Season Outlook
 
First year Coach Danny Sancomb has taken the reigns of the Cardinal basketball program, succeeding long-time WJU Coach Jay DeFruscio.  Sancomb was hired after DeFruscio was hired as an assistant coach for the NBA’s Indiana Pacers.  Sancomb returns to Wheeling from St. Mary’s Ryken High School in Leonardtown, MD where he served as athletic director and head boys basketball coach for the past three years.  Last season, Sancomb was named Coach of the Year in the WCAC, one of the most prestigious high school basketball conferences in the country.  A 1998 graduate of Wheeling Jesuit with a bachelor's of arts degree in criminal justice, Sancomb also earned his master's in business administration at Wheeling Jesuit, graduating in 2004.

Joining Sancomb on the coaching staff will be fourth year head assistant Chad Dickman, and volunteer assistants Jay Morris (3rd year) and Ryan Kostur (1st year).

The Cardinals lost three seniors to graduation, including 2nd Team All-Conference player Ricky Yahn and Honorable Mention All-Conference forward Colin Howard.  King Miner, a 4-year letter winner who averaged nine points and five rebounds, is also gone.  All three were starters during the 2006-07 year and will be a tough trio to replace.  The team was one win away from its third straight NCAA Tournament appearance.

The 2007-08 squad will be eager to eclipse the Cards 18-10 record from last year.  They will be led by a senior core of Duane Compo, Jhared Simpson, and Rusty Wooten. 

Compo returns as the team’s leading scorer after averaging just under 10 points per game and looks primed to have a breakout senior season.  Simpson, who averaged seven points and seven rebounds, will be a mainstay in the frontcourt and looked upon as one of the team’s top leaders .  Wooten will return for a fifth year after a knee injury ended his season prematurely and forced him to redshirt during the 2006-07 season.

They will be joined by another returning starter in junior point guard Maqsood Harrington.  The 6-footer from Oxon Hill, MD will look to lead the Cardinal attack both offensively and defensively.  Lance Randall, a sophomore wing who played important minutes as a freshman, will have an expanded role this year.  Derek Wise, a 6’2” combo guard from Baltimore, MD should also see significant minutes in the Cardinal backcourt.  Greg Andrews will add much-needed depth to the post position.  The 6’9” forward from Strongsville, OH played a reserve role last year, but has made considerable progress in the past year.  The Cardinals have a nice crop of up-and-coming players with two redshirt freshman and five true freshman.  6’6” wing Joe Suchy (Pittsburgh, PA) and 6’1” point guard Kyle Higgins (Columbus, OH) will look to crack the Cardinal rotation this year.  The recruiting class of 2007 consists of 6’4” wing Adam McFerran (Stow, OH), 6’2” shooting guard Jamell Walker (Edgewood, MD), 6’2” shooting guard Andrew Kirey (Millville, NJ), 5’9” point guard Ben Hodkinson (Tippecanoe, OH), and local Wheeling Central standout Brian Yahn.

The Cardinal squad will again take on a difficult schedule.  In addition to the twenty conference games in the always tough WVIAC, the team will travel to Clarion (PA) and host traditional DII powerhouse California (PA).  The Cards will also take on Wilmington (OH) and Loch Haven (PA) in the annual Main Street Classic.