MBB: NESCAC

[nescac hoops]

formerbant,
i didn't see that one coming last year when trinity won on amherst's home court. however, a man by the name of tyler rhoten also had 28 pts. that game. he is no longer there. that's not to say that clarke or martin are not capable of having such a performance, but they both will need to have a rhoten-esque performance for the bants to win. i'm just saying if the jeffs win this weekend, i would make my hotel reservations for amherst for the nescac tourny.

[toad22]

After having watched Amherst play twice this week, I am going to make a few comments about the likelihood of them going deep into the tournament, but first a quick comment about my Ephs. Williams desperately needs a big man who can score down low. That would make all the difference for them. Unfortunately, we'll need to wait until at least next year for one or more of our young big men to emerge. Weisbrot is plagued with back problems, so it falls to the young guys to step in. So far, Joe Geoghegan has done pretty well including 13 bounds vs the jeffs over the weekend. He is way ahead of where Ben Coffin was in his first year. As for Amherst, they are really very good. The senior leadership of McLaughlin, Wheeler and O'shea and Salerno was the difference in both the Babson and Williams game. They should go deep into the tourney. With the exception of Rochester and Bates, nobody in the NE or East regions has the tools to deal with the Jeffs. Babson, however, did reveal a major weakness in their defense; the quick Babson guards penetrated at will. Because Babson had no big men at all it had no effect on the final outcome, but down the line it could be a problem for them.

[The Historian]

nescac hoops, I applaud your recent posts.  Some cogent thoughts devoid of any personal attacks.  But you do have to be a little more careful with your attributions.  The coffee shop story was mine.  I'm sure Pat is cringing at the thought of someone confusing the two of us.

For weeks you've been putting words into my mouth.  Now you're taking them out.  I'm not sure if that's progress or not...

Also, just as an aside, I think the coffee shop story was slightly more of a metaphor than an analogy.

As for basketball, word on the street is that O'Shea's finger is not broken, just sprained.  Remains to see if he'll be playing this weekend or not.  Here's hoping for a speedy recovery.

[formerbant10]

Amherst graduated more points from that game than Trinity did.  So it's not fair to count Trinity out just because Rhoten is gone.

This Trinity has only 1 loss so far, as opposed to 3 at this point last year.  

This Trinity as a team is averaging more points this year than last.

Crown 'em

[YoungSnukes]

O'shea, MY FINGERS HURT!

[Pat Coleman]

I've been told that O'Shea should play against Bates.

Saw Amherst tonight and Wheeler was the only player that impressed me. I do understand that this was not the representative Amherst lineup, however.

[Old Guy]

Very much looking forward to this weekend's games at Middlebury (Colby, Bowdoin). Middlebury has enough talent to win some NESCAC games, especially at home. They're a bit like Bates from 4-5 years ago: talented but unaccustomed to winning in the league.

Middlebury has won seven in a row, mostly against weak teams. Their best win was before Christmas on the road at Hamilton, a come-from-behind 86-84 win. I wish they had been tested in a couple of tough games recently, going into NESCAC play. They can score (87 ppg), but we'll see if they can stop a good team from scoring.

Soph Aaron Smith has developed into a rugged, reliable big man (6'6"): 12 ppg; 693 FG%; 7 rpg. Makes few mistakes. Nice player. All business. We'll see how he does against Cohen.

It would be great if Middlebury could become a factor, great for me (I've been here a long time), good for the league. There could be a lively atmosphere in the gym this weekend - the hockey team is away (Colby, Bowdoin).

[formerbant10]

Saw Hamilton play tonite, they beat Hobart easily....but Hobart looked pretty terrible.  The Middlebury win at Hamilton is good, but I don't think it says much as to how they will do in the conference.

[nescac hoops]

historian,
sorry, i forgot pat's was "the apprentice" metaphor and you rightfully mocked/corrected him with the coffee shop analogy. either way, well done historian. that was the stupidest post i've ever seen by the administer...there goes my karma points.

formerbant,
trust me, i would like nothing more than to see amherst taken down by an "underdog" - as an eph, any loss for amherst is always a win for williams and as a college sports fan, there is nothing more exciting than seeing an upset. however, i really just don't see it happening if it doesn't happen this weekend. that's all i'm saying. i do think the bants have a shot, albeit a smaller shot than bates, but even if they do win i don't see the bants being able to go undefeated and ulitimately, i still think the nescac tourny will be in amherst. no disrespect to the bants or the rest of the conference, it is simply MY opinion having seen both trinity and amherst play this season. i hope they can prove me wrong.

[mrmike88]

Amherst 76, Wesleyan 52.  Again it was close at the half and then the Lord Jeffs went on a run to put it away in the second.

After reading the game report, looks like Dan Wheeler finally had his big game.  20 points and 8 rebounds, including 4-of-6 from 3-point land.  At one stretch in the 2nd half, Amherst got 3 points on six consecutive possessions (5 on trey balls and one Andrew Olson old-fashioned three-point play).  Absent were O'Shea and Adolphe, but McLaughlin did play.

[Pat Coleman]

historian,
sorry, i forgot pat's was "the apprentice" metaphor and you rightfully mocked/corrected him with the coffee shop analogy. either way, well done historian. that was the stupidest post i've ever seen by the administer...there goes my karma points.

I have never referenced the apprentice, nor would I want to. If you want to mock me, try not to make something up. Thanks.

[Ralph Turner]

historian,
sorry, i forgot pat's was "the apprentice" metaphor and you rightfully mocked/corrected him with the coffee shop analogy. either way, well done historian. that was the stupidest post i've ever seen by the administer...there goes my karma points.

Reviewing the board to see how #2 Amherst is doing, and I am interested to see how Amherst and Bates do this weekend.

That was I whom you were mocking, not Pat.  I won't smite you.

[walzy31]

More from the Wes/Amh game:

Fluff:
Dan Wheeler was shooting it well.
I miss Blake Curry.
Peter Glidden is a better fan section than the entire Williams gym.
Pat Coleman in the house and I can confidently say that Amherst will not be receiving his first place vote on his top 25 pole unless we finish as national champion or until he catches another game.
24 pt win. I thought it would be 27...Tech-ni-cal-it-T

Albertus Magnus women's team is the best team in the CAC.

[JeffRookie2]

'that was the stupidest post i've ever seen by the administer' stupidest?,  administer?

I guess 40 grand a year doesn't buy you much in Williamstown.

[Pat Coleman]

More from the Wes/Amh game:

Fluff:
Dan Wheeler was shooting it well.
I miss Blake Curry.
Peter Glidden is a better fan section than the entire Williams gym.
Pat Coleman in the house and I can confidently say that Amherst will not be receiving his first place vote on his top 25 pole unless we finish as national champion or until he catches another game.
24 pt win. I thought it would be 27...Tech-ni-cal-it-T

Albertus Magnus women's team is the best team in the CAC.

I won't rule it out. I know one night isn't always an overriding factor. But yeah, this game didn't exactly make me feel I was underrating Amherst.