MBB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[lebron23]

College of Wooster Fighting Scots, Wooster, OH
Rank Last in d3 hoops.com poll: Unranked
North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Outright Regular Season and Tournament Champions
22-6 Overall Record, 14-2 NCAC
Head Coach Steve Moore- 22nd Season

Key Wins: Dec. 6th, 82-65 vs. Ohio Wesleyan; Jan. 7th, 74-64 @ Kenyon; Feb. 4th, 89-87 @ Hiram; Feb.14th, 67-53 @ Wittenberg. 

Record Against NCAA Tournament Teams- (0-2) L 66-74 @ Carnegie Mellon; L 67-76 Neutral Site vs. Wisc.-Platteville

Starters
22 PG- 6-1 175 So. Nathan Balch- 12 PPG, 90% FTA, 47% 3PA
33 SG- 6-3 175 So. Ian Franks-     15 PPG, 79% FTA, 39% 3PA
14 SF- 6-4 205 Sr. Marty Bidwell-  10 PPG, 71 % FTA, 42% 3PA
40 PF- 6-7 200 Fr. Justin Hallowell- 14.5 PPG, 89% FTA, 4.5 RPG, 52% 3PA
32 C- 6-6  205 So. Bryan Wickliffe- 7.5 PPG, 6 RPG, 71% FTA

Key Reserve(s)
12 G- 6-1 175 Jr. Dustin Geitgey- 5 PPG, 82%FTA, 3 RPG
20 G- 6-1 180 Fr. Matt Fegan- 5 PPG, 48% 3PA
42 F- 6-4 200 Fr. Mike Evans- 4.5 PPG, 37% 3PA
54 F- 6-5 205 Fr. Greg Ross- 4.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG

Other Notes
5th Straight Outright NCAC Championship
254-44 Record Since 2000 (85.2%) Winning Percentage...Best in ALL divisions
Final 4 Appearances in 2007 (4th Place) and 2003 (3rd Place)
Overall NCAA Record since 1990- (16-17)
7th Consecutive NCAA Tournament Appearance

Our Tournament Profile is posted!

[sac]

For those who haven't been there, the Capital Center is a very nice, 2100-seat facility, and should be a fine host site for this regional.  It could get a little crowded, however, given how well Wooster travels and how well Capital draws (I doubt that either Gettysburg or TMC will contribute too much to the throng.)  To make matters worse, Capital's spring break has already come and gone (first day of classes was today), so the students should be out in force.  Wooster, on the other hand, begins its spring break on Friday.  Listen up, COW students: to get from Wooster to Florida, you have to drive through Columbus anyway, so why not take an extra day or two en route?

The Capital Center is a very nice, high quality D3 gym.  However I will quibble with the attendence.  Last year Capital hosted Bethany in round 1.  Granted it was round one and it was Bethany on a Thursday but the total attendance was only 896.
http://www.capital.edu/17992/

OAC.org says Cap averaged 673 a home game this year.

Bethany brought at least one bus load of students from West Virginia and a number of other fans.  Capital had a good sized student section maybe 6 or 7 rows but there were plenty of good seats available to stretch out.  I also recall that parking wasn't the greatest, so get there early.

I'll be interested to hear what its like this year.

[ScotsFan]

The Capital Center is a very nice, high quality D3 gym.  However I will quibble with the attendence.  Last year Capital hosted Bethany in round 1.  Granted it was round one and it was Bethany on a Thursday but the total attendance was only 896.
http://www.capital.edu/17992/

OAC.org says Cap averaged 673 a home game this year.

Bethany brought at least one bus load of students from West Virginia and a number of other fans.  Capital had a good sized student section maybe 6 or 7 rows but there were plenty of good seats available to stretch out.  I also recall that parking wasn't the greatest, so get there early.

I'll be interested to hear what its like this year.

My guess would be that if Wooster gets past Gettysburg, the Wooster contingent alone would come close to doubling that attendance figure from that Bethany game last year...  And that's not including students.

[lebron23]

word is that balch will be ready to go this weekend...so that's good news...but you know how ankle injuries are...hopefully all goes as planned though because he's a key member of the team!

[David Collinge]

NCAC athletes among the final NCAA statistical leaders:

Scoring:  Bryan Yelvington, Kenyon, 19.9 (47th)
Three-point FG per game:  Justin Hallowell, Wooster, 3.41 (12th); Jordan Beard, Oberlin, 3.00 (37th)
Three-point FG%:  Justin Hallowell, Wooster, .517 (4th); Jordan Beard, Oberlin, .475 (8th); Chase Haltom, Wabash, .423 (33rd)
Free throw %:  Jordan Beard, Oberlin, .882 (19th); Tristian Gregory, Earlham, .849 (54th)
Steals:  Kyle Miller, OWU, 2.42 (39th)
Assist/turnover ratio:  Nick Russo, Hiram, 2.48 (15th)

(The NCAA uses higher cutoffs for rate stats than does the NCAC, which knocks out folks like Kevin Murray's league-leading .922 FT%.)

[lebron23]

Per Capital Basketball Page....The action begins with a doubleheader on Friday as Wooster faces Gettysburg at 6 p.m. followed by Capital playing host to Thomas More at 8 p.m.  The winners will square off in an NCAA Second Round matchup on Saturday at 7 p.m.

Tickets are only $6 for General Admission and $3 for all students/children/senior citizens.  A separate ticket will be sold for each day....still not sure how many tickets will be allotted for COW yet, but if I find out I'll post it...also from our basketball page....Capital is encouraging fans to arrive early on Friday due to a variety of other events going on in the area, including the OAC Indoor Track & Field Championships inside the Capital Center.

[David Collinge]

Capital is encouraging fans to arrive early on Friday due to a variety of other events going on in the area, including the OAC Indoor Track & Field Championships inside the Capital Center.

Egad...parking, which sac correctly notes is a problem in the best of circumstances, is really going to be a nightmare.  I hope the Rebounders and/or the college sends a bus or two.  Looks like I'll be spending a lazy afternoon in downtown Bexley!

[kiltedbryan]

I'm looking for the Scots to dodge some Bullets, then launch a Crusade to the Sweet Sixteen!   

[waterboy]

It's good to see the NCAC board is lively as always. Just thought I'd shed some light on the Bullets for you gentlemen. While Wooster has an obvious advantage outside the arc, Gettysburg's inside game could wreck havoc on the Scots. While Spierenburg has primarily been a force on the defensive side, Powers is a legit offensive presence in just his second year on the squad. He has good moves in the post and makes his shots (.542). He also draws contact and has made more free throws than anyone on Wooster's team has attempted. While the combo isn't quite Witt's talented duo of Dane Borchers and Dan Russ, it's potent and could be a pivotal point to the game, especially if the Scots are off the mark from deep. While the Centennial may not be on the same par from distance as the NCAC, I assure you there is not a lack of big men, and Powers has had his way with most of them.

On the perimeter, the Bullets stack up with Nevolo, Capkin, and Dorsey. Nevolo doesn't score much, but he's a solid passer and pesky on the defensive end. Capkin is the team's top shooter, but he is also the best driver and slasher. He'll take a hit and keep on ticking. Dorsey is the most athletic player outside of Powers and can be a match up problem for most teams when he's on his game. Should be a good match with Bidwell, given the latter's physicalilty on defense and quickness.

Yes, Gettysburg uses a pretty shallow lineup, while Wooster's is pretty deep. But remember a few years ago when the Scots only went three deep on the bench? Didn't seem to hurt them too much (Final Four anyone?) Most teams try to throw in all their players to wear the Bullets down (McDaniel used 16 in the CC semis), but it doesn't matter very much given the team's conditioning. 

One last note...Gettysburg runs an offense that is unlike anything Wooster has seen. With the scores the Bullets have put up, some of you might compare it to Witt or Wabash's style. But it's not even close and I can't even begin to explain it. Just a blur of movement and cuts from everywhere.

So let's have it out: Youth versus Experience; Depth versus lack of Depth; Three-point offense versus Three-point defense; Perimeter play versus Inside Play; and on and on...The possibilities are endless, but I can't wait to see what the coaches draw up to try and throw the other off.

Hope this helps with your NCAA perusing about the first round. As much I enjoyed my time at Wooster watching the Scots battle it out with Witt, score 100 points every night, and advance in the NCAAs, I have to give the nod to the  Orange & Blue based on experience and plain, old adversity. This is a team that lost to the worst team in the conference and still managed to bounce back at the end of the season and knock off the top two conference teams twice each in the final two weeks.

Good luck to all this weekend!

[countyroad]

Thanks waterboy.  That's some interesting information.  Looks like I will make this game with the wife.  The 6:00 start time is a little tricky.  I'm not going to like driving on 70 east that time of the day.

[woosterbooster]

I agree, Gettysburg will be tough.  Massey shows them with a considerably tougher SOS than Wooster.  In the following computer simulation, in which I had the Scots play without Nathan Balch, the team from Pennsylvania opened up an eleven-point first half lead.  Wooster could never get closer than seven after that, and a late Gettysburg burst produced the final margin of sixteen points.  This was just one game, and I think most would be closer, but I believe it shows the Scots will have their hands full.

Sorry about the columns, I don't know how to line them up.

Official Basketball Box Score 
Gettysburg vs Wooster  
Gettysburg 69, Wooster 53  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------  
VISITORS: Gettysburg  
  TOT-FG  3-PT   REB  
Player Name  Pos  FG-FGA  FG-FGA  FT-FTA  TOT  PF  TP  A  TO  BLK  S  MIN  
Andrew Powers....... C 7-16  2-3  6-6  7  3  22  3  1  0  0  36  
Dan Capkin.......... G 9-18  3-9  0-0  2  2  21  2  2  0  6  36  
Corey Dorsey........ G/F 4-8  3-5  2-2  3  4  13  0  0  0  0  27  
Chris Nevolo........ G 0-2  0-0  1-2  1  2  1  2  0  0  2  31  
Joe Spierenburg..... F 1-2  0-0  1-1  4  2  3  3  2  3  2  28  
Kevin Kennedy....... F 4-5  1-1  0-0  4  0  9  0  0  1  0  25  
Brendan Hager....... G 0-2  0-1  0-0  3  1  0  4  2  0  0  12  
Team................     4  
Totals..............  25-53  9-19  10-11  28  14  69  14  7  4  10  196  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------  
HOME TEAM: Wooster  
  TOT-FG  3-PT   REB  
Player Name  Pos  FG-FGA  FG-FGA  FT-FTA  TOT  PF  TP  A  TO  BLK  S  MIN  
Justin Hallowell.... PF 7-13  5-9  2-2  6  3  21  0  2  0  0  31  
Ian Franks.......... G 4-8  0-1  3-3  4  2  11  4  3  1  0  33  
Marty Bidwell....... SF 4-6  1-1  0-0  2  1  9  1  3  0  2  32  
Bryan Wickliffe..... C 2-7  0-0  0-0  9  2  4  1  3  0  1  25  
Dustin Geitgey...... G 0-6  0-3  2-2  3  1  2  3  2  2  1  32  
Matt Fegan.......... G 0-1  0-1  0-0  0  1  0  1  0  0  0  15  
Greg Ross........... C 1-3  0-0  1-2  3  3  3  2  2  0  0  15  
Mike Evans.......... F 1-6  1-2  0-0  4  1  3  0  1  0  0  16  
Team................     0  
Totals..............  19-50  7-17  8-9  31  14  53  12  16  3  4  200  

[lebron23]

BASKETBALL TICKETS FOR NCAA 1ST ROUND AT CAPITAL

Wooster vs Gettysburg Friday night game time 6pm.  Sales will be Tuesday 5-7pm and Wed 10-12 at Armington PEC Ticket Windows (Normal Spot to get Tickets to the right when you walk in to home games), $6 Adults, $3 Students/Seniors/Children, CASH ONLY!

[countyroad]

Is there plenty of parking?  Is parking free?

[David Collinge]

Is there plenty of parking?  Is parking free?

From further up the page:

I also recall that parking wasn't the greatest, so get there early.

...and a little after that:

Capital is encouraging fans to arrive early on Friday due to a variety of other events going on in the area, including the OAC Indoor Track & Field Championships inside the Capital Center.

Egad...parking, which sac correctly notes is a problem in the best of circumstances, is really going to be a nightmare.

The Cap Center lot is free, but that won't help much if it's full when you get there.  After that, it's street parking, unless Capital opens up another lot for event parking.

[ScotsFan]

The Cap Center lot is free, but that won't help much if it's full when you get there.  After that, it's street parking, unless Capital opens up another lot for event parking.

There are no parking garages within walking distance?  I'm not looking too forward to these parking horror stories I'm hearing about.  I probably won't be able to get down there much before 5 on Friday night.  Guess I'd better wear my walking shoes...