MBB: NESCAC

[nescac1]

And another for Williams:

https://twitter.com/HoyaCoachG/status/279592857537478656

Scott Greenman played hoops for Princeton, future Eph point guard Mike Greenman is his little brother.  Greenman is one of the top players in South Jersey, and although small for the college game, he is listed as a player to watch in NJ, which is impressive given the hoops talent in that state:  http://www.nj.com/hssports/blog/boysbasketball/index.ssf/2012/12/boys_basketball_players_to_watch_2012-13.html

So, here is the list of reported ED NESCAC players (most gleaned from NERR).  Williams in particular seems to have a strong incoming class, but of course, there will be a ton of players not on this list (especially guys from outside of New England), so who really knows ...

Williams:
6'7 F Duncan Robinson
6'5 G/F Dan Aronowitz
5'8 PG Mike Greenman

Amherst:
PG Reid Berman
6'4 SG Jeff Racy

Hamilton:
6'8 C/F Alex Addesi

Wesleyan:
6'2 SG Joe Connelly
6'0 G Harry Rafferty

[Old Guy]

Brian Hamm, Midd.'02 head BB coach at Amherst   Did you teach him at Midd.? amh63

Indeed. Taught him everything he knows. His presence at Amherst has me in the strange position of cheering for the Jeffs (except when he plays his alma mater). Only in baseball though.

[JustAFan]

Some film of future Williams point guard Michael Greenman here. Very encouraging if you're an Eph fan.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wsma9GQD82I

[frank uible]

Color me skeptical, even cynical, but my experience tells me that more often than not college basketball players who admit that they stand 5'8'' are actually less than 5'7".

[toad22]

I met Michael Greenman. He is a small basketball player. However, he has been small his whole life. He has learned to play in the body he has. He is a very good PG as well as a fantastic shooter. I like his chances of becoming a superior D3 player. One thing about people always doubting you is that you become very determined to succeed --- this kid is determined.

[madzillagd]

If there's one thing to take away from this post, it's that I'm extremely bored on the basketball front at the moment.  So bored in fact, that I'm posting about player heights. 

A quick look at the roster and there's only 4 teams currently without a <6' player on their roster: Williams, Midd, Tufts, Conn.  Greenman's presence on the Williams roster will be the exception to what is otherwise a very tall team on average by position. 

This year the current rotation by position has been

PG - 6'3, 6'5
SG - 6'3, 6'6
F - 6'6, 6'5
F - 6'4, 6'7
C - 6'9, 6'7

Any speed Williams lacks on defense versus smaller, quicker guards they've been able to make up for in height so far this year.  The remaining players that haven't hit the rotation yet are 6'1, 6'2, 6'3 and 6'10.  Although that 6'2 happens to be my nephew who is taller than I am and I'm 6'3 so I'm guessing he grows an inch or two by next year's roster posting  . 

Obviously a long way off but next year's starters with Ley coming back could look something like... 6'1, 6'6, 6'6, 6'4, 6'9.  That's a pretty big line up to be able to throw out there especially with so many teams starting guards and forwards that are 6'3 and less. 

Also, height doesn't seem to be a limitation when it comes to success in the NESCAC.  If you look at NESCAC1's projected First Team you have players at 5'11, 6'0, and 6'1 on there.  Not exactly giants. 

[frank uible]

Forgive me - with respect to prospective athletes and most other things in life, I'm from Missouri by nature, training and experience.

[toad22]

Frank, Your skepticism is not unreasonable.

[pick and roll]

Frank is spot on - so many of these kids are over hyped with their video sports resumes and then they show up and reality sets in their rookie year.  I will say that Aaron Toomey is one recent kid who lived up to the hype right from day one.

[toad22]

I guess I'm bored too. So, I'll say that I went to watch Duncan Robinson, a future (2013-2014) Eph play the other night. The game, vs Taft was a semi-blowout, so it was tough to see really serious action, but generally, I'd say that Robinson is a super talent for our level. He is tall (6'7"), graceful, he plays like a PG, and shoots the lights out. At the D3 level he will be very good, good enough that he is likely to be in the games late, when it really counts, as a first year.

Also playing, was Harry Rafferty, committed to Wesleyan for next year. He is also a fine player, and will likely be a multi-year starter at Wes.

Merry Christmas to all, and a happy New Year!

[amh63]

Old Guy.......Not trying to get you to the Amherst website...but, there is a short feature on the Amherst website on Ken Howard '66 in regards to his course last semester that may interest you.  Saw him briefly with his wife leaving a recent Amherst home game.
Anyway, I believe you can "take" him in a one on one game.  The story was also featured in info to the alumni.

[nescac1]

Luther and Williams headed to OT.  Very back-and-forth game.  Williams took an early lead as James Klemm was red hot from 3, hit his first five, but Luther worked its way back into the game, and then just was absolutely on fire from 3, hitting many tough, deep, shots, to take a five point lead.  Then Williams had a great run, seeming to take control of the game, going up 7 late, but the Ephs lost their composure just a bit down the stretch, and Luther had a gritty comeback.  OT should be interesting.   Teams seem very evenly matched. 

[nescac1]

Excellent win for Williams coming off the break.   Ephs controlled the OT to win by six.

For Williams, it was the Taylor Epley show.  No one on the squad looked particularly sharp coming off the long layoff, other than Epley, who continues his stellar streak of play (he's been the best guy on the team over the past few games, by a wide margin).  Played all 45 minutes, scored 26 on 8-12 shooting, did it all, scoring off cuts, drives, great post moves, and long threes.  Whenever the Ephs desperately needed a bucket, he came up big.  He gets the game ball by a country mile. 

Mike Mayer had a tough game going against what I imagine will be the best defensive center he'll see all year.  Luther's center was long, athletic, and could jump, and Mayer looked really discombobulated in the second half, and didn't even really seem to be fighting to get the ball on offense.  To his credit, he came out more aggressively in the OT, scoring two big buckets versus the opposing big guy, and played solid D inside.  He finished with a respectable 14-4, but I think he'll chalk this one up as a learning experience. 

Nate Robertson had a nice all-around floor game, with 8 points, 7 assists, and 6 boards, but he did force a few plays and had more turnovers than usual.  Klemm had 17, but again, almost all of that was very early in the game.  Dan Wohl, playing in front of a vocal crowd of home-town supporters, may have been pressing just a bit out there, but had a few good moments on both ends. 

Off the bench for Williams, John Weinheimer and Sean Hoffmann both provides big sparks, playing together on the unit that made the big second half run to swing a 5 point deficit to a 7 point lead.  They both had a lot of energy on both ends, and Hoffmann sparked the team with a big dunk.  Both contributed more than the stat lines would indicate, and Weinheimer continues his fine play as a sixth man who can create, score off cuts to the basket, rebound and defend. 

Williams played pretty solid on defense overall, I thought.  Luther is very, very organized, and exploited Williams when the Ephs played zone.  Williams played them very tough in man-to-man, with most of Luther's scoring coming either from their big man off drives from others, or of three point shots, many of the deep and/or contested variety.  Williams did lose three point shooters a few times, but really clamped down as the game went on.  Luther didn't really have offensive stars but played very well as a unit and really moved well without the ball, until they wore down a bit late. 

Luther also adjusted well on defense, really closing out hard on three point shooters after Klemm's early explosion.  Williams smartly made them pay for that, as they drew FOUR fouls on three pointers, at least three of which were blatant, and I'm not sure I've ever seen that before in a game.  Luther's discipline also prevented the Ephs from getting ANY easy opportunities in transition.  I'm surprised that Luther already has four losses, but they have played a tough schedule, including three games vs. WIAC teams. 

A great start to the second portion of the year for Williams, as I don't think they will face (a) a better coached / more organized team on offense or (b) a team with a better big man than Luther put out there in NESCAC play.

[Panthernation]

Midd takes on RPI at home at 3pm tomorrow. RPI is the team that Ryan Sharry scored 41 against last season (19-23 FG). That game was tied pretty late, finished 123-111. They run a Grinnell-like offense (can anyone verify this?), they play 17 guys for 8+ mpg, score a lot, give up a lot.

Here are two posts from the blog from a few days ago:

First Third Summary (Statistical Leaders, Awards): http://blogs.middlebury.edu/panthernation/2012/12/19/mens-basketball-first-third-summary-and-thoughts-heading-forward/

Five Burning Questions Heading into the New Year: http://blogs.middlebury.edu/panthernation/2012/12/26/five-big-questions-heading-into-the-new-year/ (text below)

1. What does 8-0 mean?
The Panthers' record means a better start, standings-wise, than every other team in the NESCAC and every team that was ranked above Middlebury in the pre-season Top 25, but anything less than 8-0 would have been cause for concern, so it doesn't mean a lot (half of the team's wins have been by single digits, and none have been against ranked opponents). In many of the early games, the Panthers looked shaky, but still in control. At times and for stretches they brought their A game, and looked elite at those times. In the second half of the most recent game vs. Skidmore, for example, we saw them pull away behind their trademark combination of hard defense (4 FGM) and efficient offense (46% FG, 50% 3FG). The question is whether that level of play is another gear everybody can kick into when the game is in jeopardy (Midd was losing 26-19 toward the end of the first half in that game), or a spark that comes and goes irregularly. If it is the former, 8-0 means things are going right; if it is the latter, 8-0 means things just haven't lined up to go wrong yet, but that they will when the schedule tightens up.

2. Can Peter Lynch sustain his scoring numbers?
The senior captain, who averaged 9.8 points per game last season, has put up 17.3 per game on 69% shooting thus far this year, a stat-line even more impressive considering his 2-point no-show on opening night. He has taken over a bigger share of the points lost from Ryan Sharry's departure than anybody expected, and if he continues to play at this level, with everyone else a year better, Middlebury might be better this year than last. Yet none of Middlebury's early opponents had a true quality big man defender and Pete is an undersized (6'6″) post player who might struggle against longer, athletic defenders. Thus, it seems unreasonable not to expect his numbers to regress, because his production is limited by his size, and that will be the biggest noticeable variable in January/February. Last season, Pete actually improved his field goal percentage (up to 71%) in conference play, but he was the benefactor of Sharry-focused opponents down low. This year, he will be the go-to man in many half court sets, and we will find out just how much his game has improved.

3. When is Dylan Sinnickson returning?
The 6'5″ sophomore forward broke his arm in practice in November and was projected for a January return. We have seen him around campus and at practices, cast-less but dribbling/shooting with his left hand. Last season, the ultra-athletic Sinnickson averaged 5.7 points in 11.4 minutes per game, and we had been projecting him in a sixth man role for this season before the injury. Now, the front court is very crowded with the increased minutes of Jack Roberts, James Jensen, and Hunter Merryman alongside Lynch, and Sinnickson will have to find his game quickly to earn back his role. A quick return might be the only way he works his into the big game rotation given how many quality reserves Midd boasts and how soon they will be shortening the bench. There are nine games in January (plus one yet to be played at the end of December), but it is the last two (at Williams, vs. Keene State) when he will be needed most (because of the front courts those opponents boast).

4. How do you manage difference between starting lineup and best lineup?
Sophomore Jack Roberts is the starting center but he is probably the 7th or 8th best player on the team, behind both Merryman and Jensen. Currently, both of those reserves are averaging slightly more minutes per game (18.5 and 21.1, respectively) than Roberts (17.0), but Sinnickson's return will complicate that situation. If Roberts drops down below 15 minutes per game, it will be interesting to see whether Jeff Brown keeps him in the starting rotation. Jack is the only conventional center of the group, and at 6'8″, is the best down low defender on the team, but the smaller guys are all more dynamic and complete players, so Coach Brown might try one out in the starting lineup. From this perspective, the best move is to keep Roberts starting because of the increased number of quality big opponents on the horizon and the need for his defense.

5. Is backcourt depth a concern?
Middlebury has the best starting guards in the conference in Joey Kizel, Jake Wolfin, and Nolan Thompson. However, after that, it is unclear whether the back court can hold up. Junior Nate Bulluck (10 mpg, 4.1 ppg, 37% FG) is talented and athletic but his tendency to put his head down and force shots is incongruent with this team's playing style. Sophomore Dean Brierly (9 mpg, 2.4 ppg, 37% FG) plays smart but his scoring ability is not yet where it needs to be. Freshman Henry Pendergast (7 mpg, 2.2 ppg, 50% FG) is electric at times but too inconsistent (and too big of a liability at the free throw line) to trust with a regular spot in the rotation. Sophomore Albert Nascimento (3 games, 8 mpg, 6.3 ppg, 50% FG) has improved his game but is turnover-prone and shot-happy, a bad combination for a role player on a deep and efficient team. Right now, none of the four inspire confidence, but each is serviceable, and the group probably compares well to many NESCAC supporting casts (hard to say from an outsider's perspective this early in the season). However, unless one player steps up (which wouldn't be surprising), the lack of depth will leave the Panthers ill-equipped for foul trouble or injuries down the road.

[frank uible]

It appears that both of youse guys were stopped up over the holiday, consequently have taken an overdose of lingual laxative and now are afflicted with a bad case of verborrhea.