MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Gregory Sager]

North Park 60
Augustana 58

Amazing. Absolutely amazing.

[Titan Q]

North Park 60
Augustana 58

Amazing. Absolutely amazing.

Just watched that ending in the STL airport.  Wow.

[Titan Q]

I flew up to STL today for the IWU/WashU game...flying back home tonight. 

The Bears are an outstanding team.  They had two really ugly games to open 2021-22 (after not playing last year), but they look awesome now.  I had them #9 on my Week 3 ballot...I'll definitely have them higher now.  They are good enough to win the national championship.

WashU presents huge problems in several ways:
-Jack Nolan
-Justin Hardy
-Having a 6-10, skilled center on the floor for all 40 minutes (Davet, Wolf)
-A strong supporting cast

The Bears played incredibly well today.  IWU really never got going - credit WashU for most of that.  Everything was hard for IWU today on the offensive end...and the Titans just did not shoot it very well when they did get good looks.

IWU next travels to NYC to face Mt. St. Vincent and #1-Yeshiva.  IWU's schedule is pretty nuts and will really help them for the heart of the CCIW schedule.

[Gregory Sager]

NPU 60, AC 58

Jordan Boyd: 23 pts (11-13 FG), 7 rebs
Jalen Boyd: 10 pts

Luke Johnson: 20 pts (4-8 trey)
Daniel Carr: 14 pts, 16 rebs
Matt Hanushewsky: 6:1 a:to

North Park took advantage of the quirkiest turnover you'll ever see by converting it into a putback bucket by Jordan Boyd off of his brother's miss with five seconds remaining. It was the only lead that NPU had all afternoon. It would be the only lead that NPU needed.

On the ensuing possession Luke Johnson, who was an absolute thorn in the side of the Park in this game, had a modest-percentage trey attempt from the left wing just ahead of the buzzer, but this time his shot fell short ... and NPU had one of the most improbable wins I've ever witnessed in my four decades of watching CCIW basketball.

It was plain that, coming out of the gate, North Park was freaked out by the absence of Osborne and Sanders. The visitors produced turnover after turnover, while at the other end of the floor Johnson, Daniel Carr, and Co. went hog-wild, knocking down nine of their first eleven shots to take a 24-2 lead less than six minutes into the contest. It appeared to be a foregone conclusion that this was going to be an epic rout.

But it didn't turn out that way. NPU settled in, started playing respectable defense, got a few shots to fall, and before you knew it they had brought that big Augie lead down to 11 at the half. In the second half the Park turned up the defensive intensity even higher, as Tom Slyder's boys held Augie to 35% shooting for the second half; Augie wound up turning the ball over 21 times, ten of them courtesy of NPU steals, as the Park steadily chipped away at Augie's lead. It probably should not have taken the entire second half to catch up, but, as per usual, NPU's three-point shooting stunk (2-13, .154) and the free-throw shooting was terrible (8-15, .533, which somehow was even worse than NPU's season average coming into the game). Fortunately, the Park had the Boyd brothers. Jordan was unstoppable down in the blocks, although why Augie didn't double him up more, considering that NPU couldn't dream of making the Doggies pay with an inside-out trey, is beyond me. And Jalen made some big midrange jumpers and played tremendous defense at the other end.

NPU had managed to close within eight at the 13:10 mark, but when Luke Johnson hit a midrange turnaround with 5:08 to go that pushed the Augie lead back to twelve at 58-46 I wondered if NPU had any more bullets left in the gun. Turns out it was Augie that had exhausted its ammunition, as that Johnson jumper proved to be the last points the hosts would score in the game. A Jalen Boyd pullup J, followed by three straight Jordan Boyd layups against the bigger Carr down in the blocks (the last of which was a successful and-one), brought North Park to within three with 1:45 to go. After another stop, NPU missed a shot to get within one -- but NPU got the offensive rebound when the ball went out of bounds off of Carr. On the ensuing inbounds play, Gabe Johnson was fouled with 57 seconds to go -- and, North Park being North Park, Johnson missed the front end of a one-and-one. But again NPU got a stop and a defensive rebound, and, coming out of a timeout, Johnson got a perfect driving layup off of a well-set Jalen Boyd screen with 10.6 seconds left. He was fouled on the play -- and this time he converted the FT, lifting North Park into a 58-all tie.

Here's where it got weird. Trying to inbound the ball, Carr pump-faked an inbounds pass -- and did it with such emphasis that he threw himself off-balance, stepping forward onto the court with his left foot to catch his balance. That's illegal. North Park ball. The visitors inbounded and worked the ball in to Jalen Boyd, who drove in, then retreated and was short on a fourteen-footer. But his brother was there to collect the rebound and lay it in for the game-winner.

I've seen teams come back from being down 22 on the road to win before, although certainly not very often. But I've never seen a team do it without their starting backcourt, one of whom is their leading scorer and top assists man and the other of whom is their best defender.

Little-used PG Nicholas Ramirez played by far the best game I've ever seen him play. Gabe Johnson was money when it mattered. The Boyd brothers put the team on their backs for most of the contest, especially at the end. Jonathan Johansson and Adam Bulwa did their parts. Just an all-around gutsy effort by a team that somehow overcame the loss of its starting backcourt and pulled out a huge, dramatic-finish comeback win in a gym that has been Heartbreak Central for the boys from Foster & Kedzie for an entire generation.

North Park goes into 2022 all alone in first place, the last undefeated team in CCIW play ... and I could not be prouder of these guys.

[Gregory Sager]

North Park 69
Elmhurst 67

Jalen Boyd: 17 pts
Michael Osborne: 15 pts, 9 rebs, 4:0 a:to
Izaiah Sanders: 11 pts
Jordan Boyd: 10 pts, 12 rebs

Jake Rhode: 21 pts, 3:0 a:to
Dominic Genco: 12 pts (8-8 FT), 3:0 a:to
Ocean Johnson: 11 pts
Jonathan Zapinski: 6 rebs
Wesley Hooker: 6 rebs

NPU gutted out a defensive struggle, winning what had been a 66-66 deadlock for several minutes with clutch defense and a timely Osborne layup, despite their continuing inability to hit free throws with any consistency.

This is a signature win for the Vikings, and a nice way to head into finals week.

NPU is a little tougher than some people thought ... and a lot tougher than many others thought.


NPU: 5-2, 2-0
EC 8-2, 2-1

I had to pick my wife up from DFW airport yesterday upon her return from a girls' trip to Palm Springs.  Originally scheduled arrival time was 5:32pm...but thank God there was a delay to 5:46pm.  This allowed me to watch the final 4 minutes of the NPU/Elmhurst game on my phone from Baggage Claim #16, Terminal D.

Incredible finish.

North Park 60
Augustana 58

Amazing. Absolutely amazing.

Just watched that ending in the STL airport.  Wow.

Things seem to go well for North Park when you're watching the Vikings play in crunch time on your phone in an airport, Bob.

We'll have to get the NPU athletic department to swing you some frequent-flier miles so that we can stick you in a terminal somewhere when Wheaton comes to the crackerbox on January 5.

[Gregory Sager]

Also, Bob, your tweet made the NPU athletics page gamer. Congrats on another CCIW first!

[WUPHF]

WashU presents huge problems in several ways:
-Jack Nolan
-Justin Hardy
-Having a 6-10, skilled center on the floor for all 40 minutes (Davet, Wolf)
-A strong supporting cast

The Bears played well today. 

The emergence of the two skilled centers is definitely a key factor that separates the team from the early season struggles. 

Davet is a junior, but I am not sure everyone realizes: he was the third option off the bench as a freshman so his play was limited and he did not play as a sophomore as mentioned.  Wolf is a freshman and needed a few games to find himself, but I do think he may be the freshman center I have ever seen (sample size limited).

[WUPHF]

Ryan, I am going to call you out here on your Hoopsville remarks. How do you distinguish between IWU playing a good game against Wheaton as opposed to having an off night tonight?

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Ryan, I am going to call you out here on your Hoopsville remarks. How do you distinguish between IWU playing a good game against Wheaton as opposed to having an off night tonight?

It's just my opinion watching them.  I didn't think IWU looked as sharp today - it didn't seem like they were getting to their spots as cleanly or as quickly today.  I didn't think they were working as hard to do what they were trying to do.  WashU was incredibly good, especially early, at taking IWU out of their strengths, but IWU still wasn't executing as well as they have in other games.  You can't say WashU would've lost if IWU were sharper; I just think if they played like they did against Wheaton, IWU would've been a little closer.

For what it's worth, I think WashU can execute a lot better than they did today, too.  They've gotten things together well, but it was pretty clear they still have work to do.

[WUPHF]

They beat the No. 4 team in the country and still they "can execute a lot better?"

In comparing the two games, I think you have to start with the defense and work backwards from there.  In more ways than one, Wheaton did to IWU in the second half what Washington University did to IWU early and for most of the game.

[GoPerry]

Ryan, I am going to call you out here on your Hoopsville remarks. How do you distinguish between IWU playing a good game against Wheaton as opposed to having an off night tonight?

It's just my opinion watching them.  I didn't think IWU looked as sharp today - it didn't seem like they were getting to their spots as cleanly or as quickly today.  I didn't think they were working as hard to do what they were trying to do.  WashU was incredibly good, especially early, at taking IWU out of their strengths, but IWU still wasn't executing as well as they have in other games.  You can't say WashU would've lost if IWU were sharper; I just think if they played like they did against Wheaton, IWU would've been a little closer.

For what it's worth, I think WashU can execute a lot better than they did today, too.  They've gotten things together well, but it was pretty clear they still have work to do.

They beat the No. 4 team in the country and still they "can execute a lot better?"

In comparing the two games, I think you have to start with the defense and work backwards from there.  In more ways than one, Wheaton did to IWU in the second half what Washington University did to IWU early and for most of the game.

I was pretty impressed with the smooth execution of the Bears against a really good defensive IWU team.  My only minor criticism might be was when they went up 55-40 with maybe 10 mins left but then took some pretty quick shots without really running through the offense which had been working so well..  It was a point where the visitors had nothing going at all and the hosts had all the momentum to stretch the lead to 20+ and put it out of reach.  Instead, the Titans were able to drop a few shots and get back into the game.  But even so, you never had the feeling that the Bears would lose.

[Titan Q]

It's just my opinion watching them.  I didn't think IWU looked as sharp today - it didn't seem like they were getting to their spots as cleanly or as quickly today.  I didn't think they were working as hard to do what they were trying to do.  WashU was incredibly good, especially early, at taking IWU out of their strengths, but IWU still wasn't executing as well as they have in other games.  You can't say WashU would've lost if IWU were sharper; I just think if they played like they did against Wheaton, IWU would've been a little closer.

For what it's worth, I think WashU can execute a lot better than they did today, too.  They've gotten things together well, but it was pretty clear they still have work to do.

IWU definitely wasn't sharp yesterday. It was the only game this season the Titans have not looked good.  Coming into this game, through 9 games, IWU had:
- A great win over #5-UW-Oshkosh
- A bunch of blowouts/comfortable wins, including some over pretty good teams -- especially Calvin, but also Hope and NCC.
- A close loss at #6-Wheaton

Yesterday was the only time I watched IWU and felt they looked "bad" from start to finish.

Where I will circle back to what WUPHF is probably getting at though is that I believe IWU looking bad yesterday had everything to do with WashU.  Specifically this...

* IWU's offense flows through 6-7 All-American F Matt Leritz in the low post.  Against 99% of Division III teams, Matt is guarded by a player his height or usually smaller.  This season Matt has been matched up with a bunch of 6-5 and 6-6 guys -- he is really good vs 6-7 and 6-8 guys too.

* Matt is a terrific low post scorer, and opponents are forced to pick one of two options: 1) Play him straight up, or 2) double.

* Matt dominates the paint typically in games where he's played one-on-one down low.  He is so good with his back to the basket in the paint, using both hands to score.  Playing Matt straight up is almost never the option that IWU's opponents stay with.  Some try it, but eventually have to move away from it.

* When teams double, IWU's offense is hard to stop.  The ball starts moving outside and around and the Titans get great look after great look.  IWU always has 5 good scorers on the floor, and when teams double it leads to good shooters getting good shots.

With the two 6-10 centers who split 40 minutes, WashU can play Matt straight up and make it incredibly hard on him to do his thing down low.  Giving up an inch to a 6-8 guy is not a huge deal in the low post for Matt...but giving up 3 is.  Yesterday was the first time in 2 seasons Matt looked small in the low post vs his defenders.  And by playing Matt straight up (not doubling) yesterday, WashU made it difficult for IWU's offense to do its thing.  It bottled up those usual driving lanes IWU loves so much, as well as prevented the usual number of open perimeter shots.

When you say "it didn't seem like they were getting to their spots as cleanly or as quickly today", I 100% agree with that.  But I don't think that was an intensity/focus/effort kind of thing as I think you suggest here: "I didn't think they were working as hard to do what they were trying to do."  IWU played hard yesterday - that was a 100% effort, intense kind of game.  I believe IWU didn't look like themselves offensively because of the very unique challenges WashU's defense can present.

I can't stress enough how much impact those two 6-10 guys have defensively - especially Davet.  There is no other team in Division III - at least that I have seen in watching 100+ games so far this season, including almost all of the top 40 or so - that has that.  For example, IWU is going to play at #1-Yeshiva 12/30 and won't have to deal with anything like that at all.  (Obviously Yeshiva presents a bunch of other problems, but the Macs will have same problem everyone else does with Matt -- to double or try to play one-on-one.)

WashU presents some very big challenges to opponents that are inside/out driven.  There will be other games though where Davet and Wolf will have a very hard time chasing a 6-5, mobile, combo forward (who starts at the 5) around the floor.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

You both seem to want to give WashU all the credit, and they deserve a lot. Great team, excellent game plan, definitely the best they've played all year. I'm just not sure they deserve ALL the credit.

The thing that stuck out to me was how often Leritz took threes that weren't good decisions (he was 0-5, tied for most attempts on the season). Obviously, credit to WashU for putting him in that position, but you want your best player making better decisions. Maybe you could argue his teammates weren't giving him good alternatives, but that doesn't describe all 40 minutes.

I think the teams are quite even, even enough I'd expect home court would be the difference if both teams played at 100%. My observation is simply that the larger difference in final score was IWU not quite clicking like they'd hope.

I don't think there was much chance IWU wins that game regardless, but I also don't think a 10 point difference is that likely if they play again.

[WUPHF]

Where I will circle back to what WUPHF is probably getting at though is that I believe IWU looking bad yesterday had everything to do with WashU.  Specifically this...

This is primarily what I was getting at, yes.

I have learned the hard way that I never want to play an Illinois Wesleyan team twice in once season, but as for the game yesterday, the Bears defense was the best they have played this season, relative to the opponent.

And so I cannot get on board with the notion that IWU played great against Wheaton and had an off game yesterday.

Incidentally, Matt Leritz can knock down the three-pointers so I do not necessarily see that as a bad decision. 

[WUPHF]

My only minor criticism might be was when they went up 55-40 with maybe 10 mins left but then took some pretty quick shots without really running through the offense which had been working so well..  It was a point where the visitors had nothing going at all and the hosts had all the momentum to stretch the lead to 20+ and put it out of reach.  Instead, the Titans were able to drop a few shots and get back into the game.  But even so, you never had the feeling that the Bears would lose.

I think this is fair criticism.