MBB: NESCAC

[centennial fan]

Definitely sad to see sour grapes from such a proud program like Hamilton. In my opinion, JHU guard play was so much better than Hamilton's with James, Windley, Yeutter, and Nixon beating their man so often that the Continentals struggled to stay in front and resorted to fouling. Just watched the entire game back on demand and I don't think legitimately any of the fouls called were incorrect or at least not very debatable, weren't too many head scratchers. Hamilton shot 29% from 3 and 46% from the free throw line, if they were going to beat the better team (Hopkins) Saturday, they probably should've played better. Thank you for these gems though:

"NESCAC is looking like the league that we all know they are"
"Wouldn't be surprised to see all 4 teams advance today"
"I watched Hopkins play last night and was not impressed at all by them, I expect a Hamilton win tonight on Hopkins home floor"
"Iron sharpens iron so let's just say that the 4 NESCAC teams are 4 of the sharpest in this tournament"

Hilarious post that I will remember for ages because of how bad it backfired! Better luck next year!

[SpringSt7]

The reality is that 3 of the 4 teams went on the road and lost to better teams, which is indicative of the fact that their resumes were shaky enough in certain areas to warrant the tougher draws. Middlebury getting Nichols at home is certainly the one that got away for the league but I don't think there is any shame in losing to Nichols either.

To have 4 tries at the second weekend and come up empty is disappointing but is also probably perfectly indicative of the state of the league all year. A lot of good, not a lot of great.

[Bucket]

The reality is that 3 of the 4 teams went on the road and lost to better teams, which is indicative of the fact that their resumes were shaky enough in certain areas to warrant the tougher draws. Middlebury getting Nichols at home is certainly the one that got away for the league but I don't think there is any shame in losing to Nichols either.

To have 4 tries at the second weekend and come up empty is disappointing but is also probably perfectly indicative of the state of the league all year. A lot of good, not a lot of great.

Agree 100 percent.

[jmcozenlaw]

The reality is that 3 of the 4 teams went on the road and lost to better teams, which is indicative of the fact that their resumes were shaky enough in certain areas to warrant the tougher draws. Middlebury getting Nichols at home is certainly the one that got away for the league but I don't think there is any shame in losing to Nichols either.

To have 4 tries at the second weekend and come up empty is disappointing but is also probably perfectly indicative of the state of the league all year. A lot of good, not a lot of great.

The Keene State success puzzles me a bit. While they are athletic pretty much across the board, they are small. I mean, really small. I don't know how many games they weren't the smaller team in at least 3 or 4 positions. I know that height is just one variable........but I love that variable on the boards and to get in the faces of good shooters. Coach Cain does one hell of a job with the Keene program. They've really taken a step up over the last few years.

[midrangepullup]

Now that everyone in the league is done for the season(What an entertaining season btw!). Does anybody want to do way too early predictions for next year? Obviously have to consider not all of the recruits are in. However, I feel like this past year was a bit of a down year for the average rookie class. I wonder if that will continue.

[nescac1]

There is still a long way to go in recruiting, but I haven't seen a lot of obvious instant impact recruits for next year announced yet.  There are a few, but none enough to, in my view, dramatically impact expectations for next year.  Here's how I'd rank teams in terms of most significant personnel losses, assuming no one comes back for an extra COVID year.  Focusing on rotation players:

1. Colby - King, Tyson, Obi, McGovern, Wirkala, Butler - just a massive loss of talent, two former NESCAC ROYs, including King, who made everything run, and Tyson, who was the key defensive player and rebounder and helped them play small but still be physical up front.  The other guys were all useful role players, as well.  Just a lot of firepower to replace in one off-season.

2. Middlebury -- Sobel, Goldman - Goldman helped with the team's biggest weakness, outside shooting, but really this is all about Sobel.  He was so utterly dominant on both ends that even with nearly everyone else back, his presence will sorely be missed.  Midd was a very different team when he wasn't on the floor, he commanded so much gravity from opposing defenses and was maybe even more impactful as a rim protector. 

3. Wesleyan -- Maccoux, Ravetz, Dezonie, Millstein, Johnson -- losing three of the four main guys will be very tough for Wesleyan.  Maccoux and Ravetz in particular had awesome seniors years.  Maccoux does have another year of eligibility so who knows ...

4. Tufts - Aronson, Thoerner, Cohen, Henry -- Thoerner was Tufts' best scorer by far and then losing the top three ballhandlers / playmakers is a lot to overcome.  Tufts will be playing basically an entirely green backcourt outside of Khai Champion next year, so it will require a major adjustment.  Aronson was awesome against Keene and his playmaking will be missed.  Theorner is another guy with an extra year of eligibility remaining. 

5. Hamilton -- Rood, Anderson, Mogan, Regan -- losing three starters plus a sixth man is very tough.  Those four guys seemed to playing in the rotation forever and were collectively rock solid for Hamilton this year.  Rood, who was underrated / overlooked, does have another year of eligibility but unlike Wes, Hamilton offers no grad programs (I believe). 

To me, those five suffer the biggest losses by far.  Those were also, not surprisingly, five of the six top-tier teams in the league (along with Williams).  So some or all of them will likely fall back, maybe fall back dramatically, even if all have some very good returning talent.  Hard to say which are most likely to fall hardest, since all will look quite different next season. 

The other six coming later ...

[Stretch4]

I always (and I mean always) blame the refs when my team loses too!

Been waiting a year to use this quote from one of your own ... Enjoy the off-season NESCAC folks! 

[SpringSt7]

https://twitter.com/willking_1/status/1632837597046231041?s=20

Will King has tweeted out his senior year highlights and that he has 1 year of eligibility left. Will be looking to do a grad year elsewhere I presume. I don't know exact what level or league will best suit him but it's hard to imagine wherever he ends up he won't be a very productive player.

And by the way, watch the video. It's a total treat. One of the most fun players to come through the NESCAC in a long time.

[names jaismith]

Agree on the analysis of the teams with the most losses to graduation.  Wouldn't surprise me if a player like King ended up as a grad player on a really good UAA team - most of the schools in that league have impressive graduate programs.  My way too early team to watch next year is Conn.  True they lost their point guard to a knee injury late in the year, but even without him they almost upset Hamilton on the road in the playoffs.  With Sobel's departure, David Murray becomes the best low post player in the league. The Camels played great defense all year long and, aside from a blowout loss to Williams, were competitive or better with the best teams on their schedule.  Conn's biggest weaknesses were perimeter shooting and depth.  A good incoming class could easily vault them into the top third of the NESCAC.

[nescac1]

Whoops I forgot about Will King having another year left!  I saw that Tufts posted a video of Thoerner highlights, so I imagine he may also be looking for a fifth-year opportunity.  If I was a UAA coach I'd be all over both of those guys. 

To continue the list of players graduating:

6. Williams - Spivy - a huge loss, but the Ephs do return everyone who played in the rotation in the two NCAA games, giving the Ephs a jump-start on next year's team, which certainly looks loaded with talent; the question is how the pieces fit together as Spivy's versatility enabled him to play in lots of different sort of lineups. 

7. Bates - Baxter and Riley -- Baxter is the only loss from the top ten scorers, but was by far Bates' best player last year.  Another guy who may try to play a fifth year elsewhere.  Big loss for a team that struggled even with him last year, but some of the first-year guys figure to make a leap heading into next season. 

8. Trinity -  Redd, Smith and Hoch - losing a solid group of role players, including two strong wing defenders.  Trinity's offense won't miss a beat with the frosh coming up behind them, but those guys will be missing for their D and rebounding. 

9. Amherst - Phelan, Zarroug, Oranye, Schretter -- basically everyone on roster was in the rotation at one point but none of these guys were consistent regulars.  Since they probably didn't really fit into what Sears wanted to do, and Amherst just played too many guys period, this should open up more badly-needed minues for young players.

10. Bowdoin - Werkman - Bowdoin's best interior guy but there seems to be a lot coming up behind him in the rising sophomore class as well as one impact frosh big man. 

11. Conn College - everyone is back. 

Without taking into account transfers, defections, and rookies, Amherst, Bowdoin and Conn should be trending way up. Trinity, Williams and Bates (just because they can't get any worse) slightly up.  Coby way down.  Midd, Wesleyan, Tufts and Hamilton also will have a tough time overcoming their losses but all return a good amount of talent as well. 

So, what does that all mean?  Williams enters next year as the clear favorite, but also entered this year as the clear favorite and (while having by far the best overall W-L record of any NESCAC team) fell a bit short of incredibly high expectations.  Still, if the Ephs are healthier next year they do come into the season with the most overall experienced talent in the league.  Conn College, if they can add just one or two more real pieces in the recruiting class, could be a big riser next year; Murray looks like one of the top three players in the league next year (along with Nate Karren and Nicky Johnson). 

Amherst on paper should be dramatically improved after playing so many underclassmen big minutes; at the very least, they should be in the NESCAC tourney and above .500, as a floor.  Will Sears be on the hot seat if he can't contend in NESCAC with, I'd say, very clearly one of the three most talented returning rosters?   Bowdoin will be better but still looks likely to be a year away from being interesting.  Colby I think is sure to drop back a bit from this year's record, just so much to lose from one class.  Bates seems likely to have another rough year. 

As for the rest?  Feels very, very hard to predict and will probably depend a lot on first years players as well as guys taking unexpected fifth years.  Midd, Hamilton, Wesleyan, Tufts, Trinity all have the talent to be top-three teams in NESCAC but all of them could slide into the bottom 4-5 teams, as well.  Of that group I think Midd and Tufts have the highest floor, but Sobel for Midd, and all those playmaking guards for Tufts, will be very difficult to replace. 

If I was taking a wild stab at ranking the league heading into next season (without the benefit of seeing frosh classes), I'd say: 1. Williams 2. Tufts 3. Conn 4. Trinity 5. Midd 6. Amherst 7. Hamilton 8. Wesleyan 9. Colby 10. Bowdoin 11. Bates.  Amherst has considerably more upside than 6, but we first need to see a Sears team succeed before pushing them higher.  I do not feel remotely confident about just about anyone in these rankings, outside of Bates bringing up the rear, and Williams being comfortably in the top three. 

[lumbercat]

Let me say on the Football and Basketball NESCAC blogs----no one  is more knowledgable and on the inside of NESACAC action like NESCAC1.

Time after time this guy totally gets it. A pleasure to read his posts and the effort he puts into his entries on the blog.

That being said we have disagreed once or twice in the past but his contributions are always compelling and well crafted.  He really makes this board go. Nobody knows the NESCAC inside and out like NESCAC1.

[jumpshot]

I second that emotion ... and call for a vote by acclamation.

[nescac31hoops]

https://twitter.com/willking_1/status/1632837597046231041?s=20

Will King has tweeted out his senior year highlights and that he has 1 year of eligibility left. Will be looking to do a grad year elsewhere I presume. I don't know exact what level or league will best suit him but it's hard to imagine wherever he ends up he won't be a very productive player.

And by the way, watch the video. It's a total treat. One of the most fun players to come through the NESCAC in a long time.

https://twitter.com/pmaccoux7/status/1633309799453540352?s=20

Preston Maccoux has also just released his senior highlights and said that he has entered the transfer portal... An elite senior player who impacts all aspects of the game that I expect to see at another high-level academic school. I am very excited to see where he ends up

[nescac1]

lumbercat and jumpshot, thanks - very much appreciated!

Maccoux and King will be massive impact transfers next year if they end up staying in D3 (as would Dylan Thoerner, if he is looking to play a fifth year).  I imagine every UAA team is very eager to leverage their awesome grad programs to get any of those guys to enroll.  The extra COVID year has been such a huge advantage for UAA teams, with Case Western, Rochester, NYU and Brandeis in particular taking full advantage.  Emory, NYU, Wash U. and maybe Brandeis all should be very good next year as is, and adding a Maccoux or King to the existing nucleus would make them true national contenders. 

I think either would be a no-brainer for a top-notch D2 program like Bentley, as well.  D1 would be a tougher sell, but not inconceivable in the right situation. 

The fact that most NESCAC schools don't offer grad programs is (for one more year) definitely a handicap relative to a league like the UAA.  I mean imagine Midd last year if Eastman, Farrell, Kornaker and Bosco had stuck around for a fifth year (or even just Eastman and Kornaker, instead of having to look elsewhere).

[JEFFFAN]

I second that emotion ... and call for a vote by acclamation.

Hear! Hear!   No one even close to as good as NESCAC1.   Great work!