MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Gregory Sager]

I'm sorry, and I'll plead ignorance if I have to, but who the heck is Lewis Wilson?

GS--Perhaps this is the guy I was impressed with in summer league and asked you about?

It could be, since Wilson matches the general description that you gave me.

He's a 6'3 junior swingman from Von Steuben via Kennedy-King College. He's currently the placeholder for Antonio Stevens on the wing, and he moves over to play the point when Roshawn Russell is out of the game (although freshman Ryan Beigie also saw time at the point this weekend). Wilson is extremely athletic and a slasher rather than a shooter, but he shows the lingering effects of never having been coached properly in high school or junior college. He's a work in progress who would likely be a supplemental sort of bench player if NPU hadn't been thrust into such a bad personnel situation to start off this season.

North Park defeats LaVerne 70-65 - Stephano Jones with a big game.  I think 26 pts and 16 rebounds.

At least Stephano Jones, who made the all-tourney team, had a good first weekend back from his hiatus. This really wasn't a memorable weekend for the Vikings overall. The 22-point loss to Wash U went about as I expected it would, although I was hoping for something a bit more competitive. I'm much more concerned that Nick Williams did not start out of the gate well at all this weekend. He logged a disappointing six points and five rebounds against Wash U, and followed that up with a horrific 0-9 from the field (0-5 from downtown) performance before fouling out against LaVerne. As I've said, he and Clayton Cahill both need to put the ball in the basket on a given night for NPU to compete. The win itself over LaVerne was pretty underwhelming; the Leopards have never been much of a program for as long as I can remember, and it's disquieting that North Park only beat them by five a day after LaVerne became the first team in over a year to drop a game to Colorado College.

The Vikings are going to be a work in progress for awhile.

[Gregory Sager]

The surprise of opening weekend has to be Chicago losing to both Edgewood and Illinois Tech at home...

http://athletics.uchicago.edu/mensbasketball/mbk.htm

Of Chicago's 69 FGA today, 36 were 3's...and they made just 7. 

This stat intrigues me...  There were also 63 3's in the Buena Vista/UW Stout game Sat too... with a combined 17 makes.  It seems like teams are shooting more 3's... could it be the extra daylight they're getting a foot farther from the basket, so they're just letting 'er rip? BV/UW Stout box

Perhaps it's too early to say, though... in the UW Oshkosh/St. Norberts game Sat, the teams combined for 19/38 from deep:  Box

And the Elmhurst box you just posted had a combined 13/31, with both teams shooting over 41%... If they'd averaged that last year, it would have been in the top 10 in the country for 3 pt %.

I actually think that the new line might affect the women more than the men, even though the women's line didn't move back. Thus far I've scored one scrimmage and one actual game for the NPU women, and all three teams took most of their shots from behind the men's line. I don't think that there were more than two or three trey attempts hoisted in yesterday's Carroll @ NPU women's game that were behind the women's line but in front of the men's line. It's as though the players are so thoroughly drilled to avoid shooting from in front of an arc line -- any arc line -- that the women aren't about to try to make distinctions between the two lines while on the fly.

[Gregory Sager]

The stat sheet also shows both played zero (0) minutes. Computer foul up?

I am sure it is something along those lines.  The live stats for today's game showed Antonio Stevens played.

Stevens ended up in the final box score, too:

http://www.northpark.edu/athletics/mbasketball/stats/2008stats/11-16mbb.htm

Most likely a data entry error -- some other players suited up wearing Hoekstra's and Brown's uniform numbers.

I highly doubt that other Vikings were wearing Brown's, Hoekstra's, Stevens's, or Hurst's numbers. Aside from Phil Schniedermeier (who wears #32, not #5, #21, #22, or #31), there aren't any other NPU players who were likely to have been in that game on Saturday. I don't think that more than thirteen players made the trip to Colorado (there were no JV games out there), and each has his own assigned number. These were clearly just multiple data entry mistakes that were never corrected by the Colorado College game staff.

I get irritated by sloppy work like this at the scorer's table. The scorebook has the official lineups for both teams, and both coaching staffs check the scorebook before the game starts (as does the referee, who is required by the NCAA to check the scorebook as part of his or her pregame duties). I can almost guarantee you that none of the phantom Vikings who found their way into the Stat Crew boxes from this weekend (Chris Brown, Nick Hoekstra, and Joel Hurst on Saturday, Antonio Stevens on Sunday) were listed in the scorebook. The Stat Crew operator obviously entered the NPU lineup as it was listed on the North Park website, not as it was listed in the scorebook. How hard is it for the Stat Crew operator (whose input also reads out online via Live Stats) to check with his or her partner at the other end of the table to ensure that the players and numbers that are entered into the computer are the right ones?

There are occasionally moments during a game in which a Stat Crew operator will have to put in a placeholder when he or she is uncertain of the identity of a player who has entered the game; the pace of a men's basketball game is much faster when you have to keep track of it statistically than it is when you're just watching it as a spectator, and if you're the person sitting behind the computer at the scorer's table who is trying to input all of the minutiae of the game as it's happening you'll soon find out that you can't always do it cleanly on the fly. But that's: a) why the athletic department should have a Stat Crew spotter sitting next to you who is assigned to assist you; and b) why you should check your work with the official scorekeeper either during a timeout, at the half, or at the end of the game. There's no excuse for leaving in a placeholder in the final Stat Crew box score any more than there is for not getting the roster right in the first place.

On top of the roster mistakes its table made, Colorado College initially released a box score that listed a final of Wash U 81, NPU 64 on Saturday in the box itself, and a final of Wash U 83, NPU 64 in the play-by-play. North Park has that box posted on its website:

http://www.northpark.edu/athletics/mbasketball/stats/2008stats/11-15mbb.htm

Somebody tidied it up afterwards and gave Wash U an amended box with the actual 86-64 final score:

http://bearsports.wustl.edu/mensbball/NPU-WU3.HTM

... but that amended box score still has NPU's phantom players listed in it.

Sloppy Stat Crew input happens from time to time around D3, and it seems as though there are some tables that are more prone to sloppiness than others. Then again, this was the first games of the season for the Colorado College table, and perhaps there are newbies there who still don't have the hang of their new duties yet. Also, tables are sometimes a little slack when they're handling games that don't involve their own school, as both of NPU's games this weekend were against the two teams that weren't Colorado College. The problem is that now NPU SID Kevin Shepke is going to have to go ask Paul Brenegan or Steve Schafer who those phantom players actually represented (I have a feeling that one of them was Phil Schniedermeier, who was otherwise not listed in Saturday's box score), and then amend the two box scores himself and pass them along to CCIW SID Mike Krizman, so that Stevens, Brown, et. al., don't get credited for appearances and statistics that they didn't actually make. I can assure you that Kevin has a million other things that he has to do besides trying to correct mistakes some other school has made with North Park's stats.

Don't get me wrong; the Stat Crew operator has the toughest job at the table, as I'm sure Mr. B would agree, even though the official scorekeeper and the various operators who control the scoreboard and shot clock are under more immediate pressure than the Stat Crew operator during the course of a game. Nevertheless, a conscientious Stat Crew operator will make sure that he or she gets it right before the game, or sticks around and corrects all of the errors after the game. The fact that these are frequently unpaid volunteer positions whose contributions to the game are basically both anonymous and thankless doesn't excuse table personnel from doing a half-assed job.

[Titan Q]

Here is the Elmhurst/MacMurray boxscore from last night...

http://elmhurst.edu/~athletic/Home/M-Basket/stats/2008-2009/melm01.htm

The Bluejays started:

G Mike McCurdy (Fr), 5-10
G Zack Boyd (Fr), 6-2
F Ryan Burks (Sr), 6-4
F Robert Strzemp (Sr), 6-4/245
C Brent Ruch (Sr), 6-9/260

EC Coach Scherer must have little to no confidence in his upperclass guards to start 2 freshmen.

Or the freshmen are just more talented and it is worth getting them acclimated now and ready to go for the CCIW. Zack Boyd video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoYfDmNhzEo


I know the Elmhurst staff feels they have two future 1st Team All-CCIW candidates in McCurdy and Boyd. 

[AndOne]

I've also heard a rumor that Jimmy Saris isn't going to play for the 'jays, either. Yea or nay on that rumor, 'jays fans?

According to what I was told, Dustin Bainter and Mitch Blair started in the backcourt for Elmhurst against Valpo, with Chris Childs and freshmen Mike McCurdy and Zach Boyd coming off the bench.

Saris tore his ACL and will miss the season.

Against Valpo Elmhurst started Bainter and Boyd in the backcourt...

http://www.valpoathletics.com/mbb/2008-2009/BoxScores/mbbexh.htm


(And yes, Ryder and Macias are no longer on the team.)

Sources have indicated to me that Mitch Blair is also no longer with the Elmhurst team. Evidence of this appears to be at hand in that if you check the EC BB web site, his name seems to have suddenly vanished from the roster. So now we have Ryder, Macias, Saris, and Blair gone from last year's EC guard corps. Whats happening over there? A bad case of Blue(jay) flu?      

[AndOne]

Here is the Elmhurst/MacMurray boxscore from last night...

http://elmhurst.edu/~athletic/Home/M-Basket/stats/2008-2009/melm01.htm

The Bluejays started:

G Mike McCurdy (Fr), 5-10
G Zack Boyd (Fr), 6-2
F Ryan Burks (Sr), 6-4
F Robert Strzemp (Sr), 6-4/245
C Brent Ruch (Sr), 6-9/260

EC Coach Scherer must have little to no confidence in his upperclass guards to start 2 freshmen.

Or the freshmen are just more talented and it is worth getting them acclimated now and ready to go for the CCIW. Zack Boyd video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoYfDmNhzEo


I know the Elmhurst staff feels they have two future 1st Team All-CCIW candidates in McCurdy and Boyd. 

What else are they going to say? We're starting 2 rummies at guard this year?" Hardly.
Of course BOTH can't be 1st team all conference until Rosenkranz and Johnson are done filling the spots. TWO 1st team guards from the same school. Wow! When is the last time that happened?

[Titan Q]

Here is the Elmhurst/MacMurray boxscore from last night...

http://elmhurst.edu/~athletic/Home/M-Basket/stats/2008-2009/melm01.htm

The Bluejays started:

G Mike McCurdy (Fr), 5-10
G Zack Boyd (Fr), 6-2
F Ryan Burks (Sr), 6-4
F Robert Strzemp (Sr), 6-4/245
C Brent Ruch (Sr), 6-9/260

EC Coach Scherer must have little to no confidence in his upperclass guards to start 2 freshmen.

Or the freshmen are just more talented and it is worth getting them acclimated now and ready to go for the CCIW. Zack Boyd video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoYfDmNhzEo


I know the Elmhurst staff feels they have two future 1st Team All-CCIW candidates in McCurdy and Boyd. 

What else are they going to say? We're starting 2 rummies at guard this year?" Hardly.
Of course BOTH can't be 1st team all conference until Rosenkranz and Johnson are done filling the spots. TWO 1st team guards from the same school. Wow! When is the last time that happened?

You lost me there.  What does IWU's duo of Rosenkranz and Johnson have to do with Elmhurst's freshmen guards Boyd and McCurdy?

[AndOne]

TQ--

I seem to remember a great deal of green tinted hype from an unnamed champion IWU promoter ( ) at the beginning of last season with regard to how good IWU's frosh guard tandem was going to be, and how they both likely projected as future CCIW 1st team all conference members. Accordingly, my reference to the EC guards having to wait to have that honor bestowed upon them until Rosenkranz & Johnson graduate was just a gentle reminder to said shameless promoter of his own projection regarding the Wesleyan guards and the observation that until they (and I think Steve D must be included) graduate, the top all conference guard spots would assuredly be locked up. Therefore McCurdy & Boyd will have to wait their turn as they will have no chance for 1st team honors until their senior year.      

[Gregory Sager]

... aaaand we have our first salvo of the season. The 2008-09 season is now officially underway.

Keep your head down, Bob! Incoming!

[Gregory Sager]

Congrats to NPU junior center Stephano Jones upon being named the inaugural CCIW Player of the Week for 2008-09. That's a nice achievement to garner for his first weekend back after missing a season.

[fcnews]

Titan Q - Since your 401K took a nice rebound on your home dog play on the Mac v. Elmhurst game, just wondered if you had an early early line on the Elmhurst @ Fontbonne game. For entertainment purposes only, of course.

[AndOne]

... aaaand we have our first salvo of the season. The 2008-09 season is now officially underway.

Keep your head down, Bob! Incoming!

Not really a salvo or any intent to go to war. I think TQ himself recognizes there is no more prolific promoter of his team than himself--with just cause in many instances. Accordingly, just, as I said, a gentle reminder of his prognostications relative to the future achievements of last season's starting guards for the Titans whose introductory bios, like that of almost every new IWU player Bob introduces us to, contained the seemingly mandatory phrase "a future all conference player."   

[Gregory Sager]

Not really a salvo or any intent to go to war. I think TQ himself recognizes there is no more prolific promoter of his team than himself--with just cause in many instances. Accordingly, just, as I said, a gentle reminder of his prognostications relative to the future achievements of last season's starting guards for the Titans whose introductory bios, like that of almost every new IWU player Bob introduces us to, contained the seemingly mandatory phrase "a future all conference player."   

Aw, don't ruin my happy vision of seeing some snark fly around in this room for the next 24 hours or so. We're generally a polite bunch, but a little edginess is perfectly OK every now and then just to keep things lively. You were off to such a nice start there by busting Bob's chops about his IWU propagandizing ... but then you had to go and make with the politeness and everything.

I mean, I suppose that Dennis Prikkel and I could snipe at each other for old time's sake, but the rest of you would get all "been there, done that" on us.

[Titan Q]

Not really a salvo or any intent to go to war. I think TQ himself recognizes there is no more prolific promoter of his team than himself--with just cause in many instances. Accordingly, just, as I said, a gentle reminder of his prognostications relative to the future achievements of last season's starting guards for the Titans whose introductory bios, like that of almost every new IWU player Bob introduces us to, contained the seemingly mandatory phrase "a future all conference player."   

Here are those "introductory bios", quoted directly from here on the board.  I don't find reference to "future all-conference player"?

A bit of recruiting news...

All-state shooting guard Sean Johnson (6-1) from Washington H.S. has decided to attend Illinois Wesleyan.  I think Sean will be a very good CCIW player.  Here is a feature from the January 29 edition of ILL. Hoops magazine, courtesy of publisher Scott Powers...

http://www.iwuhoops.com/sj.pdf
(pages 4-7)

This year Johnson really stepped out of the big shadow of teammate Matt Roth (being recruited by Northwestern, ISU, Bradley, SIU, and others). Johnson averaged 18.3 ppg for a team that was ranked #2 in Class AA for a large portion of the year. In his final game, he scored 35 points (20 in the 4th quarter) vs Peoria Richwoods in the sectional championship, almost leading his team back from a huge deficit. He made the 5-man Journal Star All-star team, ahead of at least one Division I recruit (Justin Dehm, Richwoods H.S. - Furman).

Johnson received significant interested from D1 Eastern Illinois and a few other low D1's and several Missouri Valley schools talked to him about walking-on. He was also recruited pretty heavily by a number of D2 schools, including SIU-Edwardsville.

Ron Rose and staff have found a good player here.


Related links:

http://www.pjstar.com/sports/allstars/boysbasketball/2006-2007/classaaallstar.shtml

http://www.ibca-il.org/Boys%20Class%20AA%20All-State_07.htm

-----

IWU has not formally announced it yet, and Ron Rose cannot comment until they do, but I've learned that Illinios Wesleyan has received a verbal commitment from all-state point-guard Travis Rosenkranz of Macon-Meridian H.S.

Complete information...

http://iwuhoops.blogspot.com/



I think this is a big impact CCIW recruit.  Travis averaged 24.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 5.6 assists, and 4.7 steals this year. He shot 57% from the field, 42% from 3 and 84% from the FT line.

A January 11 Chicago Sun-Times article (link) entitled, "Players turn heads at holiday tournaments", included the following:

Recruiting analyst Joe Henricksen, the editor of City/Suburban Hoops Report, said Rosenkranz, a 6-foot senior point guard at Macon-Meridian, is ''the most underrated player in Illinois. He can play at a low-Division I school.''

Henricksen saw Rosenkranz score 37 points in an overtime loss to Bloomington Central Catholic in the Class A final of the State Farm Classic in Normal, Ill. He made a three-point shot to tie the score at the end of regulation.

''He is better than many of the heralded guards in the state, in a class with Von Steuben's Michael Horton, Peoria Richwoods' Justin Dehm [Furman], Thornton's Josh Parker [Drake], Maroa-Forsyth's Robert Kreps [UIC] and Bloomington Central Catholic's Brandon Dunson [Tennessee-Chattanooga],'' Henricksen said.

The February 5, 2007 issue of ILL. Hoops magazine (link)   included a feature on Rosenkranz. An excerpt:

"Travis Rosenkranz is a sleeper D-I point guard prospect," wrote the Schmidts in an e-mail. "He can certainly play at the low D-I level, and perhaps the mid-major D-I level. "He is a gym rat, tough-minded kid who wants to get better and constantly works at his game. Nothing against Robert Kreps, who is a fine player and a good get for UIC, but Rosenkranz is every bit as good, and we think that their conference head-to-head matchups over the past two years would certainly verify that. Yes, he is only 5-11, but a player who can shoot, lead the transition game, and get the ball to the right people is certainly worth a look, and we do know that several low D-I's have him on their list."

Right now, he has heard from Iowa State, Northern Iowa, Eastern Illinois, a few Ivy League schools and a lot of Division III schools.

"He has no Division I offers," Blickensderfer said. "That's amazing. Maybe that's why those guys don't keep their jobs long. They can't evaluate talent. I'm not saying he can go to Illinois, Maryland or Kansas, but there's no reason why he can't play at an Eastern, Illinois State or Evansville."  


Travis made all of the various Class A all-state teams, like this one that is nicely put together...

http://www.illinoishighschoolsports.com/ihssallstate/

Ron Rose and staff have found a really good one in Travis Rosenkranz.

[Titan Q]

I re-read recruiting-related posts for the last two years, and I've only referenced future all-conference potential in two...

Ron Rose received what I believe is an extremely significant recruiting commitment this week.  Jordan Zimmer, a 6-4 G/F from Delavan H.S., said he will attend Illinois Wesleyan and play basketball for the Titans.  Zimmer is an outstanding student (4.0 GPA, high school valedictorian) and a terrific basketball player.

Some statistical information on Zimmer from the IHSS Class 1A all-state team:

Jordan Zimmer (Sr.), Delavan - 28-4 (school record); Senior season stats: 736 pts. / 23.0 ppg; 3 pt made: 123 (top 10 on IHSA all-time list); 3 pt%: 123-293/42.0%; 2pt%: 121-211/57.4%; FT%: 125-137 / 91.3%; Rbs: 132 rbs/4.1 rpg; Asst: 99 ast/3.1 apg; Steals: 54 stl/1.7 spg; Career high 44 points (including 22 in 4th qtr.) in sectional semi-final vs. Putnam County; Totaled 2043 career points; 347 career 3-pt made (Top 5 on IHSA all-time list); 86.5% career FT %Started 121 out of 122 varsity games in career (2 regional titles); College interest from D-1 St. Louis, D-III Augustana, Illinois Wesleyan, Elmhurst.

I saw Zimmer play three times this year, including his 44-point effort vs Putnam County in his final H.S. game.  I believe he is going to be a very good CCIW wing player – he compares very favorably to 6-4 Elmhurst small forward Ryan Burks (another central Illinois small school product) and I believe his ceiling is the same (1st/2nd Team All-CCIW potential).  Zimmer will have to get bigger and stronger as Burks has – Jordan is very thin right now.  There will also be a learning curve as he transitions from a small high school to the CCIW.

Zimmer received pretty significant interest from St. Louis University.  Rick Majerus came to Delavan to watch him practice and then had him on campus.  Fortunately for Illinois Wesleyan, SLU did not offer.  (They offered and signed G/F Kyle Cassity of Pinckneyville.)  Zimmer was pursued very aggressively by the three CCIW schools that he made his choice between.

-----

I can't confirm this, but heard this morning that Tremont all-state guard Jeremy Pflederer did in fact select Wheaton.  He was pursued by several small colleges, including Augustana, Olivet Nazarene, and IWU.

Pflederer's name can be found on the small school all-state teams I posted yesterday for Jordan Zimmer...

IBCA Class 1A/2A all-state team

IHSS Class 1A all-state team

AP Class 1A/2A all-state teams

And here is Jan. 18 feature from WMBD TV...

http://centralillinoisproud.com/content/fulltext/?cid=5937


6-1 Pflederer is what you call a "combo guard", but I think he'll primarily play point-guard in college.  He is also a track star at Tremont and is just lightning fast with the basketball in his hands. 

He should be an All-CCIW player in time.  As I posted back in February, just seems like a great kid...and a terrific student (33 ACT).  Good recruit for Wheaton.  With Jahns, Plfederer, and a couple of those kids from Wheaton North I believe they're getting, the Thunder will be very good at guard...as usual.

Again, I can't confirm this, but I believe it is accurate.