Quote from: wally_wabash on September 05, 2024, 03:32:30 PMIn the spirit of the first set of regional rankings, I present my week 0 R4 rankings:

Albion
Alma
DePauw
Hope
John Carroll
Mount St. Joseph
Mount Union

I like it.

Albion 81, Adrian 70, F

Kind of a ho-hum game down at Adrian tonight. Adrian's performance was certainly improved compared to the bludgeoning they received last week by Albion. Adrian did a much better job defensively at contesting Briton shooters, and allowed the Brits just 3 makes on 11 outside attempts beyond the arc. Offensively Adrian struggled to maintain consistency, exchanging good plays with ill-advised shots and careless turnovers with near equal frequency.

Albion came out in this game with 2 clear directives from Coach May, defend with more intensity, and get the ball into Caden Ebeling. Ebeling went off for 32 points (26 in the first half, including 7-12 on FGs and a perfect 12-12 on FTs). Adrian adjusted, but reserve guard Mark Tocco had a nice second half scoring 8 points (10 for the game) amidst balanced scoring for the Brits after the break.

Whether the Brits defensive improved is hard to judge, and very opponent dependent. While it seemed like they played with more intensity and better communication defensively, they still allowed more than 70 points to a team that shot a respectable but hardly scorching 5-16 on threes, and only outscored Adrian 38-32 in the paint, despite getting 34 from Ebeling.

Trine's margin over Hope ought to raise some eyebrows around the league. sac mentioned he thought it would be pretty close at the top. I agree that Calvin, Hope, Albion, and perhaps even a surprisingly game Alma squad seem fairly evenly matched, but I'm not sure Trine isn't just going to run away with it. They seem to have reloaded despite significant departures from last year, and have yet to face a really competitive game from an MIAA opponent during this conference/nonconference part of the schedule. Albion will have the opportunity to give them just that this Saturday.

Hope 85, Albion 79, F

Hope has come a long way since, uh, Friday night when they couldn't find any offense in the last 7 minutes against Alma. Getting Preston Granger back obviously has something to do with that, but Tyler George's emergence has been a huge lift, as has Evan Thomas improved play. For the last year, Thomas was the person for Hope that really scared me when he had the ball, and he's starting to put that together for a whole game. Between Thomas' and George's ability, and Granger's ability to pick his spots to score efficiently, and Hope has a trio that can win them some games. And for the third time in three games Hope got out for to a double digit lead in the second half. But for the second straight game Hope was able to outlast a determined comeback effort to eke out a win.

For Albion, I don't want to say I told you so. Albion had survived Olivet by efficient shooting, especially from deep. The Brits ran into a far more organized defensive effort by Hope, and weren't able to find nearly as many good shots. Thus, the team that had been hitting nearly 47% of their threes, hit only 5 of 17 (29.4%) in this game. That's not an atrocious number, and indeed Albion's offense was probably good enough to win, but their defensive issues reared their ugly head once again. Hope is turning into a good offensive team, and hitting 8 of 14 from deep (57.4%) probably represents some Dutch good fortune. But Hope shot 57% from 2 as well, most of those layups by Preston Granger off dump off passes by dribble penetrators, or the ball handlers getting all the way to the rim on those drives. The biggest difference in this game statistically, other than shooting percentage, was Hope's 10 point advantage in points in the paint (which also helps to explain the difference in shooting percentage). If Albion can't keep the ball out of the key on drives, they're going to struggle to beat most of the better teams in the league.

Congratulations to Hope on a well fought victory, I think their first at Kresge since 2018? I'm just glad it doesn't count in the conference standings. 

Albion 95, Olivet 85, F

After this game I just wanted to put on a blindfold because my eyes felt tired from the over-stimulation of trying to follow the action and pace of this contest. In a game that features 167 possession, Albion's efficient scoring (1.19 PPP) was enough to keep Olivet at arms length for most of the contest. A tight first half saw the Brits easing into a 6 point halftime lead. Albion took control early in the 2nd, though Olivet cut it to single digits 2 or 3 times, they weren't able to get much closer than that.

Albion's Cortez Garland continued to impress scoring 37 points on 13-22 shooting, including 4-6 from deep, and 7-10 FTs. MJ Barnes also continued his sharp shooting with a 5-9 night from downtown with a 2nd on team 17 points. Caden Ebeling had an uncharacteristically off night shooting only 4-10, but still managed 11 points. Albion's hot shooting allowed them to hold off a game Comets squad that they struggled to defend for much of the game. If and when the shooting stroke abandons them, I fear the Britons may be in for a rude awakening, as their overall defense and defensive rebounding continue to need improvement. Albion also struggled to deal with Olivet's press for stretches of the second half. Only 4 of their 12 turnovers occurred in the first. Quinton Armstrong also returned to the Britons roster. He only played 4 minutes, and probably needs to work into game shape, but adding another quality big gives Albion another piece they can try to work in to help their defense and rebounding, and turn to for scoring if the jumpers aren't falling.

The past two years under Sam Hargraves Olivet has looked like the best team at the Y. They have length, they have quickness. They can make circus shots and deep 3s, but their overall cohesion seems a bit discombobulated. I'm not sure how many games this team will win, but they're going to make more than one MIAA coach reach for the antacid. Eddie Thigpen is a match-up nightmare, scoring 15 points on 7-12 shooting. Delbert Redfield also made an impressive impact coming off the bench to sink 5-6 3 pointers to tie Thigpen fro the team lead with 15 points.

Albion will host Hope on Monday in what should be an interesting test for both squads, especially coming on short rest.

Albion 95, Adrian 60

A very successful, if unpolished first outing for the Brits as they look to defend their MIAA regular season title in this abbreviated season.

Albion has a little different look this year after a few departures from last years team. The team will strongly feature 5th year big man Caden Ebeling (who was at 999 career points heading into this game, and is now safely ensconced in the 1000 point club), as well as reigning MIAA defensive player of the year Cortez Garland, as well as outside sniper MJ Barnes. This is a core that can win the conference IMO, but Jody May's chief task this season will be to build a solid role-playing cast from the rest of the roster. On to the game:

-Nobody's going to beat Albion if they shoot 50% on 3s (11-22). Many of these were good looks by good shooters, but that torrid rate is obviously unsustainable.

-Cortez Garland was a really good player last year, but he's on a different level this year, he's shooting the 3 with confidence, has a lightning quick first step, and his on-ball defensive ability can really disrupt an opponents ability to even get into their offense. I'd say the two main themes in Albion's rout today were their hot outside shooting, and Adrian's inability to hold onto the rock (26 turnovers, which Albion scored 35 points off of, which nicely matches their margin of victory).

-Caden Ebeling is going to struggle to get the ball down low with him being the only post presence on the team. Albion's unique ability to put to true back-to-the-basket guys last year gave opposing defenses fits. This year teams are going to front, deny, and double Caden, and force Albion to score any other way. Albion will have to find additional ways to get him involved in the offense.

-Jaylen Ross' 10 points on 5-7 shooting and a steal in 16 minutes impressed me, and I think he could be in line to be the scoring guard off the bench, something his assistant coach Arshawn Parker can tell him lots about.

-I was also impressed by Ken Thomas' 10 points on 4-6 shooting 3-3 FTs in 10 minutes. Albion needs a big off the bench to spell Ebeling, and Thomas looked like the guy best suited to fill that role. This is also because:

-Devin Holmes looked unsure of himself with a team leading 3 turnovers in 20 minutes. Holmes was also exposed on defense at least once badly, when guarding a more agile offensive player.

-Adrian has once again had significant roster turnover since last year (as several teams have, it seems), but Adrian seems to be back to square one. Saturday's game put the Bulldogs, the defending MIAA tournament champions, at 0-8 on the season, and with seemingly few answers. It seems like no matter what momentum Adrian has from the previous season, they're always starting over the next. But Adrian seems to doggedly improve as the season moves along. After Saturday, they have nowhere to go but up.

I can't over emphasize how cathartic it was to see my alma mater compete again after the long delay. Regardless of how the season goes, I'm going to treasure watching these young men play for their schools and the love of the game like never before, knowing how fragile it is.

Good luck to all MIAA squads this season.

Quote from: Dave 'd-mac' McHugh on April 20, 2020, 11:39:17 PM

Quote from: HopeConvert on April 20, 2020, 08:13:40 PM

Quote from: sac on April 20, 2020, 11:06:52 AM
"the Michigan 2020 Promise was made possible by a single, benevolent donor whose gift inspired the decision to offer the Class of 2020 this support."

Generosity more than desperation.

Albion's policy is being driven by panic. It's not sound decision-making. And if you can't spot institutional BS, there's not much else to say.

Also: of course the families like it. If my local restaurant started offering free food in the midst of this crisis as a way of bringing people curbside, it would be good for me and my family, but probably bad for their business model.

Not sure you can call this panic right now. Probably thinking a bit down the road and reacting now instead of waiting. Panic would be maybe this summer or even next academic year and throwing everything and anything. But what Albion has announced isn't something new for a number of institutions who are making similar decisions...

But the money has to come from somewhere. You can't panic, offer free anything, and hope to survive.

I'm going to side with the institution having a plan and someone behind it. Albion isn't exactly known for being a bottom-of-the-barrel institution.

If this was 2010 I think you could have said it was desperation, as Albion was then struggling with declining enrollment and weak leadership.

I think Albion has much stronger leadership today, it's increased its enrollment, and while I know there's still some long term financial uncertainty, I think this is more a calculated risk. Get some attention by being a spot of good news in a sea of bad news, hope it brings some more applications and enrollments, and hope that those extra benefits, when factoring in donations, don't cost more than they bring in in federal/private scholarship dollars, and extra services provided.

Given how much attention it's received thus far, I would venture it has a good chance of paying off.

I've been trying to quietly enjoy this season, but I am going to come out of the woodwork to congratulate my Albion Britons on winning the league title outright tonight. I was a sophomore in HS and D3 basketball was not on my radar when Albion won it in 2005, so this is a first for me. I though coach May and the players did a wonderful job coming together in the wake of Zak Winston's passing to reach this moment.

A few questions for the board.

1. With Kzoo breaking its skid against Hope, what is the longest winning streak of an MIAA school over another? Could it be Calvin's 5 game streak over Hope?

2. If Albion falls in the conference tourney, do they have a shot at pool C?

Thanks everyone, enjoy the last week of MIAA basketball!

How are people feeling about this weeks' MIAA/NACC challenge? I know this series has been on sided in our favor since its inception, but there seems to be considerable optimism on the NACC board, and Aurora got some love in the North Region fan poll. Nevertheless, I see it:

Hope def. Aurora (comfortably, but not a blow out)

Albion def. Eureka (Somewhere between 7-21 points)

Trine def. Concordia-Wisconsin (Not close)

Concordia Chicago def. Finlandia (Not yet Lions...)

Alma def. Rockford (Important for Scots to pick up this W)

Adrian def. Wisconsin-Lutheran (Probably close, crucial for Adrian as discussed)

Olivet def. Benedictine (Given Benedictine's narrow win over Franklin, this is an interesting game from my vantage point)

That would still be a 7-1 MIAA record, but I could see many of these games being close affairs. Other thoughts?

I know there's a general consensus among many here that Andy Lyall got a raw deal. A coach with a long history at the school, who won them an MIAA championship, and had won far more than he lost, but without recent championship level success.

I know when their current President came to Adrian ('05), he brought with him a "results first" mentality, and made college programs justify themselves for continued support and funding. He also hired their current AD in '07, and thus, the letting go of Lyall and the promotion of Deere was one his first major decisions.

I think Deere will survive for now, his pair of MIAA championships ('12 and '14), are more recent then Lyall's ('97) was when he was let go, and I think the AD, having promoted Deere, probably feels that Deere is "his" guy, perhaps more than Lyall was.

But if Adrian goes 2-8, I could see Mr. Deere perhaps "retiring" after this season. Their next two games, home against Wisconsin Lutheran, and their MIAA opener vs. Kalamazoo are must wins for their season I think.

A few thoughts from the first two weeks of MIAA football action:

In re: Defiance, In watching the Defiance/Albion game, I can't remember another team so over-matched at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. I actually gave Defiance's QB a lot of credit for sticking in the entire Albion game as we was getting hit nearly every play. I'm sure Defiance/Hope had much the same appearance.

Hopefully their committed and experienced staff can eventually get them back to competitiveness. This is a vulnerable time for small liberal arts colleges, and while a successful football program may not be able to save a school, the increased enrollment and awareness it brings can absolutely be part of the solution.

Albion: Offense is still explosive. Last year it lacked consistency, however, the key is for QB Kyle Thomas to avoid mistakes. Last year he could be explosive, but in any direction. If he play a clean game, Albion can score on anyone. 3 (relatively inexplicable) INTs against Defiance weren't an encouraging sign, the 6 TD, 0 INT performance against Franklin much more so. I was a little disappointed at Albion's inability to grind out yards on the ground against Franklin. They got some chunks, but too man times they gained 0, 1, or 2 yards, instead of 4, 5, and 6.

On defense Albion is clearly much improved compared to the last several years, and that would be expected considering their top 6 tacklers last year were all sophomores. I was concerned with the youth in the secondary, but against Franklin they looked pretty good, forcing their reportedly very good QB into a very inefficient evening. Nevertheless, I can't expect Albion's D to become world beaters over night, there will be growing pains.

Ultimately, Albion's biggest enemy may be their own lack of discipline. In two games Albion has been flagged for 21 penalties for 297 yards. Mistakes like that will absolutely cost them a game if they continue.

MIAA

What's striking is how similar some scores are this year compared to last when teams have played the same opponents. Ultimately the league seems to be in about the same place. My thoughts, briefly, and with no particular information other than perusing scores and box scores, about each team:

HOPE: Tough loss to a good Milikin team. This would seem to be their year, lots of talent back from last year. After finishing 2nd several years in a row I'm sure they're hungry for a breakthrough. Games against Trine and Albion will determine their season.

TRINE: Not so much a re-building year as a "re-loading" year. Trine has been the most consistent MIAA program since the mid-aughts. Albion hasn't beaten them since '13. Probably the team that scares me the most.

OLIVET: Outside the top 3 Olivet seems the best to me thus far. Definitely a dangerous opponent, and a program that seems to have gained some consistency at last,

KALAMAZOO: I'm never really sure what to expect from the Hornets, they seem to alternate from middling seasons to poor ones. I'm predicting a middling one. Interesting to note that with recent retirements, Jamie Zorbo is now the dean of MIAA football coaches.

ALMA: Seems like a fateful year for this once proud program that has been in the wilderness for a decade at this point. A 3rd place finish in '16 is their best result since 2008.

ADRIAN: Seems like a rebuilding year for the Bulldogs. After being in contention consistently in the late aughts and early 2010s, the Bulldogs seem to have been stuck in the middle class for most of the last decade. Can Jim Deere recapture the momentum he gave to the Bulldogs earlier in his career.

FINLANDIA: Seems much improved from last year, but any league win still seems like a long shot, this year anyway. The question for the Lions I think is whether they can recruit well enough to build a competitive program, or whether they're going to be stuck trying to playing win vulture to avoid the basement. I hope it's the former, but I have my doubts.

In any event it's sure to be another exciting, interesting, and surprising year. Good luck to all teams!

I've got a reliable source telling me that Steve Ernst has informed Olivet College he will step down after this season as men's basketball coach.

Tough loss for Albion last night against a very game Trine squad. Albion was up by as much as 17 in the first half, but Trine steadily eroded that margin until taking a late lead.

No Jamezell Davis last night for the Brits, and I think that made a difference as Albion seemed to run out o steam offensively late in the game. Apparently Davis suffered a concussion. The broadcasters doing the video seemed to think he might be back for the next game, but with a concussion  of course it can be significantly longer and an abundance of caution is warranted.

Game notes from the last two weeks.

Albion 37, Alma 34, 2OT: Alma should have won this game. They converted a 3rd and 8 with less than 2 minutes to go up 4, with, unfortunately as it turned out, a big play that took them down inside the 10. But with a 1st and goal, Albion's D didn't have to worry about anything downfield and stiffened, holding the Scots for three down and using timeouts to preserve the clock. A successful field goal extended the lead to 3 with 1:45 left, just enough time for Albion to march down the field and score a tying touchdown. Overtime 1 featured an Albion 3 and out and a dying duck field goal that was good by less than 4 inches, followed by an Alma possession where they nearly scored twice, but settled for a FG of their own. Overtime featured an Alma 3 and out, followed by a field goal missed by hitting the left upright, and a made winning field goal on Albion's ensuing possession. Overall I was much impressed with the Scots, they are young and rapidly improving under their new coach. I think they will be a threat in the remainder of their games and will probably pull an upset somewhere along the way.

Albion 24, Hope 29: A beautiful homecoming Saturday where the rain held off just long enough to play some football. I should mention that while the city of Albion's reputation has suffered considerably of late, their is some real signs of revitalization going on downtown that were exciting to see. To any other MIAA posters who visit Albion this year, I recommend a cruise down Superior Street to see what's new.

The game itself was a hard fought contest between 2 teams in the upper echelon of the conference. I thought Hope was making a serious tactical error when they put their offense away in the 4th quarter, just trying to run the clock down, I fully expected a patented Albion game winning drive. The Dutch defenders were equal to the task however nabbing three interceptions on Albion's final 3 possessions. While the DBs got all the stats, I was most impressed by the way Hope's front 7 got pressure on Albion's QB Kyle Thomas in a way no other team has managed this year, but were then able to contain Thomas when he attempted to break the pocket, forcing the young QB into some tough spots in which he made some poor decisions. Hopefully for the purple and gold faithful this will be a great learning experience for the young Mr Thomas.

As far as the rest of the league is concerned, Trine is sitting pretty with no losses. I believe their game with Albion will determine whether they sweep the league or whether the title picture will be more muddled. That said Kalamazoo is still 2-0 and will have their say, and Olivet is looking like it might be a contender. I had Olivet and Adrian at about the same level coming into the year, a step behind Albion, Hope, and Trine, but the Comets took it to the Bulldogs, leading 43-6 at halftime. It will be interesting to see what Olivet does against the other top teams, they've got a great chance to make a statement this week.

The leaves are changing color, and the MIAA race is heating up; fall as God intended.

I don't have any inside info really, but having watched the team pretty close up for the last 11 years I can tell you that Beurer was "the guy" on offense. He was always huddling with the offense on the sidelines when they were off the field and he was the one calling plays. He was certainly higher in the pecking order than Wasil who has only worked with QBs as far as I know.

I think your supposition that Polnasek didn't want to assume the top roll at this point in his career is a correct one. Plus, Greg's always been a guy who likes cooking three small dishes than one big dish I think. I don't think he's ever worked somewhere he had less than three jobs either coaching or in the athletic department.

I don't know about Rehberg, I'm not even sure if they had an "application" process. It sounds like Rundle went to the AD Matt Arend and said "I'm done, and I think Beurer should replace me", and he and the AD asked Beurer and he accepted. In all, i do think he's the guy who has the pulse of the team and has the most recent period of sustained success coaching on his side of the ball, and I think that makes him the best internal choice.  You do wonder what external candidates might have thrown their name in the ring however.

The Hope-Albion rivalry is indeed intense oftentimes with much on the line, between two great schools with outstanding football tradition. Can't get much better for a fall Saturday afternoon.

Just announced this morning that Craig Rundle will retire after the 2018 season and 22 years of being the head coach at Albion College.

While Coach Rundle's tenure will never live up to the glories of Pete Schmidt and the Britons of the 90s, he's put together a remarkable career at Albion including 7 MIAA championships. He leads all Albion head coaches in victories, and is 2nd in the MIAA all time in years coached, victories, and championships (3rd, technically as 1st is shared by Schmidt and Hope's Ray Smith).

Albion announced the current assistant head coach, offensive coordinator, and Albion alumnus Dustin Beurer will succeed Rundle. Beurer has been on staff since 2008 has directed some of the MIAA's most prolific offenses in his 10 years as an assistant coach.

In terms of the Britons themselves, I expect an improved squad this year that is probably a year away from being a contender for the conference championship, but should challenge for 3rd in the league with Adrian and Olivet. I wouldn't read too much into their 59-6 demolition of Defiance as that squad was extremely young (like 60% freshmen), and had only had a head coach for 3 weeks. They host HCAC favorite Franklin this Saturday in what will be an important out of conference measuring stick for the Britons.