MBB: St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[sully309]

Eureka 75, Fontbonne 59, FINAL

Also, Webster leads Mac by 11 with 2 min. to play.

Tarpley led EC with 22 pts. White had 17 for FU. Eureka wins despite 2-14 on 3's. FU went cold in 2nd half...32 %. I'll have the boxscore on our web site in a few minutes and more comments later.

[sully309]

Also heard these final scores from Hopefan:

Webster 87, Mac 75
Blackburn 74, Greenville 70

[FU_Pride]

Was expecting a little closer game today up in Eureka from the Griffins.  I saw the stats off of the Blackburn web site.
1.  Fogerty only gets of 10 shots? Was it the defense or lack of inside looks?
2.  Branch goes 3-13 and McCoy scores 4.
3.  FU only sees 8 Free thow attemps.  However, Eureka didn't see much more.
4.  FU only had 4 points off of the bench from Matt Badar, and Fourne only sees the court for 11 minutes???
5.  Eureka has 24 second-effort points, and 18 more points in the paint.
6.  Also, Zach Dill only sees 3 minutes and I didn't notice Lovett's name in the box score.  Did he make the trip?

[fcnews]

FU_Pride - I didn't get to make the trip. I received two cell calls and basicly got the same response. EC did a great job of stopping FOG all together. He was 6-10 from the field. The big stat was Fournie, McCoy and Branch combined for 16 TO's. Storandt had 10 in the first half, with a defensive change by EC White ended with a big second half to get 17 (5-7 3pt).

FU held EC's perimeter game in check (2-14). Down the stretch Tarpley and Richards were to big and physical for FU. FU trailed 58-57 with four minutes to go and got a missed front end from Tarpley, but a bad bounce and a Richards put back and FU only scores one more bucket. End of story.

This was not a good day for FU. It also was not what I would call a bad loss. FU has GC and BC at home next week. The Grif's still control their own. You just hate to give up a tie breaker. Since we are hunting a title, now. The squad was not way down. These kids do beleive they should win every game.

[FU_Pride]

yes, this game was in  no way a season ender....be nice to  get a 6-8 stud into Fontbonne next year...could u imagine that with the kids we will have coming back.  The Griffins are still young, and will use this game as a learning experience.  good game to Eureka by the way.

[Mac Attack]

Well, that was an interesting first half for MacMurray. Seemed like we were on six points for about two days. Couldn't have played much worse and Webster couldn't have played much better. Bad combination. Highlanders played MUCH better in the second half and trailed by only nine with 13 minutes to play - but then it shot back up to 19. Mac had a couple of chances to cut it single digits with less than five minutes to play, but couldn't get big shots to fall and couldn't get defensive stops when they needed to. Just one of those nights. The first half was by far the worst 20 minutes MacMurray has played this season - and the Gorloks came out hotter than a stolen pistol. Mac was down by 20 before some people had found their seats. Highlanders outscored and outplayed Webster in the second half, but it wasn't enough. Spinner was light's out from end to end. Kuhn had a nice first half, but went AWOL in the second half. Hoggat scored his points, but looked lethargic, missed a boat load of free throws, and had real problems guarding Greene and Robertson, which led to foul trouble. That being said, Webster is bigger, stronger, and deeper than MacMurray, and Highlanders have zero margin for error when playing teams like this. Farrid Coleman hit something like six or seven 3pt shots in the second half, but no one else really stepped up for Mac on offense. The first half was X-Rated - poor shot selection, poor passing, poor ball handling, no offensive rebounding, looked like we playing under water. Glad that's over. Sometimes it takes a loss like this to motivate team to kick it into high gear. Hope that happens for MacMurray, because we can't afford any more games like this.

One point worth mentioning. With about five seconds to go in the game and Webster leading by 10, MacMurray called off their defense. Webster threw the ball the length of the floor, and after missing a lay-up, another Webster player dunked it - with authority. Their players and fans went nuts. But when a team is ahead by 10 points with five seconds to play, and the other team has pulled its defense back, you don't do that - or at least any team I've been around for the last 25 years doesn't do that. Take my word for it - the MacMurray players and coaches didn't like it. And my guess is they won't forget it.

Congrats to Webster. They played very, very well, and if they play down the stretch like they did today, they'll be hard to beat. Remember the Gorlok's  were the coach's pre-season pick to win it all. While they had some trouble with Mac's press in the second half, and if Spinner and Kuhn don't play big, they're in trouble - but this is a solid ball club with a lot of weapons. They're going to be tough to handle from here on out.

Finally - great to meet hopefan. Very knowledgeable and very supportive of all the players. Thanks for making the trip, hopefan - maybe we'll hook up in the post season.

[pantherpride06]

My only words tonight are..

My disappointment in my Panthers are very close to the feelings I had when Mike Vanderjat missed the FG last year v. Pittsburgh.  I kind of what to just go hide in a whole!

[BunchTime]

Good report Mac!  Sounds like the Gorloks have found there stride just in time for the strech run of the season!  Not that it means much now, but the Gorloks are in first place due to the tie breaker criteria...like I said, there is a lot of basketball to be played but it should be fun.  I hope they continue to roll.

[sully309]

Was expecting a little closer game today up in Eureka from the Griffins.  I saw the stats off of the Blackburn web site.
1.  Fogerty only gets of 10 shots? Was it the defense or lack of inside looks?
2.  Branch goes 3-13 and McCoy scores 4.
3.  FU only sees 8 Free thow attemps.  However, Eureka didn't see much more.
4.  FU only had 4 points off of the bench from Matt Badar, and Fourne only sees the court for 11 minutes???
5.  Eureka has 24 second-effort points, and 18 more points in the paint.
6.  Also, Zach Dill only sees 3 minutes and I didn't notice Lovett's name in the box score.  Did he make the trip?

The final score is a little deceiving given that it was a 1 point game with about 4 minutes left. That being said, it appeared to me FU was kind of getting by with smoke in mirrors in the first half. I'm not just saying this because FU shot 59% in the 1st half. Actually, FU took really good shots and were not settling for perimeter jumpers early in the shot clock. I say this because EC was missing some wide open shots and FU was making too many careless turnovers.

Fogerty had basically the same, if not better than, game he had against EC the first time, so I'm not sure why you're surprised, FU_Pride...but then again you didn't say you were surprised, so maybe I'm putting words in your mouth.  He's giving up a significant amount of size to Eureka's front line. He just really didn't see the ball that much.

I was impressed with McCoy. I know he didn't shoot too well in this particular game, but made several very nice passes on the break.

The officials were consistent in that they let them play. I suppose in theory this played into Eureka's hands since they tend to be a physical team. 8 of Eureka's 19 FT's came in the last 2 minutes when FU was in desperation mode. There were only 7 fouls total in the 1st half.

From what I saw, the FU bench players other than Bader failed to show they deserved more PT. Fournie had 5 turnovers in 11 minutes. But really, these guys weren't out there long enough for me to judge them fairly.  It could be they just need more time to get into the flow. Unfortunately for them, they got the quick hook.

Trevor White is a really tough match up for anyone. He made 5-7 on 3's and still has good size. He has a very consistent looking release onhis shot, which should lead to consistent scoring. He will be a handful for years to come and for the rest of this year.

[Mac Attack]

Pick 'em results from Week #10

PantherPride   7-10
Godfather   7-10
Mac Attack   6-10
BeaverSID   0-10 (no entry)

Season through Week #10

PantherPride   80
Mac Attack   78
BeaverSID   62
Godfather   62

Week #11 Pick 'em

Tuesday, January 30   
Webster @ Maryville  6:00 PM
Greenville @ Fontbonne  6:00 PM
Eureka @ Blackburn  6:00 PM
Lincoln Christian @ MacMurray  6:00 PM
   
Thursday, February 1   
Maryville @ Greenville  6:00 PM
Westminster @ Webster  6:00 PM
MacMurray @ Principia  6:00 PM
Lincoln Christian @ Eureka  6:00 PM
   
Saturday, February 3   
Eureka @ Maryville  3:00 PM
Greenville @ Principia  3:00 PM
Lincoln Christian @ Webster  3:00 PM
MacMurray @ Westminster  3:00 PM
Blackburn @ Fontbonne  3:00 PM

Need your picks by mid-afternoon this coming Tuesday. Good luck!

Interesting Week #11 games:

A ton of them. Webster at Maryville could be interesting. The Saints will be tough at home. Greenville at Fontbonne. The Panthers, despite losing four straight, are still in the mix. Fontbonne coming off a tough loss at Eureka. Eureka at Blackburn. Suddenly the Beavers are back in the picture. Should be a good one. Westminster at Webster. The Jays are climbing back into the hunt. Big game for both teams.  Eureka at Maryville. The Saints, at home, could give the Devils a tussle. Blackburn at Fontbonne. Beavers won at Webster - can the upset the Griffins? MacMurray at Westminster. Shaping up to be a huge game for both teams.

Should be fun!

[Mac Attack]

My picks for Week #11...

1/30
Webster
Fontbonne
Eureka
MacMurray

2/1
Greenville
Webster
MacMurray
Eureka

2/3
Greenville
Webster
MacMurray
Fontbonne

Will it be a 3-0 week for Webster, Eureka, and MacMurray? Can Greenville right the ship and win at least two?  Will Fontbonne be able to hold its home court against two pretty good clubs? Will Westminster claw its way back into the post-seaon hunt? Maryville and Blackburn will beat someone - who? One thing is for sure - big games for plenty of teams this week.

[pantherpride06]

Not that I've had time to pull myself togeather.  As I look at Greenville's stats comparing the 1st 6 to the last 4, heres what I have.

Compare and Contrast of Greenville's 1st-6 games to the last 4 games

As a Team...........   1st-6 GMS ||  Last-4 GMS

Shooting PCT......            .519 || .430  (-.089)
3 PT Shoot PCT...            .446 || .279  (-.167)
Free Throw PCT..            .772 || .750  (-.022)
Turnovers PG......            15.5 || 20.6  (-5.10)
Points PG............            83.3 || 73.7  (-9.60)
Scoring Def PG....            69.3 || 86.0  (+16.7)

Some very noticable differences when you go per player.  I don't want to call those players out.  But, one kid goes from 18.0 a game to 11.3.  Same kid has 12 steals in the first six and only accounted for 1 the last 4.  18 TO in first six games, 17 in last 4.

We have, to simply state it, we are struggling and if we don't pick up a win v. Fontbonne, we don't get into the tournament.  No other way around it.  We need our key guys to step it back up and start playing their game.  Both Simmons and Hensold need to get back on their game of hitting shots consistantly.  Tayor is a great athete and does a great job on the boards, but needs to keep scoring, which has faded off.  West has been out due to injury.  But, he is back and he needs to fight to get to 100% and back to his early season form.

Looking back at the Greenville / Blackburn game...  Here is my stat of teh game... 4-11 (38.1).  That being the free thrown percentage of the Panthers.  They only shot 11 compared to the 28 at Blackburn.  Taylor was 29-36 (.805) for the past 9 games.  He shoots 1-6 (.167) last night.  That hurts.

We'll see what happens v. Fontbonne.  It's a Must-Win Tuesday for the Panthers of Greenville.

[pantherpride06]

Week #11 Pick 'em

Tuesday, January 30   
Webster
Greenville
Eureka
MacMurray
   
Thursday, February 1   
Greenville
Webster
MacMurray
Eureka
   
Saturday, February 3   
Eureka
Greenville
Webster
Westminster
Fontbonne

[hopefan]

Wow  -  lots to write about....

I went to Webster at Mac game yesterday  - nice to be relatively unaffilliated and pick and choose games to see  -  tho this week will be tough as good games are head to head this week in St Louis  -  which to see?  (hmmm - half of one, half of another?)

The trip to Mac yesterday was just a lot of fun, and just the lift I needed - lots of stress at work including Saturday  morning - it was nice to take the liesurely trip up to Jacksonville on 67, a road that winds thru several beautiful rural towns - I wish I had had time to stop and explore some of the little shops - and the homes - huge old mansions -just lovely.   HOWEVER, if you are in a hurry to get to jville, use 267 which branches off 67 and ends in jville - much better road, fewer towns.

So i had directions to Mac from Mac Attack and google -  no trouble finding the gym - but what a poor impression I have of that school now (sorry Mac people) -  I parked around the block from the gym, arriving 2 hours early with some paper work - I figured I would find a table in the Student Union or the library and work for an hour then go over to the gym.   So, I park right next to the Student Union.  I go to several doors, all are locked!  It's closed.  I go to the next building, defined as the education building - locked.
The next building is the gym -  I find a young lady working the concession stand and first ask if school is in session?  Oh yes -  they close the student union on weekends???   ok where's the library ?  oh don't go there she says, it's closed on weekends too.   YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!!!
In the game  - no programs, no announcement of subs, and as far as I know, no SID  -  the football coach had to announce the starting lineups - I'm almost surprised Coach Hettinga didn't have to do that....

When I walked from the parking lot to the gym - past 3 buildings where I could see all the way across the campus, I did not see a single person  -  until I heard noise from the women's game, I actually thought I might have had a major senile moment and gone to the wrong school!!!

And of course as of this morning, no Mac score in D3 hoops, and its box score was not in the Post - most of the other games yesterday were in this morning's paper.

I'm sorry - I was just amazed - maybe an overreaction  -  but how do they get kids to go there with that kind of service??

Well things got better - I was immediately greeted by Mac Attack - with his super enthusiastic writings, I had Mac pictured as young recent grad - heck, he's got as much gray as I do, though a number of years younger, I imagine.  We've experienced a number of similar lifetime experiences with our kids and college selections, so we had great conversation about that as well as SLIAC hoops -.   Just a real pleasure meeting him, his wife, and her parents, with whom I got into a fun talk about Michigan where we both had some roots.

The game was good too - after a horrendous first half, Mac came charging back - with no SID, the world will never know (all 5 or 10 of us that would have noticed the box), that Mac's Coleman had 7 3's in the 2nd half, and that both teams scored in the 50's in the 2nd half.  Anyway as Mac Attack noted earlier, Mac actually had 2 or 3 separate comebacks, but each time they got to within 8 or 9, Webster would make a big hoop or free throws and put it out of reach again.  Webster had a little trouble with the press, getting trapped often - a tribute to the tenacity that Mac played with in the 2nd half.

After the game, another pleasant surprise several Webster families, and a Mac family came up to me in the lobby to say hi and comment that they read these postings that we do!!!!  One lady actually was telling another couple unfamiliar with the site about how she reads it every day kind of like the newspaper...Cool  -  see guys, we gotta keep it up, be objective  - and FC, gotta keep it clean!!!

Another peice of fun was being in touch with Eureka SID and Panther at hald and after  to get those scores (EC-FC, BC-GC) -  guys, All the fans and Webster's coaching staff were very appreciative for the communication as I passed the results around in the lobby after the game.

So many good games left (hmmmm, if Maryville wins out, do they make the playoffs)  which ones to see?  Seriously, nice win for MU at LCC by 13 shows the progress that Coach  Rogers is making at MU - this is the same LCC team that has played within a point or two of several of our league leaders....

[Mac Attack]

PantherPride, I feel your pain. But lots of basketball left to be played. Little too early, as we were reminded a week or so ago, to underline any game at this point a "must" win - although, wins and losses now greatly impact those "must" win games down the road.

hopefan, I think things are going to get better for MacMurray College in the near future. Our AD has worked his rear end off to make improvements in our athletic facilities (new training room, new weight room, new sound system, nice new backdrop behind the benches, improvements to the baseball and softball fields, etc. Next year there will be even more improvements - new bleachers, rehab the locker rooms, broadcasting home and away football and basketball games, and more. A lot of work to do, which takes $$, and and that takes time and commitment. We're getting there. We brought in new trainers that have really helped. We're also bringing in a new coaching staff for most sports who will teach and coach - very important. And we will have an SID who will get the job done. MacMurray College will also be hiring a new President, and my guess is it will be someone who is committed to academic excellence and providing the resources to upgrade and fully staff our campus - from the student union, to the library, our dining services, faculty, etc. My hope is the Board of Trustees will hire a younger man or woman who will bring not only solid academic credentials to our campus, but an impressive fundraising background as well. That's what it will take, and I think the Trustees recognize that.

Most of the kids that I know that attend MacMurray like the school, like their teachers, and believe they are getting a quality education. Jacksonville isn't for everyone - but neither is St. Louis, Chicago, etc. - just depends on the comfort level of the student, and the affordability.

Back to basketball. Like hopefan, I'm very wary of Maryville - and add Blackburn to that list too. No question that the top four teams are going to have to earn it - and the tie-breaker formula is already giving me a headache. Would be nice to have a six team tournament with the top two teams getting a bye. Teams with best record would host, and then have the Final Four at a neutral site.