MBB: NESCAC

[toad22]

Wohl is sick, mono I think.

[frank uible]

This late in the preventative medicine game one thinks that there should have long been an effective, efficient and safe mononucleosis "shot".

[amh63]

Bucket...my wife and sister in law read your post.  Got their laughs and smiles.  Still watch your back...they were raised in the "hick"town of Easton Ct.....sort of like the "children of the corn "area.

Nescac1....clever post and you tube reference.    All the teams heading into Le Frak this upcoming weekend should watch the YouTube bit.   Maybe a few Ephs and Panther posters too!    Bucket....do not let your son watch it if you plan to bring him to a game.   Let your wife take him to the fine geology museum on campus with the Dino bones ,etc.  instead.

[jayhawk]

Tufts recruit for next year
6'8" Hunter Sabety, Oceanside Long, Island
in HS playoff game, 48 points, 20 rebounds
youtube: http://fios1news.com/longisland/node/27704

[LarryBasketball33]

Tufts recruit for next year
6'8" Hunter Sabety, Oceanside Long, Island
in HS playoff game, 48 points, 20 rebounds
youtube: http://fios1news.com/longisland/node/27704

Wow, big and tough inside.  You never know, but it looks like this is the kind of player who can make an immediate impact.  With the buzz cut and aw shucks attitude, he seems more French Lick, IN then Oceanside, NY.  No matter the outcome this weekend, I had Tufts as the 2013-14 pre season favorite, this kid sure as heck doesnt change my opinion.   

[nescac1]

It's a long time until next season, and I think Tufts will be a solid contender next year.  But hyped contenders have come and gone, and bear in mind that exactly ONE team has broken the Amherst/Williams/Midd stranglehold on the NESCAC championship ... Trinity, way back in 2008.  Sabety looks solid but will play behind Palleschi.  Tufts loses Scott Anderson, an all-NESCAC caliber player and a key offensive cog. 

Meanwhile, Williams should be better next year despite some significant losses to graduation thanks to the return of Rooke-Ley, the addition of Robinson, and the maturation of a strong Sophomore class.  Amherst still has Toomey and Kalema, and Midd still has Kizell and Jensen.  Midd, Amherst and Williams will all have the benefits of experience from NCAA games this Spring, an unlikely outcome for Tufts.  Tufts has a lot of ground to make up before they are annointed the pre-season favorite.  Let's see first if they can give Amherst a game on Saturday.

[Bucket]

Bucket...my wife and sister in law read your post.  Got their laughs and smiles.  Still watch your back...they were raised in the "hick"town of Easton Ct.....sort of like the "children of the corn "area.

Nescac1....clever post and you tube reference.    All the teams heading into Le Frak this upcoming weekend should watch the YouTube bit.   Maybe a few Ephs and Panther posters too!    Bucket....do not let your son watch it if you plan to bring him to a game.   Let your wife take him to the fine geology museum on campus with the Dino bones ,etc.  instead.

HA.

I grew up in southwestern Virginia (about 50 miles north of Salem, actually). I am fluent in hick.

[grabtherim]

It's a long time until next season, and I think Tufts will be a solid contender next year.  But hyped contenders have come and gone, and bear in mind that exactly ONE team has broken the Amherst/Williams/Midd stranglehold on the NESCAC championship ... Trinity, way back in 2008.  Sabety looks solid but will play behind Palleschi.  Tufts loses Scott Anderson, an all-NESCAC caliber player and a key offensive cog. 

Meanwhile, Williams should be better next year despite some significant losses to graduation thanks to the return of Rooke-Ley, the addition of Robinson, and the maturation of a strong Sophomore class.  Amherst still has Toomey and Kalema, and Midd still has Kizell and Jensen.  Midd, Amherst and Williams will all have the benefits of experience from NCAA games this Spring, an unlikely outcome for Tufts.  Tufts has a lot of ground to make up before they are annointed the pre-season favorite.  Let's see first if they can give Amherst a game on Saturday.

I agree, Amherst/Williams/Midd have heard this before, but assuming Sabety ends up being worthy of real minutes, couldnt you see him playing with Palleschi rather than behind him?  Great matchups this weekend.  Can't wait.     

[madzillagd]

I only went back a couple dozen pages of posts so I may be missing some potentials that were previously posted but I'll try to remember to keep track going forward. 

AMHERST RECRUITS
Jacob Nabatoff---6'8 C, Charlotte Latin HS,  Charlotte, NC
Reid Berman---  PG, New Trier, ME
Jeff Racy---6'4 G, Ridgefield HS, Ridgefield, CT

BATES RECRUITS

BOWDOIN RECRUITS

COLBY RECRUITS

CONNECTICUT COLLEGE RECRUITS
Colin Pasco---6'5 F, Suffield Academy,

HAMILTON RECRUITS
Weston Wilbur---6'4 F, Wilton HS, Wilton, CT
Alex Addesi--- 6'8 F/C, Staples HS,  Westport CT

MIDDLEBURY RECRUITS
Bryan Jones---6'1 G, Loomis Chaffee/Christian Heritage, 

TRINITY RECRUITS

TUFTS RECRUITS
Hunter Sabety---6'8 C, Oceanside HS, Oceanside, NY
Tarik Smith---- 6'0 PG, Cheshire Academy, Concord, NH
Drew Madsen--- 6'6 F, St. Augustine's HS, San Diego, CA 

WESLEYAN RECRUITS
Harry Rafferty---5'11 PG, Berwick/Phillips Exeter, Durham, NH
Joe Connelly---6'2 SG, Beaver Country Day, Boston, MA
Davis Reid---6'2 G, Phillips Exeter, Kansas City, MO

WILLIAMS RECRUITS
Duncan Robinson---6'7 F, Phillips Exeter/Governors, Newcastle, NH
Daniel Aronowitz---6'5 F, Columbus Academy, Columbus, OH
Mike Greenman--- 5'9 PG , St Augustine Prep, Linwood, NJ

[lefrakenstein]

On the recruiting front, it seems to me that Midd and Amherst have the most at stake this year, as both lose a lot from already not-super-deep teams, at least in terms of experienced players. Also, neither school wants to waste the senior season of their respective all-nescac point guards.

Amherst could really use another Toomey-level recruit for next year, but those do come around only so often.

[Charles]

I only went back a couple dozen pages of posts so I may be missing some potentials that were previously posted but I'll try to remember to keep track going forward. 

AMHERST RECRUITS
Jacob Nabatoff---6'8 C, Charlotte Latin HS,  Charlotte, NC
Reid Berman---  PG, New Trier, ME
Jeff Racy---6'4 G, Ridgefield HS, Ridgefield, CT

BATES RECRUITS

BOWDOIN RECRUITS

COLBY RECRUITS

CONNECTICUT COLLEGE RECRUITS
Colin Pasco---6'5 F, Suffield Academy,

HAMILTON RECRUITS
Weston Wilbur---6'4 F, Wilton HS, Wilton, CT
Alex Addesi--- 6'8 F/C, Staples HS,  Westport CT

MIDDLEBURY RECRUITS
Bryan Jones---6'1 G, Loomis Chaffee/Christian Heritage, 

TRINITY RECRUITS

TUFTS RECRUITS
Hunter Sabety---6'8 C, Oceanside HS, Oceanside, NY
Tarik Smith---- 6'0 PG, Cheshire Academy, Concord, NH Cheshire CT
Drew Madsen--- 6'6 F, St. Augustine's HS, San Diego, CA 

WESLEYAN RECRUITS
Harry Rafferty---5'11 PG, Berwick/Phillips Exeter, Durham, NH
Joe Connelly---6'2 SG, Beaver Country Day, Boston, MA
Davis Reid---6'2 G, Phillips Exeter, Kansas City, MO

WILLIAMS RECRUITS
Duncan Robinson---6'7 F, Phillips Exeter/Governors, Newcastle, NH
Daniel Aronowitz---6'5 F, Columbus Academy, Columbus, OH
Mike Greenman--- 5'9 PG , St Augustine Prep, Linwood, NJ

[Pat Coleman]

Charles -- a roster says the kid's hometown, not the location of the high school. Looks like Concord, N.H. is correct.

[Bucket]

On the recruiting front, it seems to me that Midd and Amherst have the most at stake this year, as both lose a lot from already not-super-deep teams, at least in terms of experienced players. Also, neither school wants to waste the senior season of their respective all-nescac point guards.

Amherst could really use another Toomey-level recruit for next year, but those do come around only so often.

Let's not overlook the fact that there is a whole lot of first-year talent already on these respective rosters, and both teams have the luxury to allow these players to become acclimated to the game, go against really good seniors in practice, and learn what it takes to compete and win. I don't know enough about the Amherst players to comment authoritatively, but from what I have seen first-hand (and heard from those who have seen more) about the Middlebury freshmen, they have an opportunity to be a very special group; do not be surprised if one or a couple of them are being talked about as all-league players when they are upperclassmen.

It's easy to forget that very good players like Michael Mayer, Peter Lynch, and James Klemm saw little, if any, time when they were freshmen. I feel confident that we will be saying the same thing about some of these guys few have heard from this year.

[JustAFan]

I agree with nescac1's comments about not annointing Tufts too soon.  The Jumbos biggest challenge this year and next is learning how to progress from good to great, and not being content with being one of the top 4 teams  in the league.  That's been a challenge for a lot of Tufts teams in the past, regardless of the sport,  but the recent success of the college's lacrosse and field hockey teams (coupled with the consistent success of its softball, women's basketball and baseball teams) seems to be raising the bar at the school and making the other athletic teams begin to aspire to be NESCAC leaders and national players.  That's quite a sea change at a school at which athletics have never been a driving force and being competitive often was considered good enough.

The next hurdle for the Tufts hoops program is learning how to win the big games. I think that's easier said than done, especially when the opponent is a Williams, Amherst and Middlebury, all of whom know how to do it, expect to do it and have done it year in and year out.  That takes a mental toughness independent of athletic ability that I am not sure the Tufts players have at this stage, but Saturday will be a great stage for them to prove me wrong.  I also think the best way to develop this toughness is to compete on this stage, so Saturday's win over Bowdoin to get them to LeFrak was an important next step for the Jumbos to take.  But until Tufts beats one of these teams in a meaningful tournament game they don't yet deserve to be in the conversation with these 3 teams notwithstanding the young talent that Coach Sheldon is assembling.

I haven't been able to find out why Folliard and Moss are not playing but the absence of Moss has resulted in a less crowded backcourt that has allowed junior point guard Oliver Cohen to emerge as the leader of this team.  This in turn has resulted in the Tufts offense becoming much more cohesive, although they still lack a go-to outside shooter at one of the guard spots.  Folliard's absence in particular hurts the Jumbos depth up front and causes them to lose some scoring punch off the bench.

You can never tell much from video clips but for what it's worth I liked what I saw on the offensive end from incoming Jumbo Drew Madsen even more than what I saw from incoming Hunter Sabety, but both will join an already crowded Tufts front line next year. The key for the Jumbos over the next 2-3 years will be the degree to which they get leadership on both ends of the court from their backcourt.

[jayhawk]

agree with all thoughts about next year to wait to see what how freshman and first year players transition next year and upperclassman develop
Recruiting is not over yet also
One of the  nice things in the NESCAC is continuing growth and emergence of players  over time who did not get the hype.
For example with Middlebury - Ryan Sharry and Peter Lynch -
For Amherst, David Kalema and Willy Workman - was not in the limelight in high school
Amherst has several first years who we have heard about with limited minutes as NESCAC1 noted, as well as players who have been hurt and may be able to play next year such as Ray Barry