MBB: Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[Andrew Wagner]

Having returned from the hellhole that is Columbus (we shan't speak of that travesty), I want to be suprised that only one team is in, but I guess I'm just used to it by now. Is there anything, short of breaking up the damn league, that can enable multiple teams to get in? I suppose there is no way to change the system so this is just random bitching (and pissed that Skoshy didn't get a nod).

And does anybody know if the Men's and Women's games will be televised anywhere? I'd like to see what I missed out on during my voyages to the tropical locales of Southfrigginbend and Columbus.

[Stout survivor]

The big stout vs point game is on mar. 12th ... patience everyone

[bulk19]

As the coach says on the front page story here, it's a tournament, not an invite... Darn. Was really hoping for two WIAC teams to get in... Oh, well. Only one can win the whole shooting match, so it may as well be our Pointers!

Do away with conference tournaments and automatic bids, let everybody in, line 'em all up like at Indy, start the engines, and see who finishes on top. A giant cage match... That would be what? Three extra rounds?

Those end-of-the-year conference tournament games could be eliminated and just become part of the Big Dance, instead. Not sure how many regions that would take, but we wouldn't have two good teams beating each other up, at the expense of the maybe the loser not making it... For example, say our #9 team plays at the #1 team in the MIAC, or something... Pointers would host a #9 team from another conference, and so on...

But I'd let the brilliant people who currently worry about the quality wins, and conference strength, and regions, and traveling/costs, and all the other math, and formulas, and doohickeys, and logistics, that they consider figure out how seedings would go and who plays whom and where...  But somehow, this whole brainstorming idea is probably shot down by the bottom line $$$, anyway....

BDShotblocker -

I seem to recall when I was in Point waiting in line to get tickets for the one of the tournament games in 2005, they were selling tickets via phone, too. Maybe one of the Pointer guys here can refresh my memory on that??

You'd need a credit card, and would have a better chance at getting in that way than standing in line... It's just a matter of being ready with the speed dial when they go on sale...

[John Gleich]

Yes, they will sell tickets over the phone again.  I, for one, plan to be there at about 6:00 the day they sell 'em.  It probably won't be necessary, because last time the other teams turned tickets back (I even know that there were some left over from Lawrence... two friends of mine bought tickets from some Lawrence people as they got off the bus).

My guess is that tickets will go on sale at 8:00 am Tuesday morning, or something like that, for the game, assuming, of course, that Point hosts.  It's basically a foregone conclusion, they've been the top seed in the regional rankings the whole year anyway.

[1 out of 38]

I guess things arent as they seem, osh in my mind deserved to be in...  bad coaching with great talent will cost you!  Miller, Dworak, Sowinski, scherer, Fernholz knew how to step up in the clutch.  Contrarry to recent comparisons, the 2007 team cant hold water to the team of 2003.  VD can be cleared up with certain creams but still cant make his players play hard!


The NCAA is wrong for not having more than one team in the WIAC (proven one of the toughest conferences in the nation) but as far as Osh, its truly sad that 4 seniors will never get a chance to ever experience the NCAA's!  But thats life and if you dont take care of business you will definately miss out on what could have been?!?!?!

[1 out of 38]

The sad thing is that when a situation like this occurs it comes down to who wants it most (candy mountain).....Charlie!!!

[Gregory Sager]

Yeah,  Amherst took a dump against Williams, a team they beat by 21 and 19 earlier in the year.  Nice job! lol.

OS, I'm as critical of the NESCAC as anyone around, and for the reasons you state. Their namby-pamby justifications for their single round-robin league scheduling don't wash with me. However, you have to cut Amherst a little slack for that upset loss to Williams. That is a massive rivalry game, perhaps the second most intense rivalry in all of D3 after Calvin/Hope, and we all know that rivalry games are in a category by themselves in which "favorite" and "underdog" take on much less meaning.

Shame about UWL and UWO. We CCIWers certainly understand your pain.

[Greek Tragedy]

OS, I'm as critical of the NESCAC as anyone around, and for the reasons you state. Their namby-pamby justifications for their single round-robin league scheduling don't wash with me. However, you have to cut Amherst a little slack for that upset loss to Williams. That is a massive rivalry game, perhaps the second most intense rivalry in all of D3 after Calvin/Hope, and we all know that rivalry games are in a category by themselves in which "favorite" and "underdog" take on much less meaning.

You know me Greg, I'm the last person you have to tell about the big Williams/Amherst rivalry, but I'm not biting on that this time.  It was a total choke job by Amherst.  Apparently they knew they were in the tourney and didn't care or something, because when you are THAT MUCH BETTER than your opponent, blow them out two other times and have them down 15-0 AT YOUR place, what else do you call that? 

If those other two games were remotely close, I might buy that "rivalry" stuff this time around, but they weren't.

[Gregory Sager]

OS, I'm as critical of the NESCAC as anyone around, and for the reasons you state. Their namby-pamby justifications for their single round-robin league scheduling don't wash with me. However, you have to cut Amherst a little slack for that upset loss to Williams. That is a massive rivalry game, perhaps the second most intense rivalry in all of D3 after Calvin/Hope, and we all know that rivalry games are in a category by themselves in which "favorite" and "underdog" take on much less meaning.

You know me Greg, I'm the last person you have to tell about the big Williams/Amherst rivalry, but I'm not biting on that this time.  It was a total choke job by Amherst.  Apparently they knew they were in the tourney and didn't care or something, because when you are THAT MUCH BETTER than your opponent, blow them out two other times and have them down 15-0 AT YOUR place, what else do you call that? 

If those other two games were remotely close, I might buy that "rivalry" stuff this time around, but they weren't.

I think we're both right. I definitely agree with you that Amherst choked, although I don't at all buy the idea that they "didn't care" because they knew that they already had a Pool C berth locked up in case they needed it. But it is a rivalry game, and strange things can happen in a rivalry game -- like the Ephs playing out of their minds in a last desperate attempt to get into the dance, f'rinstance.

[nescac1]

Hey, Williams fan here.  First, I agree that the WIAC got jobbed.  D-I could never get away with this -- imagine if the ACC got one bid and Duke and MD were left out?  Both WIAC teams should be in.   As should Elmhurst.   Williams is indeed lucky to play in the northeast, which rarely keeps deserving teams home in the postseason and often sends undeserving teams (see Gordon last year).  (although this year the only Northeast Pool C that likely couldn't compete with the non-Stevens Point WIAC teams is WPI, and their numbers make them impossible to keep out.)  Still, hard to argue that Brandeis and Keene (I know less about other regions) are MORE deserving than the two WIAC teams or Elmhurst. 

But Amherst-Williams wasn't really a choke job.  Williams is not the same team they were even mid-way through the the season.  They are a very young squad, first of all, with no seniors playing major roles and two frosh starters.  The team took off when (a) one of their two stars, Chris Rose, healed up after playing through a broken hand, (b) they inserted frosh Blake Schultz (future all regional player if not future all american) into the starting line-up with 10 games left in the regular season, and (c) their talented frosh big man started to "get it."  I don't think any Williams team has ever improved as much over the course of the season.  In their last three games, Williams beat Tufts, Trinity, and Amherst, who they had gone a combined 0-4 against earlier in the year.  Amherst is still the deeper, more experienced, and more talented team overall, but the Ephs have narrowed the gap considerably over the last few weeks, and they have a great big-game coach in Paulsen.  This weekend was more a function of the Ephs playing and shooting great (outside of the first five minutes against the 'herst) and with tremendous desire than anything else.   And also: this was the first time this group of Ephs have ever played in any game with so much importance.  So early game jitters in a  hostile, high-pressure environment were unsurprising, but once they settled down they displayed their true colors. 

[Andrew Wagner]

I know it has probably been beaten to death on this board, and is probably published on this site ... so if somebody could point me in the right direction, I'd appreciate it as I plan on doing a writeup on how the WIAC  took it deep from the NCAA ...

What are the factors used in determining selection for the D3 Tournament. I know that Pool A bids go to AQs, B goes to schools that don't have an AQ (or are Indies??) and Pool C is at large, selected nationally and not by region. I've seen a lot of quality of wins discussion and regional records, so if anything has changed in the last few years, let me know.

Danke.

[buf]

Point plays winner of St. Johns and Loras on Saturday.

[buf]

I know it has probably been beaten to death on this board, and is probably published on this site ... so if somebody could point me in the right direction, I'd appreciate it as I plan on doing a writeup on how the WIAC  took it deep from the NCAA ...

What are the factors used in determining selection for the D3 Tournament. I know that Pool A bids go to AQs, B goes to schools that don't have an AQ (or are Indies??) and Pool C is at large, selected nationally and not by region. I've seen a lot of quality of wins discussion and regional records, so if anything has changed in the last few years, let me know.

Danke.

Go to the front page and look down the column on the right to find the "Site FAQ".  Once in there click on National Tournament

[badgerwarhawk]

Some things just never change.   Good luck Pointer.

[Voice of the Titans]

I just lose faith in the selection idiots year after year. But, its a different ballgame in D3. Georgia School of Typewriter Maintenance may go 24-2 during the year and not have a conference, and they get in. While WIAC teams beat the heck out of each other all year and get punished for it. I'm sure any of the top 4 teams could get a few wins in the tournament every year, but unless 2 WIAC teams have 23+ wins, it may never happen.

If the Georgia School of Typerwriter Maintenance isn't in a conference, they'd be Pool B, not Pool C, so they wouldn't compete with La Crosse or Oshkosh. lol 

I know this. I am saying the Pool B thing is a joke. I thought that could be inferred rather easily, but I guess I had to realize I was posting on the men's board and not the women's, so things had to be spelled out better. My bad!  Either way, lots of WIAC teams have been punished over the years simply because of league parity. The ONLY way in looks like its going to be the conference tourney.