Yes, Powers did receive the call last year to put them into the finals.  The coach of Powers Catholic is Tim Herman's father.

Not to start a huge debate but I thought some people on this board might find this article pretty interesting, especially the Hope and Calvin fans.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-divorced-prof-29-both-apr29,0,6497533.story

Kzoo defeats Albion 94-82.  Pat Clancy led the hornets with 24, Kellogg with 21, McCain with 16 and Wagner with 14.  First victory against Albion since 2003.

Echoing some of Stinger's comments about the K/Blufton game this past Tuesday, I came away with a much better feeling than after the U of Chicago and Whittenberg games.  Obviously getting a W helps, but the Hornets played much harder than the previous two occasions.  They need to continue to work from the inside/out instead of relying on the perimeter.  Although Kellogg and McCain will continue to be undersized throughout the rest of the year, these two guys are pretty talented and makes shooters like Clancy, Matich, and Orozco get better opportunities.  The bigs need to continue to stay out of foul trouble, because there isn't much help behind them.  And wow, a pretty impressive dunk from McCain after a steal in the open court.  Next up is Marygrove, which should be a pretty easy win looking at the score in the Albion game.

And SAC, I agree with you the majority of the time but I can guarantee that Stinger and myself would not be offended if you posted the same thing about a Hornet player. 

It was a joke, and a funny one at that.  Get over it.  As just graduating a few years ago, I am pretty sure a 22 year old kid can take a little joke.

Any victory at this point is momentum, which can be defined as "moving forward".  While not a huge win, the first victory of the year will hopefully give the team some confidence.

Looks like the Hornets pulled out their first victory of the year 66-60 in the consolation game of the Marian Tourney against Davenport.  Pretty balanced scoring for the team.  Hopefully, they can keep the momentum going. 


http://dupanthers.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/121507aaa.html

Although the MIAA schools can't give athletic scholarships at all, the sticker shock of $30,000-$40,000 a year at a Hope, K, Albion, ect. will scare kids away from the get go.  I know these schools do have very good incentive packages for good grades, extracurricular activities, leadership, ect. that makes the cost of attending much less than the sticker tuition price.  Even though the schools can't match a full-ride of an NAIA institution, a high school senior and his parents probably won't consider the extra thousand dollars in the short-term even though there might be better long-term benefits from attending an MIAA school. 

That being said, there are kids out there that are probably still living in the world where basketball is king and yes even at the non-D1 level will consider a basketball program over academics any day of the week.  Unfortunate, but true.  A lof of other states don't have to compete with the amount of NAIAs and DIIs that Michigan has (see Wisconsin) but hey I think we are still doing okay in comparison.  With Michigan's economy, it doesn't look like things will change in the short-term.  The MIAAs are going to have to rely on kids and parents that do think about the future, can afford a few more bucks each year, and have some type of affinity or affiliation to the schools.  Not knocking all of the NAIAs because I know some are good schools, but kids are continue to go where the money is.

As a Hornet fan, you look at the potential of the freshman class at Hope and wonder how good the class may be  after adding 2-3 transfers that seem to come like clockwork every few years.  DVS, Osbourn, MVH, Wolfe, Hoogeboom for the one year when Immink was out, and Voison come to mind.

Looking at the situation in the eyes of a Hope freshman, I don't know how happy you would be seeing all the transfers come in.  On one hand you want your team to succeed as much as possible and the addition of talented players really does improve your team and increase your chances of making the NCAAs and winning the MIAA.  On the other hand, even though many of the transfers were originally recruited by the school, your chances of playing significant minutes or maybe even being able to make the varsity roster are signficantly decreased with the extra players.  It does make for better competition but from a recruit or freshman's eyes it might not be such a good thing.

Concerning the Kalamazoo/Witt game on Saturday, I would echo much of PickNRoll's comments and add a few more.  This was a game K could have won.  This was not the same Witt team we are used to seeing but still a pretty solid squad.  

Kellogg and McCain were pretty strong inside but need to be able to stay out of foul trouble.  Hopefully they can continue to learn how to play hard without fouling.  Both of their fifth fouls were on plays away from the hoop on a blocking foul and an over-the back call.  Hopefully one of the other freshman can step up but it seems like it will be a year before one of them can really step up, when they can put on a little weight.

Defensively they struggled containing Witt's PG all night long.  The kid was a real solid shooter and took it to the basket pretty nice as well.  Other than that it's tough to ask some of the undersized post players from covering bigger players.  They did a pretty good job considerating the size disadvantage.  Problem is, the issue won't change this season.

Offensively, K struggled at times when McCain left the game.  Hopefully some of the jump shooters find their rhythm sooner than later.  With their feet set, the Hornets were knocking down outside shots consistently, unfortunately I saw too many unrhythmic forces.  Jerome did a nice job getting to the hoop and finishing.  It's much easier shooting 3's inside/our rather than a pass from the perimeter.  

One thing I didn't see was the intensity and focus that's needed to win.  The guys played hard but were a step late on the back side help, gap help, and loose balls.  K's not going to out-talent too many teams but needs to do all the little things to get the W.  Things aren't going to get easier this week with a trip to Grand Valley, who knocked off MSU a few weeks back.  

Kalamazoo will start out with a pretty tough test in a scrimmage vs. Hillsdale College. I know Hillsdale played Central Michigan pretty tough, so hopefully Kalamazoo can keep the trend going of knocking off or playing tight with a higher division team.

The Hornets then head out to Wheaton College next Friday.  I know Wheaton has Kent Raymond returning so I am hoping someone can keep him contained, because without a hand in his face it's lights out.  I am planning on making it to the games next weekend, so hopefully there will be some other Hornet alums in attendance.

A big question mark for the Hornets will be to see who can handle the PG spot for them this year.  I know Ben Jerome and some freshman will be battling for the job, hopefully one of them can step up and take control of the spot from the get-go.  Another question is what happens to the 5-spot when Kellogg gets into foul trouble or needs a break.  K is already undersized with him at the 5, but there is not another true 5-man on the roster.  Could cause for some match-up problems if they move McCain to the 5, but on the other hand that would make for a small lineup.  I guess we will see soon enough.

In terms of playing overseas, the leagues differ significantly in the compensation for the players.  Most leagues, if not all, allow only 3 Americans on the roster.  Even if the players aren't making much money, the teams usually give the players a food allowance, housing, and transportation.  The income is tax free as well.

I don't think you can turn down the chance to play overseas.  Being able to enjoy what you are doing for a year or two after graduation would probably be a dream to many ex-players. 

Dirk Rhinehart just got cleared to play for his team in Germany.  He had some type of heart problem and was finally cleared.  E-Rock is in the states waiting to hear back from a few 1st Division Teams in the Netherlands and Switzerland. 

My first post in the forum and I plan on becoming a semi-regular poster during the year.

The board has been a little dead but students are either in class or just about to start the year.  Here are some thoughts for the upcoming season.

Albion-How will the Britons recover in the post- Brandon Crawford era?  I expect Zac Silas to pick up his game this year and become more of an overall player if he can improve his defense.  With the possibility of Fulse returning from a season long injury and the addition of Andrew Holmes from the freak injury, the Britons should have a very talented backcourt.  Although Bailey was very efficient last year, Fulse should continue how Bailey left off.  Maybe not as good a shooter, but much quicker than Bailey and a better defender.  The question is can Evan Way step up his game to give them an inside look as well.

Adrian-Wow, have the Bulldogs fallen off from the days of Mike Lewis, Brian Shaefer, and Novak.  With the loss of Nokovich, Collins, and Bohlen the team is losing even more.  Hopefully, Steve Thornton and Andy Kubish can step up the load.  I expect the Bulldogs to be toward the bottom of the league again. 

Olivet-The Coments need a new start and will get one with the graduation of Gerald Dozie.  He could've been the most dominant player in the league last year, but he was too busy arguing with coaches, teammates, and referees.  At times he was Brandon Crawford with better skills, other times he was a complete non-factor.  I think the bigger deal will be the loss of Kurtz and Pruitt.  ALthough Kurtz was not a dominant player in any sense, he was consistent and a big reason the team stayed together when Dozie went his own way.  I thought Pruitt had the ability to be the best player in the MIAA when he came in as a freshman, but he didn't live up to the expectations.  A great competititor and tough matchup at 6'6", he will be missed. 

Kalamazoo-The Hornets should be solid again this year.  The question will be can they finally beat the Albions and Calvins in order to move up the standings.  They have played these teams pretty close the last few years (Calvin for about 35 minutes the last 2 years at least) but haven't been able to pull out those hard fought victories that are needed to move up the ladder.  The Hornets had a huge matchup problem with Hope and those were the only league games that the Hornets were not in.  Hopefully this year will be different. 
     Does the team have someone to step up and take over the PG role, a major concern for the Hornets.  Expect 3-man Pat Clancy, Damon Krohn, Roger Garfield, or Thomas Greer to step in and be more of a scoring  guard at the position.  Expect Henry McCain, Brad Brinkman, Tyler Worst, and Mat Kellogg to really up their scoring this year.  The Hornets have struggled to score points at times the last few years, this year needs to be different.  The Hornets could start a taller lineup this year if they start Clancy or Garfield at the 1.

What about Hope and Calvin?  Will the loss of 5th year senior Greg Immink, Andy Phillips, and Voison affect the Dutch or will all the transfers step right in.  It's too bad players like Scott Richardson and Brett Jager will never get the time that they probably envisioned when they first came to Hope.  Those two seniors have worked really hard but the reality is that Hope has too much talent for those guys to get starter mintues.  Expect Van Solkema, Cramer, and Vanderheide to put up some big time numbers this year.
How good will Veldhouse be this year?  He was almost upstoppable at times offensively but was suspect on the defensive end and needs to improve his penetration and creation for others.  Or will Calvin put more of a true PG in that spot and let him get some more shots.  It will be interesting to see how the incoming frosh and other returners can replace Draayer and Trewella.  I  think people underestimated how much those two helped Veldhouse have the ability to go one and one with his man since the help side was hesitant to let either one of those guards have space.  No one expected what the Knights accomplished last year, and there is no reason to believe that they were have a letup this year.

Oct. 15th is not too far away.

My first post in the forum and I plan on becoming a semi-regular poster during the year.

The board has been a little dead but students are either in class or just about to start the year.  Here are some thoughts for the upcoming season.

Albion-How will the Britons recover in the post- Brandon Crawford era?  I expect Zac Silas to pick up his game this year and become more of an overall player if he can improve his defense.  With the possibility of Fulse returning from a season long injury and the addition of Andrew Holmes from the freak injury, the Britons should have a very talented backcourt.  Although Bailey was very efficient last year, Fulse should continue how Bailey left off.  Maybe not as good a shooter, but much quicker than Bailey and a better defender.  The question is can Evan Way step up his game to give them an inside look as well.

Adrian-Wow, have the Bulldogs fallen off from the days of Mike Lewis, Brian Shaefer, and Novak.  With the loss of Nokovich, Collins, and Bohlen the team is losing even more.  Hopefully, Steve Thornton and Andy Kubish can step up the load.  I expect the Bulldogs to be toward the bottom of the league again. 

Olivet-The Coments need a new start and will get one with the graduation of Gerald Dozie.  He could've been the most dominant player in the league last year, but he was too busy arguing with coaches, teammates, and referees.  At times he was Brandon Crawford with better skills, other times he was a complete non-factor.  I think the bigger deal will be the loss of Kurtz and Pruitt.  ALthough Kurtz was not a dominant player in any sense, he was consistent and a big reason the team stayed together when Dozie went his own way.  I thought Pruitt had the ability to be the best player in the MIAA when he came in as a freshman, but he didn't live up to the expectations.  A great competititor and tough matchup at 6'6", he will be missed. 

Kalamazoo-The Hornets should be solid again this year.  The question will be can they finally beat the Albions and Calvins in order to move up the standings.  They have played these teams pretty close the last few years (Calvin for about 35 minutes the last 2 years at least) but haven't been able to pull out those hard fought victories that are needed to move up the ladder.  The Hornets had a huge matchup problem with Hope and those were the only league games that the Hornets were not in.  Hopefully this year will be different. 
     Does the team have someone to step up and take over the PG role, a major concern for the Hornets.  Expect 3-man Pat Clancy, Damon Krohn, Roger Garfield, or Thomas Greer to step in and be more of a scoring  guard at the position.  Expect Henry McCain, Brad Brinkman, Tyler Worst, and Mat Kellogg to really up their scoring this year.  The Hornets have struggled to score points at times the last few years, this year needs to be different.  The Hornets could start a taller lineup this year if they start Clancy or Garfield at the 1.

What about Hope and Calvin?  Will the loss of 5th year senior Greg Immink, Andy Phillips, and Voison affect the Dutch or will all the transfers step right in.  It's too bad players like Scott Richardson and Brett Jager will never get the time that they probably envisioned when they first came to Hope.  Those two seniors have worked really hard but the reality is that Hope has too much talent for those guys to get starter mintues.  Expect Van Solkema, Cramer, and Vanderheide to put up some big time numbers this year.
How good will Veldhouse be this year?  He was almost upstoppable at times offensively but was suspect on the defensive end and needs to improve his penetration and creation for others.  Or will Calvin put more of a true PG in that spot and let him get some more shots.  It will be interesting to see how the incoming frosh and other returners can replace Draayer and Trewella.  I  think people underestimated how much those two helped Veldhouse have the ability to go one and one with his man since the help side was hesitant to let either one of those guards have space.  No one expected what the Knights accomplished last year, and there is no reason to believe that they were have a letup this year.

Oct. 15th is not too far away.