Season Preview: Men’s Basketball leaning on strong junior class in 2021-22

By Wes Mayberry

| 2021-22 Men's Basketball Schedule |

ADA — Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, it was tough for the Ohio Northern men's basketball team to gain much traction in its 12-game 2020-21 schedule.

But, led by a pair of All-Ohio Athletic Conference selections, the Polar Bears still found a way to advance all the way to the OAC Tournament championship game.

With those All-OAC players, junior C.J. Napier (Miamisburg/Bishop Fenwick) and senior Brandon Waugh (Columbus/Northland), as part of four starters back in the fold, sixth-year head coach Rich Bensman is hoping to build on that momentum this winter.

The Polar Bears went 5-7 overall in a conference-only schedule last season, which included a 3-6 mark during the regular season. ONU defeated John Carroll and Muskingum in the OAC Tournament quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively, before falling to No. 6 Marietta in the championship game.

Northern returns five players who averaged double figures in scoring a season ago on a roster that features just one senior but does have seven juniors with plenty of playing experience and leadership skills.

"In that junior class, I played five of those guys 10 minutes or more per game as freshmen, so they have valuable experience," Bensman said. "They had to come up the hard way playing as freshmen, so they've earned it, and throughout the entire process, they've been great leaders."

The Polar Bears also have a strong junior varsity team to pull from this season.

Here is a position-by-position preview of the 2021-22 men's basketball team.

Guards

Waugh returns as the starting point guard after earning All-OAC Honorable Mention honors last season.

He started all 12 games and averaged 33.8 minutes per contest en route to finishing second on the team in scoring (13.4 points per game) and rebounding (5.6 per game). He led the team in both assists (52) and steals (25), finishing third and second in the OAC, respectively, in those categories and made a team-high 23 3-pointers while shooting 37.1% from long range.

As the team's lone senior, Waugh is expected to provide valuable leadership in what is his fifth year in the program. He missed the 2018-19 season due to injury but has 45 starts to his credit in 65 games played in his career.

"Brandon is very seasoned as a three-and-a-half-year starter for us," Bensman said. "He has experience and knows how we do things, which has made for great leadership this year."

ONU's starting shooting guard, junior Landen Long (Mason/William Mason), also started all 12 games a season ago and ranked fourth on the team in scoring with 11.1 points per game in 30.3 minutes per contest. A member of the All-OAC Tournament Team as a sophomore, Long scored in double figures in eight games and ranked fifth in the OAC in free-throw percentage (82.6%).

Fellow junior Adam Scott (Wapakoneta) played in all 12 games last season, making three starts, and averaged 8.2 points and 5.1 rebounds in 23.8 minutes per contest. He led the team in blocks last season with nine and will be a starting wing for the Polar Bears this year.

"We're excited about Adam at that spot," Bensman said. "He's worked hard on his game, and he has good enough feet to guard a perimeter player."

The Polar Bears' other notable guards include juniors Austin Bennett (Columbus/Westerville North) and Jordan Koebel (Sunbury/Big Walnut); sophomores Nolan Bornhorst (New Bremen), Carson Conley (Newark/Licking Valley) and Bryce Nolbertowicz (Waynesville); and freshmen Ethan Bell (Marion/River Valley), Tayt Birnesser (Columbus Grove), Grant Haynam (Massillon), Markus Malleschitz (Maria Lanzendorf, Austria/Oak Hill Academy) and Blake Michael (Fremont/St. Joseph Central Catholic).

Bensman likes the depth he has at the guard spots.

"There are a lot of guys who are working very hard to push the guys that might be just a little bit ahead of them," he said. "Our practices have been fairly competitive because we've increased our depth."

Forwards

After leading the team in scoring and rebounding and earning All-OAC Second Team honors last season, Napier headlines this year's group of forwards.

Napier played in nine games last season, starting all of them, and averaged 32.7 minutes per contest, ranking third in the conference in scoring (18.7 points per game) and second in rebounding (9.4 per game).

Now a two-time All-OAC honoree after earning honorable mention status in 2019-20, Napier scored in double figures in all nine of his games last season and ranked third in the OAC in free-throw percentage (84.6%) while posting five double-doubles.

"C.J. gets his points in the trenches — they aren't easy points to come by," Bensman said. "He's going to be a key player for us once again."

Freshman Garrett Chapin (Norwalk), who graduated as his high school's all-time leading rebounder, is another key member of ONU's rotation of forwards.

"Garrett is doing really well and will come in and provide great minutes for us," Bensman said.

Centers

A 6-foot-8 junior, Michael Berner (Springboro) returns in the post after finishing third on the team in scoring at 12.7 points per game last season to go with 4.7 rebounds per contest over the course of three starts before being sidelined with an injury. His return will help the Polar Bears have a more balanced offensive attack this year.

"We might be a little more spread out this year with Michael coming back," Bensman said.

Grant Heileman (Millersport/Sheridan), a 6-foot-7 junior, also returns after playing in all 12 games last season with nine starts, averaging 10.3 points and 4 rebounds per game. He scored in double figures in seven games and was named to the All-OAC Tournament Team.

"We have a great tandem at the center spot with Michael and Grant," Bensman said. "Michael going down last year really hurt our depth at that spot, but Grant did a great job doing the heavy lifting. They're veterans that have been around a few years, so we're excited about those two guys."

Mason Cromer (Cincinnati/Roger Bacon), a 6-foot-9 freshman, joins Berner and Heileman in the Polar Bears' center rotation.

Schedule

The Polar Bears will be playing another tough schedule this year, which begins with a game against St. John Fisher (N.Y.) on Nov. 6 in the Case Western Reserve Bill Sudeck Tournament in Cleveland.

"St. John Fisher won their conference last year and has their entire team back, and they got votes in the Top 25 poll," Bensman said. "So our first game right out of the gate is going to be very challenging."

ONU's non-conference slate also includes a game at Manchester (Ind.), games against Buffalo State (N.Y.) and Medaille (N.Y.) in the Buffalo State (N.Y.) Coles Classic and contests against Ohio Wesleyan and Olivet (Mich.) in the Otterbein Invitational.

The OAC slate is again going to be tough, as the first D3hoops.com Men's Top 25 poll includes No. 3 Marietta — the defending OAC regular-season and tournament champion — and No. 21 Mount Union with Heidelberg receiving votes.

"The OAC is going to be brutal this year — from top to bottom, it's going to be very competitive," Bensman said.

But Bensman and the Polar Bears have plenty of optimism about the upcoming season.

"We feel like we're going to be pretty competitive this year," he said.