"All the pieces are there for a great season."

Those are the words of Grinnell College men's basketball coach David Arseneault as the Pioneers prepare to defend their Midwest Conference title in the 2007-2008 campaign.

"On paper things look good," said Arseneault, in his 19th season of leading the team. "This is probably the best group we've assembled. But that doesn't ensure anything. I've tried to caution the guys that despite the fact we're returning our best five players from a championship team, we also had a good share of luck last year and a lot of good bounces."

Among the top returnees are Arseneault's son, David '09, and John Grotberg '09, both first-team All-MWC selections last season. The 6-foot-2 Arseneault was the NCAA Division III assists leader for the second season in a row with 203, breaking his own school record. Arseneault, a finalist for the prestigious Bob Cousy Award, also averaged 18.7 points per game. Grotberg, 6-1, ranked third in DIII scoring at 28.1 points a contest and also averaged 3.1 assists a game.

"David and John are such different types of players, but both equally effective," said the coach. "David is a pass first, shoot second point guard. He's smart enough to know what has to be done to help the team, whether it be making the pass or taking the scoring load on his shoulders. He makes the players around him better, and some of them are already very good. John is a flashy player who can score in bunches. He's a nightmare to defend because he can make bad shots. He's such a weapon and demands the full attention of any opposing team."

Also back is honorable mention All-MWC pick Keith Chamberlain '08, the team's tallest player at 6-8 who averaged 11.9 points and 6.4 rebounds a game. "Keith came to campus as a 16-year-old who was very raw," said Arseneault. "But he's blossomed into such an imposing player and now has a legitimate chance of playing professionally overseas. We will have to adjust our system to accommodate him."

Rounding out the list of top returnees are Bobby Long '09 (15.3 ppg) and Mike Schmidt '08 (8.8 ppg), who are 6-0 and 6-3, respectively.

"Mike is probably the best spot-up shooter in the league and is on pace to be a 1,000-point scorer for his career," said Arseneault. "He has a quick release and is accurate. He also learned to put the ball on the floor this summer, which should stop defenders from over-extending to him."

"Bobby is our wildcard. He's such a great athlete and so physically skilled. He played in Italy this summer and was the leading scorer for his traveling team. That gave him a lot of confidence and should help bring his game to an all-conference level."

Arseneault pointed to two other players, Ahmed Idrissa '09 and Patrick Laine '08, as being big keys, particularly defensively. "Ahmed and Patrick are impressive defensive players who complement what we do on offense," said the coach. "They've given us good balance as a team.

Rounding out the list of letter winners are Joe Fox '08, Armando Guzman '08, R.J. Roewe '09, Thomas Davis '10, John Bruns '10 and Ross Preston '10.

"We're going to be deeper than last year," said Arseneault. "We've just got to make sure we avoid the injury and illness bugs throughout the season. David, John and Keith are three guys we can't afford to lose."

Among the top newcomers is P.J. Mahaffey '11 of Montezuma. "He's really impressed everyone," said Arseneault. "He can create his own shots and has a nice stroke. With time, he'll do some damage."

Arseneault said a number of other newcomers should play big roles for the Pioneers, as well. "Alex McDonald '11 is a 6-4 scrappy kid from Alton, Ill.," said Arseneault. "I think he's going to be awesome in our press. He has great energy and makes things happen. Kale Knisley '11 is a 6-7 player with great athletic skill. He'll provide a nice presence on the rebounding front, yet also is a nice shooter with a soft touch. "Scott Kaitz '11 is a hard-nosed lefty who played basketball in the largest class in Minnesota on a team that made it to the state championship. And Augustus Karisch '11 is another lefty who was an all-stater in Texas. He's a great shooter with excellent range."

Other newcomers in the mix include Nick Fitz '11 and Aaron Epps '11. All of the players mentioned above will give the Pioneers the opportunity to improve on last season's 17-7 overall mark and 13-3 conference record.

"What has made us dangerous in the past is a sense of urgency," said Arseneault. "We have to make sure we maintain that and avoid complacency. If we remain in the 'urgent' mode, I think it will be a great season.

Arseneault hopes that 'great' season consists of a MWC Tournament title, something that evaded the Pioneers last year when they lost in the first round of the four-team event. The winner of the tourney gets an automatic bid to the DIII national tournament.

"Last year's conference tournament was probably the only adversity we faced all year," said Arseneault. "John Grotberg got sick and we ended up losing to Lake Forest. I think that loss left John and our team a little hungry for this season. I think we'll feed off that."