NCAC MEN'S BASKETBALL Wooster, Wittenberg expected to make run

Wooster made it to the national semifinals last season.
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Wooster and Wittenberg have dominated the North Coast Conference over the last five seasons.
This season looks to be no different.
Defending champion Wooster has been picked by coaches and the media to repeat with Wittenberg right behind the Fighting Scots.
The schools have combined to win the last five NCAC regular season and tournament titles.
"It's a huge rivalry," Wittenberg coach Bill Brown said. "It's gotten even more ferocious and fierce, probably because of the setup of the NCAA Division III tournament. No second place teams get in the tournament."
Wooster made it all the way to the national semifinals last season after winning both the regular season and tournament NCAC titles and compiling a school-record 30 wins.
Moving on
But the Fighting Scots have a large hole to fill with the departure of NCAA Division III player of the year Bryan Nelson, the first NCAC player to surpass 1,800 points and 900 rebounds.
"We really can't replace him," Wooster coach Steve Moore said. "He was an outstanding player and a very unique player."
Junior forward Blake Mealer, who averaged 8.9 points and 4.8 rebounds last season, will need to step up.
"Even though we don't have Bryan, we will continue to emphasize a low post offense," Moore said.
The Fighting Scots return two other starters, including guard Rodney Mitchell, who led the team in assists last season and was second with 10 points per game.
Wittenberg also has gaps to fill with the loss of big men B.J. Harris and Kevin Longley.
Brown expects senior forward Peter Walker and sophomore center Daniel Russ to step in. Freshman Jack Hemenway and sophomore Dane Borchers, who is returning from back surgery, will also contribute.
"We most definitely expect to be pushing the 20-win mark again, which is expected around here regardless of who you lose," Brown said.
While Wooster and Wittenberg have lost key players, Ohio Wesleyan returns center Travis Schwab, who led the NCAC in scoring last season as a junior.
"I'm not out of place in saying he's the best returning player in the league," Ohio Wesleyan coach Mike DeWitt said.
Schwab, at 6-6, 235 pounds, is a physical presence for Ohio Wesleyan which will run their offense through him.
"Everybody knows what we're going to do," DeWitt said. "We're going to throw to him in the low post and make other teams defend us from there."
DeWitt said his team needs to earn the respect that was given to them in preseason polls in which they were picked to finish third.
But are they ready to end Wooster and Wittenberg's stranglehold on the league?
"That's the question I've been asked 100 times this fall," DeWitt said. "I think we're ready to give Wooster and Wittenberg a challenge at the top of our league."
Allegheny, which beat Wittenberg twice last season, including an upset in the semifinals of the NCAC tournament, also could pose a threat.
The Gators went 16-12 last season under first-year coach Rob Clune, but they have lost their two leading scorers.
Senior guard Matt Magnusen is their top returning scorer with an 11.8-point average. He's a threat from outside -- 52 percent from 3-point range and 53 percent overall last season.
Others
Earlham leads the rest of the league in preseason polling, followed by Wabash, Denison, Oberlin, Hiram and Kenyon.
Earlham has 11 letterwinners coming back but loses 60 percent of their scoring. The Quakers are without a senior on their roster.
Wabash was expected to challenge for the league title last season but finished fourth and lost to Wooster in the NCAC tournament semifinals.
The Little Giants lose two starters but return eight letterwinners, led by senior guard Matt Storm, who averaged 6.3 points in 16 games last season after returning from knee injuries.
Denison coach Bob Ghiloni enters his second season looking to improve on a 7-19 record.
Oberlin will have to deal with the departure of NCAC newcomer of the year Brandon Crawford, who left the team for personal reasons.
Hiram and Kenyon look to improve under new coaches.
Tim Rice, an assistant at Grove City, takes over at Hiram, replacing Sean McDonnell, who resigned last month to take the same job at Case Western Reserve.
Former Capital assistant Matt Croci, who was voted the NCAC player of the year at Wittenberg in 1994, will lead Kenyon.