Benedictine has had consistently had a strong program. This year is no different, but where this year may be different is the school’s depth. Head Coach Robert Churchwell says that he will have no issue running 10 guys out in the rotation.
This Benedictine team has a great mix of talented youth and senior leaders. While they may not have the star power of a Robert Johnson on this year’s team, they certainly have maximized their talent to be a program to monitor closely now, and continuing into the future.
The Leader
Without question this is 6’6” senior Cutch Ellis’ team. He is vocal, the guys look up to him, and his hard-nosed play seems to rub off on everyone. Ellis is a skilled four man. He can face up and make some spot up jump shots. He is being looked at by the likes of VMI and Mount St Mary’s and has all the area D3 schools hoping he falls to them. This should be a very productive year for Ellis.
The Man
As much as there is no questioning this being Ellis’ team, there is also no questioning that 6’5” Sophomore Seneca Louisis the team’s best player. During the scrimmages the ball always seemed to find its way into Louis’ hands. He would rebound it, steal it, and his team entrusted him to play point guard as well. Defensively is where Louis really shined, guarding all five positions on the opposing teams. As he continues to work on his jump shot and tighten things up, the ultra-competitive Louis has a high upside. Wake Forest was in the gym watching him Thursday, and if things keep improving for him, that feels appropriate.
Hard Work Over the Summer
It is without question that Benedictine’s strength lay in its Sophomore class. Along with Louis they have 6’8” Dimitri Georgiadis, 6’2” Deandre Thomas, and 6’5” Gibson Jimerson. One thing all three have in common is they really molded their bodies over the summer period. Each player came back to school either slimmed down or beefed up, and ready to compete.
Georgiadis, carries long arms and an added 10 pounds onto his frame. In open gym he showed comfort with the pick and pop from 10’ to 18’, and put it on the floor from that level to finish at the rim.
Thomas has been a well-known name in Virginia for a couple years now. However, this summer Thomas put on 12 pounds of solid muscle. He came back even more explosive attacking the rim. Thomas is a slashing wing, who shows aggression on offense and ability on defense.
Jimerson has always been able to shoot, however as he dropped 25 pounds this summer, he expanded into and all out scorer. Look for the ever confident Jimerson to possibly lead this team in scoring, and come out with a couple of huge out puts throughout the year.