MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[KnightSlappy]

What's left

Calvin:    TRINE, OLIVET
Hope:     OLIVET, @Trine

Trine:     @Calvin, HOPE
Adrian:    @Kzoo, ALBION
Olivet:    @Hope, @Calvin

Alma:     @Albion, @Kzoo
Kzoo:     ADRIAN, ALMA
Albion:   ALMA, @Adrian


Calvin--a win or Hope loss clinches the MIAA Championship
Hope--a win and Calvin loss ties for the lead with 1 to play

Interesting to see all 3 teams in the mix for the 3/4 spots all on the road Wed. 

There are quite a few tie-breaker scenarios here, more than worth my time to figure out.

Olivet still holds the 'we beat hope' trump card over both Adrian/Trine, after that a few of the tie-breaks are dependent on the next weeks results.  Basically if you are Trine/Olivet or Adrian you need to win.

If things go as expected this week with Calvin, Hope and Adrian winning out the tournament would look like this.  Any results that aren't Calvin, Hope or Adrian winning changes things.

Trine at Calvin
Adrian at Hope

Worst case scenario for Calvin has always been Adrian finishing in 4th place. It's no secret they've given the Knights fits over the years. Even though Calvin's 2-0 versus the Bulldogs this year (and they sit tied for 4th), they're the team in 3rd-8th place I'd least like to see come to VNA for the first round. They look like a good bet to win the third seed still if they can take care of business.

Tough road for Olivet. They're going to have to beat at least one of Calvin, Hope, or Adrian to make the tournament.

[goodknight]

Were the broadcasters on the World Harvest TV coverage connected to Calvin?  I thought they were very good, but definitely seemed slanted towards Calvin.  In tense, pressure, big play moments both guys sounded like Calvin fans to me.

Thanks for the scoop anyone can provide on this.

The announcers for the game are both sportscasters from the local GR media. Hope fans have long been pointing out the slant toward Calvin, so it is interesting to hear the perspective of an "outsider". It was also interesting to see one of those broadcasters sit directly behind the Calvin bench for the entire JV game chatting with some Calvin faithful he has obvious connections to.  That being said, there aren't many people in W Michigan who aren't on one side or the other.

As Hope Convert noted, Ryan Terpstra is a Calvin alum and has been working in West Michigan media since his graduation about 7 or 8 years ago.  If I'm not mistaken (and if I am, I have little doubt I'll be quickly corrected), this
year might be the first time Ryan's done color commentary for the rivalry telecasts.  Typically, he's done some sideline reporting and halftime and post-game interviews with head coaches or their designated proxies. 
Tom Cleary is a Central Michigan University alum and a longtime sports broadcaster in the West Michigan market with no ties, as far as I know, to either Calvin or Hope.  His wife is a Vice President at Grand Valley State University.
He was sitting right behind me in the Calvin section during the JV game to enjoy the company of his college roommate, Denny Parks, who played at CMU in the mid-1970s with Dan Roundfield, Ben Poquette and James McElroy,  Denny was sitting in the Calvin section to watch his son, Austin, play for the Calvin JV team. 
Ironically, during the JV contest, I jokingly mentioned to Tom (I've known him professionally for more than 20 years) that he should avoid saying anything nice about either school, lest he be accused of favoring one over the other.  He laughed, noting that after every broadcast he receives complaints from Hope and Calvin fans in roughly equal number who indignantly assert that he is clearly biased toward the rival school.
The announcers do not bother me.  I avoid listening to the broadcast by going to the games.
Speaking of the Saturday game, with his team-leading 14 points, Tom Snikkers is now in eighth place on Calvin's all-time scoring list with 1,383.  He is almost 250 points behind the seventh man on the list, Caleb Veldhouse.

[KnightSlappy]

Were the broadcasters on the World Harvest TV coverage connected to Calvin?  I thought they were very good, but definitely seemed slanted towards Calvin.  In tense, pressure, big play moments both guys sounded like Calvin fans to me.

Thanks for the scoop anyone can provide on this.

The announcers for the game are both sportscasters from the local GR media. Hope fans have long been pointing out the slant toward Calvin, so it is interesting to hear the perspective of an "outsider". It was also interesting to see one of those broadcasters sit directly behind the Calvin bench for the entire JV game chatting with some Calvin faithful he has obvious connections to.  That being said, there aren't many people in W Michigan who aren't on one side or the other.

As Hope Convert noted, Ryan Terpstra is a Calvin alum and has been working in West Michigan media since his graduation about 7 or 8 years ago.  If I'm not mistaken (and if I am, I have little doubt I'll be quickly corrected), this
year might be the first time Ryan's done color commentary for the rivalry telecasts.  Typically, he's done some sideline reporting and halftime and post-game interviews with head coaches or their designated proxies. 
Tom Cleary is a Central Michigan University alum and a longtime sports broadcaster in the West Michigan market with no ties, as far as I know, to either Calvin or Hope.  His wife is a Vice President at Grand Valley State University.
He was sitting right behind me in the Calvin section during the JV game to enjoy the company of his college roommate, Denny Parks, who played at CMU in the mid-1970s with Dan Roundfield, Ben Poquette and James McElroy,  Denny was sitting in the Calvin section to watch his son, Austin, play for the Calvin JV team. 
Ironically, during the JV contest, I jokingly mentioned to Tom (I've known him professionally for more than 20 years) that he should avoid saying anything nice about either school, lest he be accused of favoring one over the other.  He laughed, noting that after every broadcast he receives complaints from Hope and Calvin fans in roughly equal number who indignantly assert that he is clearly biased toward the rival school.
The announcers do not bother me.  I avoid listening to the broadcast by going to the games.
Speaking of the Saturday game, with his team-leading 14 points, Tom Snikkers is now in eighth place on Calvin's all-time scoring list with 1,383.  He is almost 250 points behind the seventh man on the list, Caleb Veldhouse.

Ryan Terpstra delivered the famous "Bryan Powell is 5-10 in boots" line after the dunk over Overway in one of last year's games as the color man.

[goodknight]

Thanks, KS, for the quick correction.
I'm usually at least a year behind these days.

[HopeConvert]

Were the broadcasters on the World Harvest TV coverage connected to Calvin?  I thought they were very good, but definitely seemed slanted towards Calvin.  In tense, pressure, big play moments both guys sounded like Calvin fans to me.

Thanks for the scoop anyone can provide on this.

The announcers for the game are both sportscasters from the local GR media. Hope fans have long been pointing out the slant toward Calvin, so it is interesting to hear the perspective of an "outsider". It was also interesting to see one of those broadcasters sit directly behind the Calvin bench for the entire JV game chatting with some Calvin faithful he has obvious connections to.  That being said, there aren't many people in W Michigan who aren't on one side or the other.

As Hope Convert noted, Ryan Terpstra is a Calvin alum and has been working in West Michigan media since his graduation about 7 or 8 years ago.  If I'm not mistaken (and if I am, I have little doubt I'll be quickly corrected), this
year might be the first time Ryan's done color commentary for the rivalry telecasts.  Typically, he's done some sideline reporting and halftime and post-game interviews with head coaches or their designated proxies. 
Tom Cleary is a Central Michigan University alum and a longtime sports broadcaster in the West Michigan market with no ties, as far as I know, to either Calvin or Hope.  His wife is a Vice President at Grand Valley State University.
He was sitting right behind me in the Calvin section during the JV game to enjoy the company of his college roommate, Denny Parks, who played at CMU in the mid-1970s with Dan Roundfield, Ben Poquette and James McElroy,  Denny was sitting in the Calvin section to watch his son, Austin, play for the Calvin JV team. 
Ironically, during the JV contest, I jokingly mentioned to Tom (I've known him professionally for more than 20 years) that he should avoid saying anything nice about either school, lest he be accused of favoring one over the other.  He laughed, noting that after every broadcast he receives complaints from Hope and Calvin fans in roughly equal number who indignantly assert that he is clearly biased toward the rival school.
The announcers do not bother me.  I avoid listening to the broadcast by going to the games.
Speaking of the Saturday game, with his team-leading 14 points, Tom Snikkers is now in eighth place on Calvin's all-time scoring list with 1,383.  He is almost 250 points behind the seventh man on the list, Caleb Veldhouse.

Ryan Terpstra delivered the famous "Bryan Powell is 5-10 in boots" line after the dunk over Overway in one of last year's games as the color man.

The dunk was over Logan Neil.

[hoopdreams]

Another classic within "The Rivalry" yesterday.  A few items that crossed my mind...
1.  First and foremost, this game was HUGE for the Dutchman, and gives them a huge psychological advantage....if they meet in the MIAA tourney.  From a humiliating loss 3 weeks ago, to defeating the Knights, ending a long winning streak with Hope's leader sitting helplessly in a walking boot. They now know they can play solidly, not even great and beat Calvin.  Recent history has proven that Calvin isn't unbeatable, at home in the tourney.

2.  This game was quite ugly for long stretches-whether from outstanding defense, poor decisions, or both.  Surprisingly, many of the miscues- poor shoot selection (airballs), and poor passes were made by seniors from both teams.  Regardless of points scored, I thought Snikkers looked quite "off" at times, especially in the first half.   

3.  NVA reminds me alot of Dwight Howard in only this way......he simply does not finish well, consistantly,  on the right block turning right, missing multiple close shots becasue he simply rushes things and almost looks like he shot puts it at times.  However, when he turns left and shoots his jump hook left handed, its a thing of beauty.  DH does the same thing in the post.  In all seriousness, if NVA plays with this focus, makes great decisions and stays out of foul trouble...wow.

4.  Is it just me or is Brink too passive offensively at times?  I just love the kids game and have since the first time watching but there are stretches of several minutes where he doesn't even get a touch or decent look.  Yes, his teammates are responsible for getting him the rock but....Truthfully from where a was sitting, it looked like Calvin's entire team wasn't playing with a sense of urgency, maybe assuming they would go on a huge run and waiting for someone else to make it happen?

Things in the MIAA just got a little interesting......

[KnightSlappy]

Were the broadcasters on the World Harvest TV coverage connected to Calvin?  I thought they were very good, but definitely seemed slanted towards Calvin.  In tense, pressure, big play moments both guys sounded like Calvin fans to me.

Thanks for the scoop anyone can provide on this.

The announcers for the game are both sportscasters from the local GR media. Hope fans have long been pointing out the slant toward Calvin, so it is interesting to hear the perspective of an "outsider". It was also interesting to see one of those broadcasters sit directly behind the Calvin bench for the entire JV game chatting with some Calvin faithful he has obvious connections to.  That being said, there aren't many people in W Michigan who aren't on one side or the other.

As Hope Convert noted, Ryan Terpstra is a Calvin alum and has been working in West Michigan media since his graduation about 7 or 8 years ago.  If I'm not mistaken (and if I am, I have little doubt I'll be quickly corrected), this
year might be the first time Ryan's done color commentary for the rivalry telecasts.  Typically, he's done some sideline reporting and halftime and post-game interviews with head coaches or their designated proxies. 
Tom Cleary is a Central Michigan University alum and a longtime sports broadcaster in the West Michigan market with no ties, as far as I know, to either Calvin or Hope.  His wife is a Vice President at Grand Valley State University.
He was sitting right behind me in the Calvin section during the JV game to enjoy the company of his college roommate, Denny Parks, who played at CMU in the mid-1970s with Dan Roundfield, Ben Poquette and James McElroy,  Denny was sitting in the Calvin section to watch his son, Austin, play for the Calvin JV team. 
Ironically, during the JV contest, I jokingly mentioned to Tom (I've known him professionally for more than 20 years) that he should avoid saying anything nice about either school, lest he be accused of favoring one over the other.  He laughed, noting that after every broadcast he receives complaints from Hope and Calvin fans in roughly equal number who indignantly assert that he is clearly biased toward the rival school.
The announcers do not bother me.  I avoid listening to the broadcast by going to the games.
Speaking of the Saturday game, with his team-leading 14 points, Tom Snikkers is now in eighth place on Calvin's all-time scoring list with 1,383.  He is almost 250 points behind the seventh man on the list, Caleb Veldhouse.

Ryan Terpstra delivered the famous "Bryan Powell is 5-10 in boots" line after the dunk over Overway in one of last year's games as the color man.

The dunk was over Logan Neil.

Some manner of Hope player of little consequence at any rate.

[Flying Dutch Fan]

Were the broadcasters on the World Harvest TV coverage connected to Calvin?  I thought they were very good, but definitely seemed slanted towards Calvin.  In tense, pressure, big play moments both guys sounded like Calvin fans to me.

Thanks for the scoop anyone can provide on this.

The announcers for the game are both sportscasters from the local GR media. Hope fans have long been pointing out the slant toward Calvin, so it is interesting to hear the perspective of an "outsider". It was also interesting to see one of those broadcasters sit directly behind the Calvin bench for the entire JV game chatting with some Calvin faithful he has obvious connections to.  That being said, there aren't many people in W Michigan who aren't on one side or the other.

As Hope Convert noted, Ryan Terpstra is a Calvin alum and has been working in West Michigan media since his graduation about 7 or 8 years ago.  If I'm not mistaken (and if I am, I have little doubt I'll be quickly corrected), this
year might be the first time Ryan's done color commentary for the rivalry telecasts.  Typically, he's done some sideline reporting and halftime and post-game interviews with head coaches or their designated proxies. 
Tom Cleary is a Central Michigan University alum and a longtime sports broadcaster in the West Michigan market with no ties, as far as I know, to either Calvin or Hope.  His wife is a Vice President at Grand Valley State University.
He was sitting right behind me in the Calvin section during the JV game to enjoy the company of his college roommate, Denny Parks, who played at CMU in the mid-1970s with Dan Roundfield, Ben Poquette and James McElroy,  Denny was sitting in the Calvin section to watch his son, Austin, play for the Calvin JV team. 
Ironically, during the JV contest, I jokingly mentioned to Tom (I've known him professionally for more than 20 years) that he should avoid saying anything nice about either school, lest he be accused of favoring one over the other.  He laughed, noting that after every broadcast he receives complaints from Hope and Calvin fans in roughly equal number who indignantly assert that he is clearly biased toward the rival school.
The announcers do not bother me.  I avoid listening to the broadcast by going to the games.
Speaking of the Saturday game, with his team-leading 14 points, Tom Snikkers is now in eighth place on Calvin's all-time scoring list with 1,383.  He is almost 250 points behind the seventh man on the list, Caleb Veldhouse.

Ryan Terpstra delivered the famous "Bryan Powell is 5-10 in boots" line after the dunk over Overway in one of last year's games as the color man.

The dunk was over Logan Neil.

Some manner of Hope player of little consequence at any rate.

So was the dunk.  Scoreboard, scoreboard...   

[ziggy]

Were the broadcasters on the World Harvest TV coverage connected to Calvin?  I thought they were very good, but definitely seemed slanted towards Calvin.  In tense, pressure, big play moments both guys sounded like Calvin fans to me.

Thanks for the scoop anyone can provide on this.

The announcers for the game are both sportscasters from the local GR media. Hope fans have long been pointing out the slant toward Calvin, so it is interesting to hear the perspective of an "outsider". It was also interesting to see one of those broadcasters sit directly behind the Calvin bench for the entire JV game chatting with some Calvin faithful he has obvious connections to.  That being said, there aren't many people in W Michigan who aren't on one side or the other.

As Hope Convert noted, Ryan Terpstra is a Calvin alum and has been working in West Michigan media since his graduation about 7 or 8 years ago.  If I'm not mistaken (and if I am, I have little doubt I'll be quickly corrected), this
year might be the first time Ryan's done color commentary for the rivalry telecasts.  Typically, he's done some sideline reporting and halftime and post-game interviews with head coaches or their designated proxies. 
Tom Cleary is a Central Michigan University alum and a longtime sports broadcaster in the West Michigan market with no ties, as far as I know, to either Calvin or Hope.  His wife is a Vice President at Grand Valley State University.
He was sitting right behind me in the Calvin section during the JV game to enjoy the company of his college roommate, Denny Parks, who played at CMU in the mid-1970s with Dan Roundfield, Ben Poquette and James McElroy,  Denny was sitting in the Calvin section to watch his son, Austin, play for the Calvin JV team. 
Ironically, during the JV contest, I jokingly mentioned to Tom (I've known him professionally for more than 20 years) that he should avoid saying anything nice about either school, lest he be accused of favoring one over the other.  He laughed, noting that after every broadcast he receives complaints from Hope and Calvin fans in roughly equal number who indignantly assert that he is clearly biased toward the rival school.
The announcers do not bother me.  I avoid listening to the broadcast by going to the games.
Speaking of the Saturday game, with his team-leading 14 points, Tom Snikkers is now in eighth place on Calvin's all-time scoring list with 1,383.  He is almost 250 points behind the seventh man on the list, Caleb Veldhouse.

Ryan Terpstra delivered the famous "Bryan Powell is 5-10 in boots" line after the dunk over Overway in one of last year's games as the color man.

The dunk was over Logan Neil.

Some manner of Hope player of little consequence at any rate.

So was the dunk.  Scoreboard, scoreboard...   

The Dew Crew seemed to favor attendance numbers over scoreboard in January, so let's not get too over this one.

[Happy Calvin Guy]

I predict that Calvin will hold serve and win the MIAA tourney.  That said, if Calvin goes 2-0 this week, wins its opening round game in the MIAA tournament and loses to, say, Hope in the championship game, Calvin will finish 23-4 on the year.  Given the "usual" number of upsets in conference tournaments around the country, etc, can someone with good knowledge of the selection criteria (read: KS et al.) give a good estimate of the probability of a Calvin Pool C bid?  I would like to believe it's very high, e.g. 95%+, and it would be if there is any justice in this world, but I know these things have their quirks.  Thanks!

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

Calvin's weak SOS will be a major factor... I think with just two regional losses, they should be safe, but we have already seen (and heard) from the committee that an SOS around .410 just isn't acceptable. Granted, that number can come up, but I doubt it will come up to a safe level by any stretch of the imagination. I think Calvin just needs to get the job done so they aren't on a bubble with some real rough primary criteria (i.e. SOS) and even tougher secondary criteria.

[ziggy]

Calvin's weak SOS will be a major factor... I think with just two regional losses, they should be safe, but we have already seen (and heard) from the committee that an SOS around .410 just isn't acceptable. Granted, that number can come up, but I doubt it will come up to a safe level by any stretch of the imagination. I think Calvin just needs to get the job done so they aren't on a bubble with some real rough primary criteria (i.e. SOS) and even tougher secondary criteria.

It's very difficult to tell anymore. In 2009 Calvin was left out when the (presumably) final Pool C bids went to a school with a worse WP but better SOS and a school with a better WP but worse SOS. Sucks to be in the middle of a donut, I guess.

If Calvin wins out but loses an MIAA tourney championship game they finish with a .905 WP. How they would keep that out of a tournament field, I have no idea, but anything is possible.

[Pat Coleman]

Yeah, I don't think they get left out of the tournament in that scenario because their SOS will also improve along the way, I would think. For comparison purposes, we'd want to look at the Chapman teams of a few years ago, but I believe their SOS was even lower.

[ziggy]

Yeah, I don't think they get left out of the tournament in that scenario because their SOS will also improve along the way, I would think. For comparison purposes, we'd want to look at the Chapman teams of a few years ago, but I believe their SOS was even lower.

I don't recall Chapman really having much competition in Pool B, even factoring in a weak SOS. Am I wrong in that? KS and I looked back at some of the recent Pool C bids about a week or so ago and I think it was Birmingham Southern that was the closest example. IIRC, they had a WP in the mid- to high-.800s and a SOS around 0.450. I believe KS was predicting a final SOS for Calvin around .450 but that will have to be revisited considering the NCAA's monkey wrench.

[scottiedawg]

Not sure if this was posted yet: http://www.d3blogs.com/d3hoops/2013/02/11/mens-strength-of-schedule-calculations-changed/