Entering his second season as head coach of the Madison College men's basketball team, Jamal Palmer is hoping a revamped roster can help the program take its next step forward. That roster will make its debut when the WolfPack open the 2019-20 season on Saturday, November 2 with a road game against the Sheboygan Wombats.

The 16-player squad may be split evenly between guards and forwards on paper, however, Palmer says he will be leaning on guard play this winter.

"We have depth at the guard positions, and this will allow us to pick up the pressure on the defensive end, while also playing at a faster pace on the offensive side. All of our guys have the ability to be threats on the perimeter, as well as attacking the basket."

Leading that charge will be returning guards and former Madison East High School teammates Earl Lewis and Davion Washington. The duo saw action in 33 combined games as freshman, with each seeing about six minutes of floor time. Lewis averaged 2.9 points and 1.2 rebounds, with Washington adding 1.9 points and 1.1 rebounds.

"Earl worked hard in the off-season and is focused on being the best student-athlete he can be. His perimeter shooting is deadly. Davion also worked hard and has the ability to drive and create for his teammates or finish at the rim with contact."

The rest of roster is 14 newcomers, 13 of which are playing their first season of collegiate basketball. Palmer lists guards Marcus Kartes and Allen Robinson, along with forwards Malcolm Reed, Jason Williams, and Donovan Cone, as key newcomers he expects to make an immediate impact.

Robinson, a Goose Creek, South Carolina, native, spent the 2018-19 season on the WolfPack's practice squad and is poised to stop into a bigger role. Reed, a true freshman with Kartes (Milwaukee Rufus King) and Williams (Evansville, IN), was a key contributor to Barneveld High School's run to the 2017 WIAA Division 5 State Championship as a sophomore. Cone is a transfer from NCAA Division III UW-Oshkosh where he did not play after helping Edgerton High School reach the WIAA Division 3 Sectional Final as a senior.

"Team strength for us this year will be depth, having interchangeable players at multiple positions, the ability to attack the basket, and having shooters on the perimeter to knock down shots effortlessly. Our guards are bigger than they have been in the past and we will look to take advantage of those mismatches."

While the guard spots may seem some additional size, the WolfPack lost some interior length with the transfer of All-American Adam Anhold from 2018-19. Kyle Nett, a native of Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, is the team's tallest player at 6'7" and stands an inch taller than Pikeville, Kentucky, product, DaSean Penn.

"The biggest team weakness would be that we don't have a true center, but all of our guys play big and will step up to meet any challenges they face in the post."

Palmer's team will look to improve upon a 14-13 overall record and a fourth place finish in the North Central Community College Conference standings in his debut season as head coach. Standing in the way of that will be another tough schedule both in and out of conference. The 2019 portion of the schedule includes contests against two NJCAA Division I programs and five against teams from NJCAA Division II. In addition, the WolfPack will play in the Anoka-Ramsey Community College Tournament on November 8-9 against the host Golden Rams and St. Cloud Technical & Community College, who went 22-5 a season ago. And on November 23, the 'Pack will host Elgin Community College, which is receiving votes in the NJCAA Division III Preseason Poll.

When the always tough conference slate begins after the calendar flips to 2020, Madison College will have home games in January against #2-ranked, and defending Region IV champion, Rock Valley College and Milwaukee Area Technical College, who open the season as the #9 team in the NJCAA Division II Preseason Poll after a run to the national tournament.

The season-opener Saturday at 2:00 p.m. will be against the runners-up in the Wisconsin Collegiate Conference, and will be followed by the home opener at H. Douglas Redsten Gymnasium on November 5 against McHenry County College. The first N4C contest will be January 2 at Joliet Junior College, with the showdown against RVC on January 4 as the first league home game.

"Our goal is to finish in the top two of the North Central Community College Conference and earn a top two Region IV playoff spot, with an end goal of making it to nationals."

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