MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Titan Q]

Pantagraph on the IWU @ North Park game...

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/basketball/men/chemistry-of-iwu-men-making-rose-happy/article_90a813cc-38cb-11e1-9d26-0019bb2963f4.html

[Titan Q]

IWU (10-2, 1-0) @ North Park (4-8, 0-1), 4:00pm...

PG
(NPU) Roshawn Russell, 5-9 Sr – 8.3 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.8 apg , 1.9 A:TO
(IWU) Eliud Gonzalez, 5-9 Sr – 6.1 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 6.1 apg, 2.5 A:TO

SG
(IWU) Jordan Zimmer, 6-5 Sr – 15.7 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 1.0 apg, 45-102 3-point (.441)
(NPU) Trent Kucera, 5-10 Fr G – 1.4 ppg, 0.5 rpg, 0.5 rpg, 3-16 3-point (.188)

G/F
(IWU) John Koschnitzky, 6-6 Sr – 9.8 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 43-108 FG (.398)
(NPU) Brett Peterson, 6-1 So – 1.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 0.5 apg, 3-10 FG (.300)

F
(NPU) Mark Holmes, 6-6 Jr – 14.3 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 66-165 FG (.400)
(IWU) Victor Davis, 6-5 So – 10.7 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 46-79 FG (.582)

F/C
(NPU) Mike Gabriel, 6-8 So – 11.2 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 46-79 FG (.582)
(IWU) Kevin Reed, 6-7 Jr – 10.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 54-83 (.651)

Bench

Perimeter:

(IWU) Stephen Rudnicki, 6-3 Sr G, 16.6 min/game – 5.3 ppg, 2.5 apg
(IWU) Eric Dortch, 6-3 So F, 13.2 min/game - 3.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg

(NPU) Kendall Greer, 6-4 Sr, 29.3 min/game – 6.5 ppg, 3.7 rpg
(NPU) Reggie McGree, 6-2 Fr G, 12.8 min/game – 3.4 ppg, 1.0 rpg
(NPU) Josh McNaughton, 5-11 So G, 10.8 min/game – 3.2 ppg, 2.2 rpg

Post:

(IWU) Nick Anderson, 6-9 So C , 14.7 min/game - 5.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg
(IWU) Andrew Ziemnik, 6-5 So F, 17.5 min/game – 5.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg,

(NPU) Emmanuel Crosby, 6-7 Sr, 26.3 min/game – 9.5 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 45-83 FG (.542)

[OurHouse]

OurHouse, I think IWU can win various ways, with many combinations, this year -- the result of this excellent depth and sizable rotation.  Yes, Zimmer is bigtime on scoring just now, but they won tough games earlier in the year when he was not so dominant, not scoring much.  Others are very capable of scoring, much more so than we initially thought at season's start.  Reed is playing very well and Eliud and Rudnicki are very able to score, again more than we thought earlier, when called upon.  I'm hoping for more scoring from the 3 and the post area, especially from Kman, who is a very good trey shooter and slasher, and also from Victor Davis.  The stats so far show this potential balance, range of scoring options, and that many players, including Molinari and Oz, have in fact led in scoring in previous outings.  Should Overstreet or Musselman be called on, they are very capable of scoring as well.  (Brandon Heyen and Josh Wiggs from the JV are going to be excellent players down the road, in my view).   Eliud is very good at finding what the defense is giving . . . and delivering accurate passes to the scorers.  Vs. Wheaton, he also found his own shot and got to the basket off the dribble.  His on-ball defense is superb and makes an important contribution to disrupting the offensive flow of the opponent.  The scoring by Dortch and Ziemnik were useful additions vs. WC.  You can see Ron Rose can now sit back a bit and sense who is playing well, who is most aggressive, who is hitting shots (beyond Zimmer), who has most left in the tank, and then go with that combination, work key match-ups given the opponents players, schemes and sets.  Nick Anderson is developing nicely, though he struggled a bit offensively against Wheaton, but he's great on interior defense, shot blocking and active movement, runs the floor pretty well for 6-9 and shoots FTs well.  No lack of effort there.  Eric Dortch is a very good on-ball defender, and has great hops, blocking abilities.  Was happy to see him find his offense some this last game and take his opportunities to get to the rim.  I would expect some good offensive games from Kman and Anderson coming up.  Andrew Ziemnik certainly earned more minutes in his play vs. WC, against McCrary. Just a few thoughts from watching all the home games to date.  IMHO.

I was very very impressed with Aaron Garriott.  He's going to have a huge year, it would appear.

IWU70[/color][/size]

IWU70

I do agree with your assessment - this team has depth and has best fire power overall in the CCIW this year - mark this post as to claiming first dibs on IWU winning the conference (may be an early prediction but only 3 will compete -- of those 3, IWU is at top)

[robberki]

Happy cciw saturday everyone! Check out the NPU-IWU game at 4 pm today, the link for the broadcast can be found here: http://athletics.northpark.edu/index.aspx?path=mbball&tab=basketball

hopefully greg sager and I will call a good game today. Stay safe everyone!

[AndOne]

RE: Carthage - NC

Offensive flow is a big problem for Carthage.  Shut down Kelly and they are cooked right now.  It seems like Bosko is trying to get Logan into the point where Kelly doesn't carry the load, but they seem to lack the set plays to get them out of the slumps and flowing again. 

I'd like to see Carthage mix up three bigs - two smalls and two bigs - three smalls to exploit the matchups.  They have enough good bigs to pull it off.  I also would like to see more Pierce in the offensive flow because he is a plus passer, which is probably Kelly's weakest skill.  Right now, it just feels like Bosko can't figure out the winning combinations, but there are enough horses there to be dangerous.

We'll see how things go.  I was starting to get hopeful until the Washington loss, now I'm more concerned.

bopol---

I'm sensing your suggestions can only mostly help. With regard to some of the points you highlight, I observed the following last night:

* Shutting down Kelly definitely goes a long way toward shutting down Carthage.
* Donte Logan seems hesitant/reluctant. Despite several open looks last night, he fired only once, a successful 3 attempt. Perhaps too much deferment to the upperclassmen?
* Pierce may be a decent passer, but his lack of mobility on defense could result in more of an overall negative than a plus.
* Your mention of Kelly's deficient passing skill is a classic understatement. The guy has more than twice as many turnovers as assists. The thing he hits most often with his passes is the opposition.
However, he still scares you with his ability to heat up and hit from deep, scoring in bunches.

I heard that Donte Logan was injured and didn't really even practice with the team until December.  That just makes coming in as a freshman point that much tougher, but I think they are pretty high on him.  Like Luke Johnson, the learning curve to get to the higher level is sometimes painful to watch, but Kelly's one hole is his passing, so I don't see how Bosko has a choice, but to try to develop a point.  At least with Kelly, he busts his butt the whole time he's on the floor.  I wish that out of everyone on Carthage. 

I still don't see Pierce as a net negative.  In fact, in the Washington game, the Pierce/Bauch combo played better than Johnson/Thompson in the 2nd half.  That was mostly Johnson's afforementioned growing pains. 

Bosko's got a heckuva job this year trying to maximize the potential out of this group.  There is probably a winning formula there, but I'm not sure what it is...

bopol---

* You're right about both there being a rather large learning curve for any freshman point, and about Kelly's always hustling. I never saw him loafing it for a minute despite his team's plight Wed night.
* If you don't think of Pierce as being a net negative, consider that you could probably go right around him if he was defending you on the court. Additionally, at his current weight, lets just say his ability to get up isn't what it used to be. Lastly, consider how good he was at 230 pounds as a freshman. Heck, he was 3rd team all-conference. At the time, I thought he'd be 1st team by the end of his career. But, that was before he expanded by 60 pounds in 2 years and reached the 290 he was listed at when this season's roster was put up on the CC web site. (He is now listed at 275). Just think how much better he would currently be if he was still weighing in at 230. I never heard of a college athlete gaining 60 pounds during his 1st 2 years of school. Even a football player who might be trying  to gain weigh would have a difficult time adding 60 pounds in that short of a time frame.
As far as Bauch, I was really impressed with him last year, and assumed he would be starting this year. However, based on what I observed Wed night, it looks as if he is experiencing a dreaded "sophomore slump." His footwork was all messed up to the point he could hardly get down the floor without stumbling and almost falling down a couple of times. He looked completely lost on offense, and spent most of his time mumbling under his breath about his defender not being whistled for a touch foul at a time in the game by which it had become obvious that the refs were going to let them play in traditional bruising CCIW style game.
* Bosko might indeed have "a heckuva of a time this year trying to maximize the potential of this group." We're all used to Bosko bellowing loudly throughout the majority of any game. However, Wed night he spent most of the time in a more quite and reflective pose, seemingly glued to his chair much of the time, and gazing up to the rafters in the old hangar, appearing resigned to the his evening's fate.

[Titan Q]

Tyler Pierce as a senior in high school...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnIo0rN0-bo&feature=player_embedded

[Titan Q]

Greg or Rob, will there be video today from NPU?

[AndOne]

Good test for NCC @ Augie tomorrow.  We'll see how far they've come.  Augie, even without Scarlata, is going to be very tough at Carver.  Of course, would love to see NCC put a loss on Augie early on. 

Sorry I can't make the trip to NPU and the two Titans games up in the windy city tomorrow. 

Bring home two Ws, Titans!!!

Happy weekend all.

IWU70

iwu70--

The NCC Cardinals will face not only a "good test" tonight at Augie, but a severe one as well.
I'm well aware of the adage that "you have to play with the hand you're dealt." View it as an excuse if you want, but it would just be nice if NCC was able to have all their cards available, enabling them to play with a full deck. CJ Goldthree, who missed the Carthage game with a concussion, apparently won't be available tonight either. Additionally, there appears a strong possibility that freshman backup PG Mike Boyd will be unable to play. With CJ being out, tonight's game would mark the 6th of 13 games so far this season that one of the NCC starters has been benched by the injury bug. Kevin Gillespie and Aaron Tiknis couldn't even get on the bus for games at Albion and Simpson respectively. Both were still slowed in the following game. Derek Raridon missed both games in Florida, and now CJ will very likely miss his 2nd consecutive game, marking the 6th of 13 games in which a starter has been unavailable. Additionally, Landon Gamble, the only starter not to miss a game, has been nowhere near 100% in any game to date, and is just now nearing that figure.
In trying to explain NCC's undistinguished 6-5 non conference record, you need not look much further to explain their record. With Gillespie, Tiknis, and Raridon, I firmly believe they win the Albion, Simpson, and Scranton games, and enter the conference portion of the season at 9-2, now 10-2 with the Carthage win. Of course, that would still not be a guarantee of anything against a very strong Augie squad.

* I don't think the Vikings really lost much overall, if anything with Kyle Nelson's graduation. With the all their height, and other assets, they demonstrated early that they were thoroughly able to make up for Nelson's loss. As has been opined, they likely have "come back to the pack" a bit with the defection of Luke Scarlata. However, they are still the number 3 team in the country, and not without good reason. A severe test indeed for the Cardinals tonight in Rock Island. I hope they found the right "cheat sheet" to take on the bus. The determination, effort, and execution they displayed against Carthage Wed will go a long way toward filling the bill. We only need to look back to as recently as last season to find some Cardinal victories that few outside of the Cardinal family gave them any chance at all of achieving.     

[iwu70]

AndOne,

Thanks for all the background on the Cardinals injuries and rotational woes to date.  Sounds pretty rough, I agree.  Though I'm one of the few skeptics on this board about the Cardinals' CCIW chances this year, I do wish them well in putting an early loss on Augie.  Yes, I agree, it will be a severe test at Carver, though I do think Augie is beatable on any given night . . . by the top teams in the CCIW.   My Titans have to take care of business at NPU.  Every road win in the CCIW is a good win, for sure.   Titans have struggled in the CrackerBox these past few years.  Let's hope the IWU team of the recent 4-5 games appears and gets the win with their diverse scoring and rotational depth.   

IWU70

[robberki]

Greg or Rob, will there be video today from NPU?

Yes!

/crosses fingers

[iwu70]

Look forward to the NP call on the IWU-NP video feed today.   Better than WJBC?

Go TITANS!

IWU70

[AndOne]

I know there was much to do regarding this subject at the onset of the conference games last year, but it seems, that in the interest of economy, the CCIW Presidents and/or ADs have done their basketball teams a disservice with their edict of women's/men's doubleheaders for Saturday conference games.

I'm sorry, but this leaving at 12:15 for a 7:30 game is nothing but ridiculous!     
With an estimated 12:45 AM return arrival in Naperville tonight, that will make it a 12 hour and 30 minute sojourn for the North Central kids for a game taking approximately an hour and 20 minutes to play. And its the same, or sometimes worse scenario around the conference. Think of the NPU and Augie kids meeting on a Sat, or Carthage vs Millikin. Bring your blankets and pillows! I know things are tough economically on many small colleges, but how much money is really being saved by this doubleheader baloney? Also, how much is the women's/men's varsity doubleheader decree stunting the development of the various school's JV programs/players?   

I think the Wheaton Bank and the Wesleyan Bank, and likely most if not all others, can afford the extra bus rental.
I also believe that a much more sane solution was presented here last year by various posters. Lots of Doctors out there with a little less common sense on some issues than many non advanced-degreed individuals.   

[iwu70]

Can't seem to connect with the NP video feed. 

[robberki]

Sorry everyone, our hamster's racy lifestyle finally caught up to him and we have no one to power the feed. Rest assured, our off-the-air commentary has been scintilating. Hopefully we'll be back next week, these technical problems have been a real bear this season.

[iwu70]

Too bad, was looking forward to your call along with Mssr. Sager!  I'm over on the JBC call now.  Hope you sort out your gremlins.  Sounds like a chippy, foul-filled affair.  Hope the zebras let them play a bit more in the second half. 

IWU70