MBB: Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[TeeDub]

Redlands played a very good 20 minutes to start the game against Pomona Pitzer tonight and went into halftime with a 38-30 lead.  Unfortunately, the games are 40 minutes long and PP put it on the Bulldogs in the second half, outscoring the dogs 41-19 in the half and winning the game 71-57.  Sexton scored a bunch and the guards at PP just can't be left alone or they will bury the three.

[TeeDub]

That sure is going to add some fuel to the Top 25 debate...

Or it might finally empty the tank...

[rook]

Tough game for CIT tonight versus Whittier.  Whittier forced 39 turnovers and pressed until the final buzzer.  Next up for CIT is Cal Lu at home this Wed.

The conference is shaping up to be very exciting this year.  Anyone can be beaten on any iven day.

[OxyBob]

Eyewitness report from Claremont:

Oxy 52, Claremont 51

The Tigers broke their 5-game losing streak to the Stags at Claremont in steamy, hot, stuffy Ducey Gym with an exciting one-point nail-biter. In the first half it looked like it was going to be another long night in the Temple of Doom for Oxy. CMS led 20-8 at 4:30, but the Tigers outscored the Stags 8-4 and only trailed 24-16 at the break. Neither team shot well; Oxy shot 23% on 6-for-26, but Claremont wasn't any better, only hitting 24% on 7-for-29. The Tigers opened the second half on a 9-3 run and trailed 27-25. Jack Hanley's 3-point play gave Oxy the lead 30-29 at 15:40, but CMS pushed it back to 38-32 at 13:25. Oxy tied it at 38 on Evan Shore's jumper, and Justin Goltz's jumper tied it up again 40-40 at 9:00. The game see-sawed back and forth the rest of the way. Claremont led 43-42 at 6:50, but a minute-plus later Oxy took its biggest lead of the game at 46-43. The Stags scored 6 straight and led 49-46 with 2:40 left. Oxy came back with 4 straight; Dave Ostrow's 2 FTs with 1:25 to go gave Oxy the lead 50-49. Claremont went ahead 51-50 on the shot of the night by Jason Toney -- a beautiful drive to the basket ending with an acrobatic one-handed scoop shot. Oxy's Sean Anderson was fouled with a minute to go and he knocked down the FTs and Oxy led 52-51. After a Claremont miss, Oxy got the ball back with about 45 seconds left. The Tigers were patient but shot and missed, and the Stags had the ball and a chance to win it with 10 seconds left. CMS shunned a timeout and instead got the ball to Toney, who drove the length of the floor and got underneath, but his shot was blocked, and Oxy came away with the upset win. Great job, Tigers!

For Oxy, Sean Anderson had 20 points on 7-for-12 FGs, 6-for-7 FTs, and 8 rebounds, all while being double- and triple-teamed, mugged, and having guys draped all over him the entire game. Jack Hanley had 16. Justin Goltz only scored 2, but had 11 rebounds. Clark Gordon played an inspired game off the bench; he scored 4 and grabbed 8 rebounds in 10 minutes. Oxy outrebounded CMS 46-31, and won the game at the free throw line, hitting 13-of-14 while Claremont was only 16-for-23 FTs. For Claremont, Connor Faught scored 13, but he was only 3-for-13 FGs, as he and his teammates had a miserable night from the floor, only shooting 29.6% for the game on 16-for-54 FGs. Jason Toney had 9 points and 4 assists, and Patrick Lacey supplied some muscle with 6 rebounds along with 6 points.

Oxy is now 5-9 and 1-2 in the SCIAC. Claremont falls to 10-4 and 2-1. Next Wednesday the Tigers are home to Whittier, while CMS will be at the Rains Center against cross-campus rival Pomona.

OxyBob

[Browneagle64]

Bob,

Thank you so much for the Eyewitness report. I was so looking forward in making my first ever trip to the "Temple" as this is probabily the only SCIAC venue I have never stepped foot in. However, I've been ill since friday and have been trying to recover. Hope you and all the other SCIAC fans/ stag fans had fun watching that game. I'll be on the look out for you and any poet posters on wednesday at Rush Gym.

Congrats Tigers, Hens, Poets and other that won last night.

[OxyBob]

OxyBob - not saying Grace and his committee are perfect, but knowing some of the members on the national committee right now, I assure you that many of the issues we have had in the past are being addressed. At the same time, did you ever listen to the interview - then or now? At least listen to it so you can hear his answers to some issues. You blame people for not having all the information, listen to him so we can't say the same about you.

I listened to the interview. You gave Grace the once over lightly treatment and completely let him off the hook for the Mississippi College debacle from 2007. Grace said that the bracket screw-up was a mistake and that schools from the same conference aren't supposed to play each other in first round games. You just accepted his excuse and didn't ask him how a regional committee didn't know that Miss. Coll. and UHMB are in the same conference. You also failed to follow-up and ask him about how after they realized the mistake they further screwed up by pairing MC with Oxy and UMHB with Maryville, instead of MC vs. Maryville and Oxy vs. UHMB. Heck, PC previously addressed the issue:

Mississippi College Bracket

Messiah (19-6) at Catholic (22-5), Alvernia (23-4) vs. Lincoln (18-8)
Villa Julie (20-7) at Johns Hopkins (23-4), Manhattanville (23-5) vs. Guilford (21-4)
Averett (20-6) at Virginia Wesleyan (23-4), Hood (21-7) vs. Hampden-Sydney (18-10)
Occidental (19-5) at Mississippi College (25-2), Maryville, Tenn. (21-6) vs. Mary Hardin-Baylor (21-6)

Every time I look at the bottom matchup I get more frustrated. So the NCAA "fixed" its error in matching conference opponents up in the first round and instead makes the top two teams in the criteria face each other while the bottom two face each other.

The correct matchup, according to the criteria, would've been to put Occidental against Mary Hardin-Baylor and Maryville against Mississippi College. The makeup of committees past and present makes this "fix" suspicious.

You didn't question Grace at all about the whole mess. Why not?

As for the conference match-ups... I NEVER said it was a rule, but in plenty of conversations I have had with former and current committee members, they do make an effort to avoid conference match ups even in the 2nd round. Why? Because we all point out the fact that some very good conferences have very good teams eliminating themselves early on in tournaments. That point is certainly understood and I believe respected. But the reality is that travel considerations are a part of the equation and that is were the SCIAC usually ends up having problems with the tournament. Do I have a solution? Not with the current situation with the NCAA and travel? Do you have a solution, OB? I haven't heard one that is viable. If you have one, tell us and then tell the NCAA and maybe your idea can be considered - unless you act them in the same manner you attack people who don't agree with your thoughts.

I'm not inclined to research it, but I'm sure there are numerous instances of conference foes facing each other in the second round. There'd have to be in a tournament which is seeded regionally rather than nationally like in D-I. Off the top of my head I remember that Cal Lutheran played Linfield in the first round, and Linfield won and then played Lewis & Clark in the second round.

There is no "solution" with the NCAA travel restrictions. It's a money issue, which I get. I wouldn't spend the money either. On the other hand, because of those restrictions I wouldn't lazily be hauling out trite talking points like "What has the SCIAC done lately?" when SCIAC teams have to cannibalize each other in the first round.

I do have one suggestion: Teams which get a first round bye should not also get a second round home game. If you get a bye, then you should have to play at the winner of the first round game.

Thank you so much for the Eyewitness report. I was so looking forward in making my first ever trip to the "Temple" as this is probabily the only SCIAC venue I have never stepped foot in. However, I've been ill since friday and have been trying to recover.

Hope you're feeling better. Oxy played a great second half to pull the game out against CMS. The Stags used Sean Anderson like he was a 6'10" coat rack, but he able to work around it.

Here is Wednesday's schedule, all games at 7:30 p.m.:

Whittier (9-5, 3-0) @ Oxy (5-9, 1-2)
Cal Lutheran (10-4, 2-1) @ Caltech (1-13, 0-3)
La Verne (5-9, 1-2) @ Redlands (4-10, 0-3)
Claremont (10-4, 2-1) @ Pomona (6-8, 3-0)

OxyBob

[sac]

I'm not inclined to research it, but I'm sure there are numerous instances of conference foes facing each other in the second round. There'd have to be in a tournament which is seeded regionally rather than nationally like in D-I. Off the top of my head I remember that Cal Lutheran played Linfield in the first round, and Linfield won and then played Lewis & Clark in the second round.

Just  fyi, Hope and Calvin have met 6 times in the second-round of the NCAA tournament, 3 times under the pools format, the only 3 times both made the tournament in the same year.

I don't really recall it happening much to the OAC or NCAC schools, or the CCIW for that matter.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

I do have one suggestion: Teams which get a first round bye should not also get a second round home game. If you get a bye, then you should have to play at the winner of the first round game.

OB - sorry, but I don't follow the logic on this one. Maybe you can help me out. But, first off, the reward for the first round bye (which there is one less team who will enjoy that this year with 60 teams making the field) should also be a home game. That is the reward for a good season - for the most part. Secondly, I don't see how this would solve travel problems. You still have a team traveling. If you are comparing it to when the thought of sending a SCIAC team up to the Northwest for a first round game and back to another SCIAC team in the second-round was vetoed by the NCAA, it still wouldn't have made a difference. Your plan would still require too many travel trips for the NCAA to allow. Your theory could have ended up sending two SCIAC teams Northwest in three days if the SCIAC team in the first-round lost.

Maybe I am not following this thought of yours completely, so please explain it better. But I just don't see how that will solve any of the travel concerns or first-round bye/conference foe problems the NCAA still has to deal with.

[David Collinge]

First-round byes are not necessarily rewards for a good season.  Out West, they are often used to solve travel problems.  A typical Far West Regional would be two SCIAC teams meeting in round 1, then traveling to the northwest to face the NWC champion, who received a first-round bye, despite being something like 21-5 and ranked in the 20's (don't start--I know the rankings are not a factor).  (It could just as easily be the reverse; two NWC teams and one SCIAC; the analysis applies with equal force.)  Rarely is the NWC team in this scenario considered to be a top-five national team, and generally has no better credentials than the SCIAC champ.  (In fact, you could argue that they may have had a weaker conference, given that the SCIAC had a Pool C and the NWC did not.)  And yet they get to sit out round one and then play round two at home. 

Bob's suggestion, which costs no extra as it only reverses the direction of travel in the second round, would make this a fairer bracket, one that doesn't over-reward one team for its geographic isolation.

[Gregory Sager]

West Coast Bias, I just thought I'd point out that your post on Saturday was excellent. And David made a good point this morning about how first-round byes are often identical rewards that are handed out to two completely different sets of teams, the elite and the geographically isolated non-elite.

[pineconefan]

Over-reward a team for geographic isolation?  I can't believe I actually just read those words.

Last season was by far the exception.  The rule for us geographically challenged schools is more like 2003, when a higher seeded Whitworth team had to go out and play Gustavus in the first round because the winner of that game was set to go to Wisconsin.

More often than not, this geographic isolation works against the NWC and the SCIAC both.

[Gregory Sager]

More often than not, this geographic isolation works against the NWC and the SCIAC both.

I'm not saying that it doesn't, and I don't think that David was, either. But it's an inescapable fact that sometimes a geographically-isolated team gets a first-round bye in spite of not having primary-criteria credentials that are as good as those of another team that is forced to play in the first round.

[OxyBob]

From an article in the Los Angeles Daily News:

Obama spent time at Occidental College

Barack Obama spent just two years at Occidental College, but that time is considered a key period on the path that will lead to his inauguration as president Tuesday.

Obama has credited the small liberal arts college in Eagle Rock with transforming him into a serious student and an activist headed for a career in public service.

"It was when I made a conscious decision: I want to grow up," Obama told Newsweek in a March 31 story that featured his freshman picture on the cover.

Obama attended Occidental from 1979-81, then transferred to Columbia University, where he received a bachelor's degree in political science in 1983.

In a May 18 commencement speech at Wesleyan University, Obama said during his first two years of college "values of hard work, honesty, empathy and compassion finally resurfaced after a long hibernation."
...

Although Obama has not been back to Occidental since transferring in 1981, there are several connections to him there, Colleen Sharkey, Occidental's associate director of communications, said.

Roger Boesche, who taught Obama his first political science class, still teaches at Occidental.

"He's incredibly proud and happy to see that Obama's talking about Lincoln and the Federalist Papers and other things that he began to learn about at Occidental," Sharkey told City News Service.

Brian Newhall, the Occidental men's basketball coach and a classmate of Obama, and his brother, Eric, a professor of English and comparative literature, both played pickup basketball against Obama in their undergraduate days, Sharkey said.

Occidental has "an open invitation" to Obama to visit the campus, Sharkey said. "We hope in the next few years that he'll be able to fit that in," she said.
...

Obama's inauguration will make Occidental College the third West Coast college or university with an alumnus who became president, joining Stanford University (Herbert Hoover) and Whittier College (Richard M. Nixon).
...

OxyBob

[Mr. Ypsi]

OB,

As I am an enthusiastic Obama supporter, did you have to remind me (on the night before our inauguration party) that the other two Presidents with California college ties were Hoover and Nixon?

Nonetheless, I have "the audacity of hope".

[Browneagle64]

From an article in the Los Angeles Daily News:

Obama spent time at Occidental College

Barack Obama spent just two years at Occidental College, but that time is considered a key period on the path that will lead to his inauguration as president Tuesday.

Obama has credited the small liberal arts college in Eagle Rock with transforming him into a serious student and an activist headed for a career in public service.

"It was when I made a conscious decision: I want to grow up," Obama told Newsweek in a March 31 story that featured his freshman picture on the cover.

Obama attended Occidental from 1979-81, then transferred to Columbia University, where he received a bachelor's degree in political science in 1983.

In a May 18 commencement speech at Wesleyan University, Obama said during his first two years of college "values of hard work, honesty, empathy and compassion finally resurfaced after a long hibernation."
...

Although Obama has not been back to Occidental since transferring in 1981, there are several connections to him there, Colleen Sharkey, Occidental's associate director of communications, said.

Roger Boesche, who taught Obama his first political science class, still teaches at Occidental.

"He's incredibly proud and happy to see that Obama's talking about Lincoln and the Federalist Papers and other things that he began to learn about at Occidental," Sharkey told City News Service.

Brian Newhall, the Occidental men's basketball coach and a classmate of Obama, and his brother, Eric, a professor of English and comparative literature, both played pickup basketball against Obama in their undergraduate days, Sharkey said.

Occidental has "an open invitation" to Obama to visit the campus, Sharkey said. "We hope in the next few years that he'll be able to fit that in," she said.
...

Obama's inauguration will make Occidental College the third West Coast college or university with an alumnus who became president, joining Stanford University (Herbert Hoover) and Whittier College (Richard M. Nixon).
...

OxyBob

I like the sound of that....

Im sure you other old folk on this board can attest to living through both Hoovers and Tricky's terms.