MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[Gregory Sager]

I agree, Pat, that Hope's a no-brainer Pool C selection, if it comes to that. But seeding could come into play somewhere down the line in a situation in which the sectional host has to be decided.

[sac]

Aquinas ----   Salem St./Simpson/Concordia/McMurry

Which Concordia?

Does it matter?   I think it was the Minnesota variety of Concordia's.

Well, Hope doesn't have to worry about selection the way things are going and I can't imagine they have to worry about seeding.

I always worry about seeding, because the D3 tournament isn't a properly seeded tournament.   Being in this part of the country there is a major difference between going one direction or the other....playing at home or away.

[Pat Coleman]

True. It'll depend on who advances to the sectional and how the geography works as much as anything.

[Gregory Sager]

Aquinas ----   Salem St./Simpson/Concordia/McMurry

Which Concordia?

Does it matter?

Actually, it does. Concordia-Moorhead and Concordia (IL) are each 7-14; Concordia (WI) is 16-5, leads the NAthC North, and is on the edge of the Pool C conversation.

True. It'll depend on who advances to the sectional and how the geography works as much as anything.

True, but the handbook manual at least gives lip service to seeding being a site-selection consideration as far as the sectionals are concerned.

[oldknight]

I have no dog in the fight so I'll add my two cents. I think Hope is a better team this year than it was last. I don't think Hope is any more talented on a man-for-man basis but they seem to mesh even better this season. A combination of solid D3 talent and great experience at the guard position is the real reason. Guys like Krombeen and Bunn (and Overway off the bench) simply control the tempo, pace and decision making so well that Hope doesn't go into long dry spells on offense. They are also excellent defenders, especially Krombeen who I saw more than once cleanly pick the pocket of a D1 point guard in the WMU game. Krombeen is clearly the MVP of the MIAA this year. These guys are the main reason why Hope is--by far--the best shooting team in the league this year. Hope doesn't have inherently better shooters than teams like Adrian, Calvin or Trine, they simply consistently take better shots than anyone else and that's the reason Hope is running away with the league.

The lessons Hope has learned are ones Calvin is learning now. It's no accident the Knights are shooting the ball better of late. Powell in particular has upped his game. He's pretty much bagged limiting his game to hanging around the arc and firing up random threes and has taken over to actually run the Knights' offense. Since Calvin's loss to Hope, Bryan has shot very well and consistently scored in double figures. More importantly, he's taking care of the ball. Rietema went down the first half of the Albion game requiring Powell to be virtually the exclusive ball handler ever since. In those two road wins Powell has made only one turnover in 52 minutes of play. That's pretty impressive.

[realist]

The addition of NVA has gone a long ways toward making Hope the better team that we are seeing this year.   

[ChicagoHopeNut]

Hope is officially the #1 team in the new D3 poll.

15 first place votes. Middlebury still had 5, Va Wesleyan had 4 and UW-Whitewater got 1.

Big week ahead.

[HopeConvert]

I concur in part and I dissent in part.

I think realist is correct that NVA has made quite a difference for this year's squad, and that on a man-for-man basis they are better than last year. NVA seems to me quite an upgrade from Dickerson or Venema, and that he makes Snuggerud better. Snugs shot 53% from the floor last year and is shooting 60% this year, in part because NVA is creating more space for him to operate. Krombeen is also shooting 8 percentage points higher this year, even though his A/TO ratio is down. So they are getting better shots, but that is in part because they have a stronger inside game, and that by quite a margin, I think.

I concur that the chemistry seems to be very good this year. They're not as dependent on one person as they were last year, and they seem genuinely unselfish. They are always willing to make that extra pass, to give up a good shot for a better one.

What this portends for Saturday I dare not say. I'm already nervous.

[goodknight]

I concur in part and I dissent in part.

I've noticed that about you.

[NW Hope Fan]

Hope is officially the #1 team in the new D3 poll.

Uugg! Falling from this high is much more painful.

Congrats to the Dutchmen! This week is time to prove if it's accurate. Still think we'll see a dogfight at the VNA.

[sac]

Being #1 this week will be great for this team.  They need a few games with pressure to see how they handle it.  I welcome this.


Wed. night they'll be playing a school who seems to hate the very existence of Hope College on this planet and they haven't beaten Hope since 1998.  Kalamazoo will be coming to Holland charged up looking to take down #1 because they'd like nothing better.  Beating a #1 Hope team would be icing.


Sat afternoon Hope could be rolling into Grand Rapids as the #1 team in D3.  Hope/Calvin games are already a tougher environment than most D3 teams will ever see.  Add in the prospect of your rival trying to knock off #1 on their home court and the atmosphere should be awesome.


With a big and probably insurmountable MIAA lead these last few games with the exception of Calvin didn't look they would provide much in the way of pressure.  Pressure makes you do different things than you do normally, its good to face it in a less...shall we say sudden death environment than the D3 tournament.  They got a little bit of that Saturday at Albion, I can't wait for someone to break out the overrated cheer just to see how Hope reacts.  Embracing that pressure and the expectations that come with being number one is Hope's next challenge.

This should be a fun couple games.

[pointlem]

The addition of NVA has gone a long ways toward making Hope the better team that we are seeing this year.

Agree, Realist, and he has noticeably improved over the season.  Now if NVA can have a good game at the VNA . . . .

[wiz]

Anybody want my tickets for Saturday's game at VNA?  I don't think I can stand to watch this one.  Hope has MVP player(s), humungous game changing center, coach of the year, number 1 national ranking, and the ever popular Dew Crew.  Calvin, a team that is barely over .500, lost four quality seniors from last year's team, has 4 previous starters that didn't even suit up this past Saturday, a coach that "realist"ically needs to be fired, a mascot that hasn't even been seen this year, and a student body that only shows up for one game a year.  If Calvin can keep the margin within 30, we can probably call it a moral victory.  Go Knights?     

[almcguirejr]

Hope is officially the #1 team in the new D3 poll.

Uugg! Falling from this high is much more painful.

If you expect the worst, you'll never be disappointed.

[GoKnights68]

Anybody want my tickets for Saturday's game at VNA?  I don't think I can stand to watch this one.  Hope has MVP player(s), humungous game changing center, coach of the year, number 1 national ranking, and the ever popular Dew Crew.  Calvin, a team that is barely over .500, lost four quality seniors from last year's team, has 4 previous starters that didn't even suit up this past Saturday, a coach that "realist"ically needs to be fired, a mascot that hasn't even been seen this year, and a student body that only shows up for one game a year.  If Calvin can keep the margin within 30, we can probably call it a moral victory.  Go Knights?   

Has student attendance really been that bad?  It is usually pretty good in recent years. 

Student attendence and student "participation" are two different things.