MBB: University Athletic Association

[woowashu]

I think Wash U. will look great this year.  Can't wait to watch them in Anderson and hopefully at Emory!  The UAA certainly has improved their programs over the past five years--they have become a great league to watch. 

Go bears, Go Scots

[ADL70]

CWRU has two transfers from scholarship divisions.
Reid Anderson 6'6" F/G from St. Eds xfr from Albany (NY) DI
Bryan Erce 6'3" G from Berwyn IL (Morton West) xfr from Queens (NC) DII

[cwuflmom]

With Herring, Young and Skuski back as well as the addtion of freshman Allen Mallory(GA) and Billy Leeds(FL)...the Spartans will no longer be the UAA doormat.

GO SPARTANS!

[scottiedawg]

For sure WashU will be great once again with Wallis returning.  But I think people are underestimating the enormous impact that Ruths had. 

Just the numbers, Ruths provided:
28% of offense
20% of rebounding
15% of assists
16% of minutes played

And I think that WashU fans can attest to the intangible ways that Ruths helped the team.  The defensive attention that he commanded, and his perfect amount of unselfishness will be sorely missed. 

[Ethelred the Unready]

With Herring, Young and Skuski back as well as the addtion of freshman Allen Mallory(GA) and Billy Leeds(FL)...the Spartans will no longer be the UAA doormat.

GO SPARTANS!

I agree with everything you say.  Except adding the Leeds kid as some sort of contributor.  I mean, come on.  Leeds?    And the doormat part as well......

I kid Ms. Leeds.  Congrats and here's hoping you have a heck of a ride the next 4 years.  Though not too spectacular.  That wouldn't do.   

[Hugenerd]

With Herring, Young and Skuski back as well as the addtion of freshman Allen Mallory(GA) and Billy Leeds(FL)...the Spartans will no longer be the UAA doormat.

GO SPARTANS!

I wouldnt get too excited yet.  Who is Case going to pass to get out of the cellar? Although Case may have improved, the league is still very strong.  There were 4 NCAA teams and 6 postseason teams in all last year from the UAA. I dont think there is much chance that they are going to be better overall than WashU, Chicago, Brandeis, Rochester, and Carnegie Mellon.  The will probably still compete for doormat status with NYU and Emory.  Call me a skeptic, but I have played/followed the UAA for about a decade now and CWRU has never done better than 6th (3rd worst) in the UAA and they have never had more than 4 UAA wins in a season, with their best UAA winning percentage being 29% (4-10 twice).  They have finished last or tied for last each of the last 5 years in the UAA with an overall winning percentage of <13% in those 5 years, here is a summary:

07-08     1-13     Last in UAA
06-07     1-13     Last
05-06     4-10     Tied Last
04-05     1-13     Last
03-04     2-12     Last
02-03     4-10     6th of 8
01-02     3-11     Tied Last
00-01     4-11     6th of 8

[T990]

OK, but if you didn't know, Case is undefeated in football this year, was undefeated last year too, and has won 18 straight games.  The soccer team was ranked in the last 2 years too.  Maybe something is happening w/ Case athletics (?).

[Hugenerd]

Here are some other interesting facts that have no bearing on the CWRU basketball program:
Tampa Bay went from worst to first this year in the AL
The Boston Celtics did the same last year in the NBA East Atlantic Division
The Steve Harvey Show was aired the first 20 minutes of the ALCS Game 6 this year on TBS
Texas is #1 in the BCS
The CWRU midfielder on the soccer team plays a mean guitar (http://www.case.edu/athletics/varsity/news.htm#s1_page2)


Given all of this information, I am still skeptical about the Case basketball programs chances in the UAA this year.  They are still a combined 2-26 (7% winning) the last 2 years and they are still in arguably the toughest dIII conference in the nation, which returns: 1) the national champions, 2) 4 NCAA tournament teams, 3) the ECAC south champions, and 4) a total of 6 teams that played in the post season a year ago.  Until they actually start winning conference games, I will remain skeptical. 

Their problem is not only players but they have very little home court advantage because no one comes to the games and their gym is the equivalent of a middle school gym.  They have had good players in the past and still not won (Carsen Oren, Funso Lafe come to mind), so until they do win some comference games there is no reason to think that anything will change this year (I say this as an outsider, I am sure the guys involved with the program have higher goals and I wish them luck, but I dont think it is likely to happen). With that said, CMU did go from being pretty bad to good in the span of 4 or 5 years.  But they got progressively better every year (2000-2006), peaking by going 10-4 two years in a row (2005 and 2006) and winning the UAA the second year.  So CWRU may win a couple more games than last year in the UAA, if they have improved talent but chances are they will remain in the bottom 2 or 3 in the conference.

[Gregory Sager]

OK, but if you didn't know, Case is undefeated in football this year, was undefeated last year too, and has won 18 straight games.  The soccer team was ranked in the last 2 years too.  Maybe something is happening w/ Case athletics (?).

T990, hugenerd is right. Why would the success of the football team and/or the soccer team have any impact upon the success of the basketball team?

[Mr. Ypsi]

OK, but if you didn't know, Case is undefeated in football this year, was undefeated last year too, and has won 18 straight games.  The soccer team was ranked in the last 2 years too.  Maybe something is happening w/ Case athletics (?).

T990, hugenerd is right. Why would the success of the football team and/or the soccer team have any impact upon the success of the basketball team?

Um, because the school has dedicated to upgrading athletics in general?

I have no knowledge either way, but that seemed an obvious response.

[Gregory Sager]

OK, but if you didn't know, Case is undefeated in football this year, was undefeated last year too, and has won 18 straight games.  The soccer team was ranked in the last 2 years too.  Maybe something is happening w/ Case athletics (?).

T990, hugenerd is right. Why would the success of the football team and/or the soccer team have any impact upon the success of the basketball team?

Um, because the school has dedicated to upgrading athletics in general?

Even if that was true, Chuck, and even if that was what T990 was getting at (it's not really what he said, as "something is happening" is a very vague statement), it's reflective rather than causative. In other words, the success of the football team and the success of the soccer team could indicate a dedication to upgrading athletics in general at CWRU, but the successes of those two teams could not bring about a corresponding improvement in the basketball team, because the success of a team in one sport doesn't spill over onto a team in another sport (with obvious exceptions in the various running sports: cross-country, indoor track, and track & field). It'd be like saying that the Spartans basketball team is going to be better because the Spartans football team has done such a good job over the past year or so of bringing in 275-pound linemen with quick feet and good upper-body strength. Well, bully for the football team, but those big linemen won't do a lick of good for the basketball team.

Remember, this conversation's context is that of the recent lack of success of the Spartans cagers within the UAA (and overall, too, if you look at CWRU's records within this decade). That's a much more compelling data set when it comes to ascertaining a program's health than is an uptick in the other men's sports at that school -- especially when no evidence has been brought forth that a coaching change or a facilities upgrade, the two primary indicators one would look for to see an institutional change of direction with regard to the program, have been put into effect recently by the CWRU administration.

The only tangible bits of evidence offered thus far that CWRU might be better this year than last are: 1) cwuflmom's pointing out that two of the top three scorers for the Spartans last season (Steve Young, 13.1 ppg, and Kevin Herring, 12.2 ppg) are returning -- and, to her credit, that's a fairly compelling argument; and 2) cwru70's statement that two scholarship-level transfers are joining the team (Reid Anderson got into four games for a grand total of 22 minutes last year for D1 Albany and scored four points; Bryan Erce, who was a good player in a good conference during his prep days at Morton West in the West Suburban Gold Conference in Chicagoland, was in and out of the rotation for D2 Queens last year and never made much of an impact). Saying that the CWRU football team and soccer team are doing well, and that therefore "maybe something is happening" that bodes well for the CWRU basketball team, is by contrast not much of an argument at all.

[ADL70]

Welcome flmom.  Nice to get some recruits from under Emory's nose.  One of whom appears to be flson.  Here's to a great career for him in University Circle.  Lets hope Skuski can stay healthy. 

nerd..while not showing up in the win column, CWRU was competitive in games last year.  All but a couple UAA games were close at the half and the Spartans were one bad pass by a freshman from beating national champ WUStL.

CWRU's may be middle school-ish, but isn't CMU's like an ancient junior high?  CWRU should go back to old Adelbert Gym for more than just the throw-back weekend.  That would give a home court advantage!  I miss the radiators behind the benches though.

[Hugenerd]

Welcome flamom.  Nice to get some recruits from under Emory's nose.  One of whom appears to be your son.  Here's to a great career for him in University Circle.  Lets hope Skuski can stay healthy. 

nerd..while not showing up in the win column, CWRU was competitive in games last year.  All but a couple UAA games were close at the half and the Spartans were one bad pass by a freshman from beating national champ WUStL.

CWRU's may be middle school-ish, but isn't CMU's like an ancient junior high?  CWRU should go back to old Adelbert Gym for more than just the throw-back weekend.  That would give a home court advantage!  I miss the radiators behind the benches though.

CMU does have an old gym. The reason they cant get rid of it is because it is a historic landmark so it cannot be rebuilt.  However, the ceilings are higher than CWRU's gym (which, in my opinion, make a big difference) and it is larger in general (if the bleachers are down it can accomodate 4 courts).  CMU has renovated the entire building in recent years, however, and the court is brand new.  Rochester, for example, also has an old gym but I would consider it one of the best in the UAA because of the atmosphere (it is like an old gladiator forum with the players playing a "pit" and the crowd surrounding over top).  The main drawbacks to CWRU's gym are: 1) low ceilings, 2) very limited seating for fans, 3) dead spots on floor (at least the last time I played there 3 years ago), 4) a window with treadmills that is cut out of one wall (that is really annoying, especially in a gym that small), and 5) the very small size of the gym in general. 

If I had to vote, I would rank the gyms in the UAA as follows: 1) WashU, 2) Chicago (when they moved to the new center, the old one was awful), 3) Rochester, 4) NYU, 5) CMU, 6) Brandeis, 7) Emory , 8) CWRU.  The reason I put Emory so low is because their floor is always awful (tons of dead spots) and I hate that there is a screen on one side.  I also dont like the screen on one side at Brandeis.  NYU is nice because NYU has seating on pretty much every side (for big games) and its cool playing 3 floors below ground.  CMU's saving grace is their nice floor and the fact that the entire gym is devoted to basketball (which cant be said for Brandeis or Emory, which have their gyms partitioned with screens from larger rec centers, this is the way the old Chicago gym was also).

[dblock]

With Herring, Young and Skuski back as well as the addtion of freshman Allen Mallory(GA) and Billy Leeds(FL)...the Spartans will no longer be the UAA doormat.

GO SPARTANS!

I wouldnt get too excited yet.  Who is Case going to pass to get out of the cellar? Although Case may have improved, the league is still very strong.  There were 4 NCAA teams and 6 postseason teams in all last year from the UAA. I dont think there is much chance that they are going to be better overall than WashU, Chicago, Brandeis, Rochester, and Carnegie Mellon.  The will probably still compete for doormat status with NYU and Emory.  Call me a skeptic, but I have played/followed the UAA for about a decade now and CWRU has never done better than 6th (3rd worst) in the UAA and they have never had more than 4 UAA wins in a season, with their best UAA winning percentage being 29% (4-10 twice).  They have finished last or tied for last each of the last 5 years in the UAA with an overall winning percentage of <13% in those 5 years, here is a summary:

07-08     1-13     Last in UAA
06-07     1-13     Last
05-06     4-10     Tied Last
04-05     1-13     Last
03-04     2-12     Last
02-03     4-10     6th of 8
01-02     3-11     Tied Last
00-01     4-11     6th of 8

HN, I love you bro, but I have to disagree with NYU being in the doormat conversation. First off nobody even thought NYU was going to get 3-4 wins last year and they ended up going 6-8 in UAA play. This includes a game they lost to CMU that they should have won, and a few games that they got smacked in but it was due to the sheer lack of experience and leadership. That lack of experience and leadership is now gone. NYU graduates two players, starting PG Charlie Parker who averaged 9.4 ppg during league play, and nonfactor C Mike Magee. So basically NYU has only gotten stronger since last season. John Mish averaged 13.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg while shooting .551 from the field. In the 9 UAA games he started he averaged 15.3 ppg and 8.2 ppg. Add Richie Polan, who arguably should have been the UAA ROY, due to the fact that he averaged 10.3 ppg and 5.4 rpg for a team that won 6 games vs. Kevin Herring's 11.2 ppg and 2.21 apg during a year where CWRU managed only one UAA win. Then there's Keith Jensen who I believe will put it all together this year and surprise a few people in the UAA, along with DJ Glavan who will be such a sleeper stud this year running the point.

I am a homer, but I also can see what is in front of me. Going into last season, I honestly thought that NYU would struggle to put up 2 w's on the board, but they played much better than I thought they would. I think there is a definite addition by subtraction from last year, there are leaders up and down the roster and I think they are going to finish in the in the top 4 this year in the league. I think Wash will be good but I agree with scottiedawg, everyone is underestimating Troy Ruths. It's actually ridiculous, watching Wash play for the last three years, he drove that team. Throw in a Sean Wallis coming off a major injury and I think that Wash will be good but will struggle and show signs of weakness. Nading is hustler as well as Thompson, but they cannot carry Wash. UChicago will battle Brandeis for the UAA crown this year. Chicago is in my opinion the most fundamentally sound team in the league, and they literally beat you to every ball. Brandeis is loaded with talent, and if they don't succumb to the NYU class of 07 curse, where they try and rely on talent vs. hard work, I see them being a national FORCE.  I think U of R is really going to struggle losing their 3 best bigs, along with Dominiak. CMU just doesn't impress me at all and they lose Kozak. I believe that Emory and CWRU will struggle, Emory loses Spiros CWRU loses Conrad (who I believe would have been ridiculous on any of the competitive UAA teams). I think this year will be year of great games, and trust me; NYU will NOT be a doormat.

[Hugenerd]

I admit that I do not know much about NYU.  I was considering putting them with CMU and Rochester in the second tier of the UAA when I made that post (the first tier being Wash, Chicago and Brandeis), but I didnt really hear of them doing much to improve.  CMU's main loss, I would say, is not just Kozak but Greg Gonzalez, who was first team all-UAA and was an all-great lakes performer as well (he is know playing in Germany). With that said, I still think they have a lot of talent and they have a very large and talented freshman class, as well as experienced returning players in Ryan Einwag (two time 2nd-team all UAA and Outstanding Player of ECAC South Tourney last year), Jack Anderson, Elliot Curtis, Terrance Bouldin-Johnson, Rob Pearson, Shane Rife, and Jon Wollebon.  They return 3 starters: Einwag, Bouldin-Johnson, and Anderson, as well as 5 other players who played 24 games or more last season: Curtis, Rife, Pearson, Wollebon, and Matthew Pettit.  I think CMU has the opportunity to be better than last year's 6-8 in the UAA(they were 19-9 overall). Rochester is obviously a question mark because of all their losses, but Chicago and WashU also had significant losses to graduation, so it will be interesting to see how the season will progress.