Pool C

[Pat Coleman]

I agree with the NCAA using a yardstick such as 200 miles, but it would be great if in-region games included all teams in your actual region.  What a concept.  As it stands now, there are two definitions for "region" with the NCAA.

It DOES include all teams in your region. PLUS teams within 200 miles.

Albion is hardly limited by the 200-mile radius. You can play every OAC, NCAC and PrAC team.

[Knightstalker]

In region does include all the teams within your region.  All GL region teams are a regional game for any team in the GL.  The 200 mile rule allows a school to play teams in other regions.  Since the 200 mile rule has been in effect the NJAC and MAC have taken advantage of it and there have been more inter-conference games between both leagues.  IF you are a GL team I don't want to hear complaints about not being able to put together a strong schedule.  I think you have to try really hard to not play a strong schedule in the GL region.

[albionbritfan]

Whoops, mea culpa.  I need to re-read the NCAA rulebook just to get a refresh.

The one issue though is length of travel--putting kids on a bus for five hours to and from games in Ohio that are 250-300 miles away or vice versa for the visiting team.

I actually conversed with Coach T on the very topic a couple of years ago; apparently I got my reasons mixed up. Sorry, I'll go back to my hole now.

[Pat Coleman]

Issue, read excuse. If you want to get it done you will. Even Vande Streek admitted on Hoopsville earlier this season that Calvin needed to play more regional games. A start would be not inviting Juniata and UM-Dearborn to their tournaments -- I don't believe Albion has to travel to play a home tournament.

[albionbritfan]

Pat, no one more than I wishes that UMD wasn't on the schedule this year.  And had Albion beat UMD, which I think we all can agree they should have, they would have played Ohio Northern.  Where Albion is sitting today, I wish that game was on Albion's books.

Albion played Juniata at a tourney they were invited to, which allowed them the opportunity to play Baldwin-Wallace.  That is one of Albion's quality wins this year, and if it means we had to play Juniata to get there, then so be it.

And, I'm not sure it's "If you host it, they will come."

[Pat Coleman]

Ahh right, my bad. Misread the sked.

[albionbritfan]

No sweat, my bad too earlier.  I had to delete the post I was so embarrassed.  Maybe you gave me editing rights too early!!!

[Ralph Turner]

The one issue though is length of travel--putting kids on a bus for five hours to and from games in Ohio that are 250-300 miles away or vice versa for the visiting team...

250-300 miles???  Man, that is an intra-divisional game in the ASC-West!   

But I also concede that we Texans like "wide-open spaces" and "sky".

A good friend of mine has moved to Alpine, TX (Sul Ross State) from his summer ranch in the Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota tri-state area. 

When I visited his winter house on his 160-acre spread, I realized that I could see 8 rooftops from his front porch.

He had moved into a "bleepin' sub-division".

[albionbritfan]

It's all relative.  I think my Michigan house sits on a quarter-acre.  I herd ants.

[David Collinge]

One way of remembering that the 200-mile rule is in addition to the regional rule is to think of Colorado College: if a game had to be BOTH within the region and within 200-miles, Colorado College would effectively be a one-school region.  That might be true of others as well; Sul Ross St., Whitworth, and Nebraska Wesleyan might not have any D3 neighbors within 200 miles either.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Neb Wes does.  They aren't too far from some of the Iowa schools; they just don't play them for some reason.

[hopefan]

BritonFan, Ralph   -   both comments were priceless!!!!

[Pat Coleman]

Quality of Wins Index through games of Thursday, Feb. 17:

Amherst     12.000     21-1
Lawrence    11.842    19-0
Trinity (Texas)    11.188    14-2
Worcester Polytech    11.182    19-3
Carnegie Mellon    10.938    13-3
York (Pa.)    10.864    20-2
Tufts    10.864    18-4
Augustana    10.857    19-2
Cortland State    10.810    20-1
St. John Fisher    10.789    18-1
               
11-20
Mississippi College    10.727    21-1
Wooster    10.700    19-1
Lincoln    10.563    12-4
Gordon    10.545    20-2
Transylvania    10.522    19-4
Virginia Wesleyan    10.500    21-3
Wittenberg    10.368    16-3
New York University    10.333    17-4
William Paterson    10.318    16-6
Baruch    10.190    19-2
               
21-30
Calvin    10.182    10-1
Carroll    10.150    17-3
Baldwin-Wallace    10.136    19-3
Randolph-Macon    10.136    17-5
Trinity (Conn.)    10.111    14-4
Widener    10.091    19-3
Illinois Wesleyan    10.056    13-5
Rochester    10.056    13-5
Bates    10.050    15-5
Occidental    10.000    11-2
               
31-40
Nebraska Wesleyan    10.000    5-1
Carleton    10.000    16-4
Wartburg    10.000    16-4
Lakeland    10.000    16-3
St. Thomas    9.957    18-5
UW-La Crosse    9.955    17-5
Ursinus    9.955    18-4
Keene State    9.905    15-6
New Jersey    9.900    14-6
UW-Whitewater    9.895    14-5
               
41-50
Washington U.    9.875    11-5
Alvernia    9.864    19-3
UW-Stout    9.842    15-4
Puget Sound    9.800    13-2
Fisk    9.769    9-4
SUNY-Farmingdale    9.762    16-5
Hope    9.750    14-2
Rhode Island College    9.696    15-8
Whitworth    9.667    16-5
Catholic    9.650    15-5
               
51-60
Emmanuel    9.636    17-5
Christopher Newport    9.636    9-2
Maryville (Tenn.)    9.600    14-6
Westfield State    9.591    15-7
Williams    9.591    15-7
North Central    9.556    13-5
Johns Hopkins    9.500    15-5
MIT    9.476    14-7
Albion    9.462    10-3
Plymouth State    9.458    15-9
               
61-70
Richard Stockton    9.455    14-8
Salem State    9.435    17-6
Wheaton (Mass.)    9.429    13-8
Hanover    9.421    13-6
New Jersey City    9.409    15-7
Hamilton    9.389    15-3
Southwestern    9.389    13-5
Coast Guard    9.381    15-6
Howard Payne    9.364    16-6
Willamette    9.353    15-2
               
71-80
Bowdoin    9.350    13-7
Albright    9.350    13-7
Bethany    9.333    17-4
Lake Erie    9.278    15-3
Coe    9.263    13-6
Elms    9.263    15-4
Elmhurst    9.250    13-7
UW-Oshkosh    9.250    12-8
Norwich    9.190    16-5
Scranton    9.182    16-6
               
81-90
Mount St. Mary    9.143    16-5
Franklin    9.143    15-6
UW-Stevens Point    9.143    13-8
Loras    9.143    14-7
McMurry    9.143    16-5
Averett    9.111    13-5
Villa Julie    9.105    15-4
Brockport State    9.105    12-7
Mass-Boston    9.095    13-8
Colby-Sawyer    9.095    13-8
               
91-100
Elizabethtown    9.095    13-8
Mary Hardin-Baylor    9.091    16-6
Rutgers-Newark    9.087    15-8
Utica    9.048    16-5
Endicott    9.048    13-8
Centre    9.000    12-6
Manhattanville    9.000    15-8
Milwaukee Engineering    9.000    14-6
Gettysburg    8.955    14-8
Messiah    8.952    14-7
               
101-110
Gustavus Adolphus    8.952    15-6
Ohio Northern    8.947    14-5
Chicago    8.941    10-7
Baptist Bible    8.938    13-3
Ramapo    8.900    12-8
Wilmington    8.875    18-6
Brandeis    8.857    12-9
Ohio Wesleyan    8.810    15-6
St. John's    8.800    14-6
King's    8.773    14-8
               
111-120
Oswego State    8.773    16-6
Springfield    8.773    10-12
Hardin-Simmons    8.727    14-8
Montclair State    8.714    11-10
Mary Washington    8.688    11-5
Clarke    8.684    12-7
Aurora    8.667    11-7
Plattsburgh State    8.650    12-8
Potsdam State    8.650    13-7
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps    8.647    12-5

[John Gleich]

Mr. Ypsi,

I'm not sure if Whitewater belongs on your "In if Pool C" list... The Warhawks have 5 in-region losses (3 conference plus Loras and Carroll) and a loss in the conf tourney would  drop them to 6 losses...  They also are the THIRD WIAC team on the regional rankings... This means that they would be the third conference bid, and I'm just not sure that they have the resume for an at-large, based on the other at-large possibles throughout the country.

Heck, if La Crosse beats Stout on Saturday, then the top 3 WIAC teams will all have 5 in-region losses... making each potential WIAC Pool C candidate have 6 losses... 5 has been borderline, at best, in the past... we'll see where the cut-off is this year.

I think that the winner of La Crosse/Stout are in, if they don't get the AQ (especially if it's Stout).  The loser is in trouble... but I think that they've got about as much chance as Whitewater for a Pool C, based, if nothing else, on QOWI.

These three teams are all in the 36-43 range in the QOWI...  losses will drop this, and if any big upsets happen in the conference tourneys, then the WIAC could get left out in the cold again this year (and it's already cold enough... 3 degrees, with -25 wind chill today, with similar forecasted for the weekend!)

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

As of right now here are your top 18 non conference leading teams:

Tufts    10.864    18-4
Wittenberg    10.368    16-3
New York University    10.333    17-4
Carroll    10.150    17-3
Randolph-Macon    10.136    17-5
Trinity (Conn.)    10.111    14-4
Illinois Wesleyan    10.056    13-5
Rochester    10.056    13-5
Bates    10.050    15-5
St. Thomas    9.957    18-5
UW-La Crosse    9.955    17-5
New Jersey    9.900    14-6
Washington U.    9.875    11-5
UW-Stout    9.842    15-4
Hope    9.750    14-2
Rhode Island College    9.696    15-8
Whitworth    9.667    16-5
Catholic    9.650    15-5

Williams is still #19, in case anyone cared.