MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Titan32]

From one IWU grad to another, I'm feelin' your pain IWUmolly.  I hope you get to the game tomorrow.  Wish I could help you out...

[augie_superfan]

No doubt in my mind IWU is the favorite tomorrow, but everybody should remember, PS had a bye in the first round of this tournament for a reason.

First off, congrats to IWU on the win tonight...way to prove the CCIW to be the best conference in the MW, if not the nation.

Titan32, the only reason UPS had a bye was b/c the west coast was too weak to have more than 3 teams.  Please...don't set yourself up for an excuse if IWU loses tomorrow.  IWU is the heavy favorite and the UPS bye has nothing to do with it.  I believe that IWU will win that one tomorrow and I hope they do to keep the CCIW going, but UPS having a bye has nothing to do with the game.  The bye does not say anything about the comparative strenghts of these 2 teams.

[iwu70]

Really hope more Titan fans make the trip up to Appleton now for the Sectional, Elite 8 Final.  Should be no problem with tickets, really making it an IWU home game in the north country.  Can't take UPS lightly, especially after such a tough war with Lawrence.  Congrats to Lawrence on a special season. They certainly proved they can play with the best of the CCIW any time.

Go Titans, another step now toward Salem.

[titan2000]

See this picture:

http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060311/APC0201/603110561/-1/APCsports

Bradley was called for traveling--any questions ?

[dansand]

Congratulations to all four of the teams in the Lawrence sectional. Painful, disappointing ends to great seasons for both the Viking teams and terrific wins for the Loggers and Titans.

My take on the Augie-UPS game is that while Pat and Q really emphasized the number of turnovers they had, that didn't hurt them nearly as much as what they didn't do when they did hang on to the ball. They shot .419 against a team that had allowed .530 on the year and inside the arc they shot .488 while UPS had allowed .576 for the season. I think that's an indication that they didn't attacked the hoop hard enough after breaking the Logger pressure. Another indication would be that Dain Swetalla only had five field goal attempts for the game. Hats of to Puget Sound, who apparently is playing much better half court defense than they did earlier in the year and much better than many people, myself included, had expected them to. It sounded like they really dictated tempo the entire game.

Although tonight's outcome was disappointing, congrats to the Vikings and Coach G on a great season and seniors Rick Harrigan and Jay McAdams-Thornton on great careers. They'll be missed. With everyone that returns, I think they'll have a chance to be back in the same position next year and hopefully Drew Wessels will get another chance to play in an NCAA tournament.

Should be a very interesting game tonight. The Titans are playing awfully well, but according to several sources the Loggers are a much better team than when they met in December. My gut feeling is that Wesleyan will just have too many weapons for UPS. Finally, congratulations to Lawrence on an amazing season.

[maddog]

Loggerville, I meant no disrespect to UPS last night, I was just expressing confidence in the Titans. It's going to be another great d3 basketball game tonight with two excellent teams. The Titans will have to play very well to earn the win.

[und63]

Up and at'em this morning and cannot believe the usual posters like TitanQ, etc. have not turned in their impressions.  Can't find a complete box score either on LU vs. IWU to get a more complete picture of TO, A........
Not very happy to pay $10 for a ticket and have to stand on the bleacher aisle, if they sold 1,100 seats there should have been a seat for all.  How did they ever pack the place with attendance figures of 1,380?  What a farce!  D3 should wake up to the day of small schools having very good teams that deserve to host but do not have the facilities.  Being ranked #1 and having a schedule record that deserves a #1 are 2 completely different things.  We'll now be able to see the results that reflect "the should have been" hosting merit and ability.
IMHO standing in line while the inadequate gym clears, with a $10 ticket for an invisible seat in hand, certainly detracts from the importance of this round of the tournament.  It makes a good story, but sorry I am not laughing!  The reults show IWU players and fans will come through for their school.  And Pat, what's wrong with IWU fans storming the floor?  Is it not expected of us?

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

I think the game turned on Lawrence coming back to earth after shooting 72% in the first half.

Also, Lawrence had a schedule worthy of #1; and this is a New England guy hear, so I know a cake schedule when I see one.  It's hard for me to take a criticism like that seriously when they just barely lost to the most talented d3 team we've seen in a while.

Godd show and Go IWU tonight.  Actually, I'm really torn.  I want to see these IWU guys get their title, but at the same time, UPS in the final four would really help my bracket back into contention.  Oh well.  Let's shoot for overtime.

[Titan Q]

Here are the newspaper articles on the IWU/LU game...

http://www.pantagraph.com/articles/2006/03/11/sports/doc44126f5e59c3a717251801.txt

http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060311/APC0201/603110561/1892/APCsports

http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060311/APC0201/603110564/1892/APCsports


It was really an impressive comeback by the Titans, especially considering how loud and hostile Alexander Gymnasium was.  Down 63-53 with about 8:00 to play, IWU went on big run, capped by Matt Arnold's 3 to give the Titans a 64-63 lead with 4:01 to play (the first IWU lead since 2-0).  As IWU applied the heat, Lawrence seemed caught back on its heels, unable to respond.

I expected Lawrence to be really good, but was not prepared for what I saw in the 1st half.  The Vikings shot 73% in the opening period, including 9-13 from 3-pt range!  LU dominated the 1st, holding leads of up to 15 points.  And that place was about as loud as any D3 venue I can remember.  I give the Titans a ton of credit for hanging in there under the circumstances...they've definitely been there before, which helped.

IWU's size and athleticism helped turn things around in the 2nd.  Zach Freeman had 15 points and 9 rebounds in the 2nd half.  He finished with 21 & 12.  The Vikings really had to expend a ton of energy trying to defend Freeman, which opened the floor up for the Titans.  The Titan defense was great in the 2nd, holding LU to 33% from the field, after that 73% in the 1st.

Lawrence is an outstanding basketball team.  Five years ago today, IWU knocked off #1-ranked Chicago on their floor to get to Salem...last night's win over a #1 was probably even more impressive.  Lawrence was amazing.

Matt Arnold summed it up pretty simply on our postgame show last night.  He very sincerely told us, "We just didn't want to be done playing basketball."

[Titan Q]

Illinois Wesleyan really has some impressive road wins in the tournament in the last 5 years...

2001 - @ #1 Chicago
2003 - @ #2 Wash U
2004 - @ #2 Hanover
2006 - @ #1 Lawrence

[Titan Q]

Puget Sound looked very good last night, but I'm not sure if that was due to how poorly Augustana executed, or because UPS is somehow a different team than the one I saw in late December.  Augustana did not attack the basket once they got the ball over halfcourt.  Against UPS, you are doing them a huge favor if you get across the timeline and then try to set up your offense...the Loggers recover quickly and play great halfcourt defense.  You have to attack the hoop, make them commit to stopping the drive, then beat them with the pass (to a wide open player for a 3 or a layup).  Augie just never did this.  A lot of the reason being they didn't have their playmaker, Drew Wessels, but there were still things the Vikings should have done better vs the UPS defense, even without Wessels.

I think IWU matches up very well vs Puget Sound, with All-American point-guard Adam Dauksas the #1 reason.  The Loggers are a talented team that plays the best defense you will ever see (they had people in that place buzzing about it last night), but the Titans are the favorite this evening.

[Titan Q]

Congratulations to Grey Giovanine and the Augustana Vikings on a wonderful season.  It wasn't the finish they wanted, but winning the 2006 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin title is something this group will always have.

[Loggerville]

Loggerville, I meant no disrespect to UPS last night, I was just expressing confidence in the Titans. It's going to be another great d3 basketball game tonight with two excellent teams. The Titans will have to play very well to earn the win.

None taken Maddog...none at all.  This is a great board with knowledgeable fans of good quality basketball; just defending my Loggers!  Am excited to see these two programs match-up again after the one in Calif.

[Loggerville]

The Loggers are a talented team that plays the best defense you will ever see (they had people in that place buzzing about it last night), but the Titans are the favorite this evening.

TQ:  Am interested to hear more on what you heard last night.  Obviously location limits others in the country getting a chance to see Logger bball, but the same is true for our fans as we try to assess how the Loggers may compare to some of the other quality teams in the country.  Having become accustom to seeing the defensive intensity over the last three-four years, NWC fans are a little over it so to speak as just run of the mill.  Would really appreciate any comments on how you thought UPS looked last night compared to some of the other quality teams you have seen recently.  There is some talk in Tacoma as to whether this team is in-fact the most talented of the past three seasons or just finally didn't play UWSP   Appreciate your insights.  Agree wholeheartedly that the Titans are the favorite - a very talented and experienced program for sure.

[Pat Coleman]

Not very happy to pay $10 for a ticket and have to stand on the bleacher aisle, if they sold 1,100 seats there should have been a seat for all.  How did they ever pack the place with attendance figures of 1,380?  What a farce!  D3 should wake up to the day of small schools having very good teams that deserve to host but do not have the facilities. 

I am pretty sure Division III is made up of a lot of small schools and they will continue to be allowed to host.

I  believe the 1,380 were before the fire marshal stepped in.