MBB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[ScotsFan]

Last night:  Allegheny 84, Penn St.-New Kensington 42...PSUNK lost their first five games by an average of 38 ppg...

Maybe New Kensington should insert a 't' between the S and the U... 

[Li'l Giant]

Final from Chadwick Court:

Marian 74
Wabash 62


The LGs came out seriously cold leading to as much as a 15 point lead for Marian. Chase Haltom caught fire toward the end of the first half and Wabash made it a more workable 7 point deficit at halftime. Unfortunately Wabash never got closer than that in the 2nd half.

Wes Smith led the LGs in scoring with 18 points, Haltom had 12, Brock and Maloney each grabbed 7 boards.

Next game for Wabash is a week from today at Rose-Hulman.

[kiltedbryan]

I'm finally getting back around to the boards and catching up- should see Wooster for the first time tonight via the live video feed.  Anyway, while I was waiting for that I was checking in on some other NCAC action, and there's a bit of a surprise out there:

Hiram 80, Wittenberg 77 Final, according to the Witt website. 

It just ended, so no link to a game story or box score yet.  Hiram moves to 5-2 (1-0) and Wittenberg falls to 2-5 (1-1).

EDIT: Game story here.  Hiram's first win against Wittenberg since the Terriers joined the NCAC.

[wooscotsfan]

Final in Overtime:  Wooster 74  Albion 66

Wooster had too many turnovers (21)   ...and a long scoring drought near the end of regulation that resulted in this game going to overtime.  Scots led 53-38 and then Albion outscored them 20-5 to force the OT.  Wooster only shot 40% from the floor tonight but they had a massive 57-42 rebounding and they made 11 three pointers as key factors in the victory.

Wooster was led tonight by Justin Hallowell with 17 points, Nathan Balch with 15 points, Ian Franks with 11 points and Bryan Wickliffe with 9 points, 15 rebounds.

Albion was led by Drew Yancey with 14 points, J.C. Cruse with 11 points and Dave Elliott with 10 points.

Wooster is now 5-3.   Next up is Hawaii-Hilo in the land of palm trees.

[wooscotsfan]

All the 12/13 Final Scores:
Denison 62  Wash & Jeff 59  nice road win for the Big Red
Mt. Vernon Nazarene 88  Kenyon 53
Marian 74  Wabash 62
Hiram 80  Wittenberg 77
Wooster 74  Albion 66 OT

Current Records (overall, NCAC):
Hiram 5-2, 1-0
Wooster 5-3, 2-0
Kenyon 5-3, 1-1
Allegheny 5-4, 1-0
Ohio Wesleyan 4-3, 1-1
Wabash 3-4, 0-1
Wittenberg 2-5, 1-1
Denison 2-6, 0-2
Oberlin 2-7, 0-2
Earlham 1-6, 1-0

Note: sorted by overall wins

[David Collinge]

Denison beats W&J, who beat both Wooster and Kenyon...
Albion forces OT at Wooster after losing to both OWU and Kenyon...
Hiram beats Witt and has the best overall record in the league...

What a crazy year we have on our hands!

I'm judging on just one game, but it looks like Wittenberg will sorely miss Gregg Hill.  This afternoon at Price Gym, Kevin Murray was the only Tiger who could be relied upon to make a good attempt from outside 10 feet.  He was pretty effective, scoring 20 on 8-of-13 shooting (3/6 from the arc), but they really need a second shooter to take the pressure off of the posts.  The post players, Snyder, Brandt, Black, and sometimes Lee, generally got a fairly easy bucket when the guards could get them the ball (collectively 10 for 14), but since Hiram's cadre of athletic 6'4"-ish guards and wings (Roberts, Muhammad, Eniola, and Wiegand) didn't have to worry about those guards shooting, they could concentrate on denying the entry pass.  On the other end, Hiram plays a little like OWU in that they don't really have a back-to-the-basket post (Hebeisen and Pfouts try, but they're no match for Witt's big men inside), but they have good outside shooters (Russo, Roberts, and Wiegand combined for 9-of-16 shooting from the arc) and good slashers to the hoop (Roberts, Eniola, Muhammad).  Hiram led virtually the entire game, benefitting from slow starts to each half (11-2 and 8-2) by the Tigers.  The only time Witt got the lead, 33-32 with about 5:30 left in the 1st, it was almost immediately erased by a three-pointer from Russo followed by another by Roberts. 

Still, Witt never gave up and fought their way back from a 12-point deficit midway through the second, and got within 2 a couple of times down the stretch, the latest being on a Murray trey with :17 left.  Hiram broke the Witt press, causing Mark Snyder to foul out by grabbing Chris Roberts with :07 left.  Roberts, who finished with 19 points, missed the front end, but David Nowicki's three with :03 left was errant.  Another foul, and Deon Milton made one of two, giving Witt one last chance with :01.2 left, down three.  Hiram may as well have put all five guys on Murray, since he was the only threat, but instead they went man-to-man, and not only was Witt able to get Murray the ball at the halfcourt line, but his defender promptly fell down, giving Murray an open shot from about 27'...but it came up short, and Hiram had a big win.  Box.

This was my first-ever trip to Price Gym a/k/a the Terrier Dome.  You can add Hiram to the list on schools that doesn't charge admission--good for them.  It's a nice enough gym, well lit and with nice old amenities (such as the hardwood ceiling).  They've got banners up for each school in the conference, which is a conference-pride element that I appreciate; I wish every school did this, but at least Wooster, Kenyon, and OWU don't.  Denison does, and I noticed on a videocast from Witt this week that they have them too, although I think that's new.  I've still never been to Allegheny, Oberlin, Earlham, or Wabash, but I may yet get to one or two of these this season.

I made it back to Wooster in time for the Woo/Albion game, about which the less said (by me), the better.

[billy_pilgrim]

This was my first-ever trip to Price Gym a/k/a the Terrier Dome.  You can add Hiram to the list on schools that doesn't charge admission--good for them.  It's a nice enough gym, well lit and with nice old amenities (such as the hardwood ceiling).  They've got banners up for each school in the conference, which is a conference-pride element that I appreciate; I wish every school did this, but at least Wooster, Kenyon, and OWU don't.  Denison does, and I noticed on a videocast from Witt this week that they have them too, although I think that's new.  I've still never been to Allegheny, Oberlin, Earlham, or Wabash, but I may yet get to one or two of these this season.

Get to Earlham then...banners for all of the NCAC schools and free admission. Of course, the four hour drive might make the chance to save $5 and see a Wooster banner above a basket seem so appealing.

[ScotsFan]

After a weekend chock full of Christmas decorating and childrens programs, I finally have some time to discuss the happenings of the weekend.

First off, the Wooster game which I was able to catch on tape delay.  Nice win for Wooster although I wasn't happy with the way they had to win.  Twenty one turnovers is just inexcusable.  Give Albion credit.  They played some tough man to man defense and seemed to really bother the Scots.  I think finals week had something to do with Wooster's lethargic look at times as well and maybe thoughts of the warm beaches in Hawaii...   

Wooster was very fortunate to come out on top of this one.  With two in-region losses already, a loss Saturday would have been a big blow.  Especially in the manner in which it would have occurred.  But give the Scots credit for flipping the switch in OT and finishing off the Britons once and for all...

And then there was the Witt shocker!    Can the Wittenberg consecutive winning season streak watch begin yet?  I know I said earlier that it was too soon to count Witt out yet, but that was before the Tigers lost to Hiram for the first time in 40 years!

Lastly, there was Denison's rather shocking win at W&J!  W&J is a team that is hard to figure out.  They have quality wins over Wooster, R-MC and Kenyon and then they lose at home to a Denison team that was coming off a 29 point loss to Witt just 3 days earlier?!  Go figure... 

[ScotsFan]

Has anyone heard any updates on Brandon Johnson's scheduled return?  I remember reading a couple of weeks ago that he was still planning on returning for the Mose Hole.  Is that target date still on?

[David Collinge]

Congratulations to Allegheny center and all day quads' favorite player, George Raftis, for being named the NCAC Player of the Week.  Raftis recorded back-to-back double-doubles against Penn State's Erie and New Kensington campuses, leading the Gators to two wins and a record of 5-4.  Congratualtions, George!

[David Collinge]

Tonight:
Rose-Hulman 76, Earlham 72 (OT)...Rose-Hulman retains the John Mutchner Cup; the Rose radio announcer seems to think this is a very big deal, so I'm agin it.  Tristian Gregory scored 23 and frosh Shane Heidt added 20, but their valiant efforts to wrest the Cup from the clutches of the Terre Hauters were ultimately insufficient.  Recap, posted literally within minutes after the game ended byt the RHIT SID staff...and it was a road game!

[all day quads]

Thanks for the post David, Raftis is a beast.


The North Coast Athletic Conference selected Allegheny junior George Raftis (Pittsburgh, Pa./Sewickley Academy) as its men's basketball Player of the Week on Monday. During the previous week, Raftis recorded double-doubles in wins over Thiel and Penn State New Kensington.

Against Thiel, he scored 21 points and made 10 rebounds as the Gators won, 89-78. Then, Allegheny defeated New Kensington, 84-42, as Raftis led the way with 20 points and 11 rebounds.

Raftis, a 6-5 forward/center, now has three double-doubles during the season.

[ScotsFan]

FWIW, Hanover nearly knocked off #15 IWU tonight.  Hanover took IWU to OT before falling 76-75.  It took an IWU 3-pointer with 3 seconds remaining for the Titans to escape with the win.  I know the whole comparative score thing doesn't really matter, but it does give us something to talk about considering Wooster waxed Hanover to the tune of 93-61...

For any night owls planning on staying up to follow Wooster's game in Hawaii, it will not be broadcast by WQKT.  Tip-off is scheduled for 2am local time...

[jimmychitwood15]

DC,
Any word on why Gregg Hill is out for Witt? It sounds like they miss him badly...

If this has already been addressed, I apologize!

[David Collinge]

DC,
Any word on why Gregg Hill is out for Witt? It sounds like they miss him badly...

If this has already been addressed, I apologize!

Gregg has had a bad shoulder for quite some time, and I understand that he aggravated that injury this summer or fall.  I don't really know any more than that, although it is presumed that he is out for the season and may take a medical redshirt and come back next year as a fifth-year senior.