MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[GoPerry]

Augustana 86
Wheaton 84

Aston Francis      37 pts on 11-18, 8-12 3pt
Kobe Eichelberger   14 pts, 5 rebs
Ricky Samuelson   14 pts, 3 rebs
Luke Peters      8 pts, 7rebs, 8 assts

Micah Martin      19 pts, 3 rebs
Nolan Ebel      17 pts
Dylan Sortillo      16 pts
Brett Benning      11 pts, 11 rebs, 6 assts


What can you say?  Great game in front of a big crowd between 2 very good teams.  But it comes down to 2 very costly turnovers by Luke Peters (his only 2 of the game vs 8 assts) who is typically very solid with the ball.  Tough way to lose it, especially since he had such a solid game overall.  Did Wheaton not have any more time outs left on the inbounds play? Must not have.  Ebel layup to put Augie ahead was just too easy.  Great game by Benning.  Wheaton loses rebounding by 10 – tough to beat national #5 home or away losing the board battle that badly.

Congrats to Augie for getting the win.  Well deserved.  These teams might see each other again down the road.

Wheaton called a timeout after that play to set up the Francis miss at the line with 2.5 to go.

I observed that at the time also.   But then I also thought it might've been Augie calling the TO which the box score confirms that it was the Vikes who called.

[thunder38]

Augustana 86
Wheaton 84

Aston Francis      37 pts on 11-18, 8-12 3pt
Kobe Eichelberger   14 pts, 5 rebs
Ricky Samuelson   14 pts, 3 rebs
Luke Peters      8 pts, 7rebs, 8 assts

Micah Martin      19 pts, 3 rebs
Nolan Ebel      17 pts
Dylan Sortillo      16 pts
Brett Benning      11 pts, 11 rebs, 6 assts


What can you say?  Great game in front of a big crowd between 2 very good teams.  But it comes down to 2 very costly turnovers by Luke Peters (his only 2 of the game vs 8 assts) who is typically very solid with the ball.  Tough way to lose it, especially since he had such a solid game overall.  Did Wheaton not have any more time outs left on the inbounds play? Must not have.  Ebel layup to put Augie ahead was just too easy.  Great game by Benning.  Wheaton loses rebounding by 10 – tough to beat national #5 home or away losing the board battle that badly.

Congrats to Augie for getting the win.  Well deserved.  These teams might see each other again down the road.

Wheaton called a timeout after that play to set up the Francis miss at the line with 2.5 to go.

I observed that at the time also.   But then I also thought it might've been Augie calling the TO which the box score confirms that it was the Vikes who called.

That was Augustana's timeout so Wheaton still had a 30 second timeout to use on the inbounds that Peters threw away.

[kiko]

At any rate, we now have an interesting topic of discussion opened up: Six teams going to the CCIW tournament instead of four, starting next season. Thoughts?

Let us just give everybody a trophy like they got in Little League.  I see no point in this.

Presumably the #3 seed for a CCIW tournament is within sniffing distance of a Pool C berth.  This gives them an opportunity to pick up a win and potentially boost the nums that factor into Pool C comparisons.  If we get chalk in the conference tournament results, then 1-1 is better than 0-1.  Previously, our format hurt a #3 seed that lost in the semifinal round versus a #3 seed in another conference that would have picked up a win before dropping out.  Now we are more on a even footing, and as was noted above, 62.56426873% of other conferences previously had a slight advantage when looking through this lens.

Of course, my preference is to kill the tourney altogether and settle things over the 25-game regular season, but that ship sailed many moons ago.

[Titan Q]

Key from this game 70/Q didn't mention that I only caught based on peeking at the live stats during timeouts: the Titans went on at least a 16-0 run in the second half to flip an eight point deficit into an eight point lead. I don't know how extended it was, but kudos to the Titans for a nice road win.

Definitely the key stretch of the game.  Elmhurst led 48-40 at the 18:14 mark...and IWU went on an 18-0 run to go up 58-48 at 14:03.

Points in the 18-0 run: Knobloch 9, Gregoire 7, Baker 2

There is some serious fire power on this IWU team.

[Titan Q]

Presumably the #3 seed for a CCIW tournament is within sniffing distance of a Pool C berth.  This gives them an opportunity to pick up a win and potentially boost the nums that factor into Pool C comparisons.  If we get chalk in the conference tournament results, then 1-1 is better than 0-1.  Previously, our format hurt a #3 seed that lost in the semifinal round versus a #3 seed in another conference that would have picked up a win before dropping out.  Now we are more on a even footing, and as was noted above, 62.56426873% of other conferences previously had a slight advantage when looking through this lens.

Absolutely.

[voxelmhurst]

Yeah that 18-0 Wesleyan run basically put this one out of reach for Elmhurst. I'll give Elmhurst credit for not quitting. They were down as many as 19 in the second half and got it down to 9. If not for some missed free throws late in the second half, Elmhurst might have turned the sweat back on for Wesleyan. Liked seeing the hustle and performance of Derek Dotlich (played like he wants back in starting lineup) and freshman Justin Fox, who I really like as a player,( smart and makes few mistakes.) Rhode only put up 9 points but 10 assists. Wesleyan simply played like a first-place team tonight.

I felt there were too many fouls called in this one but the refs at least did seem to go both ways with this

[AndOne]

Final from Naperville: NCC over Millikin 75-49.

The Cardinals literally led for the entire 40 minutes, as Millikin coach John Scherer failed to get his starting five to the table in the allotted time. Mike Pollack hit the administrative technical free throw prior to tip-off, and thus began the snowball effect.

North Central assisted on 24 of 26 field goals and hit 17 of 40 threes (11-20 in the first half). Matt Cappelletti led the Cardinals with 19, Mike Pollack had 13, Erwin Henry dropped 11, and Blaise Meredith chipped in 10. Alex Sorenson had an off night with just 8 points on 3-8 shooting, but had a game high 9 rebounds. DaVante Harrell and Korbin Farmer each scored 10 for the Big Blue.

Granted that a step down in the level of competition was certainly a factor, but the Cardinals played a vastly more satisfying game tonight than the one vs. Elmhurst on Sat. That game left me in shock. Not because EC isn't a talented team, but rather due to the fact that the Cards went from being 16 up to finishing 14 down, a shocking 30 point swing in slightly more than half the game.

In tonight's game, three things particularly stood out to me.
1. NCC took 40 three point shots (making 17). This is quite a departure from the Cardinals normal modus operandi.
2. Connor Raridon, a lifelong 3 who assumed the role of North Central's primary PG on an emergency basis this season due to an injury, had 11 assists. This runs his total to a league leading 118 for the season.
3. In the Very Bad column, the Cardinals committed 16 TOs. This has to stop. Repetition against several stronger teams in upcoming games could well spell disaster.

[AndOne]

Big road win for IWU, 93-76 over EC.  Very important win.

Rose 20
Knobloch 19
Gregoire (another great game) 17
Beasley 13 -- hitting key 3s
O'Neill --10

Solid games tonight from Knobloch and Gregoire.

IWU'70

Does anyone know if Knobloch hit most of his shots off open looks, where the D either lost or ignored him, or were his threes and any long twos just great shots converted despite heavy pressure?

I ask because this is a player known for his shooting. However, he doesn't impress as someone with a lot of quickness/speed and the ability to either create shots off the dribble, or to run around screens to find open spots. It seems like his effectiveness could be limited by tight in-your-face defensive pressure. Otherwise, you're asking for a bullet.

[AndOne]

Does anyone know if IWU's Miles Curry was the victim of any type of unfortunate calamity recently?

I had texts earlier this evening from 2 different regular CCIW observers (I believe sometimes referred to as lurkers as opposed to regular posters) asking "What happened to Miles Curry"?

A perusal of the IWU/EC box score from tonight's game shows that 13 players saw time in the game, but that none of them were Mr. Curry. Even the names of frosh Cheaney & Bair, and soph Robinson, all largely virtually invisible much of the season, show in tonight's box. However, Curry is missing. He played in 16 of 17 games before tonight.
Illness, injury, simply a BNPCD, or something else? Anybody have a clue as to the possible reason for his failure to appear this evening?

[iwu70]

Knobloch runs off screens, has a pretty good slashing move to the paint, and needs very little space to launch his trey attempts because his motion is so rapid-quick.  If the D is right in his face, he passes off or drives.  But, a little space and pop, the shot is gone and three points are on the board.  Amazing, quirky quick release.  Fun to watch when he's on a tear.  The other IWU perimeter players seem to know how to find him, too.  It is not a traditional jump shot release -- much faster. 

I know nothing about Curry.

IWU'70

[iwu70]

Congrats to Augie on their big big win tonight over WC.  Great game.

We're down to 7 games now, the stretch run, the run to March. 

Keep it rolling, Titans -- no let down. 

'70

[Titan Q]

Does anyone know if IWU's Miles Curry was the victim of any type of unfortunate calamity recently?

I had texts earlier this evening from 2 different regular CCIW observers (I believe sometimes referred to as lurkers as opposed to regular posters) asking "What happened to Miles Curry"?

A perusal of the IWU/EC box score from tonight's game shows that 13 players saw time in the game, but that none of them were Mr. Curry. Even the names of frosh Cheaney & Bair, and soph Robinson, all largely virtually invisible much of the season, show in tonight's box. However, Curry is missing. He played in 16 of 17 games before tonight.
Illness, injury, simply a BNPCD, or something else? Anybody have a clue as to the possible reason for his failure to appear this evening?

The flu.  Curry couldn't make the trip.  Bonnett, Burdine, and Rose also had it but were able to travel/play.

[GoPerry]

At any rate, we now have an interesting topic of discussion opened up: Six teams going to the CCIW tournament instead of four, starting next season. Thoughts?

Let us just give everybody a trophy like they got in Little League.  I see no point in this.

Presumably the #3 seed for a CCIW tournament is within sniffing distance of a Pool C berth.  This gives them an opportunity to pick up a win and potentially boost the nums that factor into Pool C comparisons.  If we get chalk in the conference tournament results, then 1-1 is better than 0-1.  Previously, our format hurt a #3 seed that lost in the semifinal round versus a #3 seed in another conference that would have picked up a win before dropping out.  Now we are more on a even footing, and as was noted above, 62.56426873% of other conferences previously had a slight advantage when looking through this lens.

This was my initial thought also.  This year, 3 teams are guaranteed an additional loss which will decrease their win/loss %.  One of those will also get an additional win which will limit the win % damage.  Next year at least 4 teams get a shot at an additional win to match their loss (and one team could go 2-1).  When you add the possibly stronger SOS and vRR record, maybe that's not so terrible.   

[Gregory Sager]

Does anyone know if IWU's Miles Curry was the victim of any type of unfortunate calamity recently?

I had texts earlier this evening from 2 different regular CCIW observers (I believe sometimes referred to as lurkers as opposed to regular posters) asking "What happened to Miles Curry"?

A perusal of the IWU/EC box score from tonight's game shows that 13 players saw time in the game, but that none of them were Mr. Curry. Even the names of frosh Cheaney & Bair, and soph Robinson, all largely virtually invisible much of the season, show in tonight's box. However, Curry is missing. He played in 16 of 17 games before tonight.
Illness, injury, simply a BNPCD, or something else? Anybody have a clue as to the possible reason for his failure to appear this evening?

OK, Mark, since you're making us guess ... Bloomington-Normal personal computer disaster?

The flu.  Curry couldn't make the trip.  Bonnett, Burdine, and Rose also had it but were able to travel/play.

That makes twice this season that you've reported to CCIW Chat that the Titans roster was wracked by the flu:

Zach Knobloch was one of many Titans who had the flu today.

Does McLean County have an ordinance prohibiting flu shots?

At any rate, we now have an interesting topic of discussion opened up: Six teams going to the CCIW tournament instead of four, starting next season. Thoughts?

Let us just give everybody a trophy like they got in Little League.  I see no point in this.

Presumably the #3 seed for a CCIW tournament is within sniffing distance of a Pool C berth.  This gives them an opportunity to pick up a win and potentially boost the nums that factor into Pool C comparisons.  If we get chalk in the conference tournament results, then 1-1 is better than 0-1.  Previously, our format hurt a #3 seed that lost in the semifinal round versus a #3 seed in another conference that would have picked up a win before dropping out.  Now we are more on a even footing, and as was noted above, 62.56426873% of other conferences previously had a slight advantage when looking through this lens.

This was my initial thought also.  This year, 3 teams are guaranteed an additional loss which will decrease their win/loss %.  One of those will also get an additional win which will limit the win % damage.  Next year at least 4 teams get a shot at an additional win to match their loss (and one team could go 2-1).  When you add the possibly stronger SOS and vRR record, maybe that's not so terrible.   

That was my first thought, too. I wanted to see if anybody else was thinking along those lines.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

I read this year's flu shot is only 10% effective this year. Only thing less effective than that is my alma mater's men's and women's programs...