MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[CCIWchamps]

I don't get the impression that Wheaton people feel that they have an institutional rivalry with any other school. That's partly what sets off Parkers; they want their ire towards Wheaton to be reciprocated, and, except where soccer is concerned, it isn't.

As far as basketball is concerned, there's never been a basketball rivalry in Wheaton's eyes. The two programs have never been good at the same time. When North Park's been up on the hardwood, Wheaton's been down, and vice-versa. Of course, from NPU's point of view, basketball games are just another good excuse to yell unpleasant stuff at athletes from that orange-colored school in DuPage County.

That's a fair explanation.  Above is the best explanation.  We've smited you without directly smiting you.

[John Gleich]

This was my response to a similar query posted by a Wheaton football alumnus four years ago...

Remember my mention of that April Fool's issue of the NPC newspaper back in '71?

Interesting tidbit there Greg, thanks! Sometime (maybe next offseason) I'd love to learn a little more... especially about the April Fool's issue you mentioned...

[iwumichigander]

One more thing... there was something weird about the early 70's. In my light research, lots of conferences had teams that went undefeated at least once between 70-74. Strange!

The 1971-72 school year was when the NCAA first allowed freshmen to participate on varsity basketball teams after decades of ruling them ineligible. A connection, perhaps?

Another possibility in addition to Greg's noting the freshmen eligibility - you had quite a few schools moving from NAIA (scholarship programs) to Div III and some of those schools "ate" the scholarship committment via financial aid packages to move to D3.

[Gregory Sager]

This was my response to a similar query posted by a Wheaton football alumnus four years ago...

Remember my mention of that April Fool's issue of the NPC newspaper back in '71?

Interesting tidbit there Greg, thanks! Sometime (maybe next offseason) I'd love to learn a little more... especially about the April Fool's issue you mentioned...

Every year the North Park student newspaper (the College News back when it was NPC, the North Park Press now that it's NPU) puts out an April Fool's issue. Given the nature of college humor, some years are better than others in terms of the quality of the humor. But perhaps the most memorable April Fool's issue in College News history was in 1971, when the entire top half of the front page above the fold was a Nazi-era picture of goose-stepping German SS soldiers on parade giving the Hitler salute. The headline below the picture was, "Homecoming At Wheaton College".

[veterancciwfan]

Sac: Most original post of 2013!! Now Greg can prove that NPU is better than Indiana to any reasonable basketball fan; however, I hope anyone doubting that fact is not aware that NPU lost by 55 to Illinois College.  8-)I would like to see NPU competive in the league this year, especially at home. I know how difficult it is to win at NPU. I can still vividly recall the absolute shellacking (a 20 point win) NPU administered to the 87-88 IWU team (commonly referred to as the Braksick team with Ron Rose at point guard) at NPU. That IWU team was one of Dennie Bridges' best teams.

[veterancciwfan]

My bad. Millikin is better than Indiana, not NPU. Sorry, Greg.

[Mr. Ypsi]

My bad. Millikin is better than Indiana, not NPU. Sorry, Greg.

Actually, by that same chain, NPU is ALSO better than Indiana.

If you try hard enough, ANY non-winless team can be proven to be better than ANY non-undefeated team (with rare exceptions).  And IF you are willing to stoop to comparative scores, I suspect ANY team can be shown to be better than ANY team!

Of course, some times it takes a pretty damn long chain!

[Gregory Sager]

Sac: Most original post of 2013!! Now Greg can prove that NPU is better than Indiana to any reasonable basketball fan; however, I hope anyone doubting that fact is not aware that NPU lost by 55 to Illinois College.  8-)I would like to see NPU competive in the league this year, especially at home. I know how difficult it is to win at NPU. I can still vividly recall the absolute shellacking (a 20 point win) NPU administered to the 87-88 IWU team (commonly referred to as the Braksick team with Ron Rose at point guard) at NPU. That IWU team was one of Dennie Bridges' best teams.

It ain't gonna happen this year, Lanny. This NPU team is severely undermanned, and most of the Park's games in January and February are going to be blowout losses. But I have a very good feeling about the coaching regime that is now in place. While there's no way to tell one way or the other how Dylan Howard would've turned out in the long run as North Park's head coach -- he could've turned out to be a very good head coach, he could've turned out to be a very poor head coach, or anything in between -- my read on Tom Slyder is that he has a better handle on the job than Dylan had. NPU is similar to Anderson in some respects, and I think it's given Tom a leg up on understanding the school's ethos and personality and thus what sort of player he should be recruiting for the Vikings. And the first decision he made as NPU's head coach -- hiring Cordell Henry to be his full-time assistant and recruiting coordinator -- was an absolutely outstanding one.

It all comes down to the players. And, thus, for a college basketball coach, the biggest and most important part of his job is to get the right players on his campus and into uniforms.

[Titan Q]

Wash U's Alan Aboona made 10 of 11 3-pointers this evening @ Emory, including a game-winning 3 in the final seconds. 

10 of 11...amazing.

[sac]

My bad. Millikin is better than Indiana, not NPU. Sorry, Greg.

The highest chain is actually to #5 Kansas.

[Titan Q]

Pantagraph article featuring IWU PG Dylan Overstreet...

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/illinois-wesleyan/overstreet-points-way-for-iwu-men/article_b34a4764-5c66-11e2-807e-0019bb2963f4.html

After an inconsistent non-conference season, Overstreet has really played well early in CCIW play.  Through 3 games Overstreet is leading the league in assists (6.0/game) and A:TO ratio (3.00).  He'll need to be very good tomorrow against Carthage's quick and athletic backcourt.

[John Gleich]

Did I miss something here? Where in the narrative did Giovanine say anything to Davis? Looks to me like he was yelling out instructions to his own players to let Davis take that shot, which is a perfectly legitimate and understandable thing for a coach to do during live action. It's the inverse of a coach yelling out, "Shooter!" when the opponent that he doesn't want to have take that shot gets the ball.

Perhaps Giovanine was yelling simply to jam up Davis, rather than making a coaching remark, but it's pretty darned hard to prove intent here -- especially since Davis was under 30% as a trey shooter last season, and was also under 30% this season until last night. It's a reasonable move for Augie to let him shoot that shot under those circumstances, and it's thus quite plausible that Giovanine was indeed being a coach rather than just an obnoxious fan with an exceptionally good seat.

All valid and fair points.  But it's Coach G, and it's just one more Coach G thing to put on his already overflowing resume of buffoonery.  I don't think he's gonna get a ton of benefit of the doubt on most borderline things from the average CCIW fan anymore.

And think about...seriously...in all of the games you have watched, how many times has a head coach, while 10 feet from an opposing player, actually yelled out something like that?  I can't think of a single time.  I mean, we've all heard "shooter" and things like that...but has anyone actually heard, "He stinks, let him shoot!"?  And after two days of practice, and telling his guys to let Victor Davis shoot from 3, are we to believe he really needed to remind them again in that instant Victor had the ball in his hands and was about to shoot?  I don't know...it's just weird.

And yes, regardless of personal opinion on the above, the bottom line is he wouldn't shake Victor's hand afterwards.  Just bizarre really.

If you think about this from a defensive point... what reason could a coach possibly want for a player to not close-out on a 3 point shooter? Even if it wasn't a full close-out, the coach would would the defender to at least get in position if the guy decided to drive in. IF something was actually said, it could certainly appear that it was directed to the team... but honestly, how could it be? Especially for a team like Augustana, that prides itself on defensive intensity?

I've heard people say "Let him shoot" before, but it was always in a much more informal setting. A pick-up game, or the like.

I can't really ever think of a coach saying something like that... especially in a real game. Maybe in a summer league game, or something like that, and in a situation where the coach and player have some sort of a previous relationship? It seems like in situations like that, the coach is begging to be responded to if the player actually hits the shot. I'm not sure that the player should say something and point... I'd think something more subtle like a glance and a smirk?

Whatever the case, though, as has been said, it doesn't excuse the lack of a handshake at the end of the game. That's one of my favorite things about watching playoff hockey... the guys fly around and try and kill each other for several hours, but at the end, they shake hands and put everything else behind them. In short, at the end, they're real men about the whole situation.

[Titan Q]

Carthage @ IWU, 7:00pm...

IWU (11-3, 3-0)
G - Dylan Overstreet, 6-3/180 So (8.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 3.8 apg)
G - Pat Sodemann, 6-3/190 So (11.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 1.1 apg)
F - Andrew Ziemnik, 6-4/230 Jr (10.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg)
F - Victor Davis, 6-5/235 Jr (7.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg)
F - Kevin Reed, 6-6/230 Sr (9.6 ppg, 7.0 rpg)

G - Brady Zimmer, 6-4/180 Jr (10.8 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 1.5 apg)
F - Mike Mayberger, 6-6/220 Jr (8.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg)
C - Nick Anderson, 6-9/220 Jr (3.0 ppg, 2.6 rpg)

Carthage (6-8, 1-2)
G  - Donte Logan, 5-11/160 So (9.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 5.7 apg)
G - Reese Herth, 6-2/170 So (10.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 1.4 apg)
F - Cameron Van Wyk, 6-6/185 So (1.8 ppg, 1.3 rpg)
F - Mitch Thompson, 6-6/205 Sr (10.7 ppg, 5.6 rpg)
C - Tyler Pierce, 6-5/265 Sr (11.1 ppg, 3.0 rpg)

G - Marlon Senior, 6-5/195 Jr (5.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg)
G - Kevin Sykes, Jr, 6-3/160 Jr (5.1 ppg, 1.5 rpg)
F - Kiston Lee, 6-3/185 So (2.9 ppg, 1.0 rpg)


Pantagraph: http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/illinois-wesleyan/overstreet-points-way-for-iwu-men/article_b34a4764-5c66-11e2-807e-0019bb2963f4.html

Video/live stats: http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/iwu.portal#

WJBC radio: http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/wjbc.portal#

WLIP radio: http://player.streamtheworld.com/_players/nextmedia/?callsign=WLIPAM

All-time series: IWU 89-25

Massey predicts: IWU 70 Carthage 61  (IWU #15, Carthage #74)

[Titan Q]

No chatter about it so far, but a really big game in Naperville tonight between #17 Augustana (2-1) and #1 North Central (2-1).  I've watched both teams several times now online.  If NCC is healthy I'd say the Cards are about a 9-point favorite at home. 

The last two Augie/NCC games at Gregory Arena have been incredibly physical (by all accounts), halfcourt grind-it-out type games:

2/9/11: NCC 50 Augustana 46
2/4/12: NCC 43 Augustana 41

This year I don't think the Vikings want that kind of game.  Augie doesn't really have the horses down low this year to win that kind of battle with the Cardinals.  I'm pretty sure Augie will try hard to speed the game up and make it less of a halfcourt grind type of game...which sounds strange to say.

This is a very different Augustana team, and not just because they're young.  This is a much more offensively skilled group than a lot of Coach G's teams.  After shooting .455 from the field in 2010-11 and .440 in 2011-12, the Vikings are .478 this year through 14 games.  Brandon Kunz is shooting an impressive .613 from the field from the 5 spot...Ben Ryan, who is a future 1st Team all-CCIW player, is at .556 and can score in a lot of different ways...starting guards Danielius Jurgutis and Brandon Thompson are knocking down 3's at a .405 and .538 clip respectively.

I'm not sure what to make of Augie's 6-6 freshman forward Tayvian Johnson yet.  Everytime I watch the Vikings, including Wednesday vs IWU, Johnson really struggles in shooting the basketball.  He doesn't seem to be a very good 15-18 foot jumpshooter, but those are the shots he seems to primarily take.  I never see him do much around the basket, or going to the basket from the perimeter.  Where fellow freshman forward Ben Ryan is a very polished, "CCIW ready" player, Johnson is much more raw at this point.  I'm guessing NCC is going to give Johnson plenty of chances to shoot the basketball tonight from the mid-range - he could be a key for Augie, a wildcard of sorts.

I see NCC winning this one fairly comfortably.  I think there is some pretty significant separation between these two teams, and in Naperville I'd be surprised if there's an upset.  In Rock Island I'd have the line at about NCC -3.

[Titan Q]

I'm told that former Carthage player Luke Johnson, a 6-9 forward, has enrolled at D3 Benedictine (in Lisle) and is expected to play today vs Edgewood.