MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[A Lover of the Game]

So, while we all know that a dunk only counts two points, in last night's game those two created a lot more momentum than layups would have.

Didn't get to actually see the game, but heard the one dunk did help kick up the momentum for the Titans and both dunks kept the team hyped. Sounds like it was just what the doctor would have ordered.

[Titan Q]

I know. My husband says the same thing. I have actually said too, but I still like the players to display their athletcism every now and then.

I do too...which is why, among other reasons, Zach Freeman ('07) is one of my favorite Titans of all-time.  However many dunks Zach had in his 4-year career, I'm positive it is an IWU record...and pretty sure it will never be broken.

Just FYI, so you get the reference, A Dunk Only Counts Two Points is the name of the book former IWU head coach, and current A.D., Dennie Bridges wrote...

http://www.iwu.edu/iwunews/magazine/pastissues/Fall_2002/bridges.shtml

[BleedBlue4Life]

You're probably the only one, then, as there's no big secret as to why Millikin is 1-22 and one loss away from finishing with the worst overall record in the 65-year history of the CCIW. It's a terrible team. Carthage must've absolutely stunk up the joint this afternoon. On Wednesday I told Bosko, Twan, and Cory, "You three plus Roehl and President Campbell could probably suit up and beat Millikin on Saturday." And none of them disagreed with me.

I would say from your post that you did not watch the game yesterday.  Yes, Millikin has had a very disappointing season to say the least, and it would have been very easy for them to mail it in.  However, these young men suited up and played their hearts out yesterday, and it very easily could have gone the other way.  They should be commended for the way they fought.

[coebball70]

I have been fortunate enough to attend North Central's last four games in person and would like to share some observations.  First, it is a real joy to watch a team mature before my eyes.  I made a post back at the start of this season, after watching an absolute horrendous loss to Illinois Benedictine,  saying North Central would be fighting Elmhurst and North Park for the bottom tier of the CCIW.  Well, so much my ability to predict outcomes accurately!  North Central has been "coached-up" to be the CCIW's surprise team.  But even more importantly, the growth of several freshmen and the glue of senior leadership, namely Brian Evans, have made this team successful.

Landon Gamble is a unique individual.  In watching the CCIW for many years, I have never seen a freshman play with such poise and maturity.  His mental focus and composure is as strong as that of any senior I have observed.  In the first half against Augustana, he was undercut so badly that he landed hard on his back.  I saw a spark of anger in Gamble that normally would result in immediate retaliation toward the offender.  Instead, he harnessed his emotion and energy to what is important ... winning the game.  I will let Landon's statistics speak to how important he has been to the Cardinal's success this year.

Aaron Tiknis and Jack Burchett are two more players that have benefited from the rigors of a CCIW league post-play education.  When I first saw Burchett, in the first game of the season, I thought here's another 6'6" kid who wants to step back and shoot from downtown and not mix it up inside.  Well, wrong again.  Burchett plays with a commitment and intensity that is nice to see.  Jack moderately sprained his knee against IWU and really gutted out the second half after being taped up.  His rebounding efforts have really helped in this second-half of the season Cardinal run.  Aaron Tiknis will be a key to the Cardinal's post-season success.  He is a player who was hurt early in the year and has now found his stride on the court.  Against both Augustana and Elmhurst at crunch-time Aaron made key blocks and a steal to contribute to the victories.  More importantly, Tiknis has the shooting ability to contribute more offensively if given the green light to shoot when open.  His 3-pointer was an absolute dagger in Augustana's hopes to get back in the game on Saturday evening.

Saturday's victory over Augustana was a real team effort.  But, in my opinion, one player really came of age.  Kevin Gillespie made a giant step forward in being the key offensive contributor the Cardinal's are so desperate in need of.  Right now Landon Gamble and Derek Raridon are the one-two punch of the Cardinals.  If Gillespie consistently plays like he did in the second-half against Augustana he could be really be a difference maker.  Kevin's defense, IMHO, made the critical difference in the IWU victory by shutting down Sean Johnson.  Against Augustana, Gillespie's second-half two 3-pointers and 3 of 4 free throws at crunch time helped seal the win.  Definitely a nice second-half performance, but here's the key point.  Kevin, had the confidence to knock down these shots after going 1 for 14 from the field in the previous two games!  Let's hope he proved to himself that when he is open he should shoot the rock which will open the middle for Gamble and Raridon.

It has been an interesting CCIW season, maybe more surprises that usual but still the kind of D3 basketball I really enjoy.  I, too, say Go Titans on Tuesday!  Naperville is a nice town for a conference basketball tournament!  And I would like to see the four best teams in the league compete for a chance in the Big Dance.

[TitansIWU]

AndOne: Father forgive me..........................GO TITANS!!!!!!


Response from the Heavens:

My son, do not ask for forgiveness, we've been waiting all along for you to finally see the light!

[AndOne]

You're probably the only one, then, as there's no big secret as to why Millikin is 1-22 and one loss away from finishing with the worst overall record in the 65-year history of the CCIW. It's a terrible team. Carthage must've absolutely stunk up the joint this afternoon. On Wednesday I told Bosko, Twan, and Cory, "You three plus Roehl and President Campbell could probably suit up and beat Millikin on Saturday." And none of them disagreed with me.

I would say from your post that you did not watch the game yesterday.  Yes, Millikin has had a very disappointing season to say the least, and it would have been very easy for them to mail it in.  However, these young men suited up and played their hearts out yesterday, and it very easily could have gone the other way.  They should be commended for the way they fought.

I saw no quit whatsoever in the Millikin players during their games vs NCC.

[AndOne]

AndOne: Father forgive me..........................GO TITANS!!!!!!


Response from the Heavens:

My son, do not ask for forgiveness, we've been waiting all along for you to finally see the light!

Response from Earth:

The light I see, Father, is the one that paves the road to Naperville. We invite the Titans to make the journey, sit at our table, and partake in the feast---which they will surely be part of--as it was on Monday and shall be again.     

[Dennis_Prikkel]

AndOne: Father forgive me..........................GO TITANS!!!!!!


Response from the Heavens:

My son, do not ask for forgiveness, we've been waiting all along for you to finally see the light!

Your prayer wasn't in Norwegian, so how do you expect God to answer it?

[jtsmith231]

Sorry if this has already been mentioned, but am I correct in thinking that Wheaton will face North Central in the first round on Friday, regardless of the outcome of Tuesday's game?  It seems like if Augie wins, we will see (1) Augie vs. (4) Carthage and (2) NCC vs. (3) Wheaton in Rock Island. On the other hand, if Wesleyan pulls it off, we would see (1) NCC vs. (4) Wheaton and (2) Augie vs. (3) IWU in Naperville.  Do I have that right?

[Mr. Ypsi]

Sorry if this has already been mentioned, but am I correct in thinking that Wheaton will face North Central in the first round on Friday, regardless of the outcome of Tuesday's game?  It seems like if Augie wins, we will see (1) Augie vs. (4) Carthage and (2) NCC vs. (3) Wheaton in Rock Island. On the other hand, if Wesleyan pulls it off, we would see (1) NCC vs. (4) Wheaton and (2) Augie vs. (3) IWU in Naperville.  Do I have that right?

That is my understanding of the situation.

[Jim Matson]

Right on, Dennis!

[augiefan]

The NCC-Augie game was pretty ugly, but it was hard fought and tense the whole game. A lot of pressure on both teams with a lot at stake. I think that pressure produced a low scoring ugly game. I agree the CCIW is not at its peak this year, but I would not judge the potential of the conference to succeed in the NCAA tourney based on one game, even between the 1st place contenders.

When Augie was down by 11 with 6 minutes or so to go, it looked to be over, but they did fight back and had a chance to tie or win down 48-46 with 8 seconds to go. Unfortunately the usuaslly reliable Brian DeSimone had a TO at that point which wrapped up the win for NCC.

One thought I have is that Landon Gamble as a freshman is the most gifted athlete in the conference. Not  the best shooter, Steve D. and Raridon probably share that acolade, but Landon is a tremendous DIII all around talent.

As for Augie I think this was the game they had to win to clinch home court for the CCIW tourney. With a playoff berth on the line and home court advantage, I like IWU's chances Tuesday night. If that happens the rubber match at a neutral court on Friday should be a dandy. I don't think Augie can afford to lose 3 straight and 4 out of their last 6 and expect to be assured of an NCAA bid.

[AndOne]

OK, in trying to decide whether to go to Wheaton or NCC tonight, I was trying to figure out which game had bigger potential ramifications for the CCIW tournament.  I checked on cciw.org for a little help on the tie-breaker situations.  Augie - NCC is big because a win by the Cardinals, in tandem with an Augie loss @ IWU puts the tournament @ NCC next weekend.  Unlikely, but not inconceivable.  Then I go down to third/fourth place tie-breakers - most of which are addressed in the CCIW.org notes from 2-17.  What I can't find addressed is what happens in the event of a Wheaton loss to Elmhurst tonight, again not too likely but certainly not inconceivable.  If Wheaton were to lose to Elmhurst tonight, and Carthage beats Millikin (highly likely) and IWU beats NPU at the Shirk tonight (pretty likely) and then loses to Augie Tuesday night at the Shirk that would put Carthage in 3rd at 9-5 while Wheaton and IWU would be tied at 8-6.  How do those tie-breakers work?  If this has already been addressed back a few pages then I missed it.

And then, if the above scenarios play out and IWU beats Augie, then Wheaton is on the outside looking in, aren't they?

Help me out.

Pete--

If you weren't in Naperville last night, you really should have been!
A tight, low scoring, kind of ugly, defensive orientated game, but one that had fans of both teams on the edge of their seats throughout the entire evening.

You are probably well aware of the conference tourney scenario by now, but if not, see the above posts.

[thunder38]

Just wanted to clarify the tie-breaker situation.  This is obviously messy as there's a possibility of three teams finishing 9-5 in conference.  At this point it appears as if Wheaton is locked into the three-seed regardless of the outcome in Bloomington.  The following is the word from the CCIW notes this past week:

"If Illinois Wesleyan, Wheaton and Carthage finish in a three-way tie for third
place at 9-5, Wheaton would earn the No. 3 seed based on its 3-1 composite
record against Carthage and Illinois Wesleyan during the regular season. The next
step would be to determine which team gets the No. 4 seed, Illinois Wesleyan
or Carthage. The Titans and Red Men split their season series, and under this
scenario, both teams will have finished 1-1 against first place Augustana and
second place North Central. Illinois Wesleyan finished 1-1 against the next place
team, which is Wheaton, while Carthage was 0-2 against the Thunder. This would
give Illinois Wesleyan the fourth and final seed."

[AndOne]

All good basketball fans have seen the movie Hoosiers, most more than once.
In keeping with the "religious theme" recently introduced in association with the fact that fans of some teams will become fans of usual rivals Tuesday night when Augie plays at Wesleyan, North Central's win over the giant Vikings from Rock Island last evening evoked memories from Hoosiers, one scene in particular.

While it certainly wasn't for any outright championship, I was remined of the scene when the preacher is leading a team prayer before the big game and says, "And David put his hand into the bag and took out a stone and slung it. And it struck the Philistine on the head and he fell to the ground."

Last night's battle in Naperville was truly a knock-down, drag-out affair. The refs, who could have fouled out 3 or 4 players from each team if they had called the game even fairly tightly, instead let things get out of hand to where you usually had to practically body block an opponent to the floor to be hit with a foul. Hand checking was rampent, forearms and elbows were flying, and a basketball game even broke out in the middle of the brawl.

With all the extracirricular activity going on, the 1st half was entertaing even considering the halftime score was only 21-16 Augie. Coming out of the locker room, the Cardinals went on a 7-2 spurt to even the score at 23. The Cardinals then went on a 22-11 run with Derek Raridon's step back three giving the Cards their biggest lead of the night at 45-34 with 5:02 remaining. Augie then charged back, scoring the game's next 10 points to trail by just 1 with still 2:23 left. Thereafter, Landon Gamble scored in the post, and Kyle Nelson hit one of 2 free throws resulting in a 47-45 Cardinal lead. NCC's Kevin Gillespie and Augie's Brian DeSimone then each went 1 or 2 from the charity stripe on successive possessions, making the score 48-46 at the 19 second mark. After rebounding a missed NCC FT with 15 seconds left, Augie had ample time to tie or take the lead, but the Cardinals forced a Viking TO and Kevin Gillespie hit 2 FT in the final seconds to seal the victory.