MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[AndOne]

The five guard lineup!  Not for the Titans, but for their opposition.  Quite the irony!

To be specific, Whitman uses the positions "guard", "wing", and "forward" on its roster.  Butler, Stewart and Jacobs-Jones are listed as wings.

https://athletics.whitman.edu/roster.aspx?path=mbball

I use the more traditional guard, forward, center so had to pick what to call those wings.

To me, a wing is generally a guard.  Like IWU's Jason Gregoire - typical wing player, and basically a guard.

I always hate that when I'm prepping starting lineups. I generally do the same as Q though and make a wing a guard. Similar thing when you get labeled a "post". You're getting called a forward.

But those guard/forward hybrids...

Such a dilemma we sometimes have in establishing the true identity of the players we observe and follow. As the above posters have delineated, we've recently seen a type of hybrid player develop. One equally competent in performing as either a traditional guard or forward. Nowadays we often refer to such a player as a "wing," a position which I usually think of as someone who is usually positioned at about 45 degrees from the basket on either side. Titan Q advised such players are usually guards. A great example of an exception would be North Central's Connor Raridon who often operates from this position, is traditionally a forward rather than a guard, but who has the ability to handle the ball and feed other players which are qualities usually associated with players traditionally identified as guards.
Likewise, we've recently begun seeing both traditional forwards and centers being referred to as "posts." And, I'm thinking the next hybrid position that we might see identified might be that of a W/P, meaning "wing/post." Someone who possesses qualities usually associated with both a guard and a forward who also has the ability to either post up initially or to begin out on the wing and take his man inside and score. Watch closely. You're already starting to see some players operate, at least occasionally, in this manner.

[AndOne]

North Park has added a new player as well. He's 5'9 junior Henry Woo, Jr. from Evanston Township, who spent two years in a dreadful Concordia (IL) program that won a grand total of seven games in his two seasons there. Last year he was a part-time starter for the Cougars, averaging 9.3 ppg.

No offense to Woo, but I'm weary of seeing NPU lead the league in the dubious category of Most Players Under Six Feet Tall. Not that the Vikings haven't had some gifted players recently who didn't hit 72 inches on the physician's beam scale -- Juwan Henry, Colin Lake, and T.J. Cobbs were each worth their weight in big men, for example, and Izaiah Sanders and Kindrel Morris have turned out to be nice finds for this year's Vikings --  but at some point you have to recognize that the Lilliputians had more trouble dealing with Gulliver than he did with them.

🤔 Perhaps some of those Lilliputians should begin using slingshots to launch their shots! 😉

[Gregory Sager]

Such a dilemma we sometimes have in establishing the true identity of the players we observe and follow. As the above posters have delineated, we've recently seen a type of hybrid player develop. One equally competent in performing as either a traditional guard or forward.

There's nothing at all recent about this development:



John Havlicek



George Gervin



Jamaal Wilkes



Clyde Drexler



Tracy McGrady

... among others. The "equally competent in performing as either a traditional guard or forward" model of basketball player has been around awhile. That's why I said that when I use the term "swingman" I identify myself as being older than dirt ... because swingmen have been around since probably not too long after Naismith nailed the peach baskets to the Springfield College gym balconies.

[AndOne]

Illinois Wesleyan (8-3, 1-3) vs #4-Whitman (8-1, 2-0), 6pm PT/8pm CT...

Titans (8-3, 1-3)
G - Brady Rose, 6-3/185 Sr.  21.0 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 3.8 apg
G - Colin Bonnett, 6-4/190 Sr.  12.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 3.2 apg
G - Jason Gregoire, 6-4/205 Sr.  11.1 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.4 apg
F - Charlie Bair, 6-7/205 So.  7.5 ppg, 7.1 rpg
C - Alex O'Neill, 6-9/245 Jr.  7.5ppg, 4.8 rpg

Blues (8-1, 2-0)
G - Michael Gutierrez, 5-11/170 Jr.  6.8 ppg, 0.9 rpg, 1.2 agp
G - Joey Hewitt, 6-2/195 So.   15.7 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 2.3 apg
G - Cedric Jacobs-Jones, 6-2/235 Sr.   9.4 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 0.6 apg
G - Austin Butler, 6-3/195 Sr.   9.8 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 6.2 apg
G - Jack Stewart, 6-3/185 Sr.   11.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 1.4 apg

This is a timely notification, not only with regard to tonight's game, but also because it answers a question which I've recently been asked several times, both in person and on line, by fans of a few different teams. It's a question I also wondered about but that I was going to throw out primarily for IWU fans as I thought they might have the best insight.

The question is, "Is Brady Rose going to play 2nd semester"? At first, it seemed like like a weird guestion. I thought "why not." But then I realized the thinking behind the question. I could be wrong, but I believe most of the players that we have seen granted a fifth medical hardship year as Brady was, have usually been players who graduated in four years but then used the 5th/med hardship year while attending grad school at the same institution. My understanding is that IWU doesn't have graduate classes. Accordingly, since he didn't graduate with his original class, and wouldn't be in grad school this year, perhaps he would have earned enough credits to graduate after the fall semester. However TQ's post about tonight's game seems to answer the question. Good for Brady and IWU, and bad news for opponents who have to try to defend him going forward.

[Gregory Sager]

Well, I hope that he gets a discount from having a parent who is employed by IWU. That's an expensive school if what you're taking are meaningless classes that you don't need because you've already fulfilled your graduation requirements.

[AndOne]

Greg,

You're referring to fabulously talented professional players. I don't think the same situation has existed in the D3 ranks for anywhere near as long. 🤔

[AndOne]

Well, I hope that he gets a discount from having a parent who is employed by IWU. That's an expensive school if what you're taking are meaningless classes that you don't need because you've already fulfilled your graduation requirements.

And I would suppose there is also the distinct possibility that he pays zero dollars.

[Gregory Sager]

Mark, I can name a whole bunch of CCIW players from bygone eras who qualified as swingmen. The names wouldn't mean anything to you, since you haven't been around the league as long as I have, but trust me -- guys like Modzel Greer (NPC All-American who played on the first three national championship teams), Blaise Bugajski (IWU superstar and CCIW MOP who may have been the most talented Titan I've ever seen), and Tony Jordan (the mercurial NCC star of the mid-'80s who was quite possibly the most athletic player who ever wore a CCIW uni) were all "equally competent in performing as either a traditional guard or forward."

If Dennis Prikkel was still posting here, he could probably name CCIW swingmen that date back to the leather-pads-and-silk-shorts era.

[John Gleich]

Mark, I can name a whole bunch of CCIW players from bygone eras who qualified as swingmen.
...
Most athletic, etc...
...

If Dennis Prikkel was still posting here, he could probably name CCIW swingmen that date back to the leather-pads-and-silk-shorts era.

I've never met Dennis Prikkel, but I thought you were going to refer to him as one of these swing men...

From how he's been deceived in the past, I was a bit confused...!

[duckfan41]

Greg,

You're referring to fabulously talented professional players. I don't think the same situation has existed in the D3 ranks for anywhere near as long. 🤔

I would offer up Tim McCrary in this conversation.

[Gregory Sager]

Mark, I can name a whole bunch of CCIW players from bygone eras who qualified as swingmen.
...
Most athletic, etc...
...

If Dennis Prikkel was still posting here, he could probably name CCIW swingmen that date back to the leather-pads-and-silk-shorts era.

I've never met Dennis Prikkel, but I thought you were going to refer to him as one of these swing men...

From how he's been deceived in the past, I was a bit confused...!

If Joe Hakes was reading this, he'd no doubt post a chin joke right here about Dennis and swingmen.

Greg,

You're referring to fabulously talented professional players. I don't think the same situation has existed in the D3 ranks for anywhere near as long. 🤔

I would offer up Tim McCrary in this conversation.

McCrary had good floor skills, but I don't think that he ever played guard.

He's also a very recent player, as far as this conversation goes.

[duckfan41]

Mark, I can name a whole bunch of CCIW players from bygone eras who qualified as swingmen.
...
Most athletic, etc...
...

If Dennis Prikkel was still posting here, he could probably name CCIW swingmen that date back to the leather-pads-and-silk-shorts era.

I've never met Dennis Prikkel, but I thought you were going to refer to him as one of these swing men...

From how he's been deceived in the past, I was a bit confused...!

If Joe Hakes was reading this, he'd no doubt post a chin joke right here about Dennis and swingmen.

Greg,

You're referring to fabulously talented professional players. I don't think the same situation has existed in the D3 ranks for anywhere near as long. 🤔

I would offer up Tim McCrary in this conversation.

McCrary had good floor skills, but I don't think that he ever played guard.

He's also a very recent player, as far as this conversation goes.

Very fair! He was just a forward who was very good with the ball in his hands and figured I'd throw him in the conversation!

[Gregory Sager]

Fifteenth-ranked Randolph-Macon won the opening-rounder of its holiday tournament by holding off Carroll, 78-64. The Pioneers were led by Tyler Ingebrigtsen's 14 and 6, but he spent too much time on the bench with foul trouble. Troy Howat was the only other Pio in double figures with 14.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Mark, I can name a whole bunch of CCIW players from bygone eras who qualified as swingmen. The names wouldn't mean anything to you, since you haven't been around the league as long as I have, but trust me -- guys like Modzel Greer (NPC All-American who played on the first three national championship teams), Blaise Bugajski (IWU superstar and CCIW MOP who may have been the most talented Titan I've ever seen), and Tony Jordan (the mercurial NCC star of the mid-'80s who was quite possibly the most athletic player who ever wore a CCIW uni) were all "equally competent in performing as either a traditional guard or forward."

If Dennis Prikkel was still posting here, he could probably name CCIW swingmen that date back to the leather-pads-and-silk-shorts era.

If my memory is not playing tricks on me about his playing style, add Jesse Price at the top of the list.  Dennis Prikkel and I agree that he was THE best player ever in the CCIW.  If the conference MOP award had existed before his junior season, he almost certainly would have been the only player to ever win it FOUR times.  (And, yes, I think he was better than St. Jack - go ahead and revoke my Green card! )

[Gregory Sager]

One of the games I'm watching right now is Elmhurst versus Marietta at some gym in Phoenix, AZ. The floor is black with red lanes. The walls, which are right behind the endlines and right behind the benches, are black as well.

It's freaking me out.