2007-2008 Men's Basketball Schedule

Head Coach: Dave Hammer (5th year)
Assistant Coaches: Tom Kempf, Doug Austin,
Billy Ware, Dave Flowers, Jeff Patin, Jeff Jayson
2007-08 record: 25-9 overall 11-3 WHAC

2007-2008 Roster

If Aquinas College men’s basketball were a product on the stock market, charting the growth of the program during the past four years under Coach Dave Hammer would show a steady upward climb of prosperity.

“The program was already competitive when I arrived,” Hammer noted. “Much of our success can be attributed to bringing in the type of players who can help us be a championship-caliber program every year.”

Indeed, the Saints have earned respect by beating Division II opponents on the road, by reaching the championship game in nearly every tournament on the pre-conference season schedule, and, in the past two years, by winning either the regular season (in 2005-06) or post-season (in 2006-07) WHAC championship.

“Our program is in a position now where we should be competing for a league championship every year, and a post-season berth also should be achievable,” Hammer said. “I like that position, (and) I think the players like that position. It’s the result of hard work and the respect that we’ve been able to gain in the eyes of the coaches in the WHAC.”

Leading the list of the players who match Hammer’s standards of competitiveness, work ethic and academic ability is senior forward Jeff Wierzbicki. “Jeff is a fourth-year player who was second team all conference and made the WHAC all defensive first team as a junior,” Hammer said. “We always assign him to guard the opponent’s toughest player, and Jeff is versatile and talented enough to guard players who are bigger or smaller than he is (at 6-2, 205). Jeff is a very dedicated individual when it comes to his work ethic, and he takes his responsibilities as captain very seriously.”

A talented and young — yet unusually experienced — group of players will join Wierzbicki in building on the successes of the past year. Among those is 6-6 junior forward Pedja Lazic, who Hammer says is now fully recovered from a broken hand that caused him to miss seven weeks last year. “Pedja had an off season in which he dedicated himself to losing weight while adding strength to his upper body,” Hammer said. “He definitely has the opportunity to become an all-conference player, and we need him because not only is he our only true post player with experience, but Pedja has the skills that are necessary to compete in our league.”

The Saints also will rely on the experience provided by junior guard Jordan Torres, who logged more than 900 minutes (28.8 mpg) as a sophomore. “Jordan showed throughout last year with the quality minutes that he gave us that he can hit the jump shot, and he defends well because he really understands our half-court defense,” Hammer said. “Jordan’s just a real tough kid who guts it out when he gets knocked down; he just plugs away and that’s enabled him to earn the respect of the league.” Hammer noted that Torres was a 2006-07 WHAC all-defensive selection, which will be one of his goals again this season.

After taking a year off from college basketball, James Telman returns to the Saints’ roster to add depth and provide a spark at the shooting guard position. “James is a quality three-point shooter and scorer who can hurt defenses from the arc as well as take the ball to the basket,” Hammer said. “He also shoots free throws under pressure extremely well; he represents someone who we can use with different combinations and he will perform very well in any of those situations.”

Last year’s freshman class produced a number of newcomers who made an immediate impact for the Saints. Dave Baldwin, a 6-7 forward, provides inside/outside versatility at both ends of the court. “Dave was probably the biggest surprise for us last year when our two starting post players got injured,” Hammer said. “At the beginning, Dave was just learning how to play college basketball; he had strength issues, he had confidence issues — but, as the season went along, he found out that he was going to get an opportunity, and he accepted the challenge.” Hammer believes Baldwin had a “breakout game” in the conference home opener that “showed Dave that he could compete even in his freshman year.”

At 23.9 minutes per game, John Lierman easily gained the most playing experience of any freshman last season. “John understands the game very well, and has tremendous court sense and savvy,” Hammer said. “He’s a good passer, he can shoot and drive the basketball, and he has a knack for offensive rebounding. John’s working harder on his conditioning and on his defense, which is important because we’re expecting a lot from John over the next three years.”

Helping “drive the bus” from his point guard position is 5-10 Matt McDonald. “When Matt joined us last year, he came in still recovering from a broken wrist that kept him out of the gym for twelve weeks over the summer, and he also had a kidney operation that kept him out,” Hammer said. “So, it took Matt a while to adjust to college basketball; but, you can really see the improvement in Matt after the work that he put in during the off season. We think Matt should be a quality player over the next three years, and he’s well respected by his teammates because he’s very enthusiastic and passionate about the game.”

Two players from last year’s freshman class who redshirted last season are Jason Fox, a 6-4 wing with an excellent shooting touch, and Dan Perkins, a 6-9 post player who is improving his physical strength and understanding of how to play in the post. “Jason is a very smart player with long arms who can play at any perimeter position,” Hammer said, adding that the redshirt experience gave both players extra time to gain weight and develop a better understanding Hammer’s system of play. “We knew that when we brought Dan in that he was a young player who needed an extra year and an off season to build up muscle in his upper body, and now we’re fortunate that he still has four years.”

Five newcomers are beginning their college playing careers, including 6-6 forward Jason Hill, 6-1 guard Rumeal McKinney, 6-0 guard A.J. Schmidt, 6-6 forward Bryan Snyder, and 6-7 forward Matt Weiss. According to Hammer, the freshmen as a group possess great athletic ability, but, like almost all newcomers to programs at any collegiate level, will need to improve their physical strength and understanding of how to play in general, and in the Saints’ system in particular.

As in the past, Hammer has loaded his preseason schedule with competition that will provide the type of challenge he thinks will prepare his squad for the WHAC. Among non-conference opponents are NCAA Division II Grand Valley State, and a very talented and well-coached team from Spring Arbor University. The Saints will participate in the Hall of Fame Tournament at Cornerstone, and in the Goshen Tournament (Ind.) during November; December’s schedule includes two games each in tournaments at Hope College, Robert Morris University (Ill.), and Ashland University (Ohio).

challenge.