MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[pointlem]

. . . The difference in the game was that Cortez Garland picked up 2 fouls in the first 6 minutes of the game and Coach May sat him the rest of the half.  If Cortez was in there for the whole game it would have made a huge difference because in the second half he just went off.  He scored all of his 26 points in the second half including shooting 6-6 from 3, which included a banked in 3 at the buzzer to make the final score a 6 pt game.  It wasn't like they were all open looks, we had a hand in his face all the time, he just made some really tough shots.  If I was the coach I would have played him with 2 fouls off and on in the 1st half, especially being down, because the Brits are pretty much Ebeling and Garland offensively this year, at least on a consistent basis.

Good observation, TUAngola (and love your write-ups, btw). Although every minute and point counts the same, coaches (and fans) act as if points scored in the last minutes--when it feels like games are decided--count more. (For academic geeks: that's a "temporal contiguity" effect: something that happens just before an outcome seems more the cause of the outcome than equally important earlier causes in a chain of events.) Thus coaches, it seems (am I right?), would rather play a Cortez Garland for 23 minutes and have him available the last five minutes, than to maximize his minutes but risk his fouling out before the end.

[oldknight]

I have watched every Calvin game this season except for their surprisingly close loss to D1 Eastern Michigan University. All games I have watched were by computer, though I did find a way to sneak into the arena and watch the intersquad scrimmage in later October (don't tell the suits in the Admin building). That helped in giving me a look, live and in-person, of the talents of this season's freshmen class. From what I have seen, I draw the following early observations (hard to imagine writing "early observations" in February, but such is the year of Covid).

1) Bill Sall's much heralded freshmen class is really talented. They're still freshmen, will continue with many ups and downs, and have much to learn, but Bill has quite a haul with this group. And he's the right guy to teach them.

2) When I saw the intersquad scrimmage, I thought Scheffers was pretty much as advertised--a quality point guard, a 4-year leader of the Calvin offense who knows how to handle and distribute the ball, but who also looks to score a bit. And he can. I'm not at all disappointed in what I have seen from Luke since October, but back then it was impossible to not notice the talent, tenacity, and athleticism Uchenna Egekeze brings to this team. If he plays four years at Calvin, I think he's got a POY award in his future. No opposing player wants this kid guarding him, of that I can assure you.

3) Yesterday's win over Olivet shows how much Calvin missed Emmett Warners the last two weeks. He was easily the most dominant player on the floor for the Knights, and not just for his 19 points and 11 boards. He is just a terrific defender, both on and off the ball, swatting away 4 Comet shots, grabbing 3 steals, and frequently poking the ball away from Olivet players. Shymanski was almost a complete non-factor in this game and it made no difference.

4) Brandon Paul is a very nice addition to the team. He does have a tendency to travel when posting up, but he's a strong physical presence down low, and has a sweet stroke from the arc, forcing his defender away from the basket.

5) Didn't get to see Marcus Bult in the varsity game against Olivet, but he did ring up 27 in the JV game. Still needs some seasoning at the varsity level, but he is an excellent rebounder, and is going to be a very good player at Calvin.

6) This team has been truly lousy from the free throw line, hitting (if that is the right word) at a 58% clip from the charity stripe. It would help if Shymanksi and Warners would start making a few. The senior duo combined for 12-22 yesterday, and both have been 80% FT shooters at Calvin, so it's likely the team has bottomed out at the line.

7) Very nice write-up by Uchenna's local paper in Illinois about the young man's start on the Knollcrest campus:

https://www.shawlocal.com/northwest-herald/high-school-sports/2021/02/05/on-campus-huntley-alum-uchenna-egekeze-makes-immediate-splash-with-calvin-college/

[maroonandgold]

I have watched every Calvin game this season except for their surprisingly close loss to D1 Eastern Michigan University. All games I have watched were by computer, though I did find a way to sneak into the arena and watch the intersquad scrimmage in later October (don't tell the suits in the Admin building). That helped in giving me a look, live and in-person, of the talents of this season's freshmen class. From what I have seen, I draw the following early observations (hard to imagine writing "early observations" in February, but such is the year of Covid).

1) Bill Sall's much heralded freshmen class is really talented. They're still freshmen, will continue with many ups and downs, and have much to learn, but Bill has quite a haul with this group. And he's the right guy to teach them.

2) When I saw the intersquad scrimmage, I thought Scheffers was pretty much as advertised--a quality point guard, a 4-year leader of the Calvin offense who knows how to handle and distribute the ball, but who also looks to score a bit. And he can. I'm not at all disappointed in what I have seen from Luke since October, but back then it was impossible to not notice the talent, tenacity, and athleticism Uchenna Egekeze brings to this team. If he plays four years at Calvin, I think he's got a POY award in his future. No opposing player wants this kid guarding him, of that I can assure you.

3) Yesterday's win over Olivet shows how much Calvin missed Emmett Warners the last two weeks. He was easily the most dominant player on the floor for the Knights, and not just for his 19 points and 11 boards. He is just a terrific defender, both on and off the ball, swatting away 4 Comet shots, grabbing 3 steals, and frequently poking the ball away from Olivet players. Shymanski was almost a complete non-factor in this game and it made no difference.

4) Brandon Paul is a very nice addition to the team. He does have a tendency to travel when posting up, but he's a strong physical presence down low, and has a sweet stroke from the arc, forcing his defender away from the basket.

5) Didn't get to see Marcus Bult in the varsity game against Olivet, but he did ring up 27 in the JV game. Still needs some seasoning at the varsity level, but he is an excellent rebounder, and is going to be a very good player at Calvin.

6) This team has been truly lousy from the free throw line, hitting (if that is the right word) at a 58% clip from the charity stripe. It would help if Shymanksi and Warners would start making a few. The senior duo combined for 12-22 yesterday, and both have been 80% FT shooters at Calvin, so it's likely the team has bottomed out at the line.

7) Very nice write-up by Uchenna's local paper in Illinois about the young man's start on the Knollcrest campus:

https://www.shawlocal.com/northwest-herald/high-school-sports/2021/02/05/on-campus-huntley-alum-uchenna-egekeze-makes-immediate-splash-with-calvin-college/

Great summary of what ha developed so far!   I was going to point out the effect that Warners has had all year if nobody else did.  With Brian Paul, as you pointed out, he is really an asset since they have no other player of that size that is really ready to go.  He has to  be a little better to finish on his short shots to improve--maybe just softer touch or more concentration  on the shot itself.  But he is already a crucial part of the team.

Thanks for including that article from Egekeze's hometown paper.  How in the worl did you find that?

[sac]

Not great

https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2021/02/calvin-university-issues-stay-home-order-amid-alarming-increase-in-campus-covid-19-cases.html?utm_campaign=grandrapidspress_sf&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

[TUAngola]

Final from Kalamazoo:  Trine 77 Kalamazoo 49

Trine:  Bowman 17, Williams 13, Cox 13, Jones 10
Kalamazoo:  Cook 13, Hamann 12

[sac]

Hope 99  Olivet 81  F

Olivet couldn't buy a 3 until they could, but by that point Hope led by 30.  Comets got it down to 13 with 4 to play but could get no closer.  High tempo game with nearly 90 possessions per team


Hope:  Granger 21, George 21, Thomas 17, Dykhouse 10, Bikus 10
Olivet:  Thigpen 26, Robinette 12, Moore 11, Martin 10

[hopefan]

Not great

https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2021/02/calvin-university-issues-stay-home-order-amid-alarming-increase-in-campus-covid-19-cases.html?utm_campaign=grandrapidspress_sf&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

So distressing... we've gotta beat this thing...

[sac]

Apparently Kyle Lindsay is no longer the head coach at Adrian.  No announcement of any kind.

https://adrianbulldogs.com/sports/m-baskbl/coaches/index


His profile and bio info remains on the schools site.

[Flying Dutch Fan]

Apparently Kyle Lindsay is no longer the head coach at Adrian.  No announcement of any kind.

https://adrianbulldogs.com/sports/m-baskbl/coaches/index


His profile and bio info remains on the schools site.

Wow - after getting his team in the NCAAs last year...

[Flying Dutch Fan]

Hope vs Adrian games (men & women) are postponed for today (2/11)

Calvin vs Albion games (men & women) are postponed for today (2/11)

All teams currently showing scheduled games on Saturday...

[almcguirejr]

Interesting article from the Detroit Free Press about the challenges facing Albion College and other small colleges.

https://www.freep.com/in-depth/news/education/2021/02/11/michigan-liberal-arts-college-tuition-discount/6310395002/

[WUPHF]

Albion, Michigan is very small, but dang, they sure have a way of making Albion sound isolated.

Cutting across mid-Michigan on eastbound Interstate 94, a little bit past Jackson and a few turns of the wheel before Marshall, there's a small green highway sign telling motorists to get off at exit 124 to go to Albion College.

A sign lets motorists on westbound I-94 know when to get off to go to Albion College.  A sign lets motorists on westbound I-94 know when to get off to go to Albion College. 

There's no sign of the college at the top of the interstate exit ramp. It's about a 5-minute drive from there, past a church, a mechanic's shop, a small industrial park off a dirt road and an interesting three-way intersection.

[WUPHF]

I am curious, what is interesting about the intersection?

[maroonandgold]

Hope vs Adrian games (men & women) are postponed for today (2/11)

Calvin vs Albion games (men & women) are postponed for today (2/11)

All teams currently showing scheduled games on Saturday...

I am not at all surprised that Calvin's game is canceled since the campus is on lock down, but I did not expect Hope's game to be.  Do you know whether it was due to Hope or Adrian?  Or was there some other factor?

[Flying Dutch Fan]

Hope vs Adrian games (men & women) are postponed for today (2/11)

Calvin vs Albion games (men & women) are postponed for today (2/11)

All teams currently showing scheduled games on Saturday...

I am not at all surprised that Calvin's game is canceled since the campus is on lock down, but I did not expect Hope's game to be.  Do you know whether it was due to Hope or Adrian?  Or was there some other factor?

Yeah, I was actually surprised the Calvin teams played on Tuesday considering the announcement.  I do not know which team(s) are the issue.  It was interesting that the Hope /Adrian women's game (at Hope) was postponed yesterday, but it wasn't until this morning that the men's Hope/Adrian game (at Adrian) was postponed.