MBB: University Athletic Association

[auwnj]

Below is CWRU's preview of this year's team.  Looks very good, at least on paper.  Lots of returning contributors as well as the newcomers discussed.   


The 2009-10 Spartans won 14 games for only the fourth time in school history and won more University Athletic Association (UAA) games than any Spartan team.  The 2010-11 club is looking to build upon those accomplishments and has a strong nucleus of veterans leading the way.  The Spartans return four starters and seven of their top eight scorers from last season.  Among the upperclassmen returning for Case Western Reserve are senior wing Reid Anderson (Avon Lake, OH), senior center Eric Duerr (Gibsonia, PA), and junior forward Tom Summers (Murrysville, PA).  All three players earned All-UAA honors in 2009-10.  "Our returning players are both talented and experienced," said Coach Sean McDonnell.  "Our team's success this season will hinge on their leadership both on and off the court."

Reid Anderson will lead the scoring attack on the perimeter for the Spartans after finishing 3rd in the UAA with 15.1 ppg last season.  "Reid is as talented offensively as any perimeter player in America," said McDonnell.  "We have very high expectations for him this year."  Anderson was named Second Team All-UAA in 2009-10.  Joining Anderson on the wing is one of the Spartans' most versatile players, senior Alex Hildebrandt (Akron, OH), who started 24 games in 2009-10.

Leading the Spartans' frontcourt will be Tom Summers and Eric Duerr.  Summers finished 2nd in the UAA in rebounding (10.2) and 5th in scoring (14.2) while being named Second Team All-UAA in 2009-10.  "Tom had a great season for us last year," said McDonnell.  "He was one of the best rebounding forwards in the country and should have an outstanding year for us."  Duerr carries a 3.97 GPA as a Biology/Pre-Med major and earned Third Team Academic All America honors from ESPN The Magazine in 2009-10.  Duerr was named Honorable Mention All-UAA after leading the UAA in blocked shots (44) while scoring 10.3 ppg.  "Not only is Eric an outstanding player," said McDonnell, "he is a great ambassador for our program and the University."  Joining Duerr and Summers upfront is sophomore Evan Tsudis (Pittsburgh, PA) who played in all 25 gam es as a freshman in 2009-10.

Sophomore Robert Scott (Paoli, PA) should be a key contributor to the Spartans' backcourt this year.  One of the team's most versatile players, Scott played all three perimeter positions in 2009-10 and will do so again this season.  "Robert has a chance to be a very good player," noted McDonnell.  "He is very aggressive offensively and if his turnovers are kept in-check, he should have a nice season for us."  Senior 3-point shooting specialist Colin Mulholland (Jacksonville, FL), sophomore guard Brian Curth (Darien, CT), and sophomore guard Tim Maleski (Franklin, PA) will add depth to the Spartans' backcourt as well. 

The Spartans attracted six newcomers to University Circle this season.  Joining the Spartans' backcourt are guards Mark Bentley (Downers Grove, IL), Mike Byrne (Newton, PA), Tim Chung (Cypress, CA), and Ron Fudala (Uniontown, PA).  On the wing, sophomore Austin Fowler (Bloomfield Hills, MI) brings both size and versatility after playing last year at NCAA Division I St. Francis University in Loretto, PA.  Finally, David Thompson (Plano, TX) will add skill and athleticism to the Spartans' frontcourt.  "We are pleased with this year's newcomers," said McDonnell.  "They will push our returning players and make us better."

The 2010-11 schedule is highlighted by 11 competitive non-conference games and 14 UAA contests.  The second annual Stephanie Tubbs-Jones Memorial Tournament will be played on November 19 – 20 and this year's participants include Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Washington & Jefferson College, and Wilmington College.  The sixth annual Bill Sudeck Holiday Tournament will be played on December 29 – 30 and features Earlham College, Geneva College, and Kalamazoo College.  "Once again we have two great fields for our home tournaments," McDonnell noted.  The Spartans will travel to John Carroll University after Thanksgiving for a tournament on November 27 – 28.  Traditional local rivals Baldwin-Wallace College, Denison University, Hiram College, Kenyon College, and Oberlin College comprise the remaining non-UAA games on the Spartans' sc hedule.  As always, the UAA will feature many of the top NCAA Division III teams in America.  "We expect the level of competition to be very high in the UAA," noted McDonnell.

[Marty Peretz]

UMass, my hometown team and the only squad I follow even closer than Wash.U, is playing UAA Brandeis tonight in an exhibition. Very excited to watch it. Deis would have given a super young and inexperienced UMass team a game last year, but they graduated a lot and UMass should be better. UMass by 24.

[nescac1]

Brandeis brought in one of the best recruiting classes in the country.  Huge 10-member class featuring several highly-ranked players from New England (Retos and Dascy in particular).  I also note that Brandeis' top recruit from last year (Jay Freeman), who for some reason did not play last season, is now on the roster.  They will probably suffer some growing pains this season, but next year, watch out.

http://www.brandeisjudges.com/sports/mbkb/2010-11/roster

[Hugenerd]

UMass beats Brandeis 83-60 tonight. Looks like a 2-2 tie a the beginning of the game was followed by a 16-0 run by the minutemen and the game wasnt so close after that.  The closest Brandeis got was 13 at the beginning of the 2nd half, 38-25, but Umass pushed the lead to 58-29 in the next 6 minutes of play.  Umass led 80-48 with 3.5 minutes to play, but Brandeis finished the game on a 12-3 run to cut the final deficit to 23.

http://www.umassathletics.com/sports/m-baskbl/stats/2010-2011/110410ex.html

[Ole Ollie]

Pre-Season Poll.  It seems pretty reasonable to me.  Has Case ever been so high or Rochester so low?  A lot will depend on how new players develop.

1. Washington (4) 45 24-3, 13-1 UAA
2. Case Western Reserve (3) 44 14-11, 6-8 UAA
3. NYU (1) 36 17-10, 7-7 UAA
4. Brandeis 27 22-7, 9-5 UAA
5. Emory 25 15-10, 7-7 UAA
6. Chicago 24 13-12, 7-7 UAA
7. Rochester 16 15-10, 6-8 UAA
8. Carnegie Mellon 7 5-20, 1-13 UAA

[Gregory Sager]

Note this quote from the league's preseason press release:

Case Western Reserve University finished in second and received three first-place votes. This is the highest ranking for the Spartans program where they have finished in the UAA preseason poll. Prior to this year, Case has finished no higher than sixth in the coaches poll.

To me, the more interesting thing is that the #1 pick is a team that returns only one starter -- and that starter was a role player, albeit a very good one. Does that say more about Wash U's bench talent from last year, or does it say more about the potential for a down year for the UAA?

[Hugenerd]

Note this quote from the league's preseason press release:

Case Western Reserve University finished in second and received three first-place votes. This is the highest ranking for the Spartans program where they have finished in the UAA preseason poll. Prior to this year, Case has finished no higher than sixth in the coaches poll.

To me, the more interesting thing is that the #1 pick is a team that returns only one starter -- and that starter was a role player, albeit a very good one. Does that say more about Wash U's bench talent from last year, or does it say more about the potential for a down year for the UAA?

I think there is no doubt the UAA is down this year.  3 of the top 4 teams (I dont know anything about NYU) all have unproven talent (which is better than no talent at all, ask the teams ranked below them).  For WashU, that is mostly reserve players from last year and a few freshman, but for Brandeis and to a lesser extent Case, a lot of the players who will be expected to contribute are newcomers.  As usual, they are at an advantage because the three top teams in the conference are all in different geographic regions, so if they all put together good seasons (and take advantage of a down year in the conference by beating up on the other 5 teams), the UAA may still get 3 teams into the tourney.

[Gregory Sager]

I'm guessing that the UAA is going to be down, too, but since I'm not a UAA alumnus I didn't want to be the first to say it here.

Here's an article on one of Chicago's three incoming freshmen, 6'2 point guard Derrick Davis from Saginaw (MI) Bridgeport, who turned down a D1 scholie to become a Maroon. Mike McGrath only has three freshmen in his class of '14 -- Davis plus two forwards, 6'6 Sam Gage of Waterloo, WI and 6'5 Charlie Hughes of Perrysburg, OH -- but if the three of them are as good as their press clippings, it'll prove to be a solid haul for Chicago.

[Hugenerd]

I'm guessing that the UAA is going to be down, too, but since I'm not a UAA alumnus I didn't want to be the first to say it here.

My alma mater was the only unanimous pick, unfortunately it was for last place.  The program has seen a lot of turnover in the last few years, not only in the players, but several coaches have left also (including Kevin Byrne, who is now an assistant at MIT, and Dave Pastorkovich who is now at Thiel; Byrne has averaged 21.5 wins per season since leaving CMU (CMU averaged 17 games per season his last 5 season coaching there, including a 20 win season and two 19 win seasons),  and Pastorkovich is in his first year at Thiel).  It will be interesting to see how (or if) CMU can regroup after last years disappointment.

[Ethelred the Unready]

U of R has some issues.  In addition to those I've mentioned before (players leaving, players spending the semester at sea) DiBartolameo (sp?) broke his hand in practice and will be out for a while.

[hopefan]

It was mentioned over in the SLIAC room that Mark Edwards, Wash U, had commented that this was his worst preseason ever for injuries....   can anyone elaborate?

[Titan Q]

It was mentioned over in the SLIAC room that Mark Edwards, Wash U, had commented that this was his worst preseason ever for injuries....   can anyone elaborate?

I don't know who exactly is hurt, but I do know that Wash U has a few "significant" injuries right now.  The Bears are going to be without 2-3 key guys for the first few weeks and get back to full strength somewhere around the Wheaton game...

Nov. 15 MacMurray College 6:00 PM Jacksonville, Ill.
Nov. 19 University Of Wisconsin-Eau Claire 5:00 PM Platteville, Wis. 
Nov. 20 University Of Wisconsin-Platteville 7:00 PM Platteville, Wis. 
Nov. 22 Augustana College 7:30 PM Rock Island, Ill. 
Nov. 28 Hanover College 3:00 PM Hanover, Ind. 
Dec. 3 TSINGHUA UNIVERSITY 8:00 PM HOME 
Dec. 4 CLAREMONT-MUDD-SCRIPPS COLLEGES 8:00 PM HOME 
Dec. 8 FONTBONNE UNIVERSITY 8:00 PM HOME 
Dec. 11 Wheaton College 7:30 PM Wheaton, Ill. 
Dec. 18 ILLINOIS WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY 3:00 PM HOME 


It will become clear who they're missing after the MacMurray game obviously.

The game Monday in Jacksonville, IL is probably about as well positioned a SLIAC team has been to beat Wash U -- the game is @ MacMurray, Wash U is reloading after losing 4 starters, and the Bears are going to be without a few key players.

[Titan Q]

I received a note indicating that Wash U's injuries are to...

* Dylan Richter (6-3 G/F, Jr) - out until January (not sure what injury is)

* Caleb Knepper (6-6 F, Sr) - back spasms (not sure when expected back)

* Chris Klimek (6-5 F, Fr) - has not been able to practice yet (not sure what injury is or when expected back)


Those definitely qualify as "significant" injuries.  Richter came into the year as a certain starter, and with potential to be Wash U's leading scorer and best player in my opinion.  Knepper is another safe bet starter - a guy with a ton of varsity experience and a tough matchup as a 6-6 perimeter player.  Klimek is a highly-regarded recruit who was expected to be in the varsity rotation as a freshman.

It will be very interesting to see how Wash U starts.  Their first 5 are @ MacMurray, vs UW-Eau Claire (neutral), @ UW-Platteville, @ Augustana, and @ Hanover. 

Please note, I cannot confirm any of the above...but I feel good about where it came from.

[WUPHF]

Please note, I cannot confirm any of the above...but I feel good about where it came from.

I have heard the same about Richter and Knepper and I am sure that our sources are not the same.  I had not heard about Klimek.  Significant indeed.

For the moment, I am going to stay focused on our soccer and volleyball.  And, maybe football if we win tomorrow at Stagg.

[Titan Q]

Dylan Richter's injury is a broken hand.