CHICAGO, Ill. -- North Park Men's Basketball reached the Sweet Sixteen less than two years ago, finishing the 2022-23 campaign with 24 wins. That season, the Vikings were picked to finish seventh in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) under the guidance of a head coach in his first season. Following a sub-.500 2023-24 season, Coach Edwind McGhee enters his first year leading North Park with a similar batch of circumstances.
Coach McGhee returns nine players with significant minutes from last season, including a few who played a big role in the Vikings' 2023 Sweet Sixteen run.
Junior guard Lance Nelson was one of four Vikings to appear in all 25 games last season, starting 17 times. He shot a team-leading 40.6% (28-69) from beyond the arc and was 57-126 (45.2%) from the field. Nelson averaged 6.9 points per game and, despite playing around the perimeter, tied for the team lead with 103 rebounds. He had 30 assists and as many steals while scoring a career high 21 points at North Central.
Senior guards Julian Gatewood and Davante Robinson represent the other two returners that appeared in all 25 games.
Gatewood was a threat from distance, making 17 of 42 three pointers (40.5%). He added 30 rebounds, eight steals, and swatted a pair of shots.
Robinson is also a deep ball threat, tying for second on the team with 28 threes made by the end of 2023. He has 50 career threes made at North Park, shooting 50-117 (42.7%) in two seasons. Robinson led the NPU offense with 13 points in North Park's Division I scrimmage at SIU-Carbondale last Tuesday.
Senior guards Kyren Gardner and TJ Gardner and sophomore forward DJ Wallace all saw rotation time in their most recent season with the Vikings.
Kyren played in 21 of 25 games for North Park and shot 41.1% (30-73) from the field. He pulled down 36 rebounds and was credited with 15 steals while setting career highs in points (14), rebounds (7), and blocked shots (2) all against Wheaton.
TJ played in 24 of 25 games and averaged 14.3 minutes of playing time per game. He was fourth on the team with 25 steals and shot 45.1% from the field (41-91). TJ had 2+ steals in eight different games. Against the Salukis last week, he led the Vikings with four assists and four steals.
Wallace is a 6'8" forward who is not afraid to shoot the three. He appeared in 24 games last season as a freshman and was North Park's sharpest shooter from the field at 56.8% (42-74). He tied for second on the team with 16 blocked shots and added a dozen steals.
Senior guard Preston Bax III appeared in all but one game last season and started 14 times. He shot 49.2% from the field (30-61) and pulled down 42 rebounds. Bax added 22 assists and 16 steals to his junior season.
Sophomore forward Trevon Roots and senior forward Taijon Barry are looking to break into the Vikings' frequent rotation as well.
Despite just 5.9 minutes of court time per game last season, Roots was fourth on the team with 14 blocked shots in his freshman season. He blocked two shots in five different games and posted a career high 14 points against Augustana.
Barry appeared in 10 games last season, totaling 17 points, 18 rebounds and a steal. The Moraine Valley Community College transfer added four blocked shots.
10 newcomers are currently listed on the varsity roster, including six transfers.
Junior guard Tristan Arneaud (Miami, Fla. / Chicago State University), senior guard Rico Powell (Chicago, Ill. / Post University), and senior guard John Gaines (Detroit, Mich. / Midwestern State University) were three transfers that started in the Vikings' scrimmage against the Salukis. Last week, Arneaud had three steals and 11 points while Powell led NPU with five rebounds and made a pair of threes.
North Park will be challenged right away, as its first three opponents all received votes in the D3hoops.com Preseason National Top 25 poll. Their first opponent will be the Wisconsin Lutheran College Warriors, the preseason No. 15 team. Tipoff in Milwaukee, Wisconsin is set for 7:00 PM CT.
