MBB: University Athletic Association

[WUPHF]

UAA Sundays indeed!  Interesting point about the points off turnovers.  Not something I would have expected to be a concern with this team.

It is too early to talk standings as Rochester and Case Western Reserve had to postpone until tomorrow, however if we assume a Rochester win, we have an five-way tie for second...

Chicago 4-1
Brandeis 3-2
Carnegie Mellon 3-2
Emory 3-2
Rochester 3-2
Washington University 3-2

Chicago has a one game lead with Case Western Reserve and Carnegie Mellon coming to town next weekend.  Chicago still has to play everyone else on the road except for Brandeis.

Emory, Carnegie Mellon and Rochester have two road losses, but the Tartans and Yellowjackets have to go on the road to end the season.

Washington University and Brandeis both have one home and one road loss.

[WUPHF]

Rochester defeated Case Western Reserve, 81-68 in the Palestra thanks to big games by Clamage and Algier.

[WUPHF]

Congratulations to Ryan Clamage for making the UAA and D3Hoops.com teams of the week. 

[WUPHF]

Fridays in the UAA.

Carnegie Mellon at Washington University
Case Western at Chicago
NYU at Rochester
Brandeis at Emory

Massey hands the wins over to the hosts. 

I do not see any upsets but I am a little worried about Carnegie Mellon in both games and Brandeis at Rochester on Sunday.

[WUPHF]

Washington University defeats Carnegie Mellon 68-56 after trailing at the half.

The Bears had to persevere through the offensive struggles which feature a 1-12 effort from three point range and 11 first-half turnovers and they did in part to Rucker who led the way with a double-double: 19 points and 10 rebounds.  Hunter also had a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

The Bears looked great on defense and that rebounding margin (+18)...  If you watched the team that lost those two early-season games and then watched the team tonight for the first time since November, you might not recognize them on the defensive end.

__________

Chicago lost at home to Case Western Reserve, 85-80 in what was surely the best game of the night.

Rochester defeated NYU 71-55.  Ryan Clamage led all scorers because of course he did.

Emory dispatched Brandeis, 92-59.  The Eagles had five players in double figures with both Schner and Davet scoring 16 points.

__________

I am not sure if I have ever seen a four-way tie with one game left before the half-way point, but that is what we have.

Chicago 4-2
Emory 4-2
Rochester 4-2
Washington University 4-2
Brandeis 3-3
Carnegie Mellon 3-3
Case Western Reserve 2-4
New York 0-6

[WUPHF]

Sundays in the UAA...

Carnegie Mellon at Chicago.  The Tartans have yet to win a league game on the road.  Unlikely that this changes in Chicago.

Case Western Reserve at Washington University.  Does a resurgent Masiulionis lead the Spartans to their second consecutive upset victory?

NYU at Emory.  Eagles soar.

Brandeis at Rochester.  The Brandeis defense was tight against Chicago.  Can they shut down Clamage?

[WUPHF]

The four-way tie is short-lived as Brandeis gets the road win over Rochester, 75-69.

[WUPHF]

Dom Cristiano scored 37 points today against Emory but to no avail.  Emory with the runs away with it.  5 players again in double figures.

[WUPHF]

Washington University quickly establishes a double digit lead and is never challenged in the win over Case Western Reserve. The final: 88-55.  Nice team win for the Bears. 

Chicago, Emory and Washington University are tied for first at 5-2. Brandeis and Rochester are tied for second at 4-3.  Lots of games left as we move to the second half of league play.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

Well, things certainly escalated quickly! Upsets a plenty. Conference races tightening. At the same time, some more clarity? Maybe not.

There will be plenty to talk about on Sunday's Hoopsville.

Join us as Dave and his guests work to figure out what has happened in just the last few days, plus get a sense of what's to come. We will talk to teams who are near the top of their conferences races in the Northeast, Atlantic, South, and Central regions. Plus, we hear from a coach who continues to give back to the NABC and trying to improve how Division III is perceived within the coaching ranks.

Oh, and how will the Top 25s shake out on Monday?

Hoopsville is presented by D3hoops.com and airs from the WBCA/NABC Studio. You can watch Sunday's show starting at 7:00 p.m. ET right here: http://bit.ly/2FQFb7v (or via Facebook Live and Periscope simulcasts).

If you have questions about Division III basketball, feel free to send them and we will answer them on a the show. Email them to hoopsville@d3hoops.com or use any of the social media options below.

Guests Schedule (order subject to change):
- Randy Tuggle, Greensboro women's coach
- Nicole Sarcone, Staten Island women's coach
- Gary Stewart, Stevenson men's coach (NABC Coach's Corner)
- Tod Murphy, Gordon men's coach
- Mike McGrath, UChicago men's coach
- Bob Quillman, IWUHoops.com (Top 25 Double-Take)

If you enjoy the show via the podcasts, choose your favorite avenue to listen and/or subscribe via the the following four avenues (click on the images when necessary):
SoundCloud: www.soundcloud.com/hoopsville




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[WUPHF]

Nice interview with Coach McGrath.

I was going to ask a question about Justin Jackson, but McGrath covered that.  I also thought he would have a breakout season.  I did not realize he had three separate injuries.

I had made some references about home and road wins over the past few weeks and had thought about doing the +/- thing but as McGrath said, that is hardly the predictor, at least in recent years.

Not sure I understood his tie breaker reference. 

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

It was a fun chat with Mike. Enjoyed it and he had a lot of great things to say.

And I honestly lost track of what he said tie-breaker wise as I was thinking about hundred different things. I will try to go back and listen to see what he said and let you know.

[WUPHF]

A quick look at the standings as we move to the second half of league play.

Chicago 5-2
Emory 5-2
Washington University 5-2
Brandeis 4-3
Rochester 4-3
Carnegie Mellon 3-4
Case Western Reserve 2-5
New York 0-7

I do not remember a four-way tie though we have had two and three way ties including the 2012-2013 race.  That one was pretty incredible as Rochester held a one game lead at 10-3 going in to the final game of the season. 

Washington University got the 72-54 revenge win over Chicago in St. Louis resulting in a 10-4 record.

Emory got the identical 72-54 win over the John Dibartolomeo-led Yellowjackets giving the Eagles a 10-4 record.

Rochester dropped to 10-4 and the rest is history.

Washington University walked away with the automatic bid thanks to the head-to-head record.

That was a fun moment as a number of fans waited around in the Field House after the Chicago game...waiting for the final result in Atlanta.  Enough that the PA announcer even made the announcement when the result was in.

[WUPHF]

On a conference call so I thought I would add in the Ken Massey ratings.

No. 31  Emory 5-2
No. 42  Washington University 5-2
No. 49  Chicago 5-2
No. 61  Rochester 4-3
No. 86  Brandeis 4-3
No. 163  Carnegie Mellon 3-4
No. 166  Case Western Reserve 2-5
No. 277  New York 0-7

Chicago and Washington University will travel to Case Western Reserve and Carnegie Mellon this weekend.  Emory and Rochester travel to Brandeis and NYU.  I have to think there is an upset or two in there...

[WUPHF]

A quick look at potential all-Association honors before the second half of league play begins.

Player of the year: The league has a few seniors worthy of consideration including Ryan Clamage and Seth Henry.  No obvious choice.

Rookie of the year: There is only one choice.

Defensive player of the year: This may come down to whomever wins the league.

Coaching staff of the year: if the second half plays out much like the first, the honor will go to the Brandeis coaches.  If a Chicago, Emory, Rochester or Washington University goes 3-0 against the other three and runs away with the championship, then who knows...

Admittedly, too early to make conclusions and to post but hey...