MBB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[ScotsFan]

Nice work Wally. 

Right now, Allegheny looks favorable in either scenario, IMO.  They've already swept Hiram and won rather easily in both games so, it would seem to me, that would be the more favorable of the 2 options for the Gators.

Also, even though the Gators have won 3 straight over the Bishops, OWU is in a position to return the favor to Gheny a bit for what happened to OWU to end the season last year.  Remember, Gheny beat OWU in the season finale and then again in the conference tournament opener.  Even though Gheny has had OWU's number of late, it wouldn't surprise me in the least to see the Bishops return the favor to the Gators if given the opportunity.

As for Hiram and Witt, I'm not really sure who Witt would rather play.  They did sweep OWU, but both games were tight.  On the other hand, they split with Hiram getting blown out at Hiram and almost blowing a big lead at home.  If Witt plays like they did last Saturday, it won't matter who the opponent is.  The problem is, can Witt duplicate that performance.  They sure didn't last night...

Also, I'm not too thrilled about seeing Kenyon in that 8 seed.  They've played Wooster very tough and seem to be one of those teams that just matches up well against the Scots for some reason.  And throw in the fact that they should have a lot of confidence coming into that game that they can play with Wooster and maybe even upset the Scots.  I'm hoping the 3rd time isn't a charm for the Lords and that the Scots finally figure this team out and put them away early.

And the last game is DU and Wabash.  Yes, the Big Red caught the Lil Giants napping back in December.  But that loss seemed to awaken the sleeping Lil Giant.    I just don't see Denison going into C'ville and upsetting the #2 seed.

All in all, we could be treated to some very entertaining first round games. 

[GoRed]

I just don't see Denison going into C'ville and upsetting the #2 seed.

1/24/2009   

http://www.denison.edu/athletics/mens/basketball/0809/wabm0124.html#GAME.BOX

[bufordscot]

Nice job.  I wish I had this much time.

Looking ahead to Saturday....nothing is written in stone of course, but let's say that Wooster, Witt, and Wabash all win on Saturday.  We've got two games left that have some impact...Hiram/Denison and OWU/Gheny.  Scenarios please! 

Hiram and Allegheny win:
1.  Wooster 15-1
2.  Wabash 12-4 (Wabash wins #2 seed on tiebreak)
2.  Allegheny 12-4
4.  Wittenberg 11-5
5.  Hiram 9-7
6.  Ohio Wesleyan 8-8
7.  Denison 7-9
8.  Kenyon 3-13
9.  Oberlin 2-14
10. Earlham 1-15

Tournament pairings are:

1 Woo vs. 8 Kenyon
2 Wabash vs. 7 Denison
3 Allegheny vs. 6 OWU
4 Witt vs. 5 Hiram

Hiram and OWU win:
1.  Wooster 15-1
2.  Wabash 12-4
3.  Wittenberg 11-5 (Witt is #3 seed on tiebreak)
3.  Allegheny 11-5
5*.  Ohio Wesleyan 9-7
5*.  Hiram 9-7
7.  Denison 7-9
8.  Kenyon 3-13
9.  Oberlin 2-14
10. Earlham 1-15

*OWU is #5 based on having a better record (2-5) against teams above them than Hiram (1-6)

Tournament pairings are:
1 Woo vs. 8 Kenyon
2 Wabash vs. 7 Denison
3 Witt vs. 6 Hiram
4 Allegheny vs. 5 OWU

Denison and Allegheny win:
1.  Wooster 15-1
2.  Wabash 12-4 (Wabash has the h2h tiebreak for the 2 seed)
2.  Allegheny 12-4
4.  Wittenberg 11-5
5*.  Ohio Wesleyan 8-8
5*.  Hiram 8-8
5*.  Denison 8-8
8.  Kenyon 3-13
9.  Oberlin 2-14
10. Earlham 1-15

* I believe in this scenario OWU is 5, Hiram 6, and Denison is 7 by comparing results amongst the three tied teams.  In this case, OWU would be 3-1 vs. the other two, Hiram 2-2, and Denison 1-3.

Tournament pairings are:
1 Woo vs. 8 Kenyon
2 Wabash vs. 7 Denison
3 Allegheny vs. 6 Hiram
4 Witt vs. 5 OWU

Denison and OWU win: 
1.  Wooster 15-1
2.  Wabash 12-4
3.  Wittenberg 11-5 (Witt has the 3 seed via tiebreak)
3.  Allegheny 11-5
5.  Ohio Wesleyan 9-7
6*.  Hiram 8-8
6*.  Denison 8-8
8.  Kenyon 3-13
9.  Oberlin 2-14
10. Earlham 1-15

*Hiram earns the 6 seed by having a better record against the teams above this tie...2-5 vs. 0-7 in like game...unfortunately Denison's win over Wabash is of no use here as only the games at Wabash are eligible to be counted here

Tournament pairings are:
1 Woo vs. 8 Kenyon
2 Wabash vs. 7 Denison
3 Witt vs. 6 Hiram
4 Allegheny vs. 5 OWU

And there you have it.  What we know is that Wooster will play Kenyon and Wabash will play Denison.  Three of our four scenarios will create Witt/Hiram and Allegheny/OWU matchups in round one.  If both Denison and Allegheny win on Saturday, the matchups change slightly to Allegheny/Hiram and Witt/OWU. 

[ScotsFan]

I just don't see Denison going into C'ville and upsetting the #2 seed.

1/24/2009   

http://www.denison.edu/athletics/mens/basketball/0809/wabm0124.html#GAME.BOX

That was over a year ago?  I think it's safe to say that this Wabash team is a tad better than the one that lost at home to Denison a season ago...

[wally_wabash]

I just don't see Denison going into C'ville and upsetting the #2 seed.

1/24/2009   

http://www.denison.edu/athletics/mens/basketball/0809/wabm0124.html#GAME.BOX

That was over a year ago?  I think it's safe to say that this Wabash team is a tad better than the one that lost at home to Denison a season ago...

It's not a gimme for Wabash on Tuesday.  The thing with Denison is that they play hard and they always hustle.  If you lollygag your way through a game against that team, they stand a good chance to beat you (i.e. the linked 1/24/2009 boxscore in GoRed's post).  That being said, the context around Tuesday's potential game is much different than the context around that game at Chadwick last year, or either of the two games this year.  Tuesday's game is an elimination game...effort will not be conserved, opponents will not be overlooked. 

But first...Wabash has to beat Kenyon (coughgetheballinthepaintcough).  I'll be courtside at Chadwick doing my very best to convey the excitement around this regular season finale via tweet. 

Tip time is 3:00 p.m.  Not sure if Wabash is doing Senior Day activities tomorrow or if they are going to wait and do it on Tuesday night. 

[David Collinge]

Not sure if Wabash is doing Senior Day activities tomorrow or if they are going to wait and do it on Tuesday night. 

I sincerely doubt that the NCAC would allow Wabash (or anyone else) to have Senior Day festivities on Tuesday.  The conference runs the tournament, not the school, and they have everything on a strict schedule.  Expect it on Saturday.

[David Collinge]

Haven't I done this yet this weekend?

Wooster (14-1) at Earlham (1-14), 1pm -- Live stats and audio plus Wooster audio -- Game 1 of a men/women doubleheader vs. Wooster as Earlham's teams bid adieu to the NCAC
Allegheny (11-4) at OWU (8-7), 3pm -- Live everything -- Game 1 of a men/women doubleheader vs. Allegheny
Denison (7-8) at Hiram (8-7), 3pm -- Live everything
Kenyon (3-12) at Wabash (11-4), 3pm -- Live audio, stats, and tweets
Oberlin (2-13) at Wittenberg (10-4), 3pm -- Live everything

[sac]

Not sure if Wabash is doing Senior Day activities tomorrow or if they are going to wait and do it on Tuesday night. 

I sincerely doubt that the NCAC would allow Wabash (or anyone else) to have Senior Day festivities on Tuesday.  The conference runs the tournament, not the school, and they have everything on a strict schedule.  Expect it on Saturday.

Hope did its Sr day on the first round of the MIAA tournament a couple years ago.........mostly because the final two regular season games were on the road.

[ScotsFan]

Not sure if Wabash is doing Senior Day activities tomorrow or if they are going to wait and do it on Tuesday night. 

I sincerely doubt that the NCAC would allow Wabash (or anyone else) to have Senior Day festivities on Tuesday.  The conference runs the tournament, not the school, and they have everything on a strict schedule.  Expect it on Saturday.

Hope did its Sr day on the first round of the MIAA tournament a couple years ago.........mostly because the final two regular season games were on the road.

Wooster used the Witt game as their sr. night this year as opposed to having sr. night on the final home game which would have been Wednesday vs. OWU.  As a result, almost 2,000 more people were in attendance for Woo's sr. night. 

[David Collinge]

I just noticed (in Wally's post and elsewhere) that Denison could actually finish tied for 5th place if they win today and Allegheny beats OWU.  (Okay, maybe I'm slow on the uptake.)  All the tie-breakers are against them, so they're going to end up with the 7th seed no matter what happens today, but a 5th place finish is a pretty good under-the-radar performance from a team that really only gets mentioned in the context of their win over Wabash 11 long weeks ago.  Could the much-maligned Bob Ghiloni be looking at a second Coach of the Year trophy?

[ScotsFan]

My vote would go to Rob Clune and Allegheny.

[wally_wabash]

Maybe, but I'm not sure getting six wins over teams that will finish league play 6-41 is impressive enough to get that award over the frontrunners in the league.  Denison and Coach Ghiloni certainly deserve credit for getting it together in league play and winning those games they should be winning, but I think Coach of the Year probably goes to Steve Moore.  His team is going to win the league by three full games.  Now, if either Wabash or Allegheny can win today and win the tournament, then you might see that award go to either Coach Petty or Coach Clune. 

[ScotsFan]

The MASH unit continues to grow for Wooster. 

Listening to Coach Moore on the pregame show, it sounds like quite a few Scots are under the weather.  Brandon Johnson has a stomach bug and might have his minutes limited.  Jake Mays may not play at all due to an illness.  Ian Franks has a sore ankle and came out of practice early yesterday from it.  Mike Evans has been cleared to play but needs goggles so we'll see how that affects him.  And Kaleb Reed has also been cleared to play today as well.  Lastly, Justin Hallowell is progressing, but still not cleared to play.  So, it looks as though the bench might have to step up a bit more than usual today.

Hopefully, this list of injuries subsides a bit by Tuesday. 

[David Collinge]

Denison and Coach Ghiloni certainly deserve credit for getting it together in league play and winning those games they should be winning[...]

I guess that's the thing, though: it's been several years since Denison had games on their schedule that "they should be winning."  They've progressed from being one of the three doormats, teams on the other end of the "they should be winning" statement, to one of the middle-pack teams that are expected to beat the bottom three, lose to the top three, and compete with the (other) middle three.  That's progress, and with good young players like Dimonde Hale (my choice for NOY) they might just hold on to that middle-pack slot next year and beyond.  I think Denison has shown more progress this year than any other team, and that's usually attributed to the coach.

Allegheny also doesn't get mentioned much; they've had a fine year (in conference, at least, but that's what counts), and Rob Clune would be a good choice for COY.  I don't think he's ever won it, either, so that might make him the front-runner.  But really, they've not done any more than meet expectations.  They went 1-5 vs. the W's.  They swept Hiram, and might sweep OWU, but with George Raftis and all those seniors (and OWU's implosion), that's probably what they should have done.   

I'm not so sure about Steve Moore, since the Scots were expected by most to completely dominate the league, and while they have the record, they haven't really been dominant. 

[ScotsFan]

Halftime in Richmond:

Wooster - 45
The EC - 29

Wooster has jumped out to a comfortable lead thanks in large part to shooting 65% from the field and outrebounding the Quakers to the tune of 24-5! 

Bryan Wickliffe is on his way to another double-double leading the way for Wooster with 14 points and 6 rebounds. Ian Franks joins Wick in double figures with 11.  And Josh Claytor could be on his way to a double-double with 6 points to go along with a game high 7 rebounds.

I wonder when the last time Wooster has had 2 players finish with a double-double in the same game?