MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[mr_b]

Is anyone else sick of what Saigars has to say?

Crusaders,

For starters, his name is spelled "Sager." 

If you don't agree with, or appreciate, the perspectives of anyone on the board, you are always free to skip their postings.  That said, if you spend any amount of time on the CCIW board, you will find a mixture of incisive views, humor, and statistical analysis, with a minimum of smack talk and posturing.  You even find support from many posters for the CCIW representatives as they continue on in regional play.  It's a refreshing break from some other boards I've visited from time to time. 

[Johnny Augie]

Is anyone else sick of what Saigars has to say?

I'm assuming you're talking about Greg Sager.  I'm not sick of hearing him.

Plus, I kind of feel bad for him with what he has to go through right now as a fan of North Park.  I'm sure it's frustrating.

[armywife]

Why would we be sick of what Greg has to say? You probably don't understand him. He's been a fan for a long time and he knows of what he speaks. Pay attention, you might learn something.

Good comeback by Augie, the last 2 games were painful, this one went a long way to heal the pain. 

Tough loss by IWU, they played hard.

[Titan Q]

No question on the M.O.P. in my mind...Rick Harrigan locked it up tonight.

At least you get the consolation of having a fellow Brother Rice alumnus win it.

There is always a tendency to root for guys from your neighborhood or school to do well, and yes, as a Brother Rice alumnus, I am proud of what Rick Harrigan has accomplished.  The kid has certainly hit two big daggers in Rock Island vs IWU -- last year it was a 3 from the right wing to make it 73-72 Augie with 2:48 to play.  Last night it was from the left wing with 1:07 to go in OT, making it 89-83.

Before the first IWU/Augie game this year, I asked Coach G why it took the high school superstar who had a ton of D1 looks until the second half of his junior year to really become the player we all expected him to be.  His comments at about to 6:30 mark of the 1/25 archived game...

http://www.wjbc2.com/archive.htm

I think Augustana can go as far as Rick Harrigan takes them.  I love the supporting cast - guys like McAdams-Thorton, D. Swetella, N. Swetella, Wessels, Brusveen, etc are tough - but Harrigan makes the Vikings go.  He makes them a Final Four contender.

[79jaybird]

Congratulations to Augustana who in the end.. proved to be the strongest team in the CCIW.  I think both Augie and IWU are shoo ins for the tournament.  The only way that EC and NC make the NCAA's is if they win the CCIW Tournament.
Tough loss for Elmhurst, however from listening in.. it sounded like a great game between the two schools.

[Stat]

Sager?  Sager? Who the hell is Sager?

Oh, you mean Sage, The Patriarch of the Board!

He who speaks ill of Him, doth commit blasphemy, and shall hang by his feet from the crackerbox rafters in the middle of August, and shall not be found until the first practice.

Let it be stated.

[CardinalAlum]

Regional rankings out, Elmhurst has officially passed NCC.

Well that ranking will be short lived!! 

Congrats to Augie and their fans. 

[robberki]

Is anyone else sick of what Saigars has to say?

That said, if you spend any amount of time on the CCIW board, you will find a mixture of incisive views, humor, and statistical analysis, with a minimum of smack talk and posturing. 

Did someone say smack talk? Okay, I'm not sure what was the bigger collapse, North Park's second half performance or IWU's season! RIM SHOT!

[mr_b]

Is anyone else sick of what Saigars has to say?

That said, if you spend any amount of time on the CCIW board, you will find a mixture of incisive views, humor, and statistical analysis, with a minimum of smack talk and posturing. 

Did someone say smack talk? Okay, I'm not sure what was the bigger colapse, North Park's second half performance or IWU's season! RIM SHOT!

We will allow former CCIW stars some leeway in the smack-talking department!  You've earned that right (not like all-state benchwarmers -- honorable mention -- like myself).

[gryfalia]

Vet, sorry, I'm happy with my Hong Kong perch.  No good Chinese food in Bloomington. 

Well, while there is the normal 'good' American-fake-Chinese China Star to eat at, we have had a surprising run of Thai places open up.  Three now, with Thai House being my favorite thus far.  And, for those that know the place, we have a real, live Harold's Chicken Shack open up for business..;-)

Gryfalia 'bringing the tangent at you, warp speed'

[und63]

To Augustana and Giovanine's credit, their 2006 Championship run is a strong reflection of recruiting and developing player talent.  Until last night, I had not paid much attention to Giovanine's staff of assistants.  Which CCIW teams, past or present, can match the experience of Schulte & Swatella (plus 6'7" & 6'9" transfer sons)?

In spite of this, IWU has given them all they could handle and I look forward to a third rematch in Rock Island next weekend.  So let's lighten up on Trost and the players for less than the expected season and give them credit for continuing to hang in there and giving of themselves for our basketball entertainment.  Credit also their academic achievements, I for one can excuse some misses, turn overs, etc. when 99.9% of the time they are trying to do their best.  They are #1 in my book, win or lose!

[iwufans]

To Augustana and Giovanine's credit, their 2006 Championship run is a strong reflection of recruiting and developing player talent. ..(plus 6'7" & 6'9" transfer sons)?

In spite of this, IWU has given them all they could handle and I look forward to a third rematch in Rock Island next weekend. So let's lighten up on Trost and the players for less than the expected season and give them credit for continuing to hang in there and giving of themselves for our basketball entertainment. Credit also their academic achievements, I for one can excuse some misses, turn overs, etc. when 99.9% of the time they are trying to do their best. They are #1 in my book, win or lose!

Und63,  Couldn't have said it better.   Maybe the Titans did not perform in the conference as well as was expected, but disappointing?  No.  I enjoyed watching them game in and game out.   Some tend to forget that not all teams the Titans faced this year remained the same as last year.  As with Augie, significant additions and developments were sometimes made.  This is, afterall, a game.  Enjoy it for what it is.  The Titans have nothing to hang their heads about.  In my book, it is still a great season by a great team, and I too, am very proud of their efforts.  This is a great bunch of guys that are going to be missed.

[Brick]

No one is trying to take away from what IWU has done this year, I believe that all people are trying to say is that their season was a disappointment.  I'd bet if you asked Trost or anyone of the players on that team they would tell you that it has been a dissappointing season.  When you are preseason #1 and had everyone basically giving you the conf. championship before the season has started and you fail to win the conf. championship, I would say that the season has been a dissappointment.  I am not trying to take away from what this group at IWU has done I'm just saying if they are competitive as I think they are then they too will admit that their season has been somewhat of a dissapointment.

[79jaybird]

The school that really benefitted from last night's results was Wheaton.  If Wheaton beats Elmhurst then the Thunder have a great chance of getting into the tournament.  There are still some "have to happens"  but the winner of the WC/EC game is in pretty good shape.  The way I see it
#1 Augustana vs. #4 Elmhurst
#2 IWU vs #3 North Central
And that's as far as I'm predicting because anything and everything could happen in this conference!

[Mugsy]

Interesting quote from Tony Bollier of Wheaton in the Around the Nation article on the home page:

He drained two critical foul shots in the final seconds of the win over Illinois Wesleyan, assuring that the Titans would need to make a buzzer-beating 3-pointer just to tie (they didn't).

"My first word was 'ball', and my dad coached me in high school, so I guess I better know how to shoot free throws," Bollier said. "The best thing about going to the line at the end of that game is that at the end of my workouts, I always end them shooting free throws. And I always say "This is a one-and-one to beat Illinois Wesleyan.' So when I went to the line (in the game), I realized that hey, I'd done this a million times before.

Goes to show the level of rivalry between Wheaton and IWU, from the mindset of Wheaton players.