MBB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[columbianmaffia]

GOOSE NECK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[localcoach]

Good morning to all.  I managed to make it to Collegeville last night for what looked liked it would be a one-sided affair at the half with the Johnnies up by 18 points.

piperinsider provided a great summary of last night's game, hitting on all the keys.  I will just add some commentary to the mix.

First off, I know that Zach Johnson has received many accolades this season, and rightfully so, but Jon DeRock's second half performance was just out of this world.  22 points on 9 of 12 shooting, along with 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 0 turnovers in 19 minutes.  He hit every kind of shot you could imagine, many of which came in transition.  

Throw in Tony Thrasher's 11 points in 11 minutes and you've got two freshmen combining for 33 of their team's 52 second half points (they almost out scored the entire SJU team themselves)

Finally, a huge lift came from Chris Babcock who controlled the tempo and pushed the ball time after time in the final 20 minutes.  Whenever he wanted to get into the lane, he did, and he was able to find the open man and that led to open shots and other easy baskets.  Hamline shot 64% in then second half and 48% for the game.  

I thought the difference in this ballgame for St. John's was their inability to keep entering to their posts in the second half.  Hamline's gameplan obviously appeared to be to shut down Lieser and Westman and make Henrichs and Schafer beat them.  In the first half, the two Johnnie posts combined for 20 points.  In the second half it was only 12.  Westman and Lieser combined to shoot 5-24 from the field (3 of 11 from long distance).  

Regardless, St. John's had an excellent season and Johnnie fans should have high hopes for their team next year as they lose only Henrichs, who by the way looked to be playing through some pain last night and yet he was still very productive.  Congratulations on a great collegiate career.

Looking ahead, Hamline will have to put together two good halves if they're going to beat the Tommies on Thursday night.  This is a team that I wouldn't want to play right now, if for no other reason because they are so unpredictable.  If the Hamline team that wants to push the ball in transition, move it around on offense and play aggressive defense shows up, it should be a heck of a game over at UST.  

On another note, I see that Bethel shot a surprising 25% against the Gusties.  Wow, was their defense that good or just an off shooting night for the Royals?   It looks like Jay Stein had a big night for Gustavus (8 points and 14 rebounds in 21 minutes), along with TeBrake who had 15 points, but an uncharacteristic 6 turnovers.

Lastly, I noticed that GAC played almost their entire bench, minus Olson.  I thought I saw his name in their most recent box score?  Did he come back too soon and get hurt again or?

[finsleft]

Boy, give someone else the bandwagon keys and they wrap it around a tree. Well it was a fun ride while it lasted.
Me? I think I'll wander over to the LaCrosse boards and see if there's a wagon over there I can ride for a few months until football season starts.

Congratulations to Hamline. Good luck in the playoffs and beat the Tommies.

[piperinsider]

Local-
Gotta agree with the two halves. They can't fall behind by 16 against UST. Trust me, they won't frget about Rosefelt like SJU did with Big "N."

I still like the Pipers chances on Thursday with the momentum they'll carry over from Tuesday. UST hasn't played in seven days. C'mon rust.

Does USt carry an audio webcast at least?

Dan Forkrud featured briefly in today's trib. Story is on area small-college athletes. "You can see him: March 2 in the semifinals of the MIAc Tournament at Gustavus." Michael Rand-cut.

[columbianmaffia]

HONK HONK HONK!!! THE GOOSE IS LOOSE!!!

[columbianmaffia]

one more thing

HOOPWARS!!!! WINNER STAYS!!!!

[Drake Palmer]

Local - How come I knew we'd be hearing from you this morning? Enjoy that victory cigar!  Nice run Johnnies!  They've got enough pieces of the puzzle to be considered a serious threat to the title next season.

From the looks of it, last night's game was a typical, late season Hamline performance - win or lose.  Fall behind by double digits in the first half, threaten to get completely blown out, and then come back & make a game of it in the 2nd half.  Obviously, props go out to the Pipes FY - "DeMan" & Thrasher, but what I think shouldn't go unnoticed is the reemergence of senior post, Charlie Goode.  It appears Hamline is looking for him more on the blocks, while letting Foster do his thing, & snatch some boards.  Between the two of them they combined for 12 points (Goode with 10), 17 boards, 4 assists, 4 steals & enough defensive presence to neutralize the Johnnies' post players. 

PIPWI- according to the UST website they will have a webcast of the game on Thursday.
_______________________________________________________________________

Down at St. Peter, it looks like the post players were also instrumental in the Gusties' win.  GAC thoroughly dominates the boards 42-24 against the smaller Bethel club.  Without at least the threat of 6-10 Andy Cook out on the floor for Bethel, the Royals are a small team.  Stein is solid with 8 points & goes nuts with 14 rebounds!  Gustavus also show good balance with the posts scoring 43 of the Gusties' 73 points.  The Gustie posts are gonna have to come with their "A" game again on Thursday to neutralize the height & heft of the Knights, & the quickness of Z. Johnson.

Willy- the board faithful want to know -- who the heck is this Andrew Doble kid, & why has Hanson been hiding him all season?!?  I think these are 2-3 big games in a row when he's popped up like the Green Giant over LeSueur, St. Peter, & other communities down in the valley!

Good season Royals! I think you surprised a lot of people this season.  If you can...

* Get Moberg in the mix
* Have Tim Madson add some consistency to his shot
* Keep Chuckie focused
* Add another wing or two... I think the playoff streak can stay alive in the 06-07 season.

[columbianmaffia]

dont mess with this mom

http://espn.go.com/outdoors/general/news/2006/0221/2338668.html

[shocker]

Doble is a man-child. I remember not believing the kid was a freshman the first time I saw him on campus. He's strong, athletic, and coordinated. Think Adam Thorson on his best day, only left-handed and with better shooting range. I was surprised not to see him crack the rotation sooner, and although surprised, am not shocked by his output.

It's going to be a great game tomorrow night. Now, do I let my family ties or my alumni ties win out? For now, I'll just have to settle with the conclusion that I'm pretty darn excited for the game.

I'm looking forward to the frontcourt matchups, but I think the game will be decided by guard play. If TeBrake is hot and Olson (his status???) can play, the Gusties will be tough to beat. Philips ain't too bad himself though, and I think Drake is a big X-factor for this one. A good game from him sets the Knights up well.

Yes, Willy, I am still alive, as is my bigger counterpart. I'll see him tonight at league in Richfield and try to talk him into making the trip with me tomorrow night.

[Willy Wonka]

I've placed a phone call recruiting a certain Iron Schiek for Thursday's game. Now if we can only get Schlenker and Nerd Bain there, we might have the greatest collection of balding former Big 9 stars together at one time ever. Give us Espo and Coach Johnson, of Mankato East fame, and we might be good enough to win the MIAC this year

Doble's game was similar to STO's Mike Ludwig when he arrived on campus - he could fill it up, but he'd give it back on the other end. I can only assume his playing almost 30 minutes a game over the last week means Flummer's got him straightened out on D. If you go back, I think I mentioned him a few times in the preseason hype section.

MM is awful quiet after spouting off last night. Vegas odds say its even money that he's still recovery from his 6er on the trip home.

[columbianmaffia]

the only thing that has worked in our office for the last hour and a half has been the internet...phones and computer programs are all down...that means i am puting some oil on my wheel barrings of my rollerskates...im getting ready to go to CAR tomarrow night...also since its a playoff game i believe CAR must inforce ticket prices so i think you have to pay to attend tomarrows game

[SofaKing]

The talk on here earlier was that this will be the only year that MIAC games will be video broadcasted over the internet. According to Cella at Concordia who I talked to this morning, all Cobber games will be available for my viewing next season.

We had morning practice today. The only one of the year so far. All defense and rebounding. Look out for a deep NCAA run!

[Touchdown Tommy]

Hey Sofa King,

Time to put up or shut up.  The Zags are no longer a Cinderella type team.  Final Four or bust.  You aren't sneaking up on anyone anymore...

[Willy Wonka]

jdowney - For most teams, it will be the last year -- unless they can find a cheaper solution. If the Cobbs are to continue, it means Soren Nelson is willing to dropp 10k a year or NoDak Cobber grads are making dough farming the frozen tundra. For the rest, it's a silly expense.

I'd imagine most schools will follow the logical course and drop the feature until they can figure out a better alternative, though Mac might join CC as the renegades in this. I mean, the same people who willingly spend 3k on a mascot outfit but won't pay to keep a good coach are more than likely to spend 10k a year to keep OAS, Denny and BVT happy, right?

[onearmedscot]

REMINDER:

5th Annual MIAC Championship Cookout!!

Click above for details!  Need to get a ballpark head count.  We have 100 burgers ready to go.

Does anyone nearby have a large grill, gas or charcoal?  Let me know via the site feedback form.

oAs.