WBB: Old Dominion Athletic Conference

[Bammer]

This Generals team will surprise some people this year.  If they can keep playing solid defense and Herman out of foul trouble, they will be competitive this year.  Coach King did a great job after the Newport News game on getting them to play with more intensity on defense and getting Herman to be a factor for more minutes.  If they can win 2 of 3 this week then watch out.  It will be interesting to see how Ingram does as the league realizes that she is a special player.  She played AAU with girls that went to Florida, Wake, ODU, UNC Charlotte and Towson.  I assure you that she will not be intimidated as the season progresses.  She did block RMC 6'2" girls shot last night.  Watch out, this could be the start of something special.

[generalee]

It was a very exciting win for W & L!  The team needs to focus on the teamwork they are building - don't get caught up focusing on one or two players.  The Generals Team brought down Randolph Macon.  Good luck against VWC.

[eaglejacket1421]

WOW - that's about all I can say about W&L defeating a, as of late, struggling Randolph Macon team. Big ups go to Coach King for rallying a group of young players in a rebuilding year and making them believe that they truly can compete - and after that performance it's not merely a belief anymore. I know that the nay-sayers at the beginning of the year were kind of counting the Generals out of the race - I myself was one of them. After shutting down a team with so much offensive talent, it's hard to ignore their presence. Kudos. I'm very interested to see what they do against VWC. They have very much piqued my interest.

As far as R-MC is concerned... With all of the talent that is just oozing out of that team, a key question has to be asked: "What the heck is going on down in Ashland?"... They have two players who have scored over 1,000 points in Ariail and Hiltunen. I'm sure Riesbeck isn't far away from that mark either. That's a minimum THREE people who know how to put the ball in the basket at a fairly impressive rate. Then you have an extremely athletic point guard in Jen O'Briant, who can handle the basketball and run the offense pretty well. As far as defense is concerned: they have two fairly agile post players OVER 6 feet tall to create a presence down low. A very athletic defender in Renee Stein (who can also score by the way). Probably one of the best defenders in the ODAC in Amanda Hiltunen... And they still can't find a way to stop teams from scoring lately.

My point here is this: And don't misjudge this, I'm not trying to take anything away from W&L in this victory, BUT there is absolutely no reason for Randolph-Macon to be losing. The talent they have is honestly unmatched, but perhaps the pieces just aren't being put together properly? Perhaps they're unmotivated? - although that's hard to imagine. Coming off of two losses in the Islands would certainly motivate the average athlete to perform better when she returned to the States. Maybe they're too structured in their offenses? Or perhaps not enough? There is a big question mark here that bodes answering. If it remains uncertain, then Macon can kiss their title hopes goodbye, much less any hopes of dancing later in the year.

[Bammer]

Eaglejacket - I am new to ODAC bball but could RMC problem be that they were tired from traveling.  They shot poorly in the first half and were sloppy with the ball.  They certainly have a group of talented players.  BUT could it be that the conference is getting more balanced and you have to bring your A game every night to win.  The Generals lost to Guilford in OT by 2 and would have won in regulation if they had about .1 more seconds.  A last shot was ruled off and taken off the board sending it into OT.  This week will certainly tell more about the Generals.  If they win 2 of 3 this week they should start getting some respect.  They play well together as a team and Coach King is doing a great job with such a young team.

[whitecaylxx]

Predictions??

   7:00 PM  Eastern Mennonite   Bridgewater     
   7:00 PM  Randolph   Randolph-Macon     
   7:00 PM  Roanoke   Lynchburg     
   7:00 PM  Washington & Lee   Virginia Wesleyan 

[dukeofargyle]

My picks: EMU, RMC, Roanoke.

W&L  & VWU?

My views are based on last season & also this one; despite all the obvious huge talents on the RMC squad that eaglejacket mentioned, I still feel that VWU may be a stronger or more focused team than RMC.

I do not count out our Gennies, but they will have to come to this game with all the intensity & passion- especially defensively- that they brought to the RMC game. If they can battle it out to a close end... who knows?

IMO, the strength of a team is how tough they are at the end - not the beginning - of a game.

[whitecaylxx]

My picks: 

Bridgewater - even though I like the teamwork EMU is focusing on, I think Bridgewater is due for a "real" win.

RMC - if they don't get this one, they might as well throw the towel in!

Lynchburg - Coach Dunagin does a great job, but I think Lynchburg is also due for a good win. 

VWC - the Generals are coming off a really good contest,  but their earlier games don't bode well for an immediate turn around. 

We'll see in a couple hours.  Anybody else want to weigh in?

[Bammer]

This team is really young.  When Bolton gets healthy, watch out.  They are able to play with anyone in the ODAC.  This game will tell a lot.  The Generals should not be overlooked.

[hoopstermom]

Whitecaylxx - congrats on your 4 for 4 picks.

To be honest I wouldn't have picked Bridgewater over EMU, but Lynchburg was due. 

The Macon score indicates they won easily but box score shows they were closely matched in rebounding and only shot 60% free throws (albeit A LOT). Possibly still recovering from their trip and tough loss at W&L.   FYI - Lindsay Riesbeck reached 1000 points tonight during the RMC game with a total of 12 on the evening with 18 minutes of play.  She's the 3rd Yellow Jacket to reach that milestone this year with Hiltunen hitting the mark earlier in the season against Lynchburg and Arail reaching 1000 just this past Sunday when they played W&L.

http://www.rmc.edu/News/WBBALL09%20-%20Randolph.aspx

VWC continues to be consistent and tough.

Looks to be an interesting season with a lot of teams beating each other.  Already are five teams with 2 conference losses.  Could make for interesting seedings come tourney time.

[bballmom4]

what about those Hornets tonight?  What an upset to Roanoke.  But you are right, they were due.  Coach Tobey is doing a great job.   It was a close game throughout, but as someone said earlier, its the one who plays best at the end stretch...or something to that affect.   Congratulations to the Hornets!!!!   

[generalee]

The statistics that really sticks out on the Generals / Marlins game are the 29 turnovers with only 6 assists.  W & L couldn't handle the pressure,  and they need to be looking for the open player.  The Generals were still competitive for awhile.   Great game for Kara Nadeau.

[Bammer]

Kara Nadeau really played well and provided senior leadership.  She plays so hard every game and sets a great example for the rest of the team.  Very sloppy with 29 turnovers.  The Generals are playing some competitive bball, just need to finish and get a few more wins.

[dukeofargyle]

I didn't go to the game (4 hours away) but from what I remember, VW doesn't match up with W&L as well as some of the other ODAC teams do.  Listening in on the internet, VW's experience won out, though it seemed like a real sloppy game with unforced turnovers on both sides. Such a young team as W&L needs to first learn to be able to take care of the ball & return pressure for pressure.  Shots from any of the starters were just not falling as they usually do, except in Nadeau, whose experience & composure showed & won her a great game.

To be out-rebounded by VW 38 to 43 also a factor; as whoever out rebounds usually wins. Being defensively minded, I think it should bears repeating that the better the defense, the better fueled the offense.   Props to VW for the win.

The Generals will continue to be more & more competitive as the season progresses & the youngsters become more confident, as they certainly have better team dynamics than last season, and the talent is well spread out. Rough week for the Gennies though, with 4 real tough games lined up in their first week back at school.

Props also go out to the Hornets for their win over Roanoke.  Nice work to have taken down the other 'undefeated' in the conference.  Also to Bridgewater for their surprising win over EMU. 

Apparently, no one can be overlooked. I think Bammer could have a point about the conference becoming more balanced & more competitive, which would be awesome.

[bballmom4]

Lot of big games tonight!  Any predictions? 

[Bammer]

Here's hoping that The Generals don't tun to ball over as much.  Taking a chance but picking them over LC.  Should be a good game.  If the Generals can pull this one off, they will have moved up to the middle of the pack.