MBB: American Rivers Conference

[Klompen]

Glad to see the Dutch were able to get it done again today.  Dutch beat Wartburg 76-64, haven't seen the full write-up and I wasn't able to be there, but brief report says Turner hit 10 of 10 free throws, I'm guessing most at the end with Wartburg trying to get the ball back, but I don't know that.  Just speculating.  Good win for the Dutch. 

How did the rest of the conference do?

[Kohawk Krazy]

Gotta love seeing the Kohawks and Dutch sitting on top at 2-0 after being picked to finish 7th and 8th in the league.

Loras scores 48 points and loses to Luther, falling to 0-2?  Oh boy.

[Klompen]

So maybe Loras isn't all it was expected to be, either that or they made the fatal mistake of taking teams too lightly.  It will be interesting to see how they bounce back.  I'm with you KK, I'm loving it for both Coe and Central.  There is tons of season yet to play, but it is a great start for being picked in the bottom half of the conference.  Just so they can keep it up.  Loras really does surprise me because don't they have a lot of players back from last year?  Are there injuries or is there dissention brewing in the team? 

The one thing I really noticed about Central this year and the past couple of years is that they are finally starting to believe in themselves AND they are playing together very well.  In the less successful years, they were not doing that and the difference really shows. 

[Klompen]

From the Central write-up:

"Central used a stingy first-half defense to take a 31-17 lead at intermission as Wartburg hit just 24.0 percent from the floor. The Dutch stretched the lead to 23 points at 55-32 with 9:51 left, then had to withstand a Wartburg rally. The Knights reeled off nine unanswered points to make it 57-45 with 7:27 remaining, then twice climbed to within seven points. But Turner knocked down all 10 of his free throws in the final 1:47."

All 10 free throws for Demarco Turner came in the final 1:47 of the game?  And he made them all?  Way to go, Demarco!  Thanks too, to Wartburg for continually fouling a guy who was consistently knocking them down.  Sounds like a terrific finish for the Dutch and great confidence on Turner's part.

[IntramuralChamp]

Luther 46  Loras 45- Loras falls to 1-6 and 0-2 in the league after a defensive battle in Decorah. Luther shot 33% and Loras 31%. Loras had 18 turnovers and struggled to score all night. Take away the free throws and Loras scores 35 points. I am not writing the Duhawks off, but they must get some leadership and find a way to score as they are shooting 40% on the year.

Buena Vista  80   Cornell   76 - BV was up 15 with 4:50 to go, had 5 turnovers down the stretch, went 0-1 and 5-8 from free throw line and holds on to 5 point victory. Good road win for a team that has been struggling. Appears free throws were the difference in the game as BV goes 21-26 and Cornell only 4-9. BV continues to turn the ball over too much (17) and gives up a better FG% then their opponent- that is something that must change for them to contend for a IIAC title.


Coe    75   Simpson   68- Coe scores 12 more points then the Storm at the line as they attempt 14 more free throws.  Simpson actually scores 6 more field goals, but fouls killed them. Impressed with Simpson going on the road and playing hard, why did Hutcheson and Fouch get technicals?


Central 74     Wartburg   64- Wartburg shoots 24% in the first half and only scores 17 points. Wartburg turns ball over 23 times against a non-pressure defense. Danielson has 7, he isn't even the pg guard is he? Central shot 15 more free throws then Wartburg as Central dominated game from start to finish leading by as many as 23 in the 2nd half.


** Another interesting day in the IIAC- I go 2-2 in my picks and am 2-7 on the year. Home teams bounced back in winning at home and Loras continues to be surprise around the league. Dubuque beats Silver Lake today 85 to 74.

[doolittledog]

This should be a fun winter to follow IIAC basketball.  I have no idea how this will all play out.  As a Dubuque fan, I'm not upset to see Loras struggling.  I suspect the Duhawks will get things somewhat figured out, but too late to make a title challenge.  Hopefully they don't figure things out the night they play my Spartans!!!

[coebball70]

Happy to see my BV Beavers get into the W column on the road against a decent Cornell team.  I still believe three losses will win the conference outright as we are going to see the good teams start to emerge.  After watching Loras at Wheaton I agree with the lack of floor leadership comment.  I also think there must be some serious chemistry issues on the floor because the Duhawks lack the intensity and enthusiasm of previous teams.  Losing can make you or break you as a team.
I think it has made the Beavers a better team.  Now if we can just work on ball possession, I KNOW there is a <10 turnover
game in the Beavers future!  As an old Kohawk, I'm happy for the Cedar Rapidians, but we all remember it is a long season.

[Klompen]

Interesting comments IC, but as I see it, Coe, Central and BV all shot significantly more free throws because they were nursing leads at the end of the game and the other teams were fouling to try to get the ball back while limiting wasted time and point possibilities.  I dare say that if you exclude free throws in the final 2-3 minutes of the game, the free throws would be much more even.  As I noted before, Central's Turner, had 10 free throws in the final 1:47 of the game. 

As to Central being a non-pressure defense, it is true that Central does not press on taking the ball across the half court line, but Central's defense once the ball has crossed the line has improved tremendously since Boschee came to Central.  They force a number of turnovers, but not in the pre-half-court press.

It sounds like Central was able to get a nice boost from a freshman coming off the bench when Jack Bruns got in foul trouble.  That's always good to hear since we don't have near as much height this year.  Central has a game tomorrow that should be easy and will maybe give them a chance to get the kid more experience at the varsity level.  We don't have another conference game until January, so we are guaranteed a few weeks of undefeated IIAC status.   

[Purple Heys]

Buena Vista  80   Cornell   76 - BV was up 15 with 4:50 to go, had 5 turnovers down the stretch, went 0-1 and 5-8 from free throw line and holds on to 5 point victory. Good road win for a team that has been struggling. Appears free throws were the difference in the game as BV goes 21-26 and Cornell only 4-9. BV continues to turn the ball over too much (17) and gives up a better FG% then their opponent- that is something that must change for them to contend for a IIAC title.

Fixed it...

I wonder why the foul shot disparity...so much for home-town reffin' 

[IntramuralChamp]

Purple heys- BV typically has some of the best post players in the league and they do a good job of pounding the ball inside. That typically leads to more free throws-- BV seems to shoot the most free throws in the league year after year. Interesting though when you are playing on the road. I would imagine it depends on the officials as well. The interesting stat would be what conferences typically shoot the most free throws. The WIAC is typically more physical they say, but I would say the IIAC on average shoots more free throws per year?

[Klompen]

Dutch spot Faith Baptist a double digit lead before scoring a point tonight and still win 107-52.  I have to give credit to this year's team for taking that winning spirit from last year and working very hard in the off season to give the Dutch a seasoned appearance this year.  You would never know that all five starters graduated last year to look at them.  I'm not saying Faith Baptist is the team to judge them on, but I would venture a guess that neither Loras nor Wartburg expected the games Central gave them.  It is a real tribute to the amount of work that these players have put forth. 

Demarco Turner is really playing outstanding basketball.  The team as a whole is doing a terrific job of selfless play in getting the ball to the open man.  As a Central fan who has watched way too many down years, it is really nice to bask in the success of what we believed was possible last year and the surprising success thus far this year.  There is a lot of season to go, but I do believe the Dutch are improving as they go.  Thanks for making Central men's basketball fun to watch again.

[Klompen]

Congratulations to Demarco Turner on IIAC men's basketball player of the week.  Keep it up!  10-10 on free throws against WB and 5-5 on 3's against Faith Baptist (not that it counted for POW) is a pretty good week.  Don't know what his point totals were for the games, but love perfect shooting in any category, particularly the 3's!

[IntramuralChamp]

Here are my picks for tonight--2-7 on the year! Time to get hot!


Cornell @ Dubuque- Blum gets hot at home and finds a way to outshoot the Rams even though they get outplayed in the game. Home Court advantage helps as they shoot more free throws and win by 6.

Loras @ Simpson- Loras gets their game together and wins a close one at Simpson as Zanders team plays hard and gives one away down the stretch. Loras by 7, but closer then score indicates.

Luther @ Coe In the upset of the night, Coe does not shoot well and loses by 4 at home in a defensive battle.

Wartburg @ BV- In the game of the night, the Beavers come ready to play at home against what has turned into a better rivalry in recent years and win by 4 despite a hot shooting night from the Knights.


Central @ Bethany Lutheran- Central loses in a non-conference battle on the road by 5.

[doolittledog]

Dubuque up 36-17 over Cornell

5:33 left in the 1st half

Go Spartans!!!

[doolittledog]

Dubuque up 43-29 at the half over Cornell