MBB: Midwest Conference

[East Beast]

Lawrence got it down to 8 before the refs lost control of the game (see below) and free throws time ran it up to 18.    LU had 4 frosh play quite a bit so it was a lttle lopsided at times.  Semling's perimeter defense excellent as always; so quick.   I suspect LU shooting in 1st half was very low. 

Not to complain too much but #14 Tillema for Point better wear a mouthguard in the WIAC as he will get punched this year if he tries some of the cheap stuff he tried late in the game tonight.  When Erik Borreson goes after you then you have done something wrong. 

Point is very good again, should run deep into the tourney.

[The Roop]

Didn't make it all 40 minutes but saw the 1st half and part of the second. Hard to offset speed like that when you can't buy a shot.

[John Gleich]

Not to complain too much but #14 Tillema for Point better wear a mouthguard in the WIAC as he will get punched this year if he tries some of the cheap stuff he tried late in the game tonight.  When Erik Borreson goes after you then you have done something wrong. 

This is rather vague, can you explain?

[Greek Tragedy]

LU begins their season tonight at home against some random team from some small town in Wisconsin that's owned by a guy....Steven or something like that.  Or at least Steven owns a Point in that town....


I guess they must be the first team we play because they got a #1 by their name...or something like that....


In all seriousness, this will be a huge test for LU.  after losing Dekker and others, it easily could be a long season for the Vikes.  Tonight wil be a good game to base just how long a season it will be.  if LU can come out and stay with Point, then I think LU may do better then their projected 8th place finish.  If Point comes out and beats them by 30.....it might be a long winter in Appleton....

That's some pretty good stuff there!  Honestly, whether the score was 10 or 30, I wouldn't base the outlook of the whole season on this opener against the defending champs and #1 team.  Aside from St. Norbert, the competition in the conference as a whole won't match Point's quality, I would guess.  No offense to the MWC of course.

[frodotwo]

Not to complain too much but #14 Tillema for Point better wear a mouthguard in the WIAC as he will get punched this year if he tries some of the cheap stuff he tried late in the game tonight.  When Erik Borreson goes after you then you have done something wrong. 

This is rather vague, can you explain?

I missed what caused the late game "cheap stuff" other than Tillema got knocked to the ground by Klusendorf and the refs conferred for about a minute before it was deemed a straight foul. I thought they were going to call a T and toss the LU player. I didn't see anything before that.

[East Beast]

Not to complain too much but #14 Tillema for Point better wear a mouthguard in the WIAC as he will get punched this year if he tries some of the cheap stuff he tried late in the game tonight.  When Erik Borreson goes after you then you have done something wrong. 

This is rather vague, can you explain?

I missed what caused the late game "cheap stuff" other than Tillema got knocked to the ground by Klusendorf and the refs conferred for about a minute before it was deemed a straight foul. I thought they were going to call a T and toss the LU player. I didn't see anything before that.

Funny, most of the people I sat with, many who are not LU fans, thought the T was going to be on Tillema.  We won't get to see a replay so lets just let it go.

[Redhawk312]

My thoughts, after making the trip to Appleton, Stevens point has a ton of talent. Krull does everything for them defensively, Hoelzel cleans up the glass, Harris handles the ball, and last night the Tillemas/Hurd were agressive and scored all the crucial buckets. The game was closer than the final score indicated, and I thought Point was going to get after them after halftime and it would be over by the 15 minute mark. And a final comment on the "cheap" acts of tillema, he didnt seem overal cheap the entire game, I was sitting baseline, after he got blocked a couple times, then got striped and got into the LU player and completed flopped for like 20 feet. Refs missed that one. Overal the refs were not terrible, besides a few calls here and there which depending on where you are sitting can be good or bad.

LU I think will be better than expected. They showed something in the second half, when nearly the entire gym thought they would get dismantled. It pains me to say that, but I have to go with my gut feeling.

[Just Bill]

Not to complain too much but #14 Tillema for Point better wear a mouthguard in the WIAC as he will get punched this year if he tries some of the cheap stuff he tried late in the game tonight.  When Erik Borreson goes after you then you have done something wrong. 

This is rather vague, can you explain?

I missed what caused the late game "cheap stuff" other than Tillema got knocked to the ground by Klusendorf and the refs conferred for about a minute before it was deemed a straight foul. I thought they were going to call a T and toss the LU player. I didn't see anything before that.

Funny, most of the people I sat with, many who are not LU fans, thought the T was going to be on Tillema.  We won't get to see a replay so lets just let it go.

Hey, you called out the UWSP player in the first place. Don't run and hide because someone asked you to back it up.

As with many things, I imagine your perspective depends on which team's cheering section you happen to be sitting in.

[larry_u]

As someone who saw absolutely none of the game, and just read the boxscore, it appears the game went about how I thought it would.  Not a huge blowout, but LU just doesn't have the horses to run with a team like UWSP this year. 

It will be interesting to see if this freshman class can improve and get to the point where they become like the classes of 2005 (Evans, Falls, Olson, Hollinbeck) or 2006 (Braier, McGillis, Bradley,) and really have an impact on the MWC their junior and senior seasons.

[cubs]

It will be interesting to see if this freshman class can improve and get to the point where they become like the classes of 2005 (Evans, Falls, Olson, Hollinbeck) or 2006 (Braier, McGillis, Bradley,) and really have an impact on the MWC their junior and senior seasons.

In all fairness Bradley wasn't really part of that "class" with Braier and McGillis was he?  Didn't he transfer in after his sophomore season at Point?

[John Gleich]

Lost in the discussion of the competitiveness of this game is the fact that this is has become a rivalry game for these teams.  The series goes back to 1895 and LU is the closest school in the country to Point.  The fact that it has been a fairly even game over the last few years has helped (even if Point has won all of the matchups in recent years except one).

These are two of the more successful programs in their leagues over the last decade and have both been ranked #1 in the country during this stretch too.  That Point is now #1 means that they are going to play in full gyms more often than not and get teams' best shots.

And Cubs is right, Bradley did transfer from Point.

[Redhawk312]

Who does everyone think will be the surprise team in the league? Norbs had an "OK" showing against a poor Marian team, and Lawrence had an up and down matchup against the #1 team in the country. Ripon has everyone back, so besides Ripon/Norbs, who can be the surprise team. I believe either Grinnell, Lawrence and carroll are the 3 teams that could surprise.

[System Error]

I have been known to criticize the System and the Pioneers in the past, but, I went to their game last night against Lindenwood University-Belleville of Illinois. They ended up winning 120-90 and they looked pretty good. Griffin Lentsch - sophomore... Finished with 36 point on 10-21 shooting from three. Great contributions from a variety of different players as well including Skelly, Chalupa and Kaitz. It will be a good year for them in which I could see a 3rd or 4th place finish if they can do a couple things:

Close out games - They lost quite a few close games last year without a lot of experience in late game situations.
Shoot free throws at decent percentage - They shot 64% last year and were 11-26 last night.

If they can do this, they will be in good shape.

[bballer1280]

I have been known to criticize the System and the Pioneers in the past, but, I went to their game last night against Lindenwood University-Belleville of Illinois. They ended up winning 120-90 and they looked pretty good. Griffin Lentsch - sophomore... Finished with 36 point on 10-21 shooting from three. Great contributions from a variety of different players as well including Skelly, Chalupa and Kaitz. It will be a good year for them in which I could see a 3rd or 4th place finish if they can do a couple things:

Close out games - They lost quite a few close games last year without a lot of experience in late game situations.
Shoot free throws at decent percentage - They shot 64% last year and were 11-26 last night.

If they can do this, they will be in good shape.

I agree.  Last year was a bit of a rebuilding year for Coach A.  This year is when the process moves towards winning basketball again.

[The Roop]

Beating a USCAA Team who's lone win came against a Community College is hardly worth bragging about. I like Grinnell myself but of the 23 regularly scheduled eggs, only one has hatched thus far and I think that was an extraembryonic-section.