MBB: University Athletic Association

[Ole Ollie]

As a Jewish, Brandeis alum, I was not the least bit offended by the demographics reference.  The fact is that Brandeis is a Jewish sponsored, non sectarian University with a large (about half) Jewish student population.  There is no doubt that some Christian students would prefer not to go to a college at which they will be a minority, just like some Jewish students may not want to attend a Catholic or Evangelical college.  But back to basketball:

Meehan certainly is a heck of a recruiter, but I disagree that Brandeis is a hard sell--at least not now when a winning program has been established.  Strong academics, great facility, proximity to Boston, a coach that is a proven winner, a supportive administration, one of the best D III leagues in the country, a challenging schedule and first class travel to big cities around the country.  The program has a lot to offer a recruit.  And this is not the first time Brandeis has had a strong basketball program--it was the dominant DIII program in New England in the 70s and was also strong from the mid 80s - mid 90s.

As far as this year's recruits are concerned, they (the ones I know about) certainly seem strong on paper, but the game is not played on paper and I have no personal knowledge of any of them, so I'll have to reserve judgment until I see them play.

I agree Brandeis can give Wash U and Amherst a run for their money this year--Brandeis beat Wash U last season at Brandeis and lost close games at Wash U and Amherst.  This year the Brandeis-Amherst game should be at home.  And with no seniors on the roster last year, Brandeis should have a great returning group.  The weakness with Brandeis the last couple of years has been the lack of a big guy that can consistently score inside and rebound and defend at the other end of the court.  Whether that problem will be solved next season remains to be seen. On the other hand, there seem to be a lot less great big men in the UAA than was the case in the past.

Ollie

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Especially for New England kids, playing in Red Auerbach Arena is a big sell right there, not to mention that it's a really good school.

The demographic argument does make sense on some level, just like it does for Wheaton (IL) or any of the Catholic schools.

I rarely think of Brandeis and immediately associate Jewish, but then again, I never put in the research that a prospective student would.

[nescac1]

Yeah, just to clarify, I am Jewish myself, and I don't think its stereotypical to say people tend to want to go to a place where they feel they'll fit in -- I would never have applied to Boston College or Notre Dame, certainly.  Brandeis is branded / known as the only majority Jewish undergrad in the country, outside of a place like Yeshiva.  And the sad fact is, there aren't a ton of big-time Jewish college basketball prospects out there.  Certainly, there are some, especially in NESCAC (Weitzen, Rudin, Black, Weisbrot, etc.), but not an enormous number.   Also, I'm not sure that Brandeis features tremendous racial diversity, although I could be wrong there.  That's all I meant to say.

But I do agree with the subsequent poster, who knows a lot more about Brandeis than I do, that the school has some definite drawing points.  I still think Meehan is impressive -- he brought great talent to Salem State, and in a totally different environment in every respect (Salem had a very transient population with JC kids, kids leaving the program, and a much lower academic bar than Brandeis), has brought even more talent into a Brandeis program that wasn't exactly on fire when he arrived.  No New England school, other than Amherst, has brought in more talent than Meehan over the past four years.  Not easy to have that kind of immediate success at two very different styles of programs and schools. 

[Wydown Blvd.]

y_jack_lok brought to our attention on the SLIAC board the press release on d3hoops about the Wash U men's incoming freshman:
http://d3hoops.com/pressreleases.php?release=1370

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

That looks like a solid class to add to their already stellar line-up.

[Ole Ollie]

Every year there are some players who fly below the radar in the recruiting process that none the less go on to tremendous college careers. Along those lines the New England Recruiting Report examines the 10 biggest recruiting steals in the class of 2007.

#5 Christian Yemga to Brandeis – When we traveled to Proctor Academy last fall we wrote that Christian Yemga was a low-major division I player, and we still believe that to be the case. 6'7 small forwards who can handle the ball in the open floor and see the court well enough to play some point forward usually are at a high premium. That's why we still can't understand why no one offered a scholarship to Yemga. What we do know for sure is that Brandeis is thrilled to have him. And why wouldn't they be...Do you know of any other division III program in the country that will have a 6'7 point forward?

[Gregory Sager]

Yeah, just to clarify, I am Jewish myself, and I don't think its stereotypical to say people tend to want to go to a place where they feel they'll fit in -- I would never have applied to Boston College or Notre Dame, certainly.  Brandeis is branded / known as the only majority Jewish undergrad in the country, outside of a place like Yeshiva.  And the sad fact is, there aren't a ton of big-time Jewish college basketball prospects out there.

I immediately thought of this article when I read this post.

Of those six Glenbrook North "boychiks":

Sean Wallis > Wash U
Zach Kelly > Wash U
Jon Radke > Case
Matt Gold > DePauw

Matt Shamis is now playing for Lehigh. And Jon Scheyer, aka "the Jewish Jordan", is of course a rising star for the Dookies.

Two other players who were subs on that state championship team of two years ago have also joined the D3 ranks as well: Tyler Cullitan (Lawrence), who just finished his freshman year and saw limited action for John Tharp's Larries in 2006-07, and Chris Stamas (Illinois Wesleyan), who will be a college freshman this coming season. Dunno if those two guys are Jewish as well.

[Marty Peretz]

early predictions:
1)Wash.U. (12-2)
2) Brandeis (11-3)
3) Rochester (11-3)
4) Emory (7-7)
5) Chicago (6-8)
6)NYU (5-9)
7) Carnegie (4-10)
8) Case (0-14)

[Wydown Blvd.]

Finally some movement on this board!!!

Not too much disparity from Marty's post. The best in the UAA are teams that did not lose much. Wash U, Brandeis, and UofR could all win the conference.

1) Wash U. (13-1)
2) Brandeis (12-2)
3) Rochester (11-3)
4) Chicago (6-8)
5) NYU (4-10)
6) Emory (4-10)
7) Case (3-11)
8) Carnegie (3-11)

Sleeper picks to be above .500: Chicago, Case

WashU: They could go undefeated. Didn't really lose anyone except Nickitas really. And they are simply "that" good. The challenge for them came v. NYU (and Boone, Decorso, and Falcon graduated). I think the loss at Brandeis for them was a fluke. It was their worst game of the second half of the season and when Wallis and Nading fouled out, it was over. Ruths didn't get enough shots off, etc. Not having a solid backup point was the biggest deficit to this team. And O'Boyle should be back (not to mention the 3 recruits at point guard), so it'll get better and better for WashU. Game to watch: WashU at Rochester.

Brandeis: Their senior class is stacked: DeLuca and co. (Coppens, Graves, and Rexhepi). Great recruits coming, who Ole Ollie mentioned before; I think they can beat Wash U once so I gave them one; Rochester will beat them once at the Palestra. Game to watch: BU at Rochester.

UR: Onyiriuka can single handedly destroy teams. Lost Snider. Experience helps them and will be a huge factor; Im thinking loss to Brandeis 1x and loss to Wash U 2x, and loss to hmm Chicago maybe. Wash U and Rochester have the greatest home-court advantage. Could win the conference. They don't play as well on the road. Game to watch: UR at BU.

Chicago: Two heads of the three headed monster graduate; Hainje impresses me more than Federigos

NYU: This is just based on gut. Third best home-court advantage especially on Friday nights; however, I don't think they have enough to capitalize.

Emory: Coming off a 2-12 conference record, I don't think they are going to have a five game improvement. New coach also -- it'll take a little time for this team to get to the middle of this top-heavy conference. I don't know if Federigos can carry the load without Sosa. They'll have one surprise win though at least. But they even lost their senior night game at home last year to Case; Ill check their recruits again but I don't think they are getting that much better.

Case: hey you never know, and they were young last year and still won some. They return their top four leading scorers, Conrad (15.7 ppg), Young (14.2 ppg), Bradford (8.2 ppg), and Skuski (8.0 ppg). They will win a few. They were in several games last year (Senior Night v. Brandeis, Chicago 2x, Carnegie Mellon 2x); Could win as many as 6 or 7.

CMU: What a difference from 2006, wow. Is Greg Gonzalez coming back? (I wouldn't think so, but I figured I'd ask) Otherwise they need more size. Einwag has the talent to be 1st team UAA, but will CMU get enough wins? I hate putting them this low though.

[Wydown Blvd.]

T.J. Shelton Named Assistant AD at Ohio State
Washington University in St. Louis assistant director of athletics T.J. Shelton has accepted the position of Assistant Athletics Director for Sports Administration at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. Shelton had just completed his 15th year at Washington University and eighth as an assistant AD.

http://bearsports.wustl.edu/releases/Shelton.html

Thats great for T.J. Shelton. He was an excellent asset to Wash U. and from my few interactions with him, he is definitely a great guy. He'll roll well with the big boys.

[uaapride]

Are any UAA teams' schedules posted online yet?

[pabegg]

Are any UAA teams' schedules posted online yet?

Everyone except Brandeis and Rochester.

[hugenerd]

CMU: What a difference from 2006, wow. Is Greg Gonzalez coming back? (I wouldn't think so, but I figured I'd ask) Otherwise they need more size.

Last I heard he is coming back, he has a year of eligibility and I think he is going to do a masters.  I havent spoken to anyone about it in a while though, so he may have changed his mind.

Case: hey you never know, and they were young last year and still won some. They return their top four leading scorers, Conrad (15.7 ppg), Young (14.2 ppg), Bradford (8.2 ppg), and Skuski (8.0 ppg). They will win a few. They were in several games last year (Senior Night v. Brandeis, Chicago 2x, Carnegie Mellon 2x); Could win as many as 6 or 7.

I wouldnt be too optimistic about case.  They always seem to have some talent, but that tiny middle school sized gym they play in could suck the talent out of anyone.

[Jacketfan2011]

As we approach the official beginning of the season, has anyone heard anything about the incoming freshmen in the UAA?  It is such a wide spread conference it is hard to keep up with who is going where.  Thanks

[All-around]

Can anyone tell me where Jason Boone has landed after graduation?