2021-22 Season Preview: Greater Metro

<p>Prep Hoops Wisconsin breaks down the race in the Greater Metro Conference ahead of the 2021-22 season...</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>PROJECTED STANDINGS</strong></p> <p>1.  Menomonee Falls</p> <p>2.  Brookfield East</p> <p>3. Brookfield Central</p> <p>4. Wauwatosa West</p> <p>5. Sussex Hamilton</p> <p>6. Wauwatosa East</p> <p>7. West Allis Hale</p> <p>8. Marquette</p> <p>9. Germantown</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>THE FAVORITE - Menomonee Falls</strong></p> <p>The Phoenix return the only two juniors to be named first-team All-Conference in 2020-21 -- [player_tooltip player_id="1129756" first="Seth" last="Trimble"] and [player_tooltip player_id="801135" first="Steven" last="Clay"]. A pair of top five prospects in Wisconsin’s senior class, the duo produced roughly 42  points per game on average last season. Falls finished fourth in the league a year ago when the Greater Metro was crazy deep and had four state title contenders, five before Patrick Baldwin Jr. went down with a season-ending injury. The Phoenix are senior-laden and deep enough to go the distance with [player_tooltip player_id="865843" first="Grant" last="Martin"], [player_tooltip player_id="801159" first="Greg" last="Kemp"], and Minnesota football commit <strong>Evan Redding</strong> all back for one more year.</p> <p><strong>TOP CONTENDER - Brookfield East<a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/06/f9k72f.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-1213702" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/06/f9k72f-300x153.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="153" /></a></strong></p> <p>Think this team will fall off without [player_tooltip player_id="1089678" first="Tayshawn" last="Bridges"] and [player_tooltip player_id="879993" first="Hayden" last="Doyle"]? Think again.  The 1-2 punch of Dan <a class="" title="View [player_tooltip player_id=" href="https://www.wissports.net/roster_players/40131833">Gherezgher</a> (12.4 ppg) and Matt Schmainda (10.2 ppg) will keep the Spartans in title contention. These two have been phenomenal in the off-season and are poised for breakout years. East has a bunch of hidden talent as well ready to emerge, including junior [player_tooltip player_id="1138442" first="Joe" last="Stewart"], junior [player_tooltip player_id="1261074" first="Nollenn" last="Tabaska"], and sophomore Andrew Graft. What the Spartans will miss from Doyle is that blue collar toughness specifically on defense. If they can mimic those fistfight defensive efforts of old, East can come out on top in the Greater Metro.</p> <p><strong>DARK HORSE - Wauwatosa West</strong></p> <p>This team was 0-16 in league play a year ago. Think it’s a tall task for them to go from worst to first in one of the state’s top conferences, but on paper, the Trojans have about as much talent as anyone. Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id="1021573" first="Colin" last="Hardrick"] (22.4 ppg), the league’s second-leading returning scorer from last season, has gotten some help.  Sun Prairie transfer [player_tooltip player_id="1089681" first="Cole" last="Hansen"] has come over. He started on  varsity as a freshman. Speaking of freshmen, two of the best in the state, [player_tooltip player_id="1240335" first="Kai" last="Rogers"] and [player_tooltip player_id="1240337" first="Jake" last="Hansen"] are both expected to provide big minutes right away.  Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="1142144" first="Moses" last="Long"] (3.6) got his feet wet in year one. Senior [player_tooltip player_id="1289013" first="Terrance" last="Mcclendon"] (12.4 ppg) rounds out the group and brings a strong shooting presence to the mix.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE</strong></p> <p><em>First Team</em></p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1021573" first="Colin" last="Hardrick"] - Sr. (Wauwatosa West)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="953956" first="Luther" last="Smith"] - Jr. (Sussex Hamilton)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1129756" first="Seth" last="Trimble"] - Sr. (Menomonee Falls)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="801148" first="Andrew" last="Rohde"] - Sr. (Brookfield Central)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1085205" first="Dan" last="Gherezgher"] - Sr. (Brookfield Central)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="801135" first="Steven" last="Clay"] - Sr. (Menomonee Falls)</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="761404" first="Leon" last="Bond"] - Sr. (Wauwatosa East)</p> <p><em>Second Team</em></p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1039325" first="Matthew" last="Schmainda"] - Jr. (Brookfield East)</p> <p>G  [player_tooltip player_id="981005" first="Danny" last="Staskunas"] - Jr. (West Allis Hale)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1142119" first="Bennett" last="Basich"] - Sr. (Sussex Hamilton)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1089681" first="Cole" last="Hansen"] - So. (Wauwatosa West)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1267665" first="Hunter" last="Gosz"] - Sr. (Germantown)</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="1142131" first="Jack" last="Daugherty"] - So. (Brookfield Central)</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="980996" first="Robert" last="Peters"] - Jr. (West Allis Hale)</p> <p><em>Third Team</em></p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="865843" first="Grant" last="Martin"] - Sr. (Menomonee Falls)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1023255" first="Drew" last="Edmond"] - Jr. (Brookfield Central)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1138442" first="Joe" last="Stewart"] - Jr. (Brookfield East)</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="1142132" first="Aidan" last="Konop"] - So. (Sussex Hamilton)</p> <p>F Nick Ferge - Sr. (Marquette)</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="1261074" first="Nollenn" last="Tabaska"] - Jr. (Brookfield East)</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="1240335" first="Kai" last="Rogers"] - Fr. (Wauwatosa West)</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>PLAYER OF THE YEAR - [player_tooltip player_id="1129756" first="Seth" last="Trimble"]<a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/09/Seth-Trimble2.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-1292190" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/09/Seth-Trimble2-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a></p> <p>The North Carolina commit is the league’s leading returning scorer from last season.  As a junior, Trimble put up 23.3 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game while leading the Phoenix to a  17-8 record and one game shy of the state tournament.  Also the state’s top ranked player in 2022, Trimble is a freak athlete who also plays high-IQ basketball from the point guard spot. </p> <p>BREAKOUT PLAYER -  [player_tooltip player_id="1085205" first="Dan" last="Gherezgher"]</p> <p>Think you could see this kid average north of 20 points per game in 2021-22.  Gherezgher is a high volume scorer that can kill in the catch-and-shoot game and isolation.  The lefty is smooth in the mid-range and very difficult to take out of rhythm.  As a junior, he averaged 14.2 ppg, while shooting 50.6 percent from the field, including 47.2 percent from 3-point range. Based on some fall league outings, Gherezgher is going to get the green light pretty frequently. </p> <p>SURPRISE PLAYER - [player_tooltip player_id="1142131" first="Jack" last="Daugherty"]</p> <p>Daugherty is coming off a very strong summer and you can see a whole new level of confidence. Thought he was a little gun shy last season, which is to be expected, while playing varsity for the Lancers. Think the 6-foot-8 forward will step into a major role for Central, who needs to replace two seniors, [player_tooltip player_id="879980" first="Ben" last="Nau"] (St. Thomas) and [player_tooltip player_id="804893" first="David" last="Joplin"] (Marquette), who are both now playing Division 1 ball. Daugherty can be a big mismatch problem with his inside-out scoring ability, feathery touch as a shooter, and handles outside the perimeter.</p>