 Sports News Search Classifieds Cougars get appreciation
January 20, 2000 
For the first time in a long time a basketball team from Columbia can say that it is No. 1. That’s exactly what the Columbia College men’s team is ranked in the American Midwest Conference preseason polls.
This is the first AMC challenge for the Cougars this season. The following is a sneak peak at what to expect from Columbia and the rest of the conference: Columbia College (15-4 non-conference) The Cougars, coming off an AMC tournament championship a year ago, enter the season as the team to beat in the conference and currently is ranked No. 12 in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Division I standings. The Cougars return all of their starters and will feature four new recruits who will make some noise in conference play. “Our depth is the strength of our team,” coach Bob Burchard said. “We have a second team that can go out to another school and be starters.” The team returns senior Lawrence Thomas, an honorable mention NAIA All-American and the 1999 AMC Newcomer of the year. He is leading the team in rebounds (6.4 per game), and is fourth in scoring (10.4 points per game). “Our long term goals are that we want to win the conference and hopefully move on to the national tournament,” said Thomas, who was part of the Columbia team that made it to the 1999 NAIA National Tournament’s Sweet 16. “It’s going to be interesting to se e how everything pans out. We need to take it game by game and move on from there.” The backcourt from last season will remain intact with Ernie Swan, Eric Hemmer and Kenny Moore, all seniors. Helping out the backcourt is newcomer Jarrod Thompson, a junior transfer from Moberly Area Community College. He is averaging 11.7 points. The Cougars have three of the conference’s top five 3-point shooters in Thompson (.460), transfer guard Armeake Estes (.429) and Hemmer (.422). McKendree College (16-3) The Bearcats have been among the top teams in the AMC standings for many years. This year, they enter the season ranked No. 2 in the conference and No. 20 in the NAIA. The one thing to change for the Bearcats this season is size, with the arrival of a pair of 6-11 centers. Matt Laur, a freshman from South Central (Ill) High, and Dutchman Ronald VanVelzen, a transfer from Illinois State University, are the two reasons why coach Harry Statham says his team will be the top contender to overthrow Columbia. “Laur is going to become a fine player in time,” Statham said. “Ron can become a big factor for us come playoff time and has the potential to become a fine player as well.” Laur is currently leading the conference in scoring (18.3 points per game), rebounds (12.4 per game) and field goal percentage (.683). McKendree lost its top four scorers, who completed their eligibility. However, the Bearcats will continue to rely on Rick Taylor’s driving, Jose Semith’s vision and Dan Moore’s shooting. With a strong backcourt and the addition of two imposing centers in a conference that is not accustomed to size, expect the Bearcats to give Columbia a run for its money. Hannibal-LaGrange College (16-3) “I call us a dark horse to possibly win the conference this year,” Hannibal-LaGrange coach Kent Thomas said. “We are a win or two away from being the team to beat.” The Trojans have one of the best inside players in the NAIA in Robert Joseph. The 6-7 forward from Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, is coming off an All-America honorable mention season in which he averaged 15.8 points per game, 9.3 rebounds per game and an outstan ding 181 blocked shots. “I think our inside presence with our big kid we have here (Joseph) is probably our main offensive weapon,” Thomas said. “That’s where everything is built, from inside to the outside and on both ends of the floor.” Joseph leads the team in points at 17.8 per game on 63.3 percent shooting from the field and already has 100 blocks for the season. Hannibal-LaGrange also will return its second leading scorer from a year ago guard Donald Bell, who is shooting 42.7 percent from 3-point range, and will look to transfer forward Ryan Wood as another option on offense. The Rest Missouri Baptist (15-4) lost its two top 3-point shooters in guards Brian Wagner and Mitch Fusco. The Spartans are returning Sam Estelle, regarded by many coaches as the top scoring threat in the league. Coming off a first-team All-Conference year, the St. Louis native is averaging nearly 18 points per game. Harris-Stowe State College (4-13) is ranked last in the six-team conference. Poor defense is one of the reasons for its poor start, allowing 81.5 points per game. The Hornets can expect guard Justin Davis, who is averaging 16.7 points, to continue to scor e, but the team is looking for other options when it comes to offense. Park University (2-13), Columbia’s opponent tonight, isn’t expected to do much in conference play. The Pirates had four players complete their eligibility last year, including Preseason NAIA All-American Walter Bethea who had 29 points per game. The Pirat es will return only one starter from last year’s squad. “We’re going through growing pains right now,” coach Claude English said. “It’s just one of those years where we’re trying to get better every time out. We make young mistakes.” English points out that Park’s only consistent player has been guard Bryan Shelley. The 6-3 freshman is currently third in the conference in scoring at 17.2 points per game and is by far the team’s main offensive weapon. “Columbia is the team everyone is pointing towards,” English said. “They have tons of experience, great shooting and are one of the top defensive teams in the league. Put all those things together and that means wins.”
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Columbia College guard Ernie Swan drives past Central Methodist's forward
Shae Tipler in a game last season. The Cougars play Park College at 7
p.m. today at Southwell Gym.