MBB: NESCAC

[middhoops]

Emerson takes down another giant, defeating WPI by four in Worcester.

[amh63]

Yeah!  Had to follow the contest on stats as my computer was blocked out....wrong plug in or sorts...could before?
Anyway, it is not that WPI did not know the opponent....beat them earlier.  You would think that a quality team should "hold serve" at home.  WPI did struggle against Springfield in their last win....a 71-70 squeaker.  Conference rematches are hard it seems.  Clark recently beat Babson and jammed up the NEWMAC.  Therefore the MIT vs Springfield game is important in the setup of the conference tourny.....avoiding meeting WPI.   Learned all that info from an halftime interview on the Babson webcast with the Babson Coach....not that smart on the conference.

One open question to posters.....the Conn College team...Amherst's opponent this Friday.  The team has been flying under the radar it seems.  Looked up the team and the Camels' conference record on the plus side.  Surprised me a little.
Maybe I was on the wrong site....will recheck.  Any comments on the Camels are welcomed.

Back....was confused by going to two different sites.  Conn recently beat Bates at home and did lose to Middlebury in a score wise close game.  They also beat Colby at Colby...something we all know Amherst did not do
Tells me that Amherst must focus on its next game and NOT the Cardinals on Sat.  Will not post again until late Friday night....promise.

[7express]

They also had a 6 point win @ Coast Guard a couple days before the Springfield game, and they have a matchup @ Babson on Saturday, so they were a hanging fruit for Emerson.

[lefrakenstein]

As promised, the latest episode of The Road to Salem:

http://vimeo.com/85990062

No spoiler here: the ending is painful for any Midd fan.

Really enjoyed the video and echo everyone else's comments. For me the big questions are: does Jake Brown have a single as a freshman? Is that common at Middlebury? If so, that's fantastic. Those made to order eggs also looked pretty good. Didn't have those at Val, although I was always partial to the waffle maker.

[AncientSonOfHixon]

Lefrakenstein, back to your data for a sec--love it, and am grateful every time you crunch and publish it. THANKS. Meanwhile, anyone interested in where basketball analytics is headed--and how quickly--might enjoy a piece posted yesterday in Grantland headlined "Data Ball" http://grantland.com/features/expected-value-possession-nba-analytics/. It explains what's coming next, now that SportVU cameras are recording every player's every movement and statisticians can begin calculating each movement's value. (I'll admit I'm old enough to find this prospect alternatively thrilling and scary.) Lefraken, I'm sure you're already all over this....

[grabtherim]

As promised, the latest episode of The Road to Salem:

http://vimeo.com/85990062

No spoiler here: the ending is painful for any Midd fan.

So well done again, and yet so painful to watch.

[ECSUalum]

I like the equipment that feeds the ball back to the shooter   Do most colleges have this equipment???

[nescac1]

ECSUalum, yes -- it is called "freshmen" ...

[Bucket]

A slate of great games on tap for tonight. I'm glad that troublesome weather came through the region earlier in the week so travel shouldn't affected.

I was really sad to hear that Matt St. Amour's season has come to a premature end with a knee injury. I feel for the young man, and the team, and I believe him when he says that he'll come back better than ever.

Sending positive thoughts his way in anticipation of the rehab that awaits. 

[ECSUalum]

ECSUalum, yes -- it is called "freshmen" ...

AAAAH-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!  Great response!!!!   +1 for that

[7express]

If anyone wants to take bets tonight:

Conn College +16 @ Amherst
Over/Under 155.5

Bates +11 @ Williams
Over/Under 143

Colby +5.5 @ Middlebury
Over/Under 148.5

Tufts -2 @ Hamilton
Over/Under 144

Wesleyan +4.5 @ Trinity
Over/under 125

[Panthernation]

A couple different items up on the blog today, including a conference-power ranking, the latest Road to Salem video and a preview of tonight's Middlebury-Colby matchup, which can be read here: http://sites.middlebury.edu/panthernation/2014/02/07/still-playing-for-something/

[Pat Coleman]

ECSUalum, yes -- it is called "freshmen" ...

+1

[AmherstStudent05]

If anyone wants to take bets tonight:

Conn College +16 @ Amherst
Over/Under 155.5

Bates +11 @ Williams
Over/Under 143

Colby +5.5 @ Middlebury
Over/Under 148.5

Tufts -2 @ Hamilton
Over/Under 144

Wesleyan +4.5 @ Trinity
Over/under 125

Nice lines, 7express!  I would take Bates, and the 11 points, against Williams.  I don't expect Bates to win -- especially in Chandler, although things might be interesting if Rooke-Ley AND Epley are both out for Williams.  The reason I would take Bates is just because I expect Williams and Hamilton to get the Bobcats' best game this weekend.  Bates seemingly has too much talent to go down without a fight. 

I also like the over in the Amherst-Conn game and the under in the Midd-Colby contest.

[AmherstStudent05]

If anyone wants to take bets tonight:

Conn College +16 @ Amherst
Over/Under 155.5

Bates +11 @ Williams
Over/Under 143

Colby +5.5 @ Middlebury
Over/Under 148.5

Tufts -2 @ Hamilton
Over/Under 144

Wesleyan +4.5 @ Trinity
Over/under 125

Nice lines, 7express!  I would take Bates, and the 11 points, against Williams.  I don't expect Bates to win -- especially in Chandler, although things might be interesting if Rooke-Ley AND Epley are both out for Williams.  The reason I would take Bates is just because I expect Williams and Hamilton to get the Bobcats' best game this weekend.  Bates seemingly has too much talent to go down without a fight. 

I also like the over in the Amherst-Conn game and the under in the Midd-Colby contest.

Shows what I know!  Good thing we are not in Vegas or otherwise I may have been completely wiped out!

Congrats to the Ephs for hammering Bates (winning by 22) without the services of either Rooke-Ley or Epley. Very impressive stuff, indeed.  I was checking in on the game from time to time and it seemed like Williams was really moving the ball well and working well together as a team.  Bates, not quite as much, I am afraid.  Very surprised by what has happened to the Bobcats these past few weeks.  I expected more from them, particularly after they opened the season by beating Midd in Pepin.

Amherst handles Conn, 77-65.  After looking sharp in the first half, my Jeffs got pretty sloppy in the second.  Coach was clearly NOT happy.  God bless him!  After falling one assist shy of a triple double earlier in the week against Lasell, Toomey was 1 rebound and two assists shy tonight.  He had 27 points but also a few more turnovers tonight than usual.  Prior to tonight he was on an insane stretch where he basically wasn't turning the ball over at all, which is particularly astonishing given how much he handles the rock for Amherst.

Personally, I hate the month of February.  It really seems to agree with Joey Kizel though.