MBB: Conference of New England

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

A little bit of a lighter load for the CCC tonight:

EC hosts Wheelock
WIT hosts Newbury
NC at EConn
CC @ Mass-D
SRU hosts Wheaton
RWU plays WNE (I'm not sure if this is a conference game or not - strange for them to play one when no one else is)

[CCC Talk]

Went down to see Nichols last night- here's a question. The Nichols coach seems to be doing a pretty good job, but how on earth do you let your best player foul out with ELEVEN minutes left in the game-  they have a shot at pulling the upset if he protects him a little.

Very impressed with Bennett from Nichols think he'll be pretty good.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Went down to see Nichols last night- here's a question. The Nichols coach seems to be doing a pretty good job, but how on earth do you let your best player foul out with ELEVEN minutes left in the game-  they have a shot at pulling the upset if he protects him a little.

Very impressed with Bennett from Nichols think he'll be pretty good.

It seems, from the boxscores, that Nichols just refuses to play defense.  Did you see that in person?  No question they've got plenty of talent, but they just don't seem to be able to keep the other team from scoring.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

AJ Stephens is really tearing it up at Curry.  That's a big boy and if they can maintain an inside presence, it's just going to make their guards more dangerous.

I'll be looking forward to the EC - CC matchup in January.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

RWU beat WNE is what is a conference game.  GC and WIT play on an odd night as well, then everything else is back on schedule (those two games early will result in a three game night Jan 17).

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Gordon is playing Lynchburg tonight; I think that's our only game.

I believe they're at a tournament at Manhattanville.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Gordon lost to Lynchburg.  They committed 26 turnovers and shot 20 less times.  Tough to win a game like that.  So far this year, it seems like a slow pace of play is hurting Gordon's chances of winning, although if you have 26 turnovers when you're only take 46 shots, speeding things up probably isn't a solution.

EC has already lost to Clark today (74-80) and Roger Williams got crushed by Wheaton (51-78).

I am not sure what to make of the bottom end of the conference.  Right now it seems like WNE, RWU, and UNE are fighting for the #8 seed, but who knows what second semester will bring?

Salve trails ConnColl at halftime.

Gordon is playing Berkeley (NY)
Curry is hosting Wesleyan
WNE is hosting Westfield

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Curry beat Wesleyan, pretty nice win for the CCC.

[uconn05]

This Curry team has it all. If they can keep everyone healthy (and eligible) they could make a run in the NCAA's. Those are some big if's, but it is certainly a possibility.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

This Curry team has it all. If they can keep everyone healthy (and eligible) they could make a run in the NCAA's. Those are some big if's, but it is certainly a possibility.

They're not putting teams away.  Too many close games.  If you let a team stick around in the post-season, you're in trouble.

They can certainly get there, but I need to see more.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Four games on the docket tonight:

RWU @ Coast Guard
EC hosts Emmanuel
NC @ Worcester
Gordon @ Lesley

[uconn05]

Three of the four are on the road but I am forecasting a CCC sweep.

[Chantastic]

This Curry team has it all. If they can keep everyone healthy (and eligible) they could make a run in the NCAA's. Those are some big if's, but it is certainly a possibility.

They're not putting teams away.  Too many close games.  If you let a team stick around in the post-season, you're in trouble.

They can certainly get there, but I need to see more.

I had a chance to catch Curry earlier this year.  Jones is great, AJ Stephens surprisingly tough to stop, and the team plays with a lot of poise.  They are a threat to beat Endicott and may win the league but they are not remotely close to 'making a run' in the NCAAs.  They are not a top 20 or 30 team nationally and would have a hard time hanging with the GC or CSC teams of 3-5 years ago.

[WPI89]

My compliments to Curry's strength of schedule (likely nobody in the country with 4 losses to better teams?).  They should be more than ready to step into CCC play!  Hope it helps them all the way to a tourney birth.  I can not stand teams that schedule nothing but cupcakes in order to pad their win totals.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Yeah, the Amherst game was a good indication.  Curry hung around a lot longer than I expected.  Stephens is a surprise so far.  But in the end, Amherst buckled down, went on a run and won easily.

Curry has always been able to score, but their defense has been suspect and they don't turn it on in crunch time.

Amherst is not as good as their ranking right now either.

Curry can get right, but will they - that's a tough order.