WBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletics Association

[WWWRHH]

Washington and Jefferson's conference (Presidents Athletic Conference PrAC) does not seem to be represented on the women's side so it is not possible to monitor their chatter and gain any insight into what we might see tomorrow night.

I did find the attached newspaper article and toward the end it does discuss the Presidents style of play.  As I gathered from the stats, they have some similarities with the Dutch.  However, it also sounds as if their post may play a different type of game than the Dutch's starting duo.

http://www.observer-reporter.com/OR/Story/03-03-W-amp-J-gets-Hope-in-DIII-tourney

We could see some intesting matchups.

W&J's highest ranked opponent Thomas More (TM won 2 of 3) has some height on the roster, but More's primary rotation included only one 6 footer.  Carrie could pose a real challenge for a shorter team not used to a highly skilled big player that can hurt you inside and outside.

[Flying Dutch Fan]

Here's a quick team stat comparison fo Hope and Washigton & Jefferson

Offense	% 2pt	% 3pt	% FT
Hope	44.6	34.7	69.6
W&J	46.5	36.7	72
Defense	% 2pt	% 3pt
Hope	33	29.8
W&J	40.4	31.6
Rebounding	Team	Opp	Margin
Hope	45.6	37.3	8.3
W&J	37.9	31.5	6.4
Scoring	Team	Opp	Margin
Hope	77.9	54.3	23.6
W&J	70.1	55.2	14.9
3 point shooting	Attempts	Made	Made/game
Hope	404	140	5.4
W&J	382	140	5
Blocks	Total	per game
Hope	149	5.7
W&J	70	2.5
Steals	Total	per game
Hope	372	14.3
W&J	237	8.5
Turnovers	Total	per game
Hope	453	17.4
W&J	386	13.8
Assists	Total	per game
Hope	409	15.7
W&J	402	14.4
Assist/Turnover
Hope	0.9
W&J	1

[WWWRHH]

Flyinjg Dutch Fan:  thanks for the additional stat breakdown.

If I may, let me add a couple of points and an attempt to provide some analysis and color to the stats.

Hope's turnovers and assist to turnover ratio always make me cringe a little when I look at the numbers in isolation.

However, the high octain offense which takes chances getting the ball up the court is part of the reason for the turnovers.  But coupled with the fast break first mentality, is an aggressive defense.  While Hope has 17.4 turnover per game, opponents have an eyepopping 24.2.  I can live with that ratio.

(The amount of time that the third rotation spends on the floor is a prime contributor to the high turnovers. Of course that distirbuted playing time is the reason that the team has done so well after graduating four starting seniors and will be back again next year when two key starters depart.)

Another stat I find intesting is that while the Dutch's total rebounding margin is 8.3 per game, the offensive rebounding margin is 5.5 which I believe contributes to a pretty healthy second chance point differential.

[oldknight]

Here's a quick team stat comparison fo Hope and Washigton & Jefferson

Offense	% 2pt	% 3pt	% FT
Hope	44.6	34.7	69.6
W&J	46.5	36.7	72
Defense	% 2pt	% 3pt
Hope	33	29.8
W&J	40.4	31.6
Rebounding	Team	Opp	Margin
Hope	45.6	37.3	8.3
W&J	37.9	31.5	6.4
Scoring	Team	Opp	Margin
Hope	77.9	54.3	23.6
W&J	70.1	55.2	14.9
3 point shooting	Attempts	Made	Made/game
Hope	404	140	5.4
W&J	382	140	5
Blocks	Total	per game
Hope	149	5.7
W&J	70	2.5
Steals	Total	per game
Hope	372	14.3
W&J	237	8.5
Turnovers	Total	per game
Hope	453	17.4
W&J	386	13.8
Assists	Total	per game
Hope	409	15.7
W&J	402	14.4
Assist/Turnover
Hope	0.9
W&J	1

A couple of things stand out for me. Hope's defensive shooting per centage (for 2-point attempts) is significantly better than W & J's. I doubt if W & J sees the kind of defensive pressure that Hope typically shows and I think the Presidents will find scoring in the paint to be far more difficult than they normally experience. Knox and Snikkers are an imposing tandem and if you've never played against them, their ability to clog up the lane can be intimidating. Snikkers in particular is a good shot blocker and I wouldn't be surprised if she had 5 or 6 blocks by halftime. I think Calvin's experience at DeVos in their first game this year (when they got blown out) enabled them to better deal with Hope's pressure the second time around and that made for a much better game.

[fannie]

Thanks for taking the time to get some info up about the Presidents....I had done some searching and had found very little.  I did  a video Google on Presidents womens basketball and found a couple of short snippets that were interesting but not real informative!  :-)

[hope1]

i think it will be a good game friday  night i just hope they fill it up that would help more

[Flea]

Carissa Verkaik coming to Calvin:

http://www.hollandsentinel.com/sports/x1362395605/PREP-ROUNDUP-Maroons-top-player-chooses-Calvin-College

That'll keep Ross happy during tennis season.

[hope1]

good job hope girls keep it rolling carrie with  27  points hope is going to be a tough team to beat they are looking better and better

[WWWRHH]

Good win tonight for the Dutch.

As some of us suspected, the Presidents were just physically over matched by the Hope post players.  Snkkers and Knox combined for more than half the Dutch's rebounds and points.  Snikkers had 27 points and Knox 17.  They combined for 21 rebounds.  Carrie's inside / outside game was in full force.  She was 4-5 from 3 point range.  Most of her twos came from a post up near the basket followed by her patented soft baby hook.

Knox grabbed 6 offensive rebounds and it seemed was able to convert all into points.  4-4 from the field and 9-11 from the FT line.

The rest of the scoring was dispersed among the team with some nice three pointers by DeKuiper and Geers.

W&J is a very good team.  The Presidents never gave up and although down by 22 at the half they came out strong in the second half and shot very well to narrow the lead to 11.  Before Hope closed out the game with a strong run. 

Hope shot very well from beyond the arc in the first half.  It looked to me as if W&J extened their defensive pressure on the Hope's perimeter players in the second half and basically played a physical "man" defense on Hope's post, but double teamed when the ball came inside.  They were able to play even with Hopes guards, but just could not stope Hope's inside game.   It was a gutsy strategy and probably was their best chance for victory. 

[Erm Schmigget]

Pat Coleman chose Oglethorpe over Hope in the Sectionals final, to get to the Final Four.  While this perplexed me somewhat when I first read it, last night's results have solidified my initial thought that Pat might be full of baloney with this prediction.

Hope out blocked (4-0), out rebounded (21-14), and out-scored #23 W&J in the paint (36-22) last night on their way to a relatively easy win on their home floor.  By contrast, OU eked out a 3-point win inside of the last minute, while 2 of their  starters played all 40 minutes against an unranked Maryville team, also on their home floor.

Hope has OU outsized (and deep into the bench), and with the numbers the Dutch put up last night (listed above), I just don't see OU coming out victorious in a week, regardless of where the NCAA decides to send them.

BTW, I'm not over-looking Baldwin-Wallace tonight.  But if you saw what I saw last night, you'd understand why I'm affording myself the luxury of looking ahead.  I understand that Hope--and for that matter OU--has 2 more games to win before this match-up is possible.  But these comments are based on the assumption that Pat was right that they will actually meet in the Elite Eight.  I'm sure Coach Mo and the Hope women will not look past the next game, any step of the way.

Sorry, Pat, but I just don't see eye-to-eye with you on this one.  OU just hasn't shown it yet.

GO HOPE!!

[Erm Schmigget]

Links of interest:

http://www.washjeff.edu/Athletics/WBasketball/089stats/game29.htm

http://www.d3hoops.com/game-releases/v2.0/2009/Mar/06/Oglethorpe-vs.-Maryville+(Tenn.)/5bft578mkqt75ovk/29407
(no box score for OU's game)

[sac]

Pat Coleman chose Oglethorpe over Hope in the Sectionals final, to get to the Final Four.  While this perplexed me somewhat when I first read it, last night's results have solidified my initial thought that Pat might be full of baloney with this prediction.

Hope out blocked (4-0), out rebounded (21-14), and out-scored #23 W&J in the paint (36-22) last night on their way to a relatively easy win on their home floor.  By contrast, OU eked out a 3-point win inside of the last minute, while 2 of their  starters played all 40 minutes against an unranked Maryville team, also on their home floor.

Hope has OU outsized (and deep into the bench), and with the numbers the Dutch put up last night (listed above), I just don't see OU coming out victorious in a week, regardless of where the NCAA decides to send them.

BTW, I'm not over-looking Baldwin-Wallace tonight.  But if you saw what I saw last night, you'd understand why I'm affording myself the luxury of looking ahead.  I understand that Hope--and for that matter OU--has 2 more games to win before this match-up is possible.  But these comments are based on the assumption that Pat was right that they will actually meet in the Elite Eight.  I'm sure Coach Mo and the Hope women will not look past the next game, any step of the way.

Sorry, Pat, but I just don't see eye-to-eye with you on this one.  OU just hasn't shown it yet.

GO HOPE!!

I would bet that prediction is based on two key factors. 

1. Oglethorpe was in the final four last year

2. Oglethorpe will likely be hosting the sectional

[House]

Is the WHTC Audio working for anyone?

[oldknight]

My wife and I took in the B-W/Hope game at DeVos and sac will be glad to know that we successfully exorcised the BaldWally ghost from the Hope campus, as the ladies won 69-53. The Flying Dutch took an early 14-1 lead and it had all the earmarks of an easy game. The Yellow Jackets began play very tentatively, especially on defense, and I was close enough to the B-W bench to hear their coach exclaim "We're letting them get easy shots everywhere." But the ghost of Christmas past refused to die easily and trouble began in the form of two early fouls on Snikkers.

The trouble was compounded by a curious coaching decision by Morehouse when, for extended minutes, he left only one starter (Knox) in the game while Cowen, Greene and Kopke were left to watch the lead dwindle. B-W has an excellent point guard (Quiring) who harrassed the daylights out of Hope's point, forcing the Flying Dutch to start their offense further from the basket. B-W closed with one at 18-17 and the game stayed close before Hope righted the ship, largely on the strength of some excellent inside/outside play of one of Al VandenBosch's finest, Erika Bruinsma, who I believe ended the half with 11 points.

After a halftime score of 35-28, Hope went back to basics in the second half and in a workmanlike way, slowly but surely pulled away until a 21 point lead was established. B-W never really threatened in the second half. I was surprised to see Hope got outrebounded 44-42, and like Hope's close win at Calvin a couple of weeks ago, it seemed like an awful lot of loose ball rebounds weren't recovered by the Flying Dutch. That would concern me if I coached these ladies. There's too much talent on Hope's squad to see that happen so often.

I'm sure Hope will be on the road next week, and if they want a return engagement for more March hoops at DeVos the Flying Dutch need to crank up the consistency. I would also be a bit concerned about the play from the point position, especially off the bench which doesn't seem to offer this team a lot of help. It strikes me as Hope's Achilles' heel.

[Flying Dutch Fan]

I've been thinking about the upcoming sectional that Hope will be in, and I'm predicting that Thomas More will be hosting.  Here's my reasoning (as I try to think like the NCAA - yikes)

If Thomas More hosts -  Both Hope (393) and Oglethorpe (454) are within the 500 mile driving distance, meaning a sinlge airplane ride (for the George Fox / Chapman winner).

If Hope hosts - only Thomas More is within driving distance - 2 teams have to fly

If Oglethorpe hosts - only Thomas More is within driving distance - 2 teams have to fly

If George Fox/Chapman host - 3 teams have to fly