MBB: St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[Pat Coleman]

What I don't get is why MacMurray and Illinois College no longer play each other in either football or men's basketball, the two sports most likely to draw interest both within their respective student bodies and within the community in general. When you're talking about two D3 schools that coexist within the same modestly-sized rural village, it should be a no-brainer that they play each other every year in football and men's basketball in spite of the fact that they're in different conferences. The campus and community interest alone should dictate it.

The Midwest Conference has but one non-conference game. If IC were to schedule MacMurray every year it would have the same schedule every year until eternity. Or until the MWC loses a program.

[Gregory Sager]

What I don't get is why MacMurray and Illinois College no longer play each other in either football or men's basketball, the two sports most likely to draw interest both within their respective student bodies and within the community in general. When you're talking about two D3 schools that coexist within the same modestly-sized rural village, it should be a no-brainer that they play each other every year in football and men's basketball in spite of the fact that they're in different conferences. The campus and community interest alone should dictate it.

The Midwest Conference has but one non-conference game. If IC were to schedule MacMurray every year it would have the same schedule every year until eternity. Or until the MWC loses a program.

I had to look at that for a moment before I realized that you were talking about football.

For the past two years IC has played Millikin in football. The five years before that, they played Blackburn. And for at least the year prior to that, they played Westminster. It's pretty obvious that IC is restricted to scheduling a non-conference opponent within its immediate neighborhood, probably because the travel budget's already stretched with having to transport all those football players to such far-flung locales as Appleton, WI, Grinnell, IA, and De Pere, WI. So why not just make it easier on the budget and schedule MacMurray every year? It's not as though the whole "variety is the spice of life" thing is particularly exemplified by playing Blackburn or Westmo instead of MacMurray. And you'd probably draw a lot more casual fans.

Then again, if the IC football program is trying to improve itself, it makes sense to try and keep Millikin on the sked.

[Mac Attack]

Since this was so popular a couple of weeks ago, I thought I would do it again. Below are the players who show up on the SLIAC website in five or more of the 13 conference-only individual statistical categories. Players ranked in the most  categories appear first, etc. Points are assigned based on their placement within each category - i.e. a player ranked first would get one point, etc. Doesn't mean these are the "best" players, that the players are ranked in order of ability,  or those ranked lower aren't more valuable to their team than those who may be ranked higher or not ranked at all. And of course it doesn't factor in defense, leadership, effort, character, or a 94 foot effort night in and night out. It's just a snapshot of which players fall into these specific 13 categories. Nothing more and nothing less.

1. Tarpley (EC) - 8 categories, 59.5 pts
2. Whalum (MC) - 8 categories, 62 pts
3. Coleman (MC) - 8 categories, 68 pts
4. Allen (BC) - 8 categories, 79 pts
5. McComb (EC) - 8 categories, 94.5 pts
6. Hoggatt (WU) - 7 categories, 31.5 pts
7. Foggerty (FU) - 7 categories, 51.5 pts
8. White (FU) - 7 categories, 54.5 pts
9. Johnson (PU) - 7 categories, 62.5 pts
10. Greene (MC) - 7 categories, 68.5 pts
11. Hammond (BC) - 6 caegories, 22 pts
12. Robertson (MC) - 6 catgories, 30 pts
13. McCoy (FU) - 6 categories, 51 pts
14. Richard (EC) - 6 categories, 68.5 pts
15. Davis (WC) - 5 categories, 28 pts
16. Spinner (WU) - 5 categories, 35 pts
17. Simmons (GC) - 5 categories, 40 pts
18. Taylor (GC) - 5 categories, 45 pts
19. Steinke (MU) - 5 categories, 53 pts
20. Zasada (EC) - 5 categories, 53.5 pts
21. Ellis (GC) - 5 categories, 69 pts

For the players from MacMurray, the number are one game short. Not sure which SLIAC game is missing from the stats or why, but the SLIAC stat site has the Highlanders at 11-4 in conference play, instead of 12-4. The additional numbers may or may not have had an impact on each player's placement.

[Mac Attack]

Godfather - I think Westminster is going to be a real player in the league race. Wouldn't be surprised at all to see the Jays make the post-season, although Greenville is very, very difficult at home. While the Fontbonne @ Webster match-up is the marquis game Wednesday night, two others - Mac @ Blackburn and Westminster @ Maryville - certainly have significant post-season ramifications. Hard to believe that the tournament picture probably won't come into focus until the very last day of the regular season, but that looks like that will be the case. Would be interesting for everyone to go back and check their pre-season predictions. I'm pretty sure mine were Webster, Westminster, Eureka, and MacMurray.

Wonder what impact the weather will have on tomorrow night's games? Brutal driving conditions throughout central Illinois. Can't get out of the drive-way. How badly was St. Louis, Greenville, Fulton, etc. hit?

[hopefan]

nothing here in StL but rain - though supposed to turn to snow this afternoon -

Godfather, if Westmin beats Greenville, and Font beats Webster, you're in.

If Westmin beats Greenville and Greenville beats Eureka, you're in

if Westmin beats Greenville but Webster beats Font and Eureka beats Greenville, I think you're out on tiebreaker.

Westmin must beat Greenville    (barring any combination of upsets by non contenders Blackburn or Maryville, which throws out all my scenarios)

[pantherpride06]

Weather Report from Greenville, Ill.

Currently the tempature just dipped below freezing.  It is now sleeting/icing with a temp of 29.  Greenville travels to STLCOP tomorrow.  No big deal if that one is cancelled for us, but I hate for SLIAC games to be hampered bc of the weather.

[fcnews]

I noticed that in the BC game, Webster played basically only the starting five. Any reasoning behind this? Or, is Coach Bunch just going with a limited rotation, now that it's do or die time.

[BunchTime]

I noticed that too FC...2 trends that I have noticed is that the starting 5 has changed quite a bit and his substitution patterns have not stayed consistent.  Though I do not konw why this is so, I can only speculate that Bunch has found a core group of players that he feels confident in playing at this time of the year.  Hence, quite a few players playing 30+ minutes.  Perhaps, he realizes that it is go-time and saving players legs at this time of the year is unneccessary!

[fcnews]

I'd much rather lose with my best 5 on the floor and tired, then to try and play 10-12 guys equal minutes. During a heated contest, it is sometimes tough to get a sub out that your just trying to get a couple of minutes out of. It's time to go long with your best. Turk's minutes have just slowly disappeared.

[BunchTime]

Yeah, Turk's streakiness as a shooter probably ables Coach Bunch to determine what he is going to get from Turk early in a game.  Either he is hitting shots and or not hitting shots which dictates his minutes in a particular game.  Man, it would be nice to have him find a shooting streak similar to his streak in the Conference Tourney last year.  Someone like this coming off your bench could be a nice additional weapon!

[fcnews]

Bunchtime - Any chance you'll make it up for this one or SLIAC Tourney? Has the bad weather started down their today.

[BunchTime]

FC...probably not a good chance I will make it.  I wish I could.  The weather is cold, well colder than usual, but no snow in the prediction so far as I know.  My only hope is that the Gorloks make the Tourney and the committee ships them down to my neck of the woods, not likely!!

[fcnews]

Sorry to hear that. How is OCU and OCC doing in bball this year? I remember quite a few trips down to play OCC and OBU back in the Mo Bapt days.

[BunchTime]

Correct me if I am wrong FC...but I believe that this WU-FU matchup might carry more significance than any other matchup between these 2 schools.  After all, it is Senior Night, and WU is essentially playing for a Conference Championship and Fontbonne is playing for, at minimum, a bid to the Conference Tourney and at most, raising there seed in the Tourney.

[fcnews]

Bunchtime- You are correct son!!! This is probably the Biggest FU v. WU match up that I can recall. This is must win for WU's title chances and FU is not mathmatically eliminated from the title hunt ( although as Hope said it is cloudy out ). FU must win against LCC and MU to get in. Although, a win tommorrow nite would take a little pressure off the @MU game. But, this is a huge one.