MBB: Northwest Conference

[Hoopfan555]

In the interest of full disclosure, I am Kyle's father.  I was at the game last night, it was a tremendous atmosphere and an amazing game.  Two teams who left it all on the Court.  It was extremely intense throughout.  Yes there were a few actions at the end by young men on both sides that might have been handled better, but don't judge these kids by that.  Both sides should be proud of their effort.  I don't think the book is closed quite yet on this rivalry this year. 

[(509)Rat]

Question, did Kyle require rehydration via IV after the game?

Back to serious posts and not butt hurt old people, is the NWC tournament going to have the current 1-4 in it? Does Linfield drop their last 4 in a row and end up going to Walla Walla instead of Spokane? Can Pacific squeak past UPS? Do any of them have a shot at beating Whitworth and Whitman in the tournament in order to get the automatic bid?

[Hoopfan555]

Like most 20 year olds that can eat whatever they want he scarfed down a burger, fries, and milkshake with some water.  Hopefully Whitworth closes out regular season and finishes 2 seed.  Linfield and Puget Sound are both good this year and capable of an upset if they get the 3 and 4 seeds. 

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

FYI - I have seen Whitworth players act just as cocky as Whitman players currently. It is a big game and usually I give a bit of a leash.

That said, feel free to watch the video back shortly after the buzzer and a Whitman player chasing after an official and yelling at him before another teammate pulls him away from the official. Let's not cast stones, okay?

1.  WW players act as cocky as Howell?  Not our upstanding Pirates.
2.  I Assume you meant a Whitworth player was yelling at a ref.  If it was Roach, I can understand his frustration. Did you see the missed call on his dunk and the foul they called on him on Howell's Drive? No game is perfectly reffed but Roach really did get the short end all night long.

Oops... I did mean a Whitworth player chased down an official.

I do not believe it was Roach. It wasn't his number. I remember looking and noting it wasn't Roach. I don't want to guess otherwise until after the fact.

And I disagree completely with your thought on the dunk and the final play. I watched all of it:
- The dunk was a clean block. Watch the video (and I did multiple times) and you will see the hand get all ball to start (maybe got the wrist, but well after the fact) and there was no body contact). It was a great no-call... despite the fact the broadcasters couldn't admit it because they were stuck in a rut of questioning everything about the officiating (I don't disagree the officials weren't great, but they weren't as bad as they made them out to be).
- The final play was absolutely a foul. Roach was moving laterally and pushing off with an arm bar, but I thought the foul that was most aggregise was the help defender who slide right into Howell and hip-checked him. The camera angle from midcourt, low, showed that very well. Same angle the official who called the foul had. They called it on Roach, so be it... but it was a pick 'em as to who caused the foul.

Roach didn't get the short end of anything. They called a foul on Hewitt closely guarding Roach when Roach was just as aggressive and pushing as much. It would have been a smart double-foul if the official thought of it well.

Back to the last play, Whitworth needed to ease up there a bit. Roach had gotten Howell to go towards the corner and no angle at the basket. Howell was about to cost Whitman the game. However, Roach and the help defense got too aggressive. No matter the situation there, it is a two-shot foul. Let Howell either bury Whitman or hit a ridiculous prayer of a shot and nod your head. They didn't need to be that aggressive in that situation. Howell was putting himself in a bad spot and Roach and the help defender sadly bailed him out.

That is not a knock on Roach. He played a darn good game. I would have liked to see him get his teammates involved a little more and not take 28-foot shots with a man in his face, but you can't knock 45 points too much. Whitworth just can't rely on him to do that in all their big games.

[A Buc Forever]

Roach was 18/29.  I would not say he took too many bad shots and those long threes only looked bad because they were deep. They all looked good. Good shooters are extending the range of the game.  Whitman hit some threes that were that deep or deeper.  The game is changing.  Good three point shooters aren't just toeing the line anymore. Coaches are using the 3 point shot as their primary weapon more and more.  Last night both teams shot a lot of transition threes.  I like it. Teams have to extend the defense and it opens up the game underneath.

As for the Roach's dunk--The defender got ball at first and when his hand came down he clearly hit Roach's wrist. Still a foul.  I did not see a replay of the last play, maybe it was worse than what you could see live. I'll defer to your view of the replay.  I would not say they bailed Howell out--did you see some of the shots that kid made earlier in the game?  They should have done more to keep the ball out of his hands.

Turnovers were the difference. Some of Whitworth's turnovers were unforced. I think they got flustered and did not handle the pressure well. I like the uptempo game Whitman is playing.   I wonder if more teams will adopt it.

Saw the replay of Howell's bowing.  Ok--the kid is a total ham, but it was pretty funny.  I just hope he doesn't tick off Roach enough that they get in a fight. This isn't like Brian Williams vs Chase Curtis.  The younger kids look like they actually go in the weight room and might actually hurt each other if they got in a fight.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

I am fully aware that threes are taken from a further distance... I've been around this game plenty to know that. My point wasn't that. My point was he took some shots at times that were not wise and they didn't help the team. One was from 28 feet with a guy in his face early in the shot clock as his teammate were running a play... which also put no one in rebounding position. He felt he was on last night and sometimes just chucked up shots. Yes, he made some. Good. Just thought, if Whitworth wants to get past Whitman, he needs to think a little more about those choices.

As for the foul at the end, they did bail him out. I am fully aware of what Howell can do, but he hasn't been as successful this season and the play was playing out not in Howell's favor. The shot he ended up taking never came close. He was running basically away from the rim when the foul took place. In that particular situation, let him hit the circus shot instead of putting him on the line.

The dunk, we can agree to disagree, but I barely saw wrist... I saw all ball.

By the way, Butler's steal late was one of the most spectacular steals I've ever seen. Ripped it out of the guy's hands, cleanly, in a manner I've never seen before.. Quite impressive.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

Men's first regional rankings this season: http://www.d3hoops.com/notables/2018/02/men-regional-rankings-first

[D O.C.]

I'm ancient so I find it amusing a Whitman Missionary would do anything unseeming.
I'm glad we have two NWC teams with national stature.

'CATS are coming.
Like it used to be.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

I'm ancient so I find it amusing a Whitman Missionary would do anything unseeming.
I'm glad we have two NWC teams with national stature.

'CATS are coming.
Like it used to be.

They changed to the Whitman Blues two years ago.

[D O.C.]

Mr. McHugh... I know.
I wallow in sarcasm. Playing Missionaries in any sport (especially basketball) in my day was a lark.
They did ruin our football playoff chances one year though.
Whitworth? Considered a big school in the 60s and we rarely played them.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

was on purpose...

[wildcat11]

Job postings popped up for Pacific's men AND women's head coaching jobs just a few hours ago on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/CoachBook_Jobs/status/961784491655286785

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

That's a must since both current coaches have interim tags.

[wildcat11]

That's a must since both current coaches have interim tags.

Shows you how much I've been paying attention!!   

[D O.C.]

So now that LINFIELD is not beating itself regularly attention turns to how much more can they improve...

News-Register by Rusty Rae

It's time for the NWC to live up to its standard of equitable play!

"The heart of competition" sports column by Rusty Rae, Sport Editor, McMinnville N-R/News-Register Feb 8 (online) and Feb. 9 (in print), 2018

The Linfield men's basketball team has it going on.

Too bad the Northwest Conference schedule wizards haven't progressed as far.

Playing on the road is a part of athletics, no matter the sport.
But the schedule the 'Cats endured this year borders on abusive, perhaps affecting their chances for second place in the conference and a home playoff contest.

After a Tuesday game with Willamette, Linfield traveled to Tacoma to play Pacific Lutheran last Saturday. Easy enough.

This weekend, however, the 'Cats make the same trip to Tacoma for a Friday night game against talented University of Puget Sound. The 'Cats then must jump on the bus for the return trip, getting into their own beds well after 1 a.m. Saturday, they play their last home game of the season against Lewis & Clark. Keep in mind, the Pioneers' Friday contest is a home game against PLU.

Earlier in the season, Linfield lost another Saturday game to Pacific on the Boxers' home court. Linfield played a scrappy George Fox outfit Friday at the House of Hustle. Who did Pacific play the same night? Nowheresville State College. That's right, the Boxers didn't play Friday night.

Head coach Shanan Rosenberg credited the Boxers for their play rather than using it as an excuse. But the difference between the first game and the second is exponential: Linfield shellacked Pacific a month later at Ted Wilson Gymnasium, 83-48. That's a 50-point difference.

Make up your own mind whether the schedule impacted the outcome.

It's not just Linfield forced to accept this nonsensical scheduling. Every Oregon team in the NWC receives this treatment, while the Washington-based teams get back-to-back games during their forays into the Beaver State.

Rosenberg, while not happy with the unbalanced schedule, acts the stoic noting, "We dance to the music the conference plays."

NWC Commissioner Kimberly Wenger, asked to comment on the schedule, did not return our call.

Linfield athletic director Garry Killgore said it's his understanding the schedule was developed by some faceless company in the Midwest. Obviously a pragmatic solution to scheduling, but produced by an agency without a clue about the geography of the NWC.

Notes Killgore, with a touch of sarcasm, "The schedule favors some schools in the conference – but certainly not us."

A third-grade class drawing ping-pong balls out of a fishbowl could have done a better job in developing the schedule. What is more disappointing is the Washington schools have been less than forthcoming in lobbying for a change. Apparently the two Whits don't give a whit about fair play.

"Moving forward, I hope the NWC will take a closer look at the scheduling formula with an idea of true equality," Killgore said.

There is also something to be said for not playing back-to-back games. The NBA seldom schedules in this way; you will rarely see the Beavers or the Ducks play consecutive league contests. It may be expedient, but it's not a healthy way to treat student athletes.

Additionally, playing on a Friday night does not give coaches the opportunity to travel to high school games for recruiting purposes.

Even more disappointing is the lack of integrity this level of pragmatic paper-pushing displays in NWC leadership.

I have always considered the NWC a leader within the NCAA DIII; however, with NWC management, college presidents, and athletic directors apparently more interested in "that's the way it is" rather than fixing a glaring problem of equality, the conference has taken a step backward.

The mission statement of the NWC states: ... exists to promote, organize, and supervise intercollegiate athletics competition among member institutions in a way that encourages competition to be equitable, fair, amicable, enjoyable, and educational (emphasis added).
It's time for the NWC to exemplify their standard.