MBB: City University of New York Athletic Conference

[NYBB]

the CUNY finals really aren't that big of a draw at CCNY or CSI...especially for a team like York or Brooklyn.  I watched the York v. Baruch finals in 05/06 on tv at CSI and nobody was in the crowd. 

Either the team with the best record should host the finals or Baruch should host them because of Baruch's central location in relation to all CUNY schools.  I think the best record school would make the most sense though as to give that school a home team advantage.  Otherwise nobody is going to come out to watch.

[CityD3]

last year's CUNY championship had about 300 people there at CCNY..thats pretty good for a division III game. and sorry Pat he played in the big ten three years ago, who cares? he still played in the big ten, the best player and team in his conference this year (arguably) is jean-baptiste and brooklyn college. Three years ago his greatest competition was...deron williams AND THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS. (for all those d3 junkies that dont know he plays for the utah jazz now)

[Danny Weismuller]

I think people underestimate D3...I'm thinking some of the better D3 teams in the nation would beat most low D1 teams.
I'm thinking the local NYC D1 teams (St. Francis, Wagner, LIU) would have big problems with the top ranked national D3 teams or D2 teams for that matter.
Looking to get other peoples opinions?

I know size is probably the biggest factor... I don't know if speed is as much of an issue. My assumption is this because the D1 kids who transfer to D3 schools don't necessarily dominate like people would expect.

[Pat Coleman]

last year's CUNY championship had about 300 people there at CCNY..thats pretty good for a division III game. and sorry Pat he played in the big ten three years ago, who cares? he still played in the big ten, the best player and team in his conference this year (arguably) is jean-baptiste and brooklyn college. Three years ago his greatest competition was...deron williams AND THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS. (for all those d3 junkies that dont know he plays for the utah jazz now)

I care about facts -- sorry if that's a problem. I don't take accuracy lightly.

Would love to know what happened at Fordham. Anyone got that?

[Rhodes Scholar]

last year's CUNY championship had about 300 people there at CCNY..thats pretty good for a division III game. and sorry Pat he played in the big ten three years ago, who cares? he still played in the big ten, the best player and team in his conference this year (arguably) is jean-baptiste and brooklyn college. Three years ago his greatest competition was...deron williams AND THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS. (for all those d3 junkies that dont know he plays for the utah jazz now)

Devon George, Andy Panko, Horace Jenkins and Rich Melzer were all better players than Marlon Smith and they didn't make their teams invincible. Being the best player on the floor--even by a significant margin--doesn't mean you can do anything you want on the floor. You've got to have some pretty decent talent surrounding you in order to win--especially against the better teams.

[NYBB]

Personally, i think D1 players that transfer down to D3 are just plain silly.

seriously though; if they can't handle themselves at D1 and think that coming down to D3 to be "the man" is going to make them feel good about themselves or make others think they're good, they've got something else coming.

I don't think that this is big of a deal in basketball as it is in baseball but it's still kind of ridiculous.  D3 should be for D3 and if someone played at let's say, Providence College and was a bench player there, they shouldn't come down to D3 and take some kid's job who specifically went to that school to play ball.  There should be a rule that makes D1 players have to take off a year if they come down to D3...it's not anyone's fault but their own if they play D1 and don't get any burn.  If they went to a school that was too good for them to play at, that's their problem to deal with.  Don't come down to D3 and disrupt a program and some hardworking kid's life.

And to D3 coaches that take D1 transfers onto their teams and start them over one of their multi year veterans, shame on you.  Build your programs from freshman to senior year players...if you're going to take a transfer, limit it to sophomores, not juniors.  Don't allow some guy to come in from a D1 program and take one of your hardworking players' spot just because he's coming down from an upper tier. 

[xalva66]

NYBB,

Just out of curiosity, who are you are referring to?

[Rhodes Scholar]

I think people underestimate D3...I'm thinking some of the better D3 teams in the nation would beat most low D1 teams.
I'm thinking the local NYC D1 teams (St. Francis, Wagner, LIU) would have big problems with the top ranked national D3 teams or D2 teams for that matter.
Looking to get other peoples opinions?

I know size is probably the biggest factor... I don't know if speed is as much of an issue. My assumption is this because the D1 kids who transfer to D3 schools don't necessarily dominate like people would expect.

I think the best D3 teams could compete with and occasionally beat some of the low D1 teams. Few, if any, of the D3 teams are better than the low D1's but they're close enough to win some games. The low D1's are bigger, more athletic and have more depth than the best D3's. However, some of the top D3's have better shooters and are sounder on fundamentals than some of the weaker D1's.

[NYBB]

i'm not referring to any particular player, just players and coaches in general.

[xalva66]

to the moderator. How did I get a (-1) Karma?

[Pat Coleman]

Info about karma in the link in my profile.

[knight_life]

First of all, no one has stated that Marlon Smith is the best player in cuny because of where he has been before. I think the Brooklyn fans need to relax a little. I'm sure your guy Baptiste is good, and hey if he gets Brooklyn a title that's great as well, but in the end all it will be is a trophy sitting in a glass case somewhere.

Marlon Smith did not transfer to Hunter College to play basketball, nor did he transfer there in the second semester. He has been a student at Hunter all year and is there to finish his degree and prepare for the next part of life past basketball. This differs from Wiesmuller who is criticized because he left a school as a disgruntled basketball player in December and was at another conference school in uniform in January. His decision, from the sense for those not in the  know about him and his life, seems to be one based solely on basketball and not on acquiring a better education.

I think basketball is the one sport that suffers from this the most, individuals focusing only on playing basketball and not their education and what happens when their four years are up. It's sad to see what happens to many of these kids who never finish school or fail out because coaches didn't do their jobs and make sure the kids they coach do more than just score them points.

Hint of the Day: Use Spellcheck once in a while and never type like you talk.

[NYCGATORfan]

I took in the Brooklyn-Medgar Evers game last night. The Bridges had too much athleticism for the Cougars and recorded a number of easy shots in transition and on the offensive glass. When the Cougars packed in a zone to prevent points in the paint, Jean-Baptiste and Nisbett went bananas from downtown with Nisbett hitting 6-7 threes at one point. The Cougars played with a lot of grit and made a valiant comeback from a 20 point deficit to cut the lead to single digits but the Bridges made a number of clutch shots in the end to prevail.

Teams that are small and quick and get their offense in transition will have a hard time at beating BC because the Bridges have more firepower than any team in the conference. Big, long teams with athletic bigs that are discliplined on defense and willing to play in the post on offense will give the Bridges the most trouble.

Teams will always score some easy points on the Bridges because of their style of play but if a team can't get the ball inside against the Bridges and slow the game down a little, then BC will blow them out with a barrage of points.


I really like this Bridges team because their main six-man rotation is very diverse and very complementary. Jean-Baptiste is the obvious star because he runs, shoots, and jumps like a guard; handles like a forward; and is as long and tall as a center. Nisbett is a strong finisher and an explosive scorer, and McFarlane is incredibly athletic as the trigger man. Despite his athleticism, McFarlane is a pass first guard and looks for his offense by driving to the hoop instead of jacking up jumpers. Plus, McFarlane is a lethal pickpocket defender who isn't afraid to take charges either. He's one of the most complete guards in the conference.

Guerin isn't as athletic as his teammates but he's incredibly smart and clutch. For example when Medgar was on their comeback, Guerin realized the defender guarding him was 5-7 and he slid his way to the right box to hit a nifty post layup. He just has great court awareness. He's only a sophomore, but he's a really wise basketball player who does wonders for the team on defense and when the Bridges end up in a halfcourt set.

As for Medgar, it's hard to compete when you have only 3 non-freshman on the roster. Still, the Cougars look like they'll be all right in the future. They mostly played a lot of early-offense, fast break, and one-on-one stuff on offense, but with such a young team that probably gives them the best chance to win. With a year under them, the Cougars offense will probably get more complicated next year and their players have good athleticism and talent. Most importantly, they played hard throughout the game, especially in the second half. That's always nice to see from a team that's 1-18 and down by 20 points in a game. They have the right attitude they just desperately need experience.

[NYCGATORfan]

There was a scary moment in the BC-Medgar game when Medgar Evers forward Donelle Lazare ended up landing on his head after a play and couldn't get back up. He was limp while the Medgar Evers staff helped him off the court.

Sprains and broken bones hurt, but landing on your head and possibly having a concussion is serious stuff. I think I speak for all of us by wishing him the best.

[CityD3]

Personally, i think D1 players that transfer down to D3 are just plain silly.

seriously though; if they can't handle themselves at D1 and think that coming down to D3 to be "the man" is going to make them feel good about themselves or make others think they're good, they've got something else coming.

I don't think that this is big of a deal in basketball as it is in baseball but it's still kind of ridiculous.  D3 should be for D3 and if someone played at let's say, Providence College and was a bench player there, they shouldn't come down to D3 and take some kid's job who specifically went to that school to play ball.  There should be a rule that makes D1 players have to take off a year if they come down to D3...it's not anyone's fault but their own if they play D1 and don't get any burn.  If they went to a school that was too good for them to play at, that's their problem to deal with.  Don't come down to D3 and disrupt a program and some hardworking kid's life.

And to D3 coaches that take D1 transfers onto their teams and start them over one of their multi year veterans, shame on you.  Build your programs from freshman to senior year players...if you're going to take a transfer, limit it to sophomores, not juniors.  Don't allow some guy to come in from a D1 program and take one of your hardworking players' spot just because he's coming down from an upper tier. 

I believe marlon smith left the school becuase of a medical problem he was having with his brain so his reason had nothing to do with basketball..pat coleman i also believe he won big ten rookie of the year i could be wrong tho and rhodes i understand that chemistry and talent has a lot to do with  with winning a championship, but i think marlon smith is that good (saw him play in high school) to at least lead them to the finals..sorry to hear about lazare keep us posted if you hear anything.