MBB: Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[thrunt01]

Well somethings just don't change, UWO was up 8 with 2 minutes left and 5 with 18 seconds left and managed to lose to Superior in overtime. The Jackets guards need to figure out how to pass the ball into Byrne though. Every post entry was high and wide. Also how about Superior's ability to get just lightning quick guards Dwight Hill, Trent Davis and now this Brooks guy its unreal. It will be interesting to see who comes out of the "bottom 4" to grab a WIAC tournament slot.

[Greek Tragedy]

Just sort of a ho-hum second half... not nearly as good shooting and kind of sloppy. RF had 20 turnovers and Point had 13.

Sometimes that happens when you're up 20 at the break. 

[stoutfan1]

From the Blue Devils Holiday Tournament to the game last night against Eau Claire, all I can say is they are lucky to have a bye tomorrow and hopefully get things back on track by wednesday. Their upcoming schedule doesnt allow for much error.......

[tomt4525]

Point up 24-21 at half in Eau Claire today.  Eau Claire is slowing the game down quite a bit.  Hass has hit a couple 3's, Heuer looks pretty good offensively and defensively today.  Not much else to report with a low scoring first half.

[Greek Tragedy]

Platteville hammers Superior 96-55.

Whitewater holding on 31-28 at River Falls going into intermission

La Crosse up 35-26 vs Oshkosh at the break

Stevens Point clinging to a 24-21 halftime lead at Eau Claire

[fredfalcon]

WW 68, RF 63 in o.t. I did not think it would be that close. WW  played one of their worst games, I'm sure. Darnell Harris, based on this game, is not close to a replacement of Davis. RF played one of their better games. If Zach Peterson, hampered with 4 fouls, would not have had to sit out from 11:30 left in the second half until 4:30 left, PERHAPS RF would have won, but I never really thought that would happen.

Quardell Young is WW's best player, based on this game and last year's impression. He is among the quickest/fastest in the league. He scored 15 to lead WW. Knoble had 10, all in the second half.

Zach Peterson led RF w/15 along with U.T. Udo. Taylor Peterson and David Berthene each had 10.

WW's defense, under rated, is very  tough on the perimeter, forcing RF into many t.o.'s ( I have not seen the box score yet.)

[tomt4525]

WW 68, RF 63 in o.t. I did not think it would be that close. WW  played one of their worst games, I'm sure. Darnell Harris, based on this game, is not close to a replacement of Davis. RF played one of their better games. If Zach Peterson, hampered with 4 fouls, would not have had to sit out from 11:30 left in the second half until 4:30 left, PERHAPS RF would have won, but I never really thought that would happen.

Quardell Young is WW's best player, based on this game and last year's impression. He is among the quickest/fastest in the league. He scored 15 to lead WW. Knoble had 10, all in the second half.

Zach Peterson led RF w/15 along with U.T. Udo. Taylor Peterson and David Berthene each had 10.

WW's defense, under rated, is very  tough on the perimeter, forcing RF into many t.o.'s ( I have not seen the box score yet.)

I wish I had the pleasure of still watching Jerrel Harris in a Pointer uniform....his quickness was fun to watch, and yes...Young is so tough getting to the rim with his quickness and athletic ability.

[ExBBaller40]

My weekend blog featuring WIAC games UWSP-UWEC and UW-La Crosse v. UW-Oshkosh as well as games from the MWC and NathCon http://diiihoopsblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/weekend-analysis-5-go-packers.html

[badgerwarhawk]

Davis was the national player of the year.  Expecting Harris to be his replacement is unfair to Harris.  It's unlikely that we could have gotten any recruit who would come close to that. 

As well as the WARHAWKS shot Wednesday night when they hit at a 71% clip they struggled from the field against the Falcons shooting 38%.  River Falls shot 41% and connected on two additional three-point baskets 8-6.   However the WARHAWKS went 16-21 from the charity stripe to just 7-10 for the Falcons and the WARHAWKS committed a season low 7 turnovers to 17 by the Falcons which led to a 11-4 advantage in points off of them. 

The Falcons led for most of the early going until back to back three-points from Eric Bryson and Patrick Souter put the WARHAWKS on top 12-9 around the 13 minute mark.  The WARHAWKS maintained the lead for the rest of the first half.  It grew to a high of ten points, 28-18.  However the Falcons finished the final three minutes of the half with a 10-3 run that included a buzzer beating three-pointer from Taylor Pederson. The WARHAWKS maintained a small lead until the Falcons tied it 39-39 and  later took the lead 42-41 with nine minutes played.  Bryson' basket put the WARHAWKS back on top and they held a lead that was never more than four points until the Falcons tied it at 55 with five plus minutes remaining.  Souter's basket put the WARHAWKS back on top however with two and half minutes to play Taylor Peterson's two free throws brought the Falcons to another tie, 59-59.  After that both teams turned the ball over twice and missed a pair of shots leaving them tied at the end of regulation.   The WARHAWKS opened the scoring in the overtime with a pair of free throws from Luke Knoble.  Knoble added the next points with a basket and Bryson's basket put the WARHAWKS up 65-59.  The Falcons pulled to within a pair, 65-63 however Quardell Young and Bryson combined to go 3-4 from the free throw line in game's final thirty seconds to preserve the win 68-63.

Bryson played one of the best games of his career finishing with a game high 17 points and a team high 8 rebounds.  He added a game high 4 steals and a pair of assists.  It seemed that every point he scored came at a critical time in the game.  Young finished with 14 points, a game high 8 assists and 3 steals.  Knoble, playing most of the second half with three fouls, finishes with 12 points and Souter adds 10 points and 3 assists. 

It wasn't our best game but it ended with a mark in the left column so I'll take it.  Falcons probably didn't play their best either but to their credit they played close and made runs at the end of both the first and second halves that put them in position to win.  They came up short down the stretch but it wasn't for lack of effort.  On our part it was another game in which a different player stepped up to lead the team.  Young played well but Bryson seemed to do something clutch at exactly the right moment. 

Now it's on the Platteville.  I see that they had a big game offensively at home against Superior.  It's not an easy place to play. 

 

[Greek Tragedy]

Greek's Random In-Season Power Rankings

1. Stevens Point (12-0, 5-0): Easy win at home over River Falls and then survives a "slow down" game at Zorn, both without Tyler Tillema.  Home cooking this week with two upstarts coming to Quandt.

Wed- vs. Stout
Sat- vs. La Crosse

2. Whitewater (11-2, 4-1): Escapes River Falls with an overtime win.  Odegaard out for several weeks with a broken hand.  Pack your bags this week.

Wed- at Platteville
Sat- at Superior

3. La Crosse (11-3, 4-1): Comfortable wins over home wins over Platteville and Oshkosh.  A potential trap game before a barnburner in Stevens Point coming up. 

Wed- vs. River Falls
Sat- at Stevens Point

4. Stout (11-2, 4-1): Home win vs. Eau Claire gets them prepared for a road trip.

Wed- at Stevens Point
Sat- at Oshkosh

5. Platteville (11-4, 4-2): Pioneers take out their frustration on Superior after dropping one to the Eagles.  Big game coming up before a weekend bye.

Wed- Whitewater
Sat- Bye

6. Superior (6-9, 2-4): Big overtime road win at Kolf before forgetting to show up in Platteville.  Midweek bye before hosting the Warhawks.

Wed- bye
Sat- vs. Whitewater

7. Oshkosh (6-8, 1-4): Tough home loss to the Yellowjackets and a spanking at La Crosse makes matters worse.  Home cooking this week.

Wed- vs. Eau Claire
Sat- vs. Stout

8. River Falls (5-9, 0-5): Can't much get tougher last week with a loss to Stevens Point and then taking Whitewater into overtime before eventually falling.

Wed- at La Crosse
Sat- at Eau Claire

9. Eau Claire (6-9, 0-6):  Close losses to Stout and Stevens Point give the Blugolds hope?  We'll see.

Wed- at Oshkosh
Sat- vs. River Falls

[fredfalcon]

BW--I'm not expecting Harris to replace Davis. I'm just remembering  some earlier posts from people who were gaga about his performance at Illinois Wesleyan. There were posts to the effect that he was playing below his level in Division 3. I don't think so, based on Saturday's game.

RF played one their best games against WW, but were plagued by turnovers,  some unforced, a weakness all season so far. The absence of Ollie White was also apparent, but that has allowed Peterson to blossom.

[voice]

I'm a huge fan of "rivalry games" in the WIAC. Whitewater and Platteville have had a healthy "rivalry" over the years. That basketball rivalry dates back to at least 1915.  The following incident is described in From Normal School to State University: A History of the Wisconsin State University Conference by Ronald A. Smith....

"By the Fall of 1021 Platteville and Whitewater severed relations with each other and thus joined Stevens Point and River Falls in breaking athletic relations.

After a Platteville basketball player was banished from a game for kicking a Whitewater player, the removed player  threatened the referee and following the game knocked the referee down.

The Whitewater Athletic Committee then decided to sever athletic activity with Platteville for a period of two years!!"

The early years of the WIAC were fascinating.   From Normal School to State University: A History of the Wisconsin State University Conference is a great read!!

Whitewater plays at Platteville Wednesday night!

[02 Warhawk]

I'm a huge fan of "rivalry games" in the WIAC. Whitewater and Platteville have had a healthy "rivalry" over the years. That basketball rivalry dates back to at least 1915.  The following incident is described in From Normal School to State University: A History of the Wisconsin State University Conference by Ronald A. Smith....
"By the Fall of 1021 Platteville and Whitewater severed relations with each other and thus joined Stevens Point and River Falls in breaking athletic relations.

After a Platteville basketball player was banished from a game for kicking a Whitewater player, the removed player  threatened the referee and following the game knocked the referee down.

The Whitewater Athletic Committee then decided to sever athletic activity with Platteville for a period of two years!!"

The early years of the WIAC were fascinating.   From Normal School to State University: A History of the Wisconsin State University Conference is a great read!! Whitewater plays at Platteville Wednesday night!

100% agree...Smith's dissertation on the WIAC is a great read.

My favorite part was how the whole 1920 football championship went down...great stuff!!

[02 Warhawk]

BW--I'm not expecting Harris to replace Davis. I'm just remembering  some earlier posts from people who were gaga about his performance at Illinois Wesleyan. There were posts to the effect that he was playing below his level in Division 3. I don't think so, based on Saturday's game.

I haven't seen Harris play in person, but from what I'm seeing in the box scores...D3 seems like a good fit for him.

I'm not sure if he's uncomfortable or what? He has the most shot attempts by far on the team, but is only 4th on the team in scoring.

[stoutfan1]

BW--I'm not expecting Harris to replace Davis. I'm just remembering  some earlier posts from people who were gaga about his performance at Illinois Wesleyan. There were posts to the effect that he was playing below his level in Division 3. I don't think so, based on Saturday's game.

I haven't seen Harris play in person, but from what I'm seeing in the box scores...D3 seems like a good fit for him.

I'm not sure if he's uncomfortable or what? He has the most shot attempts by far on the team, but is only 4th on the team in scoring.

Obviously Harris is only a freshman and the idea of him replacing a senior Davis or even being All- Conference is harsh. I know nothing about him as a person, but when media or gossip decides to talk a player up that was supposedly D1 potential and struggles against D3 competition night after night you are going to get criticism.

I mentioned in ealrier posts, after I watched Stout play Whitewater, my thoughts about Harris based on previous box scores and his performance in that game. Selfish and lazy were the words I used. I havent seen any other Whitewater games, but from box scores, live stats, and other posts he seems to be continuing his trend. I dont know what the reasoning may be why he is performing below expectations, but to his credit, he has 3 1/2 years to reach it.