MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

Late nite · February 25, 2007, 12:10:55 PM

Couldn't agree with you more in your evaluation of Augie---They don't have a stand-out player averaging 20 a game---They don't have a flashy offense that scores 80-90 points a game---They have a wildman for a coach on the sidelines (who really understands the strengths and weaknesses of his players)---But, they continue to execute at the end of close games (some have referred to that as luck) and have all their role players contribute in their own special ways to help in the overall success---You need to look no further than the leadership of the 5 seniors---Wessels, Rose, Brusveeen, Caricato and Swetalla---Not all starters, but all valuable contributors of a championship team---IMO, the CCIW had 5 teams that would have been more than respectable representatives of the league---Hopefully, the Jays will get a reprieve and be able to represent the league and show everyone the caliber of play in the CCIW---Coaches Scherrer and Baines have done an outstanding job this season---Go Jays!!

Quote from: armywife on February 25, 2007, 09:17:16 AM
Congratulations to all of the CCIW teams, and to NC, Elmhurst, Wheaton and Augie for making the tournament. Congratulations to Augustana for winning the conference and for winning the tournament. That is a huge accomplishment in the CCIW, it's just so competitive, with all of the teams playing well. I noticed that Augustana played 10 players for at least 10 minutes last night, and played 12 players all together. 10 players scored. That is just a huge team effort. Especially without 1 big stand out player like a Zach Freeman.

I hope that Elmhurst can receive a pool C bid for the NCAA tournament. I know that Augustana will represent the CCIW well.

79jaybird · February 25, 2007, 12:57:34 PM

Congratulations to Augustana on winning the CCIW Tournament. Those that were looking for updates last night, I was not at my CPU and couldn't keep up with the game. I was dragged into my fundraiser outing at the Allstate Arena to watch the Wolves lose 2-0. Then I go back to my car and had to sift through the ice storm that pelted us and made driving atrocious! Then later, find out my alma mater lost 78-70. Great night!

Until the brackets are finalized I am not giving up the faith that Elmhurst will get a bid, even if it means traveling a longer distance ala NC in Minnesota last year.

I know Greg, Ralph, April, and some of the others are doing their configurations and calculations. When I read this, my initial feeling is when did D-3 Athletics become a Math Major? Or the fate of the player's hustle, tears, beads of sweat, etc. be determined by a CPU, etc. Sad to see that the CPU and various formulas are deciding all of this. I never liked CPU's and still don't really care for them. I know enough about CPU's to do online broadcasts, email, and write.. .that's about it!

The point here is that Augie and EC are 2 great ball clubs and it would be a shame, slap in the face, etc. if only Augie is continuing their season. 22-4 and 21-6 are 2 standout records that most teams would die to have at the beginning of the season.

Somebody mentioned the Simpson loss on opening day. It's opening day, and those of you who (like me) have played NCAA Athletics know that you are never sharp and gelled on opening day. I don't think you can fault EC for the opening day loss in IA. The Millikin game yes- that's a game that EC had and let slip away.

Well, I will keep praying and hoping that my beloved Jays can sneak into the tournament. We might be on life support, but we aren't "euthanized" yet.

79jaybird · February 25, 2007, 01:03:50 PM

On the Elmhurst Basketball Page, Coach Scherrer comments that Elmhurst has tried to schedule more in region games and as he puts it, "some schools don't want to schedule us. I hope the committee looks at our entire body of work..."
Does anybody know why perhaps, Regional schools are reluctant to schedule games with Elmhurst? Is there some "bad karma" or "bad blood" with Elmhurst?

augiefan · February 25, 2007, 01:44:17 PM

There is no question Augie's depth did in a lot of opponents down the stretch this year. A lot of close games in the final seconds, and Augie won all of them except the meaningless regular season final against NCC. Like him or not Coach G has put together a great program at Augie, which offers significant playing time to anyone who commits to the program not just the superstars of D III. A great season so far with more to come.

The CCIW this year may not have had a dominant tournament team like IWU from last year, but if anything the league was tougher overall than last year. NPU was markedly improved as were most of the other teams. IWU was really down by their standards, but no road game this year was a gimmee.

Any selection process that excludes the CCIW's second best team this year from the tournament needs a complete overhaul. Elmhurst is clearly a Sweet Sixteen calibre team and probably a good candidate for the Elite 8. If the selection process is broken, fix it asap.

Mr. Ypsi · February 25, 2007, 02:16:49 PM

79j,

If Elmhurst had ANY chance at all (which I hoped for, but doubted), the losses by Amherst and WPI today have killed them. That's another two C slots unexpectedly gobbled up.

Elmhurst_Mom · February 25, 2007, 02:35:59 PM

Jaybird....i don't really understand all the mathematics that go into the equations that allow a team to get in or not get into the tourney---frankly i hate that system....you come off of a season like the Jays and I'm stunned that you can't make it in...but i don't believe it's bad blood that teams didn't want to play them----just like it cost us points in playing out of region games, i'm guessing that perhaps it would cost them too many points and hurt "their" chances of getting in if they lost to elmhurst. Titan Q or Sager would be a good one to ask.

What i was wondering is if they take the top 18 team in Pool C how many at large bids are there and who and what determines those??

79jaybird · February 25, 2007, 02:47:08 PM

Mr Ypsi, I think you might be right as the Pool C's are dwindling by the hour.
Elmhurst Mom, Greg, Mr. Ypsi, Pat, are better explainers of the system than I.

Mr. Ypsi · February 25, 2007, 03:02:30 PM

Elmhurst Mom,

The FAQ on the front page presents the tournament selection process pretty clearly. Briefly, Pool A are the automatic qualifiers from conferences, Pool B (of whom there are 4 this year) are at large selections of teams not in pool A conferences, and Pool C (of whom there are 18 this year) are at large bids in general. There are five primary criteria for selection into pools B and C, but just QOWI and in-region winning percentage will give a pretty good approximation of who will make it. Elmhurst had too low a QOWI (the mis-named quality of wins index - a certain number of points awarded for wins on the road to teams over .667 on down to losses at home to teams under .333) and in-region winning % to be a viable pool C candidate (especially now that pool C bids are being unexpected gobbled up by presumed Pool A teams getting upset - e.g., Virginia Wesleyan, Amherst, and WPI, among others).

79jaybird · February 25, 2007, 03:53:13 PM

AT 3:00 CST, Mr. Ypsi how many pool C's are left for at-large hopefuls? I think Greg outlined 12 gobbled up, plus 2 more already this morning/early afternoon, do you see only 4 more bids available?

Elmhurst_Mom · February 25, 2007, 04:11:54 PM

OK, so Mr. Ypsi....thank you, you explained it perfectly---i totally get it now....but what still doesn't make sense to me then is why a team would refuse to play us....wouldn't it behoove all teams to play at their "level" or better, (plus staying in region, right?) so that if you pulled off a victory it would mean more points??? Isn't that worth the risk to any team, keeping in mind that you have to minimize your losses (especially the ones with the less than .333)? And what is a coach supposed to do if he's scrambling to get good games lined up----is it that the other teams are too chicken and afraid of what a potential loss could cost them???

Mr. Ypsi · February 25, 2007, 04:20:25 PM

79j,

There is a projected field by d3hoops.com on the front page. I wouldn't presume to try to outguess them (though I'm not so sure about BOTH Oshkosh and LaCrosse getting in - perhaps Guilford in one of those spots).

Elmhurst Mom,

I'm in no position to try to analyze that one, though coaches or ADs are naturally going to be wary of scheduling in-region games they might well lose, so that MAY be as good an explanation as any.

Elmhurst_Mom · February 25, 2007, 04:30:42 PM

hmmmm

thanks for being patient with my questions...i'm sure you've answered these a billion times before. i appreciate it.

Greek Tragedy · February 25, 2007, 05:06:41 PM

As an "All-American", Mr. Ypsi is required by d3hoops law to try to answer ANY questions that he feels he can answer.

Not to insult anyone on any board, but many posters (usually the newer ones or lurkers) are unaware of the many informational tools that are available on this site. Most posters, IMO, use this site to hop right to the "posting up" section and don't realize many of the answers to their questions are just a few clicks away! Hope no offense is taken.

armywife · February 25, 2007, 05:23:11 PM

The front page of d3 hoops says it all I guess. We can still hope that the selection committee sees it a little differently and Elmhurst can make it in. I noticed that my daughter's future school, The University of Mary Hardin Baylor is projected as a pool C bid. I believe this is the first successful year for them in a long time, so Congrats to them.

It looks to me that Augie, as a projected #1 seed in the midwest region would get a first round bye, am I reading that right? I will be interesting to see how many games are played in Rock Island.

Greek Tragedy · February 25, 2007, 05:31:23 PM

armywife,

Augie will probably get a first round bye. So, two teams, say for example, Carroll College and Chicago would play on Thursday and the winner of that would head to Augie on Saturday. If they win that one, Augie could host a four-team sectional the following weekend.

South Region
1. (10) Mississippi College 25-2 23-1 (Won ASC AQ)
2. (24) Va. Wesleyan 23-4 22-4 (LOST to Hampden-Sydney in ODAC Semis)
3. (51) Guilford 21-4 20-4 (LOST to Bridgewater (Va) in ODAC Quarters)
4. (38) DePauw 22-5 19-4 (LOST to Trinity (TX) in SCAC Semis)
5. (43) Mary Hardin-Baylor 22-5 22-5 (LOST to Hardin-Simmons in ASC Semis;a 5-pt QOWI loss)
6. (33) Maryville (Tenn.) 21-6 21-3 (defeated LaGrange in GSAC Final)-POOL B
7. (23) Centre 23-4 17-4 (Won SCAC AQ)
8. (54) McMurry 20-7 19-5 (LOST to Mississippi College in ASC Semis)

As the NCAA process works, Mississippi College gets the Pool A bid. Many don't think Guilford will get a bid because of a weak QOWI, and will most likely drop below DePauw and MHB. For MHB to get a Pool C bid, Virginia Wesleyan AND DePauw would need to be selected for Pool C bids even before MHB gets to the "table". But, apparently Pat and Co. think they still have a shot.