MBB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[Willy Wonka]

Hello, anyone there?

Well, we are on the eve of HAM/GAC so I thought I'd give my thoughts on the Rematch!

Just a few notes about the first game -
GAC: Seth Anderson was 6-for-8 for 15 points; Mychal Crowder played fantastic down the stretch shutting down Ray Ray; Paulsen was ineffective outside of the first couple of minutes.
HAM: Brandon Rieg/Christian Taber played a combined seven minutes for two points; one-on-one basketball led by Ray Ray...assists were 18 to 8 in favor of Gusties; Hipp played his worst game of the year and maybe his three years at Hamline.

This time around
GAC: Anderson has scored 15 points the last four games (that's a less than whopping four PPGs); outside of 14 points in a loss at SMU and 15 in a big win against MAC, Paulsen has had three single-digit performances the past five games and remains only as a third or fourth option for GAC.
HAM: Rieg and Taber have combined for 36 points the past two games since seeing more court time; Hipp is coming off his best offensive game of the season; and Ray Ray has cut down on his poor shots, playing a smarter game, but still contributing 15-20 PPG.

HAM is 5-1 during the second loop thus far (@ SMU, @ SJU, UST remain)
GAC is 2-3 during the same stretch (@ STO, BET, @ UST SJU)

I just think the Vipers are a much better TEAM right now than they were the first meeting and they had all the chances in the game to win that one. On their home court, I expect a W from Hamline.

Things to watch: Will Crowder start and guard Brown or will Paulsen guard him again to start? Paulsen could not handle the speed of Brown in the first meeting. McPartland vs Hipp and Carroll vs Wirtjes. How many times will Schmidtknecht head fake on a three-pointer?

And my favorite: The Posse vs GAC supporters

It's all a matter of perspective, PI. You say Paulson couldn't handle Ray Ray's speed; I say Ray Ray shot 9-21 with 0 assists. It's an unorthodox matchup, to be certain, but Paulson and Co. have held two of the top four scorers in the league (Ray and Palmer) to a combined 12-29 shooting since GAC has made an effort to keep McPartland closer to the paint. For the record, there's no way Crowder starts.

To me, the bigger matchup is Hipp v McPartland. Hipp looked uncoordinated and often silly in the first matchup. Saying he was uneffective might be the biggest understatement of the year. Can he figure it out against a physical post defender?

UPDATE: The even bigger issue might be which Hamline unknown can step up to drill the Gusties? Who's gonna be the next Burfiend?

The Pipers are playing better ball right now, but I think GAC gets the win again it its able to slow one of Hamline's two studs. Easier said than done, obbviously, but it happened last time.

MM - Scott's scoring hasn't really changed all that much this year — -1.7 is not a killer. But his efficiency is what made him a stud last year. Without that, he's just another shooter you'd prefer not to leave open.

[Drake Palmer]

More keys to the Game of the Week: (And no, we're not talking about UST-Carleton)

*Hamline TOs.

*Defense & shooting percentage:

Not counting the game against Macalester, the Gusties have not been playing the type of stingy defense one typically associates with Gustavus.  In the two recent losses to Augsburg & SMU, the Gusties allowed those teams to shoot a combined 56.5% from the field & 47.2% from behind the 3-pt line!  Those are Hamline-like numbers.

From Hamline's perspective, playing disciplined defense (& offense ) will be absolutely critical.  The Gusties will be milking the clock as much as possible & sending the Pipes through screen, after screen, after screen.  So Jordan Schmidt, Ray Brown, Nick Carroll & others will need to fight through all the picks.  Carl Hipp will have to play smart & watch the head & ball fakes, & ignore all the whinnies, snorts & grunts that may come from the Gustie posts.

Can the Pipes handle the grind of a low scoring affair?  In the last 2 weeks they're 1-1 in games when they score less than 70 points.  They beat STO 68-65 at home with 21 TOs, & lost to Carleton 66-63 on the road with 17 TOs.  

Jesse Van Sickle has been hot the last couple of games.  Will he be able to continue his hot shooting & will Wirtjes, Grey or Anderson be able to contribute?  Two of the guards will have to be SOLID, & one of the Gustie posts will need to have a decent to strong game  

*Playmaker Ray or Downtown Ray.   If Playmaker Ray shows up it could be a long afternoon for Gustavus.  If Downtown Ray shows up it will be close but the Gusties win.  HU & I were partially right, let someone else bring the ball up on occasion, give it to Ray on the wing & then let him go to work. . If he brings the ball up he has too much time to play with the ball.

*Carl Hipp probably had one of his worst games of the year the first time Hamline played Gustavus.  3-9FGA, 7 pts, 4 rebs. If he mentally checks out of the game. & or the GAC defenders can effectively slow him down, the senior lead Gusties prevail.

Will Mychal Crowder get inside Ray's head again?  Who will be the 3rd scoring option for Hamline?  

I'm expecting a very close game, but the seasoned, battle-hardened, senior dominated team from Gustavus should prevail.

[piperinsider]

Hello, anyone there?

Well, we are on the eve of HAM/GAC so I thought I'd give my thoughts on the Rematch!

Just a few notes about the first game -
GAC: Seth Anderson was 6-for-8 for 15 points; Mychal Crowder played fantastic down the stretch shutting down Ray Ray; Paulsen was ineffective outside of the first couple of minutes.
HAM: Brandon Rieg/Christian Taber played a combined seven minutes for two points; one-on-one basketball led by Ray Ray...assists were 18 to 8 in favor of Gusties; Hipp played his worst game of the year and maybe his three years at Hamline.

This time around
GAC: Anderson has scored 15 points the last four games (that's a less than whopping four PPGs); outside of 14 points in a loss at SMU and 15 in a big win against MAC, Paulsen has had three single-digit performances the past five games and remains only as a third or fourth option for GAC.
HAM: Rieg and Taber have combined for 36 points the past two games since seeing more court time; Hipp is coming off his best offensive game of the season; and Ray Ray has cut down on his poor shots, playing a smarter game, but still contributing 15-20 PPG.

HAM is 5-1 during the second loop thus far (@ SMU, @ SJU, UST remain)
GAC is 2-3 during the same stretch (@ STO, BET, @ UST SJU)

I just think the Vipers are a much better TEAM right now than they were the first meeting and they had all the chances in the game to win that one. On their home court, I expect a W from Hamline.

Things to watch: Will Crowder start and guard Brown or will Paulsen guard him again to start? Paulsen could not handle the speed of Brown in the first meeting. McPartland vs Hipp and Carroll vs Wirtjes. How many times will Schmidtknecht head fake on a three-pointer?

And my favorite: The Posse vs GAC supporters

It's all a matter of perspective, PI. You say Paulson couldn't handle Ray Ray's speed; I say Ray Ray shot 9-21 with 0 assists. It's an unorthodox matchup, to be certain, but Paulson and Co. have held two of the top four scorers in the league (Ray and Palmer) to a combined 12-29 shooting since GAC has made an effort to keep McPartland closer to the paint. For the record, there's no way Crowder starts.

Looked back at the play-by-play:
Brown started 4-for-5 with a free throw (10 points) in the game's first opening seven minutes. It was at this point that Paulsen exited and ceased to guard Brown until the start of the second half. He was 2-for-6 down the stretch in the first half being guarded by McPartland and Crowder. (I forgot we led by 11...yikes) In the opening five minutes of the second half, Brown was 1-for-1 against Paulsen, but did get to the line, making 3-of-4 shots and picking up two quick fouls on Paulsen, who did not record a single shot, rebound or anything the rest of the way.

Brown was 5-for-6 from the field, 4-for-5 from the line for 15 of his 26 points against Paulsen. And this came in only 12 of his 34 minutes. It was Co., not Paulsen, that shut down Brown at times.

Box.

That's why I wondered out loud what the match-up may be this time?

[Willy Wonka]

Hello, anyone there?

Well, we are on the eve of HAM/GAC so I thought I'd give my thoughts on the Rematch!

Just a few notes about the first game -
GAC: Seth Anderson was 6-for-8 for 15 points; Mychal Crowder played fantastic down the stretch shutting down Ray Ray; Paulsen was ineffective outside of the first couple of minutes.
HAM: Brandon Rieg/Christian Taber played a combined seven minutes for two points; one-on-one basketball led by Ray Ray...assists were 18 to 8 in favor of Gusties; Hipp played his worst game of the year and maybe his three years at Hamline.

This time around
GAC: Anderson has scored 15 points the last four games (that's a less than whopping four PPGs); outside of 14 points in a loss at SMU and 15 in a big win against MAC, Paulsen has had three single-digit performances the past five games and remains only as a third or fourth option for GAC.
HAM: Rieg and Taber have combined for 36 points the past two games since seeing more court time; Hipp is coming off his best offensive game of the season; and Ray Ray has cut down on his poor shots, playing a smarter game, but still contributing 15-20 PPG.

HAM is 5-1 during the second loop thus far (@ SMU, @ SJU, UST remain)
GAC is 2-3 during the same stretch (@ STO, BET, @ UST SJU)

I just think the Vipers are a much better TEAM right now than they were the first meeting and they had all the chances in the game to win that one. On their home court, I expect a W from Hamline.

Things to watch: Will Crowder start and guard Brown or will Paulsen guard him again to start? Paulsen could not handle the speed of Brown in the first meeting. McPartland vs Hipp and Carroll vs Wirtjes. How many times will Schmidtknecht head fake on a three-pointer?

And my favorite: The Posse vs GAC supporters

It's all a matter of perspective, PI. You say Paulson couldn't handle Ray Ray's speed; I say Ray Ray shot 9-21 with 0 assists. It's an unorthodox matchup, to be certain, but Paulson and Co. have held two of the top four scorers in the league (Ray and Palmer) to a combined 12-29 shooting since GAC has made an effort to keep McPartland closer to the paint. For the record, there's no way Crowder starts.

Looked back at the play-by-play:
Brown started 4-for-5 with a free throw (10 points) in the game's first opening seven minutes. It was at this point that Paulsen exited and ceased to guard Brown until the start of the second half. He was 2-for-6 down the stretch in the first half being guarded by McPartland and Crowder. (I forgot we led by 11...yikes) In the opening five minutes of the second half, Brown was 1-for-1 against Paulsen, but did get to the line, making 3-of-4 shots and picking up two quick fouls on Paulsen, who did not record a single shot, rebound or anything the rest of the way.

Brown was 5-for-6 from the field, 4-for-5 from the line for 15 of his 26 points against Paulsen. And this came in only 12 of his 34 minutes. It was Co., not Paulsen, that shut down Brown at times.

Box.

That's why I wondered out loud what the match-up may be this time?

Hmmm, you're right. I was thinking Paulson had a nice offensive performance that game to offset his D...but that came against the Tommies a few days later.

It's really a pick-your-poison type matchup for the Gusties. As DP just said, Gusties fans can live with Paulson forcing Ray Ray to get trey-happy — even if he makes 4-11 — if it also means Hipp is shut down by McPartland.

[huhoops]

Hello, anyone there?

Well, we are on the eve of HAM/GAC so I thought I'd give my thoughts on the Rematch!

Just a few notes about the first game -
GAC: Seth Anderson was 6-for-8 for 15 points; Mychal Crowder played fantastic down the stretch shutting down Ray Ray; Paulsen was ineffective outside of the first couple of minutes.
HAM: Brandon Rieg/Christian Taber played a combined seven minutes for two points; one-on-one basketball led by Ray Ray...assists were 18 to 8 in favor of Gusties; Hipp played his worst game of the year and maybe his three years at Hamline.

This time around
GAC: Anderson has scored 15 points the last four games (that's a less than whopping four PPGs); outside of 14 points in a loss at SMU and 15 in a big win against MAC, Paulsen has had three single-digit performances the past five games and remains only as a third or fourth option for GAC.
HAM: Rieg and Taber have combined for 36 points the past two games since seeing more court time; Hipp is coming off his best offensive game of the season; and Ray Ray has cut down on his poor shots, playing a smarter game, but still contributing 15-20 PPG.

HAM is 5-1 during the second loop thus far (@ SMU, @ SJU, UST remain)
GAC is 2-3 during the same stretch (@ STO, BET, @ UST SJU)

I just think the Vipers are a much better TEAM right now than they were the first meeting and they had all the chances in the game to win that one. On their home court, I expect a W from Hamline.

Things to watch: Will Crowder start and guard Brown or will Paulsen guard him again to start? Paulsen could not handle the speed of Brown in the first meeting. McPartland vs Hipp and Carroll vs Wirtjes. How many times will Schmidtknecht head fake on a three-pointer?

And my favorite: The Posse vs GAC supporters

It's all a matter of perspective, PI. You say Paulson couldn't handle Ray Ray's speed; I say Ray Ray shot 9-21 with 0 assists. It's an unorthodox matchup, to be certain, but Paulson and Co. have held two of the top four scorers in the league (Ray and Palmer) to a combined 12-29 shooting since GAC has made an effort to keep McPartland closer to the paint. For the record, there's no way Crowder starts.

Looked back at the play-by-play:
Brown started 4-for-5 with a free throw (10 points) in the game's first opening seven minutes. It was at this point that Paulsen exited and ceased to guard Brown until the start of the second half. He was 2-for-6 down the stretch in the first half being guarded by McPartland and Crowder. (I forgot we led by 11...yikes) In the opening five minutes of the second half, Brown was 1-for-1 against Paulsen, but did get to the line, making 3-of-4 shots and picking up two quick fouls on Paulsen, who did not record a single shot, rebound or anything the rest of the way.

Brown was 5-for-6 from the field, 4-for-5 from the line for 15 of his 26 points against Paulsen. And this came in only 12 of his 34 minutes. It was Co., not Paulsen, that shut down Brown at times.

Box.

That's why I wondered out loud what the match-up may be this time?

Hmmm, you're right. I was thinking Paulson had a nice offensive performance that game to offset his D...but that came against the Tommies a few days later.

It's really a pick-your-poison type matchup for the Gusties. As DP just said, Gusties fans can live with Paulson forcing Ray Ray to get trey-happy — even if he makes 4-11 — if it also means Hipp is shut down by McPartland.

McPartland can't/didn't shut down Hipp 1-on-1. GAC will most likely double the post hard and leave either Carroll or Aguirre. This will make it all that much more important for HU shooters to step in and knock down shots because they will be there. Hipp has a tendency to get frantic in the post when pressure comes, so it will be interesting to see how "The Nasty One" responds to the double teams .

After thinking about it (maybe a GAC fan could help on this one) but would Hanson ever send some type of double on Brown's penetration against Paulsen, to try to get the ball out of his hands? As DP said, Brown really did well getting to the hoop against Paulsen in the first match up. It might do GAC some good (at least while Crowder isn't in) to get the ball out of Ray Ray's hands and limit his looks at penetration lanes.

It sounds cliche but this one is going to be won on defense and in the trenches

I'm optimistic that HU has a lot more to prove and has the "emotional edge" in this one. My bet is that it will be enough to get them over the hump 

[Willy Wonka]

Hello, anyone there?

Well, we are on the eve of HAM/GAC so I thought I'd give my thoughts on the Rematch!

Just a few notes about the first game -
GAC: Seth Anderson was 6-for-8 for 15 points; Mychal Crowder played fantastic down the stretch shutting down Ray Ray; Paulsen was ineffective outside of the first couple of minutes.
HAM: Brandon Rieg/Christian Taber played a combined seven minutes for two points; one-on-one basketball led by Ray Ray...assists were 18 to 8 in favor of Gusties; Hipp played his worst game of the year and maybe his three years at Hamline.

This time around
GAC: Anderson has scored 15 points the last four games (that's a less than whopping four PPGs); outside of 14 points in a loss at SMU and 15 in a big win against MAC, Paulsen has had three single-digit performances the past five games and remains only as a third or fourth option for GAC.
HAM: Rieg and Taber have combined for 36 points the past two games since seeing more court time; Hipp is coming off his best offensive game of the season; and Ray Ray has cut down on his poor shots, playing a smarter game, but still contributing 15-20 PPG.

HAM is 5-1 during the second loop thus far (@ SMU, @ SJU, UST remain)
GAC is 2-3 during the same stretch (@ STO, BET, @ UST SJU)

I just think the Vipers are a much better TEAM right now than they were the first meeting and they had all the chances in the game to win that one. On their home court, I expect a W from Hamline.

Things to watch: Will Crowder start and guard Brown or will Paulsen guard him again to start? Paulsen could not handle the speed of Brown in the first meeting. McPartland vs Hipp and Carroll vs Wirtjes. How many times will Schmidtknecht head fake on a three-pointer?

And my favorite: The Posse vs GAC supporters

It's all a matter of perspective, PI. You say Paulson couldn't handle Ray Ray's speed; I say Ray Ray shot 9-21 with 0 assists. It's an unorthodox matchup, to be certain, but Paulson and Co. have held two of the top four scorers in the league (Ray and Palmer) to a combined 12-29 shooting since GAC has made an effort to keep McPartland closer to the paint. For the record, there's no way Crowder starts.

Looked back at the play-by-play:
Brown started 4-for-5 with a free throw (10 points) in the game's first opening seven minutes. It was at this point that Paulsen exited and ceased to guard Brown until the start of the second half. He was 2-for-6 down the stretch in the first half being guarded by McPartland and Crowder. (I forgot we led by 11...yikes) In the opening five minutes of the second half, Brown was 1-for-1 against Paulsen, but did get to the line, making 3-of-4 shots and picking up two quick fouls on Paulsen, who did not record a single shot, rebound or anything the rest of the way.

Brown was 5-for-6 from the field, 4-for-5 from the line for 15 of his 26 points against Paulsen. And this came in only 12 of his 34 minutes. It was Co., not Paulsen, that shut down Brown at times.

Box.

That's why I wondered out loud what the match-up may be this time?

Hmmm, you're right. I was thinking Paulson had a nice offensive performance that game to offset his D...but that came against the Tommies a few days later.

It's really a pick-your-poison type matchup for the Gusties. As DP just said, Gusties fans can live with Paulson forcing Ray Ray to get trey-happy — even if he makes 4-11 — if it also means Hipp is shut down by McPartland.

McPartland can't/didn't shut down Hipp 1-on-1. GAC will most likely double the post hard and leave either Carroll or Aguirre. This will make it all that much more important for HU shooters to step in and knock down shots because they will be there. Hipp has a tendency to get frantic in the post when pressure comes, so it will be interesting to see how "The Nasty One" responds to the double teams .

After thinking about it (maybe a GAC fan could help on this one) but would Hanson ever send some type of double on Brown's penetration against Paulsen, to try to get the ball out of his hands? As DP said, Brown really did well getting to the hoop against Paulsen in the first match up. It might do GAC some good (at least while Crowder isn't in) to get the ball out of Ray Ray's hands and limit his looks at penetration lanes.

It sounds cliche but this one is going to be won on defense and in the trenches

I'm optimistic that HU has a lot more to prove and has the "emotional edge" in this one. My bet is that it will be enough to get them over the hump 

If McPartland can't/didn't shut down Hipp last time, I'd love to hear your definition of shutting someone down. Hipp finished with 7 and 4 in 29 minutes when he's averaging 16.5 and 8.8. While I've criticized McPartland recently, he badly outplayed Hipp on both ends of the court in the last meeting.

I'd be surprised if GAC uses any sort of gimmick defense against Ray. Some of the shots he hit in the last meeting wouldn't have been stopped by anyone in the league, like his crossover stepback in Paulson's eye to start the game. Keep it simple with slide and contest...which hasn't exactly been very simple lately for the Gusties.

Lots of subplots worth watching in this one. One that hasn't been discussed yet is how efficient the Gustie offense has been lately. The team everyone loves to hate on for playing slow is 6th in the league in scoring at 67.1 PPG — and it's 71.5 in the last four.

On the flip side, I was very impressed with the Hamline defense in the last meeting. Particularly the job done on Van Sickle, who finished 2-10. GAC will need more from him because it's doubtful the bench shoots 14-17 again.

[huhoops]

If McPartland can't/didn't shut down Hipp last time, I'd love to hear your definition of shutting someone down. Hipp finished with 7 and 4 in 29 minutes when he's averaging 16.5 and 8.8. While I've criticized McPartland recently, he badly outplayed Hipp on both ends of the court in the last meeting.

I'd be surprised if GAC uses any sort of gimmick defense against Ray. Some of the shots he hit in the last meeting wouldn't have been stopped by anyone in the league, like his crossover stepback in Paulson's eye to start the game. Keep it simple with slide and contest...which hasn't exactly been very simple lately for the Gusties.

Lots of subplots worth watching in this one. One that hasn't been discussed yet is how efficient the Gustie offense has been lately. The team everyone loves to hate on for playing slow is 6th in the league in scoring at 67.1 PPG — and it's 71.5 in the last four.

On the flip side, I was very impressed with the Hamline defense in the last meeting. Particularly the job done on Van Sickle, who finished 2-10. GAC will need more from him because it's doubtful the bench shoots 14-17 again.

It seemed to me as though McPartland was getting help from the guards with dig downs on Hipp, which made him rush into some bad shots. I didn't mean to take a shot at McPartland's efforts if he was in fact shutting down Hipp on his own accord. I haven't watched him play enough to know what kind of a defender he is.

Interesting tid bit:

HU is averaging just under 82 PPG at Hutton. I said this last time around and I'll give it another go again. HU will win if the score gets into the 70's +.

[Drake Palmer]

I'd be surprised if GAC uses any sort of gimmick defense against Ray. Some of the shots he hit in the last meeting wouldn't have been stopped by anyone in the league, like his crossover stepback in Paulson's eye to start the game. Keep it simple with slide and contest...which hasn't exactly been very simple lately for the Gusties.

Lots of subplots worth watching in this one. One that hasn't been discussed yet is how efficient the Gustie offense has been lately. The team everyone loves to hate on for playing slow is 6th in the league in scoring at 67.1 PPG — and it's 71.5 in the last four.

On the flip side, I was very impressed with the Hamline defense in the last meeting. Particularly the job done on Van Sickle, who finished 2-10. GAC will need more from him because it's doubtful the bench shoots 14-17 again.

More fuel for the fire...

Let's take a little closer look at those numbers that Willy is citing shall we?

In those 4 games he's touting as an example of the increased offensive explosion by the Gusties, here's what happened:

W: GAC 79-72 CORD
L: SMU 78-75 GAC
L: AUG 75-70 GAC
W: GAC 63-44 MAC

I've already mentioned how the vaunted Gustie defense has looked rather shaky in the last few games.  So after I noticed this, I went back & looked at GAC YTD record of 13-7 & discovered this little gem:

In games when they hold their opponents to less than 70 points, the Gusties are 10-3.  When opposing teams score more than 70 points the Gusties are 3-4.    

Interesting tid bit:

HU is averaging just under 82 PPG at Hutton. I said this last time around and I'll give it another go again. HU will win if the score gets into the 70's +.

I think HU is on to something.

[piperinsider]

McPartland definitely got help from guards the first time, but when he didn't, Hipp still struggled. Aguirre only had one made field goals in the last game. Taber was 1 of 2, Rieg DNP. Schmidt hit a couple - need a couple of those guys to play well tomorrow.

[VOJ]

I agree the Hamline GAC matchup is matchup 1 or maybe 1A...The coaches I have been talking to feel that the team playing the best bball right now is Carleton, but do they matchup well with the Tommies? 

The Knights have the longest current win streak in the conference and they are not just beating people, they are pounding them, taking them behind the woodshed...can they match the Tommies quickness, and pressure?  Will they continue to get great games from Donkey Jonger, which sets up opportunities for everyone else? 

Here is a scenerio that would make this race even better...GAC falls at Hamline and the Knights win their 7th straight and the Auggies and Johnnies post wins...get your complex tie breakers ready, complete with a coin to toss in the air.   CMob's whole lower body would quiver.

[sumander]

   CMob's whole lower body would quiver.

VOJ, I think there are only 3 things that can make Cmob's lower body quiver:

• Triple cheeseburgers
• A fancy new pair of roller skates
• Boombalahties

Looks like a fun day in the MIAC. Let's see how it all shakes out.

J's have not played well of late up in Moorhead. CORD will be fired up after Wednesday's big win.

[hoopmaster]

I've got Hamline today.  I think Ray comes out even more aggressive than the first game and I really think he's going to torch Crowder when he guards him.  In my experience when a PLAYER gets shut down they have great games the next time around. 

Carleton jumped all over the Tommies the first time they played.  I think they were up 12-0 or 13-1 something like that.  The Knights are gonna have to be able to score consistently if they want to win today. 

[ChairmanYao]

GAC up 30-29 at half. Hipp and Brown have 20 of the Pipers 29.

[Pat Coleman]

Well, Yao beat me to what I was going to post.

[ChairmanYao]

Pipers win 66-63.....The Nasty One with 29 points.