MBB: Conference of New England

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Where is Hoops Fan? The faithful one, the one that compelled me check d3 hoops every single day of basketball season for his analysis the past four years.

I'm not sure if you noticed, but I wasn't around much last season either.  Backboard has taken over my reporting duties and I may get more invested after the New Year begins.

Gordon has picked up some good wins so far this year.  They've looked better than expected early on.  Regis has won some games, which is more than I expected of them.  However, the rest of the conference is awful so far.  It's going to be a big time down year for the CCC.

I'll comment some more once some individual players begin to emerge.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

I've just been perusing rosters and box scores from early on to start getting some names into my head.  I've noticed a few things.

UNE is getting a lot of balanced scoring from a team full of new players.  If they gel well, they could indeed improve considerably, although they do lack size.

WIT has a big transfer from UNH - Matt Abbott - making a big impact inside, especially on the boards.

SRU's Justin Woodworth is somehow finding a way to get open looks.  He's always been a good shooter, but seemed to lack opportunities.  If they can keep it up during CCC play, he could put up some big individual numbers.

Aaron Trigg's play may be for real.  Coming in as a freshman, he was highly touted with a solid resume.  Now, with time and experience, he may be able to keep this up.  GC's also got a lot of impressive looking freshmen.  This program is in good shape right now.

RWU has a lot of seniors and hung with Tufts and Lasell.  It might not mean too much now, but consistent senior leadership will mean a lot come February.

EC's got a ton of young big guys who could benefit from my favorite journeyman PG Bobby Montrond.  EC's got a strong coaching staff - I think they make some noise by the end of the year.

ENC will be better.  They've got a little more size this year and, let's face it, it would be tough to be worse.

Quashed Simmons at Curry looks legit, but we all know the CC mantra.  Consistency escapes them; they'll have to prove differently before I believe in them.

CSC hasn't changed much.  There's a lot to work with there, but Foti hasn't put together a real solid club in a few season.  They're a "wait and see" program as well.  They do have the almighty Andy St. Clair on the sidelines coaching - so there's always hope.

[number1chargerfan]

Congratulations to Duncan Szeliga on scoring his 1,000th point Saturday in a loss to Rivier in the Rivier Tip-Off Championship.

As for the Chargers this season, once everyone falls into their role on the team then Foti will have more to work with than many of the other teams in what is truly a weak TCCC this year.

[scout]

CCC Games tonight...

Endicott (2-1) hosts Colby - 5 PM EST
NEC (1-4) hosts Rivier - 5:30 PM EST
Anna Maria (2-2) hosts Clark - 6 PM EST
Curry (0-3) travels to MIT - 7 PM EST
RWU (1-2) travels to Connecticut College - 7 PM EST
Gordon (4-0) travels to Husson College - 7 PM EST
WIT (1-3) travels to Thomas College - 7 PM EST
UNE (1-2) hosts Bowdoin - 7:30 PM EST
WNEC (1-2) travels to Keene State - 7:30 PM EST
ENC (1-2) hosts Lesley - 8 PM EST
Salve (1-3) hosts Suffolk - 8 PM EST

[yeah buddy]

scout thanks for the updates.
nice to see all the winning records in the CCC!

[gsmizzle22]

Sorry to disappoint the board, but I do not have too much information regarding the Gulls.  I have moved back to Connecticut so I am somewhat out of the loop.  That being said, I played with them a couple times during the preseason, and I will say that it is probably the biggest team in TCCC.  A lot of guys over 6'5".  I will see them play this weekend down at Western Connecticut, so I'll have a little more to say.

[scout]

Okay...

Just for the sake of initiating some conversation, I'm going to make some picks for tonight's games. As a disclaimer, I have no means by which to guarantee a good record in this, it's just for fun.


Endicott (2-1) hosts Colby - 5 PM EST
NEC (1-4) hosts Rivier - 5:30 PM EST
Anna Maria (2-2) hosts Clark - 6 PM EST
Curry (0-3) travels to MIT - 7 PM EST
RWU (1-2) travels to Connecticut College - 7 PM EST
Gordon (4-0) travels to Husson College - 7 PM EST
WIT (1-3) travels to Thomas College - 7 PM EST
UNE (1-2) hosts Bowdoin - 7:30 PM EST
WNEC (1-2) travels to Keene State - 7:30 PM EST
ENC (1-2) hosts Lesley - 8 PM EST
Salve (1-3) hosts Suffolk - 8 PM EST

We'll see what happens, but I think the lock of the night is MIT beating Curry. Curry has some talent, but MIT is angry after losing to Gordon last week.

The Gordon-Husson game is going to be a doozy. Gordon has had a rough go at it against Husson the past two years, and traveling to Bangor from just north of Boston is annoying. For those interested, I made a call to a sports radio station up there and they'll be broadcasting the game live. Go to http://zoneradio.com/wzon/am620wzon.html

[scout]

At halftime...

Gordon is leading Husson 40-36.

The story of the game has been the fouls put up by both squads, namely Gordon. Gordon allowed Husson to be in the bonus for more than 7 minutes.

However, with its size, Gordon has been outrebounding Husson all night. Without the stats in front of me, it might be an 8-10 board advantage at this point.

We'll see if foul trouble becomes an issue in the second half, but right now, Gordon has been using backdoor cuts and solid putbacks to score most of its points.

[scout]

Gordon gets a solid win against Husson on the road. They have quietly put together a 5-0 start to the season against some decent competition.

The final score: 88-73.

Greg Walker stepped up and scored 23, while Brady Bajema and Aaron Trigg were also well into double-digits (Trigg had 21).

Gordon ruled the boards, gaining a 10-15 rebound advantage on the game.

The stats will be posted shortly, so we can analyze the game in more detail later.


Importantly, Gordon travels to Endicott for a non-conference matchup next week, and then again on the road, they take on Salem State. These two games will be additional solid tests for a Gordon squad that is dealing with the losses of Marstaller, Kaufman, and Schnackenberg without much pain.

[backboard]

Good job by Gordon, not sure about the 'quiet' 5-0 start though.

The Endicott-Gordon games are always interesting, but judging by the Gulls performance, this game could be a blowout in favor of Gordon

[thebizzle]

The question really is, if gordon beats endicott and salem state, will they get any votes for top 25?

I realize it has been a while since any CCC Team has gotten votes, but come week 3 of polling things could get interesting. I also know there are some out there that would say take it a game at a time. But i am not a player, I am a fan. Fan-ship allows me the liberty to dream about maybe one team from the CCC getting ranked in my tenure of following CCC basketball.

Also, a question for Hoops? Are top 25 votes based on regional team wins and/or also national team wins? I.E. Gordon beating MIT who is in New England juxtaposed to Gordon beating William Patterson of New Jersey, which win factors more into the voting?

By the way, thank you hoops for chiming in and thank you gary for reppin all they way from CT. I look forward to your impression and thoughts on the gulls when they play down there.

[yeah buddy]

Gordon got votes for the D3 hoops top 25 in 06-07. They were ranked 24th in the nation in another poll.
It may take a couple more wins even after endicott and salem state to start getting any national recognition. Endicott is a mid level CCC team so thats not going to do much and salem state isn't quite where they have been in the last few years. 

[Word Life]

GSMIZZLE, I think you're the man, but I am going to have to disagree off the bat with you.  Endicott, biggest team in The CCC?  When I think biggest team, I think in regards to who actually plays.  Out of Gordon's top 7 leaders in minutes.  Two guys are 6'3, okay nothing special, but then you have 6'7, 6'8, 6'9.
Even if Gordon does committ a few more TO's a game this year, they are out rebounding everybody!  The rebound margin was considerable last night in a big win up at Husson, not an easy road game.

[gsmizzle22]

Word Life,

When I said that EC was the biggest team, it was pretty much an assumption, as I have not seen any of the other teams or their rosters for that matter.  My only info regarding TCCC is that the Gulls have a big team.  I do remember Gordon having some big guys last season, so my bad.  No worries though, I think the Gordon-EC game will be pretty interesting to watch.  Regardless of how each team is playing, its usually a competitive game.  I know I always got more fired up for that game.  TCCC version of Duke-North Carolina.

[Word Life]

Yeah...Gordon-EC you rarely see a blow out, let alone a game that doesn't come down to the final 2 minutes.