MBB: NESCAC

[amh63]

Amherst advanced into the sweet 16 in a 20 plus victory over WPI.  Four players were in double figure points....Waller, Toomey, Barrise (who had 6 3-point shots) and Meehan.  Kaasila had 12 boards and 9 points.  Workman hit the boards but was short on points tonight as Waller hit three 3's and scored 17 plus points, I believe.  WPI, cut the 19 point Amherst half-time lead to just 10 after Amherst had built it up to 24 early in the second half.  Amherst slowly built its lead back up to 20 plus again as WPi countered with its outside shooting. mass subs. and full court pressure.  Toomey and Meehan countered with scoring drives and foul shots.  It is nice to see the conference teams advance with 20 plus wins.  Amherst shot 50 plus overall and also 50 plus from outside.  Meehan had a double double in points and assists.

[7express]

Midd up 12 at the half, 40-28, playing very well. Fast-paced game. Sharry has two threes, playing great. Wolfin too. Thompson has 0 pts but is working hard on Brooks who is so dangerous. Locke picked up two quick fouls, played sparingly. W.CT comes right at you.

Great.  So it was a faced paced game and we STILL lost by 26??

[trixiep]

Midd's D is far superior to anything you see in the LEC.  That, plus 51-30 rebounding advantage and even T.O.'s = blowout.

[amh63]

7express.....You have to understand that there are different degrees of "fast pace".  Your version maybe a run and gun, up and down the floor type fast pace, whereas Old Guy's version may be a jog in the park type.  Midd.'s game is half court offense and killer type/shut down defense.  They did hold WCSU to the low 50's.....however, when Midd scores in the 70's, I guess the Midd posters qualifies that as a fast pace game.

[7express]

7express.....You have to understand that there are different degrees of "fast pace".  Your version maybe a run and gun, up and down the floor type fast pace, whereas Old Guy's version may be a jog in the park type.  Midd.'s game is half court offense and killer type/shut down defense.  They did hold WCSU to the low 50's.....however, when Midd scores in the 70's, I guess the Midd posters qualifies that as a fast pace game.

Thats true, not sure how many Mid normally scores.  If its only in the 60's 70's, 79 points probably would be "fast paced."  Hopefully, some of the Mid fans on here were at the game can post a recap, sounds like we were never in the game after the opening tip off.  Knew the monstrosity in rebounding would come into play; when you start 4 guards your not going to be outrebounding many teams, especially a team with 2 great front court players in Locke and Sharry and a pretty good one in Davis.

[Old Guy]

The first half was fast-paced, well played. Middlebury had as good a half as I've seen this year. I would not describe Middlebury as a half-court, slow-the-pace-down team. They like to run and do so well. The first half was played at a fast pace. True.

So was the second. W.CT pushes the ball. They give their opponents opportunities for transition hoops, and Midd took advantage of their carelessness with the ball. The second half was sloppy, on both sides - 36 turnovers /game, 18 each side. There were many times when a basket or two by the Colonials would have made a difference, but they couldn't make a shot. Middlebury, as expected, cleaned the glass (51-30 rebounding edge). I was nervous at the half because I though W. CT would make a run, but they didn't. I thought on the basis of their first half play that the game would be more competitive.

Sharry was dominant- 16 points, 13 boards, four blocks. He's so consistent. Typical balance overall: Thompson, 12; Davis, 11; Wolfin, 10. Thompson played Brooks tough. A nice win - great to get past this second round. Great atmosphere in the gym, sold out: noisy, appreciative crowd.

[toad22]

I am very proud of Mike Maker and his team. They played a very good game against an excellent team. The game ball goes to Hayden Rooke-Ley. This freshman is really tough. He scored 20 points and played a great overall game when Becker went into their full court attacking defense. The tougher Becker got, the tougher Hayden got. It was fun to watch him. He made Becker pay nearly every time they attempted to pressure him. He will be a star before his career is over.

Next weekend should be fun. Amherst can't sleep on RIC, and the Virginia Wesleyan - Williams contest should be a war.

[magicman]

Bucket,
I know you weren't happy when I posted on the SUNYAC board that I thought Rochester might get the Sectional instead of Middlebury. And you know I said that because of the mileage problem and the fact that St. Mary's is over 500 miles from Middlebury, which would mean a plane trip for them. Here's a comment from Pat Coleman that was on the 2011 Division 3 NCAA Tournament Board. His comment was posted about 30 minutes after my post was written.

"St. Mary's would have to fly to Middlebury. I'm thinking Rochester gets the nod."

His comment was in regards to another poster who was predicting Middlebury would get to host. As I stated in my response to your post on the SUNYAC board: Middlebury deserves it but geography (and money) trump winning records. And I also stated that I hope I'm wrong as Midllebury is only a 90 minute ride for me.

[ephoops]

Bucket,
I know you weren't happy when I posted on the SUNYAC board that I thought Rochester might get the Sectional instead of Middlebury. And you know I said that because of the mileage problem and the fact that St. Mary's is over 500 miles from Middlebury, which would mean a plane trip for them. Here's a comment from Pat Coleman that was on the 2011 Division 3 NCAA Tournament Board. His comment was posted about 30 minutes after my post was written.

"St. Mary's would have to fly to Middlebury. I'm thinking Rochester gets the nod."

His comment was in regards to another poster who was predicting Middlebury would get to host. As I stated in my response to your post on the SUNYAC board: Middlebury deserves it but geography (and money) trump winning records. And I also stated that I hope I'm wrong as Midllebury is only a 90 minute ride for me.

IIRC, didn't one of the west coast schools host a regional finals a few years ago?  If so, three teams would have had to fly to the game.  However, this may have occured prior to the economic downturn...

[gordonmann]

I think Lewis and Clark hosted a while back.  But a team from that same conference (Whitworth) was told it was unlikely to host this year.

[Pat Coleman]

And the reason Puget Sound got to host in 2004 was because it was them, Sul Ross State (also far), Lawrence (gym deemed to small) and UW-Stevens Point (hosting women that weekend).

[amh63]

Justafan....Thanks for a fine report by someone at the game vice us online.  The broadcast from WPI was quite good....good announcers and expanded view caught a little of the atmosphere in one of the finest BB facilities in the NE, I am told.  Just some clarification with respect to Carr from WPI.  Did you see him favor his ankle?  On the Friday broadcast, the announcers stated that Carr was running well, but was taking out a bit due to the fast pace of the back and forth game.  For the Sat. game, the announcers did state that Carr was frustrated and showed it a bit.  However he seemed to be moving about well.  His problem was what you described well...Kaasila (both NH boys).  On several occasions when Kaasila got the ball down low and had his defender pined he was doubled and fouled as he turned towards the basket.  WPI would have as guard help out.  Holmes also had a good game last night, but tend to take the WPI centers outside....as well as battle for boards inside.  It seemed at times that WPI's small guards would drive and miss layups or have their shots blocked/altered.  WPI's guards did most of their damage outside.
I believe Carr was OK myself.  He was just frustrated by his ineffective play.  Once he came out on the perimeter (in the 2nd half) to play perimeter defense and knocked down Toomey .  He was taken out...it was his 4th foul?..and the announcer noted again Carr's frustration.  His movement towards Toomey seemed quick enough to me...since it was on the camera side of the floor.
Anyway, Thanks again for the report.....especially from a Williams supporter.  Missed the WPI band and cheerleaders.

[Major Hoople]

   Old Guy forgot to mention that WC played like Skidmore in the second half, very physical and much chippiness, which the refs turned a blind eye to.  Midd really executed its game plan and as usual its D was awesome. A total team effort from a group that plays like a team!

[trixiep]

And Midd gets rewarded for their #1 Eastern ranking by traveling to Rochester for the Sweet 16. Use this as motivation boys!

[nescac1]

Just a total shaft for Middlebury.  It's not like Midd is THAT much further away for St. Mary's than than Rochester ... I understand they've gotta fly one team, but why set up a regional to totally screw probably the top overall seed coming into the tourney, especially when this is their first ever chance to host a round of 16 game?  An utter travesty.  And it's not a situation like Whitworth where no matter what three teams have to fly.  And unlike Rochester, Wooster at least put up a record that makes them worth to host a section.  The Midd fans, who have been great all year, deserve to see these games in person.  

I still think Midd will make the Final Four.  They are simply the best team left in their regional and none of their three potential opponents have anyone on the inside who can deal with the physicality of the Midd big guys .... St. Mary's is probably the toughest match-up since they are experienced, athletic, deep, will pressure the ball, and they do have decent height.  Although Williams is at home, Midd can take some solace in not having to face Virginia Wesleyan and, likely, Amherst in back-to-back games to make it to the Final Four.