MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Gregory Sager]

Millikin 77
North Park 67

Juwan Henry: 29 pts, 7 rebs, 4:2 a:to
Colin Lake: 10 pts, 4 stls

T.J. Sims: 17 pts, 7 rebs
Nick Novak: 11 pts
T.J. Griffin: 10 pts
Jacob Kueker: 10 pts

Thought NPU would get this one.

Tough to win a game when your team shoots 24 more shots than the opponent, and yet the opponent makes three more baskets than your team's able to make.

MU shot a blistering 25-40 (63%) tonight, with most of the makes being layups. NPU was unable to prevent the Big Blue from making post entry passes, so MU's much bigger front line was able to make hay from in close. North Park, on the other hand, shot an anemic 22-64 (34%), including 8-26 (31%) from downtown, where they missed a lot of open looks.

Millikin turned the ball over 23 times in this game, most of them forced. The one thing that the Vikings really did well tonight was turn up the juice on the press.

I'm sure that everyone who follows the Vikings had this one chalked up as a win before the two teams took the floor tonight. This was a lesson in not counting your chickens before they've hatched. I just don't think that the ultra-small Vikings are going to get any easy wins in CCIW play. That doesn't mean that NPU can't win a few; it just means that the Vikes are going to have to scratch and claw for every win that they get. Tonight they didn't scratch and claw enough.

[robertgoulet]

Yes, a tough loss for the Titans, after scratching back close.  NCC holds court, protects home court, in a very tough, well-fought game.  Nelson and Seibring played well for IWU, Burchett a montster 25 for NCC.

I don't normally complain about the zebras but the blocking foul on Seibring, as Burchett charged right into him, with .33 seconds to go, well, it was just appalling.  It came at a crucial time when the TITANS were within one possession.  Truly appalling.

Well, there you go, we expect tough close games like this.  Good to see Nelson back, hitting some threes.  Titans will have to be tougher in the paint going forward. 

Titans now 8-4, likely to drop out of the top 20 or so.  CCIW race is going to be a real wrestling match.  Tough games every night.

IWU70

Gonna disagree with you on the blocking foul. Guy was there and in position, but made one huge mistake: he was falling backwards before Burchett even got to him. Block.

[Titan Q]

North Central 78
IWU 70

http://www.iwusports.com/news/2015/1/3/MBB_0103151314.aspx

* Trevor Seibring: 15 pts, 6 reb
* Jordan Nelson: 14 pts, 3 assists
* Dylan Overstreet: 7 pts, 4 reb, 4 assists

* Jack Burchett: 25 pts, 5 reb, 4 assists
* Jayme Moten: 16 pts, 5 reb, 3 assists
* Erwin Henry: 15 pts
* Kevin Honn: 11 pts, 2 reb, 3 assists


I thought both teams, overall, looked good and played well.  In the end, just a little too much Jack Burchett for the Titans...he had a great game.  The Titans did a nice job hanging in there after going down to cut it to 2. 

Jordan Nelson looked good for the Titans - nice to see him back in there and playing well.  I thought sophomore center Trevor Seibring also played well in his first CCIW game.

These seem to be two pretty evenly matched teams (I'd give a slight edge to NCC overall), and both clearly look like CCIW conference tournament teams (top 4) to me.  The game in Bloomington between IWU and NCC should be another good one...probably with IWU a 2-3 point favorite.

The Cardinals did what a CCIW title contender has to do - won a home game. 

[AndOne]

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/basketball/iwu-wants-to-get-tough-versus-north-central/article_aa394105-43e6-511c-ab41-43be533b1491.html

IWU wants to get tough versus North Central

"I went to high school (New Lenox Providence) with Burchett, and I've played against Charlie over the summer," Marietti said. "We know them pretty well, and they know us pretty well. Whoever is tougher is going to win that battle."

Prior to last night's IWU-NCC game in Naperville, a copy of the above article appeared on the bulletin board in the NCC locker room as a reminder to the Cardinals of the importance that toughness would play in the then upcoming battle. Others may disagree, but I sense the Redbirds ultimate victory was partially the result of them coming out on top on the toughness scale as well as on the final scoreboard.

This game was advertised as a battle, and certainly lived up to that billing. The typically rough and tumble CCIW game saw 13 ties and 14 lead changes. There have previously been some comments regarding the officiating. I believe both sides have legitimate complains. Several calls against both teams seemed figments of the ref's imaginations. The taller ref with dark hair called a generally even game with a number of good and questionable calls for both sides. Overall, he did seem to get the most calls right. The bald guy was pretty bad with more "where did he come up with that" calls than the action seemed to reflect. The shorter guy with dark hair simply had his space cadet helmet on throughout the contest, and frequently left fans of both teams in stunned disbelief. I've seen a boatload of HS refs so far this year who seem to have a better level of comprehension of the rules of basketball.

NCC's Charlie Rosenberg and IWU's Ryan Coyle, their teams respective high scores, were largely inconsequential in the final outcome. Both were severely limited by foul trouble. Rosenberg who has been playing very well, had an off night shooting and finished with only 4 points. Coyle, who contributed just 3 points to the Green cause, managed to foul out after being on the floor for all of 8 minutes.

Into the NCC scoring void stepped Jack Burchett who had a simply fabulous night, matching his career high of 25 points on 9 of 16 shooting from the floor, and 7 of 8 from the line to lead all scorers. IWU simply had no answer for "Big" Jack whose effort was, to a very large degree, fueled by the aforementioned toughness factor. He also had 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
Jack was well supported by Jayme Moten who threw in 16 points, including 2 of the only 4 three pointers the Cards made. Jayme also set a faced pace tone the Greenies were hard pressed to match. Freshman Erwin Henry, on who the IWU brain trust likely hand little preliminary intel, had the finest game of his young career, hitting 5 of 9 from the field and 5 of 7 from the line to total an impressive 15 points in his CCIW debut. Kevin Honn also had a nice all around game, coming off the bench to contribute 11 points on 3 of 4 shooting both from the field and from the line. Two of Honn's baskets were the Cardinals other two three balls, and seemed to ignite the Cards offense at the time. Kevin also had 4 boards and 3 assists in 25 minutes of action. A special contribution the the Cardinal cause was made by Brandon "Jumps" White who saw 16 minutes of PT in which he emerged as the games leading rebounder with 7, including 5 on the offensive end, several of which resulted in game changing 2nd chance points.
NCC won the battle on the boards by a 39-33 margin, again with the toughness factor figuring in.

IWU was led in scoring by Trevor Seibring with 15. I was impressed with the fact that he seems to have a nice touch on mid-range shots, beyond the close in scoring ability which you would expect. Jordan Nelson had a strong effort with 14 points off the bench fueled mainly by his 4 of 8 shooting beyond the arc. He also had 3 assists. I personally felt Nelson was IWU's best player last night. He was certainly the most dangerous. i have been critical of Mr. Nelson's past actions after 3 pointers including wildly wriggling 3 fingers, and rapid fire saluting on his way back downcourt. Last night I saw none of that type of unsportsmanlike behavior. Jordan simply went about doing what he does best, hitting a high percentage of his threes, and then getting back on defense without any of the aforementioned gyrations. This time I salute him.

I understand a new Top 25 poll comes out tomorrow. It will be interesting to see when the respective teams are placed.

[iwu70]

AO, a good summary.  Burchette was a huge problem for the Titans.  I was impressed with Erwin Henry.

Looks like Elmhurst is a legit contender too.

IWU70

[AndOne]

Millikin 77
North Park 67

Juwan Henry: 29 pts, 7 rebs, 4:2 a:to
Colin Lake: 10 pts, 4 stls

T.J. Sims: 17 pts, 7 rebs
Nick Novak: 11 pts
T.J. Griffin: 10 pts
Jacob Kueker: 10 pts

Thought NPU would get this one.

Not withstanding Mr. Sager's explanation, I also had the same opinion.
Jordan Robinson missing again. What's up with that?

[veterancciwfan]

Observations on NCC/IWU game: 1) The refs were Tony Driscoll, David King and Tom Warrick. As AndOne mentioned, the baldheaded ref was terrible. I think on whole, NCC got a better whistle but that's to be expected. 2) Good to see Jordan Nelson get 28 minutes and play like he did in February and March last year. I thought he was IWU's most efficient player (14 points, 3 assists & 1 TO) & I thought he played tough defense. 3) Is there ever a 3-second violation called today? One palming call was made on Moten I think, but no 3-second call. Seibring and particularly Burchett were guilty. When a post player gets the ball in the paint, makes 2 or 3 fakes, puts the ball  on the floor, and then does an acrobatic pivot before finally shooting, it's nearly impossible for all that movement to occur in less than 3 seconds. Maybe I don't understand the 3-second rule. 4) Rosenberg played like he did as a sophomore, namely not well or nor intelligently. 4) I was encouraged with IWU's play. Ryan Coyle, IWU's most talented post, could barely take a breath before he was called for a foul. He played only 8 minutes & took only 3 shots. The game essentially was won at the line. Both teams shot 27 FTs and NCC made 22 (81.5%) to IWU's 18 (66.7%). 2 needless IWU fouls after the disputed blocking call on IWU against Burchett turned a 4 point game to a 6 point victory margin. IWU FG % of 41.8% was well below their team FG% after the first 12 games of 47%.

[AndOne]

IWU FG % of 41.8% was well below their team FG% after the first 12 games of 47%.

IWU actually exceeded the 40.6% that NCC has allowed through the first 12 games.
Perhaps NCC just plays better overall defense than that displayed by most teams they had previously faced, thus making 47% an unrealistic expectation. 

[badgerwarhawk]

Observations on NCC/IWU game: 1) The refs were Tony Driscoll, David King and Tom Warrick. As AndOne mentioned, the baldheaded ref was terrible. I think on whole, NCC got a better whistle but that's to be expected. 2) Good to see Jordan Nelson get 28 minutes and play like he did in February and March last year. I thought he was IWU's most efficient player (14 points, 3 assists & 1 TO) & I thought he played tough defense. 3) Is there ever a 3-second violation called today? One palming call was made on Moten I think, but no 3-second call. Seibring and particularly Burchett were guilty. When a post player gets the ball in the paint, makes 2 or 3 fakes, puts the ball  on the floor, and then does an acrobatic pivot before finally shooting, it's nearly impossible for all that movement to occur in less than 3 seconds.  Maybe I don't understand the 3-second rule. 4) Rosenberg played like he did as a sophomore, namely not well or nor intelligently. 4) I was encouraged with IWU's play. Ryan Coyle, IWU's most talented post, could barely take a breath before he was called for a foul. He played only 8 minutes & took only 3 shots. The game essentially was won at the line. Both teams shot 27 FTs and NCC made 22 (81.5%) to IWU's 18 (66.7%). 2 needless IWU fouls after the disputed blocking call on IWU against Burchett turned a 4 point game to a 6 point victory margin. IWU FG % of 41.8% was well below their team FG% after the first 12 games of 47%.

Your understanding of the 3 second rule isn't complete.  When the ball is possessed by a player in the lane and in the official's judgement that player is making movement towards taking a shot the three second count is suspended.  If at the end of that movement the player does not shoot but instead passes the count is resumed.  I wouldn't argue that three second violations aren't called as often as they happen however from my understanding of what you're describing I'm not certain that it was appropriate in that particular instance. 

[AndOne]

Carthage gets destroyed at home, 73 to 42.  About as pathetic of an offensive display as I may have ever witnessed since I've followed them.  One player in double figures (11), out rebounded 40 - 24 (not surprising the amount of rebounds considering Carthage shot 34% from the field and 17% from behind the ark).

No Reese Herth today so not sure what the reason was (didn't see him on the bench either).  Over a 10 minute stretch in the second half, Augie went on a 25 to 1 run.  Augie has too much size, depth and talent for Carthage to compete.

First Bosko's message is heard by only 2 freshmen recruits who I believe are both legacies to at least some degree.
Next CC is picked for 7th in the Coaches' Poll, and Bosko makes the utterly illogical and ridiculous statement that they can't finish 7th because he has never had a team that finished that low.
Now, Reese Herth, Carthage's best player, has left the team and they lose at home by 31. What next?
Perhaps Bosko's admonishment that Carthage can't possibly finish 7th will prove true. Instead, in light of the facts that CC didn't have that much returning in the first place, that they were able to convince only 2 recruits to enroll, and that the best player has quit the team, Bosko's boys might possibly be headed for 8th, and last, rather than 7th.

[Gregory Sager]

For crying out loud, Mark, what is it with you and your constant need to ride opposing CCIW coaches like they're show ponies? First we're treated to perpetual tirades about Grey Giovanine's sideline stomping and coat-tossing, as if everyone who's ever seen an Augustana game over the past decade and a half isn't already well aware of it. And now it's dump-on-Bosko time seemingly every other day on this board for you.

On behalf of John Baines, Matt Nadelhoffer, Ron Rose, Mike Schauer, and Tom Slyder, who're all no doubt waiting patiently in your queue of pique, I'm asking you to please give it a rest, already.

[AndOne]

Show ponies huh? Well, if the saddle fits. 

And I might ask what is it with you and your need to defend Bosko? I didn't realize the two of you were such good buddies.

I thought I was just continuing the theme begun by kenoshamark. Furthermore, did I say anything that isn't true??

* Didn't Bosko attract only 2 freshman recruits?
* Didn't Bosko make an outlandish statement about why it is impossible for his team to finish 7th?
* Didn't Carthage's best player just leave the team?
* Isn't it possible that Bosko and his team finish 7th or even 8th?

Show ponies? Well, giddy-up then!

[kenoshamark]

Let me bring some clarity to the Reese Herth situation.  Along with the recap of the game, the Kenosha News reported that Herth left the team to pursue other opportunities.  Bosko stated that Herth wasn't sure he wanted to even play this year and after 10 games, he decided to move on.  Based on Bosko's comments, everything seemed amicable.  Hard to believe he'd choose to transfer at this point of the season, but then again, Carthage picked up a transfer from Wisconsin Parkside at the break. 

[veterancciwfan]

Badgerwarhawk: Thanks for edification on the 3-second call. So Burchett is legal and also very talented in the post, with creative, baffling & acrobatic  post moves. Plus he was almost perfect from the line. Probably a first team all-conference player.

[kenoshamark]

One other note on the game.   Not sure if there were any Augie fans who witnessed it, but I found it very odd and disappointing.  I was curious to see how the hand shake exchange went with Bosko and Coach G.  Not that I expected anything real unusual, but thought it might be one of those awkward exchanges.  What happened was as soon as Bosko shook Grey's hand he turned around and headed to the locker room.  Since when doesn't a coach show the courtesy to shake the hands of the other coaches and players?   He complimented the players and their system in his post game recap so the lack of sportsmanship (in my opinion) right after the game was noticeable.  I just can't believe other coaches resort to this.  The rest of the Carthage coaching staff and players went though the normal hand shake line.