University Athletic Association

[Mr. Ypsi]

WOW, Rochester wins 72-68 @ Wash U.

Wow!  That IS a shocker!

WashU had maintained second place in the poll despite a loss, since the loss was by a respectable margin AT what appears to be by far the best d3 team this season.  I wonder how many of the undefeated teams will pass them in this week's poll?

Coming into the game, Rochester was 7-11 (1-6 UAA) and on a 5-game losing streak.  This was a VERY bad loss!

[7express]

WOW, Rochester wins 72-68 @ Wash U.

Wow!  That IS a shocker!

WashU had maintained second place in the poll despite a loss, since the loss was by a respectable margin AT what appears to be by far the best d3 team this season.  I wonder how many of the undefeated teams will pass them in this week's poll?

Coming into the game, Rochester was 7-11 (1-6 UAA) and on a 5-game losing streak.  This was a VERY bad loss!

If Tufts is able to win @ Williams, they'll definitely pass them.  Whitman, Hope & Thomas More likely pass them too.

[Mr. Ypsi]

WOW, Rochester wins 72-68 @ Wash U.

Wow!  That IS a shocker!

WashU had maintained second place in the poll despite a loss, since the loss was by a respectable margin AT what appears to be by far the best d3 team this season.  I wonder how many of the undefeated teams will pass them in this week's poll?

Coming into the game, Rochester was 7-11 (1-6 UAA) and on a 5-game losing streak.  This was a VERY bad loss!

If Tufts is able to win @ Williams, they'll definitely pass them.  Whitman, Hope & Thomas More likely pass them too.

Quite possibly George Fox (one loss) as well.  Right now I'd guess 7th next week.

[Roundball999]

Massey Ratings drops them to 10th with the loss.  Seems extreme to me but I don't fully understand the Massey statistical method.  Interestingly, Massey would give WashU over a 90% win probability if these two teams played again today.  Shows what a big upset it was....

[WUPHF]

Washington University is making No. 20 Emory pay for the Rochester loss.  The Bears had a 2012-2013 moment on Friday night, but I am not sure we will see a big drop in the rankings.

[Roundball999]

Washington University is making No. 20 Emory pay for the Rochester loss.  The Bears had a 2012-2013 moment on Friday night, but I am not sure we will see a big drop in the rankings.

Emory has now lost 5 of 6, they will drop far out of the rankings.  WashU is too good to drop much, maybe 8 or 9 I'd guess, but they do seem to play a little up and down.

[jaybird44]

Nothing like a Wash-U upset loss on Friday to bring out the posters on the UAA thread...LOL

Not sure I understand about how it plays up and down.  Only two losses this season, one to the defending champ...then a 13-game winning streak before Friday's loss.  Yes, the loss to Rochester was a tough one to take...but conference games feature no secrets.  Rochester's men and women have a knack for winning games at Wash-U...and I believe the senior women on Rochester's side decided that they wanted to have something positive to savor in an otherwise disappointing season.  So, they were amped to gain an upset win over the #2 team...and Wash-U picked the wrong time to have an absolute clunker of a game.  No energy...a couple of players had stomach bugs, maybe some latent jet lag caught up with the Bears.  But, they have enough depth on the team to pick up the slack.  So, there was no excusing that loss Friday night.

I wasn't too concerned...I wanted to see how the ladies reacted after a couple of nights rest at home, and watch them vs. Emory to see if the lethargy was a trend or a coincidence.  Judging from what I saw today, a thorough dismantling of the #20 team in the country, I'm inclined to think that the loss to Rochester may not be overly damaging.  Unless, of course, the Bears go to Brandeis and NYU and lose a couple of games in the upcoming weekend.  Today the Bears had lots of zip on both ends of the floor.  Maddy Scheppers scores 16 of Wash-U's first 17 points, and the defense held Emory to 33% shooting and 29% from 3-point range.  End result:  Wash-U up 47-31 at halftime. 

2nd half more of the same.  Bears outrebound Emory 34-5 in the 2nd half for an overall advantage of 60-19.  Emory shot just 23% in the 2nd half, and Savannah Morgan was held to 7 points--half of her scoring average.  Wash-U wins 91-55, led by Scheppers' 19 points, Melissa Gilkey's 15 points and 15 rebounds, and Jordan Rettig added 11 rebounds.  Granted, without Hannah Lilly, Emory was a shell of what it could have been with her in the lineup.  But, Wash-U took advantage as it should to dominate a weakened opponent, and gain some confidence for a couple of tough road stops at Boston and New York next weekend.

I think Wash-U will drop to 7th or 8th in the poll, but the concern rests more on the soon-to-be-released regional rankings.  Today's win over ranked Emory may slow the descent in those rankings, or stop it before it starts.

[Roundball999]

Yes, unexpected losses by top teams always generate discussion regardless of who they are.  It's kind of what these boards are about; nothing really to do with WashU in particular.

My "up and down" comment was admittedly based on limited data, but this weekend was sure a case in point.  Loss at home to 8-12 Rochester, then hammer a good Emory team.  I also saw them earlier in the season when they pounded a very solid Wisconsin Lutheran team only to struggle mightily the next day against a very mediocre Hiram team.  Regardless, I think WashU is a national title contender, as evidenced by the battle it gave to a very consistent DePauw on DePauw's own court.

[jaybird44]

A good night for WashU in Boston.  A tough 61-51 road win over Brandeis, coupled with NYU's home loss to Chicago.  Bears now 2 games ahead of both teams with 4 to play.

Brandeis led 21-20 at halftime, after shooting 30% to WashU's 23%.  Hence, the description of "defensive struggle".  Bears were also just 4-12 from the free throw line.  They historically have poor shooting performances at Brandeis, and last night's 1st half was no exception.

The shooting improved to 43% for WashU in the second, but it won the lottery at the FT line.  The difficulty of blanketing the Bears' Melissa Gilkey resulted in two Brandeis players fouling out; and that led to 31 WashU FTs in the 2nd half.  The Bears made 25 of them, compared to Brandeis shooting 3-6.

Maddy Scheppers had a double-double...16 points/10 rebounds, and went to the line 14 times.  Gilkey, Jordan Thompson, and Alyssa Johanson each had 10 points.  Jordan Rettig had 9 points--very good to see, given that opponents will try to shackle Gilkey with great fervor during the remainder of the season.  Rettig's post play and Thompson's ability to get to the rim off the dribble will be keys to the Bears' postseason success...along with AJ's scoring off the bench.

WashU travels to NYC for a Sunday afternoon game.  A Bears' win and a Chicago loss at Brandeis would give the Bears a share of the UAA crown, with 3 games left in the regular season.

[WUPHF]

Thanks for these reports.  Unfortunately, this season, I have not been able to follow the team like I have in years past.  By the way, is Keane injured?

[jaybird44]

As far as I know, yes.

[jaybird44]

WashU dominates a short-handed NYU squad 73-46 this afternoon in NYC.  Megan Dawe was out, and Riley Wurtz played only 4 minutes after returning from an ankle injury.  WashU took advantage quickly
and took command early.  Melissa Gilkey and Kristin Anda each had 13 points, and Gilkey added 10 rebounds.  Maddy Scheppers and Alyssa Johanson each added 10 points.

Wash-U is 2 games ahead of Chicago with 3 games to play.  Carnegie Mellon and Case Western visit St. Louis next weekend.

[jaybird44]

Wash-U is now 10-0 for the first time since the 2005-06 season, after a 73-49 victory over Iowa Wesleyan this afternoon in the first round of the Wartburg Holiday Tournament.  Maddy Scheppers was 6-for-7 from 3-point range and finished with a season-high 22 points, 19 of them in the first half.  That allowed the Bears to enjoy a 47-26 advantage at halftime; they shot 50% from the floor and 7-13 from beyond the arc.

Alyssa Johanson had 10 points, and Melissa Gilkey had 9 points (4-8 FGs) and 7 rebounds.  Katybeth Biewen and Natalie Orr each had 7 points, and Jordan Thompson added 6 assists.  Stephanie Vukotic had 6 rebounds in 10 minutes off the bench.

Wash-U forced 20 turnovers and had a 27-13 edge in points from turnovers, and also outrebounded Iowa Wesleyan 47-27.  Karla Vietinghoff and Lauren Grubb each had 12 points to lead IWC.  Wash-U faces host Wartburg in the tournament championship game tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 CST.

[jaybird44]

Good game shaping up at Wartburg, as #5 Wash-U leads the host (received votes) 34-33 at halftime.  Wash-U 10-0 entering the game, Wartburg 9-1.

Wartburg raced out to early leads of 7-0 and 13-6, and eventually led 22-6 as Wash-U had 6 turnovers in the first 9 minutes.  But, Wash-U closed the half on a 27-11 run, fueled by better defense and enjoying a bonus advantage from the FT line for the final 10 minutes or so.  Wash-U ended up with 10 turnovers, Wartburg 8...but the Bears had a 7-4 edge in offensive rebounds and a 6-1 edge in FT scoring.

Alyssa Johanson has 9 points at the break, Jordan Thompson 8, Melissa Gilkey 6.  Wartburg is led by Bobbi Burrows' 12 points.  Kasey Kladivo has 6 points and 2 rebounds.

[jaybird44]

Wash-U up 58-47 with under 7 to play in 2nd half.  Jordan Thompson and Erika Hunt had back-to-back 3s to open up 9-point lead.