MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Gregory Sager]

Phil Schniedermeier will be starting for North Park by the time that the Vikings play Illinois Wesleyan, and, while like Emmanuel Crosby he's a player who scores all of his points close to the basket, he's not a lummox who simply plods up and down the floor from one low post to the other. Schniedermeier likes to run, and he's a high-energy type of player. I'm sure that the game plan for NPU when Connolly is in the game for IWU will be to get Schniedermeier up and down the floor as rapidly as possible while Connolly is huffing and puffing somewhere in his wake. I have to imagine that NCC is thinking the same thing with Stanciel, Wheaton is thinking the same thing with Carwell, Carthage is thinking the same thing with Pierce, Augie is thinking the same thing with its various big men, etc. isn't restricted to his inability to get out to the perimeter and cover centers who can shoot from outside.

Obviously, yes...that is what every opponent has done all season long when Connolly enters the game.  But 1) Despite his limitations, he is usually productive while in the game,

Yes, he is. For all the flak that Ron Rose gets in here from OurHouse, he does use Connolly the right way -- which is to say, the big fella is kept on a very short leash. Three minutes in, and then straight to the bench.

2) As your post suggests, he is a reserve low post player you have to gameplan for...and how many of those are there in the CCIW?

"Game plan"? Yeah, I know I used those words, but I didn't mean them in the coaches-sit-around-and-spend-time-figuring-out-how-to-stop-him sense. Telling your center, "Beat that big goon down the floor at both ends. Run his butt right back to the bench, or until his tongue is hanging out, whichever comes first," is a game plan only in the loosest sense. It's a simple instruction -- and a pretty obvious one at that. (Heck, I'm not even a basketball coach, and I figured it out. ) I can guarantee you that Paul Brenegan and his staff will not lose any sleep over worrying about Connolly. Nor will Bosko & Co.; Mike Schauer and his crew; the law firm of Giovanine, Jessee, and Associates; the Raridon posse; or any of the other collections of suit-clad worthies who grace CCIW sidelines.

If CCIW teams need to use their starting 5 to guard Connolly for the 12 minutes he's in there for Doug Sexauer, that's 12 minutes they can't guard Sexauer (no one plays 40 minutes) - one of best pure back-to-the-basket guys around.  Or it means those starters will have to expend more energy during a game vs IWU than they do vs most other teams.  Either way, Connolly is a factor.

That presumes that the center will be assigned to guard Sexauer, which isn't necessarily the case. Take NPU, for instance. Nick Williams, North Park's power forward, gets the assignment of covering Sexauer whenever NPU plays Illinois Wesleyan. If O'Callaghan is in the game, Schniedermeier covers him. If Connolly is in the game, Schniedermeier covers him. Crosby's interchangeable with Schniedermeier in that regard, since O'Callaghan's not an offensive threat and is thus not likely to cause Crosby problems at that end of the floor.

Likewise, I would imagine that for NCC Derek Raridon will get the assignment to guard Sexauer; for Wheaton, Tim McCrary will get the assignment to guard Sexauer, and so on and so forth. If Sexauer is in the game as the sole big man for IWU, this gives opponents the opportunity to either go smaller and quicker themselves or to keep the standard lineup in the game and exploit a matchup advantage at PF.

If 6-9/275 Connolly - with the nice shooting touch and low-post game he has - could run the floor like a gazelle, he wouldn't be in Division III.  So yes, he is flawed.  But is he a positive factor?  He sure is.

My point was not that Connolly is not a positive factor. I've never said otherwise; in fact, I've pointed out before in this room that he has good shooting touch and that stopping him once he's within three or four feet of the basket is like trying to stop a bulldozer. My point is that your focus upon his being disadvantaged when the other team employs a center who can shoot from outside does not tell the whole story -- Connolly is also disadvantaged when the other team employs a mobile center who hustles down the floor and beats Connolly to the blocks at either end with time to spare.

But my guess is that you are comparing your memories of Voss and Thurman as seniors to Ryan Connolly - a sophomore, who is 9 games into his varsity career

Thurman was a junior. He sat at the end of the bench for Chicago State for two years, transferred to NPU for Rees Johnson's final campaign, and then finished his career at Robert Morris-Chicago. I doubt he had all that much more varsity game experience when he entered North Park than does Connolly at the moment.

Voss was actually more effective as a junior playing ten minutes per game than he was as a senior playing fifteen mpg. If anything, he was bigger as a senior and less mobile. In fact, I don't think he even finished his senior year with the team -- he disappears from the box scores sometime in early February, and I seem to remember an Elmhurst poster announcing on CCIW Chat that Voss had quit. (He got into a handful of games in garbage time as a sophomore in 00-01.)

One year ago, Ron Rose couldn't have even considered putting Ryan Connolly in a varsity game.  If he continues to improve at the same rate he has in the last 12 months, he won't be anywhere near the Ryan Voss/Jason Thurman category as a senior.

I think it's all dependent upon his weight and conditioning. If he's in better shape as a junior and/or senior, then, yeah, he'll be a much better player than Voss or Thurman ever was. If not, then what we're seeing from him right now is probably all he'll ever be, 'cause the pace of play in the CCIW is not going to get any slower over the next two years.

[Titan Q]

You're calling a CCIW student-athlete a "big goon"?

[wheels81]

And now a word from our sponsor during this commercial time out from the GS And Q show

[wheels81]

Congratulations to Kent Raymond on his latest NCAA award.  2010 Today's Top VIII Award.

http://athletics.wheaton.edu/news/2009/12/16/MBB_Top8.aspx?path=mbball

[Titan Q]

Post from November 4:

Projections - Top 30 scorers in CCIW play in 2010:


1.   Steve Djurickovic (Carthage), 27.2
2.   Nick Williams (NPU), 15.9
3.   Doug Sexauer (IWU), 15.5
4.   Roshawn Russell (NPU), 15.0
5.   Sean Fendley (Carthage), 14.7
6.   Ben Panner (Wheaton), 14.6
7.   Aaron Garriott (Wheaton), 14.5
8.   Tim McCrary (Wheaton), 14.4
9.   John Koschnitzky (IWU), 14.1
10.   Kyle Nelson (Augustana), 13.1
11.   Sean Johnson (IWU), 13.1
12.   Phil Schneidermeier (NPU), 12.5
13.   Joscar Demby (Millikin), 12.4
14.   Travis Rosenkranz (IWU), 12.3
15.   Chris Childs (Elmhurst), 12.1
16.   Reid Barringer (NCC), 11.9
17.   David Twyman (NCC), 11.8
18.   Zack Boyd (Elmhurst), 11.5
19.   Brian DeSimone (Augustana), 10.8
20.   Robert Burton (Millikin), 10.1
21.   Jordan Zimmer (IWU), 10.0
22.   Shaun Collins (NPU), 9.9
23.   Adam Tolo (Carthage), 9.6
24.   Jake Carwell (Wheaton), 9.5
25.   Bryant Voiles (Augustana), 9.3
26.   Raul Guzman (Carthage), 9.2
27.   Corey Mitchell (Millikin), 9.0
28.   Joe Meyerhoff (NCC), 8.8
29.   Matt Pelton (Augustana), 8.7
30.   Andrew Jahns (Wheaton), 8.4

Current non-conference scoring averages, through December 16:

1.Djurickovic, Steve-CARTHA 24.0
2.Barringer, Reid-NCC 20.3
2. Raridon, Derek-NCC 20.3
4.McCrary, Tim-WHEATON 19.3
5.Panner, Ben-WHEATON 16.9
6.Julius, Kyle-NCC 16.4
7.Johnson, Sean-IWU 16.0
8.Sexauer, Doug-IWU 15.9
9.Williams, Nick-NPU 14.9
10.Bainter, Dustin-ELMHURST 14.9
11.Cary, Max-CARTHAGE 14.3
12.Boyd, Zack-ELMHURST 14.1
13.Pierce, Tyler-CARTHAGE  13.4
14.Twyman, David-NCC 13.0
15.Pelton, Matt-AUGIE 12.8
16.Demby, Joscar-MILLIKIN 12.1
17.Jahns, Andrew-WHEATON 12.1
18.Nelson, Kyle-AUGIE 11.5
19.Collins, Shaun-NPU 11.0
   Guzman, Raul-CARTHAGE 11.0
21.Childs, Chris-ELMHURST  9.9
22.Connolly, Ryan-IWU  9.6
23.McCurdy, Mike-ELMHURST  9.6
24.Zimmer, Jordan-IWU  9.0
25.Demby, Devin-MILLIKIN  8.9
26.Carwell, Jake-WHEATON  8.5
27.Avery, Issa-NPU  8.4
28.Robinson, Davone-NPU  8.2
29.Crosby, Emmanuel-NPU  8.1
30.Rosenkranz, Travis-IWU  7.9

[AndOne]

I also added IWU's Dan Schouten, who has gone from JV player to first post off the bench in a hurry.

I don't think there is a whole lot of doubt that if Dan Schouten had not been injured and recovering from subsequent shoulder surgery for almost his entire first 2 years at Wesleyan, that he would be starting for the Titans in place of O'Callaghan.
In fact if Koschnitzky was not currently injured, I believe IWU's front line would be Kosch, Schouten, and Sexauer.

Schouten had a more productive high school career, and is better in almost all facets of the game than O'Callaghan with the possible exception of rebounding. And, as Schouten gains strength, his board work will likely improve. Schouten's superiority is most apparent as a shooter/scorer. Despite only recently entering the rotation his shooting percentages, both from the field and the line, are already better than O'Callaghan's. Additionally, in only about 1/4 the minutes, he already has almost 1/2 the number of points O'Callaghan has scored. To top things off, Schouten is a much more hard-nosed and tougher player than O'Callaghan who often plays soft, especially in avoiding contact rather than going up strong underneath with the ball.   

[augiefan]

Augie did turn in a nice performance last night, but they are suffering from the loss of Bryant Voiles, perhaps their best shooting big man, and a pretty inexperienced team after Pelton and Nelson. I doubt they are really a Top 20 team at this point, because of a virtually non-existent ability to hit a 3 pointer, which is becoming an Augie tradition, and really bad FT Shooting, which is not an Augie tradition. The last 2 years Augie was shooting close to 75% from the FT line. This year they are hitting only 63%, which is going to lead to major trouble in close games, particularly on the road. Hopefully, practice will lead to improvement at the FT line as the season progresses, but right now it is a major shortcoming of this young team.

[Titan Q]

Indiana Tech 66
North Central 60


NAIA D2 Indiana Tech is now 4-8.

[thunderstruck88]

Congratulations to Kent Raymond on his latest NCAA award.  2010 Today's Top VIII Award.

http://athletics.wheaton.edu/news/2009/12/16/MBB_Top8.aspx?path=mbball

In case anyone is at all curious about how Kent Raymond has been doing in Espana... I just stumbled across this link to his stats:

http://www.eurobasket.com/player.asp?Cntry=ESP&PlayerID=124387

Averaging 20 minutes off the bench:
6.8 PPG
50% FG%
28% 3-point FG%
80% FT%
1.1 Rebound/game
0.5 Steals/game
Season High: 20 points on 7-9 shooting.

I would think this is pretty respectable for his first year of pro ball.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Indiana Tech 66
North Central 60


NAIA D2 Indiana Tech is now 4-8.

Ouch!

Somehow I don't think NCC is a contender this year.

[Hugenerd]

I dont read this board, so I am not sure if it has been posted previously, but have you guys seen this:

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?key=/ncaa/ncaa/ncaa+news/ncaa+news+online/2009/association-wide/tebow+heads+2010+top+viii+honorees_12_17_09_ncaa_news

I didnt realize he was pursuing his Masters Degree, I thought he was playing in Spain.

[Mr. Ypsi]

I dont read this board, so I am not sure if it has been posted previously, but have you guys seen this:

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?key=/ncaa/ncaa/ncaa+news/ncaa+news+online/2009/association-wide/tebow+heads+2010+top+viii+honorees_12_17_09_ncaa_news

I didnt realize he was pursuing his Masters Degree, I thought he was playing in Spain.

CCIW stars can do both!

Can't MIT national POYs multitask?!

[Hugenerd]

I dont read this board, so I am not sure if it has been posted previously, but have you guys seen this:

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?key=/ncaa/ncaa/ncaa+news/ncaa+news+online/2009/association-wide/tebow+heads+2010+top+viii+honorees_12_17_09_ncaa_news

I didnt realize he was pursuing his Masters Degree, I thought he was playing in Spain.

CCIW stars can do both!


Can't MIT national POYs multitask?!

I believe the MIT POY you speak of received two degrees in 4 years, so it was unnecesarry to stick around for a 3rd degree.  He may have also wanted to give other candidates a chance to win some awards, because he was running out of room in the trophy case.    

[Titan Q]

Freshman year comparisons...

Steve Djurickovic ('07-08, 25 games) - 23.2 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 4.3 apg, 189-401 FG  (.471), 16-65 3-pt (.246), 186-234 FT (.795)

Derek Raridon ('09-10, 7 games) - 20.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 1.0 apg, 40-88 FG (.455), 12-29 3-pt (.419), 52-63 FT (.825)


Raridon has had a really impressive start to his college career.

[Titan Q]

I also added IWU's Dan Schouten, who has gone from JV player to first post off the bench in a hurry.

I don't think there is a whole lot of doubt that if Dan Schouten had not been injured and recovering from subsequent shoulder surgery for almost his entire first 2 years at Wesleyan, that he would be starting for the Titans in place of O'Callaghan.
In fact if Koschnitzky was not currently injured, I believe IWU's front line would be Kosch, Schouten, and Sexauer.

Schouten had a more productive high school career, and is better in almost all facets of the game than O'Callaghan with the possible exception of rebounding. And, as Schouten gains strength, his board work will likely improve. Schouten's superiority is most apparent as a shooter/scorer. Despite only recently entering the rotation his shooting percentages, both from the field and the line, are already better than O'Callaghan's. Additionally, in only about 1/4 the minutes, he already has almost 1/2 the number of points O'Callaghan has scored. To top things off, Schouten is a much more hard-nosed and tougher player than O'Callaghan who often plays soft, especially in avoiding contact rather than going up strong underneath with the ball.    

Maybe.  But if we're playing the "what if they weren't injured for two years" game, it's probably fair to suggest 6-9 Eric McCullough would be in the starting mix too...ahead of Schouten.  (A frontcourt of Koschnitzky, Sexauer, McCullough.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yR1tF7Y8ltI

McCullough has been injured his entire first two seasons at IWU (serious hip condition...surgery on both after last season)...hopefully he gets one of those back via hardship waiver (medical redshirt).

Injuries to Koschnitzky, McCullough, and Schouten are good examples of why it is so important to have depth.  Seems like every year at recruiting time, someone will say, "What are they going to do with all those guys?" regarding this school or that school that brings in multiple guys at the same position.  You just never know what's going to happen.  

As far as O'Callaghan, he is the 5th leading rebounder in the CCIW right now.  That's basically his role, and he does alright.  He needs to get better in a lot of areas, but the Titans do need his rebounding presence in there...especially with Koschnitzky out.