MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[kiko]

From my red-tinted perspective, I am wanting the Sons of Warden to face (and, of course, defeat) a regionally ranked team in their semifinal round matchup, as any little thing that can boost Pool C credentials is welcomed at this juncture.

There you go!   You, and all NCC supporters (including Imitzel, AndOne, and the pbp announcer who butchered Adom's name), have an open invitation to come to King Arena tonight and root on the home team!  Do you have any orange to wear?

Ew.

[Gregory Sager]

I wore orange once. Broke out in hives.

I keep threatening to wear that color whenever it suits NPU's needs for Wheaton to win, but I always find myself pulling back from it at the last minute.

Orange is for Vitamin C intake, not for wearing.

[GoPerry]

Wheaton over Elmhurst 85-75

Having seen Elmhurst several times this year, I've often wondered why Derek Dotlich (29 pts on 9-14 FG, 7-11 3FG, 5 rebs) doesn't score more because he has about as nice a stroke there is from the arc.  I've observed that his style is more of a let-the-game-come-to-me bias.  But tonight, from the opening tip he was looking for his shot the whole way and didn't hesitate one bit.  He hit his first 5 shots, all threes, and had Wheaton back on their heels from the get go.  Overall, the 'Jays played a really good game I thought.  Rhode was much more assertive than last time.

Aston Francis (32 pts, 8-18, 6/15 from three, 7 rebs) combined with an offensively confident Luke Anthony or Nyameye Adom could give teams lots of trouble.  Petersen, Spencer, Cruikshank all contributed offensively at critical moments also.  Credit Schauer and the coaching staff in prepping for the box and one.  Thunder got several easy baskets off of it.

I hope everyone is right that this puts Wheaton in solid position for a Pool C unless there are a myriad of conference upsets.  In any case, NCC rubber match on Friday at a neutral court.  I'm sure the Cards are looking forward it.  You got what you wanted Kiko et al!

[Gregory Sager]

Wheaton over Elmhurst 85-75

Having seen Elmhurst several times this year, I've often wondered why Derek Dotlich (29 pts on 9-14 FG, 7-11 3FG, 5 rebs) doesn't score more because he has about as nice a stroke there is from the arc.  I've observed that his style is more of a let-the-game-come-to-me bias.

I think that that's a pretty astute summation of Dotlich's game. At any rate, I'm sure that John Baines is very happy that he has Dotlich back for another year. What he really has to focus upon is coming up with bigs in this current recruiting cycle, seeing as how he's losing Ireland, Marakis, and Brown. Plus, Lavon Thomas has been solidly in Baines's doghouse throughout the last five games (and that's one mastiff-sized doghouse, incidentally).

I hope everyone is right that this puts Wheaton in solid position for a Pool C unless there are a myriad of conference upsets.  In any case, NCC rubber match on Friday at a neutral court.  I'm sure the Cards are looking forward it.  You got what you wanted Kiko et al!

The consensus thus far seems to be that if North Central beats Wheaton on Friday, the CCIW has a shot at getting three teams in. I'd like to get another look at the overall national picture between now and Friday before I decide if that's a strong enough possibility for me to actually root for one team over the other for the greater sake of the league.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Wheaton over Elmhurst 85-75

Having seen Elmhurst several times this year, I've often wondered why Derek Dotlich (29 pts on 9-14 FG, 7-11 3FG, 5 rebs) doesn't score more because he has about as nice a stroke there is from the arc.  I've observed that his style is more of a let-the-game-come-to-me bias.

I think that that's a pretty astute summation of Dotlich's game. At any rate, I'm sure that John Baines is very happy that he has Dotlich back for another year. What he really has to focus upon is coming up with bigs in this current recruiting cycle, seeing as how he's losing Ireland, Marakis, and Brown. Plus, Lavon Thomas has been solidly in Baines's doghouse throughout the last five games (and that's one mastiff-sized doghouse, incidentally).

I hope everyone is right that this puts Wheaton in solid position for a Pool C unless there are a myriad of conference upsets.  In any case, NCC rubber match on Friday at a neutral court.  I'm sure the Cards are looking forward it.  You got what you wanted Kiko et al!

The consensus thus far seems to be that if North Central beats Wheaton on Friday, the CCIW has a shot at getting three teams in. I'd like to get another look at the overall national picture between now and Friday before I decide if that's a strong enough possibility for me to actually root for one team over the other for the greater sake of the league.

Now, if IWU upsets Augie, then beats the winner of NCC/Wheaton, is there ANY chance of FOUR CCIW teams?

Big doubties, but possible?

(And, if Oshkosh wins the WIAC, they seem resigned to ONE WIAC team.  After playing 'little brother' to the cheeseheads all these years (or at least most of them), how sweet that would be! )

[kiko]

The consensus thus far seems to be that if North Central beats Wheaton on Friday, the CCIW has a shot at getting three teams in. I'd like to get another look at the overall national picture between now and Friday before I decide if that's a strong enough possibility for me to actually root for one team over the other for the greater sake of the league.

I don't feel I need any more analysis time or data points.  I'm ready to pick my horse with what is already in evidence.

[Titan Q]

The consensus thus far seems to be that if North Central beats Wheaton on Friday, the CCIW has a shot at getting three teams in. I'd like to get another look at the overall national picture between now and Friday before I decide if that's a strong enough possibility for me to actually root for one team over the other for the greater sake of the league.

Wheaton is a lock now.

NCC is a lock with a win Friday.

[voxelmhurst]

Gutty win for the Thunder tonight.

Dotlich was on another level in the first half going 6-8 from 3 going for 20 before the intermission for the Blue Jays, but Wheaton amped up the defensive intensity in the second half and kept him in check.

Incredibly balanced scoring effort for the Thunder led by Francis with 32. Aston had help tonight joined in double figures by Luke Anthony with 14, Jay Spencer with 10, and Spencer Peterson with 10. Aston got his, but the X-factor tonight was without a doubt Luke Anthony who made several big shots in key moments and also played solid defense and rebounded well in the second half. Cruikshank also played impactful minutes stepping in for Luke Peters who was bitten by the foul trouble bug.

Dotlich paced the Blue Jays with 29 followed by Rhode with 21 and Ireland with 11. Elmhurst played about as close to a perfect half in the first half, but was put on their heels almost immediately starting the second stanza.

Congratulations to Elmhurst on a great season. On to the semis with Wheaton v. NCC 3 on Friday in Rock Island

This was a pretty darn good game. The Bluejays looked much better than they did in their last two games, but unfortunately this would be another tough loss on the road. They gave it their best and left it all out on the court. That's all you can ask. Bluejay fans will miss Ireland dearly next season. Thankfully, we can look forward to more from Dotlich, Rhode, et. Al.

Shout out to Wheaton's PA announcer who gave a very respectful sendoff to  "seniors Jeremy Ireland and Pavlos Marakis" during Elmhurst's final substitution in the final minute.

[duckfan41]

Gutty win for the Thunder tonight.

Dotlich was on another level in the first half going 6-8 from 3 going for 20 before the intermission for the Blue Jays, but Wheaton amped up the defensive intensity in the second half and kept him in check.

Incredibly balanced scoring effort for the Thunder led by Francis with 32. Aston had help tonight joined in double figures by Luke Anthony with 14, Jay Spencer with 10, and Spencer Peterson with 10. Aston got his, but the X-factor tonight was without a doubt Luke Anthony who made several big shots in key moments and also played solid defense and rebounded well in the second half. Cruikshank also played impactful minutes stepping in for Luke Peters who was bitten by the foul trouble bug.

Dotlich paced the Blue Jays with 29 followed by Rhode with 21 and Ireland with 11. Elmhurst played about as close to a perfect half in the first half, but was put on their heels almost immediately starting the second stanza.

Congratulations to Elmhurst on a great season. On to the semis with Wheaton v. NCC 3 on Friday in Rock Island

This was a pretty darn good game. The Bluejays looked much better than they did in their last two games, but unfortunately this would be another tough loss on the road. They gave it their best and left it all out on the court. That's all you can ask. Bluejay fans will miss Ireland dearly next season. Thankfully, we can look forward to more from Dotlich, Rhode, et. Al.

Shout out to Wheaton's PA announcer who gave a very respectful sendoff to  "seniors Jeremy Ireland and Pavlos Marakis" during Elmhurst's final substitution in the final minute.

Rusty Lindsey always does a great job on the mic. Super classy and is one of those guys who gets the home crowd into it, but isn't overtly biased.

[voxelmhurst]

Wheaton over Elmhurst 85-75

Having seen Elmhurst several times this year, I've often wondered why Derek Dotlich (29 pts on 9-14 FG, 7-11 3FG, 5 rebs) doesn't score more because he has about as nice a stroke there is from the arc.  I've observed that his style is more of a let-the-game-come-to-me bias.

I think that that's a pretty astute summation of Dotlich's game. At any rate, I'm sure that John Baines is very happy that he has Dotlich back for another year. What he really has to focus upon is coming up with bigs in this current recruiting cycle, seeing as how he's losing Ireland, Marakis, and Brown. Plus, Lavon Thomas has been solidly in Baines's doghouse throughout the last five games (and that's one mastiff-sized doghouse, incidentally).

Dotlich's 29 points tonight are a career high. He, along with Ireland, really stepped it up when teams put their best into defending Rhode later on in the season. One of Elmhurst's problems this year though was that beyond Rhode and Dotlich, they really had no consistent 3 point shooters, and their rotation was just not deep enough to keep putting points on the board when Rhode/Ireland/Dotlich were resting or being defended exceptionally.  Ryan Patton averaged 10.7 ppg last season as an outside threat, but this minutes and scoring this year were considerably down. Looking ahead, I'd imagine the Jays might want to see if Patton can return to form and give the Jays another outside threat next season.

And yes, what the low post will look like next year for Elmhurst is anyone's guess. I'm a little apprehensive as I fear the superstar Rhode might be heading into the prime of his career while the team will be forced to find it's identity once again.

[GoPerry]

Wheaton over Elmhurst 85-75

Having seen Elmhurst several times this year, I've often wondered why Derek Dotlich (29 pts on 9-14 FG, 7-11 3FG, 5 rebs) doesn't score more because he has about as nice a stroke there is from the arc.  I've observed that his style is more of a let-the-game-come-to-me bias.

I think that that's a pretty astute summation of Dotlich's game. At any rate, I'm sure that John Baines is very happy that he has Dotlich back for another year. What he really has to focus upon is coming up with bigs in this current recruiting cycle, seeing as how he's losing Ireland, Marakis, and Brown. Plus, Lavon Thomas has been solidly in Baines's doghouse throughout the last five games (and that's one mastiff-sized doghouse, incidentally).

Dotlich's 29 points tonight are a career high. He, along with Ireland, really stepped it up when teams put their best into defending Rhode later on in the season. One of Elmhurst's problems this year though was that beyond Rhode and Dotlich, they really had no consistent 3 point shooters, and their rotation was just not deep enough to keep putting points on the board when Rhode/Ireland/Dotlich were resting or being defended exceptionally.  Ryan Patton averaged 10.7 ppg last season as an outside threat, but this minutes and scoring this year were considerably down. Looking ahead, I'd imagine the Jays might want to see if Patton can return to form and give the Jays another outside threat next season.

And yes, what the low post will look like next year for Elmhurst is anyone's guess. I'm a little apprehensive as I fear the superstar Rhode might be heading into the prime of his career while the team will be forced to find it's identity once again.

Dotlich should be shooting 10+ attempts/game next year.

Lavon Thomas is certainly not a conventional big but he's got size enough to help the post play.  He was a surprising DNP last night (GS inferred Baines' doghouse).  Lavon spent some post-game time visiting with lots of friends in Wheaton from his Wheaton North days - including good friend Luke Anthony and the Anthony family whom he lived with for a time.

[Gregory Sager]

Gutty win for the Thunder tonight.

Dotlich was on another level in the first half going 6-8 from 3 going for 20 before the intermission for the Blue Jays, but Wheaton amped up the defensive intensity in the second half and kept him in check.

Incredibly balanced scoring effort for the Thunder led by Francis with 32. Aston had help tonight joined in double figures by Luke Anthony with 14, Jay Spencer with 10, and Spencer Peterson with 10. Aston got his, but the X-factor tonight was without a doubt Luke Anthony who made several big shots in key moments and also played solid defense and rebounded well in the second half. Cruikshank also played impactful minutes stepping in for Luke Peters who was bitten by the foul trouble bug.

Dotlich paced the Blue Jays with 29 followed by Rhode with 21 and Ireland with 11. Elmhurst played about as close to a perfect half in the first half, but was put on their heels almost immediately starting the second stanza.

Congratulations to Elmhurst on a great season. On to the semis with Wheaton v. NCC 3 on Friday in Rock Island

This was a pretty darn good game. The Bluejays looked much better than they did in their last two games, but unfortunately this would be another tough loss on the road. They gave it their best and left it all out on the court. That's all you can ask. Bluejay fans will miss Ireland dearly next season. Thankfully, we can look forward to more from Dotlich, Rhode, et. Al.

Shout out to Wheaton's PA announcer who gave a very respectful sendoff to  "seniors Jeremy Ireland and Pavlos Marakis" during Elmhurst's final substitution in the final minute.

Rusty Lindsey always does a great job on the mic. Super classy and is one of those guys who gets the home crowd into it, but isn't overtly biased.

I think that Rusty's even better suited to being on the air doing PBP or color, which he does for Wheaton football and from time to time for Wheaton basketball.

[voxelmhurst]

Wheaton over Elmhurst 85-75

Having seen Elmhurst several times this year, I've often wondered why Derek Dotlich (29 pts on 9-14 FG, 7-11 3FG, 5 rebs) doesn't score more because he has about as nice a stroke there is from the arc.  I've observed that his style is more of a let-the-game-come-to-me bias.

I think that that's a pretty astute summation of Dotlich's game. At any rate, I'm sure that John Baines is very happy that he has Dotlich back for another year. What he really has to focus upon is coming up with bigs in this current recruiting cycle, seeing as how he's losing Ireland, Marakis, and Brown. Plus, Lavon Thomas has been solidly in Baines's doghouse throughout the last five games (and that's one mastiff-sized doghouse, incidentally).

Dotlich's 29 points tonight are a career high. He, along with Ireland, really stepped it up when teams put their best into defending Rhode later on in the season. One of Elmhurst's problems this year though was that beyond Rhode and Dotlich, they really had no consistent 3 point shooters, and their rotation was just not deep enough to keep putting points on the board when Rhode/Ireland/Dotlich were resting or being defended exceptionally.  Ryan Patton averaged 10.7 ppg last season as an outside threat, but this minutes and scoring this year were considerably down. Looking ahead, I'd imagine the Jays might want to see if Patton can return to form and give the Jays another outside threat next season.

And yes, what the low post will look like next year for Elmhurst is anyone's guess. I'm a little apprehensive as I fear the superstar Rhode might be heading into the prime of his career while the team will be forced to find it's identity once again.

Dotlich should be shooting 10+ attempts/game next year.

Lavon Thomas is certainly not a conventional big but he's got size enough to help the post play.  He was a surprising DNP last night (GS inferred Baines' doghouse).  Lavon spent some post-game time visiting with lots of friends in Wheaton from his Wheaton North days - including good friend Luke Anthony and the Anthony family whom he lived with for a time.

I wasn't particularly shocked to not see Thomas on the court last nite considering how Baines has used him these last 2 years. He started 13 games and averaged 8.5ppg as a freshman last season, but didn't get any minutes come February of last year. This season, he was a regular part of their rotation until about mid-January, when his minutes dropped off considerably. This notwithstanding, I expect he would be on their shortlist of starters for next season.

Marakis may not have warranted much discussion beyond the EC faithful, but the persistence and progress he made over 4 years was commendable. He became a notable presence on the glass this year for Elmhurst, such as last night when he wrestled an offensive rebound away from two defenders before dishing it off to Ireland for the bucket and foul.

Anyway, it will be interesting to see what players Baines can bring in. There will definitely be opportunities for newcomers to make an impact right away.


Oh and also, for anyone making the trip to Rock Island, be advised that tickets were $8. It's been a few years since Elmhurst made the CCIW tournament so I was mildly shocked! 

[augie77]

Pierson Wofford is rounding into form.  After missing most of the last two seasons due to school and injury issues, he's now 31-2 in CCIW games he's played.

https://qconline.com/sports/college/augustana/augie-lands-four-on-men-s-all-cciw-basketball-team/article_807fd58a-79f4-5049-bdf3-3423d5d44c31.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=user-share&fbclid=IwAR3cqOXe2MxdtSv1BgVYfvlQV8plgwKElzDM_UyJVkjfHa5Dt0Uy82pc1V8

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

The third public NCAA Division III regional rankings are out: https://www.d3hoops.com/notables/2019/02/men-regional-rankings-third