MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[magicman]

Millikin loses to Rose-Hulman 60-39. 

[Gregory Sager]

Gametime for the North Park/Loras contest and still unable to access an audio or video link. Anybody out there with a suggestion? Live stats is up and running but that's it.

I also can't get to the link.  Yesterday I was able to access the link, but I ended up at a page requiring registration and the purchase of some type of "subscription."

I watched several NPU broadcasts last year.  Hoping Greg or Rob can explain what we need to do to watch future games.

NPU just switched to Sidearm as its athletics software provider, and Sidearm also supplies the webcasting software as part of the package. Sidearm was only installed a couple of weeks ago, so there are apparently still glitches that need to be worked through. Knowing that people weren't able to tune into yesterday's game, Rob and I broadcasted today's game under the assumption that it would be archived so that people would be able to watch it a few days from now when the problems have been ironed out.

[Gregory Sager]

I ought to simply copy Bob's post from yesterday and replace the words "Illinois Wesleyan" with "North Park" and the word "Ripon" with "Loras", because it was that kind of a game today for the Park. The Vikings had a nightmarish day shooting the ball, coming back down to Earth from yesterday's 27-50 (54%) FG and 12-24 (50%) trey shooting with a stomach-turning 18-61 (30%) FG and 6-21 (29%) trey shooting day. The treys evening out over the space of 24 hours makes sense, but the fact that NPU missed layup after layup, bunny after bunny, makes no sense at all. It wasn't Loras's doing, either; the Vikings simply couldn't throw the ball into Lake Michigan today if they were standing at the end of Navy Pier. The shooting numbers of NPU's front line -- Crosby 4-11, Gabriel 4-11, Holmes 1-10, Alsing 0-3, Schniedermeier 0-1 -- defy logic. Throw in Kendall Greer's 2-12 day, and you have a recipe for disaster. The one Viking who shot well today was freshman off guard Reggie McGee, who went 4-5 from downtown and was the sole Viking to reach double figures, scoring 12.

Loras is not a bad team, but it's not a good team, either. The Duhawks should have no business beating a CCIW team by eight in its own gym. The fact that Wheaton blew out the Duhawks by 25 a couple of weeks ago is disquieting. NPU is definitely in one-step-forward, two-steps-back mode right now. The only positive I can see right now is that, since the season began, NPU has had six games and five practices. Now the schedule will finally settle down, as the only game that the Vikes will play over the next three weeks is next Saturday's game at Trine. That means that Dylan Howard and his staff will finally have sufficient practice time to work on the things that need to be worked on, rather than having to worry about prepping for the next opponent.

[Gregory Sager]

Elmhurst beat Purdue-North Central today, 66-56, in the consolation game of the DePauw tourney.

[iwu70]

That Ripon-IWU game was ugly.  Titans did about everything badly, as Q has reported.  I saw the Monmouth game earlier and that was a bit too easy.  Davis and Reed again had strong games.  Good luck to Gonzales is getting back, healing quickly. 

I again watched the JV game vs. Monmouth -- and they again put of 112 points.  See my earlier report on this JV group.  This time, I'd give more love to Connor Wheeler who played extremely well at PG.  He's a strong kid, plays with good floor vision, nice shooting from 3 as well as FTs, strong defense.  Seems he, Overstreet and Parker Musselman are dresssing with the Varsity as well.  I can see why. 

Good luck to the Titans at Whitewater.  I hope they can get back on track, and put together a much better all'round performance. 

IWU70

[MoEv27]

Final stats from Ripon...

Aris Wurtz - 39 pts, 6 reb, 3 TO's, 15-15 FT's
Titan Starters - 34 pts, 12 reb, 12 TO's, 2-5 FT's

On to the next one.....

[AndOne]

Just thought to check the NCC/Aurora score and was shocked to see...

Aurora 94
North Central 82

http://northcentralcardinals.com/custompages/MBK/mbk1112/Mbk03.htm


Aurora lost to Augie by 34, and Trine by 15.

NCC only had one bench player who logged more than 10 minutes - Charlie Rosenberg (16).  PG Kevin Gillespie played 40 minutes and Derek Raridon 39.

After seeing this, I don't think there is any question Wheaton should be considered a stronger contender to Augie than NCC (as of right now, in the early going).

*When you don't get back on defense, don't get a hand up, let your man go around you like your shoes were nailed to the floor, and otherwise act disinterested you are going to get your @ss handed to you.
*Giving up 94 points to any team is disgusting. You score 82 points, you should win. If North Central had scored 82 points in every game last year, they would have lost exactly once---to a D2 team.
*The shocking thing about this loss was not the loss itself but more so the fact the Cardinals gave up the 94 points. Aurora WAS picked to win the southern division of the NAC.
*NCC does need to develop more depth. Charlie Rosenberg is doing a fine job off the bench, and may be developing into the conference's best 6th man. However, no matter how much he continues to develop, and how well he plays, the Cardinals need much more from their bench if they are to live up to their preseason hype.
*Undoubtedly, one of the reasons for Wheaton's nice start and anticipated continued success is its depth. They have done a good job of turning a weakness over the last few seasons into a strength.

[AndOne]

G - Alex Erdmann, 6-2 Jr (1.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 3.0 apg)
G - Taylor Koth, 6-2 Jr (26.0 ppg, 14.0 rpg, 3.5 apg)
F - Aris Wurtz, 6-4 Sr (22.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.0 apg)
F - Brad Brooks, 6-6 So (10.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 5.0 apg)
C - Nic Schaalma, 6-11 Sr (4.0 ppg, 4.5 rpg)

Q, is the height on Koth correct, only 6'2?  Looks like he must be one agressive player to pull down all those boards.

Here are my rankings system's predicted results for today's CCIW games:

IWU a 7 point favorite @ Ripon
North Park a 7 point underdog at home vs. Coe
Elmhurst a 11 point underdog vs. Wabash (@ DePauw)
North Central a 8 point underdog at home vs. Illinois College

-  IWU lost by 19
-  NPU won by 15
+ Elm lost by 8
- NCC won by 15

Three down, one up. The crystal ball needs polishing.   

[AndOne]

sorry folks, we are on the air, not sure what the issue is with the player but for whatever reason it isn't available.

Also tried and of course was unable to connect. Hope you get the problem solved rob.

[AndOne]

Just thought to check the NCC/Aurora score and was shocked to see...

Aurora 94
North Central 82

http://northcentralcardinals.com/custompages/MBK/mbk1112/Mbk03.htm


Aurora lost to Augie by 34, and Trine by 15.

NCC only had one bench player who logged more than 10 minutes - Charlie Rosenberg (16).  PG Kevin Gillespie played 40 minutes and Derek Raridon 39.

After seeing this, I don't think there is any question Wheaton should be considered a stronger contender to Augie than NCC (as of right now, in the early going).

I was speaking with a local D3 head coach last night, and he and I realized that we had both came to that same conclusion about Wheaton being Augie's biggest CCIW challenger this season, not NCC. And this was before I saw the NCC vs. Aurora score.

Not that I'm writing off the Cardinals or anything, but Wheaton just seems loaded this season, while the losses of Burchett and Hallstein really look like they've set NCC back.

Greg--

Actually, the losses of Burchett & Hallstein have had a fairly minimal effect on the Cardinals fortunes so far this year:

*Jack Burchett was a scrappy, take no prisoners type player who was perhaps the best D3 player I've seen when it comes to dribbling the basketball. He could very effectively rebound and lead the break if necessary. His main contribution to last year's NCC team was on the boards where he pulled down a total of 135 rebounds (a 5.2 rpg avg), 2nd most on the team. He shot .519 from the field, and an absolutely horrendous
.286 from the line. He averaged 5.2 ppg.
Had he maintained his desire to play, I don't think there is any question that Jack would be an asset to this year's team. However, its possible that he would have only been the number 5 "big" in the rotation after Gamble, Raridon, Tiknis, and Rosenberg. Additionally, the argument could be made that he played as much as he did last year due to the facts that Tiknis was injured for 40% of the season and was deconditioned for a while upon his return, and Rosenberg was lost for the year after only 6 games.
By contrast, Aaron Tiknis, who has replaced Burchett in the starting lineup this year, is a better all-around player. He is shooting at a .550 clip, including .400 from beyond the arc (Burchett did not attempt a 3 last yr), and averaging 8.3 ppg. Additionally, Tiknis' FT% stands at .875, and he is averaging a team leading 7.8 rpg.
Aaron currently ranks 2nd in overall rebounding in the conference stats, and 3rd in assists.

Charlie Rosenberg, the 1st post player off the bench, is shooting an incredible .714 from the field, is scoring at 5.3 ppg, and is pulling down 9.0 rpg. Additionally, Charlie, Mr Nice when he wants to be off the court, plays with a definite "edge" when he enters a battle. His engine can occasionally red line, and he needs to be mindful that the "law" is usually close by and more than willing to whistle a citation.   

*Brad Hallstein was the 9th player in the rotation at the conclusion of last season. He played a total of 250 minutes and averaged 2.1 ppg on .360 shooting. At 6'8" he showed an aversion to positioning himself very close to the basket, and averaged only 1.2 rpg as a result. He came to NCC with the reputation of being an outstanding 3 point shooter, but for the year shot only 5 for 23 from beyond the arc, a measly .217 percentage.
Should he have returned this year, he would be the number 5 big man at best, and number 6 if Burchett had returned. His loss is minimal at most.

*At this point, the things that have hurt NCC the most are:
1. Defense. A strength in recent seasons, the Cardinals are currently LAST in the conference in scoring defense, FG pct defense, 3 point FG pct defense, blocked shots, and steals. In a word---UNACCEPTABLE!
2. The loss of Chris Smith who sustained an Achilles injury in one of the final practices before the season started, and who had season ending surgery last week. Chris would likely have been the 1st guard off the bench for the Cards, and there was a distinct possibility of his starting at the point. His loss has forced the insertion of freshman Mike Boyd into the lineup somewhat more quickly than anticipated. Mike, who would have seen appreciable action anyway, is doing well, and is going to be a fine player for the Cardinals. However, his "growth period" has been severely curtailed, and he has been forced to accelerate along the learning curve.
3. Depth. At this juncture, only 7 Cardinals have scored more than 2 points. They need at least two more players to step up and contribute both on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. Most urgently needed are another outside shooter, and a good perimeter/wing defender. The opportunities are available! I'd also like to see the Cards find a way to get Derek Raridon, the only man to shoot over 50% from beyond the arc in conference play last season, more looks/shots from long range. CJ Goldthree, who has the ability to be an all-conference performer, must also pick up his 3 point percentage for the Cardinals to establish an outside threat in addition to their interior strength.     
4. Either by example, vocally, or preferably both, my personal belief is that the Cardinals need a player or players to assume a more visible leadership role. As with last year, this team, with only 1 senior, is still liberally flavored with youth.

[augie_superfan]

Here are my rankings system's predicted results for today's CCIW games:

IWU a 7 point favorite @ Ripon
North Park a 7 point underdog at home vs. Coe
Elmhurst a 11 point underdog vs. Wabash (@ DePauw)
North Central a 8 point underdog at home vs. Illinois College

-  IWU lost by 19
-  NPU won by 15
+ Elm lost by 8
- NCC won by 15

Three down, one up. The crystal ball needs polishing.   

Guess you picked the wrong (or right) day to evaluate the crystall ball.  So far it has picked 25 of 32 CCIW games correctly (78.1%).  Fo all D3 games, it has picked 76.3% of games correctly to this point.  Unfortunately, it just can't figure out North Park quite yet (only 2 of 6 correct).

[Gregory Sager]

That's a mighty nice attempt at spin, Mark. Unfortunately, while writing off the contributions of the departed Burchett and Hallstein, you neglected to mention that they were freshmen last season. Freshmen almost always show up with a myriad of weaknesses in their games. As they progress into sophomores, then juniors, then seniors, the ones that are good enough to contribute at the CCIW level either: a) eliminate those weaknesses through practice, repetition, and effort; b) minimize them to the point where their presence on the floor is not a liability because of them; c) develop one or more strengths of their games to the point where they can't be kept off the floor by the head coach in spite of their liability(ies); or d) one or more of the above.

By dismissing Burchett and Hallstein with a wave of the hand, you deny that either one could've improved to the point where they would've been factors for NCC this season. Sorry, I'm not buying it. They were good enough to play as freshmen, and even with a healthy Tiknis and Rosenberg around they might well have been good enough to be a factor this year if they'd stuck with it, especially since, as you said, NCC has depth problems.

Sounds to me like you're just trying to rhetorically put the best foot forward for your team by downplaying its defections.

[AndOne]

A look at the weather this evening finds the winds spinning south over the lake, turning inland and picking up moisture over the Sagerville neighborhood, and blowing briskly out toward the western suburbs. 

*Talk about spin? Is the fact that Burchett & Hallstein were freshmen last season the only supporting evidence you can offer you can offer to support your position, Greg?
*"Spin" encompasses supposition and you suppose the former players in question would have improved--which may or may not have proven true. However, without documentation, is the simple statement actual evidentiary documentation or spin favoring your position?
*The proof is in the pudding--or in this case in the stats. And the stats clearly show that, at least to this point, this year's players are stronger factors than were the now departed players in question.
*Lastly, how can 2 players who demonstrated that they lacked the desire to even be a continued part of the team, be remotely considered to "have set NCC back" especially when you consider Tiknis & Rosenberg, 2 players who played less than they did last year, are making contributions that are currently exceeding what the departed players posted last season?   
 

[AndOne]

Here are my rankings system's predicted results for today's CCIW games:

IWU a 7 point favorite @ Ripon
North Park a 7 point underdog at home vs. Coe
Elmhurst a 11 point underdog vs. Wabash (@ DePauw)
North Central a 8 point underdog at home vs. Illinois College

-  IWU lost by 19
-  NPU won by 15
+ Elm lost by 8
- NCC won by 15

Three down, one up. The crystal ball needs polishing.   

Guess you picked the wrong (or right) day to evaluate the crystall ball.  So far it has picked 25 of 32 CCIW games correctly (78.1%).  Fo all D3 games, it has picked 76.3% of games correctly to this point.  Unfortunately, it just can't figure out North Park quite yet (only 2 of 6 correct).

With a 76 or 78% success rate, you should strongly consider getting your butt to a lottery ticket location now!

[Mr. Ypsi]

Here are my rankings system's predicted results for today's CCIW games:

IWU a 7 point favorite @ Ripon
North Park a 7 point underdog at home vs. Coe
Elmhurst a 11 point underdog vs. Wabash (@ DePauw)
North Central a 8 point underdog at home vs. Illinois College

-  IWU lost by 19
-  NPU won by 15
+ Elm lost by 8
- NCC won by 15

Three down, one up. The crystal ball needs polishing.   

Guess you picked the wrong (or right) day to evaluate the crystall ball.  So far it has picked 25 of 32 CCIW games correctly (78.1%).  Fo all D3 games, it has picked 76.3% of games correctly to this point.  Unfortunately, it just can't figure out North Park quite yet (only 2 of 6 correct).

With a 76 or 78% success rate, you should strongly consider getting your butt to a lottery ticket location now!

Lottery is pure luck (or as my dad says - a tax on math dropouts ).  augie_superfan's system is an attempt at logic - given that so far there is not much data, his winning % should rise.

One would hope!  MANY games are obvious mismatches, so any half-aware fan should get 70+% right - his system will (IMO) be a 'failure' if it does not eventually reach at least 85%.