MBB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[pennstghs]

It's ok-I'm sure i'll have a counterpunch later on this week

FYI-the NCAC was "well represented" in the all-decade teams released today........take a look and you'll see what i mean. I can't really argue against any of the picks. The name Brandon Adair of VWU brings back chills thinking about the 2006 Final Four......

[David Collinge]

FYI-the NCAC was "well represented" in the all-decade teams released today........take a look and you'll see what i mean.

Yeah, well, y'know, there's never been a postseason 1st team D3hoops.com All-American from an NCAC school, which I think means we were ineligible from the start.  I guess we just suck.

Now if Brian Elder had gone to a CCIW school....

[Pat Coleman]

Oh, not completely ineligible, but it made the odds long, to be sure. We didn't have a stated rule against it but it would make it difficult.

I mentioned this in the Daily Dose but will repeat -- I think you'll see James Cooper on the 2000s All-Decade Team when we name that in a few years.

[smedindy]

Yeah, well, y'know, there's never been a postseason 1st team D3hoops.com All-American from an NCAC school, which I think means we were ineligible from the start.  I guess we just suck.

Ah, it's a team sport anyway, right??

RIGHT???

[pennstghs]

how about some love for Daniel Russ then maybe?-can't think of any other players other than him and James Cooper who could have that big-no pun intended- of an impact on a team's gameplan

[Vanilla24COW]

Bryan Nelson ring a bell

[pennstghs]

on to another pressing issue.....what is there to do before a Witt/Wooster game in Wooster in terms of pregaming or bars?

[wooscotsfan]

Bryan Nelson ring a bell

K+ to Vanilla24COW for mentioning the Wooster player, Bryan Nelson, who should have been on the All Decade Team!

Bryan Nelson's Amazing Career Stats:
1,957 Total Points Scored
961 Total Rebounds
60.1% Shooting on Field Goals
82.5% Shooting on Free Throws

Those career numbers and shooting %'s are better than some of the players (Forwards/Centers) who were selected to the All Decade Team by D3Hoops (I did some research ).

Bryan Nelson was selected as a First Team All-American and the National Player of the Year in 2002-2003 by the National Assoc. of Basketball Coaches (not by D3Hoops).  In his senior season, Nelson scored 645 points, shot 64.4% from the floor and 88.5% from the charity stripe (amazing %'s).

Nelson led Wooster in scoring during his sophomore, junior and senior seasons.  During his career, Wooster made the NCAA tournament 3 times highlighted by their national 3rd place finish in the 2002-2003 Final Four when Nelson played on a badly sprained ankle and Wooster lost the semi-final to eventual champ Williams by only 2 points.

One quick anecdote from a game that I attended.  In 2000-2001, Wooster played Carthage in the 2nd round of the NCAA tourney.  Carthage big man Jason Wiertel who is on the All Decade Team was a junior that season and at 6'8", he was 4 inches taller than Nelson.  Wooster lost the game but sophomore Nelson dropped 28 points (10 of 15 FGs) and 14 boards on Wiertel who could not stop him.  Wiertel, another All-American, had a below average game with only 15 points and 5 boards.

Bryan Nelson is currently Wooster's all time #2 scorer (after Tom Dinger) though James Cooper does have a chance to surpass him.  Congrats again to Bryan Nelson on a stellar career at Wooster!

[wooscotsfan]

Yeah, well, y'know, there's never been a postseason 1st team D3hoops.com All-American from an NCAC school, which I think means we were ineligible from the start.  I guess we just suck.

Now if Brian Elder had gone to a CCIW school....

Good one DC!   Now if Bryan Nelson had gone to a CCIW school...  

[Titan Q]

Bryan Nelson was a special player.  I'll never forget his performance in Salem in 2003.

[Pat Coleman]

Agreed. It's rare we move someone up on the All-American team based solely on a semifinal game but we did with Nelson, as I recall.

[countyroad]

on to another pressing issue.....what is there to do before a Witt/Wooster game in Wooster in terms of pregaming or bars?

I would say Coccia House.  Great pizza!!!  Ok bar. 

The Old Jaol & CW Burgersteins would be good too.

[woosterbooster]

Bryan Nelson not making the All-Decade team is comical.

[smedindy]

Well, you can't please everyone, you know.

I think Josh Estelle at Wabash was a special player but I am realistic that he wasn't among the 8 best guards in the D3 world the past 10 years.

And it's not all about the stats. Shooting 60%, while great, isn't as impressive as shooting 50% with a repertoire of outside shots and inside moves, including threes.

There were many fine, special players that didn't make it. There were fine, special players that did.

[ScotsFan]

There were fine, special players that did.

Yeah, and they were all from the CCIW or the WIAC...

I was going to make the Nelson argument as well.  After all, he was the NABC DIII POY for the 2002-03 season.  But, then I looked to see where he finished on the D3hoops.com AA team and they had him as only a 4th teamer.    And he would have been lower than that had it not been for his performance in Salem?   Now I  realize why he wasn't included on the All-Decade team...

One other note about Nelson that I found impressive.  Wasn't he the first player under Moore's tenure at Wooster to average over 20 ppg?  And that was back in the days before Wooster made the switch to their current guard oriented, up-tempo offense.