MBB: Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference

[palum]

Edgewood get a D2 transfer from MN Duluth

http://host.madison.com/sports/amateur/article_c32f595a-a636-11df-b073-001cc4c03286.html

[RFMichigan]

Man, is this board asleep . . .  Here's something to maybe get the fingers on the keyboard.

I looked over the CUC roster (earliest I've ever seen it out) and it looks like they just took the entire roster from 2009-2010 and just copy and pasted it to 2010-2011 with the addition of some new recruits. Seriously, when you have 11 seniors listed on the roster, many who don't see much time at all, that says something about something.  Love the coach? Love being part of the team?

A quick Google check on some of their recruits reveals that they run the gamut from guys who may not have even played HS ball to a couple of transfers who were major contributers on their respective successful HS state semifinalist teams in Florida (all-state HM) and Michigan (starter on the top ranked class A team in 2008-2009) and everything in between. It will be interesting to see how they work into playing time mix since basically every person on the roster returns. (And it was a big roster in 2009-2010!)  Not much new height, so Morgan will shoulder the load again.

[Just Bill]

Edgewood and CUC are picked to win divisions in the NAC.  Notice too, the rotating divisions have WLC moving to the North and Rockford in the South for the next two-year cycle.

http://www.d3hoops.com/pressreleases.php?release=3912

[Ralph Turner]

Edgewood and CUC are picked to win divisions in the NAC.  Notice too, the rotating divisions have WLC moving to the North and Rockford in the South for the next two-year cycle.

http://www.d3hoops.com/pressreleases.php?release=3912

which absolutely makes no sense in terms of building Division identity and rivalries.

[Gregory Sager]

Edgewood and CUC are picked to win divisions in the NAC.  Notice too, the rotating divisions have WLC moving to the North and Rockford in the South for the next two-year cycle.

http://www.d3hoops.com/pressreleases.php?release=3912

which absolutely makes no sense in terms of building Division identity and rivalries.

True, but, given the cockeyed geography of the NAthCon -- three Milwaukee-area schools, four other schools located deeper in Wisconsin, a school just slightly to the FIB side of the Halas-Lombardi Line, and four schools in Chicago's western suburbs -- it's seen as an equity issue. By rotating between divisions, the schools in the middle share the responsibility of the extra travel and the downside of not having the second round-robin games against traditional local rivals.

[Just Bill]

Edgewood lost to UW-Green Bay in an exhibition game last night, 78-55.

[Look It Up]

Concordia-Chicago takes a late lead against Chicago State before falling 79-75 to the Division I Team on Friday night. Larrell Gary 17 points, Charles Gordon 15 points off the bench. Concordia wins the battle of the boards against a bigger CSU team 50-42.

[WLCALUM83]

Here is an update on Kyle Plath, who played for WLC:

http://www.northtexasfresh.com/

(Their season opener was last night.)

[Just Bill]

Wow, good opening night for the NathCon.

Wins over the IIAC (Edgewood d. Loras), the WIAC (CUW d. UW-La Crosse), the UAA (Dominican d. Chicago) and a strong showing against the CCIW (Benedictine plays #4 IWU tough).

[RFMichigan]

Yes, I was especially impressed by the Domincan over Chicago game. Isn't Chicago usually pretty strong?

[Just Bill]

Yes, I was especially impressed by the Domincan over Chicago game. Isn't Chicago usually pretty strong?

Eh, Chicago is certainly in a good league but they haven't been that good recently. Edgewood and MSOE have both beaten them each of the last two seasons. Chicago was 13-12 last year and 6-19 in 2008-09 after starting the season in the preseason Top 25 poll.

[John Gleich]

Yes, I was especially impressed by the Domincan over Chicago game. Isn't Chicago usually pretty strong?

Eh, Chicago is certainly in a good league but they haven't been that good recently. Edgewood and MSOE have both beaten them each of the last two seasons. Chicago was 13-12 last year and 6-19 in 2008-09 after starting the season in the preseason Top 25 poll.

But they did make the tournament in 07-08 and had an 17-0 lead over UWSP in the first round to start the game.  It was all downhill from there, though... SP outscored them 29-7 over the last 14 minutes of the first half (29-24 Point led at half) and 67-36 for the rest of the game (final: 67-53 UWSP). 

Then, Chicago was ranked in the preseason in 08-09 and started the year 0-12 and 1-15.  What's crazy is 6 of the first 12 losses were three points or less, including 2 OT games. 

Last year was a step up at 13-12, good enough to be tied for 3rd in the UAA, but the program hasn't fully bounced back yet.

[Just Bill]

You might say that 17-0 lead on UWSP in the 2008 NCAA Tournament was the final high point on a dizzying free fall since that moment. Nothing really has gone right since that point in time, although they did slow the descent last year, as you pointed out.

[Gregory Sager]

Yes, I was especially impressed by the Domincan over Chicago game. Isn't Chicago usually pretty strong?

Eh, Chicago is certainly in a good league but they haven't been that good recently. Edgewood and MSOE have both beaten them each of the last two seasons. Chicago was 13-12 last year and 6-19 in 2008-09 after starting the season in the preseason Top 25 poll.

But they did make the tournament in 07-08 and had an 17-0 lead over UWSP in the first round to start the game.  It was all downhill from there, though... SP outscored them 29-7 over the last 14 minutes of the first half (29-24 Point led at half) and 67-36 for the rest of the game (final: 67-53 UWSP). 

Then, Chicago was ranked in the preseason in 08-09 and started the year 0-12 and 1-15.  What's crazy is 6 of the first 12 losses were three points or less, including 2 OT games. 

Last year was a step up at 13-12, good enough to be tied for 3rd in the UAA, but the program hasn't fully bounced back yet.

I'm pretty familiar with both teams -- I watch anywhere from five to ten Chicago games a year at the Ratner Center and I usually see two or three Dominican games as well, and I saw DU scrimmage North Park last week -- and I would've predicted a Dominican win in this game. Not because I think that the Maroons are going to be bad, as I actually think that they'll do OK in what will be a down year for the UAA, but because the Stars are small and super-quick and the Maroons aren't really set up to defend that kind of a team.

Sounds like a great game, though -- right down to the final buzzer. Wish I could've seen it; I would've been in the stands at Igini Sports Forum last night if I didn't have scorer's table duties at the North Park women's game.

[AndOne]

Yes, I was especially impressed by the Domincan over Chicago game. Isn't Chicago usually pretty strong?

Eh, Chicago is certainly in a good league but they haven't been that good recently. Edgewood and MSOE have both beaten them each of the last two seasons. Chicago was 13-12 last year and 6-19 in 2008-09 after starting the season in the preseason Top 25 poll.

But they did make the tournament in 07-08 and had an 17-0 lead over UWSP in the first round to start the game.  It was all downhill from there, though... SP outscored them 29-7 over the last 14 minutes of the first half (29-24 Point led at half) and 67-36 for the rest of the game (final: 67-53 UWSP). 

Then, Chicago was ranked in the preseason in 08-09 and started the year 0-12 and 1-15.  What's crazy is 6 of the first 12 losses were three points or less, including 2 OT games. 

Last year was a step up at 13-12, good enough to be tied for 3rd in the UAA, but the program hasn't fully bounced back yet.

I'm pretty familiar with both teams -- I watch anywhere from five to ten Chicago games a year at the Ratner Center and I usually see two or three Dominican games as well, and I saw DU scrimmage North Park last week -- and I would've predicted a Dominican win in this game. Not because I think that the Maroons are going to be bad, as I actually think that they'll do OK in what will be a down year for the UAA, but because the Stars are small and super-quick and the Maroons aren't really set up to defend that kind of a team.

North Central, picked to finish 6th in the CCIW, defeated Chicago by 14 points in a scrimmage last Thursday. They had previously also defeated Concordia which, as indicated above, lost to D1 Chicago State by only 4.