MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[WUPHF]

...

[kiko]

Tough one in Naperville tonight as Cal Lutheran's Mason Johnson hit a pair of free throws with 5.3 seconds left to give the Kingsmen an 80-79 win over North Central. The Kingsmen scored 32 points off 21 Cardinal turnovers and NCC went just 15-24 at the free throw line.

Matt Helwig led the Cardinals with 21 points, Blaise Meredith had 17 (including getting fouled on a made three with a minute and a half to go, but missed the free throw), and Ethan Helwig notched 10 in his Cardinal debut.

Johnson scored 21 to pace the Kingsmen, Jacob Alonzo put up 16, and Jake Martin added four threes ; all three guys came off the bench.

Was great to hear the hangar that loud again, just wish the outcome was different.

If Cal Lutherans pressure got to NCC, the game in Greenville on Saturday may be closer than I initially thought.

Yeah, I'm not gonna lie, it has me a little nervous. I'd like to think Todd Raridon will have them ready to go.

And as long as the Cardinals make their free throws...

I'm not as concerned about this; Cal Lutheran's roster starts at a higher talent base than Greenville's does.  I'm more concerned as to whether CCIW teams are also able to exploit this, or if the Sons of Warden are able to file it away under 'it was the first game, bruh' and move past any lingering issues on this front.

And I concur: hitting their $%#@ free throws would add a nice tailwind to things...

[Titan Q]

Illinois Wesleyan (1-0) vs Hope (0-0), 7:00pm at the Shirk Center...

Illinois Wesleyan (1-0)
G - Luke Yoder, 6-0 Jr.
G - Cory Noe, 6-2 Sr.
G - Pete Lambesis, 6-4 Sr.
F - Cody Mitchell, 6-7 Jr.
F - Matt Leritz, 6-7 Sr.

Hope (0-0)
G - Clayton Dykhouse, 5-11 Jr.
G - Tyler George, 6-1 Sr.
F - Evan Thomas, 6-4 Jr.
F - Jeff Bikus, 6-6 Sr.
F - Tanner Wiegerink, 6-7 So.

Pantagraph: https://pantagraph.com/sports/college/illinois-wesleyan/watch-now-illinois-wesleyan-attracts-strong-field-for-sikma-hall-of-fame-invitational/article_033cfc79-9090-591b-ac7c-3545e987cb2f.html

IWU Game Notes: https://s3.amazonaws.com/sidearm.sites/iwusports.com/documents/2021/11/11/mbb2122game02_Sikma03.pdf

Video: https://www.iwusports.com/watch/?Live=271&type=Live

Stats: https://www.iwusports.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary

[iwu70]

Glad to see Cory Mitchell in the starting line-up.  Go TITANS!  Gonna be a fun weekend with Big Jack in the house.

iwu'70

[Gregory Sager]

Among several games that I will be watching online this evening will be Cal Lutheran @ Illinois Tech. NPU plays Cal Lutheran in the crackerbox on Sunday afternoon, so I want to get a good look at the Kingsmen as they take on the Scarlet Hawks at Keating in the wake of their win at NCC on Wednesday, even though I won't be calling the game on Sunday. (NPU is hosting a pod in the D3 men's soccer tourney at Hedstrand Field this weekend, so I'll be announcing corner kicks and through balls instead of baseline drives and trey attempts.)

One thing I'm looking forward to seeing tonight besides the game is the new paint job on the floor of Keating. Last year IIT named the basketball court at Keating "Joe Hakes Court" in honor of the school's recently-retired AD Joe Hakes, who occasionally posted here on CCIW Chat in past years (mostly to needle Dennis Prikkel when Dennis was a regular presence on this board). Joe's been in ill health in recent years, and I was so happy to see IIT honor him in that way; I know that it did a lot to lift his spirits. (His quip that's quoted in the article, "I know that, for some people, it will give them some enjoyment to trample on my name a little bit every day. I will enjoy that part of the experience" is pure Joe.)

To bring this around full circle, among the million other things Joe did in his long career as a college coach and athletics administrator was to help get the North Park men's soccer program up and running in its transition from club team to varsity status as its first head coach from 1981 through 1985.

[Titan Q]

Glad to see Cory Mitchell in the starting line-up.  Go TITANS!  Gonna be a fun weekend with Big Jack in the house.

iwu'70

I don't know that to be a fact...it's just my guess.

[Next Man Up]

Tough one in Naperville tonight as Cal Lutheran's Mason Johnson hit a pair of free throws with 5.3 seconds left to give the Kingsmen an 80-79 win over North Central. The Kingsmen scored 32 points off 21 Cardinal turnovers and NCC went just 15-24 at the free throw line.

Matt Helwig led the Cardinals with 21 points, Blaise Meredith had 17 (including getting fouled on a made three with a minute and a half to go, but missed the free throw), and Ethan Helwig notched 10 in his Cardinal debut.

Johnson scored 21 to pace the Kingsmen, Jacob Alonzo put up 16, and Jake Martin added four threes ; all three guys came off the bench.

Was great to hear the hangar that loud again, just wish the outcome was different.

If Cal Lutherans pressure got to NCC, the game in Greenville on Saturday may be closer than I initially thought.

Yeah, I'm not gonna lie, it has me a little nervous. I'd like to think Todd Raridon will have them ready to go.

And as long as the Cardinals make their free throws...

I'm not as concerned about this; Cal Lutheran's roster starts at a higher talent base than Greenville's does.  I'm more concerned as to whether CCIW teams are also able to exploit this, or if the Sons of Warden are able to file it away under 'it was the first game, bruh' and move past any lingering issues on this front.

And I concur: hitting their $%#@ free throws would add a nice tailwind to things...

Cal Lutheran's roster may start at a higher talent base than Greenville's with regard to aspects of the game such as shooting accuracy, rebounding, etc. However, their team speed doesn't exceed that of Greenville (especially considering their always fresh troops), and often the primary asset of teams that excel at pressure/trapping defense is their speed. Teams with lots of guys with very quick feet and very quick hands that seem to be everywhere, and that drive teams that don't pass out of pressure well crazy. The Cards need to see the floor and know where they are going with the ball before they receive it. They also need to avoid passing the ball into the corners on inbounds plays, and giving up the dribble just over half court after advancing into the offensive end. Areas of the court that are prime territory for a quick team to swarm to for the steal. Lastly, while they do need to make their free throws, they also need to successfully advance the ball up court to take advantage of the many layup opportunities that The System defense presents.

[Gregory Sager]

Augustana 80
Dubuque 64

This was a close game for 35 minutes, mostly because the Spartans did a really good job of crashing the boards on offense and giving themselves second chances. But Dubuque ran out of gas right about the same time that Augie put the pedal to the metal and pulled away down the stretch. Luke Johnson had 20 and 6 for Augie, Dan Carr had 16 and 9, and Carter Duwa added 15.

[Gregory Sager]

Carroll dropped its second game to a NACC team in four days, as Concordia (WI) outlasted the Pioneers, 74-69, in Van Male. The Pioneers fought back from an 18-point deficit early in the second half, and actually took a 57-56 lead with 4:19 to go on a Gio Carillo trey. But the Falcons stepped up and went on an 8-0 run at that point, and Carroll never got it back down to a one-possession game. Justin Gruber paced Carroll with 15 points, Paradisio Dante added 14 and 9, and Ethan Balinao chipped in 11 points.

[iwu70]

Cory Mitchell did indeed start for IWU and had a break out game, scoring 29.  Noe 23 and Lambesis 18. 

In the Sikma Hall of Fame Invitational, it will be IWU vs. Oshkosh in the championship game tomorrow at 6 p.m., and St. John's vs. Hope for the 3rd place game at 4 p.m.

Oshkosh is really good . . . so should be a great test for IWU tomorrow.

IWU '70

[Gregory Sager]

I watched all or parts of seven games in three different sports tonight ... and my favorite moment was a halftime interview. Augustana PBP man Chris Ford interviewed Dave Wrath, newly-retired from Augie but up until this year the dean of CCIW sports information directors, and it was a fun listen. It was nice to hear someone who did his job so well behind the scenes for four decades enjoy his own moment on the air.

[Titan Q]

IWU 87
Hope 74

https://www.iwusports.com/sports/mens-basketball/stats/2021-22/hope/boxscore/13650

* Cody Mitchell: 29 pts, 10 reb
* Cory Noe: 26 pts
* Pete Lambesis: 18 pts, 4 reb, 3 assists

It was wonderful to see an IWU game in person - fun night at the Shirk Center.

The Titans looked great tonight.  6-7 junior F Cody Mitchell is a really talented player - he was outstanding tonight.  This IWU team has such a nice mix of size, athleticism, and skill.  And they play so hard, and so well together.

#17-UW-Oshkosh looked amazing - like a top 5 team.  They are just so talented and hard to guard.  The IWU/Oshkosh game will feature two teams legitimately good enough to win the national championship.  The result of this game will have enormous implications when we get to regional rankings, selection, seeding, etc.

[Titan Q]

#4-Illinois Wesleyan (2-0) vs #17-UW-Oshkosh (3-0), 6:00pm CT at the Shirk Center...

#4-Illinois Wesleyan (2-0)
G - Luke Yoder, 6-0 Jr.  5.5 ppg, 5.0 apg
G - Cory Noe, 6-2 Sr.  24.5 ppg, .583 3-point
G - Pete Lambesis, 6-4 Sr.  16.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 4.0 apg
F - Cody Mitchell, 6-7 Jr.  17.0 ppg, 10.0 rpg
F - Matt Leritz, 6-7 Sr.  13.0 ppg, 12.0 rpg

#17-UW-Oshkosh (3-0)
G- Hunter Plamann, 6-0 Sr  15.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 4.0 apg
G - Quinn Steckbauer, 6-0 Jr. 9.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg
G - Eric Peterson, 6-4 Sr  7.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg
G - Eddie Muench, 6-5 Sr 20.0 ppg
F - Levi Borchert, 6-5 Jr  15.7 ppg, 8.7 rpg

Pantagraph: https://pantagraph.com/sports/college/illinois-wesleyan/watch-now-mitchell-sparks-illinois-wesleyan-past-hope/article_6460d956-f5a4-5ba4-9b96-cdab99370fbe.html

IWU Game Notes: https://s3.amazonaws.com/sidearm.sites/iwusports.com/documents/2021/11/11/mbb2122game02_Sikma03.pdf

Video: https://www.iwusports.com/watch/?Live=211&type=Live

Stats: https://www.iwusports.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary

[iwu70]

IWU over Oshkosh, to win the Sikma Hall of Fame Invitational, 65-63.  A game worthy of tournament time, even a national championship game.  Oshkosh had a chance to win with a trey under 8.8 seconds, but it came off the iron and IWU got the rebound.  Some terrific plays and players . . .  IWU up by 8 at the half, but Oshkosh came back to take the lead, then it was our Titans over their Titans in the last four or so minutes.  Leritz had a great game . . .  Lambesis as well.  Oshkosh is very talented. . .  maybe the big Shirk crowd and Big Jack and all those Academic All-Americans in the house, made the difference.

IWU with this big win, goes to 3-0 on the year. 

iwu'70

[Titan Q]

IWU 65
UW-Oshkosh 63

https://www.iwusports.com/boxscore.aspx?id=13651&path=mbball

-Matt Leritz: 19 pts, 10 reb
-Cory Noe: 11 pts, 7 reb, 2 assists
-Luke Yoder: 9 pts, 2 reb, 4 assists


A great win for the Titans.  Amazing game to watch - two Final Four caliber teams.  Amazing intensity on the floor, and great atmosphere at the Shirk Center.