MBB: Centennial Conference

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

As for Washington... I am so far disappointed. For a team that showed so much with young talent last season, I expected a lot more of them this weekend then to be playing in the 7th place game against McDaniel. Washington may have beaten Stevenson rather easily, but it wasn't like they played well in doing so. Several times Stevenson crawled back tino the game in both halves and made i just a couple point spread. The Shoreman should have dominated the game and it should never have been in question from the opening tip.

Now that all being said, I will be interested to see how these teams play on Sunday... when facing different match-ups.

[lizalan07]

Dave,
     Appreciate your comments. I was a little surprised that you said that Hopkins had size. The only player with good size was Ferber-Miller and Hood did a great job of collasping on him whenever he got the ball.  The other 2 players with good size for Hopkins never got in the game. Hood looked very good, forcing Hopkins to giveup on their inside game, except for driving layups.  Was unable to get to Sunday's game against Salisbury.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

lizalan07 - there is more size inside then Ferber-Miller... today Alberici got plenty of time and I remember seeing him play in the Hood game. They do have size on the inside... the problem is that size has trouble with aggressive and swarming defense - similar to Hood the other day. Also... when I say size... Hood has one player above 6-8... and really aren't bigger then 6-4... so when you see that size against JHU - they lok big.

[d3hoopsfan]

In reference to the following review:

McDaniel was good, but not great against Goucher. The Green Terror should have dominated Goucher, but after getting a sizeable lead against the Gophers, they let them back into the game - and getting into an OT situation. If Jones (#23) doesn't hit a ton in the second half, McDaniel might be playing in the 7th place game. Heck, Jones missed five or so FT's in the OT to ice the game, giving Goucher a look to tie the game - though they missed. If people are excited about this team, they need to come to grips with the fact they are inconsistent and struggle with their game. If they get it together, they could be pretty good... but they are not a F&M beating team.

Dave,

Although I value your basketball insight you have to keep a few things in mind regarding the McDaniel squad:  Chemistry is still being developed with alot of new parts in the rotation; A few players recovering from injuries as well as early foul trouble limited contributions; and it was only the 2nd game of the season.  I see them challenging again in the top tier of the conference.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

d3hoopsfan... I am not sure McDaniel will be able to be in the top tier, expect for the fact other teams have fallen off. Remember... something like 65% of McDaniel's offense from last year is gone. In the 5th place game against Washington... I wanted to stop the game for the sheer fact neither team was playing well.

F&M is certainly going to be on top... who is after them is the question. Ursinus tends to reload well... and Hopkins may be the other team (though, those I have talked to think JHU is not going to be good this season - I am going on what I saw this weekend... third place was good). Gettysburg already has a large defeat to York; Washington does not look as good as I expected from a team that showed so much promise last season; McDaniel has good talent on paper, but should have steamrolled the Gophers; etc.

I understand team chemistry, second game of the season, and injuries... but Goucher is dealing with much of the same and I didn't think they had a chance to play at McDaniel's level. Remember, McDaniel two years ago shocked everyone... won the Pride of Maryland... and went through much of the early season with big win. That was a squad with new coach and new system and just a few upperclassmen... I didn't expect that kind of chemistry early on. So, to expect to have it now is not out of the rhealm of possibility... they have showed they can be ready when the season starts.

By the way... the Centennial might have a battle on its hands this year for regional domination... the CAC has some good teams this year in Hood, Salisbury, and York along with SMC.

[diplomaniac1]

Folks -

OK, since we all seemed to enjoy this last year, I am going to try my hand at getting the "Pick-Ems" contest off of the ground for this season, except for last weekend's games. It will be divided into two sections: through December 31 and January 1 and after.

Accordingly, my quick research shows the following games involving Centennial Conference teams on the schedule for Tuesday, November 24, 2009:

Juniata            @     Dickinson
F&M                 @     Lebanon Valley
Gettysburg      @     York College
Haverford        @     Catholic University
New Jersey     @     Muhlenberg
Swarthmore     @    Arcadia
Ursinus            @     Drew
Washington     @     Stevenson

McDaniel does not play again until Saturday, November 28. Johns Hopkins does not play again until Wednesday, December 2.

All picks are due by 5:00 P. M. tommorrow, Novmeber 24. Sorry for the very short notice as I just decided to do this about an hour ago. I will try to do a much better job of getting future games posted further in advance. I will also try to post the results and the to-date standings during the following day.

Good luck to all prognosticators and teams. Have fun! Enjoy. Have a safe, relaxing, and enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday. Regards to all.

Eric

P. S. - If anybody has an electronic version of a composite schedule for all teams in the conference, it would be most helpful in getting the games listed and posted. If so, please send directly to me via personal e-mail. Thanks.

[Reserved Seat]

Thanks diplomaniac1
Here goes the first picks of the year

Juniata
F&M
York College
Catholic University
New Jersey
Swarthmore
Ursinus
Washington

[D.B. Cooper]

My picks now too

Juniata
F&M
York
Catholic
New Jersey
Arcadia
Ursinus
Washington

[BRCE4]

Picks for 11-24
Juniata over a very young red devils squad
F&M is a comment even necessary
York over a rebuilding Gettysburg
Catholic over Haverford
Muhlenberg simply because their home
Swat over Arcadia both teams young, Swat on a hunch
Ursinus too strong for a struggling Drew team
Washington going with the centennial team here

[Gabriel]

Picks for 11/24/2009

Juniata
F&M
York
Catholic
New Jersey
Arcadia
Ursinus
Washinton

[crambam]

My big concerns for F&M is the outside shooting.  I watched a few games online last year, and it was terrible.  It was amazing that they made it to the Final Four without the ability to shoot from outside.  Hurt them in Salem, but I saw the boxscores and noticed that there were a decent number of 3 pointers from F&M in the first two games.  Thoughts?

I also noticed some decent teams on the schedule this year, which should give F&M some much needed tests. 

[godips04]

Long time reader, first time poster.

My Picks:

Juniata         
F&M                 
York College
Catholic University
New Jersey     
Swarthmore     
Ursinus           
Washington     

[Gabriel]

Ursinus started three freshmen against both Keystone College and Hamilton College last weekend at Hamilton.  Keystone was good-- very athletic and a challenge for the young players.  Ursinus played very poorly, first game jitters I think.  They trailed by 16 points a couple of times, the first time 20-4.  Yet,  they hung in there and pulled it out at the end 85-83.  Not pretty, but a win and a learning experience.

The next night was entirely different.  Hamilton is very good and could end up being a top 25 team before the year is out.  They are big and physical and can shoot threes.  The game was close throughout---a well played game by both teams.  Hamilton pulled it out at the buzzer 79-78.  Another great learning experience for the Bears.

Ursinus had only nine players as three sophomores were there but could not play, mostly for physical reasons.  The three freshmen played well but often played like freshmen.  Cousart averaged 22 points, 10.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists.  Hilton averaged 24.5 points.  The two veterans held them together.

Ursinus plays five of their first six games on the road.  We hope all of this speeds the development of the freshmen to sophomores by February.

[D.B. Cooper]

I saw Dips against Gwynedd-Mercy. Griffins shot it lights out early on but cooled off & Dips were able to fight back. I am impressed with freshman Beckford (looks good enough to start right now) & big guy Henry (excellent skill set & athleticism).
Does anyone know if Brooks who was listed as a sophomore last year & is now on the roster as a senior is back next year? There could be lots of reasons, like he plans to graduate early, but I just wondered if it was listed correctly or not.

[BTEXPRESS]

I will jump in with the picks for tonight:

Juniata
F & M
York
Catholic
CNJ
Arcadia
Ursinus
Washington