WBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletics Association

[Flying Dutch Fan]

Terrific  ...Lexington KY forecast calls for a 'bomb cyclone' with snow/ice mixture Friday evening thru Saturday morning.  3-6" of snow possible.  Thankfully it won't affect the drive down as I'll already be in Lexington Friday afternoon for Trine's 4:30 game.  Saturday will be very cold and then start to warm back up on Sunday.

Well be careful, and hopefully you have reason to stay through Saturday night and head back during a warmer Sunday (minus that hour of sleep we lose this weekend).

[TUAngola]

Terrific  ...Lexington KY forecast calls for a 'bomb cyclone' with snow/ice mixture Friday evening thru Saturday morning.  3-6" of snow possible.  Thankfully it won't affect the drive down as I'll already be in Lexington Friday afternoon for Trine's 4:30 game.  Saturday will be very cold and then start to warm back up on Sunday.

Well be careful, and hopefully you have reason to stay through Saturday night and head back during a warmer Sunday (minus that hour of sleep we lose this weekend).

Thanks FDF.  I am staying the weekend regardless of the outcome Friday, hoping for a couple "W's".

[ronk]

Hope Regional

This is going to be one great weekend of basketball at the DeVos - as you would expect for this round. Some thoughts and data about these teams:

Regional Ranking stuff (based on the final rankings, not updated since the tourney began)
-  NYU (Reg4), Scranton (Reg5), and Hope (Reg7) are all Ranked #1 in their regions, along with Millikin (Reg8) ranked #4.
-  Their SOS's range from .540 (Hope) to .597 (Scranton)
-  Combined they are 33-9 vRRO

NCAA Tournament history
-  All 4 of the teams have some significant tournament history
-  NYU is 33-22 all time (.600) - 3 Final Fours and 1 National Championship (1997)
-  Scranton is 68-36 all time (.654) - 9 Final Fours and 1 National Championship (1985)
-  Millikin is 24-14 all time (.632) - 3 Final Fours and 1 National Championship (2005)
-  Hope is 43-18 all time (.705) - 3 Final Fours and 2 National Championships (1990 & 2006)

Comparing this years teams
(details on the columns)
Avg Pos/G - Average possession per game - to help judge the speed of games
Off Eff (PPP) - Offensive Efficiency in Points Per Possession
Def Eff (PPP) - same thing on the defensive side
Home Attendance - just throwing that in there since there were ~ 2000 fans last weekend at each game, and I expect it will be even higher this weekend, and that can be intimidating

Team	Avg Pos/G	Off Eff (PPP)	Def Eff (PPP)	Avg Home Attendance
NYU	72.5	1.079	0.780	98
Scranton	64.6	1.043	0.801	356
Millikin	71.3	1.029	0.856	252
Hope	74.6	1.158	0.628	1100

-  Based on Avg Pos/G - Scranton and NYU will likely be battling over the pace of the game.  Control the pace, and it likely gives you an advantage. 
-  Hope and Millikin both like a faster game.  I think this one comes down to Hope's defense and can they play with that .628 defensive efficiency

Was there for the Millikin championship - they had a PG, Audrey Minott, who was the consummate PG and the standard for my evaluations since then of college prospects in an era when roles were more pronounced than in today's game.
2006 - attended regional and sectional but couldn't get away for the final 4.

[HOPEful]

Terrific  ...Lexington KY forecast calls for a 'bomb cyclone' with snow/ice mixture Friday evening thru Saturday morning.  3-6" of snow possible.  Thankfully it won't affect the drive down as I'll already be in Lexington Friday afternoon for Trine's 4:30 game.  Saturday will be very cold and then start to warm back up on Sunday.

Hopefully the following weekend, we'll both be driving to Pittsburg on dry, clear roads.

On that note, seeing as all 3 Hope v. Trine games this season were won by the away team, who would have the advantage on a neutral court? I really hope we get the chance to find out!

[sac]

Thanks for showing the formula.
It does fit in the definition that an o-reb continues a single possession, which is the definition I like.
I imagine high-budget operations like the NBA probably have someone in the stat-keeping that inserts a change-of-possession indicator in the official play-by-play, so they have an ongoing count of possessions.
Even there, some judgement is involved when there's a scrum for a loose ball that may include several quick changes of possession. The shot clock operator makes those judgements I guess.

I think Sidearm live stats actually has a live possessions counter.  It may use the formula anyway, but I've seen it on some games I've followed this year.  Some schools use the very fancy version, some do not.

[RogK]

Thanks for the info, sac.

[gordonmann]

I'm planning on making a road trip to Transylvania tomorrow and Saturday for this weekend's regional games. If you're so inclined and want to say hello, please do!

I'm bald, pale and have a goatee. I often wear a Tigers hat, if that helps.

[Baldini]

I'm planning on making a road trip to Transylvania tomorrow and Saturday for this weekend's regional games. If you're so inclined and want to say hello, please do!

I'm bald, pale and have a goatee. I often wear a Tigers hat, if that helps.

Pack your snow gear. 

[Dutchfan]

I'm planning on making a road trip to Transylvania tomorrow and Saturday for this weekend's regional games. If you're so inclined and want to say hello, please do!

I'm bald, pale and have a goatee. I often wear a Tigers hat, if that helps.

How do we know you're bald if you're wearing a Tiger's hat?

[Riley Zayas]

For a look at the competition Trine will be facing in Lexington this weekend at its sectional pod, which includes UMHB, Transylvania, and Springfield, check out the preview below. I really like Trine's chances to emerge from this pod. The Thunder have been a very complete team for much of this season...and just saying, it would likely create a Hope-Trine matchup in the Final Four, which would be incredible.

https://truetothecru.com/2022/03/10/ncaa-tournament-preview-umhb-womens-basketball-battles-transylvania-trine-faces-springfield-in-third-round/

[pointlem]

For a look at the competition Trine will be facing in Lexington this weekend at its sectional pod, which includes UMHB, Transylvania, and Springfield, check out the preview below. I really like Trine's chances to emerge from this pod. The Thunder have been a very complete team for much of this season...and just saying, it would likely create a Hope-Trine matchup in the Final Four, which would be incredible.

https://truetothecru.com/2022/03/10/ncaa-tournament-preview-umhb-womens-basketball-battles-transylvania-trine-faces-springfield-in-third-round/

Well done, True to the Cru. UMHB and its supporters must appreciate you much as Calvin/Hope/Trine fans appreciate KnightSlappy/OldKnight, Sac/FDF, and TU Angola.

If UMHB sticks with a 2-3 zone, as you say, my hunch is that it may be a long night for them if Trine's 3-point shooters are on their game. But cross-region games sometimes surprise us.

[TUAngola]

So I'm here in Lexington.  Left Indiana early this morning to 20 degree temps and a fresh coat of snow on the ground, contrast to the sunny 60 degree weather here in Lexington...for now.  Latest forecast is still calling for snow to start falling around 9 or10pm tonight and last until morning.  Lexington weatherman says anywhere from 3-6 inches of snow expected.  At least the weather should not affect those coming in for the games today.  And the snow should be done and roads cleared before tomorrow's 6pm game.  Traveling down I-75 is not much fun...bumper to bumper traffic all the way to Cincinnati before it started to get less congested in Kentucky.

I will report back tonight with a recap win or lose, will probably stay for the second game too.  Good luck to both Trine and Hope as they continue on their post season journey!

 

[Baldini]

For a look at the competition Trine will be facing in Lexington this weekend at its sectional pod, which includes UMHB, Transylvania, and Springfield, check out the preview below. I really like Trine's chances to emerge from this pod. The Thunder have been a very complete team for much of this season...and just saying, it would likely create a Hope-Trine matchup in the Final Four, which would be incredible.

https://truetothecru.com/2022/03/10/ncaa-tournament-preview-umhb-womens-basketball-battles-transylvania-trine-faces-springfield-in-third-round/

Well done, True to the Cru. UMHB and its supporters must appreciate you much as Calvin/Hope/Trine fans appreciate KnightSlappy/OldKnight, Sac/FDF, and TU Angola.

If UMHB sticks with a 2-3 zone, as you say, my hunch is that it may be a long night for them if Trine's 3-point shooters are on their game. But cross-region games sometimes surprise us.

But UMHB doesn't play a 2-3 zone and they don't play Trine, at least not tonight.

[Riley Zayas]

For a look at the competition Trine will be facing in Lexington this weekend at its sectional pod, which includes UMHB, Transylvania, and Springfield, check out the preview below. I really like Trine's chances to emerge from this pod. The Thunder have been a very complete team for much of this season...and just saying, it would likely create a Hope-Trine matchup in the Final Four, which would be incredible.

https://truetothecru.com/2022/03/10/ncaa-tournament-preview-umhb-womens-basketball-battles-transylvania-trine-faces-springfield-in-third-round/

Well done, True to the Cru. UMHB and its supporters must appreciate you much as Calvin/Hope/Trine fans appreciate KnightSlappy/OldKnight, Sac/FDF, and TU Angola.

If UMHB sticks with a 2-3 zone, as you say, my hunch is that it may be a long night for them if Trine's 3-point shooters are on their game. But cross-region games sometimes surprise us.

But UMHB doesn't play a 2-3 zone and they don't play Trine, at least not tonight.

Yeah. If you read the article, it's very clear that UMHB will play Transy. And I said Transy runs a 2-3 zone, which is what I have been told and seen a few times on film.

[Riley Zayas]

For a look at the competition Trine will be facing in Lexington this weekend at its sectional pod, which includes UMHB, Transylvania, and Springfield, check out the preview below. I really like Trine's chances to emerge from this pod. The Thunder have been a very complete team for much of this season...and just saying, it would likely create a Hope-Trine matchup in the Final Four, which would be incredible.

https://truetothecru.com/2022/03/10/ncaa-tournament-preview-umhb-womens-basketball-battles-transylvania-trine-faces-springfield-in-third-round/

Well done, True to the Cru. UMHB and its supporters must appreciate you much as Calvin/Hope/Trine fans appreciate KnightSlappy/OldKnight, Sac/FDF, and TU Angola.

If UMHB sticks with a 2-3 zone, as you say, my hunch is that it may be a long night for them if Trine's 3-point shooters are on their game. But cross-region games sometimes surprise us.

I appreciate the compliments. Try to do what I can to improve coverage of UMHB, the ASC, and in particular circumstances, national D3 coverage.