MBB: NESCAC

[ContinentalDomer]

Matt lived out his dream . . . he made it happen.  Whatever was unclear (or unavailable to him) in terms of Div I basketball fit became clear two years into his Hamilton career.  He took a risk as a walk-on, earned a free ride, showed leadership as a captain in the middle of a program that was under fire, and made the most of his opportunity. 

It's pretty clear that any number of kids in the NESCAC (and elsewhere in D3) fall on the line between D1 and D3.  Most choose the route of academics and going to schools where they know that they will play and, perhaps, play a starring role. 

Matt didn't leave Hamilton because of any enmity for the school or the basketball program.  He simply had a deep desire to give it a shot at the highest level; he wasn't looking for shoe company money or a Lavar Ball marketing scheme.  Matt Hart found success and deserves to be congratulated, just like Duncan Robinson and Hunter Sabety.

The "dark"/sad view to the Hart story, from my viewpoint, is why a player after two years of play with conference recognition ...would make a move up a level or two.  To get offers, bites from Div 1 schools, one has to make it known that one wants to transfer...like a video of your highlights cited on this board earlier.  Unhappy with Hamilton?...Money matters to attend college in general?  Sad situation, IMO.  It is not based on any thoughts to go professional, considering his abilities presently.

The final chapter has been written on Matt Hart's transfer to George Washington University. It was neither a dark or sad story. Hart was in the George Washington rotation from the first game of his red shirt junior season, playing on scholarship his two eligible seasons. He played in all 73 games over 2 seasons, making 8 starts. GW won 48 of those games. Matt was team Co Captain his senior season. Hart played and scored in two Atlantic 10 Tournaments, The College Hall of Fame Tournament in Kansas City, scoring 17 points vs UGA, The College Basketball Invitational Tournament and The National Invitational Tournament. GW won the 2016 NIT with its' school record setting 28th victory. Matt contributed 5 points, 2 rebounds and an assist in the championship game, playing on the world's biggest basketball stage at Madison Square Garden. To commemorate the victory Matt has an NIT championship ring, an NIT watch and many ESPN highlights. Matt played 822 minutes over two seasons scoring 290 points. He also had 87 rebounds, 43 assists and 20 steals. Matt scored 55 three-point goals over two seasons shooting 42.3% on 130 attempts. Matt had a two-season EFG of 54% and TS of 57%. All of those shooting statistics were higher in A10 conference play. He led the team both seasons in free throw percentage, converting 88%. Matt scored his 1000th career point his junior season at Duquesne. Finally, in an added bonus, GW made a 10-day trip to Japan in August 2016 playing a four game tour of the country. Three of the four games were played against the Japanese national team. In a pre cursor of Matt's ability to compete professionally overseas he scored 40 points during the trip.

[Old Guy]

Article on Amherst recruit:

http://sportstown.post-gazette.com/avonworth/65027-durable-day-commits-to-amherst-college

Chose Amherst over Fairmont State (WVA)? Sounds like a terrific football player.

[Old Guy]

Matt lived out his dream . . . he made it happen.  Whatever was unclear (or unavailable to him) in terms of Div I basketball fit became clear two years into his Hamilton career.  He took a risk as a walk-on, earned a free ride, showed leadership as a captain in the middle of a program that was under fire, and made the most of his opportunity. 

It's pretty clear that any number of kids in the NESCAC (and elsewhere in D3) fall on the line between D1 and D3.  Most choose the route of academics and going to schools where they know that they will play and, perhaps, play a starring role. 

Matt didn't leave Hamilton because of any enmity for the school or the basketball program.  He simply had a deep desire to give it a shot at the highest level; he wasn't looking for shoe company money or a Lavar Ball marketing scheme.  Matt Hart found success and deserves to be congratulated, just like Duncan Robinson and Hunter Sabety.

The "dark"/sad view to the Hart story, from my viewpoint, is why a player after two years of play with conference recognition ...would make a move up a level or two.  To get offers, bites from Div 1 schools, one has to make it known that one wants to transfer...like a video of your highlights cited on this board earlier.  Unhappy with Hamilton?...Money matters to attend college in general?  Sad situation, IMO.  It is not based on any thoughts to go professional, considering his abilities presently.

The final chapter has been written on Matt Hart's transfer to George Washington University. It was neither a dark or sad story. Hart was in the George Washington rotation from the first game of his red shirt junior season, playing on scholarship his two eligible seasons. He played in all 73 games over 2 seasons, making 8 starts. GW won 48 of those games. Matt was team Co Captain his senior season. Hart played and scored in two Atlantic 10 Tournaments, The College Hall of Fame Tournament in Kansas City, scoring 17 points vs UGA, The College Basketball Invitational Tournament and The National Invitational Tournament. GW won the 2016 NIT with its' school record setting 28th victory. Matt contributed 5 points, 2 rebounds and an assist in the championship game, playing on the world's biggest basketball stage at Madison Square Garden. To commemorate the victory Matt has an NIT championship ring, an NIT watch and many ESPN highlights. Matt played 822 minutes over two seasons scoring 290 points. He also had 87 rebounds, 43 assists and 20 steals. Matt scored 55 three-point goals over two seasons shooting 42.3% on 130 attempts. Matt had a two-season EFG of 54% and TS of 57%. All of those shooting statistics were higher in A10 conference play. He led the team both seasons in free throw percentage, converting 88%. Matt scored his 1000th career point his junior season at Duquesne. Finally, in an added bonus, GW made a 10-day trip to Japan in August 2016 playing a four game tour of the country. Three of the four games were played against the Japanese national team. In a pre cursor of Matt's ability to compete professionally overseas he scored 40 points during the trip.

I am quite sure the vast majority of NESCAC fans understood Hart's choice, wished him well, and congratulate him now for his accomplishments at the D1 level.

[Vandy74]

Article on Amherst recruit:

http://sportstown.post-gazette.com/avonworth/65027-durable-day-commits-to-amherst-college

Chose Amherst over Fairmont State (WVA)? Sounds like a terrific football player.

Fairmont State plays for the DII Championship tomorrow.

[Old Guy]

Article on Amherst recruit:

http://sportstown.post-gazette.com/avonworth/65027-durable-day-commits-to-amherst-college

Chose Amherst over Fairmont State (WVA)? Sounds like a terrific football player.

Fairmont State plays for the DII Championship tomorrow.

Thanks a lot, Vandy. Another example of too soon you get old; too late you get smart. The lesson here is to do your homework (Fairmont State - 34-2) before applying wiseass innuendo. 

[amh63]

Agree with Old Guy wrt football talent...based on his senior year stats.  On the football board, an Amherst poster suggested a possibility of a two- sport student- athlete.   Poster played both sports at a high level...captain in both sports with a National Title ring in basketball.

[nescac1]

Another Amherst recruit:

https://twitter.com/griffingerwig/status/845367751598358530

[amh63]

Thanks Nescac1.  Where due you find this info?  Looks like a wing player in HS that will go inside for RBs.  A 6'6" player that scores in double figures and has double figures in rebounds. 
Vandy74....was watching MBB on CBS this afternoon and see the start of the D2 title game.  Left to go to the UConn WBB game.

[jayhawk]

Highlights of Garrett Day, players never miss in these youtube highlights
He does have a nice stroke. two sports players who play quaterback often make good point guards
averaged I think 8 assists per game
Time will tell

http://www.hudl.com/profile/3622131/garrett-day

[amh63]

Some random thoughts wrt the Class of 21 MBB recruits mentioned to date.  Garrett Day is from the Pittsburg area.  Saw in the videos...football ones...that he played a school where a present Amherst BB player attended.  Maybe have been influenced by an Amherst MBB alum who is the father of the present Pittsburg area player.  G. Day is a student...carried a 4.1 grade average. 
Present first team Nescac player, JMac, has an younger brother in the Class of '21....according to game announcer comments.  No more info on him.  Jayhawk....know any more? 
To date, if all info is confirmed, there is three players arriving to join the 10 returning ones. 
Any info on other Nescac schools' MBB recruits? 

[Pat Coleman]

Matt lived out his dream . . . he made it happen.  Whatever was unclear (or unavailable to him) in terms of Div I basketball fit became clear two years into his Hamilton career.  He took a risk as a walk-on, earned a free ride, showed leadership as a captain in the middle of a program that was under fire, and made the most of his opportunity. 

It's pretty clear that any number of kids in the NESCAC (and elsewhere in D3) fall on the line between D1 and D3.  Most choose the route of academics and going to schools where they know that they will play and, perhaps, play a starring role. 

Matt didn't leave Hamilton because of any enmity for the school or the basketball program.  He simply had a deep desire to give it a shot at the highest level; he wasn't looking for shoe company money or a Lavar Ball marketing scheme.  Matt Hart found success and deserves to be congratulated, just like Duncan Robinson and Hunter Sabety.

The "dark"/sad view to the Hart story, from my viewpoint, is why a player after two years of play with conference recognition ...would make a move up a level or two.  To get offers, bites from Div 1 schools, one has to make it known that one wants to transfer...like a video of your highlights cited on this board earlier.  Unhappy with Hamilton?...Money matters to attend college in general?  Sad situation, IMO.  It is not based on any thoughts to go professional, considering his abilities presently.

The final chapter has been written on Matt Hart's transfer to George Washington University. It was neither a dark or sad story. Hart was in the George Washington rotation from the first game of his red shirt junior season, playing on scholarship his two eligible seasons. He played in all 73 games over 2 seasons, making 8 starts. GW won 48 of those games. Matt was team Co Captain his senior season. Hart played and scored in two Atlantic 10 Tournaments, The College Hall of Fame Tournament in Kansas City, scoring 17 points vs UGA, The College Basketball Invitational Tournament and The National Invitational Tournament. GW won the 2016 NIT with its' school record setting 28th victory. Matt contributed 5 points, 2 rebounds and an assist in the championship game, playing on the world's biggest basketball stage at Madison Square Garden. To commemorate the victory Matt has an NIT championship ring, an NIT watch and many ESPN highlights. Matt played 822 minutes over two seasons scoring 290 points. He also had 87 rebounds, 43 assists and 20 steals. Matt scored 55 three-point goals over two seasons shooting 42.3% on 130 attempts. Matt had a two-season EFG of 54% and TS of 57%. All of those shooting statistics were higher in A10 conference play. He led the team both seasons in free throw percentage, converting 88%. Matt scored his 1000th career point his junior season at Duquesne. Finally, in an added bonus, GW made a 10-day trip to Japan in August 2016 playing a four game tour of the country. Three of the four games were played against the Japanese national team. In a pre cursor of Matt's ability to compete professionally overseas he scored 40 points during the trip.

Thanks for the reminder -- good call.

[hopefan]

You guys don't know me.. I'm a regular Central region SLIAC conf poster who just happened to check out the NESCAC page and fell out of my chair when I saw my alma mater, Avonworth HS in Pittsburgh (note Amh63, that our fair city ends with an 'h') producing an Amherst recruit.  Fantastic, and what a great decision by young Mr Day.  I graduated from Avonworth in 1967 and went on to play at RPI for 4 years.. just a tremendous experience for a suburban Pittsburgh kid who up til then hadn't experienced much more than the Pirates, the Steelers, and Lake Erie!! 
FWIW... Little Avonworth (yes you are talking a relatively small school) has produced at least two Athletes that made it all the way to the big time.... one, Eugene Morris, a 1965 Avonworth grad, went on to become Mercury Morris at West Texas State and then the Miami Dolphins, and was an integral part of the Dolphins undefeated season.  The other, Dan Bonner, went on to play at the University of Virginia in the 70's, and can be heard and seen as a broadcaster of NCAA regular season and tourney games!!! 
Hoping Garrett Day can help to keep Amherst on the winning track!!

[nescac1]

2017 was an incredibly strong year for NESCAC, and for New England as a whole, culminating in Babson's national title and deep tourney runs by Williams, Middlebury, Tufts, Endicott, and Keene.  A quick look at who the top New England teams graduate shows a dramatically different landscape for next year:

1. Babson: losing Flannery alone is massive, but add in Nelson, Rice, Bohmiller, and Droney too?  That's just brutal.  Comemale, Jacks and Lowry might be enough to keep Babson at the bottom of the Top 25, but even that seems like a long shot.  Not that Babson will worry much with a title in the bank!  Perhaps the championship will help to secure a monster recruiting class to help out the returning vets. 

2. Middlebury: the Panthers will have a lot of new faces on the perimeter after graduating St. Amour, Brown and Jones.  St. Amour in particular was such a huge weapon down the stretch and is impossible to replace, and Brown was massive for Midd down the stretch.  Jack Daly should finally get the regional and perhaps national recognization he deserves running the show next year, and Midd has a strong group of big men returning, but for Midd to be a top-10 team again, its incoming frosh guards will have to grow up really fast.  The big question is, who will score from the perimeter on this team to keep defenses honest?  Folger is the only returning guy who was a significant three point threat, so one or two frosh or rising sophomores (DeLorenzo?  Leighton?) will need to step up as wing shooters.  None of them, however, will be St. Amour.  Next year is where the transfer of Baines, who could have been a go-to guy at the 3, will really sting. 

3. Williams: Dan Aronowitz was absolutely locked in during the Augustana game, putting a team that was generally a bit cold from outside on his back and hitting tough shot after tough shot (including the epic buzzer-beater at the half).  He will be sorely missed, but the Ephs do bring everyone else back from a team that did it collectively in the other tourney games.  Kyle Scadlock emerged as a go-to guy and potential all-American down the stretch and Teal, Casey, Greenman, Karpowicz, Heskett, Kempton and Soto all had big moments in the Ephs' NESCAC and NCAA runs, although all were up and down throughout the season.  The key for Williams to return to Salem -- which they are certainly capable of -- is for 2-3 from that group to emerge as consistent 14-18 ppg type scorers who can be counted on to produce each game.  I think Karpowicz and Heskett in particular are capable of major steps forward next year, both have tremendous skills for their size at the D3 level, and Teal could have a big senior year as he figures to get a lot of shot attempts.  The Eph center trio showed signs of emerging late in the season and next year needs to be, collectively, a primary option on offense rather than (in most games) complementary players.   

4. Tufts -- the Jumbos will sorely miss Tarik Smith, who was able to consistently break down defenders with his speed at the point of attack, and Palleschi, even though he was limited for much of his senior year by injuries.  Will Tufts go all-in on smallball with Garrett and Racy as a severely undersized 5 duo next year?  If so, bigger teams could really punish them inside, although they will be a nightmare to guard in the open floor.  Or does Sheldon have something up his sleeve in recruiting to fill the gaping hole inside?  One thing is for sure, no team in New England can match Tufts when it comes to its waves of big, athletic wings who can shoot, led by Vinny Pace (who I expect to be an all-American) along with Savage, Engvall, Dayton, Garrett and Feldman.  PG and C are the question marks for next year's Jumbos. 

5. Keene -- Keene loses a ton of guys from the surprise Elite 8 run but does return its top player in Nichols.  Ryan Cain has proven, twice now, that his team can step it up in NCAA play.  But do they have enough horses to get there next year after graduating 4 of its top 6 scorers?  Time will tell.

6. Endicott -- Endicott graduates its entire starting five from a not-particularly-deep team.  Enough said. 

7. Eastern Conn -- Eastern Conn also had a strong tourney run, but loses all three of its primary big guys, including Hugh Lindo, who was a handful to deal with on both ends.  But led by Tarchee Brown, Eastern will probably battle Keene once again for the top of the Little East. 

8. MIT -- MIT graduates only one guy and looks like the prohibitive favorite in the NEWMAC next year and a dark horse top 20 team, assuming everyone who is expected to return does, which is always a question mark at MIT due to academic pressures.   

9. Nichols -- Nichols brings back a tremendous group of underclassmen and is the polar opposite of Endicott, experience-wise; Nichols seems likely to dominate its league for the next few years and could be a threat to make a surprise deep NCAA run during that stretch. 

10. Wesleyan -- the Cards lose a great PG in Rafferty and a top-notch C in Kuo.  While neither will be easy to replace, the Cards should have better luck with injuries and Bonner, Green, Krill, Sears and O'Brien form a solid core of very athletic players.  As usual, they will be very tough on defense and inconsistent on offense (losing Rafferty, their best outside shooter, is an especially big blow to a team that struggled to hit jumpers at times), unless Green and/or Bonner really explode as juniors; both have the talent to do so.   Wesleyan looks again like a team that may squeeze into the NCAAs but probably won't do much damage there if they do so. 

11. Amherst -- the Jeffs are the big regional mystery heading into next year.  Perhaps low expectations will suit them better than the pressure of starting the year at number one with a senior loaded team.  The chemistry was clearly off this year and despite the losses on paper, there may be some addition by substraction going on as the chemistry was simply not right this season.  McCarthy and Riopel are as good a wing duo as anyone has, and the Jeffs have some talented rising sophs behind them, but it's anyone's guess who will surround them.  The Jeffs need to find an ace point guard (he doesn't appear to be on the current roster unless someone shifts position) and figure out if Sellew and (probably) Schneider are ready to be prime-time guys up front.  Schneider in particular it the biggest (literally and figuratively) x-factor in New England; Amherst needs him at a minimum to be a guy who puts up something like 10-10-2 every night if they hope to be a regional contender, and right now his true upside is a total unknown. 

Other squads to watch:

Bowdoin -- Bowdoin brings back nearly all of its offensive production from a team that looked very good at times last year, but struggled to raise its level consistently.  The Bears do lose some of their size up front however.  Bowdoin could be ready for a breakthrough next year led by Simonds, but my guess is that the Bears are more likely two years away. 

Springfield -- a NEWMAC title next year would not surprise me.  National frosh of the year Jake Ross was insanely good and figures only to get better; always nice to have an all-American talent to build around for the next three season.  Springfield graduates no one and had a lot of other talented frosh who were overshadowed by Ross.  I think they are a likely NCAA team next year and a potential title contender in future years if they keep their current core together and the young guys work hard to improve.   

WPI -- the future doesn't look bright after a down year for WPI, which now loses its top two scorers.  The talent level seems way down from prior squads in Worcester but you can never count them out as long as Bartley is at the helm.

Albertus Magnus -- always difficult to predict due to so much roster turnover and the annual influx of veteran transfers ... but likely to be a talented team once again. 

I note that incoming frosh could, of course, dramatically affect these prognosis, but so far, there hasn't really been news of any game-changing frosh or transfers headed to New England squads.  Of course, there is still plenty of time for news on that front ...

[PolarBear16]

2017 was an incredibly strong year for NESCAC, and for New England as a whole, culminating in Babson's national title and deep tourney runs by Williams, Middlebury, Tufts, Endicott, and Keene.  A quick look at who the top New England teams graduate shows a dramatically different landscape for next year:

2. Middlebury: the Panthers will have a lot of new faces on the perimeter after graduating St. Amour, Brown and Jones.  St. Amour in particular was such a huge weapon down the stretch and is impossible to replace, and Brown was massive for Midd down the stretch.  Jack Daly should finally get the regional and perhaps national recognization he deserves running the show next year, and Midd has a strong group of big men returning, but for Midd to be a top-10 team again, its incoming frosh guards will have to grow up really fast.  The big question is, who will score from the perimeter on this team to keep defenses honest?  Folger is the only returning guy who was a significant three point threat, so one or two frosh or rising sophomores (DeLorenzo?  Leighton?) will need to step up as wing shooters.  None of them, however, will be St. Amour.  Next year is where the transfer of Baines, who could have been a go-to guy at the 3, will really sting. 

Bowdoin -- Bowdoin brings back nearly all of its offensive production from a team that looked very good at times last year, but struggled to raise its level consistently.  The Bears do lose some of their size up front however.  Bowdoin could be ready for a breakthrough next year led by Simonds, but my guess is that the Bears are more likely two years away. 

NESCAC1, as always you are something else in your knowledge and analysis. Not sure how you manage to do it.

Only things to add: for Middlebury, they presumably bring back Hilal Dahleh who was out this year with injury. He is a 6'3" guard who has many similarities to Jack Daly. He is not a great shooter (27.5% from 3 as a freshman), but he should still be a great help on the perimeter for the Panthers. Will we see the Panthers go big at times and slide Folger to small forward?

As for Bowdoin, they were 3-7 in the NESCAC. Their biggest win of the year was definitely beating Williams! In their seven losses. three were by five points or less and the other four were clear blowouts. Their finishing five going forward (which could easily differ from the starting five) would for me be Tim Ahn, Jack Bors, Jack Simonds, David Reynolds, and Hugh O'Neil. That will be four juniors and one sophomore. Seniors Blake Gordon and Liam Farley will be big cogs as well and could easily find themselves in the game during crunch time as well.

Hosting a NESCAC home game is probably the Polar Bears ceiling for next year. It is hard to see them overtaking any of Williams, Middlebury, or Wesleyan

[nescac1]

Thanks, PolarBear16!

This site lists another committed Williams recruit, Marc Taylor:

http://illinois-spotlite.blogspot.com/2017/02/the-2017-prospects.html

FWIW, and I don't know how reliable that site is, it has Taylor listed as the number 48 prospect in Illinois.

Taylor is a two-time first-team all-state player in the Illinois small school division.  He tore his achilles towards the end of his junior year but recovered quickly to have a strong senior season.  He absolutely dominates a very low level of competition, but based on his video he is certainly long and athletic, an intriguing forward prospect for Williams who will be able to develop behind Scadlock and Heskett. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN5_juNqjhk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LWKNm8qk8w