MBB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[David Collinge]

If the real objection is with Pfouts' "no dunking in our house" credo, then I suggest that Pfouts may not be the right target of your venom.  Perhaps Coach Moore had the right one (please reread article clip), or maybe it's his high school coach that's to blame.  Remember, Pfouts did say

"I've always been taught that you don't let someone dunk in your house[.]"

Although I still advocate a course of moving on.

LG, I need no more study breaks when I come back from the bar prep class to find THREE new pages of discussion in here (and FOUR in CCIW Chat) in about 16 hours!  I just hope "small college hoops" is tested on the bar, since that's where most of my study time goes. 

WB, oh come on, that's a Patricia Neal movie!  Or as we used to say, PaTREEEEEsha NEEEEEEal!    Great line from Melvyn Douglas, though.

[wooscotsfan]

I'm very sorry to see Seinfeld's post (1/19, 3:55 pm) that Tom Port has a fractured wrist.  

hoopsfan1111 quote:
"I have a feeling that Wooster would be able to hold their own without him (Port)."

lboogz15 quote:
"You (Wooster) have a plethora of players who more than carried the load in his (Port's) absence."

Sorry guys, but the stats don't lie so I will post them again and maybe this time you will actually read them!

For Wooster, Tom Port is:
#2 in Scoring at 17.3 ppg
#2 in Rebounding at 6.5 rpg
#1 in Free Throw Shooting at 82%
#1 in Total Three Point Shots made with 35
#2 in Total Blocked Shots with 11
#2 in Total Assists (behind Witucky) with 48
also making 43% of his three point shots this season

Most importantly, he is a big time mismatch for other teams trying to guard him.  He posts up smaller players and drives by guys that are as tall as him.

The difficulty of defending Port was apparent earlier this year in the Witt game at Timken.  The Tigers tried to defend Port with several players, including 6'9" Dan Russ and they were unsuccessful (Port was too quick and drove by Russ and he posted up/jumped over smaller defenders).   YOU DON"T REPLACE THIS ABILITY OR THE STATS LISTED ABOVE WITH SOMEONE ELSE.  How many 6'5" guys with good vertical jumps shoot 43% from 3 point land....in D3 basketball??

The Scots will take a big hit the rest of this season if Port can't get back on the floor.  Basically, Wooster can kiss goodbye any shot of going deep into the NCAA tourney without Port and it will take an incredible effort from the rest of the Scots to have a shot at winning the NCAC (regular season or post season tourney) this year.

From all the facts presented, it is pretty clear that Pfouts should have received an intentional foul (dunk already completed, no chance to block the shot, knocking Port off his feet from behind) and perhaps, he should have received an ejection.  Officials need to call intentionals and ejections so players don't continue to commit hard fouls in future games when it is too late to contest a shot.

It is probably a longshot but let's hope that somehow Port can play later this season with a light brace/wrap on his left wrist.  He does shoot with his right hand.

GO SCOTS!!

[Mr. Ypsi]

Wooster Booster,

EXCELLENT post.  To the earlier poster (the board has scrolled so fast I can't even find who anymore!) who said they would expecct such a foul in the NBA but not d3 - for the near future you may be wrong.  This sounds VERY reminiscent of the 'Malice at the Palace' - Ron Artest did a ridiculously unnecessarily hard foul on Ben Wallace when the Pacers were already hopelessly out of it, risking serious injury.  Admittedly the circumstances then diverge: Ben was not injured,  took serious exception to the foul, but probably still nothing serious would have happened if some idiot fan hadn't thrown a beer at Artest, who went into the stands and mugged the WRONG fan, etc..

But I think 'hard fouls' (what a euphemism!) are not likely to occur very often during blow-outs for a while in the NBA!

David, your legal analysis is no doubt correct (I'll support you whatever the California bar says! , but Pfout is not charged with a crime.  IF the majority retelling on the board (and Pfout's own words) are to be believed, I think he did commit an action deserving of a suspension.  (That hockey player, whose name I refuse to remember, but whose mugging ended a competitor's career, deserved prison time; Pfout is NOT a criminal, but he should be suspended if the accounts are reasonably accurate.)

[earlhamalum]

woosterbooster--- are you talk'n about COOL HAND LUKE?

[smedindy]

You know, there's some old fogeyisms creeping up here.

By all accounts, some games in the 60's and 70's and before were just as rough, or even rougher, than they are now.

Does anyone not recall the infamous Minnesota / Ohio State game which really started to expose the violence hidden in basketball?? Luke Witte basically had his NBA career ruined by some senseless thuggery.

And if you recall the ABA of the 60's - Cliff Hagan (an old school NBA / ABA players) used to fight on a daily basis. Fights happened all the time with tough guys like John Brisker. That stuff happened in the college game too. Not daily but it happened once in a while. Hard fouls, too. They weren't gentlemen under the glass.

Heck, I recall in 1985 where little Houston Mills of Wabash got into a brawl with big bad Fred Amos of Washington of St. Louis - all in the name of 'protecting turf'.

So this concept isn't new - and actually its rarer now than it has been because the NCAA has proper penalties for altercations and fisticuffs and leaving the bench.

[billy_pilgrim]

Ron Artest did a ridiculously unnecessarily hard foul on Ben Wallace when the Pacers were already hopelessly out of it, risking serious injury

Just for the record, it was actually the Pistons who were hopelessly out of the game. Pacers were up by 15 or so with just a minute to go and Rick Carlisle shouldn't have had Artest, O'Neal, et al. still in the game at that point.

[sac]

The advent of the 3pt shot way back 20 years now made the college game less physical.  Keeping more players on the perimeter.  Smedindy is correct the game is no less physical than it was a couple decades ago.

The shorts are longer and the players are more physically developed but they aren't more physical.

The art of posting up is almost completely gone from the D1 game.  Everything comes off motion now.

[Li'l Giant]

That hockey player, whose name I refuse to remember, but whose mugging ended a competitor's career, deserved prison time

I'm going to assume you're talking about Vancouver All-Star forward Todd Bertuzzi, who quite literally broke Colorado rookie forward Steve Moore's neck in 2004.

[woosterbooster]

earlhamalum -

No, Hud.  A really good old black and white flick with Patricia Neal (and some nobody named Paul Newman).

Smedindy -

Sounds like you've read Terry Pluto's great book, Loose Balls.  Funniest sports book of all-time.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Ron Artest did a ridiculously unnecessarily hard foul on Ben Wallace when the Pacers were already hopelessly out of it, risking serious injury

Just for the record, it was actually the Pistons who were hopelessly out of the game. Pacers were up by 15 or so with just a minute to go and Rick Carlisle shouldn't have had Artest, O'Neal, et al. still in the game at that point.

You're right - I knew it was 'garbage time', but mis-remembered which way.  In one sense, that's even worse.  If the losing players get frustrated and do that, I have a LITTLE sympathy, but for a winning player to do that...

[Mr. Ypsi]

That hockey player, whose name I refuse to remember, but whose mugging ended a competitor's career, deserved prison time

I'm going to assume you're talking about Vancouver All-Star forward Todd Bertuzzi, who quite literally broke Colorado rookie forward Steve Moore's neck in 2004.

Thanks a lot about Bertuzzi - I told you I don't WANT to remember the thug's name!

[Mr. Ypsi]

Smed,

I never said things were getting worse; unfortunately they don't seem to be getting any better either.

I well-remember the Witte mugging - I saw it live and on MANY replays.  For viciousness in bball, it may rank second only to when Kermit Washington VERY nearly killed Rudy Tomjanovich (he was given last rites, but eventually recovered and coached the Rockets to 2 NBA titles). 

Despite your 'old-fogeyism' crack (that would rather inevitably include me!), I like you, and have no clue why your karma is so low.  Allow me to restore a bit of it.

[ScotsFan]

I understand that you have a strong backing for Port as i do for my boys and i wish the best for him, however i don't think his draft status for this junes NBA draft has been challenged much! Trust me no hard feelings!

I don't think anyone is concerned about Port's status for the NBA draft in June geinus!  What has been challenged is Wooster's standing as a legitimate contender to get to Salem in March!

Now being around basketball for many years and enduring and seeing many fouls i can tell you the one Port received last night was not one that was so bad that Pfouts should have been kicked out of the game for.  I've heard a lot about how the foul was late and he didn't have a chance to block the shot.....   However if he was that Late and the foul was that bad how come the refs didn't eject him from the game.  Its just a little food for thought for those out there who respect the little scots tradition!  

It's funny, many, including Coach Moore werre wondering why the officials didn't act differently as well??  Did you not catch the qoutes from your teammate himself??  He was late and acting in frustration of being down by 20 and he was "taught" to never let anyone dunk in his house, but, at least the foul was not intentional?!  Whatever makes you sleep better at night I guess?  Maybe, if it truly wasn't intentional, Pfouts should have left out those other tidbits prior to him saying it wasn't intentional.

[pennstghs]

as for you quoting and assuming witt fans are silent, that could be for a good reason. you guys were bashing anyone who was assuming things about the foul and game that wasnt in attendance at the game or didnt know the "context" of the quotes in the newspaper. unfortunately things like this do happen, like russ spraining an ankle every once in a while. good teams adapt and hopefully wooster will adapt-it does make our matchup a little more tipped in our favor.

as for witt fán's participation. i resent that because i do keep up to date heavily, but i will agree. the games at the HPERC minus wooster are almost silent half the time with hardly any student participation. i guess they're all worried about their gay halo or something. when the games matter though the fans come out so i dont know.

hopefully witt doenst let up this weekend against allegheny- a dangerous place for our team because we hate playing there. bad vibes.

[woosterbooster]

I called The Wooster Daily Record's sports desk earlier to ask if they had an information about Port's injury.  They said he has a fractured wrist and will be out for two to three weeks.  That sounds very optimistic to me, but I hope they're right.