MBB: University Athletic Association

[WUPHF]

Washington University Athletics did an interview with Marcus Meyer, one of my favorite players over the past few years.  He generally does not have big numbers, but he has definitely had his share of big plays including clutch free throws.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trrD8oD7A4g

[WUPHF]

Fridays in the UAA

Washington University hosts New York
Chicago hosts Brandeis
Rochester travels to Carnegie Mellon
Emory travels to Case Western Reserve

I would not be surprised to see an upset just like every other weekend.

[WUPHF]

Case Western Reserve played Emory tough through the first 32 minutes but eventually fell 81-71.

NYU and Washington University are feeding off the crowd.

[WUPHF]

Chicago went 3-0 to start the conference, defeating Washington University, Rochester and Emory to start the season before losing on the road at Brandeis.  They get the second win over Emory to go 2-0 over the Eagles and then lose again to Brandeis, 72-52.

The Judges are the only team to get the season sweep over Chicago.  Remarkable!
__________

In St. Louis, Washington University defeated NYU 73-54 in front of a great crowd.  This game was a lot of fun despite the scoring margin as both teams played incredibly hard.

Nester led all scorers with 22 points (6-9 from three-point range) and Arenas was a man on a mission tonight, finishing with 11 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.
__________

The UAA standings with just two games left...

Emory 9-4
Rochester 9-4
Washington University 8-4

[ADL70]

Aren't Emory and Rochester currently 9-3?

[WUPHF]

Emory and Rochester are indeed 9-3.  Thanks.

As for the final Sunday in UAA league play...

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

I am very excited to see Brandeis though a little nervous.  Washington University trailed by 5 at the half in Waltham and needed late game heroics from Nolan to close out the game.

[uaaaficionado]

Emory and Rochester are indeed 9-3.  Thanks.

As for the final Sunday in UAA league play...

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

I am very excited to see Brandeis though a little nervous.  Washington University trailed by 5 at the half in Waltham and needed late game heroics from Nolan to close out the game.

The final Sunday of UAA indeed! You never know what can happen.

I'm most excited to see Rochester and Emory fight to maintain the top spot that would re-create 2015-16's UAA Championship. For those that recall, Rochester and Emory were tied at 10-2 going into the final Sunday. On this same road trip, Emory lost @ Case Western by 10 and Rochester lost @ Carnegie Mellon by 5 in double OT. Both Case and Carnegie had losing records in league play as they also do now.

That led to the championship game, Emory @ Rochester, to finish league play and determine who would take the tournament bid. Emory ended up winning 84-75 to claim their second straight UAA championship (Box score:https://d3hoops.com/seasons/men/2015-16/boxscores/20160227_sk0f.xml?view=boxscore).

The seniors for both Emory and Rochester were freshman for that game, so I'm sure they all remember it well. Cool to see Bommarito and Baitey got some minutes in that game as freshman. For Rochester, Wittig and Mangan combined for 31 points in the loss. After looking back at what an amazing career Ryan Clamage has had, it's hard to believe he only clocked 3 minutes that game.

Whatever the case may be, today's slate will be exciting to watch and next Saturday will be an awesome finish!

[WUPHF]

Washington University gets the convincing 75-54 win over Brandeis.

The Bears had one of their best defensive efforts of the season.

No other upsets today so the Bears will not have an opportunity to fight for a share of the title.

[WUPHF]

The UAA has two teams in for the first time since early in the season.

Emory and Rochester are both in after being in and out over the last few weeks.

https://www.d3hoops.com/top25/men/2018-19/week11

[WUPHF]

I thought I would take a shot at the UAA all-Association team.

The coaching staff pick will be decided on Saturday, but everything else could be chosen today in my opinion.

_________

Player of the Year: Ryan Clamage, Rochester
Defensive Player of the Year: Jonathan Arenas, Washington University
Rookie of the Year: Justin Hardy, Washington University
Coach Staff of the Year: Emory University staff

First Team

Jordan Baum, Chicago
Ryan Clamage, Rochester
Dom Cristiano, NYU
Matt Davet, Emory
Seth Henry, Carnegie Mellon
Jack Nolan, Washington University
Corey Sherman, Brandeis
Romin Williams, Emory

Second Team

Justin Hardy, Washington University
Zach Howarth, Carnegie Mellon
Chandler Jones, Brandeis
Dominic Laravie, Chicago
Andrew Lundstrom, Rochester
Lawrence Rowley, Emory
Matt Schner, Emory
Jacob Wittig, Rochester

[WUPHF]

Just look at the Washington University-Chicago match-up.

They will not be playing for anything other than the rivalry, but this game is always entertaining and often dramatic (and occasionally controversial). 

This one will feature compelling match-ups at each position.

I think I have made four of five posts this season in which I listed the Chicago seniors incorrectly.  This has been a good class for McGrath that helped the Maroons finish with at least two more wins than last season against an especially tough SOS.  Those seniors include: Max Jacobs, Justin Jackson, Ryan Jacobsen and Noah Karras.

[uaaaficionado]

I thought I would take a shot at the UAA all-Association team.

The coaching staff pick will be decided on Saturday, but everything else could be chosen today in my opinion.

_________

Player of the Year: Ryan Clamage, Rochester
Defensive Player of the Year: Jonathan Arenas, Washington University
Rookie of the Year: Justin Hardy, Washington University
Coach Staff of the Year: Emory University staff

First Team

Jordan Baum, Chicago
Ryan Clamage, Rochester
Dom Cristiano, NYU
Matt Davet, Emory
Seth Henry, Carnegie Mellon
Jack Nolan, Washington University
Corey Sherman, Brandeis
Romin Williams, Emory

Second Team

Justin Hardy, Washington University
Zach Howarth, Carnegie Mellon
Chandler Jones, Brandeis
Dominic Laravie, Chicago
Andrew Lundstrom, Rochester
Lawrence Rowley, Emory
Matt Schner, Emory
Jacob Wittig, Rochester

I agree with this list for the most part, but two thoughts of mine for the sake of argument:

1) I agree about 75% with Clamage as Player of the Year. If the situation arises where Emory wins Saturday and Romin Williams has a dominant performance, I'd have a hard time not giving him the award. As the leader of a potentially 11-3 UAA championship team, he should be the one to get it. Should Rochester win Saturday? Yes, Clamage 100%.

2) Cristiano has had a strong individual season, I'm not taking anything away from that. But can a player from what may end up as a 1-13 team earn a First-Team spot over guys like Wittig, Hardy, or Rowley? Wittig in particular (a 4-year starter). Whether Rochester finishes 1st or 2nd place in the league, they should have two First-Team guys. I think Second-Team for Cristiano. I'm on the fence about Seth Henry as well. He's had a great year and is certainly deserving of the all-league recognition - but they've only won 5 games. Wittig, Hardy, and Rowley were all go-to guys on teams that finished in the top 3 (pending WashU vs. Chicago).

[WUPHF]

Valid arguments for sure.

I think Clamage will get it with a combination of factors: scoring and overall play in conference, leadership and four-year record.  I am guessing that the coaches will assume Williams has the next two years in the bag.

I was back and forth on Cristiano and Henry, but I think the combination of scoring and rebounding is just too intriguing to pass up.  It is an interesting philosophical debate as far as the depth and success of teams go.

Of course, there is an interesting thought experiment to run as to the roles these players would play on a Rochester or Emory.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

The third public NCAA Division III regional rankings are out: https://www.d3hoops.com/notables/2019/02/men-regional-rankings-third

[uaaaficionado]

Only two days from the UAA season finale, here are my picks for the final day:

Brandeis 65 NYU 58
Case Western 78 Carnegie Mellon 74
Chicago 82 WashU 78
Emory 89 Rochester 85

I like Emory at their home court on senior day to finish the season, as they normally "defend" it well (figuratively speaking, not literally  ). But I do think it will come down to the wire.

This would result in the following year-end league standings:

1) Emory (11-3)
2) Rochester (10-4)
3) WashU (9-5)
3) Chicago (9-5)
5) Brandeis (8-6)
6) Carnegie Mellon (5-9)
7) Case Western (3-11)
8) NYU (1-13)

Versus my preseason predictions:

1)   Emory (10-4)
2)   Rochester (9-5)
3)   WashU (8-6)
4)   Carnegie Mellon (7-7)
5)   Case Western (7-7)
6)   Chicago (6-8)
7)   NYU (6-8)
8)   Brandeis (3-11)

A game or so off on a few of these teams. I far overestimated Case Western and NYU. I had thought there would be more parity between these teams and the likes of the "Top 4" (Emory, Rochester, WashU, and Chicago - where Case/NYU combined for a 1-15 record).

Congrats to the Brandeis team & their new coaching staff who have certainly been a pleasant surprise this season. I wasn't sure what to think going into the season. In one year Coach Bain has helped turn this team around and they have a bright future ahead as a contender in the UAA.

It doesn't seem as if WashU or Chicago have much of a chance for the NCAA tournament, but I think Emory and Rochester are both locks. No matter how unlikely it may be, I am crossing my fingers for an Emory-Rochester rematch in Ft. Wayne!