MBB: NESCAC

[NEhoops]

Great run without question. Don't forget the two times that they won outright or shared the NESCAC regular season title. Which to many is considered much more of a challenge than winning the conference tournament.

The extended stretches of success from Middlebury and others continues to prove just how dominate the NESCAC really is.
 

[nescac1]

All five NESCAC teams in, and all five considered the "host" schools in first-round games, so it wasn't even close for any of them.  New England getting a LOT of love from the committee with Keene State and even Endicott making it in.  Midd looks like it is indeed likely hosting until Salem.   Williams hosting a pod I think on the other side of Midd's bracket.  Wesleyan, Tufts, and Amherst are all playing on neutral courts in their first games vs., frankly, very beatable foes.  NESCAC is positioned to do quite well if teams play to their potentials in the early rounds. 

[ECSUalum]

All five NESCAC teams in, and all five considered the "host" schools in first-round games, so it wasn't even close for any of them.  New England getting a LOT of love from the committee with Keene State and even Endicott making it in.  Midd looks like it is indeed likely hosting until Salem.   Williams hosting a pod I think on the other side of Midd's bracket.  Wesleyan, Tufts, and Amherst are all playing on neutral courts in their first games vs., frankly, very beatable foes.  NESCAC is positioned to do quite well if teams play to their potentials in the early rounds.

Great Job NESCAC!

[nescac1]

A few intriguing match-ups down the line (NOT ASSUMING THAT ANY OF THE EARLIER ROUNDS WILL BE WINS), just putting it out there for fun:

Wesleyan-Marietta in Sweet 16 rematch of the game that Wesleyan won in the fall
Amherst-Swarthmore in a battle of the nerds (has Williams or Amherst ever played Swarthmore before??) in the Sweet 16 (both have to beat damn good teams to make that happen, of course)
Babson-Tufts in the Sweet 16-- will either team be fully healthy by then? 
Amherst-Tufts in a potential Elite 8 rematch from last year, or Amherst-Babson in a rematch of this season's titanic OT duel
Midd-Endicott as Middlebury looks to avenge one of its only losses
Williams-MIT in another battle of the nerds
Williams-Midd in an Elite 8 rubber match.

Good luck to the all the NESCAC teams and hope all can win at least a round or two to represent the league well!  I put the over-under on the number of NESCAC squads in the Sweet 16 at 3. 

[NEhoops]

Great job New England – multiple bids from the NESCAC, NEWMAC, LE and CCC. Just a little common opponent insight for some of the upcoming match-ups.

Wesleyan vs. Union – Williams beat Union in NY 98-90 on 11/27

Amherst vs. Keene State – Trinity lost to Keene in NH 66-76 on 11/30; Middlebury beat Keene in VT 89-77

Tufts vs. Salem State – Middlebury beat Salem (neutral court) 82-55 on 11/18; Bates beat Salem in MA 87-78 on 1/25

Middlebury vs. Farmingdale State – Bates beat Farmingdale (neutral court) 111-88 on 12/29

Williams vs. Becker – did not play any NESCAC teams

In looking over the common opponents the NESCAC as a whole played some strong non-conference opponents, both in and out of region. The claim that the NESCAC racks up wins because they only play each league opponent once is somewhat misleading. Also, it seems foolish that Endicott and Nichols - both from the CCC - could end up playing each other in the second round.

[Cards Fan]

I must say everyone is where I imagined they would be and are all in the proper spots, NESCAC wise. Taking all 5 was probably the correct choice. I'm totally fine with Wesleyan's spot, and am just hoping for the best in the tournament. If you would've told me at the start of the season  that Wes would be playing in the NCAA's I might have laughed. My expectations weren't high for them.

Good luck to all nescac teams in the tournament!

[JEFFFAN]

A few intriguing match-ups down the line (NOT ASSUMING THAT ANY OF THE EARLIER ROUNDS WILL BE WINS), just putting it out there for fun:

Wesleyan-Marietta in Sweet 16 rematch of the game that Wesleyan won in the fall
Amherst-Swarthmore in a battle of the nerds (has Williams or Amherst ever played Swarthmore before??) in the Sweet 16 (both have to beat damn good teams to make that happen, of course)
Babson-Tufts in the Sweet 16-- will either team be fully healthy by then? 
Amherst-Tufts in a potential Elite 8 rematch from last year, or Amherst-Babson in a rematch of this season's titanic OT duel
Midd-Endicott as Middlebury looks to avenge one of its only losses
Williams-MIT in another battle of the nerds
Williams-Midd in an Elite 8 rubber match.

Good luck to the all the NESCAC teams and hope all can win at least a round or two to represent the league well!  I put the over-under on the number of NESCAC squads in the Sweet 16 at 3.

If we are discussing NESCAC and the top Centennial Conference teams and MIT, aren't all of those matchups really some degree of nerdness vs another degree of nerdness?   My guess is that is the way the rest of the sports world would look at it!

[toad22]

I'm so happy for Coach Kevin App of Williams. At age 31, in his third year as a head coach, to take his really young team to an NCAA bid is exceptional work. It hasn't been easy, but you appreciate things that much more when they are hard - right? App will have them ready to go on Friday, and I'm sure Chandler will be rocking!

[amh63]

Amherst's opponent in the first round, Keene St.plays a physical inside game.  Hard to compare with any opponent in the CAC  Saw them play ECSU for the LEC Tourny title in Williamatic. Appears the 5:30 PM game at Ramapo is not available online.  Given some thought to see live if the LJs reach the 2nd round.  Host school in the Bear Mountain area of NY is near my sons...across the Hudson.  If Amherst should meet Ramapo on Sat., HC Hixon could get a scouting report from a former Amherst player and assistant coach....Hoya73's son...who is the TCNJ HC.

[middhoops]

Having seen both Keene and Amherst play in Pepin Gym this season, the game would appear on the surface to be a physical overmatch. 
Keene is quick and physical but can't match Amherst in size or skill.
If both teams play close to their best, Keene will be in trouble. 
Having said that, of course, Keene beat us in the 2nd round last year after we'd beat them on their own court in January.  The Owls are always dangerous.
Were this game played in SW New Hampshire it might be a different story but almost no one goes into LeFrak and comes out with a W.

[AllStar]

Having seen both Keene and Amherst play in Pepin Gym this season, the game would appear on the surface to be a physical overmatch. 
Keene is quick and physical but can't match Amherst in size or skill.
If both teams play close to their best, Keene will be in trouble. 
Having said that, of course, Keene beat us in the 2nd round last year after we'd beat them on their own court in January.  The Owls are always dangerous.
Were this game played in SW New Hampshire it might be a different story but almost no one goes into LeFrak and comes out with a W.

In regards to your last sentence, the game is at Ramapo in New Jersey.

[middhoops]

Oops.
You'd think I'd get tired of that foot in my mouth.

[Old Guy]

Whoa! What's this language about Middlebury hosting until the Final Four in Salem? That's hard to do. One and done. It wasn't long ago that the Panthers had one of those powerhouse teams (2012) when we were 26-3 and got beat at home in the second round on a buzzer-beater by Scranton. We still talk about it.

It's all about expectations! We were pleased and surprised when the Panthers won the NESCACs from the fourth seed in Hartford last year, so we anticipated being pretty good this year, but better than Amherst, the preseason #1 . . . unlikely.

An early loss to Endicott, at home, after building a big lead, was hardly shocking (hey, they're pretty good, made the NCAA tourney) and then to Tufts in Medford, a close loss to a powerhouse. We played really poorly at Williams, a stinker, so nobody thought we had a juggernaut in VT.

A good team, yes, a fun team to watch, yes, an easy team to like for their effort and obvious enjoyment of one another, yes. Every win was satisfying, because it was not a sure thing: example – who thought Midd would put up 106 and 97 points in late-season wins against Amherst and then Trinity, without our senior point guard (who I felt early in the year was our one indispensible player).

Midd fans took nothing for granted. Narrow wins against Colby, the cellar-dweller, and then Bates in the quarterfinals. So every win was a joy, because it was not a sure thing. Every game was an adventure.

Extremely likable team.

Expectations. Somebody said to me that it's all "gravy" now. Nope. There are expectations now. We have a home game Friday night, and, if we win, another game the next night. Expectations are that we will advance. This is new. Pressure.

I hope, as always, that we win. Now, significant to my motivation is because I want these kids to feel great about their season and all they have accomplished to this point.

Observations:

Matt St. Amour: I thought I might go back and look at the discussion on this board from five years ago when the this terrific player from a tiny VT high school chose Middlebury (after he didn't get a basketball scholarship to the University of VT). Middlebury folks were very excited. Others on this Board were skeptical, to say the least: "a VT high school player, in NESCAC. I doubt it," was a common sentiment. Legitimate reservations. Depending on how many games Midd has left, he is going to find a place at the very top of our record book. And a student of greater character would be hard to find.

Russ Reilly: word was that Midd had a great backcourt but was green in the frontcourt and thus vulnerable there. How far have those front court players come: McCord, Majors, Tarantino, Folger. They are formidable! Those great guards get the big guards the ball – but they are where they should be, they're smart and game, and they convert. They are a force now that other teams ignore at their own risk as they game-plan. They're all back next year.

Russ was the A.D. who hired Jeff Brown, and was the head basketball coach for 19 years. He now is a volunteer assistant in charge of the big men. They are a close-knit group. Kudos to Russ!

Finally, Jeff Brown. He is a reserved self-effacing coach who is easy to overlook. He doesn't stand three feet out on the court in rolled-up shirtsleeves working the officials; he doesn't pace like he's engaged in a life and death struggle. Who can remember his last technical foul?

Yet he has had to deal with some unforeseen difficulties this year – the transfer of one of the most exciting players to come into NESCAC in recent years (who's averaging 15 and 6 for the Occidental Tigers), injuries to key players (Brown in recent games; Dahleh for the season). Yet he exudes calm – and there's no question that his players play hard and respond to his rational approach.

Sorry about the long post, I try to be more disciplined, but this has been an extremely satisfying season to be a Midd hoop fan. I thought it couldn't get better than those 2008-2013 teams: Sharry, Locke, Thompson, Wolfin, Kizel, Rudin, Davis, Wholey, Lynch, Walsh, Harris, Smith.

This team is special.

Expectations have changed.

[maineman]

Yet he has had to deal with some unforeseen difficulties this year – the transfer of one of the most exciting players to come into NESCAC in recent years (who's averaging 15 and 6 for the Occidental Tigers).

I wonder what Zach is feeling about his decision now?  Missing another chance to go to the NCAAs?

[BigMike33]

Nice to see the Old Guy recognize this special Panthers' team.

It started with back to back wins over Illinois Wesleyan (Pool C bubble) & Staten Island (NCAA) before New Year. The start of the post Zach Baines era.  My trepidation with Zach voiced earlier was that the ball stuck for a second or two too long in his hands.

The offensive efficiency from that point has been steadily improving. The second half Sunday was a clinic in will, desire & execution on offensive end not to mention the 6 plus minutes of lock-down defense on Williams to start second half.

Every player has given what has been needed at various times, an amazing team for sure.  1 thru 8.   Coach Brown has out performed his peers significantly in style, demeanor, substitutions, game coaching. How bout resting Jake Brown and enduring close games to get him 2 weeks of healing past the high ankle strain to win the NESCAC.  National Coach of the Year performance..back to back NESCAC...

So buckle up....because your future is Round 3...Williams vs. Middlebury at Pepin for right to advance to Final Four.  Neumann would be the other team to fear in this bracket. 

For my critics...  would you trade Folger for Gilmour.....  after watching Saturday & Sunday's NESCAC semis & finals.....I think not....