MBB: NESCAC

[walzy31]

I'll be watching the web cast. Thank you for the link.
Yes, Middlebury is for real.

Amherst -12 @ Wesleyan (Amherst -9 if Kaminer launches one off the glass from 30 feet at the buzzer).
Over Under: 138.0

[toooldtoplay]

Heard that Middlebury might be on the verge of a commit from a high flying 6'4" wing player from NJ.  The rich are getting richer.

[Old Guy]

Big win for Middlebury at home against a good team. Terrific first half - really good basketball, with Midd up by four (38-34) at the break. Midd ran out to a big lead early in the second half (15+) and then with about 10 minutes left, Plattsburgh put on an urgent full court man-to-man trap press that was very effective. They're quick and tough in the backcourt. With 3 minutes to go, it was a five point game

Edwards picked up his 4th foul with 9 minutes left, sat for a minute, and fouled out with three and a half minutes to play. Wholey and Davis also fouled out. 52 fouls called in the contest, the majority in the second half. Officiating did not inspire confidence (rule: you can only complain about the officiating if you win).

With Edwards out, the frosh backcourt was put to the test and overall they passed, though it was scary at times. Thompson received the game's first star (from me) for his all-round play- 15 points, 4 assists and a good-all-round game, in 34 minutes. Wolfin hit a big three to stem the tide late and Alvarez had two big free throws near the end.

Sharry was tough, playing nearly the whole game (35 minutes), 18 points (an uncharacteristic 6-15) and 12 rebounds. He's a good foul shooter and we needed him to be tonight.

Plattsburgh's Daniyan is an outstanding player (6'6"), athletic, strong, and creative (23 points).

A very good win. Plattsburgh will win a lot of games this year.

[magicman]

This is a copy of a post I did on the Top 25 talk board and another opinion of someone who is not a Middlebury fan as Old Guy is. Earlier I had posted a message about the game and thought that the Panthers would win 74-68.


Here's an update on my previous post as I just returned from the Middlebury-Plattsburgh State game. I didn't get the outcome I wanted as the Panthers won the game 81-75. I did get the margin of victory correct but the score was higher than I guessed due in part to the large number of fouls that were called in the 2nd half. Both of these teams are solid clubs and I'll go out on a limb and predict that Middlebury will win the NESCAC regular season crown and Plattsburgh will win the SUNYAC regular season title. They may get upset in their respective conference tournaments but both should be in the running for Pool C bids in their regions if that happens.

Not many teams in D3, if any, are going to field a bigger lineup than the one that the Panthers put on the floor. These guys aren't just big, they're mobile, they play solid D, run the floor well, and help each other out on defense. Offensively they have a ton of weapons and rotate the ball to find the open shooter or find the mismatches inside. All of their bigs have decent post moves and a smooth shooting touch around the basket. The 3 guard rotation of Edwards, Thompson, and Wolfin scored 10, 15, and 7 pts in that order. They teamed up for 11 assists, 8 rebounds, 4 steals, and only turned the ball over 5 times in 86 minutes of play. This team reminds me of the Amherst team of 2 years ago that went to the Final Four. I saw that Lord Jeff team play twice when they defeated Richard Stockton in the round of 16 and Brandeis in the quarterfinals and there is a lot of similarity. Ryan Sharry had a great game tonight leading the Panthers with 18 points and 12 rebounds. This kid has potential All American written all over him. Should be fun to watch for the next 2 1/2 years. Small forward Ryan Wholey also had a solid game with 13 points and 6 boards. The really  big guy, Locke, scored 7 points, 6 rebounds, 5 blocks and 2 steals. The one negative about Locke is his poor free throw shooting. He's only averaging 36% from the line and tonight he continued that trend hitting just 3 of 8 attempts. The Panthers bench was a little shorter tonight due to the closeness of the game as they couldn't really put the Cardinals away. Normally Middlebury has had 10 guys get double minutes in playing time but tonight other than the above 6 only Jamal Davis had meaningful minutes, scoring 8 points and grabbing 4 boards before fouling out in 17 minutes of action.

Plattsburgh State starting lineup was Jr. F 6'6" Errol Daniyan, Sr. F 6'4" Danny Tangney, Jr. G 6'4" Chris Ruiz, Jr. G 6'2" Steve Thomas and So. G 5'10" Ketema Brooks. Despite the size differential the Cardinals were only outrebounded 42-39. The 1st half of this game started slowly as both teams missed a number of chances but the Panthers were up by 5, 11-6 after 6 1/2 minutes of play. The Cardinals came back with a 13-3 run to grab a 19-14 advantage with 6:57 to play in the half and maintained the lead until the 3:53 mark when the Panthers retook the lead and with the score 35-34 the Panthers hit a big 3 right before the buzzer to go into the break up 38-34.
Cardinals scored the 1st 4 pts of the 2nd period to tie it up at 38 but then went cold and couldn't buy a bucket. They went scoreless over the next 6:30 while the Panthers reeled off 16 unanswered points. Middlebury extended their advantage to the games largest lead of 17 points at 57-40 with 11:11 left to play. Plattsburgh went to its' trapping full court press and gradually climbed back into the game and twice cut it to 7 pts only to have the Panthers build it back to 11 with 4:07 remaining. One last surge got the Cardinals within 5 at 74-69 with 1:44 to go but a turnover on their next possession and a Middlebury bucket made it 76-69 and the Panthers hit 5 of 8 free throws down the stretch to close out the game.
Plattsburgh's Daniyan led all scorers with 23 pts and 12 rebounds(Last year against the Panthers he scored 29). Chris Ruiz was the only other Cardinal to hit double figures with 19 pts and 6 boards. Steve Thomas added 9 pts and 7 rebounds. Plattsburgh showed a lot of heart to get back into this game. They expended an enormous amount of energy with their trap press in the last quarter of play and came up a little short on a highly ranked team's home court. If there is such a thing as a good loss, this was one. In speaking with Plattsburgh's Coach Curle earlier he stated, "I know the ramifications of the Middlebury game can have an impact on the national scene, but also want the team to know the real season starts next weekend when we travel to Buffalo for the first of 16 remaining conference games."

Regarding earlier discussion about Middlebury's lofty ranking. I can't say it's too high or too low because I haven't seen any of the other ranked teams, but this is a good basketball team and based on the quality of highly ranked teams I've seen in past years I have to believe they deserve their place in the top 10. And Plattsburgh despite the loss tonight has shown they can play with a team at this level and perhaps should merit some consideration in the national poll.               

 

[BullShark09]

Amherst -12 @ Wesleyan (Amherst -9 if Kaminer launches one off the glass from 30 feet at the buzzer).
Over Under: 138.0

I like the over/under and as far as the spread goes, I think that it will be a closer game for at least the first 35 minutes, as Wes has played Amherst close at home in recent years and has generally stayed with the Jeffs until the last 8 minutes.  Here's to hoping that my Cards won't need another Kaminer jumper to squeak out a win...

I'll be very interested to see how Meehan plays against the much quicker, but smaller guards from Wes.  As we've said before on the board, Amherst has traditionally struggled against more athletic guards.  Inside, there could be problems for Wes, as they continue to be undersized.  I think it will come down to 4 factors: who wins the battle on the boards, who shoots a better percentage from 3, how each teams' guards react to defensive pressure and which team has better conditioning for 40 minutes.

This will be a real preview for the fast approaching CAC season as both teams try to reach midseason form.

The game will have livestats for anyone looking to follow it live. http://bkatten.web.wesleyan.edu/live/xlive.htm

[lefrakenstein]

Amherst finally coming out and playing to their potential in the first half, leading Wes 47-31.

Right now the Jeffs are holding Wesleyan to under 25% shooting, so I would say they are handling the quick guards alright at least for tonight.

Holmes with 8 and 6 (including 4 of Amherst's 6 offensive rebounds) in the first half. I'm not sure how Waller starts over this kid... at this point in their career, Holmes has been more successful.

I just wish he, Bennett and Kaasila would learn to shoot a free throw. (Granny style!! Do it!!)

[BullShark09]

Wes closing the gap as the lead stands at 6 for Herst.  Wish I was at Silloway enjoying the game.

[BullShark09]

Jeffs survive the mad comeback by the Tech 79-72 caused by Amherst's 16 turnovers.  Mendell with an uncharacteristically tough night from the field hurt the Cards.  Sha goes for 26. and Wheeler goes off from 3, would have been interesting to see it in person.  Anyone at the game with analysis?

[walzy31]

Amherst -12 @ Wesleyan (Amherst -9 if Kaminer launches one off the glass from 30 feet at the buzzer).
Over Under: 138.0

Amherst 81
Wesleyan 72

Amherst -12 @ Wesleyan (Wesleyan Covers +3)
Over Under: 138.0 (Over +15)

[Hugenerd]

Middlebury stunned by Colby Sawyer tonight.  Colby Sawyer led by as many as 18 in the second half and held on for the 10 point win.

[Old Guy]

That thud you hear is Middlebury returning to earth.

Colby-Sawyer played well, Middlebury didn't (5-27 from three). In our gym. Sharry had two fouls in the first three minutes, 3 at the half and no points. Picked up #4 three minutes into the second half and fouled out with 4 minutes left. 6 points in 22 minutes.

The score was tied at the half, 33-33. I figured we'd put 'em away early in the second half. The reverse was true: four minutes in, Colby-Sawyer went on a 17-2 run to go up 18. Middlebury got it down to 8 with 5 minutes left, but got no closer. CS shot 16-20 from the line in the last 5 minutes. Midd shot 48% from the line for the game. Colby-Sawyer played with poise in the second half. Their frosh pg, 5'7" Corey Willis, was 9-10 from the line, and protected the ball. He's quick. To say Midd played a stinker takes too much away from the Chargers. People at the game said they gave Williams a real battle last week.

The only consolation for me is that my cousin Wendy's boy, Will Bardaglio, scored 15 points and played a nice all-round game for Colby-Sawyer. Now I have to entertain my relatives and make nice (they did bring over lobster from Maine). I gave Will a Middlebury sweatshirt when he was a precocious 9th grade hooper, hoping to interest him in Middlebury. Now I want it back.

Skidmore at Skidmore on Saturday.

[magicman]

According to the newly released Massey ratings the defeat of Middlebury by Colby Sawyer Thursday night will be the biggset upset in D3 hoops so far this season. The current Massey ratings (games through Jan. 4th) show UW-Superior losing to Martin Luther(MN) as the #1 upset. The difference in their ranking was 505 places. Colby-Sawyer is ranked 523 places lower than Middlebury and will be listed as the #1 least likely result when the next update comes out.

[nescac1]

After the Midd loss, Saturday's game is for the mantle of (current) top team in New England (along with MIT who now also has a strong case).  Williams seems to be playing a bit better / more consistently than Amherst right now and is at home, but all the pressure is really on the Ephs as they look to end the recent home court skid against the Jeffs.  Hopefully they don't play tight.  Meehan played 40 minutes yet again against Wesleyan. If I were the Ephs I would pressure him a bit and have Wang and Robertson look to penetrate to try to wear him down / pick up a cheap foul or two.  The Ephs also absolutely have to go inside to Big Joe and Troy, can't just be a perimeter team.  I am very curious to see Whittington v. Kaasila off the bench as due to very different styles and abilities I am not sure either can guard the other.  The Ephs have a lot of big bodies inside so if the game is close down the wire I wonder if they'd use some fouls on the Bennett / Kaasila / Holmes inside comb.  The foul shooting from that group and the lack of depth at point seem to be Amherst's two weaknesses.  As for Amherst, they are a bit bigger / stronger than the Ephs at almost every position, so I'm sure they will hit the boards hard.  I expect the Ephs to look to push the pace with their quicker perimeter guys to try to get some easy buckets as no doubt Amherst will be able to score vs. Williams.

Appropriate that my 1000th post anticipates what should be another great rivalry game ... go Ephs! 

As for Middlebury, I am surprised to hear that re: Massey.  Colby-Sawyer is not a bad team.  They lost to Williams by 13 on a night that the Ephs lit it up.  They also beat a solid Bowdoin squad.  And they seem to be THE destination of choice for players of French-Canadian ancestry, based on the names of current and past stars ...  From what I can understand they can really shoot it.  Very odd game last night.  Both teams' stars has very sub-par games.  What I expected to be Midd's weaknesses pre-season (which definitely were mitigated a bit by the surprising play of the three frosh guards) surfaced last night for the first time: lack of outside shooting and spotty foul shooting.  It seemed like a few guys had, maybe, been playing a bit above their heads in both of those departments.   Really, among the starters, none are what you'd call a pure three point bomber, and the only two reliable three point threats on the squad seem to be frosh.  Three of the guys most likely to draw fouls also struggle a bit from the line (and have in past years also) which could be a problem in close games.  Midd has to be a bit concerned that it struggled offensively against a team the Ephs hung 101 on just a few nights before ...

At the same time, despite just an abysmal shooting performance, Midd hung around for awhile thanks to its rebounding, size, and toughness.  I would think after seeing this result more teams are going to dare Midd to shoot and pack in on the inside where Midd has an advantage over virtually anyone.  Edwards had one of what I expect will be many bizarre lines for a point guard; his areas of strengths are a bit outside the usual point guard box, it seems.  Midd plays D, rebounds, and is tough inside, so I still think they will never be an easy game for anyone, even when they have off nights like this. 

[topoftheworld]

checking over the tufts box score against umass boston.  it is pretty interesting/ugly. 

tufts goes 11-12 from 3 (thats an insane 91.7%).  They shot 66.7% from the field for the game, and 73% from the ft line.

on the flip side umass boston goes 44.6% from the field, 27.3% from 3 (3-11) and 7-11 from the ft line. 

one would think this is a blow out in favor of the jumbos.  but lets look at 1 more stat.  Tufts turns the ball over 27 times!!!!! and umass boston 12.  tufts took 39 total shots compare to 74 by umass boston!!!!!!!  That explains why it was only a 1 pt win by the jumbos.

UMB almost had DOUBLE the fg attempts at tufts. 

the silver lining, tufts must have set a school record for 3pt fg record in a single game right?

[nescac1]

Article on former Eph Phil Wall and the hoops documentary he is producing:

http://www.roanoke.com/sports/college/wb/231418