MBB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[Drake Palmer]

Dang Wills, I log in to respond to your post, & the Wonka haters are out in force. Ouch.  But with your rant you knew it was coming. 

Drake - Resurface? I posted last night before bed too. I'll have some game comments later today.
...
More later.

Yeah, I saw those (2-3) quick posts, but you were like the chipmunk/gopher from "Caddyshack", popping up for air from your hole & then diving back down.

...In a shameless attempt to find a silver lining for GAC from last night...

I was told differently at the game by about half a dozen people, but, in my two games of watching him play thus far, Keating is a joke. He's a glorified role player who's scored 8 points on 2-10 shooting and grabbed 7 boards in the last two games. Just in case you're curious, that's less production than Nerd Bain gets in one game. He also played 30 minutes in the blowout, rendering the "he didn't play" argument moot.

Keating's best moves last night consisted of doing an underhand raise the roof at every timeout (very consistent form, though the facial expression couldn't have been more bland) and letting AT spin by him to let Ike spike it (one was a clear goaltending, another was darn close).

"Wills gives begrudging respect & that's ok."  There were more than a few shards of journalistic objectivity in your post. 

Alright to all you Keating naysayers out there & you know who you are.  I'd hardly call him a "joke".  I know the sting of defeat still burns in the craw of the competitor, but people who know basketball & I include a certain Mr. Wonka in this group, know he's not a joke.

I'll give you that he's not putting up mind-dazzling numbers yet, but what have they played - 6 total games this year?! Less than 25% of their season. These naysayers were probably the same ones that were calling out "overrated" to Rosefelt about this same time last year, & now most of you are singing his praises this year.  And then a couple of years before that you were dogging Sweeney as a freshman, dogging him when he left for UW-Green Bay & dogging him when he returned last year. And what's he doing this year?!?  Putting up serious All-conference #s & leading his team. IMO, but for a serious case of blinders & sentimentality for the "heartwarming", benchwarmer story about the former choir boy from Eden Prairie, Sweeney should have made All Conference last year. 

So my suggestion, ease up on the Keating knocks.  I seriously doubt anyone will be calling him a joke at the end of the season.  And a year from now, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see you same naysayers, start backpedaling & extoling the virtues of Keating. And I'll be here waiting, with a big smirk on my face.  (Now why do  I feel like Sid Hartman after one of his diatribes?)

So, do like the Vikes & if you have to, bring Boschee up as a special consultant from Pella & have him conduct a special defensive session with the team.  Then when the Tommies & Gusties meet again later in January & mebbe February, we can have the epic, legend making contest/s that we can tell our kids & grand kids about. 

[columbianmaffia]

if keating can get back and played like he did against CAR we wont be having this conversation anymore

[SUMMIT!!!!!]

the thing with Keating is that peope dont appreciate solid defene and there is no quantitavite "stats" for floor leadership and defense (beyond steals and blocks). Those are things Keating brings to UST, along with poise under pressure....for  example, during both the Ham & Mac games, when the opposing team was making a run at them, he was the calming force on the floor, pulling the team thru the near-crises... in a lot of ways his role is like Joe Buri's was in his era...GAC has had many palyers in that role over the years, too. It is the beauty & similarity of Hanson-ball and Fritz-ball (and something Ammann-ball never had, another reason for his lack of success)

[miacwatchmen]

I'd be willing to bet the Hamline & SJU game would be highly entertaining!  Sidenote -when the Johnnies come to your campus check out #50.  Let me just say, that I don't hold view him in the same light as "MIACwatchmen".

[

What is my opinion that your are refering to?? The SJU team or a player on it. It would help if i understood your post then i could form a reply.

[pacific rim]

i am sad that columbian maffia's picture is the same as mine, now.

[pacific rim]

despite agreeing with mig ak47 that concordia has a legitimate shot at supplanting gustavus as the #2 team in the league in people's minds and hearts, I feel that another team has the BEST chance of beating them.  Concordia has as good a shot as any, certainly.  However, when considering what it is that makes st. thomas tick, it seems likely that a team which may not even make the playoffs has the greatest likelihood for catching them off-step.  that team is macalester.  with conboy, boseman(Bosman?), and this stein/hollander combination, i feel that macalester has the front court flexibility to negate st. thomas' greatest strengths.

[pacific rim]

by the way, another interesting stat concerning free throws:

the three player combination of eckhoff, linz, and dixon has combined for more free throw attempts than 7 of the TEAMS in the miac!

the only exceptions to this rule are GAC, SJU, and Mac.

FURTHERMORE, props to luke linz for stepping up and filling the highly anticipated and necessary role of second gun to keith eckhoff.  two cobbers in the top five in the league in scoring has not happened previously, to my memory.

this again leads me to raise the question of the comparability between Linz, Drake, Conboy, and Wittwer.  Rank them, if you'd like. Also, regardless of the rankings, who do you pick if you're starting a team and why?

i think this could be interesting.  what a crop of frontcourtmen.

[pacific rim]

please generate some dialogue, here.  i am dying in the midst of a longwinded textual barrage at the hands of some truly irrelevant psychologists.

i desperately need this board to get ative so i can distract myself.

[pacific rim]

unbelievable.  most of the time this board's frequenters can't refrain from unleashing some vituperous tirade at some opponent or another.  now, in my most needful hour, no one has diddly to say?  it has been hours.

in the spirit of looking for the meagerest of silver linings, i appreciate your kindly allowing my posts to rule the night time hours.

[big_shocker]

PR- I'll try to say something:

I have to agree with WW, as I told him during the game, that Keating giving the upside-down raise the roof during the game was uncalled for. I am just not a fan of things like that. Play the game, not with the fans. Plus, UST was blowing GAC away at the time, and that was a little salt in the wound, not to my taste.

[Gregory Sager]

i am sad that columbian maffia's picture is the same as mine, now.

And this is driving you to seek the help of psychologists? Wow.

Speaking strictly as a layman, I'd say that you have nothing to worry about, as long as you don't develop a fetish for rollerskates and Wendy's hamburgers or an ongoing tendency to double the consonants in the middle of "mafia" and "triple". 

[Willy Wonka]

Drake - I'm a little confused by your post. Who and where are the so-called Wonka haters? TH4L, a devout Tommie fan, agreed with my assessment of Keating, as did Big Shocker. Am I missing something or are you seeing something that isn't there?

I'm also curious as to your assessment of Keating. Are you trying to say the "jump" from D2 to the MIAC is a tougher transition than high school to D2? He seemed to transition very nicely when he was the Northeast Conference Freshman of the Year, nearly setting the league's freshman scoring record. He averaged 15.9 and 6.3 last year. He's averaging 9.8 and 4.5 this year against "lesser" competition. Are you arguing that those numbers aren't disappointing? Seems to me everyone but MM has been less than blown away by his play thus far, including Tommie fans.

I was expecting a top-notch player - in the mold of, say, Big Gilbert or BVT - and he's been anything but that thus far. From what I've seen, he's following the career path of a Soren Nelson, Bethel's Eric Robertson or Mac's Doug Benson: solid, but hardly worth the hype of an MVP calibre player that he got this offseason.

[pacific rim]

whoa whoa whoa, take it easy.  soren nelson was better than solid.  His junior year he was one of the most difficult match-ups in the miac.  his senior year saw him start slow and pick things up extremely well.  i believe he had three 30 pt games that year.  i believe...

[funbballer]

I'm also curious as to your assessment of Keating. Are you trying to say the "jump" from D2 to the MIAC is a tougher transition than high school to D2? He seemed to transition very nicely when he was the Northeast Conference Freshman of the Year, nearly setting the league's freshman scoring record. He averaged 15.9 and 6.3 last year. He's averaging 9.8 and 4.5 this year against "lesser" competition. Are you arguing that those numbers aren't disappointing? Seems to me everyone but MM has been less than blown away by his play thus far, including Tommie fans.

I was expecting a top-notch player - in the mold of, say, Big Gilbert or BVT - and he's been anything but that thus far. From what I've seen, he's following the career path of a Soren Nelson, Bethel's Eric Robertson or Mac's Doug Benson: solid, but hardly worth the hype of an MVP calibre player that he got this offseason.

For WW and other anti-Keating blasters.....you may not be aware, but he's gone through extensive hip surgery and to date, has not fully recovered. Stay tuned....as he gets stronger and regains more flexibility, he'll be a top player in this league.

So, thus far, no he probably hasn't played at the caliber some people might have expected, but there's a significant reason for this. He won't make excuses or say anything about it, and he clearly is frustrated with his own play, but he'll get better. In spite of his physical ailments, he's a great leader on/off the court for the Tommies and will do whatever is needed to help his team win.

[big_shocker]

All I was saying is that Keating did the raise the roof, which I disapproved of. He obviously helps UST, but right now, he isn't the main weapon. Heck, I think on Wednesday, he might have been the forth option on the floor. If he is a D-II caliber player, then he has the potential to be great. However, as of this very moment, he is more like a role player. That could change.