MBB: State University of New York Athletic Conference

dcahill44 · February 24, 2013, 11:40:08 AM

If Plattsburgh gets a Pool C bid i would be a little surprised but i do think they deserve it after putting a pretty good resume. they will be one of the last 4 to make the tournament i think..

Cards7580 · February 25, 2013, 02:47:56 AM

"... Potsdam living in the past. Potsdam Maxcy Hall. Plattsburgh Memorial Hall. The difference is a coach that recruits winning players then teaches them how to be winners...."

No more Jerry Welsh handing out FREE NCAA Final four t-shirts, jackets and hats out of the trunk of his car in the parking lot probably hurts recruiting in some cases.

just saying

If I had a son, no doubt in my mind Tom Curle would be tops on the list followed closely by Mike Neer of Hobart.

Memorial Hall has character and the Field house (floor) was/is a terrible venue. Larry Parker's ankle injury (tripped up by "the bubble" ) changed everything in the 1975-76 season. WE won every home game after the move that season.

magicman · February 25, 2013, 08:22:46 AM

Sure hope the projections that have been put forth by D3 hoops, Titan Q, and KnightSlappy that are all showing Plattsburgh State getting a Pool C bid are accurate. I know I'll be sweating it out but really feel that the Cardinals and a 2nd SUNYAC team deserve to be in the NCAA tournament. 4 more hours or so of waiting for the news. This is worse than waiting for Christmas morning to arrive and open those presents.

Bengalsrule · February 25, 2013, 10:07:14 AM

Easy magic 1! The Cards are in. Just depends on how far they have to travel. Maybe Middlebury??? Methinks that Curle and Co. could come out of that region unscathed!!!! BTW....Is Perez done for the year??

I hope that Cortland put in a bid to be a host school (request was due weeks ago). Thier location makes them a natural for a ton of schools!

2 'Yac schools in the Sweet 16?? Defintly doable!!!!!!!

jdex · February 25, 2013, 11:42:55 AM

Noticed no one filed this, soooooooo .......

All-Tourney Team: MVP J. Smith (Cort). H. Hefele (Cort), J. Winter (Cort), J. Moody (Plat), R. Williams (Plat), G. Lyons (Gen)

Title test went according to how the RDragons got it done most of the second half of the season. Close early although the Burgh could have made some hay if not for turnovers. Corts steady themselves and take charge with three-point makes. Experience weighed in for sure. J. Smith with a lot more consistency for the season than a year ago, and K. McMahon inside beneficary of Smith/Winter penetration, along with wing sharpshooters Hefele and B. Manning. Think Manning probably underappreciated. Able to do a lot of things. And off the bench.

Plattsburgh had its chances. Missed from beyond the arc in crucial attempts, and at the stripe, 15-for-26! Had big opportunity after trailing 54-36 at the 16:16 mark. Climbed within 61-53 at 8:51 and had a wide open trey crack. Dragons took the hint and quickly widened the gap with threes. Where the Cards slipped, Cortland didn't, as in cashing 14-of-33 threes and going 15x18 at the line. No doubt a tough bunch to defend.

Smith with 25 pts(8x15fg, 4x10 3s), 3 assts; Hefele 17 pts(4x8 3s), 5 rebs; McMahon 12 pts(4x4fg), 5 rebs; Winter 10 pts, 7 assts, 3 stls; Manning 9 pts(3x8 3s), 6 rebs. Cards Moody 16 pts(4x8fg, 2x3 3s, 6x12ft), 6 rebs; S. McIntosh 12 pts; Williams 12 pts(4x4fg, 4x4ft), 3 blks; K. Parker 0 pts(0x4fg, 0x2 3s), 7 rebs

And for our money Smith reigns over the All-Conference. In fact, Bear's selections fit our thinking nicely. Simmons a great story, great career ........but the Bengals, yes, shorthanded, missed the playoffs for pete's sake.

magicman · February 25, 2013, 12:23:58 PM

Quote from: Bengalsrule on February 25, 2013, 10:07:14 AM
Easy magic 1! The Cards are in. Just depends on how far they have to travel. Maybe Middlebury??? Methinks that Curle and Co. could come out of that region unscathed!!!! BTW....Is Perez done for the year??

I hope that Cortland put in a bid to be a host school (request was due weeks ago). Thier location makes them a natural for a ton of schools!

2 'Yac schools in the Sweet 16?? Defintly doable!!!!!!!

Don't be jinxin my Cards. Nothing is certain until the selection show is over. There are a lot of teams there are similar in records, SOS, and vRRteams. At this stage you never know what can happen. I won't breathe easy until I hear our name called.

Quote from: jdex on February 25, 2013, 11:42:55 AM

All-Tourney Team: MVP J. Smith (Cort). H. Hefele (Cort), J. Winter (Cort), J. Moody (Plat), R. Williams (Plat), G. Lyons (Gen)

And for our money Smith reigns over the All-Conference. In fact, Bear's selections fit our thinking nicely. Simmons a great story, great career ........but the Bengals, yes, shorthanded, missed the playoffs for pete's sake.

I expect that Smith will win POY as the spoils usually go to the winners. I said my selections won't be the ones that the SUNYAC will put out there but are my choices. Still think Simmons was the best based on everything that he did on the court. Jeremy had a better supporting cast, and there were too many options to concentrate on when the Red Dragons had the ball.

thebear · February 25, 2013, 01:01:52 PM

Thanks, dex. I just think Smith stepped up and took the Dragons to a level they haven't seen in quite some time.

They have their work cut out for them being slotted into the bottom half of the "bracket of death".
Rochester and Middlebury will be formidable obstacles on the road to Salem and beyond.

Best of luck to an excellent Red Dragon squad.

My experience has been that you can rarely understand some of the the SUNYAC postseason awards.

I still remember the two years that Potsdam won the national championships (31-2 and 32-0) that coaches from other teams were named SUNYAC coach of the year. Welsh was national coach of the year, but didn't get picked in his own conference.

Coach Welsh was finally named SUNYAC coach of the year after his teams ran off a woodenesque 60 wins in a row.

magicman · February 25, 2013, 03:31:35 PM

Plattsburgh State gets a bid and also gets to host a 1st round game as they face the Husson Eagles from the North Atlantic Conference.
Husson won the automatic bid after finishing 2nd in the conference during the regular season. and will enter the tournament with a 20-8 overall record.

Plattsburgh State played Husson back in November of 2009 when they came to Plattsburgh and played in the Cardinal Classic. The Cards won a hard fought 72-70 victory that day. I believe it's the only time the 2 schools have met.

Husson won their tournament by defeating Castleton State in the championship game. Plattsburgh scrimmaged Castleton State back in November and we beat them by a fairly comfortable margin. Husson always plays well though and I would expect them to give us a tough game. They lost to Keene State 90-78 in their season opener and we beat Keene St. 70-64 in December. Husson played #6 WPI real tough back on Decmber 1st only losing to them 89-85. They followed that great outing by losing to Maine Maritime 53-51 that for a time Massey had listed as the biggest upset in D3. So it looks like this team has been in a feast or famine situation on a couple of occasions.

Cortland State also will host a first round game as they take on the Elms College Blazers who won the automatic bid from the New England Collegiate Conference. Elms will enter the tournament with an overall 18-9 record. Cortland comes in as the SUNYAC regular season and Tournament Champs and brings an impressive 23-4 record into the Big Dance.

Ithaca College will travel to Springfield Mass. to take on the Springfield Pride who lost the automatic bid to WPI in the NEWMAC conference championship in overtime 79-72. Springfield finished in 3rd place in the regular season behind WPI and MIT. They will enter the tournement with an overall 19-8 record. Ithaca will enter as the Empire 8 Champions with a record of 19-8. Apparently Ithaca couldn't host an NCAA game because of renovations to the gym. Too bad for the Bombers, but they have a decent chance to advance to the next round.

Stevens will host a game at a neutral site (D3 hoops says it might be at Lehman College in New York City) as they take on the winners of the ODAC tournament and the automatic bid, the Randolph-Macon Yellow Jackets. It's been quite an up and down year for Randy-Mac who started the year ranked in the preseason poll only to lose their first 3 games of the year and were still only 8-8 on Jan. 16th. They won 11 of their last 12 and upset Virginia Wesleyan in the finals yesterday to clinch a trip to the dance that they might not otherwise have gotten. Their record stands at 19-9. Stevens will have their hands full with the Yellow Jackets. The Ducks will enter the tournament with an at large bid after losing in the championship game of the E8 tournament to Ithaca. Their overall record is 22-5.

Hobart doesn't get much of a break as they are forced to travel to Rhode Island to take on the Anchormen who are the regular season and tournament champions from the Little East Conference. They will enter the tournament with an overall 25-3 record and will be a tough matchup for the Statesmen. Hobart comes in as the Liberty League Champs with a 21-6 record but I think they will have trouble getting by the Anchormen.

bearnation · February 25, 2013, 09:04:23 PM

I give props to the Cardinals and there coach about how a winning formula develops. In return I get a comment about giving away free stuff like a vendor at a flea market. Whats up with that!

If the cards fall then maybe I'll see a Purchase Plattsburgh game down the road.

PS maybe the Purchase coach is giving away free stuff from his trunk because he has made the tournament 3 out of 4 years at a little SUNY arts school or maybe its another winning formula. Successful local high school coach take over a down and out program. Then recruits kids that want to win and be successful(see trophy case at Maxcy Hall). In any case let the games begin.

magicman · February 26, 2013, 02:57:20 PM

The SUNYAC has released the All Conference Teams and Individual Awards. Congratulations to all the players and Coach Spanbauer on receiving their awards.

Player of the Year: Hayden Ward Oswego State

Rookie of the Year: Deveino McRae New Paltz State

Coach of the Year: Tom Spanbauer Cortland State

SUNYAC All Conference First Team

Jon Ivy Brockport Guard Jr.
Jake Simmons Buffalo State Guard Sr.
Jesse Winter Cortland State Guard Sr.
Hayden Ward Oswego State Forward Sr.
Matt Devine New Paltz State Forward Sr.

SUNYAC All Conference Second Team

Jeremy Smith Cortland State Guard Sr.
Gordon Lyons Geneseo State Forward So.
Shareef Taylor New Paltz State G/F Sr.
John Perez Plattsburgh State Forward Sr.
Chris Manning Plattsburgh State Guard Jr.

SUNYAC All Conference Third Team

Kevin McMahon Cortland State Forward Jr.
Ryan Riefenhauser Geneseo State Forward Sr.
Sean Michele Oswego State Guard Sr.
Cyrtis Pierce Potsdam State Forward Sr.
Zach Mager Oneonta State Forward So.

Here's the link to the YAC website: http://www.sunyac.com/news/2013/2/26/GEN_0226131728.aspx

Bengalsrule · February 26, 2013, 03:57:53 PM

This story made me cry!

http://www.wgrz.com/rss/article/202771/37/Rising-Son-The-Story-of-Jake-Simmons

The NBC affliate in Buffalo did a special show on the life of Jake Simmons. The most heartfelt story that I've seen about a Div 3 college ball player...EVER!!!

He didn't make POY (Congrats to Hayden Ward)..In my opinion he should be the Div 3 POY. Or at the very least D3 All American.

Bengalsrule · February 26, 2013, 05:52:04 PM

While congrats go out to every member of the SUNYAC all conference team "Congrats" I can't but wonder how a player with a season of work that included being...

The 4th leading scorer in the SUNYAC

while also being....

14th in the SUNYAC in FG% and
8th in the SUNYAC in Free Throw % and
9th in the SUNYAC in 3 pt fg% and
6th in the SUNYAC in 3 pt fg made and
14th in the SUNYAC in assists and
11th in the SUNYAC in Blocked Shots and
2nd in the SUNYAC in Steals and
2nd in the SUNYAC in minutes played and....

that DOESNT EVEN WARRANT A 3RD TEAM PLACEMENT ON THE SUNYAC TEAMS?

Only 1 SUNYAC player was ranked in the top 14 in all but 2 of the categories that SUNYAC tracks from Nov 15th till the playoffs. And he doesn't get at least an "attaboy" from the SUNYAC?? No other player placed in the top 14 in more than 7 categories (those players would be Simmons, Winter, Taylor and Pierce).

Heck, for arguments sake...what if we assigned a value for the top 15 ranked players in each category? 1-15 rankings i.e. leading scorer in the conference #1 in Yac would get 15 pts, #2 leading scorer get 14 points...on down to the 15th leading scorer which would get 1 pt. That would give someone like Brockport's John Ivy 35 points by virtue of being 3rd in scoring (13 pts)- 8th in FG % (8 pts) - 9th in Free Throw % (7pts) and 9th in steals (7 points) for a total of 35 pts. Using this formula Jake Simmons would be #1 in SUNYAC with 88 points. Scoring 1st (15pts), FG% 10th (6 pts), FT% 3rd (13pts) , 3PT% 3rd (13 pts), 3pt made 1st (15 pts), steals 5th (11 pts) and mins played 1st (15 pts)= 88 pts

The player who did not make any SUNYAC team has a total of 76 points - 2nd only to (MY POY Candidate) Jake Simmons.
FYI
1st team points were IVY (35), Devine (67), Ward (32), Winter (70) and Simmons (88).
2nd team - Smith (55), Lyons (14), Taylor (47), Manning (45) and Perez (13).
3rd team - McMahon (29), Reifenhauser (10), Michele (23), Pierce (62) and Mager (42)

I realize statistics don't tell the whole story. Playoffs are important (Extremely important) although it's not mandatory that your team makes the playoffs for your players to be honored by the "Yac. With that kind of logic then a BENGAL victory over Brockport on Feb 15th was all thats needed for a BENGAL who had "arguarbly" (sic) 1 of the best seasons statically that this conference has ever seen (from a sophomore nonetheless) to be recognized for post season honors.

There is something wrong with a body of work that has stretched from Nov 15 till Feb 16th and that body is unmatched by any other player in your conference (other than you own teammate) and you dont get squat!!

I guarantee that you can't go through the SUNYAC record books and find a player who ranked in the top 15, in more categories, than any other player in the conference and didnt get at least an honorable mention. And please spare me the stories of "Sweet Joe Givens" from the class of 1963!!

Please note that I have not said anything derogatory about any of those players who were honored. Thats not the BENGAL way. I only hope that Rod Epps won't let this snub get him down. That it will only make him stronger for the upcoming season. He deserved some type of mention...I just dont get this 1!! $:-\$

GO BENGALS

and

RED DRAGONS

and

CARDINALS

magicman · February 26, 2013, 06:17:36 PM

Bengalsrule,

I have to agree with you it was very strange not to see Rod Epps name somewhere on the All Conference honor roll. Both thebear and I had him placed on our teams and as you mention he was too prominent in too many categories to be left off completely. Very strange indeed.

DMJSports · February 26, 2013, 06:34:39 PM

Here is an interesting look at how individuals impact a team's performance. The following analysis is not based on individual stats, but compares team performance with individual players in and out of the lineup. This is an objective analysis using actual data from every game played by State University of New York Athletic Conference teams this season. Based on this comprehensive analysis, the following players are making the most positive impact on their respective team:

Brockport State: JOHN IVY does a nice job of not only improving Brockport State's scoring rate by 18.8ppg but also reducing opponent scoring rate by 4.2ppg - a net gain of 23.0ppg. MATT LEE (17.9ppg), DEREK KLEIN (7.7ppg) and BRANDON CARUTHERS (6.1ppg) also make a strong positive impact.

Buffalo State: RODERICK EPPS speeds up the game and therefore improves Buffalo State's scoring rate by 12.5ppg but also allows opponent scoring rate to increase by 4.4ppg - a net gain of 8.1ppg.

Cortland State: JESSE WINTER speeds up the game and therefore improves Cortland State's scoring rate by 13.9ppg but also allows opponent scoring rate to increase by 1.7ppg - a net gain of 12.1ppg. HARRISON HEFELE (10.4ppg), LAMARD HERRON (5.6ppg) and JEREMY SMITH (3.3ppg) also make a strong positive impact.

Fredonia State: JOE MONAHAN does a nice job of not only improving Fredonia State's scoring rate by 1.5ppg but also reducing opponent scoring rate by 12.0ppg - a net gain of 13.5ppg. MATT DEBOY (9.5ppg), ROBERT LYLES (8.4ppg), AMIR BILLUPS (7.2ppg) and TYRONE CLARK (4.3ppg) also make a positive impact.

Geneseo State: RYAN RIEFENHAUSER does a nice job of not only improving Geneseo State's scoring rate by 0.1ppg but also reducing opponent scoring rate by 16.4ppg - a net gain of 16.5ppg. THOMAS DECKER (13.9ppg) and GORDON LYONS (4.6ppg) also make a positive impact.

New Paltz State: KEVIN ROACH slows down the game and actually reduces New Paltz State's scoring rate by 2.5ppg but also reduces opponent scoring rate by 8.0ppg - a net gain of 5.5ppg. TAYLOR SOWAH (5.2ppg), ANDREW JOSEPH (4.8ppg) and SHEREEF TAYLOR (1.2ppg) also make a strong positive impact.

Oneonta State: DAN LEE does a nice job of not only improving Oneonta State's scoring rate by 5.6ppg but also reducing opponent scoring rate by 1.0ppg - a net gain of 6.6ppg. ZACH MAGER (3.2ppg) and JACKSON ZUVIC (1.4ppg) also make a positive impact.

Oswego State: CHRIS GILKES does a nice job of not only improving Oswego State's scoring rate by 2.5ppg but also reducing opponent scoring rate by 5.7ppg - a net gain of 8.2ppg. SEAN MICHELE (7.3ppg), KYLE COVLEY (5.7ppg), ELIJIAH MCLAURIN (3.5ppg) and HAYDEN WARD (1.6ppg) also make a positive impact.

Plattsburgh State: CHRIS MANNING speeds up the game and therefore improves Plattsburgh State's scoring rate by 18.2ppg but also allows opponent scoring rate to increase by 1.4ppg - a net gain of 16.7ppg. REGGIE WILLIAMS (7.5ppg), JOHN PEREZ (6.6ppg), SHAMOY MCINTOSH (6.2ppg) and EZRA HODGSON (5.9ppg) also make a strong positive impact.

Potsdam State: CURTIS PIERCE speeds up the game and therefore improves Potsdam State's scoring rate by 10.4ppg but also allows opponent scoring rate to increase by 4.0ppg - a net gain of 6.4ppg. JR MARK LAKE (6.2ppg) also makes a strong positive impact.

On the lighter side, focusing on secondary goals (team stats other than the primary objective - outscoring opponents). Following are players making the most positive impact in these areas:

Team scoring: having JOHN IVY on the floor correlates to Brockport State increasing its scoring rate by 18.8 ppg compared to when IVY is on the bench. CHRIS MANNING-Plattsburgh State (18.2) also makes a strong positive impact.

Opponent scoring: having RYAN RIEFENHAUSER on the floor correlates to Geneseo State decreasing opposition scoring rate by 16.4 ppg compared to when RIEFENHAUSER is on the bench. SEAN MICHELE-Oswego State (15.2) also makes a strong positive impact.

Team field goal percentage: having CHRIS MANNING on the floor correlates to Plattsburgh State increasing its field goal percentage rate by 7.7 percentage points compared to when MANNING is on the bench. JESSE WINTER-Cortland State (7.4), JOHN IVY-Brockport State (7.2) also make a strong positive impact.

Opponent field goal percentage: having JAMES MCKENNA on the floor correlates to Geneseo State decreasing opposition field goal percentage rate by 5.1 percentage points compared to when MCKENNA is on the bench. REGGIE WILLIAMS-Plattsburgh State (5.0) also makes a strong positive impact.

Team made field goals: having CHRIS MANNING on the floor correlates to Plattsburgh State increasing its made field goals rate by 8.6 per game compared to when MANNING is on the bench.

Opponent made field goals: having JAMES MCKENNA on the floor correlates to Geneseo State decreasing opposition made field goals rate by 4.4 per game compared to when MCKENNA is on the bench.

Team offensive rebounds: having JOHN PEREZ on the floor correlates to Plattsburgh State increasing its offensive rebounds rate by 4.8 per game compared to when PEREZ is on the bench.

Opponent offensive rebounds: having ZACH MAGER on the floor correlates to Oneonta State decreasing opposition offensive rebounds rate by 4.3 per game compared to when MAGER is on the bench.

Team turnovers: having AMIR BILLUPS on the floor correlates to Fredonia State decreasing its turnovers rate by 3.6 per game compared to when BILLUPS is on the bench. DAN LEE-Oneonta State (3.5) also makes a strong positive impact.

Opponent turnovers: having JORDAN MOODY on the floor correlates to Plattsburgh State increasing opposition turnovers rate by 8.0 per game compared to when MOODY is on the bench.

Team steals: having CHRIS MANNING on the floor correlates to Plattsburgh State increasing its steals rate by 6.5 per game compared to when MANNING is on the bench. JORDAN MOODY-Plattsburgh State (6.2) also makes a strong positive impact.

Team assists: having CHRIS MANNING on the floor correlates to Plattsburgh State increasing its assists rate by 6.5 per game compared to when MANNING is on the bench.

Team defensive rebounds: having KYLE COVLEY on the floor correlates to Oswego State increasing its defensive rebounds rate by 3.6 per game compared to when COVLEY is on the bench. ZACH MAGER-Oneonta State (3.5) also makes a strong positive impact.

magicman · February 26, 2013, 06:46:55 PM

Quote from: Bengalsrule on February 26, 2013, 03:57:53 PM
This story made me cry!

http://www.wgrz.com/rss/article/202771/37/Rising-Son-The-Story-of-Jake-Simmons

The NBC affliate in Buffalo did a special show on the life of Jake Simmons. The most heartfelt story that I've seen about a Div 3 college ball player...EVER!!!

He didn't make POY (Congrats to Hayden Ward)..In my opinion he should be the Div 3 POY. Or at the very least D3 All American.

Bengalsrule,

Thanks for sharing this story. I'm wiping the tear's from my eyes even as I type this. Knowing Jake's story from the past articles that have appeared in the news didn't make it any easier to view this story and not feel what an amazing person this young man is.