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An in-depth look at Division III

Posted Nov. 17, 2000

By Greg Chandler
D3hoops.com

Calvin College men's basketball coach Kevin Vande Streek did some light reading over the summer in preparation for the upcoming season -- a season in which his defending national champion Knights will be a marked team.

Vande Streek read Duke coach Mike Kryzyewski's book Leading from the Heart, in which Coach K talked about the mindset his team adopted going into a season when they were the defending national champion.

"Instead of taking the attitude that they were defending their title, they went through the next season with the attitude that they were pursuing excellence again," Vande Streek said. "I like that attitude a lot and it will be an attitude that our team will try to adopt this year."

Vande Streek and the Knights have plenty to build on as they seek to pursue that excellence this winter. Calvin returns eight letterwinners and three starters from last year's 30-2 team that won the school's second national title with a thrilling 79-74 victory over UW-Eau Claire.

Most significant among the returnees is sophomore forward Jeremy Veenstra, arguably the top freshman in Division III last season, as he averaged 15.2 points and 7.3 rebounds a game. With the loss of Team of the Year forward and two-time Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association most valuable player Aaron Winkle to graduation, the 6-6 Veenstra becomes the Knights' go-to guy this season.

Veenstra will be playing a slightly different role this season. With Winkle's graduation, Veenstra is expected to move from power forward, where he played last winter, to small forward.

Also back are 6-8 senior center/forward Brian Krosschel (8.9 ppg, 7.1 rpg), who stepped up big in the NCAA tournament with an 11.2 ppg average; sophomore point guard Bryan Foltice (8.1 ppg), who went coast-to-coast to hit the game-winning 10-foot jumper in the national semifinal against Franklin and Marshall; 6-7 senior Josh Tubergen, who battled back problems all last season but still led the Knights in blocked shots with 44; and senior guard Nate Burgess, a defensive specialist whose tip-in in overtime lifted Calvin over Franklin in a first-round NCAA nail-biter.

If Tubergen, who put on 20 pounds of muscle during the offseason, can stay healthy, Calvin could have one of Division III's most formidable front lines, along with Veenstra and Krosschel.

Others who expect to contribute off the bench include 6-6 forward/center Derek Kleinheksel, an NCAA national finalist in the high jump, and point guard Jon Potvin, who started 14 games last season.

Calvin is heavily favored to win the MIAA championship, but archrival Hope and a potential sleeper in Olivet could have something to say about the conference race before it's all over. In addition to a tough conference schedule, the Knights' non-conference schedule includes the Old Kent Classic in Grand Rapids, featuring Hope and traditional NAIA powers Cornerstone and Aquinas; the Mose Hole Classic over the Christmas holidays, hosted by Wooster, whom the Knights defeated on their run to the national championship last year, and featuring a University of Chicago team that could be one of Calvin's top challengers in its bid to repeat.

Vande Streek says he and his players have learned some lessons about reaching the top, and how difficult is truly is to stay there.

"One thing we've learned in the last two years is how frail winning a championship can be," Vande Streek said. "Two years ago, our season ended on a last-second shot in the conference tournament (against Defiance). Last year, all of those shots went in for us. 

"To repeat is something that needs to be out there as a goal, but realistically, if you look at how many teams repeat as champions at the collegiate and professional level, you realize that there are not many that do. If you look at the chances of us repeating again, you would probably say they're not real good, but we're still going to have that goal out there."

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