I'm with ColbyHoops in not being ready to jump on the Jeffs bandwagon. The competition has been very weak (and short) and they've played all but one game at home. They've been far bigger/stronger and dominated inside which has freed the outside shooters.
I'll jump on the bandwagon when they play an athletic team with size. Like ColbyHoops I think they have a lot to prove and their ability to win a close game is very suspect. Free throw shooting, full court pressure, the ability to handle pressure and a "go to" offensive set determine close contests. I'm not sure Amherst has more than two of those key factors covered.
The thing they have going for them is a two road game (Conn. College and Wesleyan) schedule until the last two games of the season. It's tough to win those Saturday afternoon games on the road. A Saturday loss at Wesleyan, who they play twice in a 10 day period, could sour an untested team. A win could set the stage for an unblemished NESCAC record going into the final weekend.
I rank the NESCAC as follows.
1) Williams (9-0)
2) Middlebury (7-2)
3) Bates (6-3)
4) Wesleyan (6-3)
5) Amherst (5-4)
6) Bowdoin (4-5)
7) Colby (3-6)
8) Tufts (2-7)
9) Trinity (2-7)
10) Conn. College (1-8)
Williams is the class of the league. Middlebury is suspect but they still get my 2. Bates and Wesleyan get the next two spots because they have a dominate athlete for crunch time. Amherst's go to guy isn't a great athlete but does dominated smaller, weaker guards. The Jeff's unsophisticated offensive sets force him to become a one-on-one player in crunch time which will be a problem against athletic defenders. The 2nd division is case of disarray at Conn. College, never was for Trinity and a rebuilding effort for Tufts.
I'll jump on the bandwagon when they play an athletic team with size. Like ColbyHoops I think they have a lot to prove and their ability to win a close game is very suspect. Free throw shooting, full court pressure, the ability to handle pressure and a "go to" offensive set determine close contests. I'm not sure Amherst has more than two of those key factors covered.
The thing they have going for them is a two road game (Conn. College and Wesleyan) schedule until the last two games of the season. It's tough to win those Saturday afternoon games on the road. A Saturday loss at Wesleyan, who they play twice in a 10 day period, could sour an untested team. A win could set the stage for an unblemished NESCAC record going into the final weekend.
I rank the NESCAC as follows.
1) Williams (9-0)
2) Middlebury (7-2)
3) Bates (6-3)
4) Wesleyan (6-3)
5) Amherst (5-4)
6) Bowdoin (4-5)
7) Colby (3-6)
8) Tufts (2-7)
9) Trinity (2-7)
10) Conn. College (1-8)
Williams is the class of the league. Middlebury is suspect but they still get my 2. Bates and Wesleyan get the next two spots because they have a dominate athlete for crunch time. Amherst's go to guy isn't a great athlete but does dominated smaller, weaker guards. The Jeff's unsophisticated offensive sets force him to become a one-on-one player in crunch time which will be a problem against athletic defenders. The 2nd division is case of disarray at Conn. College, never was for Trinity and a rebuilding effort for Tufts.