Lane’s Matt Szafoni should be at or near the top of any list compiled of seniors poised for breakout seasons.

Although he started a year ago for a team that won 20 games and captured a regional championship, the focal point of coach Nick LoGalbo’s team was big man Dalton Scantlebury, who is now a freshman at Penn.

Szafoni played a valuable role and made significant strides throughout his junior season. But since then he has taken big steps forward, including growing a couple of inches while still showcasing his ability to face-up to the basket.

As Szafoni closes in on 6-9, the versatility remains. Throughout the summer, both with Lane and on the Under Armour travel circuit with his team, Elevate, Szafoni showed flashes that enticed college coaches.

Illinois State saw the upside and nabbed Szafoni, who played his travel basketball with another Redbird recruit — Fremd’s Jordan Williams.

Now he will enter the 2025-26 season as one of the top players in the Public League, despite being rather unknown.

Lewis coach Scott Trost retires

Scott Trost has been a basketball fixture in Illinois for a long time. But the veteran coach called it a career last week, retiring after 40-plus years of coaching college basketball.

As a highly successful small-college head coach — nine years at Division III schools Elmhurst and Illinois Wesleyan and the last 19 at Division II Lewis — Trost thrived recruiting Chicago-area and state prospects.

That included landing future NBA player Max Strus, the former Stagg star who blossomed over his two seasons at Lewis before transferring to DePaul.

Through his ties and connections in
Illinois and nonstop presence in high school gyms, he gained the trust and respect of coaches across the state. That led to countless recruiting successes.

He won over the years with local products often leading the way, including Ryan Jackson (Riverside-Brookfield), Brandon Dagans (Thornton), Kendale McCullum (Larkin), Anthony D’Avanzo (Notre Dame), Jason Genova (St. Patrick) and Chris McClellan (Wheeling), among others.

With the work Trost put in over the years, success followed. He won over 60% of his games a head coach and ended his career as the all-time winningest coach in Lewis history. While at Illinois Wesleyan, he led the program to four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, including a trip to the 2006 Final Four.

Lewis basketball turns to current associate head coach, Nick Rocco, to lead the program in 2025-26. Rocco, who spent time as an assistant coach to the late Gene Pingatore at St. Joseph, has been on Trost’s staff for the last nine years.

New name on the radar

A complete unknown is now a new name to track, though it may be difficult to do so as Cedrick Carter plays at little-known Intrinsic, a charter school in downtown Chicago.

The 6-8 Carter, who remains raw but intriguing, flashed his potential at twhe recent EXPO Event, put on by Prep Hoops. Carter offers a blend at his size that includes some skill, touch and upside.

However, playing in the Lake Shore Athletic Conference with schools such as Wolcott, Beacon and Horizon-McKinley will keep him under wraps. But as he continues to adapt to the speed of the game, Carter could generate some Division II interest.