirbus type player, who is big and thick yet quick enough to go by you and score. He shoots it nice and gets to the line as well. I think they will have an up and down season with many peaks and valleys. The coach-player relationship is the thing that brings questions and makes me not believe in them.
OAC All Breakout Team:
RJ Brown
Travis Kinn
Rudy Kirbus
Ross Niekamp
Chris Zajac
Brian Pollock
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