MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Mr. Ypsi]

Since we are obviously going to be hearing about Brent Ruch a great deal, I have a basic question.  Over the years I taught 3 students named Ruch, and they had 3 different pronunciations: Ruck, Rook, and Rush!  How does Brent prefer his surname?

Doesn't seem like it would present the problems of Dauksas or seemingly half the Carthage roster, but I just don't know!

[sac]

For anyone interested in the MIAA/CCIW games tonight at Calvin, there are links provided for broadcast and livestats.

www.miaa.org

In the past WFUR (calvin broadcast) has done both games, the links suggest they aren't this year but I'd still try the Calvin/Carthage game link for the Hope/Wheaton game.  Its an FM broadcast and a much clearer sound.

[Flying Dutch Fan]

In the past WFUR (calvin broadcast) has done both games, the links suggest they aren't this year but I'd still try the Calvin/Carthage game link for the Hope/Wheaton game.  Its an FM broadcast and a much clearer sound.

Unfortunately that won't work this year, as it would appear that WFUR is broadcasting the Calvin women's game followed by the Calvin men's game. 

[dansand]

Weather has forced a time change in tomorrow's Augie/Coe. The game will be at 1:00 pm instead of 7:30.

[usee]

Wheaton
Kent Raymond (6-3/195, Jr) - 24.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 5.0 apg, 11-27 (.407) 3-pt
Andy Wiele (6-8/230, Jr) - 21.8 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 37-50 (.740) FG

You have to be kidding me!! this is the same Andy Wiele who averaged 8.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, and .450 FG last year? This same Andy Wiele who split time with Phil Denham and prompted Bill Harris to say on the postgame of at least 2 radio shows "If we had any production from the 5 spot we would have won the game"?

What has happened here? Could this be the same Andy Wiele?

wow.

[ChicagoHopeNut]

Through 10 minutes it seems Wheaton forgot they had a game tonight. 10 turnovers and a 23-4 Hope lead.

[usee]

ooops. I knew it was too good to be true.

a 31pt lead for hope at the half? thats a bit of a hole.

[John Gleich]

While the WIAC is traditionally the best league in Division III, last year its champion (Stevens Point) lost at home in the 3rd round of the tournament. 

And the CCIW champ (the CCIW of course being traditionally acknowledged as the second best league in the land) Augustana lost in the first round, at home.  Some would say that getting to the 3rd round is better than the first.  And though the CCIW beat the WIAC in the majority of matchups, the matchups between the top teams saw UWSP beat Augie by 3.

The year before, 2005-06, the WIAC's two tournament teams (Whitewater and Stout) both lost in Round 2.  In other words, here early in 2007-08 we don't have a clear indiciation that this is one of those years where the WIAC has a bunch of national powerhouses, as we have seen so often in the past.

Actually, the WIAC had 3 teams, WW, Stout, and La Crosse.  And yes, La Crosse, lost in the first round.  I think it's safe to say that there was definitely a vaccuum after the back-to-back Point National championship teams.  The league actually was pretty balanced that year.  The top 5 teams were all within three games in the league, and though the bottom 5 weren't as good as usual, you did have a situation where #6 Platteville swept #3 Stevens Point and took #2 Stout to OT, #7 River Falls beat #2 Stout AND #4 Oshkosh and took #4 La Cross to double OT, and #8 Eau Claire took #1 WW to double OT.  

Interestingly, in addition to the two NCAA games you noted, there were two more.  #6 Platteville beat #2 Elmhurst 67-66 and #2 Stout beat #1 Augie.  As you said, the CCIW did go ahead and win the two NCAA games, but the WIAC won the two regular season games and got 3 teams in the NCAA's, the same as the CCIW.  ... unless you're judging the success of the CCIW in that year by how far the teams got in the NCAA tournament (notably with IWU in the Final Four).  With that logic, then Point made it two rounds further than Augie (thus the WIAC was stonger than the CCIW last year).

And as posted last night here by Old School, "La Crosse may have been 3-0, but their wins were hardly impressive. They went to Sheboygan and won on a layup at the buzzer to beat Lakeland, a team Point just beat by 38. They topped in-town NAIA rival Viterbo by 10, who usually isn't that good and then they squeaked by Ripon by one, a team picked 6th in the top-heavy MWC."

Yet they did still win, regardless of if by 1 or 100.  Good teams tend to find a way, and LaX is showing that they are able to find a way.  There is a rather large vacuum in La Crosse left by the departure of WIAC POY Joe Werner.  The team is needing to figure out who it is without such a big threat.

Oshkosh and La Crosse may very well turn out to be WIAC contenders and national powers this season, but as things stand right now, I don't think those games indicate that Augie and Elmhurst "showed that they are able to compete with the big guys in D-3."  The 2007-08 Oshkosh and La Crosse teams are far from proven powers.  The Augie game seems like a pretty big upset to me, simply because they are the national #4 and the CCIW's favorite...and the game was played in Rock Island. 

I applaud Augustana and Elmhurst for scheduling games like these.  I've always felt that IWU's success in the CCIW over the years has been due in large part to the Titans' tough non-conference schedule every year.  You have to play good teams to get ready for play in a strong league...even if that means taking a few losses on nights you're not at your best.

The bolded portions of the previous quote don't quite flow together... either Oshkosh and La Crosse are proven powers (i.e. "good teams") or they're not... I mean, I know on one hand it makes the CCIW look good, but if Oshkosh and LaX aren't worth their weight in gold, then the games won't help them down the road in the CCIW.  It can't be both.

You throw in that "but Krull" pretty casually.  Jon Krull was a four-year starter for the Pointers and a part of two national championships.  As a senior he averaged 17 points and 5 rebounds.

With Krull, Stevens Point lost in the 3rd Round of the tournament last year at home.

I'm sure the Pointers are outstanding, but they have some proving to do as well.

... "But Krull" was only one player.  Zach Freeman was a preseason All-American, yet his senior year his team didn't go 26-3.  Point as a team still led all of college basketball in fewest turnovers per game and free throw precentage, and they've got almost everybody back from a team that went 26-3.  Krull wasn't even Point's leading scorer last year, that honor was held by one of this year's preseason 2nd team All-American (and now Junior) Pete Rortvedt.  And Point's three starting guards are a combined 28/54 from 3 pt land with 25 assists to just 6 TO's.  They've also got an up-and-coming Freshman in Louis Hurd, who wears Krull's old number and is cut from the same mold.  And EVERYONE else is one year older on a team that started 3 sophomores and had the first two guys off the bench as sophomores as well.

This team did amazing things last year, and they were very, very young.  As it stands, Point has only one senior in Steve Hicklin.  This team, still, is going to do nothing but get better.

And, to be honest, what team DOESN'T have some proving to do for this season?  Teams aren't crowned champions in November, and no team has earned that this year so far.

[wheels81]

I understood that wheaton was thin this year but w/o Wiele they are being dismantled w/exception of Raymond who has 21  or 31 points for wheaton.

[Titan Q]

And, to be honest, what team DOESN'T have some proving to do for this season?  Teams aren't crowned champions in November, and no team has earned that this year so far.

Regarding your entire post, I think you missed my points on several of those quotes and didn't read them in the context of what I was responding to.  But I don't feel like whipping up a long response where I quote your quotes of my quotes.  Your points are duly noted.

I think my thoughts on where the WIAC stands are well documented here on these boards, and I think it is obvious I have nothing but respect for Stevens Point.

[Titan Q]

Final:

Hope 83
Wheaton 53

Bill Harris on WETN postgame show...

"Hope absolutely plastered us."

"They trapped Raymond every time and played very physically...they knocked him to the floor 8-10 times."

"We just played poorly, let's face it."

"We were out-physicalled."

"We couldn't even make layups."

[David Collinge]

Some CCIW/MIAA Challenge vindication for Wheaton as the Distaff Disturbances upset #6 Calvin at Hope, 59-52.

[usee]

Man, I really jinxed poor wiele. Last post ever for me!

[iwumichigander]

Make that 5 straight turnovers to start the half, and 26 total.  This is crazy.

Whoops!  I seem to remember another team that encountered a turnover problem early in the season not that long ago and took a long time to fix it.  This kind of night(mare) can be tough to come back from.

[Jim Matson]

This like the Wheaton/Carthage football game...