Top 25 talk

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

Well, regardless of what your computers say, I still think it was a pretty big upset. I would guess that most would agree. I mean, the pollsters gave the Oles 92 more points than Eau Claire and I'm sure no one thought of giving them any votes. 🤔😎😋😂

The computer is never wrong.

How are the preseason "priors" for those rankings computed?  Wooster starting at #142 stands out a bit.

Yeah, it definitely looks like the computer might be wrong there. I'll check it in the morning.

DAMN IT MAN! I can NEVER trust you again. NEVER I SAY!

Just kidding.

And yes, this will be used in the future.

[KnightSlappy]

Well, regardless of what your computers say, I still think it was a pretty big upset. I would guess that most would agree. I mean, the pollsters gave the Oles 92 more points than Eau Claire and I'm sure no one thought of giving them any votes. 🤔😎😋😂

The computer is never wrong.

How are the preseason "priors" for those rankings computed?  Wooster starting at #142 stands out a bit.

Yeah, it definitely looks like the computer might be wrong there. I'll check it in the morning.

OK, I couldn't sleep with this sort of thing hanging over me so I went ahead and fixed it. How does #22 sound for Wooster? The formulas weren't copied down all the way to the W's somehow.

Aside: If anyone wants to teach me Python so I don't have to use Excel like a dummy, that would be great.

[Pat Coleman]

I can only use Excel like a dummy. I am pretty sure I stopped learning new Excel functionality sometime in 1998.

[Greek Tragedy]

I can only use Excel like a dummy. I am pretty sure I stopped learning new Excel functionality sometime in 1998.

I don't feel too bad now. I use the free version of Excel in Open Office.

[KnightSlappy]

I can only use Excel like a dummy. I am pretty sure I stopped learning new Excel functionality sometime in 1998.

I don't feel too bad now. I use the free version of Excel in Open Office.

Just to make sure we're all good, the dummy comment was pointed at myself and myself only.

[Greek Tragedy]

I can only use Excel like a dummy. I am pretty sure I stopped learning new Excel functionality sometime in 1998.

I don't feel too bad now. I use the free version of Excel in Open Office.

Just to make sure we're all good, the dummy comment was pointed at myself and myself only.

If you were calling anyone who uses Excel a "dummy," speaking for myself and myself only, I've been called worse. 🤔😋

[FCGrizzliesGrad]

I can only use Excel like a dummy. I am pretty sure I stopped learning new Excel functionality sometime in 1998.

I don't feel too bad now. I use the free version of Excel in Open Office.

I also use the Open Office suite. Completely free and has all the functionality of M$ products

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

The season is kind of, sort of, possibly underway in Division III. With the earlier start being decided less than ten months prior, not every program was able to take advantage of the new date. There are still teams who haven't tipped off their seasons while others have already played two or three games this season.

That doesn't mean we can't find topics to talk about on Hoopsville!

Sunday, Dave is back live in studio with plenty of DIII conversation. Plus coaches talk about (high) expectations and being in charge of a program for the first time. Can St. Thomas women take the next step as a program? How will MIT's season be engineered? And from All-American to head coach, what it's like to take over a program for the first time.

Plus, the winningest men's coach in Division III history will not start the season on the bench. More on what has lead Glenn Robinson to take a medical leave of absence.

Hoopsville is presented by D3hoops.com and airs from the WBCA/NABC Studio. Sunday's show will hit the air at 7:00 p.m. ET and be watched here: http://bit.ly/2PPm16G. If you miss the show, you can always watch it On Demand. An audio-only podcast will also be available on the right side of the page (available shortly after the show goes off air).

If you have questions about Division III basketball, feel free to send them and we will answer them on a the show. Email them to hoopsville@d3hoops.com or use any of the social media options to the right.

Guests Scheduled (order subject to change):
- Larry Anderson, No. 5 MIT men's coach
- Ruth Sinn, No. 5 St. Thomas women's head coach
- Mike McGarvey, Lycoming men's coach

If you enjoy the show via the podcasts instead, you can get access to them or subscribe one of the three following ways (click on the images when necessary):
SoundCloud: www.soundcloud.com/hoopsville




Don't forget you can always interact with us:
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[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

I watched the Yeshiva game today.  The Macs played pretty poorly in the first half and were still comfortably ahead at the break.  They got the lead up to 18 early in the second half - to the place where good teams extend and put the game away.  Yeshiva got lazy, settling for bad shots and not playing 100% - they let FDU-Florham back into the game and ultimately to win a game they should've lost by 30.

A lot of progress necessary there, but still there's a lot more talent than they had last year.  I don't regret my vote.

[BaboNation]

Nice pull getting Calhoun on your podcast, congrats Dave!

Thank you ... I appreciate that when we call or email, that people know we are legit. That helps as well.

Dave has "people".

Sometimes we do ... sometimes we are lucky. Let's say this might be in the middle.

Coach Calhoun has some nice words at the start of the interview. Oh, and we did ask him the "NABC Coach's Corner" quiz because ... well, why not?!

This is going to really date me, but earlier in the Holocene epoch I regularly went to games in Boston.  I had a friend who played at UMaine and whenever they came to town I'd attend.  When they played Northeastern Calhoun was coaching, and when they played BU (as in Boston U) Pitino was coaching.
No one had any idea what amazing careers they would have.

[fantastic50]

How are the preseason "priors" for those rankings computed?  Wooster starting at #142 stands out a bit.

Yeah, it definitely looks like the computer might be wrong there. I'll check it in the morning.

OK, I couldn't sleep with this sort of thing hanging over me so I went ahead and fixed it. How does #22 sound for Wooster? The formulas weren't copied down all the way to the W's somehow.

Aside: If anyone wants to teach me Python so I don't have to use Excel like a dummy, that would be great.

The formula copying issue sounds like a mistake I would make!  As someone who does computer rankings, I hate to be the guy that asks, "Why is ____ ranked so low?" but that one stood out just a bit too far.  #22 seems more than fair, given the losses to graduation.  Thanks!

A decade ago, I switched from Excel to MATLAB for most data-driven projects, but now need to make the jump to Python, as well.

[KnightSlappy]

A decade ago, I switched from Excel to MATLAB for most data-driven projects, but now need to make the jump to Python, as well.

Maybe we can collaborate on a project.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

Maybe one, any, of you can explain to me how to grab XML or other data on the internet ... to save me a ton of work when I put my game sheets together (using Excel).

[fantastic50]

A decade ago, I switched from Excel to MATLAB for most data-driven projects, but now need to make the jump to Python, as well.

Maybe we can collaborate on a project.

That would be cool.  I have some students signed up for my spring Math Modeling course (the class that did predictions of the Pool C teams last year) who might be interested in sports-related final projects, so if you have an idea that seems to fit, send me an email at some point between now & February.

[Darryl Nester]

How They Fared (So Far)
It's that time of year again ... because of the early start date, it's possible my program might have missed a game here or there ...

Top 25

Rank	Pts	Team	W-L	Results
#1	624	Nebraska Wesleyan	2-0	def. Grinnell, 143-90; def. Bethany Lutheran, 104-85; 11/16 vs. Carroll; 11/17 vs. St. Norbert
#2	567	UW-Oshkosh	0-0	11/16 vs. Piedmont; 11/17 vs. TBA
#3	539	Augustana	0-0	11/16 vs. Alma; 11/17 vs. Calvin
#4	529	Whitman	1-0	def. #32 LeTourneau, 104-90; 11/16 vs. Sul Ross State; 11/17 vs. Concordia (Texas)
#5	463	MIT	0-0	11/15 vs. Endicott; 11/17 vs. Eastern Nazarene
#6	462	Whitworth	0-0	11/16 vs. #23 St. Olaf; 11/17 vs. Whittier
#7	431	Springfield	2-0	def. Western New England, 95-84; def. T#52 Keene State, 89-81; 11/17 vs. Ohio Wesleyan; 11/18 vs. TBA
#8	417	Williams	0-0	11/17 vs. T#52 Salem State; 11/18 vs. TBA
#9	400	Hamilton	0-0	11/17 vs. Centenary (N.J.); 11/18 vs. York (N.Y.)
#10	367	UW-Platteville	0-0	11/16 vs. Concordia (Wis.); 11/17 vs. #25 St. John's
#11	366	Wittenberg	0-0	11/16 vs. Goucher; 11/17 vs. Juniata
#12	356	UW-Stevens Point	1-0	def. #23 St. Olaf, 54-41; 11/17 vs. Buena Vista
#13	329	Swarthmore	1-0	def. TCNJ, 82-65; 11/17 vs. Delaware Valley
#14	214	Plattsburgh State	2-0	def. Clarkson, 105-95; def. Skidmore, 83-75; 11/16 vs. SUNY-Canton
#15	206	Johns Hopkins	1-1	def. Moravian, 81-75; LOST to York (Pa.), 72-78; 11/16 vs. DeSales; 11/17 vs. TBA
#16	179	New Jersey City	0-1	LOST to Stevens, 72-76; 11/16 vs. Eastern Mennonite; 11/17 vs. Bridgewater (Va.)
#17	166	Middlebury	0-0	11/18 vs. Vermont Tech
#18	147	Emory	1-0	def. Piedmont, 98-80; 11/16 vs. Staten Island; 11/17 vs. Roanoke/Keuka
#19	142	Illinois Wesleyan	1-0	def. Chicago, 81-73; 11/16 vs. Calvin; 11/17 vs. Alma
#20	129	John Carroll	0-0	11/16 vs. Johnson and Wales; 11/17 vs. Buffalo State
#21	107	Wooster	1-0	def. Muskingum, 108-100; 11/17 vs. Mount St. Joseph
#22	95	Maryville (Tenn.)	0-0	11/17 vs. Eastern; 11/18 vs. T#50 Emory and Henry
#23	92	St. Olaf	0-2	LOST to UW-Eau Claire, 75-80; LOST to #12 UW-Stevens Point, 41-54; 11/16 vs. #6 Whitworth; 11/17 vs. George Fox
#24	81	UW-Whitewater	1-0	def. Anderson, 98-82; 11/16 vs. #25 St. John's; 11/17 vs. Concordia (Wis.)
#25	77	St. John's	1-0	def. Minnesota-Morris, 95-54; 11/16 vs. #24 UW-Whitewater; 11/17 vs. #10 UW-Platteville

Others receiving votes

Rank	Pts	Team	W-L	Results
#26	76	Hope	0-0	11/16 vs. Greenville; 11/17 vs. TBD
#27	67	Rochester	1-0	def. Rochester Tech, 68-43; 11/16 vs. Houghton; 11/17 vs. TBA
#28	60	Nazareth	0-0	11/16 vs. Hiram; 11/17 vs. TBA
#29	47	Marietta	2-0	def. Bethany, 93-63; def. Otterbein, 98-66; 11/16 vs. La Roche
#30	42	Roanoke	1-1	LOST to Ursinus, 64-72; def. (n) Clarks Summit, 90-47; 11/16 vs. Keuka; 11/17 vs. Championship/Consolation
#31	36	Amherst	0-0	11/16 vs. Framingham State; 11/17 vs. TBA
#32	35	LeTourneau	1-1	def. Willamette, 73-72; LOST to Whitman, 90-104; 11/16 vs. Schreiner; 11/17 vs. Texas Lutheran
#33	33	Ramapo	2-0	def. Western Connecticut, 83-80; def. #55 Yeshiva, 72-69; 11/16 vs. Gordon; 11/17 vs. TBA
#34	26	Penn State-Behrend	0-0	11/17 vs. Carnegie Mellon
#35	25	Nichols	1-0	def. Fitchburg State, 84-75; 11/17 vs. Lasell
#36	23	St. Thomas	0-0	11/15 vs. Brooklyn; 11/17 vs. Emerson
#37	20	Washington U.	1-1	def. Illinois College, 91-62; LOST to Webster, 64-72
T#38	19	Aurora	0-0	IDLE
T#38	19	North Central (Ill.)	0-0	11/17 vs. Heidelberg
#40	17	Loras	1-0	def. Greenville, 147-129; 11/16 vs. St. Scholastica; 11/17 vs. Olivet
T#41	14	Cabrini	0-1	LOST to Eastern, 77-84; 11/16 vs. Baldwin Wallace; 11/17 vs. TBA
T#41	14	Franklin and Marshall	1-0	def. Albright, 81-74; 11/16 vs. Alvernia; 11/17 vs. TBA
#43	11	Pomona-Pitzer	0-0	11/17 vs. Biola
#44	10	Wesleyan	0-0	11/16 vs. Becker; 11/17 vs. TBD; 11/17 vs. TBD
#45	9	Montclair State	1-0	def. Staten Island, 84-70; 11/16 vs. Penn College; 11/17 vs. CCNY
#46	8	Eastern Connecticut	0-0	11/16 vs. William Paterson; 11/17 vs. TBA
#47	6	Christopher Newport	0-0	11/17 vs. Trinity (Texas); 11/18 vs. TBA
T#48	5	Hanover	1-0	def. Spalding, 78-55; 11/16 vs. Akron-Wayne; 11/17 vs. Kent State - Tuscarawas
T#48	5	Bethel	0-0	11/16 vs. UW-Eau Claire; 11/17 vs. UW-Stout
T#50	3	Claremont-Mudd-Scripps	0-0	11/17 vs. Chicago; 11/18 vs. TBA
T#50	3	Emory and Henry	2-0	def. Thomas More, 72-65; def. Transylvania, 95-73; 11/17 vs. Webster; 11/18 vs. #22 Maryville (Tenn.)
T#52	2	Keene State	1-1	def. T#52 Salem State, 89-64; LOST to #7 Springfield, 81-89
T#52	2	Ohio Northern	1-0	def. Defiance, 99-61; 11/17 vs. Denison
T#52	2	Salem State	1-1	LOST to T#52 Keene State, 64-89; def. Mass-Dartmouth, 87-85; 11/17 vs. #8 Williams; 11/18 vs. TBD
#55	1	Yeshiva	0-2	LOST to FDU-Florham, 68-69; LOST to #33 Ramapo, 69-72