MBB: NESCAC

[nescac hoops]

December 12, 2006

Dear Soccer Alum,

We hope that all is well with you and your family.  We finished our season at 14W1L2T and won our league championship.  We made it to the final 16 only to tie Messiah 0-0 but they won the penalty kick shootout to advance and win the national championship for the fifth time in seven years. 

Dana Leary was selected to the All-American team and was also chosen as the Division 3 National Player of the Year.  Patrick Huffer was selected as an All American and he also made the Academic All American team.  On the latter team he was voted the male National Scholar-Athlete of the year.


this is all i have here, walzy. it was pasted from russo's email.

but back to BASKETBALL, with out a doubt, the biggest weekend in nescac conference play goes to the trinity-amherst at bates and tufts. that's a weekend i might consider to go see as a non-fan and see  just to see some great games. if anybody is to knock off amherst in the conference i think it will be bates where bates will need to play VERY well and have their entire student body packed into the sauna-shoebox they call a gym.

senator, i don't mean to pick on you all the time but the reason williams is going to CA is b/c 4 williams players are from the golden state and paulsen wanted to go their for them. i know for a fact he wished to get into a better tournament but the only other better ones available conflicted with exams b/c they were before christmas. while they are playing cal tech the first game, they are playing occidental the next game....an out of region game at a similar venue to a team that amherst lost to a couple years back (maybe the '03 season). keep digging senator...


 



        

[JeffRookie2]

Did I EVER say Amherst could beat Northwestern? My blanket statement was that Upper DIII could beat Lower to Mid DI. I may have used certain teams and conferences as examples, but never meant anything specific. Sorry for the confusion.

NESCAC, I understand your love for Williams and distaste for the Jeffs, but do you have to try and discredit them at every turn?

Also, have you never seen a smaller, good shooting, quick and deep team topple a squad anchored by good big men? If not, start watching more hoops... The most famous example is the 1983 NCAA Championship game, where the undersized NC State Wolfpack upended the towering Houston Cougars. (That's a good one to watch...)

Russell Lee for Govenor of VA!!! Have you ever seen such a smooth J and charismatic smile? BooBalls... love the Pistol reference, but I was thinking more Steve Nash...

Whoa, whoa, I'm from Houston, lets keep the 1983 and 1982 NCAA final fours on the down-low. We dont like to talk about those where I'm from. Besides, Clyde and Hakeem got theirs in the end. Against Ewing no less. (who beat us in '82 while he was at Georgetown.)

[JeffRookie2]

Speaking of our interior D, do you think this is something that will ever see significant improvement under Hixon's system? The offense requires the center to handle the ball at the top of the key, so most of the big men we recruit tend to be oddly perimeter oriented. Think about Schiel, he burned so many of his defenders with his ability to hit the outside shot, but he was never comfortable guarding players his own size under the basket. Even guys like Wheeler(Dan) who have learned to play a little in the post are clearly more comfortable outside of the paint. It would be awesome if we could land a recruit who could give us the best of both worlds? Walzy, what about Bennett? You said you saw him play against a 6'10 kid that got recruited by Cal? Did he have any luck at all preventing him from scoring?

[blacklordjeff]

Random Thoughts..

My initial question about weaknesses was really to get a pseudo scouting report from OTHER teams about their teams greatest weakness.  I mentioned the only small dent that I saw in Amhert's armor and I believe Thunder mentioned something about inconsistency for Tufts but I was looking for other responces about the rest of the league, any thoughts? (notice the restraint, itd be really easy to knock some schools now, but in the Christmas spirit I'll be nice) 

Also the DI DIII was meant to be really general, Is there really a reason to point out why Amherst couldnt beat UNC, seriously, was anyone ever saying that?  If that is what I alluded to, I AM SORRY and I need to work on my posting skills, speaking of which, side note, why don't more players model their post game after the Dream?  Could Dwight Howard EVER be stopped if he had the dream shake?  Imagine Hakeem and David Robinson in the same person, UNSTOPPABLE.

Russell Lee's performance at Williams Against Trinity in the Final Four year was Legendary, check the archives, he's the man, AND he's from VA, doesnt get much better

I apologize to posters who have had to read about me and my foot or anyone's injuries.  When I posted that way back when, it was more about saying how serious this game means to those that play and how part of the game involves taking what comes, and I learned this from none other than the Prince of the Pioneer valley himself, Steve never made excuses for his knees, he just played, and thats what all GREAT athletes do, Coffin, Harper, Donno, Schiel, Tucker, anybody... please no more mention of me, its nice to get your name out there sometimes, but GEEESH, its really not that serious, EQUATIONS FOR WORTH TO TEAM, WOW, what schools did we go to again?!!???! 

Last but not least, Jeffrookie good question.  I really think that if Amherst got a bruiser.  A throwback type of post player that there'd be no stopping them.  Like the DIII equivalent of D. Howard. or Amare, which leads me to my next question, if you had to compare your favorite team to a NBA team, who would they be.  I think the Suns are the obvious choice for Amherst.  MVP caliber point guard, Incredibly versatile forwards, more athleticism than most teams, incredibly dangerous from the three, great regular season and post season success but not quite the big one, if there's a weakness its interior D, capable of HUGE numbers, I could go on, any thoughts from anyone else?

[eclinchy]

Weitzen will score his 1000th point this year probably soon.  Im not sure to as how many he has but he has to be very close

He has 879.  I'm gonna go ahead and guess he breaks four digits in the Wheaton game on the 23rd.

Very impressive considering he never started a game until this season.  If he stays hot, he could break the school record (1785).

[BooBallsCasRay]

Thunder--

What effect, if any, do you think the impending ban of trans fats will have on Weitzen's quest for 1,000?

[senatorfrost]

NESCAC- I was NOT comparing injuries-Injuries were a given for the most part. I was mostly talking about exits-Well I suppose you can alter things if you like.
Thunder-I remember that game in 2003. I was sitting near some Williams fans and they kept repeating words to the effect- 'How could this team (Tufts) only be a 500 team?' That was my question also.
Anyway that was the night that "HE" rose up and took on Tufts practically single handed with a nice array of shots and a real nice turnaround from a respectable distance. That night "HE" showed me that he was at that point in time the best player in NESCAC and probably New England.
If I remember right McGlynn had the last shot and it was just a little low at the buzzer, hitting the rim and bouncing away. Do you happen to remember if it was a bank shot? I seem to think it was but I was at a very bad angle when he let it go.
A great game and in a sense HIS introduction to the world.

  To answer your previous question=We had been talking a lot about broken feet so I thought I would give a 'War' to Sasquatch, or Bigfoot as some call him. I 'forgot?' to put the word 'Lucky' in front of the word Charms on the other "War"

[senatorfrost]

NESCAC-I am not really making fun of scheduling Cal Tech-One really weak team is nothing to be ashamed of in my opinion. However, what I am looking forward to is what the coach says after the game where he talks about his observations of the game. I mean this is a team Williams could beat by seventy if they really wanted to so I look forward to seeing what cliches he will use.
   It was last year that Amherst lost to Occidental. I don't know how Williams does on trips but Amherst does not seem to fare too well. Occidental is probably a decent team.

[thunder32]

Senator your right it was a bank shot rushed it a little.  But what a game and we just had a lot of personality conflict I think that year.  In the last two years I know I had felt much more part of a team than a buch of individuals.  Coffin did kick our ass that game and mine as well but I was only a lonely freshman trying to guard him.  On to the Amherst not having any bruisers debate.  What about Hopkins and O'shea (I think I got their names right) these guys are bruisers and are not looking to take a 3 point shot. 

[formerbant10]

Two guys have made cries for Kino, but I have to say that I've never been overly impressed with him. Don't get me wrong, he's very fast and athletic, and a pretty good shooter, but I don't see what else he really adds to the equation. He's leading his team in 0 categories and shooting just 61% from the FT line. I feel like Taylor and Pat Martin (and maybe even Hasiuk) would be missed more if removed from this team. All just an outsiders' opinion, but that's just what a I think. I'd love to hear FormerBant's thoughts on the subject.

As for Coach of the semester... I really disagree with your opinion on Trinity. Yes, they are having to recover from the loss of Rhoten, yes they have played 6 of 8 games on the road, but really who of those 8 teams were they supposed to lose to? The fact that they lost at Springfield (whether this is really a rivalry or not) takes their coaching out of contention for honors. Springfield is a 3-6 team with losses to four other NESCAC teams, including  your bottom-dwelling Ephs. Amherst beat the Pride by 40!

I'd be more apt to honor either of the undefeated coaches (Hixon or Reilly) or even Sheldon, who's taken on probably the toughest schedule yet and come out with a pretty solid 7-2 mark.

Kino is one of the most skilled/creative offensive players in the NESCAC.  He's also the best offensive rebounder inch for inch I've ever seen.  I haven't seen a game yet this year, not sure if my schedule allows me to do so...but Kino thrives in an up-and-down game.  If he gets in the open court, he's a problem.

As for who would be missed more, I think the good thing about this team is their depth.  They have a lot of players who can do a variety of things.  Besides Clarke and Hasiuk, they have great team size and versatility.  So I don't really think you could pin down one guy they would miss more than the other.

I'm going to have to disagree with your opinion that the SPFLD loss takes Ogrodnik out of COY (1st half) running.  Playing 6 of 8 on the road is very tough, no matter who you are playing.  Yes Amherst beat the Pride by a million, but it's not such a terrible loss for the Bants.  Leaves them with a bad taste in their mouth to stay focused over the break....and still with a very good record. 

Sorry it took so long to respond, been on the road since early Wednesday and didn't have a chance before now.

[eclinchy]

Thunder--

What effect, if any, do you think the impending ban of trans fats will have on Weitzen's quest for 1,000?

I would call you an idiot, but the trans fat limitations are in New York, which happens to be Weitzen's hometown.  So you're 1% clever and 99% an idiot instead.

I was sitting near some Williams fans and they kept repeating words to the effect- 'How could this team (Tufts) only be a 500 team?' That was my question also.

Keep in mind that Tufts tends to put together a tougher schedule that Williams and Amherst do.  You won't see any New York City Techs on the Jumbos' slate... that's part of the reason they have .500 seasons, they're going .500 against legitimate teams.

Oh, and can someone fill me in on what this "war" thing is all about?  I'm a bit confused here.

[The Historian]

Re: the "war" thing.  Go back a few pages and look up one of my last posts.  I explain it a little.  Or go here, particularly the last section on "popular culture": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_Eagle

War the butterfly in the sky.

[nescac1]

Speaking of an earlier discussion about creative fan ideas, this is the best I've heard of in the last few years:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/10/magazine/10Section2b.t-6.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Gotta give UCLA props for the effort and creativity.  I think some undergrad Ephs should use their winter study period to work up something creative ... god knows, the team needs any edge it can get, as based on early season results the talent differential between Amherst and Williams hoops this year is about the same as the differential between Williams and Amherst football ... only in reverse, of course

Speaking of which, any current Eph fans lurking with any thoughts about the season and whether the four game losing streak was an aberration fueled by some really off shooting nights, or a sign of more to come? 

[nescac hoops]

   It was last year that Amherst lost to Occidental. I don't know how Williams does on trips but Amherst does not seem to fare too well. Occidental is probably a decent team.

perhaps amherst needs to take more "trips" so they win a game whenever they are on the biggest trip (salem). i got TRASHED when i suggested amherst needed to buff up it's schedule and perhaps try to get to some tougher teams on the road. but, we can both agree amherst has trouble with trips and ill leave it at that.

[JeffRookie2]

Senator your right it was a bank shot rushed it a little.  But what a game and we just had a lot of personality conflict I think that year.  In the last two years I know I had felt much more part of a team than a buch of individuals.  Coffin did kick our ass that game and mine as well but I was only a lonely freshman trying to guard him.  On to the Amherst not having any bruisers debate.  What about Hopkins and O'shea (I think I got their names right) these guys are bruisers and are not looking to take a 3 point shot. 

Thunder-- I don't know how I feel about O'Shea and Hopkins. O'Shea leaves his feet too much and Hopkins doesn't have the stregnth he needs. He had a great night the other night against Brandeis but it was because Wheeler was assigned to DeLuca and Hopkin's assignment was a non-factor, so he was pretty much able to play help defense all night.

I mean, Hopkins and O'Shea certainly didnt do much good trying to stop you. What do you think they could do to improve? Formerbant, you must have watched Rhoten walk all over hundreds of guys, what were the most effective tactics for teams trying to slow him down?