WBB: NESCAC

[amh63]

Nice story on the Amherst athletics website on the selection of Caroline Stedman of the WBB team's selection on the Capitol One NorthEast All-Academic 1st-team...making her an candidate for Academic All-American.

[amh63]

Critical games ahead this weekend.
During my scanning the U-tube section on the Amherst website, there appeared a video produced by the Tufts Daily paper dealing with the BIG game on Saturday..the WBB game on campus.  It was a pro Jumbo production with comments by several players and the coach.  What bother me a little is that both the coach and one player stated that several games between Amherst and Tufts the last couple of years were close and couldn't have been over 10 points combined.  Really.  I can understand the player's impression...but the wise UCONN great player who is the Tufts WBB coach?  Three years ago at Amherst it was 6 points difference.  Two years ago at Tufts it was 6 points difference.  Last year at Amherst it was 30 points difference.  Expect a tight game in Melford...but the reporter should check the facts.

[7express]

I was at that game @ Amherst last year.  Think it would've been closer if Colleen Hart played in that game (she was out) like she was in the other 2, but Amherst was clearly better and would've won regardless more than likely.  They should win this as well, and I'll say between 10 to 15, my opinion closer to 10 than 15.

[amh63]

Amherst beats Bates in Maine 75-63.  Amherst led by 9 at the half as Bates fought back in the first half.  In the second half, Amherst steadily built its lead to over 20 but couldn't get any higher as both sides made changes to the line-up.....it was warm in the gym.  Aided by fouls, Bates started to reduce the lead.  Coach G. had to put his starters back in as the calls started to go against Amherst.  Bates cut the lead to 9 and it stood around 10 or more.  Amherst was only making one of two foul shots and the game ended with everyone drained out.  The strange Maine calls started to show up in the last two minutes.....Senior point guard Finucane is called for a double dribble and then a walking call as she driving into the lane.  Both calls are rare for the her over 4 years!  Still they are made and the ball goes over to Bates.  Oh well, Maine teams are tough to beat in Maine.  Amherst will take the win and the score....considering the other two games in Maine.  One more road game on Sat.

[NE Hoop Guy]

Bold Prediction----Tufts beats Amherst tomorrow afternoon.....They seem on the verge, they are not blowing teams out, Tufts is hungry....they win

[sumfun]

The heat in the Bates gym is notoriously unbearable.  Good win on the road, with good experience for many players.  Tufts will be tough tomorrow.  Sure do wish student announcers would take a few minutes to check with an assistant coach on how to pronounce the names.

[7express]

Or get a prununciation guide.  One or the other.

[amh63]

Well the battle for the top spot in the conference is over.  Amherst beats Tufts 48-31 in a somewhat defensive battle.  Tufts scores the first 2 and Amherst goes on a 22-0 run and it took a while before Tufts scored 6 points.  Amherst's offense was good, though Stedman and the other starters seem to be having a tough time finding their shots.  It was a physical game and the refs according to the announcers were letting them play.  Only Lem Atanga was having her way in the post.  Amherst led by only 15 at the half...30-15, I believe.  The second half was even more of a problem.  Both teams seem to be missing their offense.  By the middle of the 2nd half, both teams could not score 10 points between them.  Marcia was brought in and she did again bring some spark.  Coach G seemed to let the "starters" stay on the floor to see if they could figure it out.  Meg Robertson and Marcia were the only subs until the last few minutes when Bridget and Jasmine entered.  Could it be that Coach G. didn't want to run up the score against the shorter Tufts bench on Tufts' senior night?  Boxscore will show how bad it was....Tufts shooting under 20% and both sides not able to hit from outside.
Next two conference games are at home against Williams and Midd.  Key to getting the right to host the tournament.

[Maine 1]

  Looks like the top two spots in the NESCAC are set, with Amherst and Tufts.  Five teams are battling for the three and four, with four of those teams all facing off next weekend, as Wesleyan and Conn College visit Bowdoin and Colby.  If the Maine teams can sweep the weekend, then most likely Bowdoin will finish as the number three team, based on its win over Colby, and Colby will be number four. It will be a great weekend in Maine, and we will see how far Conn College and Wesleyan have come.

[nescachoopsfan2]

Critical games ahead this weekend.
During my scanning the U-tube section on the Amherst website, there appeared a video produced by the Tufts Daily paper dealing with the BIG game on Saturday..the WBB game on campus.  It was a pro Jumbo production with comments by several players and the coach.  What bother me a little is that both the coach and one player stated that several games between Amherst and Tufts the last couple of years were close and couldn't have been over 10 points combined.  Really.  I can understand the player's impression...but the wise UCONN great player who is the Tufts WBB coach?  Three years ago at Amherst it was 6 points difference.  Two years ago at Tufts it was 6 points difference.  Last year at Amherst it was 30 points difference.  Expect a tight game in Melford...but the reporter should check the facts.

Went back to find the video you're referring to, and just FYI - it was made in 2010. And up to that point - as the coach, players, and reporter correctly alluded - all four Tufts-Amherst games of the Gromacki era had been close:
07-08: Amherst by a buzzer beater in the regular season + Amherst by 6 in the NESCAC title game
08-09: Amherst by 6 in the regular season + Amherst by 3 in the NESCAC semifinals

So that's four Amherst victories by 17 points total. Not sure which "facts need to be checked." Also, don't really see how the video was a "pro-Jumbo production." It simply stated the implications of the game from a NESCAC and national perspective and talked about what the rivalry had meant to the Tufts players - an extremely relevant topic for the Tufts student newspaper to cover.

Not that any of this has anything to do with this season. Just felt the need to stand up for the student journalists who do good and thankless work promoting the NESCAC/Div. III athletics.

[amh63]

nescachoopsfan2.....Thanks for the clarification and the time date.  I actually went to the Tufts Daily website to look for it again after my post and hit multimedia button and found the video...it was the only one on the "coming game".  It seemed appropriate..being a home game and the top two conference teams...standing wise...and could determine the host of the tourney, etc. The first time I saw it, it was on the Amherst U-tube area. When I found it again, I did not glance at the time date seen on the video...focusing on the reporter to verify it was the correct one.
Oh well....my mistake.

[amh63]

Up early after the Superbowl.   Regional rankings of teams are this week...by the NCAA.  The key D3hoops website writers make known their thinking on teams and players at this time/point of the season.  It is in the lead story today.  One surprising possible pick for POY at this time is Megan Robertson of Amherst.  If the Amherst team plays well for the rest of the season and repeat as national champs..it might be an interesting story.  Right now, two key games this weekend....especially senior day game on Sat.

[Roundball999]

Up early after the Superbowl.   Regional rankings of teams are this week...by the NCAA.  The key D3hoops website writers make known their thinking on teams and players at this time/point of the season.  It is in the lead story today.  One surprising possible pick for POY at this time is Megan Robertson of Amherst.  If the Amherst team plays well for the rest of the season and repeat as national champs..it might be an interesting story.  Right now, two key games this weekend....especially senior day game on Sat.

Interesting to say the least.  Robertson is having a very nice season no doubt, but mention of her as a POY candidate stretches all credibility in my opinion.  I think there are at least two stronger candidates on her own team, much less a bunch of really incredible and accomplished POY candidates on other teams.  Just as one example if you've seen Verkaik from Calvin play, there is a big step up.  Robertson has a fine future and should surely be in rookie of the year discussions, but POY mention seems ridiculous to me.

[gordonmann]

Player of the year is a fun debate. 

My personal working definition is "The national Player of the Year is the athlete who, by her talent and performance, elevates her team to a high level that it could not accomplish without her." 

That player might take a very good team and make them a national title concenter, like Meia Daniels (Howard Payne) and Carrie Snikkers (Hope) did.  Without those players, Howard Payne and Hope would've been among the 10-15 best teams in the country.  With those players, the Yellow Jackets and Flying Dutch were elite.

Other players take their team from being solid (NCAA first or 2nd round) to making the Final Four. Chelsie Schweers did that for Christopher Newport. Without her, the Captains are probably done on the first weekend of the tournament. With her, they were a Final Four team. Hillary Klimowicz took an okay TCNJ team and carried them to the Final Four.  Players and coaches emphasize team efforts, as they should, but the Player of the Year is, by my definition, the cornerstone of their team's success.

Off the top of my head, I can only think of a few players who meet that criteria this year. Verkaik at Calvin is one. Munger at George Fox is another. Stedman at Amherst might be a third, but we won't know that until Amherst plays more games where they need her excellence to win (like the Colby-Bowdoin weekend).

Maybe Chicago has a player like that. I haven't seen enough of them to say.

Other teams have very good players, but their team would still be capable of success without them.  That's how I see Robertson.   That's also how I see Babson's top three players.  Would the Beavers be incapable of winning the NEWMAC and making the second weekend of the tournament without any one of those players?

[Pat Coleman]

Player of the year is a fun debate. 

My personal working definition is "The national Player of the Year is the athlete who, by her talent and performance, elevates her team to a high level that it could not accomplish without her." 

That player might take a very good team and make them a national title concenter, like Meia Daniels (Howard Payne) and Carrie Snikkers (Hope) did.  Without those players, Howard Payne and Hope would've been among the 10-15 best teams in the country.  With those players, the Yellow Jackets and Flying Dutch were elite.

Other players take their team from being solid (NCAA first or 2nd round) to making the Final Four. Chelsie Schweers did that for Christopher Newport. Without her, the Captains are probably done on the first weekend of the tournament. With her, they were a Final Four team. Hillary Klimowicz took an okay TCNJ team and carried them to the Final Four.  Players and coaches emphasize team efforts, as they should, but the Player of the Year is, by my definition, the cornerstone of their team's success.

Off the top of my head, I can only think of a few players who meet that criteria this year. Verkaik at Calvin is one. Munger at George Fox is another. Stedman at Amherst might be a third, but we won't know that until Amherst plays more games where they need her excellence to win (like the Colby-Bowdoin weekend).

And since Gordon named all three of those in his post, it didn't leave much for Dave or me to say.

In Gordon's defense, though, it wasn't clear Dave and I were going to have time to participate.