The Catholic League boys basketball conference will have a new look this season.
Formed in 1912, the league will have 20 total teams this season, with 10 in the North division and 10 in the South division. It’s up from 16 total teams last season.
Instead of playing seven division games and four crossovers for 11 conference games, each team will play nine division games and no crossovers. Several of the teams have swapped divisions, too.
The North, which has local teams Fenwick, Loyola and St. Joseph, features the most change. Gone from last season’s North are Leo, Mount Carmel and St. Laurence. All of them now are in the South division.
Four new teams — Marmion, Montini, St. Francis and Providence-St. Mel — were added to the conference this school year and all are on the North side of the conference. DePaul Prep, De La Salle and St. Ignatius are the other three North division teams. De La Salle played in the South last season.
“I think it’s great,” Loyola coach Tom Livatino said of the ever-evolving league. “We are a really deep conference, and we are always looking for ways to improve it.”
Providence-St. Mel coach Tim Ervin said his team is eager for its first season in the storied conference. The Knights have been a successful program in the smaller IHSA classifications. They took third in Class 2A in 2014 and have been to the state tournament eight times since the start of the 1984-1985 season. Providence-St. Mel won the Class A state title in 1985.
“This is a tough league, and we know about its rich tradition,” said Ervin, whose Knights were in the Chicago Prep Red conference last season with Chicagoland Jewish, Ellison, Hope Academy and Ida Crown. “It’s something we can’t wait to be part of. It’s going to be a different level of competition for us, and the kids are excited to play against good, quality teams.”
Fenwick is the odds-on favorite to win its first conference championship under Rick Malnati, who’s entering his third season in charge of the Friars.
“This is Fenwick’s best team since I’ve been here,” said Livatino, whose first season was in 2009-10 and who has won two league titles with the Ramblers.
Malnati said he doesn’t disagree, especially because he’s been with the seniors in his program since they were sophomores.
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“These guys have experience, have played together for a long time and they know me,” he said. “We will be able to do some things we haven’t been able to do, be able to take things to the next level.”
The Friars welcome back nearly every significant player from last season’s 22-win club, including Mike Smith, who is entering his fourth year on varsity. The 5-foot-11 senior is considered one of the best point guards in the state.
“He causes all kinds of problems with his ball pressure,” Malnati said. “He’s like a one-man press. On offense, he’s a one-man fastbreak. He also has developed his mid-range game. Before it was either a 3-pointer or going to the rim. Now, he can pull up from 10 to 15 feet.”
Senior forward Mike Ballard and junior forward Jamal Nixon also are game-changers for the Friars, who went 7-4 in conference last season. Nixon missed most of the second half of last season with a torn meniscus in his right knee. He was Fenwick’s leading rebounder before his injury.
But Malnati isn’t dismissing teams like Loyola and St. Joseph, which won the Class 3A state title last season. De La Salle and St. Ignatius also should be factors in the conference race, according to several league coaches.
“We aren’t taking anybody lightly,” Malnati said. “We know all of those teams can beat us, and there are some new teams that we don’t know about.”
Loyola is led by senior guard Brandon Danowski and junior guard Ramar Evans, both of whom started on last season’s team that went 6-5 in conference.
“This is probably the best shooting team I’ve had, in terms of depth,” said Livatino, who coached Jack Morrissey (331 career 3-pointers) and James Clarke, among others. “We don’t have a lot of size, so we will be challenged with rebounding, clogging the lane. But we will make up for it by being hard to guard on the other end.”
In Westchester, St. Joseph returns 6-10 center Nick Rakocevic, a high-major, Division I recruit, from a team that went 9-2 in league play and tied for the conference championship with St. Ignatius last season. However, Glynn Watson (Nebraska) and Jordan Ash (Northwestern), two standout guards on last year’s team, have graduated and are now playing in college.
While nearly half of the conference teams are new, Livatino said he doesn’t plan to do any extra scouting. He said he plans to start reviewing opponent film five days in advance of each game, which is standard operating procedure since he’s been at Loyola.
“Not knowing a team can cause a bit of a learning curve, but we won’t do anything differently,” Livatino said.
Like Livatino, Malnati said he will scout the new teams the same as the ones he’s known for years.
“It will be harder for them,” he said. “I’d rather be in our shoes, at least knowing most of the teams. Each of them has to learn nine new teams, and the coaches in our league do some interesting things.”
Catholic League Divisions
North
De La Salle
DePaul Prep
Fenwick
Loyola
Marmion
Montini
Providence-St. Mel
St. Francis
St. Ignatius
St. Joseph
South
Bishop McNamara
Brother Rice
Hales Franciscan
Leo
Mount Carmel
Providence
Seton
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St. Francis de Sales
St. Laurence
St. Rita
Closer look: Catholic League NorthFenwick
Coach: Rick Malnati, entering third season
Projected starters: Sr. G Mike Smith, Sr. G Quinn Fisher, Jr. G Jacob Keller, Sr. F Mike Ballard, Jr. F Jamal Nixon
Last season: 22-8, Fenwick lost in the Class 4A regional final, falling to Curie 59-56
Loyola
Coach: Tom Livatino, entering seventh season
Projected starters with 2014-15 stats: Sr. G Brandon Danowski (14 ppg), Fr. G Andre White Jr., Jr. G Ramar Evans (8 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 4.4 apg), Sr. F Will Plodzeen, Sr. F Matt Manella
Last season: 17-13, Loyola lost in the Class 4A regional semifinals, falling to Evanston 51-36
St. Joseph
Coach: Gene Pingatore, entering 47th season
Projected starters with 2014-15 stats: Jr. G Jason Towers, So. G Joffari Brown, Fr. G Marquise Walker, Jr. F Lavon Thomas, Sr. C Nick Rakocevic (13.5 ppg, 10 rpg, 2 bpg)
Last season: 29-6, St. Joseph won the Class 3A state championship, beating Belleville Althoff 67-63 in the final
Twitter: @harnesspreps