Cards Shuffle Swac Nic Men, Women Have Talent To Alter League Races

North Idaho College women’s basketball coach Greg Crimp likes a lot of teams in the Scenic West Athletic Conference.

Including his own.

“Nobody should find us easy,” Crimp said, “or I’ll be disappointed.”

NIC men’s coach Hugh Watson likes his squad, too, but the rugged SWAC can make turn fine clubs into .500 teams in a hurry. “I’d probably pick us in the middle of the pack,” Watson said.

Both teams find out early where they’ll fit in the conference picture. Utah Valley, the defending women’s champion, visits NIC (6-0) at 5:30 on Thursday night. The Wolverines men, ranked third nationally, take on NIC (6-0) at 7:30.

Women

NIC is bolstered by the return of Angie Dickson, who missed most of last season with a knee injury. NIC wasn’t the same without Dickson, a talented shooting guard.

The bad news is that sophomore forward Julie Grohs suffered a knee injury last weekend and will miss Thursday’s game. The severity of the injury hasn’t been determined.

The Cardinals are loaded with sophomores and have played well early on.

“I like the way we’re playing,” Crimp said. “We have some areas of concern - how we’ll handle pressure defense and our rebounding.”

Sophomore Mandy Jacques has blossomed into a high-scoring guard to complement Shawna Rainer’s inside production.

Utah Valley, which returns second-team All-Region forward Mary Hunter, College of Southern Idaho, Dixie and Salt Lake are expected to contend, along with NIC, for the title.

Dixie joins NIC as the lone unbeatens.

CSI has punished opponents in a 9-1 start.

“We have a nice club,” CSI coach Joel Bate said. “We’re very athletic and our bench and starters are about evenly matched.”

The Eagles should get even better when volleyball refugees Lawanda Johnson, a 6-foot-2 center who can touch the rim, and 5-9 Lillie Robinson, the fastest player on the team, get acclimated to basketball.

Salt Lake, which visits NIC on Saturday night, might have the top player in the region in Laurie Crocker, according to Bate.

Men

Watson’s Cards might have picked a good year to have a shorter team. The SWAC is loaded with talent, but big men are in short supply. The best centers are Utah Valley’s Leif Nelson, who is headed to Washington State next year, Dixie’s Kenyatta Clyde, a transfer from Baylor, and Eastern Utah’s burly K’Zell Wesson.

“The teams aren’t as big as in the past,” said Snow coach Jon Judkins.”

Utah Valley, however, is huge. Nelson is 6-11 and 280. Five Wolverines check in at 6-10 or taller. Travis Hansen and LeLand Osborn are athletic wings, and 6-7 Silester Rivers does damage on the box.

“We’re pretty deep,” coach Jeff Reinert said. “I expect NIC will press us hard. If they want to run, we’ll run, too.”

Eastern Utah and Ricks appeared poised to make title runs.

“Utah Valley’s damn good, and I don’t say that often,” Ricks’ Clyde Nelson said. “They’ve got everything.”

Eastern Utah isn’t far behind. Or Ricks. Or NIC or Snow or Southern Idaho, for that matter.

“It’s going to be very even,” Snow’s Judkins warned. “It’s going to be fun.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo