MBB: Old Dominion Athletic Conference

[ODACfan1]

.... partcularly with all of the preseason hype, including the preseason ranking.

Preseason rankings don't mean that much, really.  So much can happen to make a season better or worse, like the illness of a top performer.

A bunch of close games have been lost since Kaase's injury and my bet is that his presence might have made the difference, given that he was averaging about 16 points a game when he ACL tore:

To Shenandoah by 1 point.
To Randolph-Macon by 1 point.
To Bridgewater by 3 points.
To Emory & Henry by 8 ... in the last couple of minutes.

The Tigers have won 60% of their games, all together -- I think that's a good (though not a great) season.  With Kaase playing, maybe they'd be 16-4 instead of 12-8.

As Allsky7 has said, a great end to the season, with 3 wins in the ODAC tournament, and the Tigers will forget about the close ones they've lost.

Lets not forget that Emory and Henry was ahead by about 16 points late in that Sydney game before Sydney made a run...Playing that game at home certainly help pull the Tigers back into the game, but they did not lose it as Emory more so won the game...

[Brian Hamilton]

I still contend that the officials had an impact on that HSC - E&H game.  Those 2 phantom 5-second calls caused a potential 9 or more point swing because Emory scored 5 points on the ensuing possessions and the Tigers did not have an opportunity to score.  One man's opinion, true or not!

As far as the debate between the Tiger fans, I think I fall in the middle.  Fortunately, we have spoiled over the years with teams that have dominated the ODAC at times.  As a result we are used to having teams that win almost every game.  As sports fans, we all know that this is not a realistic expectation.  HSC was able to bring the ODAC prominence and as a result other schools were able to recruit players that they may not have been able to in the past because they played in the conference with a team that went to two Final Fours and lost the National Championship game in 20T in 1999.  Randolph-Macon and Roanoke also made appearances and assisted in creating the image of a competitive league.  All I am saying is that a team doing well in the conference makes the conference look good and can help others recruiting efforts.  Currently VWC is carrying the torch and took the next step and won the National Championship for the ODAC.  At this point, we need to hope that the conference can continue to improve and be considered one of the best in the country.  We are not there now, but hopefully we can be some day.

So, my take on the Tigers is that I am disappointed by a few of our loses (BC, Shenandoah, Macon, E&H), but I also realize that it is hard to make adjustements when your leading scorer and rebounder goes down with an injury.  For instance, what would have happened to Gonzaga last year if Adam Morrission had gotten injured.  So, while I was hoping for better, I can at least see that the team in playing hard, representing the school well, and improving.  Don't forget, guys like Medlin and Kittrell are getting some minutes that they may not have gotten if Troy did not get injured.  This may help next year. 

[tigerfanalso]

Brian Hamilton

Unfortuantely, bad officiating and the ODAC seem to go hand in hand. It has been a long time since I've seen a game where the officials did not undirectly effect the outcome. The only good news on that topic, bad calls or untimely calls are usually made both ways. The two five second calls you refer to were absolutely bad calls. You can't start the five second count after a basket until the ball is controlled by the offensive team and on those two calls the official was three seconds into the count before a Tiger even had the ball within his control.  Unbelievable !!!!

If your observation regarding the ODAC and how past successes of HSC and RMC in the NCAA's positively impacted recruiting at other ODAC schools is correct, than maybe HSC can cash in on VWC's national championship and load up with talent going forward. HSC will have to replace a lot. Edwards & Green are done after this season with Prehmus, Kasse and Murray leaving after next year. Thats a lot to replace and recruiting is going to have be top priorty.

[algernon]

Guilford defeated Hampden-Sydney, 86-72.

Virginia Wesleyan's beat EMU by about 85-57.

Bridgewater defeated Randolph-Macon, 65-63.

No score yet on the W&L at E&H game.

[and1wasp]

E&H defeats W&L 100-95

[algernon]

ODAC Basketball Standings --
               
      Team                    W    L     GB
1)   Virginia Wesleyan   14   1      --
2)   Guilford                  11   3      2.5
3)   Emory & Henry         9     6     5
4)    Randolph-Macon      8   7      6
5)   Hampden-Sydney     7   7      6.5
         Roanoke                7    7     6.5
7)   Washington & Lee     5   9     8.5
8 )   Bridgewater              4   10    9.5
9)   Lynchburg                 3    11    10.5
       Eastern Mennonite   3   11    10.5

If the Tigers win their last 4 games, they should be seeded #3 (or #4, if E&H wins the rest of their games too).  If they do poorly during the last 4 games, they could be seeded as low as #7 (or, theoretically, even lower).

It's still possible that any of 4 teams could be seeded #3.

[hasanova]

I just got home from Ragan-Brown Field House where Guilford beat Hampden-Sydney, 86-72.  The final score was a bit deceptive as the Tigers trimmed a 26-point Quaker lead to 14 in the last 5 minutes.  Both teams emptied their benches and I saw some Quakers play - and score - for the first time this season.

Two words: inside and outside.  Center Ben Strong with 22 and forward Eric Belkoski with a career high 21 on the strength of six of six 3-pointers.  When Belkoski is "on," the Quakers are really tough to defend.  Snipes was also in double figures with 11.  Strickland (7) and Sanborn (6 points/8 rebounds) also had quality minutes off the bench.   When you combine Strong and Sanborn's stats, that's 28 points and 17 rebounds at center.

The Kaase-less Tigers are a well-coached team, but the better team dominated play tonight.  Guilford led by one at 19-18, but went on a couple of big runs and were never seriously threatened.  Strong just missed a double-double with 9 rebounds, but Belkoski got his with 10 boards.  Ben also with a couple of blocks - he looked great and made some athletic moves you don't expect out of a guy that tall.

Lots of Tigers got on the board tonight, but no really break-out game.  I had King with 11 off the bench, Edwards 10, Murray 9, Trops 8, Kittrell 7, Prehmus 6, Lawton 6, Medlin 5 and Laakso 5.  At this point, HSC is a good team, but they didn't look real sharp tonight to me.  They just don't seem to have the overall superior talent I was used to seeing a few years ago.  This game, by the way, marks the first time Guilford has swept the season series from the Tigers since joining the ODAC in 1991.  That shows how the Tigers have dominated over the years.

Good luck to the Tigers the rest of the season and congratulations to the Quakers on a well-played game!  GC is now 17-3, 11-3 and HSC is 12-9, 7-7.  Guilford's 17th win is the most since the 1979-80 team won 20 and the 11 ODAC wins are the school's best.

http://www.guilford.edu/athletics/mbball/releases/2006-07/HSC2.html

[justafan02]

Without going into much detail...VWC put the smacketh down on EMU, who had no shot.  The Marlins didn't look great, but it was hard to.  EMU was terrible and I felt bad for Parkes and Sager, who both are good players, that they aren't surrounded with the talent they have been in the past.

The head coach is losing his team there.  A lot of shouting and yelling the entire game from all thirty...I mean 6 coaches on the bench.  Players were talking back to coaches and arguing with each other.  It was pretty sad...I guess attitude reflects leadership.

[sludge]

Nice game for Guilford; no suspense at the end.  Belcoski was great offensively and defensively.  Role players such as Tyler Sanborn stepped up big.

Surprisingly, Bridgewater took the D3 Championship Belt from RMC in that victory this evening.

[algernon]

Surprisingly, Bridgewater took the D3 Championship Belt from RMC in that victory this evening.

Sludge .... I'm sorry, but what do you mean when you say that?

[hasanova]

Surprisingly, Bridgewater took the D3 Championship Belt from RMC in that victory this evening.

Sludge .... I'm sorry, but what do you mean when you say that?

algernon, I should have asked this question last night, because I didn't understand it either.  sludge, what did you mean, that BC had a nice road upset over the Jackets?

[emufan]

Justafan02,

Let me tell you how proud, I am, and others are of the leadership at EMU.  You must really have no idea about EMU's coaching staff. 

For starters, all are good Christian men.

Kirby has 8 years experience as a D1 assistant coach. He has taken over a program that was always in the cellar of the ODAC, (3 wins before he came) and has turned them into competitors.  His teams have improved their win total from 3, 6, 12, and last year was 11. 

Coach Smith has won a WVA state championship and has also been named state coach of the year.

Coach Hale has also been named a state coach of the year in VA.

Coach Keyes is a former ODAC player of the year.

The only reason EMU is down this year, is because Kirby and his staff had to clean house of the players who were bringing the entire program down. I know that Coach Dean and his staff are extremely proud of the character of the freshmen they brought in this year. 

If you are some guy on the outside of a program and you see one game, DON'T make comments about someone's leadership skills.  The last time I checked, Coach Dean and his staff are coaching young men, not a 6 and under girls team.  Let them coach and you can just be a fan. 

[algernon]

Over the last 30 years, the coaches at EMU have stayed about 5-10 years.  Winning records have been rare, the last one was in 1998-99.  These are the coaches' ODAC records:

Sherman Eberly              1978-1986             8 years           49-59                  .454
Mark Fleming                   1986-1992             6 years           20-69                  .225
Tom Baker                       1992-2003             11 years         56-140                 .286
Kirby Dean                       2003-Current        4th year           21-47                  .309

[jdubyadubya]

We tend to forget, don't we, that this is DIII basketball where coaches don't get paid a lot of money and the kids play because they love the game not because it's a staging ground for the pros. We are also "up close and personal" with the teams and their benches and we hear both the frustrations and the congratulations. I feel very fortunate that my son played DIII basketball. We both learned a lot about life during his four years at VWC thanks, in large part, to the coaches and the supportive administration. 

[algernon]

We tend to forget, don't we, that this is DIII basketball where coaches don't get paid a lot of money and the kids play because they love the game not because it's a staging ground for the pros. We are also "up close and personal" with the teams and their benches and we hear both the frustrations and the congratulations. I feel very fortunate that my son played DIII basketball. We both learned a lot about life during his four years at VWC thanks, in large part, to the coaches and the supportive administration. 

Well stated!!  That's what makes it more fun, that the kids play for the love of the game, that we are able to be "up close and person" with the teams, and that the coaches are concerned about personal development as much or more than athletic development.