MBB: NESCAC

[FormerPolarBear]

nescac1: "As for Bowdoin, hard to know how good they are.  Other than a narrow win over Colby, they have beaten no one who would have given any of the top-tier NESCAC teams (which I would say, this year, are Amherst, Williams, Midd and Trinity) a game, in all likelihood.   But wins are wins.  If they can beat Williams at home, they are likely for real.  We will see on Friday."
                                                                                                                                                                                         I agree with you that if they beat Williams they are for real.  However I disagree with the fact that none of the teams they have beaten would have given any of the top tier NESCAC teams a game.  Although you did not include Tufts in the top tier, I would argue that they are a top-tier team; with that said, Bowdoin beat UMF by almost 40, whereas Tufts struggled to win and actually had to play from behind most of the game.  I realize I may be knit-picking, but I just wanted to provide one example to help strenghten the idea that Bowdoin is for real.  

[fpc85]

This conversation has been pretty bizarre.  I've never seen a fan underestimate his team more than FPC (he's even trumped Senator in this regard),

thank you... i tried. he is a tough person to beat.

who claimed it was a major surprise that Amherst beat Elms(!), and Williams at home, 

well given the rants about the ephs since last february i thought i would agree with them. it was interesting to see the eph fans back off from the obnoxious comments of last winter. they didn't appear as confident this time around and maybe they should have given the great win last year. i wonder why? could it be they knew deep within that the jeffs are still the better team even without the '07 class. i give them credit for the win last year but i think this year will tell if that win was an anomaly.

  Pierce is a superstar and Weitzen is tough to handle on offense (although on defense, he has a lot of trouble with the quicker guys he is often forced to guard due to his height), but Tufts doesn't have the overall depth or talent of Amherst. 

superstar? what would pierce average if he were a jeff? how much would any of the bigs for amherst average if they were in a similar situation as pierce at tufts?

Weitzen- the jeffs wil gladly let him focus on offense.

Nescac 1,
I couldn't agree with you more - FCP, your undermining of Amherst is almost comical to the extent that it comes off as sarcasm.

sarcasm
1.   harsh or bitter derision or irony.
2.   a sharply ironical taunt; sneering or cutting remark.

you choose i like them both.

[nescac1]

Wow, FPC, that was quite a lot of posts devoted to sarcasm, all in support of a phantom point against a bogeyman ... I am not sure what "rants" you are referring to (other than a few posts enjoying a win last year over a clearly more talented Amherst team, after Amherst fans had mercilessly ridiculed the on and off court abilities of Williams players and coaches for two years), but I can't think of a single Williams fan who ever claimed that the Ephs are more talented than Amherst or should be favored against them (at least not this year, once the class of 08 graduates, may be a different story) ... only that the talent gap had narrowed considerably since last year and we should now expect close games.   But I am glad your sarcasm makes you feel better about those imagined rants from Williams fans.   Bizarre. 

[nescac hoops]

FCP, just a "sample" of what obnoxious posts from last year looked like....

Wow.  This board's been quieter than Paulsen's recruiting phone lately. 

man, nescac hoops, you're a kill joy. Let us have some fun with a blow out. I'm sorry the Ephs could only beat the woe-begone Cal Tech team by 20, but let us have some fun with our 30 point blow outs. Its also worth mentioning that Elms has been to the NCAAs each of the last two seasons. Can anyone in your league say that?

Shalvoy is the worst  2+ year starting point guard I have ever watched in the Nescac. Watching him truly pains me. He singlehandedly confirmed for me that Paulsen, though a solid coach, doesn't have a clue when it comes to recruiting. I'm not sure Shalvoy could take this forum's aging posters off the dribble.
Williams is BAD. Top to bottom (save for Rose) they are just straight out bad. Paulsen is aging quickly and needs to learn how to recruit if he wants to get back to the top of the NESCAC. He looks distressed and dissheveled.

Bluesky must be new. It's sweet that he has such devotion to his Ephs, but his naivity will be destroyed quickly among this group of realists. I guess you missed the memo Bluesky, Williams is terrible. Nescac Hoops, catch this guy up on reality...

Nescac Hoops, your posts are degenerating faster than Williams' hoops program.  Go dunk on an old man.
Bluesky, you might be the worst poster of all time.  Paulsen can't recruit, and just because you post it, doesn't make it so.  Seriously, you have three posts, and not one of them even comes close to being worth the time it took me to read them.  Have you read this forum before?  I'd love to have insight into the thought process that made you think you have something substantial to contribute to the conversation.

The welcome was mine Bluesky and you're welcome. While my ball-playing days are far behind me, I still am clearly more knowledgable than you as you continue to support Williams' talent. Since Paulsen took the reigns that program has steadily spiraled downwards.

More archival material, nescac hoops.    I figure there's a thesis out there just waiting to be written.  In fact, I have a few title suggestions for anyone up to the task:

"The Rise and Fall of the Williams Hoops Empire"
"Dr. Paulsen or: How I Learned to Stop Recruiting and Love the Springfield Victories"
"When We Were Kings: Before we lost four in a row)"
"Gone in 60 Seconds" - I've seen boulders fall faster...
"Lack of Failure to Launch" - Thus far it sounds as if they've chucked shots as anything that looked like a rim and net...
"Lemony Paulsen's: A Series of Unfortunate Events" - They're called losses...
"The Williams Inadequacy" - Lack of talent + lack of location + resting on laurels = ...
"Don't Be A Menace to Williamstown While Drinking Eph Milk in the Middle of the NESCAC Standings" - I just couldn't help myself...
"Remember the Titans: We Miss you Crotty and Coffin"
Phi Beta What?!!!

[/quote]

[Agent_Zero]

fpc, pierce is the 13th leading scorer in the nation. im gonna go out on a limb and say he could find a way to put the ball in the hoop no matter where he went to school, be that amherst or somewhere else.

[fpc85]

not questioning his ability to score....my question is would his average be the similar if he attended amherst?

[La Verdad]

I think FPC makes a good point.  There is no chance Pierce scores that much at Amherst.  Pierce has taken over 200 shots thus far.  The Amherst leader?  Walters at 98.  Put Walters and Jones (next highest at 90) together and they still don't reach Pierce's shot totals.  Nobody is sayin the kid can't play, but I think it's a valid to argue that his numbers would be down at Amherst. 

[Bluesky]

Nescac Hoops-I enjoyed the silence from Friar T and the Historian after the great run Williams had last season.  Thanks for the reminder of my warm welcome to the board.

[La Verdad]

Nescac Hoops-I enjoyed the silence from Friar T and the Historian after the great run Williams had last season.  Thanks for the reminder of my warm welcome to the board.

Did you happen to catch the run Amherst made?  Perhaps not as impressive as Williams', but good nonetheless. 

[Bluesky]

Amherst had a great run and was a great team. They deserved to win the whole thing!

My point? The Amherst experts had buried Paulsen and Williams. The team had no talent, Paulsen couldn't recruit, etc.  That's what we heard. Their season ended well too. Don't you think?

[nescac hoops]

Nescac Hoops-I enjoyed the silence from Friar T and the Historian after the great run Williams had last season.  Thanks for the reminder of my warm welcome to the board.

Bluesky,

"I'd love to have insight into the thought process that made you think you have something substantial to contribute to the conversation" remains one of my all time favorite quotes.

[Agent_Zero]

agreed, pierce's numbers wouldnt be as high as amherst. i just misunderstood one of the previous posts, thought it was being implied that pierce was more a product of just being at tufts as opposed to being a good player. but yes, he wouldnt get nearly the opportunity to produce at amherst.

[fpc85]

agreed, pierce's numbers wouldnt be as high as amherst. i just misunderstood one of the previous posts, thought it was being implied that pierce was more a product of just being at tufts as opposed to being a good player. but yes, he wouldnt get nearly the opportunity to produce at amherst.

pierce is very good...i have a ton of respect for his game...i just think that it is debatable about him being better than the jeff bigs.

[walzy31]

I must be slipping if I didn't make it in Nescac Hoops quote-fest of Amherst fans taking shots at Williams, dating all the way back to December of 2006.

Regarding Pierce: I am sure Hixon wouldn't mind having him on the squad (or the starting lineup), but at Amherst (and I hope almost all schools are like this) we wouldn't trade Don Quinn for Jon Pierce (Williams Fans: I think that DQ is the Amherst equivalent to "Will Cuntz," who was brought up earlier this year). And yes, his numbers would be somewhat lower, but that debate has been going on since Vietnam so there is no sense getting into it.

[Bluesky]

nescac hoops-yes indeed,  that was a great one.  I miss The Historian and his arrogance!  I love it when a guy who probably never dribbled a basketball in his life talks trash.