MBB: NESCAC

[grabtherim]

As ususal War and Peace has nothing volume wise on the Williams and Amherst analysis here.  I would read it all, but I have to work at some point.  Seriously, great points from many of you, but before the next Tolstoy like narrative, look up the word brevity. 

[amh63]

Hoops fan...things are firming up wrt to my chances to attend the Hoopsville Classic.  Sunday is out...kitchen upgrade  requires my attendance.  Sat. Is looking good...final decision will be posted on Friday.  Any changes in your plans?

[Old Guy]

Re: Williams' losses and Amherst's shaky win, I have five words - "Tom Brady New England Patriots." I submit no one is taking much for granted here, or gloating. I suspect I have company feeling that the LJs and the Ephs will be different teams when the NESCAC bell rings in a month and a half.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Hoops fan...things are firming up wrt to my chances to attend the Hoopsville Classic.  Sunday is out...kitchen upgrade  requires my attendance.  Sat. Is looking good...final decision will be posted on Friday.  Any changes in your plans?

Nope, planning to be there for all four games Saturday.  I might sneak out early if the last one isn't close (about 90 minute drive home).

[P'bearfan]

The St Joe's (Me) MBB website says that their game with Bates originally scheduled for Tuesday was postponed "due to unforeseen circumstances".  Very odd.   Do any Bates' fans have more information?

[amh63]

Scanning schedules and rosters, came up with some interesting info...for me anyway.
Hamilton...yes the forgotten team in preseason discussion...after the first CAC transfer to Div1...has reloaded.  Six freshmen....five are at least 6'5"!  There is a 6'8" front court prospect and a 6'11" center that is listed at 245 lbs.  The big man played 17 minutes in the first game...an OT win.  Amherst visits Hamilton early in their schedule.
Tonight, Johnson State of Vermont visits Williams.  On Friday, it plays Amherst in LeFrak.  Two contests I will be watching....for several reasons.
The Johnson State team has little height...but appear to be quick.  There are several players from the D.C. area that are starters.  Need I say more. 
The HBC is also of interest.  A grad of the UMass-Amherst in 2003, he is also a former Bates asst.coach.  Appears to an up and coming young coach that is familiar with the CAC.  Believe he is aware of the problems that both Amherst and Williams has had with smaller quicker teams.

[AmherstStudent05]

Thanks for the observation, amh63.  I have to say that Johnson St. is employing a very interesting OOC scheduling strategy.  Visit Chandler tonight, then go to LeFrak on Friday for a two-day tournament where Johnson St will begin by taking on the hosts.  Not a schedule I ever would have agreed to, but congrats to the Johnson St coach for embracing a challenge!

[nescac1]

Congrats to Kevin App on the first of what will hopefully be many wins as an Eph head coach.  Kind of wish the Ephs played this team in game one, because they were finally able to get into a rhythm on offense in the second half.  Now, not to get too excited -- Johnson State is very, very small, not good at all defensively, and only had one really good player on offense (Rob Hazard, who has a pretty old-school mid-range game, and could play for any NESCAC squad).  Surely the least talented opponent the Ephs will face all year.  And the one negative is that, despite a huge size advantage, the Ephs still mustered very little of an inside game.  But then again, they took what the defense gave them ...

And on to the positives ... what the defense gave them was a heck of a lot of clean looks from three, and unlike in the first two games, when he looked uncharacteristically tentative with his deep shot, Hayden was in a ridiculous unconscious zone.  The very first play of the game he hit a corner three, pure.  He hit a bunch more open corner threes before Johnson State started to finally guard him tight.  By then it was too late, and he simply could not miss ... 12-15 from three, 36 points, impressive.

Other positives for the Ephs: Daniel Aronowitz did what he does best, and needs to continue to do, which is attack the rim, both with the ball in his hands and with off-the-ball cuts. He is really the only plus finisher the Ephs have on the interior and while it's nice that he showed he can hit some jumpers in the first few games, he needs to be looking to go hard to rim whenever possible.  He had an awesome game, finishing with 19-5-5.  Congrats also to Cole Teal with his first points as an Eph -- while still clearly figuring out where to be, he had some nice moments that showed why he is so highly regarded, nailing two threes and making two acrobatic steals.  Hopefully there is more where that came from.    Dan Wohl and Mike Greenman both had solid games as both continue to play very solid floor games, although both have been hit-or-miss with the three ball so far this year.  Finally, I really like how Chris Galvin looks out there -- smooth and confident with the ball in his hands, he looks like a true point guard with good floor vision and a nice handle for a bigger guard.  He does not seem like a first year at all, and while not yet a big scorer, he has the makings of a very good glue guy who makes the guys around him better. 

Hopefully this game serves as a catalyst to get the team in a groove before the tougher games ahead. 

One more thought: besides Hayden's electric shooting performance, the highlight of the game was the Johnson State coach, whose histrionics included the classic slam-the-clipboard-while-angrily-complaining-to-the-guys-on-the-bench-about-the-guys-in-the-game maneuver.  Haven't seen that one for awhile in Chandler ...

[nescac1]

Just saw that Hayden Rooke-Ley, with 12 treys, shattered the old Eph record of 9 in one game (Tim Folan).  Williams has had some pretty ridiculous shooters over the years, in addition to Folan: Matt Hunt, Noah Clarke, Mike Nogelo, Alex Rubin, Chuck Abba, Tucker Kain, Chris Shalvoy, Chris Rose, Blake Schultz, James Wang, Taylor Epley, and Duncan Robinson all come to mind ... to sit on the top of that group, at least for a single game, is pretty darn impressive (no matter who the opponent was ...).  Especially impressive coming off an 0-8 nightmare in his prior game. 

[fanfromct]

Disturbing news from Spain. Aaron Toomey is out at least two months with a fractured skull. This was from an injury suffered at practice.
The surgery went well and he's supposed to be released from the hospital in the next few days. We wish him a speedy recovery.

http://www.baloncestofuenlabrada.com/noticias/aaron_toomey_lesion/

[amh63]

Fanfromct.....sobering news.  Thanks for it.  If you can, pass on my best wishes to family and friends.

[Bucket]

Disturbing and sobering indeed.

Wishing the very best for Aaron...

[amh63]

Hoops fan...weather permitting, planning to arrive after the start of the first game.  Planning to be wearing purple .  Planning to leave after the 2nd game...dinner with wife.  Looking forward to share game observations.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Hoops fan...weather permitting, planning to arrive after the start of the first game.  Planning to be wearing purple .  Planning to leave after the 2nd game...dinner with wife.  Looking forward to share game observations.

I'll be in my usual Eastern Nazarene College red.  We'll find each other, I'm sure.

[middhoops]

Very, very sorry to hear about Aaron Toomey's injury.  Best wishes to him and his family.