MBB: Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[badgerwarhawk]

You got me on that one Oldpa.  I thought you meant there would be a new head coach before the season started.  Didn't pay close enough attention I guess.

I would expect they'll have a new assistant too. 

You win some, you lose some.   

[oldpa]

BW- Kinda like you did to Ticker on the football board. 

[titan2000]

Wow, I never saw that happen on the Internet before.  Never. 

[warhawkguy]

BW- Kinda like you did to Ticker on the football board. 

"Never give a sucker an even break"....WC Fields   

[loydxmas]

If Bob does get the intrem tag for a year, who would he bring in as his top assistant.  I believe there is currently a young assistant already there (? Aaron B.), or does he go outside of the current staff?  I would like to know what everyone's thoughts are!

[titan2000]

After the Titans throttle them at Quandt,  all bets are off on the future of Coach Semling.   

Maybe some of those players from 2004/2005 (who were always whining at the refs) could be his assistants.   Then maybe Nick Bennett can get the job in 2006. 

It should be an interesting year.

[John Gleich]

Hmm... I recall two years ago in the WIAC opener at Quandt, the season favorite, River Falls, failed to score 40 points in a 56-38 drubbing... 

Don't count your chickens before they hatch, Titan.  Point has won 7 out of the last 9 meetings.

[Mr. Downtown]

I really wonder what the confidence level is for Pointer fans? Do you guys still think that Point will be able to stay in the thick of things, without Coach Bennett?

Well, I thought that Bennett was going to get the most out of his players, but under a new coach, I just don't think that will happen. Expect Point to struggle MIGHTLY this year, and perhaps have to fight there way into the conference tourney.

Also, that Pointer team was pretty darn good there Point Special when they took on River Falls. So, bad comparsion on your part. Not saying that Oshkosh is going to win by 3 touchdowns, and no way am I saying that any team will this year before anyone practices. Two things I can assure you will be true.
1)Point will be ready to protect there home court
2)Oshkosh is hungry to win at Point after last years conference tourney loss

Even though the talent level are for sure not the same, it still will be a good way to kick off the WIAC season.

[True Basketball Fan]

I haven't heard any talk about Plattteville lately, aren't they supposed be tough again this year with a good chance to defend their conference championship?  It seems like they are flying under the radar.  Does anybody have any input on Platteville?

[Mr. Downtown]

Platteville quite possibly might field the best defensive team in the conference. Though the one thing I am looking at with them is how they are going to do offensively. They could very well hold every team under 65 points a game, but can they score that many without Reitzner or Temperly?

Crawford, who has averaged around double figures in points coming off the bench will get to be a starter, and Gossens and Skemp will help out down low.

But from what I have seen with these guys, they are simply not going to be able to fill in the void of losing Reitzner and Temperly. For sure, they will have to work on the "O" during the offseason.

[Winneconne_Legend]

I am as far away from being a Point (or Jack Bennett) fan as you can possibly get, but the fact is that Point is going to struggle this year. Having Jack around wasn't going to make them a top 2 WIAC team anyway.  That being said, whoever said the Point is going to struggle to make the conference tourney is out of touch with reality.

Even without Lee, Point is better than Superior, EC, and RF, and I would still take them at Quandt over LaX and possibly WW and P'V. The only teams that have a definate amount of returning talent are Oshy, Stout, and LaX (and they need to do something with their players before they get any legit respect)

I still think that Point is a top 5 (WIAC) team, they have the best home enviroment in the WIAC, and in the words of the immortal Ric Flair..."If you wanna be the man, you gotta beat the man!!!"

[Mr. Downtown]

Winneconne

You are not making any sense here man. You don't think Whitewater is going to bring any talent back? Hello...they are going to score 75 points a night! (even though, they are probably going to give up that many..still they are going to light it up everynight).

LaCrosse has a great player down low in Joe Werner, who lead the conference in double doubles, however, they have had some very good basketball players before (Casey Taggert rings a bell) and didn't fare too well. A jump from not making to the conference tourney to fighting for the title is perhaps too big. Though, I am predicting that yes, they will make it to the conference tourney.

Though, "losing my touch in reality" with saying that I think Point is going to struggle just making the conference tourney I find humorous. I am pretty sure that everyteam in the WIAC and there coaches are quite aware of how hard it is to win at Point. So with the extra emphsis on playing a top notch game, with the combination of a Pointers team that has a talent drop off, and a new coach...Will make it very hard on Point to win at HOME, nevertheless winning on the road.

They still have the target on there backs, and yeah, i guess your Ric Flair (Whoo) quote still holds true, if you wanna be the man, you have to beat the man. Well, I must say this, three years ago the man was Oshkosh. River Falls and Point took over the next year, and Point again this past one. But Oshkosh as everyone knows has rebuilt and ready to take this conference. I guess we'll see in the WIAC opener at Point.  Though like Old School pointed out, there home court advantage is somewhat taken out by having some home conference games during winter break. And what will happen to the crowd when they notice that this team is simply nowhere as good as the team in the past two years? Im sure Pointer fans are more devoted then lets say...Oshkosh's, but still, i wouldn't be surprised if the general public loses some interest if and when this team struggles.

I guess I would like to hear from some actual Pointer fans and/or UW-Stevens Point students on this matter. Especially Old School, he seems to know what the vibe is like in Stevens Point.

And by the way, Winneconne, exactly what do Oshkosh, Stout need to do in order to gain "legit respect"?

[warhawkguy]

If Point continues to play defense as they have in the past I suspect they'll do just fine.  If they can do that, I think they'll finish in the top four and have home floor for the first round of the post-season conference tournament.

I could be mistaken but I think he's talking about LaCrosse with the respect comment, Downtown.  That's how I read it anyway.

[Winneconne_Legend]

Warhawk guy got it right...LaX is the team the "needs to earn it" comment went to ...and as far as my thought that Point will easily make the conference tourney I will point to Superior, a team with a new coach and not much returning without Floyd N-B, unless lightening strikes I will be shocked if Superior wins more than 3 or 4 games in conference.

Point (even with Semling...heck, especially with Semling) will play tenacious defense, and while yes Whitewater might score a lot, they were inconsistant at best last year, and with Scooby the only real consistant force gone, I am not going to say they will beat Point (or anyone else) consistantly. I don't know if you have ever been to a Point home game....I have been to every home arena in the league and with the possible exception of Platteville, no other school has the home court advantage that Point has. While they (without question) do not have the talent of the past, they do have a whole bunch of kids with one or two national title rings, these young men know what it takes to be champions. 

The only teams with real legit national presence this year is Oshkosh and MAYBE Stout (although they will feel a bit of a loss in losing Gardow). 
This will be a different type of a year in the WIAC....there is less returning this year than there has been in a long time, I really feel that there are two real contenders (OSH & STOUT) one pretender (LaX), 5 teams fighting around in the middle (Point, WW, PV, RF, EC) and then Superior bringing up the rear...but as it seems every year you just have to wait and see!!!

[John Gleich]

Downtown,

I'm a bit cofused by your "three years ago it was Oshkosh" remark, regarding them begin "the man" (or, "men", as it were).  If I recall, UWSP has won five of the last six conference championships over the last six seasons (their only year not hoisting the conf. champ. banner being the year they hoisted that nifty banner with the words "NCAA CHAMPIONS" written on it).  They won three years ago (and four, five, and six years ago, as well as last, like I've said) TIED with Whitewater and Point.  Point lost in a second round home game to Gustavus Adolphus, who lost in the National Championship game after leading by 8 with three minutes to go.  Did Oshkosh make a nice run?  Sure they did.  But Point was the team to beat that year, as they have been since taking the reins from Platteville as the dominant conference AND national power from Wisconsin. 

So, again, I think your comments are misguided about three years ago (and I also think that if Point had managed to get by GAC, then we could very easily be talking about the NCAA 3-peat instead of the repeat... but that's past, so I guess we'll never know).  I also think that your comments about this season are a bit off as well.  We've seen for the past 5 years a team from Whitewater that is talented and can score but 1) has a hard time defending for a whole 40 minutes 2) has faltered at the end of the year.  Sure, they won a share of two championships with Point, but they sat home in March, same as Point, both seasons.  I'm not really sure why these teams have faltered.  Perhaps it is because the individuals tend to be great (read as "better") athletes than their opponents, so they try and do everything by themselves rather than trusting in their teammates (read this one as the "NBA syndrome"... though the NBA has been recovering the last few years), but I think that Whitewater is in the same boat as LaX as being the team that "needs to earn it." 

But, seriously, in this league, talk is talk.  Whoever wins the conf title will definately "need to earn it" thought hard work and perserverance and that banner they hoist up to the rafters is one with true meaning and value.  I look forward to another great WIAC season, and as much as I love watching WIAC football, I wish that the basketball opener was this Saturday instead.