MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[kiko]

The reward for this is that their next five games are all in the Hangar, starting with Augustana Monday evening.

And by "Augustana", I of course mean "Elmhurst".

The North Central schedule listed on https://northcentralcardinals.com/ does not match what is shown on d3hoops.com.  I know the ball has been bouncing quite a bit across all sports with cancellations and whatnot, but if someone on the NCC SID crew happens by this esteemed venue, you may want to reconcile this.

[Pat Coleman]

The reward for this is that their next five games are all in the Hangar, starting with Augustana Monday evening.

And by "Augustana", I of course mean "Elmhurst".

The North Central schedule listed on https://northcentralcardinals.com/ does not match what is shown on d3hoops.com.  I know the ball has been bouncing quite a bit across all sports with cancellations and whatnot, but if someone on the NCC SID crew happens by this esteemed venue, you may want to reconcile this.

Thanks. We picked up on the reschedule of that Elmhurst game, but not the re-reschedule.

[Gregory Sager]

Carthage (8-8, 1-6)
G - Kyle Czerak, 5-11 Sr. (7.7 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.7 apg)
G - Crishawn Cook, 6-2 Sr. (10.1 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 3.1 apg)
G - Fillip Bulatovic, 6-5 Jr. (18.3 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 4.9 apg)
F - Garrett Horner, 6-4 So. (12.0 ppg, 3.9 rpg)
F - Nemi Ostojic, 6-7 So. (4.9 ppg, 3.8 rpg)

If Bulatovic sustained a concussion on Thursday in practice, as Mark said, then the chances of his appearing in uniform tonight at Tarble are zero.

Steve Djurickovic said on the Saturday postgame that he will play today.

You should know better than that, Bob.

[lmitzel]

I have seen some things. But I have never seen what happened tonight.

Elmhurst led 32-11 at one point in the first half.

NCC comes back and wins 79-70.

[kiko]

North Central fights past Elmhurst tonight in their return to the Hangar tonight, 79-70.  This was only the third Cardinal game I've seen this year, and as a Cardinal supporter, boy was it a good one to see.

This was a tale of two halves:

Elmhurst led 17-4 five-plus minutes into the game, led by as many as 21 in the first half, and carried a 45-29 lead into the locker room.

North Central had closed to within 11 at one point in the first half, but couldn't push past that deficit for a long stretch.  The Jays still led by 15 with 10-and-change left following a Wesley Hooker dunk after a turnover.  From that point, it was all Cardinals, as North Central went on a 24-2 run to slingshot into the lead, and despite some shaky free throw shooting, closed out the win in the end as the Jays went ice cold in the second half.

The statlines look like two completely different games.

Elmhurst first half:
17-of-32 / 53%
7-of-14 from three
7:3 assists-to-turnovers

Elmhurst second half:
10-of-30 / 33%
0-of-12 from three
6:9 assists-to-turnovers

North Central first half:
11-of-32 /34%
3-of-15 from three
8-5 assists-to-turnovers

North Central second half:
20-of-31 / 64%
6-of-11 from three
16:5 assists-to-turnovers

The Cardinal comeback was sparked by (checks notes) Shea Cupples, who hit five three pointers, including one that banked in and extended the North Central lead to six in the waning minutes.

Jake Rhode was uncharacteristically cold, shooting 2-of-14 from three.  Lavon Thomas gave the Cardinals fits for most of the night and was a key factor in the Jays' large lead.

North Central:
Matt Helwig - 21 and 9
Shea Cupples 17 and 6
Ethan Helwig - 16 pts
Blaise Meredith - 11 and 7 despite sitting much of the first half with two fouls

Elmhurst:
Lavon Thomas 15 pts
Jake Rhode - 12 pts
Dominic Genco - 11 and 5
Wesley Hooker - 10 and 7
Jay Militello - 8 and 9

No rest for the Cardinals as they now face Augustana -- this time for real -- on Wednesday evening.

[iwu70]

Carthage without their top scorer . . .

IWU 89  CC 72:

For CC:

Czerak 11
Cook 11
Johnson 11

For IWU:
Leritz -tying career high 28
Noe, back from Covid 15
Mitchell 12 and 7
Yoder 11 and 6
Lambesis, back from Covid, 10 and 6

IWU only committing 7 TOs.

Now 15-2 8-1 in conference play . . . still one-non-conference game to be played on the 29th (vs. Concordia of Chicago), a replacement for the College of St. Vincent cancellation in NYC.  So, only 7 conference games to go . . .  at Elmhurst on Wednesday, the last of their tough, four-away-game stint. . .  lots of hours on the bus!

Good win in Kenosha tonight . . .

Keep it rolling, Titans . . . the home stretch.  Finish Strong!

One game at a time . . .

IWU'70

[Next Man Up]

It's too bad NCC students and others weren't permitted at tonight's game vs Elmhurst as, with the exception of the 2020 Tournament OT win over Oshkosh, they missed what is very possibly the wildest and most improbable comeback in the coaching tenure of Todd Raridon at North Central.

Down by 21 at the midpoint of the first half, and by 16 at half, the Cardinals turned the first half's Mission Impossible into The Little Engine That Could in the second half as they doubled down on the Bluejays, outscoring them by a 50-25 count in the second stanza. 

For the first quarter of the game, it appeared the visitors were just toying with their hosts while on their way to what would eventually be a monkey stomp win. The Cardinals chopped a bit of EU's 21 point lead away in the game's second 10 minutes, but still trailed by 16 at the break. During halftime the Cardinals must have either been subjected to a scorching rebuke of their play, found a magic elixir, or both. As poster kiko indicated previously, after allowing the 'Jays to hit 53.13% in the first half, including 50% from downtown, the Cardinals clamped down and allowed to Jays to convert on only 33.33% overall, while forcing an 0 for 12 whitewash from beyond the arc in the second half.

The Cardinal defense was particularly effective against EU star Jake Rhode. Principally led by Blaise Meredith, they forced Rhode into a 1 for 7 second half, including 0 for 6 from downtown. For the game, he was held to 5 of 18, including 2 of 14 from three. With his 10 in the first, he totaled only 12 points for the game, well below his average.

Matt Helwig led NCC with 21 on 9 of 12 shooting. He also pulled down a team high 9 rebounds, and posted a 5:2 A/TO Ratio. Most uncharacteristically, he shot only 2 of 5 from the line. Brother Ethan had 16 with a A/TO of 4:1, and Blaise Meredith chipped in 11 and 7 despite playing only 7 minutes in the first half due to foul trouble. 

And the evening's first overall star went to Shea Cupples, who turned in his best game in a Cardinal uniform. After going scoreless on 0 of 4 shooting in 14 minutes of first half action, he burst on the scene in a big way in the second, shooting his way to a season high 17 points in just 13 minutes. Those 17 points were the result of going a perfect 6 of 6, including hitting all 5 of his threes, the last coming on a called  bank from the right wing. In a strong overall game, Shea also collected 6 rebounds, and aptly distributed 7 helpers while posting a goose egg in the TO column.
For the night, the Cardinals had 24 assists on 31 made baskets, and committed only 10 TOs.
A very exciting, shocking, and satisfying evening indeed.

[Titan Q]

My conversation with Drew Pasteur (@d3bubble) and Matt Snyder (@FFTMAG) about the regional ranking and Pool C pictures across all 10 MBB regions.

Fun stuff...enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5PS0VI_P74&t=81s

0:00 Matt and Drew's D3 story
8:04 The criteria
12:07 Region 1
18:50 Region 2
25:51 Region 3
34:28 Region 4
37:35 Region 5
42:55 Region 6
50:03 Region 7
58:51 Region 8
1:07:03 Region 9
1:15:13 Region 10
1:23:48 Final thoughts

[iwu70]

Thanks Q, always fun stuff.  Here we go soon on regional rankings and bracketology!

Surely enjoying the Titans' season so far -- both women and men!

IWU'70

[Titan Q]

#2-Illinois Wesleyan (15-2, 8-1) at #19-Elmhurst (12-5, 4-4), 7pm CT at R.A. Faganel Hall...


#2-Illinois Wesleyan (15-2, 8-1 CCIW)
G - Luke Yoder, 6-0 Jr. (11.9 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.8 apg)
G - Cory Noe, 6-2 Sr. (13.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.6 apg)
G - Pete Lambesis, 6-4 Sr. (10.7 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.4 apg)
F - Cody Mitchell, 6-7 Jr. (8.6 ppg, 6.3 rpg)
F - Matt Leritz, 6-7 Sr. (18.1 ppg, 10.3 rpg, 2.3 apg)
-----
G - Ryan Sroka, 6-5 So. (5.4 ppg, 3.2 rpg)
G - Lucas Heflen, 6-2 Jr. (5.4 ppg)


#19-Elmhurst (12-5, 4-4)
G - Jake Rhode, 5-11 Sr. (17.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 4.1 apg)
G - Wes Hooker, 6-2 Jr. (10.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 1.8 apg)
G - Ocean Johnson, 6-3 Jr. (9.1 ppg, 3.4 rpg)
F - Jay Militello, 6-4 Sr. (9.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 2.5 apg)
F - Lavon Thomas, 6-5 Sr. (11.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg)
-----
G - Dominic Genco, 6-3 Jr. (11.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.9 apg)
F - Jonathan Zapinski, 6-6 Jr. (5.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg)



Video
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5t_5yKuLU7VczX-VwlhNfA

IWU Radio (Eric Stock)
https://www.iwusports.com/watch/?Live=285&type=Live

Live Stats
https://elmhurstbluejays.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary

IWU Game Notes
https://s3.amazonaws.com/sidearm.sites/iwusports.com/documents/2022/1/25/mbb2122game18_Elmhurst.pdf

[Next Man Up]

Where is Wesley Hooker in the above lineup? He has played in 16 of Elmhurst's 17 games, and has started 15 including 2 nights ago at North Central. Injured or ill?

[Next Man Up]

Where is Wesley Hooker in the above lineup? He has played in 16 of Elmhurst's 17 games, and has started 15 including 2 nights ago at North Central. Injured or ill?

Ah, Mr. Hooker suddenly reappeared at 1:51 PM, apparently none the worse for wear, and with no illness or injury concerns. 

[Gregory Sager]

Fillip Bulatovic is dressed and will start for Carthage tonight in the crackerbox.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Possible upset alert:  at the half, Elmhurst 36, IWU 27.

Since the game is at Elmhurst, I would not consider this to be a MAJOR upset (if it even happens), but still at least a bit of an upset.

[kiko]

Around the conference tonight:

Carthage 77, North Park 64 in the Crackerbox
Illinois Wesleyan 80, Elmhurst 76  Elmhurst 74, Illinois Wesleyan 66 at Faganel
North Central 73, Augustana 68 in the Hangar
Wheaton 94, Carroll 73 on the Illinois side of the border

Millikin is idle.