MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[thunderstruck88]

It appears Wheaton's defense is much better than it was last year. I am not sure how much firepower they have faced though. I would think Grinnell's system will be a good test for their defensive prowess. I am more concerned with how wheaton will find points against the defenses they will face beginning next week.  I don't think they have faced a defensive team like they will face vs IWU and Augie over the next 2 weeks. That will be the key to the conference slate I would think.

Usee, I think you're right about this. Wheaton is still relatively untested against higher-caliber defenses and offensive threats. Wheaton does have good balance and an excellent defense, but they are a bit streaky offensively and have been sluggish in down-tempo games when they can't create as many fast-break opportunities or get to the paint.

Wheaton has shown they have what it takes for a great season, but the conference schedule will show if they deserve a spot at the top of D3.

[AndOne]

All I could think about during tonight's drubbing in Valparaiso was: Where in the world is Nick Williams? He was not on the bench at all, in street clothes or in uniform. Given the already-ominous backlog of key NPU players who have disappeared from the lineup and not yet reappeared, the absence of Williams set off alarm bells for all the North Park faithful.

All in all, the night went pretty much according to what I had expected in terms of how the game was played and the final outcome. But the absence of Nick Williams hung like a pall over the arena for everyone rooting for the royal blue and gold -- just as do the ongoing absences of Stephano Jones, Antonio Stevens, Chris Brown, and the should-be-healed-by-now Kendall Greer.

It seems as though there's more question marks hanging over the NPU program right now than anyone can count.

As its currently semester break for most if not all schools, could academic ineligibility be the reason any of the aforementioned players were absent tonight? Or perhaps its the old "unspecified violation of team rules?"

[sac]

Looks like a solid team. Wheaton better be ready to play

Taylor is 7-10 on the season now, they lost to Purdue-Calumet (2-10).  Solid ? ? ?

Go ahead and make whatever you want out of that comment. If you look at Taylor's stats, they are solid; not great, not terrble.

Maybe I'm on my own personal crusade against hyperbole, lord knows I'm as guilty as anyone else at overstating opponents strengths sometimes. 

I guess I have a different standard for 'solid'.  I immediately become suspicious of a teams credentials and stats when they are 7-10 and have 2 wins by 50+ points over  the notoriously bad Ohio State-Marion.   A team so bad they don't even post the final scores on their website, just 'w's and 'l's.

http://www.marion.ohio-state.edu/scarletwave/mbball/mbballschedule.html

Throw in the loss to Purdue-Calumet, and I think you might see why I have trouble with anyone calling Taylor 'solid'.

[Viking Blue]

BEST one - two punch players in the CCIW at this point:

Elmhurst: Ruch, Burk
North Central: Rogers, Drennan
Wheaton: Wiele, Raymond
NPU: Williams, Russell
IWU: Chamernik, Johnson
Carthage: Djurickovic, Djurcikovic - 
Augustana: Wessels, Bertrand
Milikan: Ogunleye, Burton

Perimeter defense will be the difference in who wins this conference.
Everyone can score points but it will be defense that makes the difference   

[Viking Blue]

My bad....I was going to say...can we just let by-gones be by-gones, and give "Our House" a break?  It IS the new year! Let's start fresh....

[Viking Blue]

This is very disappointing for the Vikings.  I would hate to think the worst, but would not be surprised if we don't see Mr. Williams again....that's what type of academic year it has been thus far for North Park.

I think I am going to have to withhold comment until someone can give some information on the following missing North Parkers:

Stephano Jones

Nick Williams

Get ahold of Dan G., head of North Park security.  Maybe he can shed some light.  I have heard that the Lina Sandell statue has been known to do terrible things to NP athletes. 

PLEASE, PLEASE.....someone shed some light on what in the world is going on here!

[Titan Q]

CCIW OVERALL:    66-15 (.816)

CCIW team heavy favorite
1 Wheaton @ Grinnell, 1/3
2 Illinois Wesleyan vs Illinois College, 1/3
3 Carthage vs Trinity International, 1/5
4 Millikin @ Knox, 1/19 - postponed from 12/18

CCIW team favorite
1 Elmhurst @ Anderson, 1/3
2 Millikin vs York (NY), 1/3 (neutral)

CCIW team underdog
1 Millikin @ Christopher Newport, 1/4


4-0 in the first group, 0-1 in the last, and 1-1 in the middle would be 71-17 (.807).

[OurHouse]

My bad....I was going to say...can we just let by-gones be by-gones, and give "Our House" a break?  It IS the new year! Let's start fresh....

Thanks Viking - it is NOT the New Year just yet - I heard Williams did not make the grade     
Delp replaces Wessels for Augie.
Raymond tops the entire list!

[markerickson]

NP's diminished roster is a symptom of the Brenegan era:  too few players don a jersey for four years.

[Dennis_Prikkel]

NP's diminished roster is a symptom of the Brenegan era:  too few players don a jersey for four years.

Amen, Amen

dgp

contenders contend in this league because they put quality juniors and seniors on the floor.  It's tough to contend if you don't do that in a quality league.

[Titan Q]

A look at the top offensive starters in the league by position, through 12/30.  If I have slotted someone in the wrong spot, let me know.

(Sorted by points per game.)

Point-guard (1)
1. Steve Djurickovic, 6-3 (Carthage, So.) - 30.9 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 5.7 apg, 1.9 A:TO
2. Kent Raymond, 6-3 (Wheaton, Sr.) - 22.4 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 3.9 apg, 2.1 A:TO
3. Roshawn Russell, 5-10 (North Park, Fr.) - 14.8 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 3.9 apg, 2.0 A:TO
4. Travis Rosenkranz, 6-0 (IWU, So.) - 11.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 4.5 apg, 1.6 A:TO
5. Matt Pelton, 6-2 (Augustana, Jr.) - 7.2 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.7 A:TO
6. Dustin Bainter, 6-2 (Elmhurst, Jr.) - 6.9 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.0 apg, 0.7 A:TO
7. Dean Prince, 6-0 (North Central, Sr. ) - 3.7 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 4.3 apg, 2.3 A:TO
8. Mark Patrick, 6-0 (Millikin, Sr.) - 5.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 1.9 apg, 1.9 A:TO

Shooting-guard (2)
1. Reid Barringer, 6-0 (North Central, Jr.) - 17.9 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.1 apg, 39-95 3-pt (.411)
2. Ben Panner, 6-3 (Wheaton, Jr.) - 13.3 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.4 apg, 13-37 3-pt (.351)
3. Sean Johnson, 6-1 (IWU, So.) - 13.2 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 2.6 apg, 23-54 3-pt (.426)
4. Clayton Cahill, 6-0 (North Park, So.) - 12.8 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 2.1 apg, 17-37 3-pt (.459)
5. Corey Mitchell, 6-0 (Millikin, Jr.) - 9.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1-2 3-pt (.500)
6. Jordan Delp, 6-0 (Augustana, Sr.) - 9.1 ppg, 1.1 rpg, 2.2 apg, 16-38 3-pt (.421)
7. Zack Boyd, 6-2 (Elmhurst, Fr.) - 7.7 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 0.6 apg, 2-12 3-pt (.167)
8. Cody Hilton, 5-11 (Carthage, Jr.) - 4.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 0.8 apg, 12-39 3-pt (.308)

Wing/Small Forward (3)
1. Ryan Burks, 6-4 (Elmhurst, Sr.) - 17.1 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 29-65 3-pt (.446)
2. Sean Fendley, 6-1 (Carthage, Jr.) - 16.1 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 28-67 3-pt (.418)
3. Tunde Ogunleye, 6-2 (Millikin, Sr.) - 14.9 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 14-47 3-pt (.298)
4. Mitch Raridon, 6-3 (North Central, Sr.) - 9.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 15-45 3-pt (.333)
5. Alex Washington, 6-1 (Augustana, Sr.) - 9.2 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 38-76 FG (.500)
6. John Koschnitzky, 6-6 (IWU, Fr.) - 8.8 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 31-69 FG (.449)
7. Tim McCrary, 6-6 (Wheaton, Fr.) - 7.5 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 26-46 FG (.565)
8. Ryan Beigie, 6-2 (North Park, Fr.) - 6.8 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 22-40 FG (.550)

Power Forward (4)
1. Nick Williams, 6-5 (North Park, Jr.) - 16.9 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 60-124 FG (.484)
2. Doug Sexauer, 6-7 (IWU, So.) - 12.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 51-94 FG (.543)
3. Justin Bertrand, 6-6 (Augustana, Sr.) - 11.2 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 56-94 FG (.596)
4. Robert Strzemp, 6-4 (Elmhurst, Sr.) - 11.0 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 44-77 FG (.571)
5. Robert Burton, 6-4 (Millikin, Jr.) - 10.0 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 32-58 FG (.552)
6. David Twyman, 6-3 (North Central, Jr.) - 6.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 31-65 FG (.477)
7. Jake Carwell, 6-7 (Wheaton, Jr.) - 6.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 25-55 FG (.455)
8. Adam Tolo, 6-6 (Carthage, Jr.) - 5.5 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 21-55 FG (.387)

Forward/Center (5)
1. Andy Wiele, 6-8 (Wheaton, Sr.) - 19.0 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 56-85 FG (.659)
2. Brent Ruch, 6-9 (Elmhurst, Sr.) - 18.1 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 68-118 FG (.576)
3. Chris Drennan, 6-5 (North Central, Sr.) - 16.3 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 71-112 FG (.634)
4. Chandlor Collins, 6-7 (Augustana, Sr.) - 10.1 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 43-80 FG (.538)
5. Brett Chamernik, 6-5 (IWU, Sr.) - 9.4 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 29-51 FG (.569)
6. Joscar Demby, 6-7 (Millikin, Jr.) - 6.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 20-36 FG (.556)
7. Richard Williams, 6-6 (Carthage, Jr.) - 3.6 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 13-22 FG (.591)
8. Mike Ventura, 6-7 (North Park, Sr.) - 2.8 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 11-23 FG (.478)

[Viking Blue]

Not at liberty to discuss details, but suffice it to say....North Park's in trouble.  Big time.  That's too bad.

[Gregory Sager]

PLEASE, PLEASE.....someone shed some light on what in the world is going on here!

We can all take our chill pills, VB. I spoke with the NPU coaches this morning, and the word is that Nick Williams should be back in uniform on Saturday night in Rock Island. Am I 100% sure he'll be in the lineup? No. Then again, I'm not sure that the New Madrid fault won't shift again and knock down the Carver Center before Saturday night. As Ben Franklin said, in this world nothing is certain except death and taxes.

I heard Williams did not make the grade    

OurHouse, please accept my congratulations upon your maintaining a level of credibility on par with that of our esteemed governor.

In other news related to NPU players who didn't suit up last night, Kendall Greer suffered a setback. He was expected to be cleared by the orthopedist to start practicing after the Christmas hiatus, but the doctor pushed the date back to January 7 for precautionary reasons. That means that Greer, who is expected to step in and start at the small forward spot once he's up to speed, will miss the Augie and North Central games.

Stephano Jones

He's out for non-academic reasons. That's all I can say.

NP's diminished roster is a symptom of the Brenegan era:  too few players don a jersey for four years.

NPU is having retention problems, no doubt about it. Three players from last year's team declined to return this season (five, if you include mid-season 2007-08 departees Alsing and Woodside), and two of them (along with Alsing and Woodside) came into NPU as freshmen. NPU also just lost one of its new 2008-09 transfers, Lewis Wilson (whose playing time had completely disappeared in recent games, anyway). However, NPU has never had a high rate of four-year players under any coach since I've been around, in large part because it's a transfer-heavy school. Every North Park team over the years that's made the D3 tourney has had a transfer in the starting lineup, and six of them featured two transfers in the starting lineup (plus, a lot of the key reserves in both good years and bad have been transfers as well). Of the three seniors on last year's team -- two of whom graduated last May and the other of whom was already a grad student in the MBA program, I might add -- two of them (Gordon and Whitaker) were former transfers. Add the transfer thing to the high attrition rate that's fairly characteristic of D3 as a whole, and the situation looks a lot less alarming.

Let's not get carried away, Mark. Yeah, NPU only has one four-year senior on this year's team, and only had one last year as well. But do you know how many four-year seniors Millikin has this year? Two. Last year Millikin had one. Know how many four-year seniors Illinois Wesleyan has? Two (and only one three-year junior). Know how many four-year seniors Carthage has? Two. Wheaton's got four this year, but it only had one last year. As I said, I wish that NPU didn't have so many players drop by the wayside, although attrition is part of the normal process of D3 men's basketball -- almost every coach out there over-recruits because he assumes that he's going to have many of his incoming freshmen quit the team or transfer out over the course of the next four years. I'm just saying that there's more to examining the health of the program than counting up the number of four-year seniors.

I'm more concerned with the NPU program's academic situation. It bothers me greatly that two juniors are going to miss this entire season because of grades. But here's the main thing that everyone's forgetting: They're still in school. Nobody in the program has given up on them, and, more importantly, they haven't given up on themselves. I see no reason why we should give up on them, either, since each is still working towards getting his gpa back up to par. In the long run, it's much more important that they get their grades in order and get their degrees than that they wear royal blue and gold uniforms again. I'm not counting on anything for 2009-10 with regard to Stevens and Brown, and neither are Paul Brenegan and Steve Schafer, but I'm nevertheless hopeful that both Tone and Brownie will be back in uniform next season.

The immediate problem is that the roster squeeze is going to affect the NPU program on two levels this season: First, the Vikings will be an underclassmen-dominated team in a league loaded with seniors. That's going to make it hard for NPU to win consistently, especially against teams such as Wheaton, Augie, and Elmhurst that are not only loaded but experienced. Second, the absence of so many upperclassmen that the NPU coaching staff planned around is probably going to mean that there won't be a JV team this year. That will hinder the development of certain freshmen, particularly a kid like Emmanuel Crosby (a promising big man who, like a lot of kids his size, is raw in terms of post fundamentals and badly needs more game experience on the college level).

I think that NPU's lineup is going to look like this from the January 10 game against Wheaton onward:

PG: Roshawn Russell (FR)
SG: Clayton Cahill (SO)
SF: Kendall Greer (SO)
PF: Nick Williams (JR)
C: Phil Schniedermeier (SO)

... with the key reserves being guards Ryan Beigie (FR), Sean McNamee (SO), and D.J. Cooper (FR), swingman Issa Avery (FR), forward Joel Benson (FR), and forward/center Mike Ventura (SR). That's a very talented starting lineup; it has average size for a CCIW team, a lot of athleticism for a CCIW team, and a much better shooting eye than the Park has had in years. What it doesn't have is much in the way of experience, which means that there will be a lot of exasperating stretches of basketball at both ends of the floor similar to the ones that Vikings fans saw in the games against Illinois College and Concordia (WI) as well as last night. That's the price you pay with fielding a young team.

A look at the top offensive starters in the league by position, through 12/30.  If I have slotted someone in the wrong spot, let me know.

Ryan Beigie is really more of a combo guard than a wing, Bob. Other than that, very nice work.

[Viking Blue]

NP's diminished roster is a symptom of the Brenegan era:  too few players don a jersey for four years.

I understand the point you're trying to make here, and it is easy to look at the situation and make the easy analysis that while Coach A has been at the helm, X number of players have had academic issues, and thus, it is Coach A's fault.

There's no question that it is the responsibility of the coaching staff to put into place all of the necessary accommodations to ensure that their players are being given the most opportunities to be successful in the classroom.  And I have no doubt that Brenegan, et al. are doing just that.

On the other hand, as a coach and teacher myself, I am very aware of the old adage that "You can lead a horse to water but you can't force them to drink".  

I feel badly for the number of Viking athletes who do put in the time in the classroom.  Over the last number of years, North Park has had quite a few of their student-athletes recognized for their academic achievements. As a matter of fact, I would like to see statistics how they compare (in ALL sports) to the rest of the conference in this category.

It's just a shame that this is all occurring to their most visible athletic team.

At the very least, it will give young players opportunities they would not have had (although I think someone may have brought that up before.....)

Happy New Year!

[Gregory Sager]

NP's diminished roster is a symptom of the Brenegan era:  too few players don a jersey for four years.

I understand the point you're trying to make here, and it is easy to look at the situation and make the easy analysis that while Coach A has been at the helm, X number of players have had academic issues, and thus, it is Coach A's fault.

There's no question that it is the responsibility of the coaching staff to put into place all of the necessary accommodations to ensure that their players are being given the most opportunities to be successful in the classroom.  And I have no doubt that Brenegan, et al. are doing just that.

On the other hand, as a coach and teacher myself, I am very aware of the old adage that "You can lead a horse to water but you can't force them to drink".

Exactly. I do feel that it's proper to judge coaches upon at least two criteria: W-L record and graduation rate. I don't want to ever see a Bob Huggins clone at NPU in any sport, let alone men's basketball. But the coaches can't take tests for their student-athletes. They can't write papers for their student-athletes. And they can't bribe the profs to give good grades to their student-athletes, either.

NPU's basketball team has study halls, an academic advisor, etc. The coaching staff probably pays closer attention to the academic progress of its players than do most schools, if for no other reason than because the person who runs NPU's records office is also one of the assistant coaches. But there's a limit to what the coaches can do for the players. They can't hold their hands and baby them through college. A student-athlete is responsible for his or her own education, and that's the bottom line.

You can argue that perhaps the coaches shouldn't recruit this player or that player, and that's a valid criticism. However, it breaks down in the NPU case because we're talking about a couple of juniors. These are students who've already had two years of college under their belts and were fully aware of what was expected of them. They weren't raw freshmen who were thrown into the deep end without knowing how to swim. Also, without going into detail, I can say that there are some very severe extenuating circumstances going on in the life of one of the two juniors that are not his fault and are largely beyond his control, and which are affecting his ability to focus upon schoolwork.

I'm not making any excuses for Paul Brenegan or his staff. The situation is what it is. It bothers me greatly that the program is currently being hamstrung by academic problems among key players. But, as VB said, there's a limit to how much blame you can lay at a coach's door for that.