Dodge ready to conquer Jayhawk again

Last season, Brian Hoberecht fielded a team with seven freshmen at Dodge City Community College. He still won 23 games and the Jayhawk West title. The Conqs may be even better this time around.

"We really feel we have got a great basketball team," Hoberecht said. "Right now we want to make a run at winning the region, no question about it. It could be a group that has an awful lot of fun. The chemistry is good. You have to enjoy playing together, they are all going to be unselfish. We have a lot of talent, if they get stat hungry at all that could cause us problems, but we really like our team."

And why not. Here is a simple rundown of the Division One prospects in Hoberecht's sophomore class.

"Charlie Coley is 6-7 out of West Palm Beach, Florida. He has high major attention right now, power conferences are looking at him. He is as explosive an athlete as you'll find at the junior college level this year. He was at the Mullens camp and everyone I talked to said he was the best player there."

Hoberecht said Coley has a list of 18 schools recruiting him right now, though the coach declined to name any of those schools.

"The thing that makes him marketable is his versatility," Hoberecht said. "He is 6-7 and shot 40% from three, 57 from the field, he can score it around the basket, score in transition. He is a highlight film if you let him loose around the basket."

But Coley is not even the Conquistador with the most coaches calling. Twenty programs are recruiting 6-foot-9 Wade Knapp.

"He is a very versatile athlete," Hoberecht said. "He can shoot facing the basket, put the ball on the floor, he's comfortable on the perimeter. The majority of his production is around the basket both facing and scoring with his back to it. He is a great athlete, very long, he rebounds well. He's going to be a really good player for us. His recruiting could just blow up, he could be a monster."

Hoberecht said Knapp has offers from three schools in the Missouri Valley Conference already and is being recruited by "seven to ten" major conference programs. Again, the coach did not want to name those teams.

"Julius Perkins is a point guard, he led us with a 3-1 assist to turnover ratio. He had the most assists on our team playing about 20 minutes a game. He is a consummate point guard, a pass first playmaker. He is extremely explosive and quick with the ball and really can pass it. He is a fantastic passer and defender. He'll be a Division One player probably at the mid major level.

"Jaray Matthews is 6-5, a wing. He is very smooth, versatile, has the ability to make plays around the basket because of his body size. He can post up a little bit, stretch the D with his shooting touch and is maturing his game off the bounce right now. He is really getting better. He is a fundamental player, low to mid, a little bit of high major attention.

"Angel Santiago is a combo 6-foot, Chicago native, probably high major," Hoberecht said. "He is a transfer from Indian Hills who got here at Christmas. He is just a kid developing into his recruiting, just getting it started. People are starting to figure out he's here. He was top 100 in the country out of high school., #2 behind Julian Wright in the state of Illinois. Throw his name around to high majors and they all know about him, it's just a matter of him getting settled in and having a good year. He is explosive and a great scorer, a point guard that has a great ability to score. We're going to combo him and Julius together probably. Those two guys have different gears that most people don't have."

Santiago is being recruited by the likes of Clemson, St. John's and Texas A&M right now. That wraps up the starting five at Dodge, but Hoberecht will actually have a Division One prospect coming off the bench as well.

"Brian Marks is the other kid, 6-9, 265, very high motor," Hoberecht said. "He is a great rebounder and defender and a solid offensive player. He really knows how to pass and does a good job around the basket. He is developing his ability to score all the time right now, but he's being recruited low to mid right now all over the place."

It will certainly be a busy fall in Dodge City.