MBB: NESCAC

[nescac1]

Williams cruises over an outmanned Conn College team.  The Ephs shot the lights out from three on the cleanest looks they've seen all year and will likely see again, but to their credit, they made em.  Williams' shooting has improved dramatically since early in the year.  Heskett, Teal and Casey are all shooting great and Greenman and Soto have shown the ability to make threes in bunches at times as well.  Karpowicz is getting more time and provides just enough inside offense to keep defenses honest and create some spacing. 

Obvious choice for NESCAC POW Bobby Casey is in a special kind of zone right now.  When he got an open look from three it was like a layup this weekend, the ball barely ever touched anything but net and his confidence is clearly off-the-charts.  Tonight, 25 points, 9-10 from the field, 7-8 from three.  Wow.  But last night was more impressive given the situation and the opponent as well as the defensive effort he had to give. 

[Old Guy]

Wesleyan drops Middlebury 80-70 for their first win against the Panthers since 2004. Wes seemed to have the upper hand throughout, but it was a three point game with 45 seconds to go, but Wes tightened things up and Midd couldn't make the improbable happen. Daly had 22 points and 15 rebounds (and eight assists). Wes defensively is very tough, had 11 blocked shots. Midd could get no rhythm.

Daly was 6-7 from the line — and was the only Panther to take a foul shot. The Cardinals were 23-35, by contrast (in fairness, lots of fouls by Midd at the end of the game and Wes's game is inside). But still, 35-7.

[Cards Fan]

A solid weekend for Wes, falling to #11 Williams, but topping Middlebury, 80-70. Wes had the lead the whole way through the Middlebury game, though multiple times Middlebury closed the gap, even taking the lead. Jack Daly had himself a game, finishing with 22 points after scoring just 4 in the first half. It will be hard to speculate how the rankings turn out throughout the NESCAC. My guess is:

Williams - moves up multiple spots. They had a clear domination of Conn, and got the best of Wesleyan in OT. They will easily move up.

Amherst - stays unranked. This is an easy one - only one game played, one game lost. Not going to do them any favors.

Trinity - Big question mark. Bad start, but they are getting things together. A big win over Amherst - could we see a borderline top 25 team here? It's way too early to say, but it is plausible. I will try not to let one win get me too excited. If they manage a W over Hamilton, they will begin to get discussed.

Middlebury - Down a spot or two, tops. There is no way they will fall more than this. They lost to a top 15 team, and crushed a poor Conn team. Losing to Wesleyan shouldn't hurt them too bad.

Hamilton - Too early to speculate on. Must see what happens tomorrow first. With a win, they will move up, a loss and they will move back. That simple really.

And finally, Wesleyan - Tough to read. I would say they move up a bit, as they topped a top 5 team, but lost to a borderline top 10 team. I would say that while they have proved themselves worthy, they may have to wait a bit to crack the national top 10.

I know this is early with the game tomorrow and all, bear with me.

[polbear73]

No other way to say it, Tufts beat the heck out of Bowdoin yesterday, pretty much in all phases of the game. With the game tied at 16 after 10 minutes, Tufts went to work and took a 12 point lead at the half, and went on to lead by as many as 30 in the second half. Bowdoin just looked out-manned, athletically and physically and hats off to Tufts for a well played game. 

Based on this game, it's hard to believe that Bowdoin will compete consistently with NESCAC's upper echelon, but I do think they're capable of giving any team fits on any given night with their level of talent. Hopefully they will rebound.

[P'bearfan]

No other way to say it, Tufts beat the heck out of Bowdoin yesterday, pretty much in all phases of the game. With the game tied at 16 after 10 minutes, Tufts went to work and took a 12 point lead at the half, and went on to lead by as many as 30 in the second half. Bowdoin just looked out-manned, athletically and physically and hats off to Tufts for a well played game. 

Based on this game, it's hard to believe that Bowdoin will compete consistently with NESCAC's upper echelon, but I do think they're capable of giving any team fits on any given night with their level of talent. Hopefully they will rebound.

Was only able to see the last 8 or 9 minutes of the first half.  When I first tuned in Bowdoin was staying with Tufts nicely.  In the last 5 minutes or so the Polar Bears went stone cold on offense and Tufts went on a nice run.  Tough loss.  It also means that Bowdoin hasn't beaten Tufts in Medford in at least the last 5 years.

Hope the team can bounce back quickly.

[Bucket]

Hamilton is for real, folks.

One would be forgiven for thinking Trinity might have had the edge at home, fresh off a big win over Amherst on Friday.

The Continentals had other ideas, rolling over the Bantams, 78-55. Kent Gilmore led five (!) Hamilton players in double figures with 23.

[D3HoopJunkie]

Hello NESCAC Friends,

I wanted to know if any Middlebury supporters could help me out with listing some good local hotels and eateries close to the Middlebury campus that an Albertus fan from southern CT might want to check out??

I'm planning on making the trip next week and it will be my first time visiting the area. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Very much looking forward to our matchup with the Panthers

Good Luck to all NESCAC schools in the second half. As usual your league looks like it is shaping up to be quite a finish!

[nescac1]

A few Williams thoughts / links:

While Bobby Casey was the man of the weekend for Williams, James Heskett has truly come into his own as an all-around player, including a facilitator, in recent weeks.  In his first six games of the year, he had only two assists TOTAL.  He's had 14 assists in his last three games, including career highs in back-to-back games, first 4 vs. Wesleyan, then 7 vs. Conn.  As teams adjust to Heskett as the Ephs' leading offensive threat it's good to see him setting up his teammates more as well. 

Although Matt Karpowicz had a tough time vs. Wesleyan's bigs (as everyone seems to), he has been gradually playing more minutes, averaging over 20 minutes per game in his last three games.  If he can improve his foul shooting, it would really help his production, as he is very adept at drawing fouls down low.  The Ephs definitely need him to be a consistent double-digit scorer inside to open things up even more for all of the shooters, who have, after a very slow start to the season, really been lighting it up of late: six straight games with over 40 percent shooting from three, while averaging over 13 made three pointers per game.  Hopefully the Ephs can keep shooting it well, but certainly, the shots can't fall like that EVERY night so Williams will need to work on getting some more interior production as well, not just from Karp, but from the other big men as well. 

Nice article on the ever-expanding Williams coaching fraternity:
http://www.berkshireeagle.com/stories/howard-herman-designated-hitter-williams-basketball-bench-a-great-place-for-coaches-to-get-their,528862

And yet another perimeter recruit for the Ephs, the fourth committed Williams recruit so far, PG Carter Begel: https://twitter.com/wceua/status/949423942812381184
Begel seems to have modest high school stats, but with four Eph guards (including both halves of the PG rotation and the starting two guard) graduating, the more prospects coming in on the perimeter, the merrier!

[ContinentalDomer]

Prior to the game, Coach Cosgrove's loud and emphatic final instructions to the Bantams included, "This is not the same [Hamilton] team as last year."  He was right.  But the NESCAC is unforgiving.  Wesleyan is next.  One step at a time.

Hamilton is for real, folks.

One would be forgiven for thinking Trinity might have had the edge at home, fresh off a big win over Amherst on Friday.

The Continentals had other ideas, rolling over the Bantams, 78-55. Kent Gilmore led five (!) Hamilton players in double figures with 23.

[Greek Tragedy]

A solid weekend for Wes, falling to #11 Williams, but topping Middlebury, 80-70. Wes had the lead the whole way through the Middlebury game, though multiple times Middlebury closed the gap, even taking the lead. Jack Daly had himself a game, finishing with 22 points after scoring just 4 in the first half. It will be hard to speculate how the rankings turn out throughout the NESCAC. My guess is:

Williams - moves up multiple spots. They had a clear domination of Conn, and got the best of Wesleyan in OT. They will easily move up.

Amherst - stays unranked. This is an easy one - only one game played, one game lost. Not going to do them any favors.

Trinity - Big question mark. Bad start, but they are getting things together. A big win over Amherst - could we see a borderline top 25 team here? It's way too early to say, but it is plausible. I will try not to let one win get me too excited. If they manage a W over Hamilton, they will begin to get discussed.

Middlebury - Down a spot or two, tops. There is no way they will fall more than this. They lost to a top 15 team, and crushed a poor Conn team. Losing to Wesleyan shouldn't hurt them too bad.

Hamilton - Too early to speculate on. Must see what happens tomorrow first. With a win, they will move up, a loss and they will move back. That simple really.

And finally, Wesleyan - Tough to read. I would say they move up a bit, as they topped a top 5 team, but lost to a borderline top 10 team. I would say that while they have proved themselves worthy, they may have to wait a bit to crack the national top 10.

I know this is early with the game tomorrow and all, bear with me.

Nothing on Tufts? I'd be interested to know what the NESCAC people thought on the Jumbos. They have 3 losses but those losses are to Wash U, MIT and Salem St. Big week with games on the road to Williams and Middlebury. Obviously 2 wins will say alot about this club. Is it just the Pace and Savage show? The conference could get at least 4  teams in the NCAAs again and I'm guessing, at this point, that Tufts will be one of them.

[nescac1]

Tufts is a bit hard to figure out.  In addition to the three losses, they also barely beat three teams who are far inferior to them in terms of talent -- Pomona, Brandeis, and Emerson.  But, they do seem to be playing better and better as the year rolls along and they destroyed a solid Bowdoin team. 

Tufts is definitely more than the Pace and Savage show.  Their other two major pieces are Everett Dayton, who seemed to be struggling with some sort of injury and was not his usual self in the first semester, but just lit up Bowdoin and Colby, and KJ Garrett, who has only played two games all year -- he had a pre-season injury, was stellar vs. Pomona and Claremont, and then did not appear in the first two NESCAC games, not sure what is up there.  Patrick Racy and Luke Rogers form a solid-but-not-spectacular center platoon, they probably won't win many if any games but they the five seems not to be the big vulnerability folks thought it would be for Tufts. 

If Pace, Savage, Dayton, and Garrett are all 100 percent, that gives Tufts four perimeter guys (in their four-out-one-in system) who can go toe-to-toe with any perimeter quarter in the country.  And they have solid depth behind them including a few frosh who looks very promising and should make a bigger impact as they gain experience.  If Garrett can return, they are certainly capable of beating anyone on the remaining schedule and will be favored vs. most.  But, they do have a very tough stretch ahead: 5 of their next 6 on the road including the really tough Midd-Williams back-to-back this weekend, and then at Wesleyan on short rest in a few weeks.  If Tufts can come out of this weekend with a split or better, I very much like their odds at making the NCAAs and finishing in the top four in NESCAC. 

We will know a lot more after this weekend (in addition to Tufts, the Wesleyan-Hamilton battle looms large), but right now, Tufts, Wesleyan, Midd, Hamilton and Williams seem like the five teams to beat in NESCAC.  I don't think any one of them has separated itself from the rest, and my guess is that the five of them will beat up on each other without establishing a clear pecking order anytime soon.  They all have very different styles and very different strengths and weaknesses.  You could defend ranking them 1-5 in any order at this point, honestly.  (I realize Hamilton has the best record, but they also have played the weakest schedule by far of that group). 

[polbear73]

Tufts is a bit hard to figure out.  In addition to the three losses, they also barely beat three teams who are far inferior to them in terms of talent -- Pomona, Brandeis, and Emerson.  But, they do seem to be playing better and better as the year rolls along and they destroyed a solid Bowdoin team. 

Tufts is definitely more than the Pace and Savage show.  Their other two major pieces are Everett Dayton, who seemed to be struggling with some sort of injury and was not his usual self in the first semester, but just lit up Bowdoin and Colby, and KJ Garrett, who has only played two games all year -- he had a pre-season injury, was stellar vs. Pomona and Claremont, and then did not appear in the first two NESCAC games, not sure what is up there.  Patrick Racy and Luke Rogers form a solid-but-not-spectacular center platoon, they probably won't win many if any games but they the five seems not to be the big vulnerability folks thought it would be for Tufts. 

If Pace, Savage, Dayton, and Garrett are all 100 percent, that gives Tufts four perimeter guys (in their four-out-one-in system) who can go toe-to-toe with any perimeter quarter in the country.  And they have solid depth behind them including a few frosh who looks very promising and should make a bigger impact as they gain experience.  If Garrett can return, they are certainly capable of beating anyone on the remaining schedule and will be favored vs. most.  But, they do have a very tough stretch ahead: 5 of their next 6 on the road including the really tough Midd-Williams back-to-back this weekend, and then at Wesleyan on short rest in a few weeks.  If Tufts can come out of this weekend with a split or better, I very much like their odds at making the NCAAs and finishing in the top four in NESCAC. 

We will know a lot more after this weekend (in addition to Tufts, the Wesleyan-Hamilton battle looms large), but right now, Tufts, Wesleyan, Midd, Hamilton and Williams seem like the five teams to beat in NESCAC.  I don't think any one of them has separated itself from the rest, and my guess is that the five of them will beat up on each other without establishing a clear pecking order anytime soon.  They all have very different styles and very different strengths and weaknesses.  You could defend ranking them 1-5 in any order at this point, honestly.  (I realize Hamilton has the best record, but they also have played the weakest schedule by far of that group).

After having watched Tufts light up Bowdoin, especially after the Bears were solid against Bates, I wholeheartedly concur with your assessment of Tufts. It would be hard to believe that they're not a top four team after Saturday.

[jayhawk]

Amherst has been suffering from a rash of injuries. Tim MCarthy may be unlikely to return. Against Eastern Connecticut State, freshma point guard Grant Robinson out with an ankle injury . Against Trinigty , Grant returend and was having excelent game with 18 points but then reinjured ankle and was out last five to ten minutes.
Tonite against Brandeis Grant out with ankle injury .
The good news tonight freshman point guard Garrett Day with 18 points, 8 assists, and Amherst rolled
Also sophomore Josh Chery was injured earlier this year and now is starting to return form.
Freshman Fru Che continuint stead play.
A difficult learning curve for Amherst with so many new players but hopefully now rounding into form
Grant Robinson may be back soon
Important weekend of basketball for Amherst

[nescac1]

Good to see NESCAC teams get back on track with two easy out-of-league wins vs. decent opponents last night.  The better the out-of-league record for all NESCAC squads, the better off everyone in the league will be in terms of strength of schedule. 

New Top 25 out with lots of movement:

http://www.d3hoops.com/top25/men/2017-18/week6

Williams back up to 4th, Wesleyan, Hamilton and Middlebury closely grouped between 14 and 18, and Tufts receiving a few votes.  Tufts has the brutal Williams/Midd road weekend ahead but that does offer chance for the Jumbos to jump back into the top 25 with a sweep.   There are two huge league games on Friday, Wesleyan at Hamilton and Tufts at Williams.  Wesleyan at Hamilton should be really interesting, Wesleyan's elite defense vs. Hamilton's elite offense. 

[toad22]

The Hamilton-Wesleyan game should be really good. In the game on Friday night against Williams, I thought that the Cardinals played the best defense I've seen in quite a while from anybody in the NESCAC. Williams was pretty good on offense, but due to the tough D, could never really get in rhythm. Once again, the game ended up being played the way that Wes wanted it played. The same thing happened in the December meeting between the two. Hamilton clearly wants to play fast. The Conts 94.8 scoring average is truly remarkable. If Wesleyan can force the game to be played at their pace, Wes likely wins. Hamilton needs to get out and play free, very difficult to do vs Wes.

My Ephs are playing the best they have played all season. Losing Kyle Scadlock has lit a real fire under the rest of the team. This great transformation coincides precisely with Scadlock's injury. They have become a different team in a lot of ways. The next test of the durability of that improvement comes on Friday against Tufts, winners of their last 8 games. Since I can remember, Tufts' game plan has been to outscore the opponent, with a lot less emphasis on defense. So for Williams to come out a winner, the defense has to be able to slow Tufts down a bit and play offense with few errors. It is likely to be a high scoring affair.