MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[iwumichigander]

As I am in Lincoln, NE on our house hunting trip I was not able to follow the IWU/Carthage game at all.  However, here is the boxscore from the IWU @ Carthage regular season game last year...

IWU was down 20 at the half and lost 80-55.

The same IWU team went 10-4 in the league and went to the Elite 8.

While the Titans stunk up Tarble Arena, and embarrassed themselves, it's really still way too early in the CCIW season (2 games in) to over analyze. 

I agree with Q, and other posters, one bad road performance does not make a CCIW season.  It just makes it a little harder starting out 1-1 in conference play.

It is difficult get get consistency when your coaching staff can't set a starting five due to injuries. 

Posted by: AndOne       Posted on: Yesterday at 05:03:15 pm]
Perhaps Ron Rose has overestimated the degree of talent in some of his freshmen. No doubt they will be good players in the future, but are they ready to contribute as much at this juncture as Rose apparently thinks?

I don't think Ron has overestimated the talent of his freshmen.  I think iwufans hit it on the head -

from: iwufans on Yesterday at 03:14:38 pm
I am not sure I would call Rose's moves last night as panic driven.   I think he was trying desperately to find someone who could hit a shot.  Carthage had to win this game.  They were pumped.  IWU just couldn't keep them off the offensive glass and only shoots 30%.

One thing a Bosko coached team knows how to do when they catch you down and off your game --- step on your throat and don't let up until the final buzzer!

As to the playing upperclassmen over the freshmen, it is what you show or don't show in practice.  Want minutes?  Deliver your best in the minutes you do get to play or get out of the way.

[wheels81]

Augie still has to play a lot of road games. I don't think there is much of an advantage. They are the only team to win a cciw road game so far after  week of league play. They are +1 and everyone else is zero (except npu who is -1). Lots ob ball to play. Defending home court and winning road games is how you win this league. Everone is still in it.

You ok Usee a lot of untypical typos 

[Naperick]

The Wheaton @ NCC game was great fun to watch. (It was also the only competitive game of the day in the CCIW.) Wheaton never looked mentally in the game; even though Tim McCrary put up his usual numbers he just never looked like he was all there upstairs. I mean, when's the last time that McCrary fouled out of a game? And his fellow vets Andrew Jahns and Spencer Schultze played pretty poorly for Wheaton as well. Jahns did score 13, but he turned the ball over five times and didn't play all that well at the defensive end, and Schultze looked like he was out there solely to help provide footage for Landon Gamble's highlight reel. NCC looked very sharp. The Cardinals, for such a young team, displayed a lot of composure in: a) fighting back from an early 8-2 deficit that had the makings of evolving into a runaway Wheaton win -- NCC outscored Wheaton 15-4 after that opening WC flurry; and: b) never letting Wheaton close the gap, fighting off each run that the Sonic Atmospheric Disturbance threw at them. From the 9:24 mark of the first half on, NCC refused to let Wheaton get within one possession of tying the game. When you consider the fact that the Cards were unable to pull away -- they had a couple of 13-point leads, but for most of the final thirty minutes their lead was in single digits -- that's pretty remarkable. It was really a classic bend-but-don't-break performance by NCC.

A couple of the NCC freshmen looked very good. C.J. Goldthree is going to be a serious force in this league; he has both the athleticism and the jump shot to make his presence felt on the offensive end. Like a lot of freshmen, though, his shot selection leaves something to be desired. Landon Gamble showed that his strong performance against Illinois Wesleyan on Wednesday was no fluke. He gave McCrary a good run for his money in terms of being the most dominant inside player in the game. But in the end it was the veterans, Kevin Gillespie and Brian Evans, who made the big plays in the final two minutes to hold off Wheaton and win the game.

This makes seven wins in a row for NCC over Wheaton in the airplane hangar. I used to joke about Todd Raridon having a Bill Harris voodoo doll in his desk drawer in which he used to stick pins prior to every visit by Wheaton to Naperville. Looks like Raridon's witch doctor has fashioned a similar talisman of Mike Schauer with which Raridon can continue to work his anti-Wheaton juju hand.

I'll just add some observations---

*As GS advised, Wheaton never looked mentally into the game. But, why not? After all, they were on a 5 game win streak. Did they underestimate the Cardinals young lineup from the beginning, or were they suddenly surprised by the home team's youthful energy?
*At one point, the Cardinals were able to not only hold off the attempted Thunder surge, but actually to add to their lead with 4 freshman and a sophomore on the floor.
*The baby birds seem to be thriving rather than wilting under pressure situations.
*As mentioned above, NCC frosh CJ Goldthree (15pts off the bench on 6/11 and 3/4), and Landon Gamble (18 pts on 5/10 and 8/8) had nice games. Both show evidence of future stardom in the league. As part of consecutive strong outings against IWU and WC, the 6'6" 240 lb Gamble is a perfect 14 for 14 from the line.
*Another Cardinal freshman, Chris Smith also showed very well. In 18 minutes of action off the bench, Chris contributed 9 pts on 2/3 from the field and 3/4 from the line. He also displayed a solid floor game dishing out 4 assists while not turning the ball over. Continued play like that will cement Chris' spot in the regular rotation. Fellow frosh, 6'8"  Brad Hallstein played 15 minutes and hit on 2 of his 3 shot attempts. I believe Brad will continue to see meaningful minutes and make a positive contribution to the Cardinal cause.
*Derek Raridon gave the Cardinals just what he needs to. He tied for game high scoring honors with 18 pts on 6/13 and 5/6, and was NCC's 2nd high rebounder with 6. 
*Veterans Brian Evans and Kevin Gillespie really came through in the clutch.
Evans, as usual, led the Cards in rebounding with 8. However, his best play was an astonishing offensive rebound and put-back with only 1:36 left in the contest. Brian also led the Cards with 5 assists. Not too many guys around that are team leaders in both rebounds and assists.
Gillespie, scoreless in the game until only 43 seconds remained, stood by with the 6 nails that finally sealed the Wheaton coffin. as he hammered in 6 FTs in the same number of attempts in those final 43 seconds.
* Wheaton's Jon DeMoss appears to not have met too many shot opportunities he doesn't like. After bombing in 2 from downtown in the early going, he continued to launch unsuccessfully from beyond the arc, finally finishing 2 for 8 from long distance. He appears to pose a bigger danger when he limits his attempts to shorter distances as evidenced by his 4 for 6 production inside the line. He appears pretty strong and quick, geared more for slashing to the basket than for bombing from long range.
*I believe Tim McCrary is the league's preeminent big man. However, last evening, as Mr. Sager mentioned above, his body language and court demeanor suggested he just wasn't mentally ready to compete at his usual high level.
*McCrary can't be all of Wheaton's inside presence by himself. He needs at least some help which evidently is supposed to come from Spencer Schultze. But, against NCC, he was basically a non entity with 4 points on 1/4 shooting and 2/2 FTs and only 1 rebound before fouling out.     

I caught the 2nd half of the Wheaton-NCC game at Gregory Arena.  The Cardinals have a great mix of freshmen and veterans.  I wish this NCC team could have Barringer.  His long range bombs would really help this team.  I know it's early but this NCC team could win a couple of games in a weekend in late February and grab the CCIW AQ.  The key is the Cards need to finish 4th or higher in the regular season.  The Cardinals have talent!  Foul trouble could be an issue but this team should continue to improve.

[mwunder]

One thing a Bosko coached team knows how to do when they catch you down and off your game --- step on your throat and don't let up until the final buzzer!

To be honest, I really don't think that Carthage is guilty of this against the Titans.  At about the 12 minute mark, they totally stopped running their offense and took the air out of the ball.  I can't argue the strategy or the results, but I think this game could have been more of a blow-out had Carthage continued to do what got them to that point.  I think maybe the Wheaton collapse had something to do with that strategy of keeping the ball out of the opposition's hands??

[Gregory Sager]

It is difficult get get consistency when your coaching staff can't set a starting five due to injuries.

You have four of last night's starters that are still not in top form due to injuries.

The injury excuse doesn't wash, guys, for several reasons:

1. Illinois Wesleyan has now started its five mainstay starters for four straight games. Since that dates back to IWU's West Coast trip, it appears that they've been practicing together as a quintet for at least the past two and a half weeks.

2. John Koshnitzky has been back with the team for a month now. His first game for IWU was way back on December 11 against MacMurray. Over the past five games he's played 24, 25, 26, 34, and 31 minutes. He led the Titans in both points and rebounds (21 and 6) in their opening-night win over North Central.

3. Jordan Zimmer hasn't been back for as long as his classmate Koshnitzky, but he's clearly playing at an impact level already. In the three games prior to Saturday night, Zimmer played at least a half in each one and scored 18, 15, and 18 points. He and Koshnitzky were clearly the two guys who carried IWU to that win over NCC.

4. OK, so Sean Johnson's now got a bad hip, right? So, then, explain the 33 minutes he played on Saturday night and the 20 points he scored. He, too, doesn't appear to be the poster child for injury excuses.

5. I have no doubt that Doug Sexauer is hobbling on his bad foot, as I've had it confirmed by an independent source who has no reason to favor the Titans that Sexauer could barely walk after he got his shoe off following Wednesday night's game. But he played 34 minutes in that game, and another 18 minutes on Saturday at Carthage. At some point, if Sexauer's that much of a liability, Ron Rose has to consider putting someone else on the floor to play the lion's share of those minutes. And that raises a key point: Where is the vaunted IWU depth we've all been constantly hearing about? This is exactly the situation that calls for it, particularly with Sexauer's declining performance (since his three teammates have all demonstrated the capacity to keep performing well, lingering health concerns or not). If Sexauer's now a hindrance rather than a help, then this is Connolly's (or Lawson's, or O'Callaghan's) time to shine. That's what depth is all about.

6. The biggest reason why IWU's injury bug is a no-sale in terms of excuse-making is this: The Titans don't play basketball in a vacuum. It may surprise you to know this, but Carthage is dealing with some pretty serious injury matters right now as well. As noted earlier, Raul Guzman didn't play on Saturday because of a bad back. But, far more importantly, Steve Djurickovic is struggling with some pretty limiting injury issues. I've heard various reports that he either has a sprained ankle or plantar fascitis (and it could be both, since plantar fascitis on one foot often leads a player to favor the other leg, causing it in turn to develop problems such as ankle or foot issues). The word I've heard is that he is having great difficulty in pushing off the floor and accelerating or elevating. Now, the nature of IWU's roster is such that Ron Rose can look (supposedly) to other sources if he has a player or two who is not at 100%. That's not true with Carthage where Steve D. is concerned. I doubt that there is a player in all of D3 who is more important to his team's fortunes than he is. He does everything for that team short of fetching broadcaster John Weiser's coffee. A dinged Steve D. invalidates any complaints by an opposing fan about injuries, unless at least two of that fan's team's starters are out of uniform. And all of IWU's normal starters played (and started) on Saturday in the Toolshed.

I'm not saying that you two, or anybody else, has blamed IWU's loss (or the fact that the Titans were drubbed by the Red Men rather than simply losing a close contest) on injuries. I'm just saying that any Titans fans should be very, very careful about playing that card right now.

[AndOne]

The Wheaton @ NCC game was great fun to watch. (It was also the only competitive game of the day in the CCIW.) Wheaton never looked mentally in the game; even though Tim McCrary put up his usual numbers he just never looked like he was all there upstairs. I mean, when's the last time that McCrary fouled out of a game? And his fellow vets Andrew Jahns and Spencer Schultze played pretty poorly for Wheaton as well. Jahns did score 13, but he turned the ball over five times and didn't play all that well at the defensive end, and Schultze looked like he was out there solely to help provide footage for Landon Gamble's highlight reel. NCC looked very sharp. The Cardinals, for such a young team, displayed a lot of composure in: a) fighting back from an early 8-2 deficit that had the makings of evolving into a runaway Wheaton win -- NCC outscored Wheaton 15-4 after that opening WC flurry; and: b) never letting Wheaton close the gap, fighting off each run that the Sonic Atmospheric Disturbance threw at them. From the 9:24 mark of the first half on, NCC refused to let Wheaton get within one possession of tying the game. When you consider the fact that the Cards were unable to pull away -- they had a couple of 13-point leads, but for most of the final thirty minutes their lead was in single digits -- that's pretty remarkable. It was really a classic bend-but-don't-break performance by NCC.

A couple of the NCC freshmen looked very good. C.J. Goldthree is going to be a serious force in this league; he has both the athleticism and the jump shot to make his presence felt on the offensive end. Like a lot of freshmen, though, his shot selection leaves something to be desired. Landon Gamble showed that his strong performance against Illinois Wesleyan on Wednesday was no fluke. He gave McCrary a good run for his money in terms of being the most dominant inside player in the game. But in the end it was the veterans, Kevin Gillespie and Brian Evans, who made the big plays in the final two minutes to hold off Wheaton and win the game.

This makes seven wins in a row for NCC over Wheaton in the airplane hangar. I used to joke about Todd Raridon having a Bill Harris voodoo doll in his desk drawer in which he used to stick pins prior to every visit by Wheaton to Naperville. Looks like Raridon's witch doctor has fashioned a similar talisman of Mike Schauer with which Raridon can continue to work his anti-Wheaton juju hand.

I'll just add some observations---

*As GS advised, Wheaton never looked mentally into the game. But, why not? After all, they were on a 5 game win streak. Did they underestimate the Cardinals young lineup from the beginning, or were they suddenly surprised by the home team's youthful energy?
*At one point, the Cardinals were able to not only hold off the attempted Thunder surge, but actually to add to their lead with 4 freshman and a sophomore on the floor.
*The baby birds seem to be thriving rather than wilting under pressure situations.
*As mentioned above, NCC frosh CJ Goldthree (15pts off the bench on 6/11 and 3/4), and Landon Gamble (18 pts on 5/10 and 8/8) had nice games. Both show evidence of future stardom in the league. As part of consecutive strong outings against IWU and WC, the 6'6" 240 lb Gamble is a perfect 14 for 14 from the line.
*Another Cardinal freshman, Chris Smith also showed very well. In 18 minutes of action off the bench, Chris contributed 9 pts on 2/3 from the field and 3/4 from the line. He also displayed a solid floor game dishing out 4 assists while not turning the ball over. Continued play like that will cement Chris' spot in the regular rotation. Fellow frosh, 6'8"  Brad Hallstein played 15 minutes and hit on 2 of his 3 shot attempts. I believe Brad will continue to see meaningful minutes and make a positive contribution to the Cardinal cause.
*Derek Raridon gave the Cardinals just what he needs to. He tied for game high scoring honors with 18 pts on 6/13 and 5/6, and was NCC's 2nd high rebounder with 6.  
*Veterans Brian Evans and Kevin Gillespie really came through in the clutch.
Evans, as usual, led the Cards in rebounding with 8. However, his best play was an astonishing offensive rebound and put-back with only 1:36 left in the contest. Brian also led the Cards with 5 assists. Not too many guys around that are team leaders in both rebounds and assists.
Gillespie, scoreless in the game until only 43 seconds remained, stood by with the 6 nails that finally sealed the Wheaton coffin. as he hammered in 6 FTs in the same number of attempts in those final 43 seconds.
* Wheaton's Jon DeMoss appears to not have met too many shot opportunities he doesn't like. After bombing in 2 from downtown in the early going, he continued to launch unsuccessfully from beyond the arc, finally finishing 2 for 8 from long distance. He appears to pose a bigger danger when he limits his attempts to shorter distances as evidenced by his 4 for 6 production inside the line. He appears pretty strong and quick, geared more for slashing to the basket than for bombing from long range.
*I believe Tim McCrary is the league's preeminent big man. However, last evening, as Mr. Sager mentioned above, his body language and court demeanor suggested he just wasn't mentally ready to compete at his usual high level.
*McCrary can't be all of Wheaton's inside presence by himself. He needs at least some help which evidently is supposed to come from Spencer Schultze. But, against NCC, he was basically a non entity with 4 points on 1/4 shooting and 2/2 FTs and only 1 rebound before fouling out.    

I caught the 2nd half of the Wheaton-NCC game at Gregory Arena.  The Cardinals have a great mix of freshmen and veterans.  I wish this NCC team could have Barringer.  His long range bombs would really help this team.  I know it's early but this NCC team could win a couple of games in a weekend in late February and grab the CCIW AQ.  The key is the Cards need to finish 4th or higher in the regular season.  The Cardinals have talent!  Foul trouble could be an issue but this team should continue to improve.

A great long range marksman would help almost any team. However, I especially agree about the NCC Cardinals. Reid would be a great compliment to the current team makeup.
I personally feel that another good 3 point shooter is probably one of the biggest needs the Cards currently have. I won't mention anyone specifically at this time. but a couple of the baby Cards who have already seen time this season certainly have the potential to fill this need.  

[AndOne]

I am not sure I would call Rose's moves last night as panic driven.   I think he was trying desperately to find someone who could hit a shot.  Carthage had to win this game.  They were pumped.  IWU just couldn't keep them off the offensive glass and only shoots 30%.  The coach can do everything right, but if the players can't get the rebounds and if they have an off night shooting...the team is going to look bad....like they did last night.  You have four of last night's starters that are still not in top form due to injuries.   It is one loss, and not all that unexpected.    No need to panic.   As spencer noted...IWU loses big to Carthage last year  and then beats them in the tournament to make it to the final 8.  I think it will all be good in the long run.

Lastly, is Sexauer hurt or isn't he. If he is, 1) are excuses being made for the quality
of his play, and 2) perhaps someone else should be in there until he is recovered. Wesleyan did pretty darn well with others filling in for Koschnitzky and Zimmer during their stints on the disabled list. If Rose wants an inside force only, he can insert Connolly, and if he wants to go with a stronger outside game, depending on the opposing personnel, he has a wide choice from those mentioned above.  

It is difficult get get consistency when your coaching staff can't set a starting five due to injuries.

You have four of last night's starters that are still not in top form due to injuries.

The injury excuse doesn't wash, guys, for several reasons:


5. I have no doubt that Doug Sexauer is hobbling on his bad foot, as I've had it confirmed by an independent source who has no reason to favor the Titans that Sexauer could barely walk after he got his shoe off following Wednesday night's game. But he played 34 minutes in that game, and another 18 minutes on Saturday at Carthage. At some point, if Sexauer's that much of a liability, Ron Rose has to consider putting someone else on the floor to play the lion's share of those minutes. And that raises a key point: Where is the vaunted IWU depth we've all been constantly hearing about? This is exactly the situation that calls for it, particularly with Sexauer's declining performance (since his three teammates have all demonstrated the capacity to keep performing well, lingering health concerns or not). If Sexauer's now a hindrance rather than a help, then this is Connolly's (or Lawson's, or O'Callaghan's) time to shine. That's what depth is all about.

I'm not saying that you two, or anybody else, has blamed IWU's loss (or the fact that the Titans were drubbed by the Red Men rather than simply losing a close contest) on injuries. I'm just saying that any Titans fans should be very, very careful about playing that card right now.

Exactly, especially in reference to Doug Sexauer's status

[Gregory Sager]

Two games into the conference season is a lttle early to say that Augie is "clearly the best team." Augie has the best record right now, but they are challenged at the FT line, have struggled against mediocre competition

... and has beaten more than its fair share of great competition (only Carthage has a better strength of schedule, according to Massey) ...

and have limited talent at the guard position.

DeSimone and Anderson are a solid backcourt by CCIW lights. As long as those two remain healthy, Augustana will be just fine in that department.

I think this year's race is up for grabs, and it is quite probable that the CCIW tourney champ will not be the regular season champ.  Finishing the seasaon with 4 road games also does not bode well for Augie in a close race.

That's true, but it might not matter at that point. If I had to hazard a guess right now, I'd say that Augie will go 12-2 and win the league by at least two games, and then be the clear favorite going into the CCIW tourney in Rock Island.

* Wheaton's Jon DeMoss appears to not have met too many shot opportunities he doesn't like. After bombing in 2 from downtown in the early going, he continued to launch unsuccessfully from beyond the arc, finally finishing 2 for 8 from long distance. He appears to pose a bigger danger when he limits his attempts to shorter distances as evidenced by his 4 for 6 production inside the line. He appears pretty strong and quick, geared more for slashing to the basket than for bombing from long range.

This was quite true from Saturday night's contest, but I do wonder if the coaching staff hasn't asked him to shoot a bit more. After all, he only had one fg attempt against Carthage, and no more than 5 in a game since his return from concussion. He should be a very useful force for the Thunder putting the ball up, as shown when he lit up Whitewater for 24 pts on 9-12 fg before getting hurt, but as quoted, he may have gone a bit overboard from long range on Saturday after a quick start.

DeMoss, to me, looks like an energy-and-intangibles guy who is strong at driving to the basket but isn't really a primary three-point threat. Coming into Saturday's game he had only attempted five treys in eight games. It seemed pretty clear to me that taking away other things from Wheaton and giving DeMoss the open look from outside was a tactical move on the part of the NCC coaching staff, and it worked.

One thing a Bosko coached team knows how to do when they catch you down and off your game --- step on your throat and don't let up until the final buzzer!

To be honest, I really don't think that Carthage is guilty of this against the Titans.  At about the 12 minute mark, they totally stopped running their offense and took the air out of the ball.  I can't argue the strategy or the results, but I think this game could have been more of a blow-out had Carthage continued to do what got them to that point.  I think maybe the Wheaton collapse had something to do with that strategy of keeping the ball out of the opposition's hands??

It's a reasonable strategy for a team with a big lead -- although it will blow up on you on occasion -- but I also wonder if Steve Djurickovic's ailments might have something to do with Bosko's desire to slow down the game and milk the clock during the last twelve minutes. Speaking of whom, by winning the CCIW Player of the Week award today, Steve D. has passed Kent Raymond's CCIW career record for most Player of the Week awards with thirteen. He also passed the all-time scoring leaders for North Central (Bill Warden, 2,229 points) and Illinois Wesleyan (Jack Sikma, 2,272 points) on Saturday, and is now the fifth all-time-leading scorer in CCIW history. Here's the current leaderboard:

player	school	final yr	pts
Leon Gobczynski	Millikin	1975	2,635
Dave Shaw	Carroll	1977	2,563
Mel Peterson	Wheaton	1960	2,542
Kent Raymond	Wheaton	2009	2,308
Steve Djurickovic	Carthage	2011	2,274

[TitansIWU]

6. The biggest reason why IWU's injury bug is a no-sale in terms of excuse-making is this: The Titans don't play basketball in a vacuum.


If they did, it would certainly clear up why they sucked so bad in Kenosha.

Sorry.

[Gregory Sager]

6. The biggest reason why IWU's injury bug is a no-sale in terms of excuse-making is this: The Titans don't play basketball in a vacuum.


If they did, it would certainly clear up why they sucked so bad in Kenosha.

Sorry.

[coebball70]

This post is aimed directly at AndOne.  Mark, I am sorry but you really crossed a line with me.  Posting Taylor Baxter's ACT score is not only wrong, it is truly a breech of privacy and something you should be ashamed of doing.  Obviously, you are privy to much information about North Central applicants but breeching such confidences is below the professionalism standards I know you hold yourself or others accountable.  I am surprised at your decision to share such information.  Besides, Carthage and Millikin wouldn't like it either.

[spencer1988]

And One

You are classless.

[kenoshamark]

AndOne,

I've been part of this chat line for a long time, well before you started posting.   That is about as low rent as one gets.   And then to follow up that post with the shot about Fendley (regarding whether he was arrested again).   I realize it was an attempt to be funny....well, it wasn't.

For someone who is so sensitive about getting smited and has to come on here crying when it happens.   Step back and think how insensitive that was to those two young men.

BTW, just so you know, it was me that hit the smite button on you.  I can honestly say, been a long time since I've done that to anyone but you truly deserved it. 

[AndOne]

Right. Upon further reflection, I can see where I erred. Sincere apologies to Mr. Baxter and Mr. Fendley.
In the Baxter case, I just repeated what someone at Wesleyan told me Wed night.
In the Fendley situation, I didn't realize I was disseminating any information which wasn't already public knowledge.
In both instances, I typed before I thought. Still, that is no excuse, and I was wrong.
Thanks to those that pointed out the error of my ways.
The offending material has been removed.

[Titan Q]

5. I have no doubt that Doug Sexauer is hobbling on his bad foot, as I've had it confirmed by an independent source who has no reason to favor the Titans that Sexauer could barely walk after he got his shoe off following Wednesday night's game. But he played 34 minutes in that game, and another 18 minutes on Saturday at Carthage. At some point, if Sexauer's that much of a liability, Ron Rose has to consider putting someone else on the floor to play the lion's share of those minutes. And that raises a key point: Where is the vaunted IWU depth we've all been constantly hearing about? This is exactly the situation that calls for it, particularly with Sexauer's declining performance (since his three teammates have all demonstrated the capacity to keep performing well, lingering health concerns or not). If Sexauer's now a hindrance rather than a help, then this is Connolly's (or Lawson's, or O'Callaghan's) time to shine. That's what depth is all about.

But here is the thing -- as I have discussed here a few times this year, IWU's depth is at the forwards spots.  Especially the 4.  Guys on the roster who are basically "power forwards" are:

* John Koschnitzky
* Victor Davis
* Duncan Lawson
* Dan Schouten
* Edmond O'Callaghan
* Andrew Ziemnik

These guys are all different, but in general, none are back-to-the-basket, legitimate low-post scoring threats.  (Victor Davis will be someday...but he is not as a freshman.)  Koschnitzky, Lawson, Schouten, and Ziemnik are all 3/4 players, who are more comfortable facing the basket.  O'Callaghan and Davis are definitely more low-post type 4's, but again, neither is a guy you are going to consistently dump it down to on the blocks and build an inside/outside offense around (O'Callaghan because he is just really not a scorer, and Davis because he is young and still learning how to do that at this level).

Of the 4's on the roster, it looks like Ron Rose has decided to play Koschnitzky and Davis most of the time, with Lawson playing some too.  People (referring to earlier posts...not yours above, Greg) can certainly question which 4's Rose has settled on, as that is what happens in sports and on message boards, but I have absolutely no doubt that John Koschnitzky and Victor Davis are the 4's who should be playing the most minutes.  Those are the two I want on the floor during the CCIW race.

IWU only has 2 guys right now who are legitimate back-to-the-basket scoring threats - Doug Sexauer and Ryan Connolly (6-9 freshman Nick Anderson is developing on the JV team...just not ready for varsity).  As most know, IWU's offense is built around an inside/outside game.  It's built around having a good low-post scoring threat on the floor, which obviously creates opportunities for the ball to move inside, then out, and around, and maybe back down.

While IWU has plenty of other "big guys" (the 4's listed above), again, their skills sets don't fit the needs of that 5 spot.  So to the question, "Where is IWU's vaunted depth?"...it's not at the position Sexauer plays.  And his backup, Connolly, is just very streaky.  One game he plays very well (Cal Lutheran, for example) and then others he does not.  Bottom line, Doug Sexauer is probably IWU's most irreplaceable player because of what he means to the entire flow of the offense.  I understand why Ron Rose has chosen to try to stay with him while hurt.  I'm sure he has not expected Doug to be this ineffective...otherwise I'm guessing he would have gone another direction.

As to the impact of Sexauer's injury on his game, here is what he did vs Carthage last year:

1/9 @ IWU: 24 pts (10-11 FG)
1/30 @ Carthage: 9 pts (2-6 FG)
2/27 @ Carthage: 14 pts (6-9 FG)
3/12 @ Stevens Point: 26 pts (12-18 FG)

Obviously he scored zero points Saturday in Kenosha, going 0-3 from the field.  I think common sense will tell most that he is a long way from being right.  If he does not improve, I'm sure the Titans will have to go a different direction offensively.

It's important to note that it is clear to me that IWU got throttled in Kenosha Saturday because they played incredibly poorly on both ends of the floor...just as they did last year in Kenosha.  Not because of any injuries (past or current).  

As to the depth situation, IWU has no replacement for Doug Sexauer right now...in fact, they don't have anything remotely close.  What he does offensively for IWU over the course of 30 minutes or so per game when healthy is just something those "4's" cannot do effectively.  And Connolly can't do it either for extended minutes...and has certainly never been billed here as being able to do such (he is 10-12 minute per game guy basically).  IWU's depth is at the 3 and 4 - not the "5."