In response to the earlier message from eclinchy...I would have to say without a doubt Martin should be on the first team.  He did so many little things in all 3 tournament games that go under the radar, including holding Stone and Smith to 8 and 3 points.  Holding Aaron Smith to 3 points is very impressive.   Westbrooks defense was incredible the entire tournament, between Mosley, Rudin, and yesterday on Jackson, Westbrooks again put on a clinic for defense. Hippert had a very impressive tournament certainly, and even yesterday facing the Trinity Defense, was really the only player with perhaps the execption of a few Fliegel jump shots that scored.  It'll be interesting to see who gets what award come Wednesday

Few observations from the Conn - Trinity game.  The Conn team is a very talented team and I could not have been more impressed with how hard they worked throughout the entire game.  Enough can not be said about them and my respect for them.  Even when down 19, they still fought hard and played tough. Martin outplayed Stone in every possible aspect of the game.  He offensively did what he wanted and defensively held Stone in check or simply denied any pass from even getting to him where he could do something with it.  Something else rather interesting to note is that while sitting near the parents from Trinity during the game, I overheard quite a few times that Martin has had pneumonia for the past month??? If that is so, what he has done still averaging 15 and 7 in the NESCAC...impressive.  Another player who deserves more credit is Aaron Westbrooks.  He held Mosley to what looked to be total frustration throughout the game.  Westbrooks was too fast and strong for the quick guard, again prompting me to think of him as one of the premier defenders in the league.  Bernier #24 shot absolutely lights out in the second half, sometimes in the 25-28ft range.  He was the reason the Camels were in the game.  Overall it was an impressive defensive game for Trinity, although the Camels did shoot 74% in the second half, mostly due to Bernier shot about 90% in the second half.

The most exciting time of the year, NESCAC tournament action...I just wanted to give a quick take on the games at hand, maybe sparking some other opinions...

Amherst and Colby - Although the first game was rather close, having seen both Amherst and Colby, I would say the Jeff's superior size will be too tough to overcome for the Mules.  For the doubters of Adam Choice, the young man seems to be extremely athletic with some talent, his case for making any all-regocnition team may be on the line this weekend.

Trinity and Conn - I am actually a bit concerned for the Hartford kids on this one. Conn seemed to have burned the nets off against Middlebury and may carry this over into Saturday.  Trinity played as hard as I have seen against Amherst all year, but did not execute well at all offensively nor shoot the ball well, both must be remedied or at least improved before the Camels come in.

Middlebury and Williams - Perhaps the most intriguing match up of the quarters.  Both teams have proved this year they are capable of knocking off top tier teams (i.e. Williams - Ursinus, and Middlebury over numerous talented teams).  I'd call this game my Doctor Jekel Mr. Hyde match up. Will the Middlebury team show up that beat Bowdoin by 15+, or the team that just lost to Conn giving up 95?  Will the Williams team show up that showed Trinity Jimmy from Hooisers was reborn, or the team that many of the posters here have come accustumed to having great disappointment in?

Bowdoin and Bates - Again interesting in that they just met, especially since it is reported here that Ellis did not even play in Bates's last weekend victory.  The Bowdoin team is physical and superior in the paint and can turn a game of basketball into rugby.  They work extremely hard and have earned every ounce of respect and recognition.  Bates I can not figure out.  They may be the most overachieving team in recent memory. To beat Bowdoin, on the road, twice, would be nothing short of outstanding, especially if it is again without Ellis.

Amherst vs. Williams (for all you Senior Jeff's and Eph's) Is my only prediction and I'm doing it so I can sit at my computer and read pages upon pages of Hixon vs. Paulson, Shalvoy vs. Olsen, Hopkins vs. Goehegan, Rose vs. Himself, part VI.  

Lots of talk about the "best" defender in the league.  I'm not going to flat out say he is the best because there are clearly numerous opinions and home team bias, but Aaron Westbrooks from Trinity is a name that deserves mention.  He is a strong defender and has been since his freshman year. The defense that Trinity played against Wes and CC was incredibly aggressive and led by Westbrooks

First time poster and old time alum of the "camp" as they now call it, Martin scored his 1000th against Colby the other night.  For all the talk about all nescac that has been going on, it seems like omitting a kid that is consistent every night for 16 points and 7 boards not to mention having to face double and triple teams every time he touches the ball seems a bit much...Perhaps he learned from a previous scoring forward at Trinity who scored a lot of points that you dont always need to force shots, but can pass out and even off the scoring balance