Terry Dunn apparently targeted his 2007 recruiting efforts on frontcourt players, and the result was a class heavy on size. While the freshmen as individuals and as a group didn’t get the same attention from national recruiting services as the previous two Dartmouth classes, Dunn mentioned the three freshmen frontcourt players as potential contributors this season in an August feature on the school’s athletics website and another could get a chance to run the point.
F Matt Chisick – 6-7, 210 lbs. (Carmel, NY – Canterbury School)
Chisick was a mid-winter commitment for the Big Green and should add depth to the frontcourt. The New York native averaged a team-best 17.8 points per game and was second in rebounding a 7.2 per game last season at the Canterbury School in Connecticut. Dunn views Chisick as being capable of playing both the small and power forward positions and the freshman could be in the mix for playing time at either spot.
PG Ronnie Dixon – 5-11, 170 lbs. (Danville, IL – Phillips Exeter Academy)
Dixon comes to Dartmouth after a postgraduate year at Phillips Exeter, where he was a teammate of Princeton freshman Dan Mavraides and former Penn prospect and Stanford freshman Josh Owens. The scouting report on Dixon is that he has a decent handle and good outside shot. Point guard play has been a weak spot for Dartmouth under Dunn, and while Marlon Sanders would appear to have the first shot at the starting job this season, Dixon should be in the mix at least for a share of the minutes at lead guard.
C John Marciano – 7-0, 265 lbs. (Roselle Park, NJ – Roselle Park HS)
Marciano’s size makes him a very intriguing prospect in the middle, where Dartmouth has struggled to find consistent play after the graduation of David Gardner. He chose Dartmouth over an in-state scholarship offer from Fairleigh Dickinson and some preliminary interest from high major programs. Dunn repeatedly has mentioned conditioning as a problem at this point for Marciano, who has struggled with his weight at times, so the big man may have to wait to make a real impact in college.
PF Clive Weeden – 6-9, 215 lbs. (Stow, MA – Northfield Mount Hermon School)
The only Dartmouth recruit to appear in HoopScoop’s Top 1000 (ranked 841st, to be specific) and rated a 68 by Scouts, Inc., Weeden committed to the Big Green early on over interest from Quinnipiac. The 6-9 Northfield Mount Hermon product is a blue collar big man who rebounds and runs the floor well, and his toughness and attention to detail should endear him to Dunn’s staff. According to his prep school coaches, Weeden has worked hard to improve himself, and that work ethic should help him adjust to the Division I game. Among the five Dartmouth freshmen, he may be the most ready to contribute immediately.
SG Blake Williams – 6-4 (Hopkins, MN – Blake School)
Williams announced his commitment to Dartmouth over Division III interest in the late spring, after averaging 27.2 points per game as a senior at the Blake School in Minnesota. The 6-4 guard wasn’t included in the program’s announcement of incoming freshmen or the initial roster posted on the school’s athletics website, but he has since been added to the official roster. Williams brings a nice shooting touch to the program, though his status as an unrecruited player means he figures to face an uphill battle for playing time.
