MBB: NEWMAC

[Hugenerd]

Hollingsworth broke his foot early in the summer in a summer league game playing on a team with the ex-Williams guys.  I think that injury is fully healed, but it is taking him some time to acclimate back to game action. I do not know for sure, but I am assuming he may have missed the game with something related to that, but then again it could be something totally unrelated.  It also may have been precautionary if Coach didnt like what he saw out of him against Framingham (maybe the coaching staff is trying to get him closer to a 100% for later in the season).  I honestly dont know for certain, because I havent even had time to catch a real game this season, let alone talk to the coaching staff for an extended period of time, because I am trying to finish up the PhD in the not so distant future.  I did see Hollingsworth on campus today and I did not notice any braces, casts, or anything obvious to suggest an injury, but I did not have a chance to talk with him.

[toooldtoplay]

Hollingsworth hurt his ankle early in the Framingham game and played through it accounting for the poor showing, 8 turnovers and 16 missed shots. He was in an ankle boot for the Curry contest and not dressed.  Will be questionable this weekend for the Suffolk game.  The freshman Dickson had a monster first half against Curry with all 16 points and the game was never in doubt.  Less 3 point shooting (13 attempts vs. 23 against Framingham) usually spells success as it did last year.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

[Hugenerd]

Thanks for the info, that explains it.

Tashman played like a monster today, leading the team in points, rebounds, assists, and blocks.  Freshman Donegan played well off the bench.  MIT didnt really need much out of their usual starters, winning easily 86-47 over Suffolk.

I hope that Hollingsworth comes back when he is healthy.  He is not the same player when he plays hurt, but MIT is not the same team without him either.  Hopefully by the end of the season everyone will be on the court and healthy.

[mass_d3fan]

Congrats to Will Tashman for being named the NEWMAC Player of the Week.
He averaged 19 points, 9.5 rebounds, 5 assists & 1.5 steals in MIT's 2 wins.

[Hugenerd]

They are going to need Tashman to play well, as well as Dickson, Donegan, etc., until Hollingsworth gets back.  As toooldtoplay pointed out, Hollingsworth has an ankle injury and I would expect MIT to be cautious with bringing him back too early.  MIT has the talent to get through the next few games without him, as long as they show up (unlike against Framingham), so hopefully he will have time to heal without MIT taking anymore L's.

[mass_d3fan]

Week #1 Top 25 Poll:

MIT's loss to Framingham St. has cost them just about half of their votes (202 to 107) as the Engineers fall from 15th to 20th.

WPI's Loss to Becker had an almost similar effect as they fall from 74 votes to 45. (ORV:#26 to  ORV:#28).

Interesting sidenote: Becker's win garnered them a single vote.

[Hugenerd]

Becker beat WPI and RIC early this season, they likely would have received more votes if not for being blown out by Albertus Magnus.  Albertus Magnus previously was blown out by Coast Guard. However, in that game they did not have their best player, Ray Askew, but they had him back when they blew out Becker.  Albertus Magnus may be a legit team with all their players.

[toooldtoplay]

Interesting that MIT did not drop out of the top 25 completely. They have obviously earned some respect over the last 3 seasons and can have a "clunker" once in a while. Now it is time to win and move back up. Todays game against Emerson was a mismatch inside as Tashman had another big game with 20 and 9 before fouling out. MIT struggled to get untracked early, built a 20 point lead and then coasted. 

WPI cruises in much the same fashion, struggling early and then coasting in.

Note that Emerson beat both Babson and Wheaton already this year in close games.

[Hugenerd]

Could have been a huge night for the NEWMAC, but Clark couldnt hold onto a lead on the road against Brandeis, and lost on a last second layup in OT.

Springfield beat previously unbeaten Keene St. on the road, which is a good win for the conference.

[Hugenerd]

Interesting that MIT did not drop out of the top 25 completely. They have obviously earned some respect over the last 3 seasons and can have a "clunker" once in a while. Now it is time to win and move back up. Todays game against Emerson was a mismatch inside as Tashman had another big game with 20 and 9 before fouling out. MIT struggled to get untracked early, built a 20 point lead and then coasted. 

WPI cruises in much the same fashion, struggling early and then coasting in.

Note that Emerson beat both Babson and Wheaton already this year in close games.

I think it also helped that 14 other ranked teams lost at least 1 game prior to the Week 1 poll, and 7 teams ranked below them dropped out.  MIT lost about half their points, but because everyone below them lost points too, they stayed in.  Hopefully this serves as an early wake up call and they dont get caught sleeping again.

[jabnike23]

Springfield winning on a buzzer beater beating Keene 85-82.  Looks like it should be another battle for the NEWMAC Crown with Springfield, WPI, and MIT

[toooldtoplay]

I agree. I think a good race this year as always. It will come down to who is playing well at tournament time.

MIT wins today in a case of not shooting well and still winning. A packed in zone by Newbury led to a plethora of open 3's that were converted at a staggering 19%.  Lucky to win as the Newbury big man Bernard was benched by his coach after a flagrant foul call following a rebound early in the first half with Newbury ahead.

Report that Hollingsworth may be back Saturday against Gordon. Any word??

[mass_d3fan]

I was able to attend the WPI game last night.  The Engineers blewout Lasell (89-63) last night behind 21 points by Jeff Robinson and a double-double (16 pts/10 rbs) by Matt Carr.  The duo combined to shoot 15 for 24 from the field in limited minutes.  Jameel Galloway brought the crowd to its feet with big dunk.

Clark got 18 by Brian Vayda & 17 from Mitch Renshaw in their 70-56 win over Worcester St.  Vayda had a game-high 7 boards.

MIT struggled to put away Newbury, but won 61-53.  They were led by Dickinson's 18 and Tashman went 6 of 8 from field for 15 points. Mitch Kates & Billy Bender led them on the glass with 8 & 7 respectively.

Wheaton stayed close throughout the game, but lost 64-60 to Roger Williams.  The Lyons trailed by 6 at half-time, but were never able to get the lead in the second half.  Anthony Coppola (16) and  Anthony Weeks (14) combined for half of wheaton's points. Shawn Daily grabbed 12 boards.


Tonight, Springfield has a tough matchup with the Elms and Coast Guard plays Medgar Evers.

[WPI89]

WPI gets the NEWMAC's first crack at Harvard.

Harvard does not seem to be missing Lin.  Listened to them beat up Fordham down here in NY the other night.  Dude named Keith Wright sounded like a monster in the paint on both ends.  WPI has no answer for that and the only chance of a close game it would seem would be serious foul trouble for Mr. Wright. 

Interesting that WPI is essentially the middle of a Harvard run against Michigan and then UCONN.  Last time WPI went to Cambridge was in 1989.  Competitive for a half and then not close in the second - both teams are better now - maybe expect about the same. 

[Hugenerd]

I agree. I think a good race this year as always. It will come down to who is playing well at tournament time.

MIT wins today in a case of not shooting well and still winning. A packed in zone by Newbury led to a plethora of open 3's that were converted at a staggering 19%.  Lucky to win as the Newbury big man Bernard was benched by his coach after a flagrant foul call following a rebound early in the first half with Newbury ahead.

Report that Hollingsworth may be back Saturday against Gordon. Any word??

I hear Hollingsworth is easing back into practice.  If he does play, I would expect it would be in a limited role, but I am not sure exactly where he is in his time table for return to game action.  It could also be later in the coming week or two.