Conference call

Sporting News, The, Jan 13, 2003

Josh Howard, F, Wake Forest

The Demon Deacons are an incredibly inexperienced team, starting two freshmen and two sophomores. The youngsters' success has been an important part of the team's 9-0 start--its best since the Tim Duncan era. But 6-6 senior Josh Howard remains the key and has put Wake Forest in prime position to make noise in the ACC. He scored 31 points in the team's most impressive nonconference win, 90-80, December 4 at Wisconsin. His presence on the boards--he is averaging 7.9 rebounds--is a big reason the team is outrebounding opponents by 15.0 per game.

Howard's all-around game always has been solid--he leads the team in scoring, steals and blocks--but he has added another dimension this season by extending his shooting range. He hit just 32.9 percent of his 3-point shots last season; this season, he has improved to 44.7 percent (17 of 38).

The Deacons will get a chance to measure up to the ACC's elite right away--they open conference play at Duke on Sunday and play Maryland on Wednesday. In five games against those two schools last season, Wake Forest was 0-5, losing by an average score of 89-71.

Dee Brown, G, Illinois

The Illini lost starting guards Frank Williams and Cory Bradford from last season's squad, leaving the backcourt to a pair of freshmen, Deron Williams and Brown.

But in the year of the freshman, Brown has been as important to his team as any. He is the table-setter for Illinois, and with the ball in his hands, the Illini is pushing the tempo much faster than it did last year. That energy has rubbed off on the rest of the team, including senior forward Brian Cook, who is playing more physical than in previous seasons.

Brown had 33 points and 13 assists in wins against North Carolina and Missouri, helping the Illini to move up unexpectedly in the rankings. His presence gives the team a realistic shot at a third consecutive conference title.

Mike Sweetney, F, Georgetown

While Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, UConn and Syracuse have been in the spotlight Georgetown, the Hoyas were 8-1 entering the week.

Sweetney has been the steady force guiding the team, as usual, averaging 19.9 points and 9.2 rebounds--right around his career average. But for the Hoyas to have any chance to pick up wins against the aforementioned teams--a must to reach the NCAA Tournament, considering their lack of quality wins so far--Georgetown's go-to guy must be on the court at the end of the game. Sweetney played only 15 minutes because of foul trouble against Virginia, the team's only loss. The Hoyas had one big shot to prove themselves before opening the conference season, playing at Duke earlier this week.