WBB: Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference

Ron Boerger · January 31, 2020, 10:16:21 PM

Quote from: Ron Boerger on January 26, 2020, 01:52:30 PM
Will be interesting to see if Trinity gets back in the top ten as I think 5 of the teams ranked above them have lost this weekend. The next game at St. Thomas, who play much better at home than on the road, could be a test.

I hate it when I get it right. Trinity falls at St Thomas 83-81.

jekelish · February 01, 2020, 12:00:57 AM

We were nearly both right tonight, Ron... I had a terrible feeling all week that Colorado College might come to Sherman and steal a win, and it very nearly happened. The Tigers led 53-45 midway through the fourth but AC rallied and pulled out the 64-61 win. It was one ugly, ugly game. Colorado College is solid and plays damn good defense.

Ron Boerger · February 01, 2020, 10:25:31 AM

Trinity only played eight women last night. In addition to Anna Muller's continuing absence (hasn't played since Jan 4), Hailey Coleman only played nine minutes. With Abby Holland restricted to 24 minutes with early foul trouble, Ashlyn Milton was on the floor for 30 minutes, and the two guards saw 37 and 30 minutes. Absent the usual amount of substitution, fatigue could have been a factor at the end as Trinity was held to two points in the last 3:36 (before a three with five seconds left).

The good news for both AC and TU is that this means next Saturday's rematch in San Antonio will put first place and the top seed on the line once again.

jekelish · February 01, 2020, 11:24:11 AM

Barring something crazy down the stretch, looks like the six teams in the tournament have already essentially been decided... just a matter of how things shake out for seeding. If the season ended today, Schreiner would be the 3-seed but they've got AC once more and Trinity twice, in addition to St. Thomas once more. They've also got Colorado College on the road, so it's hard to see them not falling into the 4-5 game.

Southwestern has been playing better of late and while they've got AC, St. Thomas, and Colorado College left, they've also got the three teams at the bottom of the standings so 7+ wins in conference seems feasible, meaning they could potentially work their way into the 4-5 game as well. TLU has the same remaining schedule, of course, so it's looking likely those two will be fighting it out for who gets the 5 and who gets the 6 for the next couple weeks. If Southwestern gets the 5, then frankly AC might be fine with getting the 2-seed, as for whatever reason Southwestern has just had their number the last couple years so being on the opposite side of the bracket might not be such a bad thing.

That said - I think as last year showed us, home court advantage in this tournament is very real, so Schreiner could throw a scare into whoever they would face in the semifinals if they win that first round game.

Ron Boerger · February 01, 2020, 02:26:43 PM

Good points. My guess would be AC/TU, Colorado, Schreiner, then pick'em SW/TLU (probably SW since as you say they have played much better since mid-season). That said, while home court means something, home court for Schreiner isn't like home court for TLU, who may have the most rabid fans in the conference. Schreiner is 5-4 at home, 4-4 on the road; contrast that with TLU who this year are 5-5 at home, 2-7 on road. Largest Schreiner crowd this season (realizing that attendance numbers can be iffy): 180.

It's not unusual for the TLU crowd at Trinity to exceed the supporters of the home team, especially when the Bulldogs are doing well. Even this year, the largest crowd for a TU game in SA so far this season, 310, was against TLU - over 100 more than the next game, sad as to say. As a point of reference, last year's TLU home crowds were in the 300-400 range during the regular season, increasing to 400-500 towards the end of the season and topped out at nearly 1000 for in the SCAC championship. I just don't see Kerrville going crazy for Schreiner like the folks in Seguin do TLU.

Ron Boerger · February 02, 2020, 12:15:46 AM

In other news of interest, HSU upset UMHB 67-64 tonight.

jekelish · February 02, 2020, 12:50:42 AM

Saw that - heard that UMHB had the ball down one... and turned it over. Brutal.

Austin College got an easy win tonight, 90-48, over JWU. It was 52-18 at halftime, and then 63-18 at one point in the third and the 'Roos essentially used the second half experimenting with different lineups. No starters played more than 15 minutes. In fact, no single player saw more than 16 minutes of action, while every single active player on the roster scored. Four bench players got double figures, no starters did, and the 'Roos got 66 bench points. On the other side, Guzman and Bailey for JWU combined for all but six of their team's points.

Ron Boerger · February 04, 2020, 08:39:10 AM

Jek, looks like you might be right about Schreiner, who (IMO at least) shocked St. Thomas 88-82 on Sunday. If they can put together a game like that on the road, they very well could be dangerous in the tournament. Will be interesting for sure to see how they play at home Friday vs AC, and the season-ending home & away at Trinity could be quite meaningful now...

Ron Boerger · February 08, 2020, 12:56:41 PM

AC had a strong second half in a comfortable come-from-behind win at Schreiner, Trinity did what it had to do against UD, so it's pretty much for all the marbles tonight in SA when the 'Roos come to town. A win for Trinity clinches the top seed (barring 3 losses in the next 4 games), an AC win brings tiebreakers and the rest of the season into play. The first tiebreaker is H2H, the second results against common opponents which I (edit: think) gives the nod to Austin (since they would have defeated St Thomas twice as opposed to Southwestern) should the two end up tied at end of the season. After today, Trinity is on the road for the Colorado swing next weekend and away and home with Schreiner; Austin is home next week for Southwestern and TLU, followed by road trips to Centenary and St. Thomas.

I'll be down in SA this afternoon to visit a relative dealing with health challenges and head down to Trinity to take in the game.

jekelish · February 08, 2020, 02:32:48 PM

I'm hoping my 'Roos can get out to a better start than they have been lately... they've been coming out of the gates a little slow and eventually wearing teams down thanks to depth and talent on the bench, but against a team like Trinity, they can't really afford to do the same. That was the case when they played up in Sherman, and it left AC trying to play catchup the rest of the way.

Ron Boerger · February 08, 2020, 07:52:48 PM

Good one going so far in San Antonio. After a tight first quarter, Trinity was threatening to run away with it, leading by 14 with under 4 to play in the half, but AC goes on a 9-2 run from there and it's a 7-point game at half, 42-35. Abby Holland is the only player in double figures with 18.

jekelish · February 08, 2020, 09:15:32 PM

Great comeback by Austin College but they dug themselves too big a hole, which you obviously can't do against a team that scores like Trinity. Interestingly, Austin College's two leading scorers in the game - Natalie McCoy and Sarah Gwin - are both San Antonio natives. Clearly, they play well in their hometown.

Ron Boerger · February 08, 2020, 11:00:41 PM

Those were some obscene NBA-caliber threes y'all hit at the end. And we helped by missing a. boatload. of. free. throws.

Sets up what is likely a fascinating SCAC final barring upsets. Roos know they can play with Trinity after tonight, and you know what they say about beating someone three times in a season.

TroyP · February 09, 2020, 07:55:36 PM

I was there with my daughter last night. Great energy in the building last night. It was a fun game to attend. It was neat to be able to see the intensity the girls play with. You just can't see that on TV.

Ron Boerger · February 10, 2020, 02:04:35 PM

Quote from: TroyP on February 09, 2020, 07:55:36 PM
I was there with my daughter last night. Great energy in the building last night. It was a fun game to attend. It was neat to be able to see the intensity the girls play with. You just can't see that on TV.

Austin usually brings a pretty good crowd given the distance between schools - they must have a pretty active alumni chapter here - as the crowd was about 2x this season's normal. Glad the women had a chance to play in that kind of environment in SA.

Both coaches definitely get their players to go after it from the opening tip.

I would hope that AC stays in the top 25. They played a higher-ranked opponent tough on the road and the result is pretty much what the relative rankings would predict. Trinity might move up a spot or two due to teams losing above them. Bethel - formerly undefeated (#5) before losing to a team that was 2-18 in a game where they never had the lead - will probably not fall that far, but we'll see.