MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Ralph Turner]

...

The Planner of the ASC concept for NCAA Division III needs to be praised for saving a significant number of school athletic programs in Texas and Oklahoma. ...

bluemom, thanks for the acknowledgement of the ASC.  The accolades go to the Presidents of Austin College, Hardin-Simmons, Howard Payne, McMurry, Sul Ross State and University of Dallas (the members of the old Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association) and the Commissioner Fred Jacoby in the 1994-96 timeframe.

Commissioner Jacoby had just handled the dissolution of the old Southwest Conference.  Some of the presidents, including Dr. Robert Shimp at McMurry, approached Mr. Jacoby about moving from NAIA-2 to NCAA D-III.  The conference added University of the Ozarks (AR) and Mississippi College, and the conference began.  Commissioner Jacoby and the conference leadership have added 9 schools to the conference in the last decade.  This has meant the expansion in the number of sports offered and the growth of the D3 concept in the Region.  The most dramatic increases have been in the number of new schools offering football (4 and under evalution at a 5th in the next half decade) and the women's sports.

Not every institution in this part of the country has moved to D3.  There are no D3's in Oklahoma, and Texas Wesleyan left D2 in 2001, spent an exploratory year looking at the ASC and D3, and then went to the NAIA-1.  I guess that TWU, which offers only 5 sports including Ping Pong, did not see themselves as NCAA D3 material.  University of Dallas went independent in 2001.  (Awaiting a phone call from the SCAC is the major speculation on UDallas.)  Austin College joins the SCAC next fall.

[Hoosier Titan]

Against Virginia Wesleyan, IWU's 3/4/5 players scored 72 of IWU's 79 total, going 32-47 (.680).  The guards (Dauksas, Fisher, Arnold) had just 7 points and went 3-11 (.273) from the field.  Based on what we knew about the Marlins coming in, it wasn't a big surprise that IWU's big guys had a field day while the guards got bottled up, but if a guard just makes one more 3-pointer in the game, IWU plays in the national title game.  Adam Dauksas and Matt Arnold each had a great look in final minutes -- I think Adam's would have made it a 4-point Titan lead and Matt's 5.  They were the kind of shots they'd both been knocking down in huge pressure situations in the tournament leading up to to Salem.   The shots just didn't go in and that's the difference between the national championship game and the consolation game.

http://www.iwu.edu/~iwunews/sports/mbb2006/ncaa5.htm

IWU wouldn't have been in Salem without the clutch performances by Dauksas and Arnold in the tournament though.  Dauksas - 31 @ Whitewater, 26 pts/6 reb/13 assists vs Puget Sound.  Arnold - 10 vs Lawrence, 19 vs Puget Sound. 

It should also be noted that Jason Fisher went 5/6 (4/5 on threes) and hit 2 clutch free throws in the last minute of the consolation game Saturday afternoon.  Without that performance, IWU would have taken fourth, not third.

[Hoosier Titan]

A funny story from Salem:
We stayed at the Comfort Suites, where we saw fans of all four teams in the breakfast room.  As we were riding down in the elevator on Saturday, a family wearing Wittenberg shirts got on.  We said hello, and the father said, "You guys have a great team."  "Thanks," we said, "so do you."  He said, "Please take this as a compliment:  we were not looking forward to playing you AT ALL, especially that Jones guy."  "Which one?" we said.  His mouth dropped.  "There are TWO?"

Ah, twins.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

A funny story from Salem:
We stayed at the Comfort Suites, where we saw fans of all four teams in the breakfast room.  As we were riding down in the elevator on Saturday, a family wearing Wittenberg shirts got on.  We said hello, and the father said, "You guys have a great team."  "Thanks," we said, "so do you."  He said, "Please take this as a compliment:  we were not looking forward to playing you AT ALL, especially that Jones guy."  "Which one?" we said.  His mouth dropped.  "There are TWO?"

That's classic!

[TitanFan12]

I would just like to congrat. IWU on a great season this year and to all the other teams in the CCIW who had to face some very difficult opponents!

GO TITANS!

[Warren Thompson]

Commissioner Jacoby ...  handled the dissolution of the old Southwest Conference. 

Ralph:

For what it's worth, I still miss the old Southwest Conference (excepting, perhaps, Arkansas  ). It was the conference when I was in my salad years.

[iwumichigander]

Final Poll is out

D3hoops.com Top 25 posted.
http://www.d3hoops.com/top25/

Congratulations to Augustana, Illinois Wesleyan and North Central.  A great year in the CCIW.

[Knightstalker]

Commissioner Jacoby ...  handled the dissolution of the old Southwest Conference. 

Ralph:

For what it's worth, I still miss the old Southwest Conference (excepting, perhaps, Arkansas  ). It was the conference when I was in my salad years.

Gotta love those leather helmets and the single wing.  

[Ralph Turner]

Some older Wisconsin State University Conference fans will remember Fred Jacoby as well.

[Warren Thompson]

Commissioner Jacoby ...  handled the dissolution of the old Southwest Conference. 

Ralph:

For what it's worth, I still miss the old Southwest Conference (excepting, perhaps, Arkansas  ). It was the conference when I was in my salad years.

Gotta love those leather helmets and the single wing.   

Hey, 'Stalker: it wasn't all "leather helmets and the single wing."

In the late 1940s Texas was using the full-house T-formation (Bobby Layne at QB), though in 1946/47 they still may have had white leather helmets.

And TCU (coached by "Dutch" Meyer) came out in a spread formation, with Lindy Berry as the premier back. SMU, at the time, featured a kind of single-wing (in the late 1940s and early 50s the Mustangs had Doak Walker, Kyle Rote, and Pat Knight).

But yes ... in sum, long live leather helmets, full-sleeved jerseys, and the single-wing, especially when the latter featured an unbalanced line and the bucklateral series.

[Knightstalker]

I don't go that far back, but I used to love watching SWC games.  They were usually on CBS back then.  I remember those great Texas teams of the mid to late seventies.  Texas A&M was good them too.  Great games.

[Jim Matson]

The updated Sears Cup (old name) standings for mid-winter are out.  Here are the CCIW results:

18. North Central - 238 points
21. Wheaton - 231 points
33. Augustana - 190 points
51. Illinois Wesleyan - 150 points
88. Millikin - 91 points

These results should change based on the basketball results from Augie, Wesleyan and Wheaton, and on the swimming results from Wheaton. 

As usual, CNJ, Williams, Calvin and countless WIAC teams head the list.

[Greek Tragedy]

A funny story from Salem:
We stayed at the Comfort Suites, where we saw fans of all four teams in the breakfast room.  As we were riding down in the elevator on Saturday, a family wearing Wittenberg shirts got on.  We said hello, and the father said, "You guys have a great team."  "Thanks," we said, "so do you."  He said, "Please take this as a compliment:  we were not looking forward to playing you AT ALL, especially that Jones guy."  "Which one?" we said.  His mouth dropped.  "There are TWO?"

Ah, twins.

He probably didn't notice because one or the other most likely fouled out in 10 minutes! lol. 

[Hoosier Titan]

A funny story from Salem:
We stayed at the Comfort Suites, where we saw fans of all four teams in the breakfast room.  As we were riding down in the elevator on Saturday, a family wearing Wittenberg shirts got on.  We said hello, and the father said, "You guys have a great team."  "Thanks," we said, "so do you."  He said, "Please take this as a compliment:  we were not looking forward to playing you AT ALL, especially that Jones guy."  "Which one?" we said.  His mouth dropped.  "There are TWO?"

Ah, twins.

He probably didn't notice because one or the other most likely fouled out in 10 minutes! lol. 

What he said was "That guy never seemed to get tired"--although Chris did foul out in 10 minutes.  They were spread out over most of the game, though.

[Titan Q]

2006 was the 9th year D3hoops.com has named an All-American team.  IWU has had a player on one of the teams 8 of the 9 seasons.

1998: Brent Niebrugge (3rd Team)
1999: Korey Coon (2nd)
2000: Korey Coon (1st)
2001: Luke Kasten (Honorable Mention)
2002: n/a
2003: Luke Kasten (3rd)
2004: Keelan Amelianovich (2nd)
2005: Adam Dauksas (1st), Amelianovich (2nd)
2006: Amelianovich (1st), Dauksas (1st)

If you go back before D3hoops.com, IWU had All-Americans in 1997 (Bryan Crabtree), 1996 (Chris Simich), and 1995 (Simich) as well.

As Dennie Bridges used to always say, "I try to get off the bus with the best players."  Bridges and now Scott Trost have done an amazing job in making that a reality most nights.