Though they fell short tonight, another valiant effort by a growing Bard Raptor squad. Even though they have lost their last few games versus Clarkson, St. Lawrence, and RPI (tonight), each game has been very competitive. The score of the Clarkson game does not reflect how well Bard played and competed nor does the St. Lawrence score. Tonight versus RPI, Bard was very competitive up until the last couple of minutes when they committed some costly mistakes and turnovers. Nevertheless, this young Raptor squad is growing. In the immediate, depending on such young talent is never ideal, however, these young players are gaining experience and will gel together over time. I am looking forward to seeing a nucleus built around the group of Freshmen they have now, which includes Francis Arnold (PG), Siondueh Burnette (C), and Jose Canario (C). In addition, I am also looking forward to seeing Berk Atuk (F) from Turkey return from his knee injury next year. Bard's got some talent to work with in the coming years and will only get better. Their program is 1-2 pieces away from being a serious dog fight each night they play.

Quote from: airball55 on January 13, 2012, 01:04:04 AM
Vassar, a basketball powerhouse over the previous decade, falls tonight to upstart and national program on the rise Bard Raptors.  Bard, with five preseason Mcdonald's All Americans on their roster, take down the mighty Vassar Brewers who has a national record 89 game home winning streak.  ESPN's Dick Vitale was on hand for the game and had this to say..."Outside of Michigan St. or Kansas I can't think of a tougher road team right now then Bard."

This post is on par with the previous one by D3ballover or whatever the name is.  I would have actually congratulated the Bard Raptors on their victory but all sincerety goes out the window after that post.  You beat Vassar... the mighty Vassar Cadets who last I checked haven't snuck into the top 25 yet.  Give it a rest.  That Vassar win over the Culinary Institute though does bode well for the Raptors... I mean if you can beat the Culinary then...

Airball55, let's not get crazy here. My post clearly stated, that Bard would not be in contention to win the LL this year. In fact, I think I wrote something along the lines of, "In no way am I stating that Bard will win the Liberty League this year, however, the time has come - Bard is on the rise." Perhaps you should improve your reading comprehension skills before responding to posts so vehemently. I mean, Bard struggled tonight and will continue to this season. Nevertheless, they are building a program there that will be very competitive each year moving forward. Coach Turner has established winning culture, which, if you know anything about the history of the program, is really telling of where they are going.

Yours truly

In its first and only chance to earn a W in Liberty League play, Bard successfully defeated Vassar 59-57 behind 27 points from Matt Shubert (in his first game this season). Prior to playing an official Liberty League game, Bard endured much criticism from those familiar with the conference, though not so familiar with the strides the men's basketball program at Bard has taken since Coach Turner's takeover. Throughout the entire summer and even this preseason, Bard's basketball program dealt with many doubting their ability to compete in the Liberty League, let alone win. To many, Bard and winning in the Liberty League were as far apart as the Atlantic and Pacific. People used words such as "tough" and "surprised" when Bard and winning were mentioned in the same sentenced. Ironically, one of the Liberty League's most familiar characters (one of Vassar's own) suggested that Bard would not win a game in its first year of Liberty League competition. In retrospect, his comments were inaccurate and asinine. Not only did Bard win its first Liberty League game but it was at the expense of the school he represents. Perhaps he will think more thoroughly the next time he comments on what another school is capable of during competition.

Though surprising to some, Bard showed up in its first Liberty League game and is well on its way to becoming one of the teams competing for conference championships each year. Clearly, the margin was not very significant, however, a win is win. For a program that has been trying to rebuild itself, this is a huge day in the program's history - probably the biggest within the last six or seven years. Why? Bard basketball passed its first test tonight.  Tonight they led for the entire game and managed to pull it out. More importantly, they did so on the road, in Vassar's gym. In their win tonight, Bard proved that they have some character and toughness, qualities that good teams possess. No one played particularly great but they won. In addition, their Freshman PG, Francis Arnold, struggled, which is something Liberty League opponents will not see very often in the upcoming years.

In no way am I stating that Bard will win the Liberty League this year, however, the time has come - Bard is on the rise. It's victories like these that will allow Bard to recruit more talented players and enhance their program. The coaching and instruction are there, now it's just a matter of putting pieces together that will allow them to compete on both a local and national level. Bard is one the rise!

So much Bard hate on these message boards. Coach Turner and his staff have, and continue to, rebuild a once dismal program. It's only a matter of time before Bard is an annual contender in the Liberty League. It probably won't be this year, but I assure you they are not far removed from being LL champs.

Yup. Just about every team that is in the top half of the Skyline cheats. The coaches cheating know who they are too. There should be an audit done on not only their recruiting methods but also their admissions qualifications. It is my belief that Some of the Skyline schools are getting kids in with the worst of grades just so they can bounce a ball. There needs to be a greater focus on developing young people not basketball players.

It will certainly be an uphill battle for Bard to compete at a high level consistently seeing that they will be depending on so many of inexperienced players. However, do not count this group out. Their upperclassmen have lost a lot of games over the years and are very hungry to compete with LL teams. In all fairness, though the Skyline gets a bad reputation sometimes for not being a competitive league from top to bottom, Bard will match up better with LL teams this year than the Skyline teams they played last year. Bard's recruiting class brings them a combination of size, strength and speed that they have not had ever probably. In addition, though inexperience will be a factor that plagues their freshmen all year, the fact of the matter is they are all competitors and will not shy away from the competition. To put it more simply, this class of Bard freshmen possess a swagger that their previous recruiting classes have not had. And even though they have size that they have not had in quite sometime, their guards--particularly Francis Arnold (Fr.) and Lamar Powell (So.)--are going to make one hell of a duo in the backcourt, especially on the defensive end. LL guards will not look forward to having to match up against these guys.

There will certainly be bumps in the road but I definitely see Bard winning some LL games this year. In fact, give them a couple of years with this group and they will be competing for a LL championship. Coach Turner is doing an awesome job not only recruiting but also coaching his players. It should be interesting to see the product they put out on the basketball court this year.

the season will be underway very shortly, and i'm curious to know what people are saying about the conference this year? preseason projections? who will finish on top/bottom of the conference? POY, all-conference, and ROY selections?

hey any news on the kid arjun ohri from poly? poly's roster was released yesterday and he's not on it.