MBB: Midwest Conference

[fightingscots13]

anyone have scores to report yet?  I'm dyin', I'm dyin'...

[The Roop]

Griping on here apparently works as MidwestConference.TV finally updated their schedule for tonight and I could watch the Bucs. Beloit rolls 79-63. Dowden had 7 3s and totalled 23 points tonight, a new career high. Macklin scored 30 for Knox. Horton closed out the scoring with a monster dunk and finished with 20.

[RiponRed34]

Grinnell 120 Ripon 118

A very close back and forth game.  Ripon shoots terribly from the FT line and commits way too many unforced turnovers.  Congrats to Grinnell.  The system works.

Two side notes:

1. Woods was waaaaay better then grotberg...but what a shooter.

2. This game was just as frustrating to watch as it was to play against.  Grinnell got away with countless fouls and travel calls.  The refs never seemed to miss a Ripon foul and called a bunch a phantom calls on Ripon when they had the chance.  Grinnell just gets away with too much (yes I am a tad bitter).  I know the players are good kids, but it just gets way to physical and refs seem to swallow their whistles.  The frantic pace becomes too much and they just start guessing.  Grinnell's system is definitely fun to watch, but they will never get anywhere far in the big picture because at some point they will get officials that won't swallow their whistles.

[fightingscots13]

aahhh RR34...watch the 'Neers come swooping down at your head...

But you're right on #2.  They do get away with a lot, and not one second of it is their fault.  Think of all the "regular" games where you've seen a ref out of position and get frustrated.  And you're saying, "Hey, there's 3 of you out there - get in position!"  Ok, maybe I've said that a time or two....but the point is, when a ref (or two or three) isn't prepared for the pace that GC plays at, they're out of position all the time. 

[schwanman]

Sorry #13, but if you're still following the board, the Scots fell 68-56. They held a 50-48 lead with 7:55 left, then went cold.

[The Roop]

Is it also possible that the refs actually called the game even and Ripon simply lost ?? WOW, what a concept. I've been to Ripon about a dozen times over the past 25 years and they are 10-2 in that stretch. However they are 0-2 in games officiated fairly.

[fightingscots13]

wow - 6 pts. in almost 8 minutes?  Guess the temperature in Wisconsin went down a few more degrees.

For some reason I can't pull up the pre-season conference standings, but did anyone outside DePere see this coming this soon?

[fightingscots13]

sure, Roop - anything's possible.  But until a research staff can go to every game over the course of a year and tell us how many calls are missed each game (on both sides), how it affects the outcome, etc., the debate will always be there.

[RiponRed34]

Roop, have you ever played against it?  Your dreams don't count either.

I'm not the only one that feels this way....hate hate hate!

[The Roop]

All I can verify is that Ripon lost tonight. For that reason I am happy. When they break Cal-Techs streak it won't come soon enough for me. As for St. Norbert, I believe they were picked 5th in the pre-season poll so their performance this year is not unexpected.

And yes Dolph. Beloit covered the Roop Vegas spread tonight so you can't ask for a new coach tomorrow.

[Dolph Stanley]

Solid win for Beloit tonight but count on me asking for a new coach until such time as this team at least competes in the MWC postseason.

I was very surprised at the moves by both coaches towards the end of the game.  Beloit up 14 (with their starters still in) rebounds the ball with 40 seconds left and rather than calling time out and clearing the bench keeps the starters in resulting in Hortons dunk.  Knox counters by leaving Maclin in to bomb threes to the bitter end.

[The Roop]

Roop, have you ever played against it?  Your dreams don't count either.

I'm not the only one that feels this way....hate hate hate!

Fine, I'm a hater. I'm also just a fan and I never played college ball. I just think it's funny that everybody makes fun of "The System" when they lose to it as not being real basketball and yet they still count the wins against it. If you miss as many FTs as Ripon did then you should lose. How is this my fault ??

When I first started going to games (back in the day) everybody disliked Ripon. Why, I'm not sure. Probably because they were good and won all the time. Since then I've found other reasons to dislike them and it has to do with sportsmanship. It's not every player and it's not even every year but I've seen "cheap shot thugs" on that team over the years and neither Weiske or Gillespie has done anything to control the behavior. Refs aren't looking so take a closed fist swing at an opposing player because you didn't like the foul call. Yeah, that says class.

9-7 probably hosts the MWC Tournament this year so 7-9 Ripon will get in. Via 14 tie breakers they will play Carroll and meet the winner of the LU-Beloit game. So let it be written, so let it be done......

[scottie]

Ooh, a smooth 1-4 on the pick 'em board tonight.  This is not supposed to happen to someone of my basketball IQ!   

[The Roop]

Scottie you need to pay more attention to the Roop Vegas line. 4 of the last 5 are winners.

[fightingscots13]

Well, I'll leave for the night with this:  I was drinking either way...I just didn't know if we'd be celebrating a road win or not...bottom's up!