MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[augie_superfan]

I haven't seen it mentioned specifically but I may have missed it.  Does IWU need to have some worry with Wheaton being ranked ahead of them in the regional rankings this past week?  I would think so.  If they both win tomorrow then I'd assume they'd be ranked the same way next week.  We'd have IWU @ 19-5 and Wheaton @ 17-7 with Wheaton having a bit higher SOS.

In the conference tourney, if IWU beats Wheaton then it's probably all moot as IWU should move back ahead of Wheaton and finish @ 20-6 (.769) with a strong SOS and in a decent at-large position.  However, if Wheaton beats IWU again then IWU finishes @ 19-6 (.760) but they'd be sitting behind a 18-8 (.692) Wheaton team.

With these results, most people would say that Wheaton should be ahead of IWU, however, I think IWU would look like the better candidate when compared to the other regions.  Does anyone know if the regional committee takes these things into account during the final regional ranking to "promote" their region on the national scene?

[usee]

2004--roll tape!

[Titan Q]

I haven't seen it mentioned specifically but I may have missed it.  Does IWU need to have some worry with Wheaton being ranked ahead of them in the regional rankings this past week?  I would think so.  If they both win tomorrow then I'd assume they'd be ranked the same way next week.  We'd have IWU @ 19-5 and Wheaton @ 17-7 with Wheaton having a bit higher SOS.

In the conference tourney, if IWU beats Wheaton then it's probably all moot as IWU should move back ahead of Wheaton and finish @ 20-6 (.769) with a strong SOS and in a decent at-large position.  However, if Wheaton beats IWU again then IWU finishes @ 19-6 (.760) but they'd be sitting behind a 18-8 (.692) Wheaton team.

With these results, most people would say that Wheaton should be ahead of IWU, however, I think IWU would look like the better candidate when compared to the other regions.  Does anyone know if the regional committee takes these things into account during the final regional ranking to "promote" their region on the national scene?

This is very significant.  If IWU ends up ranked behind Wheaton in the final regional rankings, that would be big trouble for the Titans.  Since Wheaton would be a Pool C bubble team at best, it's possible IWU would not even get to the national table for discussion.

To your final question ("Does anyone know if the regional committee takes these things into account during the final regional ranking to "promote" their region on the national scene?"), this is exactly what we saw in 2007-08.  IWU beat Wheaton 3 times, but the Midwest committee moved Wheaton ahead of IWU in the final regional ranking...the thought being that Wheaton (15-6 in-region, .714) had at least an outside chance at a Pool C, while IWU (15-9 in-region, .624) had no chance.  No one could have argued had IWU being ranked ahead of Wheaton, but had that happened, neither would have made it.  As it turned out, Wheaton got in...and went to the Elite 8.

Right now IWU is 18-5 (.782) and Wheaton 16-7 (.696).  We'll see how it plays out, but the Titans could really use a win over Wheaton to get in better position.

[markerickson]

The "head coach" who presided over the NPC capsizing was not Peterson, 'twas the powers in the ivory tower.

[Titan Q]

Well, this is the final slate of regular season games.  The conference tournament pairings will not be affected at all by today's results, but still, a lot on the line...  


* Carthage @ Millikin (4:30pm) - the Red Men make the 235-mile trek from Kenosha to Decatur, looking to earn the school's first outright CCIW title in 8 years.  As good as Millikin's defense is, this one certainly isn't a gimmie.


* Illinois Wesleyan @ North Park (7:30pm) - the Titans will probably know before the tip if they're playing for a share of the title or not, but either way, this game is very big for IWU.  A road win tonight vs the Vikings would really help IWU's Pool C position.  


* Wheaton @ Elmhurst (7:30pm) - if Wheaton does have an outside Pool C chance (as head coach Mike Schauer recently suggested), the Thunder certainly can't afford to drop this one.  


* North Central @ Augustana (7:30pm) - probably the only game with nothing on the line in terms of the league race or NCAA tournament implications.  A win tonight does not change Augie's position in the standings, or change their Pool C position (the Vikings are out of the at-large bid picture).

[Gregory Sager]

The "head coach" who presided over the NPC capsizing was not Peterson, 'twas the powers in the ivory tower.

There's no disputing that the decision to get rid of Bosko played a major role in North Park's basketball downfall, particularly since the administration had no sound plan in place to bring in someone to fill his shoes. But that does not let Keith Peterson off the hook, Mark. Look at it this way: Bosko's last two seasons at North Park were mediocre ones by CCIW standards (7-7 in 1993 and 8-6 in 1994) and the two worst of his career at Foster & Kedzie. A decent replacement could've at least kept the Vikings hovering in the middle of the pack, particularly since the CCIW was on its way to establishing quite a power vacuum at the time between Illinois Wesleyan, Wheaton, and then everybody else.

Instead, the team's record declined precipitously for three straight seasons. From Bosko's final 16-9, 8-6 in '94 the Vikings went to 12-13, 5-9 in '95, the program's first losing season in two decades. The year after they went 6-18, 4-10, then hit rock bottom in '97 by going 3-22, 0-14. The only reason why Peterson didn't endure a fourth straight season of declining records was because there was nowhere lower to go; instead, the team "improved" to 3-22, 1-13 in his final year, 1997-98.

The program did pick up the following two years under Rees Johnson, in large part due to such Peterson recruits as Denny Keizer, Rick Alspach, and Keith Peterson (the player, unrelated to the coach). But I saw enough of Peterson as a coach to know that the improvement wouldn't have been nearly as good under him as it was under Rees. Peterson was simply overmatched as a coach in the CCIW.

* Illinois Wesleyan @ North Park (7:30pm) - the Titans will probably know before the tip if they're playing for a share of the title or not, but either way, this game is very big for IWU.  A road win tonight vs the Vikings would really help IWU's Pool C position.

This game is big for the Vikings as well, Bob. NPU is not just out to play spoiler tonight. The Vikings are on the threshold of a winning season overall and a .500 season in conference. In light of the team's struggles last season and its last-place prediction for this season, that's quite a set of benchmarks that they can achieve with a win tonight. Plus, it's Nick Williams's last game, and I don't foresee him going out quietly.

[Gregory Sager]

NPU says farewell to its lone senior tonight, Nick Williams. Nick's had quite a career at Foster & Kedzie; a four-year starter, he has accumulated over 1,300 points and (barring an epic 42-point performance tonight) will finish up in eleventh place on the NPU all-time scoring list. He's also in the top five in career treys and the top ten in career trey percentage. He's a two-time All-CCIW player who has a good chance at becoming the first Viking to make the All-CCIW squad three times since Chris Stanley did it between 1989 and 1991.

Nick started out as an oversized spot-up shooter with the athleticism to get up and down the floor quickly, and since then he's added a lot of new aspects to his game. He's become a strong low-post scorer, a solid rebounder, and this year he's become more of a slasher as well. His defense has also noticeably improved this year. He's had a great run at NPU, and he will be missed. Best of luck to Nick in the future as he finishes up his marketing major and prepares to graduate.

[Gregory Sager]

Also, in case Rob doesn't get around to it, let me remind one and all to watch the IWU @ NPU game live tonight. My halftime interview guest on tonight's broadcast will be NPU women's rowing head coach Tim Grant, so tune in to see if all my practice this week at correctly pronouncing the word "coxswain" pays off.

[Titan Q]

My halftime interview guest on tonight's broadcast will be NPU women's rowing head coach Tim Grant, so tune in to see if all my practice this week at correctly pronouncing the word "coxswain" pays off.

Work on pronouncing the visiting team's name too...no "z" sound in "Wesleyan."  From score updates in previous broadcasts I've noticed you do that "Wezzleyan" thing...if you can pronounce Buena Vista correctly, certainly you can nail a fellow CCIW school!

[Viking Mike]

Titan Q---

I don't think Coach G was slighting the Titans when he mentioned that "the Vikings will never play a conference game during finals week again."

I was at the game and was very impressed with IWU's play.   As a fan who has seen 75% of the Vikes games this year, they DID come out FLAT and played SLOW the entire game.  The had no business being within 7 of your team at half.  IWU got all the loose balls and long rebounds.  At times rebounds were falling at the feet of 4 Vikings and a Titan managed to come in a grab the loose ball.  It was a statement made out of frustration as the Vikings usually capitalize on the hustle plays and loose balls. Frustrating was the fact that despite their problems, the managed to make it a game in the 2nd half and made it a one possession game with 1 min left.

Yes,  IWU seems to be the better team this year by virtue of leading Augie for the majority of time in their 2 games.  However, on Wednesday night, Augie was slow and and tired.  As a fan in the stands and prob to the Coach, it was not a typical game for Augie and we all had expected a win in Carver against a good Titan squad.

Hoping the Vikes get a chance next week to show you how well they are capable of playing!!!

Good Luck to your Titans in making the Big Dance...... they are deserving!!!

[Titan Q]

Titan Q---

I don't think Coach G was slighting the Titans when he mentioned that "the Vikings will never play a conference game during finals week again."

I was at the game and was very impressed with IWU's play.   As a fan who has seen 75% of the Vikes games this year, they DID come out FLAT and played SLOW the entire game.  The had no business being within 7 of your team at half.  IWU got all the loose balls and long rebounds.  At times rebounds were falling at the feet of 4 Vikings and a Titan managed to come in a grab the loose ball.  It was a statement made out of frustration as the Vikings usually capitalize on the hustle plays and loose balls. Frustrating was the fact that despite their problems, the managed to make it a game in the 2nd half and made it a one possession game with 1 min left.

Yes,  IWU seems to be the better team this year by virtue of leading Augie for the majority of time in their 2 games.  However, on Wednesday night, Augie was slow and and tired.  As a fan in the stands and prob to the Coach, it was not a typical game for Augie and we all had expected a win in Carver against a good Titan squad.

Hoping the Vikes get a chance next week to show you how well they are capable of playing!!!

Good Luck to your Titans in making the Big Dance...... they are deserving!!!

Thanks Mike.  I watched the Augie @ Carthage game, and I know how well the Vikings can play.  They looked great in that 2nd half vs the Red Men.  No proving necessary for me. 

I said my peace on Coach G's quote and will just leave it at that.  I appreciate your perspective though. 

[Dennis_Prikkel]

ct 70-63 final stevie dj 34

[Titan Q]

ct 70-63 final stevie dj 34

Congratulations to Bosko Djurickovic and the Red Men on the 2010 CCIW title!

[usee]

Congratulations to Carthage for the first outright CCIW title in 8 yrs. 12-2 in this league is something special. Many had carthage pegged as the favorite but I don't think anyone thought they (or anyone) would go 12-2. We also have a chance to see 2 others go at least 10-4 which is often a record that wins this league. It will be interesting to see how Carthage and any other CCIW reps fare in the postseason.

[Titan Q]

We also have a chance to see 2 others go at least 10-4 which is often a record that wins this league. It will be interesting to see how Carthage and any other CCIW reps fare in the postseason.

Actually, I don't think anyone has ever won the league at 10-4.  11-3 is usually the record that gets it done.  But yes, 12-2 or better is always very impressive.