MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[iwu70]

Congrats to Augie on a great season, one of the best in all CCIW history.  I thought they'd go further.

IWU'70

[Titan Q]

We were out last night and I wasn't following the game.  I was very surprised to hear of the result.

Congrats to the Vikings on a great season.  Thank goodness that senior class is done...tough, talented group.

[Titan Q]

Matt Snyder (aka KnightSlappy) does some great work in simulating regional rankings data using winning percentage, strength of schedule, and results vs regional ranked opponents (the 3 major criterion used in the selection process)...

http://detroitjockcity.com/division-iii-mens-basketball-regional-rankings-data/

In addition to stacking teams up within each region, he also evaluates teams across all regions -- see "ranking" column. (This allows him to project Pool C teams.)

Matt's formula picked the winner of each bracket.  Within each of the 4 quadrants, his "top two seeds" were:

Top Left
2. Benedictine
7. St. Norbert

Bottom Left
10. Amherst
16. Plattsburgh St.

Top Right
3. St. Thomas
4. Augustana

Bottom Right
1. Christoper Newport
5. Marietta

[Titan Q]

Congratulations to Mark Edmundson (IWU '90) and his LeRoy Panthers on the 1A state championship.  A nice article on Eddy...

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/columnists/kindred/kindred-driven-leroy-coach-finds-perfect-fit-in-return/article_57a4609f-429f-5894-92c5-5fa1daa27476.html

[Gregory Sager]

The CCIW ended the season 62-33 (.652) in non-conference play. That's outstanding by D3 league standards, but not particularly distinguished by CCIW standards. This league topped the .700 mark several times in the Oughts.

This season also sees the end of a four-year streak of CCIW appearances in the Final Four.

[augiefan]

Not much to say about last night's disappointing loss. UST simply was the better team and overcame the Augie home court advantage. The end of some great careers for he Augie seniors. Now it's back to the drawing board for a major rebuild at Augie.

I certainly hope the two remaining Midwest teams making the finals. I have not seen Benedictine play, but they certainly have dominated all year. I'll go with the Illinois team in the final.

Congrats to LeRoy High on their title. Mark E. Is fortunate to have had 6' 6" Matt Chastain leading his team to the title. I have followed Matt Chastain because he is close with a family I know in LeRoy. He is a rare DI prospect coming up of the tiny 1A classification in Illinois. He has scholarship offers from Valpo, Loyola and a few others. Bigger schools might be missing up on a hidden gem. The kid is very athletic.

[miac952]

Last night's result really surprised me. I thought VERY  highly of Augie having heard the hype and seen a few webcasts. And they lived up to it this weekend. A strong and deep team that is definitely top 3 in the country. Just caught UST at the wrong time I suspect.

Saw UST play a few times this in person and a few on webcast. Would say I am casual fan. I would put this squad in the 5-6 range if UST squads over the last decade. Not that they are weak, but just not top of the heap talent wise. However, that is where I would have ranked the 2011 team too. There's some similarities in this team gelling and peaking at the right time. They seem to get more out of the post spot than you would suspect, and compliment with a couple guards that can slash and shoot.

A frustrated Elmhurst dad was walking out of last weeks game yucking it up with a few students about how Elmhurst got screwed having to come to St Paul and the Tommies were going to get there's much worse in Rock island next weekend. Frankly, I agreed with him on his predictions. While UST has some NCAA duds like last years upset by Northwestern, Tauer schemes up some brilliant game plans against superior competition.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

Something to keep in mind... the most talented teams on paper don't tend to win the national in championship in Division III. I think many would say Augustana was more talented player-to-player than Stevens Point last year, but the Pointers were a heck of a team and executed as such. We have seen many teams, like St. Thomas in 2011, end up winning titles over highly-talented teams. That isn't always the case... Stevens Point won back-to-back titles with two very good talents; Otterbein in '02 (?) won with one of the best talents this century; you could make a case Wash U had the most talent their back-to-back seasons, though they also played very well as a team.

That's why I love Division III... it usually comes down to more than the talent on the floor... it comes down to how that talent plays as a team.

[Titan Q]

That's why I love Division III... it usually comes down to more than the talent on the floor... it comes down to how that talent plays as a team.

That is what Augustana was good at, Dave.  They didn't blow you away with individual talent -- but they played extremely well together as a team.  That is why I am surprised they lost...especially at home.

And I would not say Augustana was more talented than Stevens Point last year -- UWSP presented so, so many matchup problems with that versatile group last year.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

That's why I love Division III... it usually comes down to more than the talent on the floor... it comes down to how that talent plays as a team.

That is what Augustana was good at, Dave.  They didn't blow you away with individual talent -- but they played extremely well together as a team.  That is why I am surprised they lost...especially at home.

And I would not say Augustana was more talented than Stevens Point last year -- UWSP presented so, so many matchup problems with that versatile group last year.

I do agree with you... my point wasn't to say Augustana was full of individual talent as I really wanted to point out how many teams win based on team play than individual play, that is all.

I am just as shocked as you about Augustana losing for the same reason(s). But St. Thomas clearly has found another gear late this season.

[Gregory Sager]

Something to keep in mind... the most talented teams on paper don't tend to win the national in championship in Division III.

I think that the phrase "don't tend to win" is too strong an assessment, given the historical record. There have been many, many occasions in D3 history in which the most talented team won the national title. It doesn't always happen, of course -- and the fact that the best team doesn't always win is a big part of what makes the tournament so exciting -- but it happens frequently enough so that nobody can claim the whole thing's just a crapshoot. In fact, you went on to name several examples from this century (Otterbein, the two Wash U teams, the back-to-back UWSP champions) and I think that there are others as well. And the tournament ledgers from before the turn of the millennium were replete with similar examples of the best team in the field taking home the Big Doorstop.

That's why I love Division III... it usually comes down to more than the talent on the floor... it comes down to how that talent plays as a team.

That is what Augustana was good at, Dave.  They didn't blow you away with individual talent -- but they played extremely well together as a team.  That is why I am surprised they lost...especially at home.

And I would not say Augustana was more talented than Stevens Point last year -- UWSP presented so, so many matchup problems with that versatile group last year.

Agreed. I thought that UWSP was at least as talented as any team in the field in 2015.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

The reason I didn't go with the "talented" side for UWSP wasn't because their players weren't talented. To be honest, everyone is talented at this level. But they were more about a team. When I think of teams and label them with "talent," it is because they have one, two, or three individuals who can take over a game.

UWSP in their back-to-back seasons had two obvious talents who did that. WashU had a few on their team. Sure, both had other parts that contributed, but they had talent that were the focal point.

In my opinion, UWSP didn't have talent who would take over a game last season. They were so good as a team and playing together that individual talent really wasn't needed. Sure, they had talented players and they all played very well, but they didn't need to put the game on their own shoulders to win. In fact they probably shouldn't have done that or it would have thrown everything off. One guy could score 20+ one night and the next it could be someone completely different.

Sure, there are teams who have won with talented individuals. I am not in anyway saying it doesn't happen. I am trying to give credit to "teams" and why I think "teams" don't get a fair shake a lot of the time. Heck, while I think Augustana is a good "team" ... I do tend to lean towards some individuals like Hunter when I think of them and look to those individuals to pull them out of a hole.

I am just trying to indicate that team championships aren't unheard of despite what I feel like is the indication that individual talent tends to be the driving force. I also didn't feel like going through every championship season to make a determination .

[markerickson]

I thought Augie was vulnerable, given their contests against NPU the last two years and having seen the west coast Vikings in person.

[Gregory Sager]

When I think of teams and label them with "talent," it is because they have one, two, or three individuals who can take over a game.

OK, that's fair. I wouldn't define "talent" in the same way, because to me that invites confusion, but I recognize and agree with your observation that some great teams are more balanced while others are built along the lines of the traditional two-or-three-stars-plus-role-players template.

[augie77]

http://www.qconline.com/sports/college_sports/augie-hoops-seniors-deserved-more-fitting-finish/article_3f88da73-dbdd-5f28-9004-affcfb11f186.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=user-share

A nice article on the Augustans seniors, who represented the school very nicely, both on and off the court.