WBB: Middle Atlantic Conference board archive

[saratoga]

Scranton vs. DelVal. tonight at the Long Center. Looks like the Aggies let it fly, averaging about 6 treys per game & few turnovers. On the other hand, it also looks like they only carry 8 kids that see playing time so fatigue may be a factor. The Lady Royals may try to force DVC out as deep as possible to disrupt their offense & make those threes they'll be firing up a bit out of their range. On another topic Roy mentioned...Megan Silva scoring her 2,000 point...I wonder how many Taryn might have scored had she averaged even a little more than her 22 minutes per game this season? By the way Kate, Desales did not limit Taryn to only 7 pts. on Sat... sitting on the bench for 25 minutes did. Shooters need to be playing to score...if the outside shot isn't there early, post her up...she usually has a decided height advantage on whomever is guarding her. Shooters need to find the flow of the game...in & out sometimes won't be enough...even for the most talented and especially as the games get tougher. Could be a good one...for awhile. From the Long Center, Scranton:74/DVC:57.

[bballislife]

Saratoga, remember that Taryn is only a junior....Only time will tell how many career points she will end up with.  As for only averaging 22 minutes a game....well, that's how Coach Strong keeps his players "fresh"...If she averaged 30-35 minutes a game, there is always the possibility of burning out come March Madness, the most important part of the season.  It's also the reason she is able to bury the NBA range three pointer at the end of the Elite 8 game to put the  Lady Royals ahead and send them to the final four, instead of front rimming the shot due to dead legs...Hopefully this year, it will be that NBA range three pointer sealing the national championship....Of course, I'm getting ahead of myself and of course you know all this already, but for those who don't, this is why Scranton is so successful....They have ten players with "fresh" legs who can come in and burn a team on any given night....Go Lady Royals!!!

[saratoga]

B-ball: I was not trying to imply Taryn should be playing 35 min./ game. With the system Coach Strong has, don't mess with success. I was refering to some comments that Desales must have really played some great D on her to limit her to only 7 pts. My response was that it was not any specific defense, rather it was the fact she didn't play all that much in that game. Sometimes selection committees ONLY look at numbers racked up on the offensive end of things when determining All-American or All-Conference selections and they tend to downplay defense, rebounds, assists, and the ability to run an effective offense as secondary components. I vividly remember a number of years ago Kelly Halpin of the Lady Royals NOT getting the Freshman of the Year award because her OFFENSIVE numbers didn't match those of another girl that averaged approx. 22pts./game. What was not considered was the girl who won it played for a Last place team, she had far fewer assists &  took about 25 shots / game. All Kelly did was run the show as a freshman for a team she directed to the Final Four. She had an unbelievable assist to turnover ratio & had a much higher shooting % than the winner. So when the powers to be sit down to select various All-This & That...look at the big picture...don't omit someone because they "only" scored 18 per game & someone else scores 25. Do they play the same minutes? Does one play for a CONSISTANT winner while the other plays for a .500 team? Is one team usually up by 20 at the half & then plays 14 kids as opposed to a team that only has 8 on the roster & plays 200 minutes between 6 or 7 kids? Lastly, there is not a better point guard in the league than Allison Matt...she runs Scranton's offense to perfection. She can score at will if needed, thread a bounce pass on a dime & handles every defensive set thrown at her with calm & precision. One game at a time...congrats to ALL the Lady Royals & staff.

[kate]

What did you all think while you were watching DelVal point guard Shannon O'Neill?  Just gotta get that "D" working.

[roy_a]

Kate,

I typically hold my cudos for those who score a great deal of points unless I see the game. Hence, my silence about Melissa Krafts' 35pt performance last week. Sometimes a person scores and it is an indication of a great game/poor defense/circumstances/minutes played/etc..Although scoring 31 points against the #2 team in the Country is impressive, her 5 three pt shots were from about 4ft beyond the arc. Typically the defense is not on top of you when you are 20 pts behind and that far out. So, albeit it is still impressive it was not a matter of her " beating" Scrantons' D....

Now with the first half of the conference season finished it is going to be very interesting to see how the 2 thru 4 spots play out as 5 teams will be vying for those spots. My gut, and it is a big one, says Drew/Fdu/ and Kings..in no particular order though....No matter what though only if one of those teams pulls an upset over Scranton in the playoffs will more than 1 team make the big dance. With an expanded amount of teams this year it is surprising that the Freedom will most  likely have only 1 representative. I know, I know, I am a diehard Scranton fan and they have not won the conference yet, but............

[bziadie]

Kate:

Even though 31 points is impressive, I bet even Shannon O'Neil left the gym without a smile on her face and would have prefered to have gone scoreless and get the win. To those who truly play the game to win, individual efforts cannot be enjoyed without a victory, or at the very least a close game against a heavily favored opponent.  As hard as the Aggies play, I seriously doubt any of the players or coaches were giddy with glee afterwards after seeing her final point total.

I guarantee you a Beth Jordan would have rather not scored her 1,000th point against Scranton and gone scoreless if it meant having her team win the game.  Team success, not individual success, is what matters most.

[kate]

First, Roy, i meant DelVal's "D" , and it goes without saying, Bob, a win would have been MUCH more impressive.   i also wondered if Scranton had planned to let one Aggie "go" and cover Juli, Rachel and Moira like flies on honey.  Not seeing the game either, it is hard to tell.  i STILL say holding you guys (Royals) to 55 points at DeSales is an accomplishment. 

[kate]

Can't believe that i missed that game this afternoon for a rec center opening!  Aggies, i'm really happy tonight after seeing that scoreboard.  Your defense must have been incredible - way to go!

[roy_a]

Pts scored=Player of the week??

I am a bit confused. I know that I am biased toward Scranton but tell me if this makes sense?

The Mac\Freedom player of the week is LeighAnn Burke a Freshmen from Desales who had a very good week:

vs Wilkes---37pts in 33 minutes
vs Lyco   ---12 pts in 28 minutes
-----------------------------------------
                  49 pts in 61 min--avg  24.5 pts in 30.5 min\\\\1 total rebound

Taryn Mellody:

vs Drew----19 pts in 15 minutes
vs DelVal---25 pts in 22 minutes
-----------------------------------------
                  44 pts in 37 min--avg  22pts in 17.5 min\\\\\7 total rebounds?

Why is pts scored often times the primary reason for such awards?

[saratoga]

Roy: I've been asking that question forever...my only logical conclusion...the powers that vote want a quick & easy call & offensive numbers are the quickest way to throw a name out. Although not the right reason...I can live with this call somewhat for the Player of the Week, where it makes no sense at all is when they use this criterian for various Player & Rookie of the Year honors. In those cases, the MAC has more than ample time to look at the whole picture of what constitutes a great player & make decisions accordingly. I mentioned the Kelly Halpin fiasco from a number of years & even as little as two years ago Taryn Mellody was overlooked as Freshman of the Year. Not to take anything away from the girl who won, but are you telling me Taryn did not deserve at least a Co-award??? The winner ends up in last place & Taryn helps her Lady Royals to the Elite 8...please! Who would you want taking the last shot with the game on the line???  Better yet, ask Bowdoin. Somehow, if you play 38 minutes for a 3rd. place or last place team & keep firing away this mediocrity has been rewarded...a very wrong message is being sent & COMPLETE players are paying the price. That said, I'm sure all of the kids I've mentioned would NEVER trade trips to the Final Four for an individual honor...it's just a personal wish I have that some common-sense may eventually prevail within the MAC & also reward kids that play a huge role in championship programs being recognized.

[roy_a]

Pat,

I have been reading the discussion on the NESCAC site and am truly confused about playing conference teams once vs twice and how it affects others? Can you explain as I would really like to know?

Thanks

[Pat Coleman]

Sure thing.

I assume you understand that league play is .500 across the board -- for every conference win, someone else in the conference loses. That leads to a leveling-out of the winning percentages across the conference.

In the MAC Freedom, for example, the 112 wins and losses are about 56% of the conference's schedule. In the NESCAC, the 90 conference games are just 38% of the conference's schedule, leaving the conference's overall winning percentage inflated relative to leagues that play double round-robins.

And if the winning percentage is inflated, then the QOWi is inflated, giving them an edge in NCAA selection criteria.

[Snowman]

Saratoga

Kudos.........That is a pet peve with a lot of people, All Tournamnet teams, weekly and conference honors not only in the MAc but all over simply go to the high scorers......it seems to be inbred from high school when all the newspapers write about are the high scorers...its a shame.

I was at an ECAC tounament last year and watch a point guard, dominate, 5-6 assists a game, 8 points a game, steals defense...EVERY GAME (3 games) and her center who averaged 15 points and had 2 horiffic games got the MVP...it was a joke......similarly I saw a Christmas Tournament this year, same point guard CONTROLLED the games, 7 assists, 40 minutes in one game 6 assists no turnovers 6 points(against another top 25 team) per game, they won the tournament and the three top scorers on the winning team made the All Tournament team and got the MVP and one of the player was flat out terrible and score when the games were in hand and the Point was cheering from the bench....a joke to be sure.

At some point you would hope these coaches/SID's and others would get it

[kate]

Two great wins in a row for the Aggies - Congratulations to Ashley Flaherty of FDU, who not only had a great game all around, but hit her l,000 mark in the second half.

[roy_a]

Scranton Vs Kings last night......

Hmm.....I am at a loss as to what to say. First, the first half of the game was one of the most dominating performances I have seen in the last 10 yrs. Scranton was up 44-11. Now I know that record wise kings is 9-10,however, this is a team that has a great deal of talent..Therefore, it was quite impressive. The other side of the coin...It sure did not look like the Kings team that has been a thorn in the side of Scranton for the last 6 yrs. It was more like kings from the Pre-Whitten days..Not that I want to see Kings beat us but it sure was fun when tension filled the air as you did not know who was going to win these matchups 'till the final minute..

That said..I can see the Lady Royals making a return trip to the F