MBB: Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[chmarx]

Good luck to both of you.

[BDshotblocker]

Hello all from the middle east!!!!!  It is insanely hot here!!!

I was in Bahrain for five days, just got to Doha Qatar yesterday and fly to Iran on Wednesday!!

Gardow is an assisstent coach for Eddie on the Qatar National Team and has been over here for around 8 weeks.  When the other coach got the hook, Al Rayyan offered him the chance to finish out the season.  Rayyan had lost 5 out of 6 games and the team was in disarey.  Last week in Bahrain during the GCC (Gulf Coast Coutries) champoinship, Gardow lead them to  a 5-0 record and the champoinship!!!

http://www.asia-basket.com/team.asp?Cntry=QAT&Team=2687
This is the only link I can find for right now, still has the old coach on there, but I will try to find a better one.
http://www.asia-basket.com/
Ok, this one has more information

The GCC only allows one international player and Rayyan allready had one.  But the Asia Cup allows two which gives me a chance to make my Professional career debut.

It's a crazy basketball enviroment that resemble a soccer game more than a basketball game.  Drums, airhorns, and whistles a common.  The only time you stop play is when the refs run right in the middle of the court.

I do look forward to someday seeing grass again  , but injoying the middle east right now

[stoutguy]

Jake.  I am taking your brother out for beer this week.  Sorry you ended up so far away.

[Stout survivor]

Jake.  I am taking your brother out for beer this week.  Sorry you ended up so far away.

I'm not but if stoutguy wants to buy you one I will take one for the team and drink it for you and send you a pic.


I know what your thinking ........ and

Your welcome

[LAXGUY]

Another Joe Werner update...this one is of coach McCarthy talking about him.  It's about a page down.

http://www.packers.com/news/stories/2007/05/06/1/

[Stout survivor]

quote from the packer website ... answer from the head coach.

(What did you think of Joe Werner, the converted basketball player?)
I thought Joe did a nice job. He came in here and competed. Obviously it was very new for him. I think we all expected that. He's extremely athletic. He's got a long road ahead of him, but I liked a lot of things that you saw from him. A man that big running routes, particularly the basic cross and the vertical routes, he's a big target running down through there and has excellent body control. So he's definitely intriguing in the passing game, but it's all very new to him.


It all sounds nice and I hope that they continue to work with him at least for the summer but it is a tough league to get into.

Go Joe (could i get some tickets)

[chmarx]

I wish him well, but it doesn't sound like the Pack is all that interested.

[Stout survivor]

I wish him well, but it doesn't sound like the Pack is all that interested.

i agree. what i meant by "it all sounds nice" is that is sounds political. He was talking to mostly wisconsin media about a wisconsin guy that has the size but has played ball for the past few years.  The coach is saying the right stuff but time will tell if he really means it.

[BDB]

Here's an article on John and Jake:

http://www.leadertelegram.com/localsports.asp

Click on "Stout's Globetrotters."

[titan2000]

I wish him well, but it doesn't sound like the Pack is all that interested.

i agree. what i meant by "it all sounds nice" is that is sounds political. He was talking to mostly wisconsin media about a wisconsin guy that has the size but has played ball for the past few years.  The coach is saying the right stuff but time will tell if he really means it.

I have a meeting with Mike McCarthy later this week, I'll ask him about this and report back to you. 

[badgerwarhawk]

The PACKERS did not offer Joe Werner a contract. 

scroll down to final paragraph.....http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=603060

It would seem unlikely that any other club would at this point so I'd expect Joe's future is in roundball.  Good luck to him whatever he does.

[stoutguy]

Hey, BDShotblocker, we had beers with your brother last night.  Had a great time.  Did we miss you.  Well, let's just say we had the ladies dancing on the bar.  If you think I am making this up, check with your brother.

[chmarx]

My guess is that Joe will give up sports as a profession and get on with his life.

He has already started his MBA.

[billys]

My guess is that Joe will give up sports as a profession and get on with his life.

He has already started his MBA.

I agree chmarx ... I don't think he's going to go "chasing the dream." He could definitely go overseas and get paid but he's getting married this summer and I just think he'll move onto the real world. HOWEVER ... if the NBDL does happen to move into La Crosse as is being discussed and there's a way for him to get on that team ... that might be something he'd consider. I know it's not the same as the CBA but the Bobcats threw a couple Wisconsin guys a bone (Jon Bryant, Sam Okey) the last time they were in town. Finding a spot for Joe would definitely help their attendance because of how well liked he has been by La Crosse basketball fans.

[John Gleich]

It's interesting that the NBDL is thinking about moving a team to LaX.  Up until this year, attendance had left something to be desired at most LaX games, but I guess the fans did really show that they could come out in force at times (the Eagles drew an average of 681 fans per game, just 6 fans away from 4th in the WIAC behind Oshkosh).

I wonder if a team such as the NBDL would take away from any attention given to Coach Koelbl's team, or if it would help to ADD attention (bringing basketball more to the forefront)...

Interestingly, the Eagles DID draw the best away from home, drawing more fans on the road than at home.  Interestingly, this was also the case with Eau Claire, Oshkosh, River Falls, Superior, AND Whitewater (in other words, all but the top 3 schools in attendance, Point, Stout, and Platte).

I don't know if there's any significance there at all...  It would seem obvious that the school who is lowest in attendance would draw better away than at home (8 opposion gyms with better attendance vs 1 at home with worse), but it intrigues me that the bottom 6 were all this way, and by more than 200 fans in every case but Whitewater and Superior.

Perhaps it is the disparity between the top 3 and the others (#3 Platteville averaged over 200 fans more than Oshkosh at #4... Point averaged almost 1000 most per game) was because the top three did draw as much as they did.  Point will remain in the top 6 in the country in attendance, and 1100 should be good enough for Stout to remain in the top 25, if not higher.  But maybe it is just because the bottom of the league didn't compete the way they have in the past.  While Point's record was the best since the 80's, this may have been due to the rest of the league being down, which, in turn, can draw down attendance.

The NCAA stats haven't been put out yet for 2007 attendance, but I expect Hope to be #1, Calvin #2, Wooster #3, IWU #4 from something I looked at towards the end of the season.  The WIAC has ranked in the top three in recent years, this should probably remain again, but who knows?