MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Mugsy]

If Wheaton makes the CCIW tourney and has a solid showing, I'm wondering if Panner's recent play might win him the 5th 1st team CCIW slot.  He has been carrying the load as McCrary has come down a notch from teams either focusing on him or an off night.

[AndOne]

North Park downed North Central 68-59 tonight in Chicago.
Due to a freak home accident involving another family member, one of our cars, and the house, I was not able to attend tonight so I'm unable to provide many details. However, from looking over the stats, it is apparent that, after leading by 10 at the half, the Cardinals must have had a disastrous 2nd half, being out scored by 19. It appears that the Cardinals were severely lacking in 4 areas in the 2nd half, and that those combined deficiencies were largly responsible for the NP win:
1. The Cards shot an atrocious   27.6 percent in the 2nd half
2. They let NP hit at a fabulous 62.5 percent clip after halftime.
3. The Cards were basically defenseless against the inside duo of Crosby & Gonzalez who hit for 16 and 14 respectively.
4. With only 2 subs playing a total of 20 minutes, it seems likely fatigue played a role.

I'm sure our friend Mr. Sager will have a more in depth analysis later. Over and out.

[markerickson]

I arrived late to the NP/NCC game at which point the game may have been 10-4 for the Cardinals.   NCC's lead swelled to double digits in the first half because NP couldn't hit a shot and NCC's #22 Twynam (?) scored 12.  He looked very good on both offense and defense.  Raridon got called for three fouls in the first half.  NCC traveled well and they believed that the fouls were ticky-tack.  I would counter the same was true for NP's leading scorer, Nick Williams.

NCC showed no prowess behind he trey line except for Raridon.  This is a serious weakness, which is why NP defended Raridon with either the taller Williams or more athletic Gonzalez.  Since Raridon had three fouls in the first half, NP fed the ball to Gonzalez who consistently drove the lane against Raridon for the bucket.  Early in the second half, Raridon absolutely mugged Gonzalez on one play, but the refs called the foul on some other player.  To my dismay, with all the moving picks and other problems, Raridon finished the game with three fouls.  I digress.

The undersized Cards double-teamed NP's C Crosby who would simply distribute to the open, cutting player.  Fundamental bball.

NCC shot horribly in the second half; I think Twynam scored only two.  He was guarded mostly by Williams who has ankle problem.

I could not believe how few treys were attempted in this game.  How refreshing.

[Gregory Sager]

North Park 68, North Central 59

* Emanuel Crosby: 16 pts (8-11 FG)
* Jorge Gonzalez: 14 pts (7-8 FG), 5 rebs
* Ro Russell: 12 pts
* Nick Williams: 6 rebs

* Derek Raridon: 22 pts (9-25 FG), 6 rebs
* David Twyman: 14 pts, 7 rebs
* Reid Barringer: 10 pts

It was a Dickensian game at the crackerbox tonight ... a tale of two halves. In the first half NPU took poor care of the ball (nine turnovers) and just basically got out-hustled all over the floor as NCC built up a 14-point lead late in the stanza and went into the locker room up by double digits, 38-28. It appeared that NPU had no answer for either Derek Raridon (who started off the game 4-5 from the field) or for David Twyman's athleticism.

What was working, though, for North Park was the inside game. After his son picked up his second foul with 6:06 to go in the half, Todd Raridon moved Derek off of Emanuel Crosby and put him out on the perimeter on defense, moving the undersized but scrappy Brian Evans onto Crosby instead. Crosby and Nick Williams used their strength advantage over their North Central counterparts and combined to go 7-13 down in the blocks.

I interviewed NPU men's soccer coach John Born at halftime, and he quipped on the air, "None of your listeners want to hear about soccer! Let's talk about this basketball game! They gotta get the ball in to Crosby down low!" Indeed, they had to, and, indeed, they did. NPU came roaring out of the gate in the second half by going on an 8-0 run that was mostly sparked by Crosby and Jorge Gonzalez -- Crosby exploiting his size mismatch against Evans and Gonzalez going around Raridon off the dribble and finishing at the hoop. Paul Brenegan kept shuttling fresh legs in and out of the lineup while Todd Raridon was forced to stick with his starting five, aside from brief first-half cameos from Brandon Stanciel and Kevin Gillespie. NCC, which had not hesitated to push the ball up the floor in the first half -- NPU was so intent upon getting good entry pass angles that the Vikings guards were caught too far down the floor a few times, resulting in Cardinals runouts after defensive rebounds -- slowed the game down drastically in the second half in order to conserve energy. That definitely played in NPU's favor, though, because it meant that the Vikings had to spend less time each possession playing defense. As a result, NCC only rarely got any good looks at the basket, and the Cards scored only 21 points and shot a miserable 28% in the second half.

With the Cards clinging to a 47-45 lead with 11:34 to go in the game, Jon Knapczyk drove baseline and lunged at a 45-degree angle at the block to launch a layup just as Ryan Beigie was sliding over to cut him off from the help position. Beigie inadvertently took the feet out from under the wildly off-balance Knapczyk, and the NCC point guard went down hard on the back of his head. Several frightening minutes ensued with the clearly concussed Knapczyk convulsing on the floor before he regained consciousness and tried to rise to his feet while the NPU training staff tried to keep him immobile. He finally fought his way to his feet and was carried off the floor by his teammates to a big round of applause from the NPU fans. I sure hope he's alright.

With Knapczyk on his way to Swedish Covenant Hospital's ER, Gillespie came into the game and Todd Raridon was forced to go with his son, Gillespie, Twyman, Evans, and Reid Barringer the rest of the way (until Evans fouled out with nineteen seconds to go in the game). NCC was clearly too drained to cling to the lead any longer, and the fresh legs of NPU's guards (and the muscle of its front line) simply wore down the Cardinals. After Evans canned two FTs for the absent Knapczyk, NPU went on an 11-2 run to take its first lead of the game, a lead it would not relinquish. The Park kept a minimum two-possession lead down the stretch and eventually won by nine.

Kudos to the outmanned Cardinals, who were extremely scrappy and never showed an ounce of quit. But the Vikings did what they had to do in the second half, shutting down the Cardinals offense -- after his 4-5 start, Raridon only shot 5-20 for the rest of the night, as Brenegan switched up and covered him with a number of different players, while Nick Williams did a terrific job defensively by holding Twyman to two points in the second half -- and exploiting their advantages on offense (Crosby in the blocks, Gonzalez and Russell on the drive). NPU shot a sparkling .625 in the second half en route to a season-best .574 from the field. The Vikings even performed uncharacteristically well at the line, going 11-13.

It wasn't pretty, especially that first half, but the Vikings made adjustments, showed some grit and enthusiasm, and took advantage of their strengths and NCC's weaknesses to put away a determined but thin foe. And, most importantly, the Vikes got the bad taste of that five-game losing streak out of their mouths.                                                            

[usee]

In the Wheaton @ Augie win it was a game of runs. Wheaton led 17-10 in the first half and hit just one FG in the final 10 minutes of the 1st half as Augie went on a 19-5 run and led 29-22 at the break. Wheaton opened the 2nd half with an 11-5 run to cut the lead to 34-33 with 13.35 to play. It stayed close and Augie pushed out at the 11 min mark embarking on an 8-0 run to have a 9 pt lead with 4.53 to play. The final 16-4 run started with 4 3 pt plays (shackleford and jahns hit the trey, panner completed an and one and Jahns hits another 3) to take the lead. With 35 seconds to play and Augie with the ball Pierotti makes a huge steal and Panner cans the 1 and 1 to lead by 3 and Augie never got a good look at the end.

An improbable win but one that was huge for the Thunder as they have sealed their bid to the Conference tourney and put themselves in a great spot to earn a neutral floor game as the 3 seed by now owning the tie breaker over Augie.

[Viking Blue]

Ugly, scary scene last night in the Crackerbox when Knapczyk went down very hard.  I echo Greg's sentiment when I say that I hope he is going to be OK.  For the first couple of moments there, I wasn't sure he was going to be.  Sitting as close as I was to the North Central bench, I know it certainly shook up a number of his teammates. 

[Viking Blue]

It was certainly the tale of two halves last night, no question about it.  I was pleasantly surprised with North Park's effort in the second half.  With the way things have been going lately, and the lackluster-at-best effort that was shown in the first half, I would not have been shocked to see a 20 point North Central victory.

In my opinion (read it and gloat, Mark Erickson), I believe a majority of the credit is due to two members of North Park's bench:  Jorge Gonzalez and Ryan Beige.  Gonzalez came out of the locker room with the opportunity to start on the floor for the second half, and he certainly took advantage of that opportunity with his aggressive offensive style.  For a guy with as little real basketball experience as he has, he sure shows a knack for finishing around the basket...something that we have bemoaned North Park players for all year long.

Beige's contributions were not quite as tangible when one looks at the stat sheet, but they were important, nonetheless.  It has appeared to me that Beige has seemingly gotten a little lost in the shuffle recently when it comes to his role in the rotation lately, but he made the most of his opportunity last night by coming in and playing solid defense, most of the time against Raridon.  Nice to see.

Good win for the Vikings.  It may be the case of too little, too late for this year, but we would all like to see them carry over some momentum into next year, with this being as young a team as it is.

[REDMENFAN]

Article from last nights Carthage/Elmhurst game.  Bosko pleased with win, but not with the way the guys played in the first half.

http://www.kenoshanews.com/sports/red_men_roll_into_league_tourney_7319137.html

[usee]

Looking down the road at the all-conference team, I believe there are 4 very safe picks for the 1st team...

Steve Djurickovic, Carthage (6-3 Jr.) – 25.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 8.1 apg (lock for M.O.P.)
Tim McCrary, Wheaton (6-6 So.) -  22.0 ppg, 9.9 rpg, .546 FG
Derek Raridon, North Central (6-6 Fr.) – 21.6 ppg, 5.8 rpg
Doug Sexauer, Illinois Wesleyan (6-7 Jr.) -  18.0 ppg, 4.8 rpg, .709 FG

The top candidates for the final spot are probably...

Sean Johnson, Illinois Wesleyan (6-1 Jr.) – 17.3 ppg, 3.6 apg
David Twyman, North Central (6-3 Sr.) – 17.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg, .573 FG
Kyle Nelson, Augustana (6-9 Jr.) – 16.0 ppg, 7.6 rpg, .660 FG
Ben Panner, Wheaton (6-3 Sr.) – 15.1 ppg, 2.9 rpg


The final 5 games, and how the standings end up, will help sort out that last spot.

This is from Q less than a week ago and I think the picture is a little clearer but the candidates are the same. You could easily see 1st teamers:

Stevie D
Tim McCrary
Doug Sexauer
Derek Raridon
Kyle Nelson

The only spot that may be up for grabs is Derek Raridon but it would  be very hard to argue with what he has done this season.  If Raridon slips a little down the stretch the final spot could very well be decided Saturday night whe Panner and Johnson face off in Bloomington. In the end though, I don't believe there will be enough separation to justify 2 1st teamers from 1 school and the 5 listed here are certainly worthy.  3 games to play still though!

[markerickson]

I erred in my previous post.  Yes, Ryan Biege, not Williams, guarded Raridon during much of the second half.  Williams guarded Twynam.  Biege really hustled against the taller Raridon and effectively pushed the slender scorer when he tried to fight for position in the paint.  Great job! 

[Dennis_Prikkel]

nice comeback win for the vikings last night

and Ryan Biege has done a very nice job off the bench as a defensive stopper

[Gregory Sager]

In my opinion (read it and gloat, Mark Erickson), I believe a majority of the credit is due to two members of North Park's bench:  Jorge Gonzalez and Ryan Beige.  Gonzalez came out of the locker room with the opportunity to start on the floor for the second half, and he certainly took advantage of that opportunity with his aggressive offensive style.  For a guy with as little real basketball experience as he has, he sure shows a knack for finishing around the basket...something that we have bemoaned North Park players for all year long.

Jorge scored a career-high 14 points last night, but he's always had the capability to score and rebound on the varsity level because he's just so amazingly athletic and plays with such a high motor. His problem has been that his lack of organized basketball experience has left him raw in terms of technique and vulnerable to being in the wrong spot on the floor on both offense and defense. The great thing about last night in my mind as far as Gonzalez is concerned is what great strides he showed in terms of playing a mature and refined game at both ends of the floor. He's still a long ways away from being polished, but he's working hard towards minimizing his liabilities. Next year could be a breakthrough season for him.

Beige's contributions were not quite as tangible when one looks at the stat sheet, but they were important, nonetheless.  It has appeared to me that Beige has seemingly gotten a little lost in the shuffle recently when it comes to his role in the rotation lately, but he made the most of his opportunity last night by coming in and playing solid defense, most of the time against Raridon.  Nice to see.

Ryan Beigie is a grinder, on a team that really needs one. He works hard in practice; he devotes himself to the little things that don't show up in the box score, such as defense, boxing out, and taking care of the ball, that make the team better with him on the floor; and he's a team-first guy who doesn't gripe about his place in the pecking order. I've always had an appreciation for unsung, blue-collar guys like Beigie, and he's rapidly becoming one of my favorite Vikings.

As far as last night's defense was concerned, Beigie did a phenomenal job no matter whom he was asked to guard at any particular moment, but especially when he was guarding the much taller Derek Raridon. But so did Nick Williams, who in the second half completely shut down a Cardinal who has plagued NPU this season, David Twyman. Williams held Twyman to two points on 1-4 shooting in the second half. It was one of the best defensive halves I've ever seen Nick play, and because of it I'd say that he had a good game even though his offensive contribution was negligible.

[Titan Q]

Home win = +0
Road win = +1
Home loss = -1
Road loss = +0

Carthage +4
Augustana +3
Ill. Wesleyan +3
Wheaton +1
North Park -1
North Central -2
Elmhurst -4
Millikin -4

Saturday
Wheaton @ Illinois Wesleyan
North Central @ Carthage
Millikin @ Augustana
North Park @ Elmhurst

[Titan Q]

I was traveling the last few days and wasn't able to follow the IWU win at Millikin, but here is the boxscore...

http://www.iwusports.com/custompages/MBB/MBB2010/HTML/mil-22.htm


Another big game for IWU's 6-7 center Doug Sexauer - 23 pts, 9 reb, 10-12 FG.  In the league, Doug is averaging 17.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, and is 86-122 from the field (.705).  He is a safe bet for the 1st Team.

Junior guard Sean Johnson had 19 more points.  Sean is averaging 16.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in CCIW games.  He's hanging right around that 1st Team picture as well for the 9-2 Titans.

[Titan Q]

Updated standings, games remaining:

Carthage: 9-2    (vs North Central, vs North Park, @ Millikin)
Ill. Wesleyan: 9-2    (vs Wheaton, @ Augustana, @ North Park)
Augustana: 7-4    (vs Millikin, vs IWU, vs North Central)
Wheaton: 7-4    (@ IWU, vs Millikin, @ Elmhurst)
North Park: 5-6    (@ Elmhurst, @ Carthage, vs IWU)
North Central: 4-7    (@ Carthage, vs Elmhurst, @ Augustana)
Millikin: 2-9    (@ Augustana, @ Wheaton, vs Carthage)
Elmhurst: 1-10    (vs North Park, @ North Central, vs Wheaton)