MBB: NESCAC

[P'bearfan]

All-NESCAC teams just announced.

First Team:

Ajayi
Aronowitz
Hausman
Palleschi
MSA

Second Team:

Davis
Green
Hudnut
Ogundeko
Pace

PoY: Ajayi
DPoY: Ogundeko
RoY: Simonds
CoY: Brown

First congrats to Hausman on being picked for All NESCAC first team; Congrats also to Simonds on being ROY.

Will someone please fix the typo regarding POY.....clearly that should read HAUSMAN

[P'bearfan]

With no disrespect toward Shay Ajayi, a great player, I am astounded that Hausman was bypassed.
What more could he have done?
How long may it be before anyone posts as high a ppg number?
Wow.

Exactly.....to paraphrase nescac1: so the conference thinks our best player is a guy who likely won't make any All-American team instead of a player who may very well be a first team All-American?  And we're supposed to be the "smart" conference?!

Give me a break!

[polbear73]

With no disrespect toward Shay Ajayi, a great player, I am astounded that Hausman was bypassed.
What more could he have done?
How long may it be before anyone posts as high a ppg number?
Wow.

Exactly.....to paraphrase nescac1: so the conference thinks our best player is a guy who likely won't make any All-American team instead of a player who may very well be a first team All-American?  And we're supposed to be the "smart" conference?!

Give me a break!

Amen!

[gordonmann]

Which of the Middlebury gang is headed to Stockton this weekend?

Bucket and Little Bucket plan on making the trip.

Cool. I'll be there too. I'll try to remember to wear a Detroit Tigers hat to signal which balding middle-aged white guy is me. Stop me and say hello if so inclined.

[Bucket]

Which of the Middlebury gang is headed to Stockton this weekend?

Bucket and Little Bucket plan on making the trip.

Cool. I'll be there too. I'll try to remember to wear a Detroit Tigers hat to signal which balding middle-aged white guy is me. Stop me and say hello if so inclined.

Will do!

[AmherstStudent05]

All-NESCAC teams just announced.

First Team:

Ajayi
Aronowitz
Hausman
Palleschi
MSA

Second Team:

Davis
Green
Hudnut
Ogundeko
Pace

PoY: Ajayi
DPoY: Ogundeko
RoY: Simonds
CoY: Brown

I am as surprised as others that Ajayi was the POY, not Hausman, but have no real gripes with other choices. Congratulations to Jeff Brown, richly deserved.

I was hoping that Jake Brown would find himself with a second team all-league spot. He's so important to Midd's success, with the ball in his hands so much of the time. I can't begrudge BJ Davis that spot - and he isn't really a point guard (Mackey was) - more of a 2 guard. Davis scored 16+ points a game, true, 5th in the league, but Jake's numbers were the league's best overall for pgs - 5.3 assists per game (tops in the league); nearly 3-1 assists to turnovers; 1.7 steals per game (second). He played 31 minutes a game, but I hated to see him leave the floor - he plays so hard at both ends, loves to play D harassing the other team's point guard. He's the motor, the fast motor, of the Middlebury team. He establishes and maintains the tone. In my book, he and Matt St. Amour share equally the distinction of Panther MVP.

I found the last sentence of this post particularly interesting.  It should go without saying, Old Guy, that you are WAY more informed about Midd basketball than I am or ever will be.  Still, in my mind, MSA is far and away the MVP of this Midd team.  Not even close.  In fact, outside of Hausman, I would say that no player was singularly more critical to his team's success this year than MSA has been for Midd (Aronowitz is the only other guy who even comes to mind).

As for Jake Brown, I am sure he could be one of the (many?) players whose value is only truly appreciated by those who follow the team game in and game out as opposed to those who are relying on observations from a few games and just box score results (like me).

But, as an "outsider", I have the following critiques of Brown's game (only relative to why I think he is certainly not MSA's peer and probably should not have been an All-NESCAC selection -- to be clear I am not saying he isn't a good player).  The most obvious is his shooting.  He certainly isn't a volume shooter/scorer (the box score makes that clear).  Also, in my experience, he really isn't a crunch time shooter/scorer as well (this I could be persuaded I am wrong about because I am working off of an admittedly limited sample size).  Again, a big part of why MSA is the clear MVP of Midd to me is that he wears all these hats.  He is Midd's primary scorer. He is Midd's lone, genuine three-point threat.  He is the one you are afraid of taking the big shot or big free throw in crunch time (from a non Midd perspective).

Also, my experience is that on the offensive end, Jake Brown seems to have spurts of intensity where he is highly involved and then long stretches where he is not really much of a factor (again, this may be uncharitable on my part, and, in any event, I want to contrast this with his defensive effort where he is much more constant and consistent in making his presence known).

Finally, outside of MSA, the Midd guard I was most afraid of is Daly.  But I am probably entirely biased by the unfortunate NESCAC Championship box score. 

[amh63]

Will be on the road again this Friday.  Have to catch the Amherst game online...again.  Off to see ACC WBB live in Greensboro, NC. 
The changes in the Amherst game start helps me...it is the second game on Friday...at 7:30pm.
Change made on March 2.  The change time allows me to catch some of the Amherst WBB game.
The Sat game...has a 7pm start time.  Amherst's first game is with Husson from Bangor Maine no less.
Husson has played against several NEscac teams this season.  any posters here have any comments wrt Husson.  Both possible opponents for Amherst on Sat....assumming Amherst advances...are tough ones.
Old Guy....what's on the menu Friday?

[Panthernation]

2013-14: Toomey, easy pick

Not sure we're being faithful to history calling 2013 an "easy pick" when you picked someone else.

Now that the season is officially over, after mulling it over, my all-conference picks:
POY: Workman (runners-up Mayer, Toomey, Kizell)

[WPI89]

Wow PantherNation - plus 1 for your forensic work!

Also - my compliments to all the posters here for keeping the POY discussion classy - I always try to remember that there may be a 19 year old "kid" reading these entries - and you guys have done a great job dissenting but staying positive.

[Pat Coleman]

Folks, just five more hours to enter the men's D-III bracket challenge before tonight's tipoff!
https://d3challenge.com/login/register.php

[JEFFFAN]

2013-14: Toomey, easy pick

Not sure we're being faithful to history calling 2013 an "easy pick" when you picked someone else.

Now that the season is officially over, after mulling it over, my all-conference picks:
POY: Workman (runners-up Mayer, Toomey, Kizell)

Have to back up NESCAC1 here ... if his post was February 2013, that meant that he was posting for the 2012-2013 season and not the 2013-2014 season!   Am I correct here?

[Bucket]

2013-14: Toomey, easy pick

Not sure we're being faithful to history calling 2013 an "easy pick" when you picked someone else.

Now that the season is officially over, after mulling it over, my all-conference picks:
POY: Workman (runners-up Mayer, Toomey, Kizell)

Have to back up NESCAC1 here ... if his post was February 2013, that meant that he was posting for the 2012-2013 season and not the 2013-2014 season!   Am I correct here?

Yeah, but in fairness to PantherNation, NESCAC1 wasn't breaking down each season with the fall-winter change-of-year convention. When he posted 2013-14 Toomey, I believe he meant the two seasons Toomey won the award: the 2013 season and the 2014 season.

At least that's how I interpreted it, as his list includes singular years (2011, 2012, etc) except on the occasions when a player won in back-to-back years.

[Panthernation]

2013-14: Toomey, easy pick

Not sure we're being faithful to history calling 2013 an "easy pick" when you picked someone else.

Now that the season is officially over, after mulling it over, my all-conference picks:
POY: Workman (runners-up Mayer, Toomey, Kizell)

Have to back up NESCAC1 here ... if his post was February 2013, that meant that he was posting for the 2012-2013 season and not the 2013-2014 season!   Am I correct here?

Right, you're correct that the Workman pick was for the 2012-13 season, but "2013-14: Toomey, easy pick" refers to the 2012-13 and the 2013-14 races.

Clear from context:

2015: Hausman, easy pick
2013-14: Toomey, easy pick
2012: Sharry, easy pick

[JEFFFAN]

I tried, NESCAC1 !!!!

[nescac1]

Seems I've been hoisted on my own petard.  Fair enough --I guess my memory isn't as reliable as it once was ... Still I don't recall the sort of stunned surprise when Toomey (who was only a first team all-American that year I believe) was named POTY!

On another note, we are famous!  A Bill Simmons tweet:

I'm excited for the BC-Holy Cross rivalry to make a comeback when we are both playing Div-3 in the NESCAC in ten years.

He loves to periodically poke fun at NESCAC, ignoring that Nescac is 1-0 vs. the Patriot League in recent memory !