WBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[thunder38]

BackSeat, that sounds about right for the WC-Carthage game on Friday.  I'll pick Carthage this time, as they played very very well at Shirk last time vs. IWU, and in some ways deserved to win that road game.  IWU won on the "shot of the year," a last second trey by Michelle Bilek.  That was probably the best game I've seen all year, men or women.  (though IWU's big win over Wash U on the men's side, perhaps a close second).  Of course, any men's win over Augie is right up there too.

Sure, but that was in January. Carthage has since lost to both IWU and Wheaton at home. That tells me that IWU and Wheaton are better than Carthage, regardless of preseason polls or expectations.

Now, a third matchup is always interesting. Especially when it's a neutral site game. i am under no illusions that Carthage can't beat Wheaton. I think that if Wheaton is able to, once again, take Carthage out of its offensive rhythm, the Thunder wins. If not, and Carthage plays like they did @ Elmhurst, the Reds win. We'll see.

The big question in this game is going to be will Carthage to back to the matchup zone they employed for much of the game up in Kenosha that was able to keep them competitive.  The downfall to that game was it ended up slowing Carthage up and keeping themselves out of rhythm as much as the Thunder so they ended up hurting themselves as well.  I would expect Carthage to use that for much of the game because they have struggled with the Thunder in man to man scenarios this year.  If Hovee can play 25+ minutes and hound Jacklin defensively I like the Thunder odds but if Hovee gets in foul trouble Wheaton may be in trouble.  It also comes down, as it has all year, with Wheaton's reliance on the 3.  If they don't settle and continue to work the offense to get open 3's they'll win but if they end up taking the first available three as they have been prone to do at times, they'll find their season over on Friday night.  I think Wheaton has the advantage off the bench with the improved play of Graham lately and the hot play of Bohlen as well as the return of Maria Panaggio. 

In the other semi I would expect a close game for maybe a half, depending on the outside shooting of the Big Blue but as they did on Saturday to Elmhurst, I would expect IWU to wear down Millikin and pull away in the second half.  That press will most likely bother MU as Wellbaum leads the conference in turnovers.  IWU is just a whole nother animal in the Shirk Center.

[Backseat Driver]

BackSeat, that sounds about right for the WC-Carthage game on Friday.  I'll pick Carthage this time, as they played very very well at Shirk last time vs. IWU, and in some ways deserved to win that road game.  IWU won on the "shot of the year," a last second trey by Michelle Bilek.  That was probably the best game I've seen all year, men or women.  (though IWU's big win over Wash U on the men's side, perhaps a close second).  Of course, any men's win over Augie is right up there too.

Sure, but that was in January. Carthage has since lost to both IWU and Wheaton at home. That tells me that IWU and Wheaton are better than Carthage, regardless of preseason polls or expectations.

Now, a third matchup is always interesting. Especially when it's a neutral site game. i am under no illusions that Carthage can't beat Wheaton. I think that if Wheaton is able to, once again, take Carthage out of its offensive rhythm, the Thunder wins. If not, and Carthage plays like they did @ Elmhurst, the Reds win. We'll see.

The big question in this game is going to be will Carthage to back to the matchup zone they employed for much of the game up in Kenosha that was able to keep them competitive.  The downfall to that game was it ended up slowing Carthage up and keeping themselves out of rhythm as much as the Thunder so they ended up hurting themselves as well.  I would expect Carthage to use that for much of the game because they have struggled with the Thunder in man to man scenarios this year.  If Hovee can play 25+ minutes and hound Jacklin defensively I like the Thunder odds but if Hovee gets in foul trouble Wheaton may be in trouble.  It also comes down, as it has all year, with Wheaton's reliance on the 3.  If they don't settle and continue to work the offense to get open 3's they'll win but if they end up taking the first available three as they have been prone to do at times, they'll find their season over on Friday night.  I think Wheaton has the advantage off the bench with the improved play of Graham lately and the hot play of Bohlen as well as the return of Maria Panaggio. 

In the other semi I would expect a close game for maybe a half, depending on the outside shooting of the Big Blue but as they did on Saturday to Elmhurst, I would expect IWU to wear down Millikin and pull away in the second half.  That press will most likely bother MU as Wellbaum leads the conference in turnovers.  IWU is just a whole nother animal in the Shirk Center.

Not a bad strategy for Carthage. Outside of Jacklin, I think Wheaton is probably more athletic across the board. Unfortunately I haven't seen Carthage in person this season so I'm basing that assessment on past seasons and video streams. You're right, thunder38, that Wheaton has to be patient offensively. This is especially true if Carthage is switching defenses or playing zone exclusively.

I expect IWU to win more in the fashion of their 86-61 triumph over the Big Blue on Jan. 25, than the more recent game in Decatur.

[iwu70]

Look forward to both games, boths semis, on Friday.  All the teams have worked very hard to earn these extra games, so should be very intense and competitive. 
Shirk is such a great place to host such a tournament.  Let's hope for a good crowd, full house, for both games.

Nice for IWU, Carthage and Millikin to have the full week to rest, prepare.  WC has a game with Augie, right?  A tune-up for them, me thinks.

IWU70

[Backseat Driver]

Congratualtions to Wheaton's Lindsey Brenneman, this week's CCIW player of the week. Read the release here: http://cciw.org/news/2012/2/20/WBB_0220123716.aspx. In Saturday's win over North Park, Lindsey established herself as one of the top scorers in the history of the Wheaton program by scoring her 1,000th career point. She is the 16th Crusader/Thunder player to reach that milestone.

Lindsey, along with Wheaton's other seniors, was honored during Saturday's senior night festivities at King Arena. Regretfully, my work schedule prevented me from attending, but it's nice to see that the Thunder was able to put together a win.

Lindsey Brenneman, Elisabeth Potts, Laura Karsten, and Lissie McAlvey represent a class that experienced early growing pains, but has developed into a very talented and successful group. They have continued the strong tradition of Wheaton basketball, and I cannot think of a better way to crown their careers than a trip to the NCAA tournament. That is something that they will have the opportunity to achieve this weekend.

Beyond basketball, these four are also some of the most genuine and kind people you will ever meet. They are model representatives of the type of student-athletes that Wheaton College strives to produce.

[iwu70]

Yes, congrats to Lindsey Brenneman, CCIW Player of the Week!

BackSeat, looks like WC is losing a fine fine, very talented senior class group.  Good luck to them all in the post-CCIW basketball endeavors.  We will welcome them warmly to the Shirk this weekend!     Congrats to the Wheaton seniors.

Same with IWU, some very fine seniors leaving us this year -- we will surely miss Amy Burton, Karen Solari, Britt Hasselbring, and Olivia Lett.  They have been so dedicated, such fine reps of IWU, its basketball traditions and program, and have been through alot, through good times and bad, injury and good health -- and made it through the drive for five, bringing us the fifth straight outright CCIW regular season championship.  Quite an achievement.  Some amazing basketball throughout their careers at IWU.  This weekend is frosting on the cake for all the top four CCIW contending women's teams and programs.   

Should be a great weekend of DIII hoops in a wonderful, friendly environment of the Shirk Center.   You'all come down, now . . . Beer Nuts and good basketball, all for a reasonable price. 

IWU70

[iwu70]

Titans up to 17th (from 20th) in the latest D3hoops.com poll. 

Still four programs undefeated on the season. 

IWU70

[RogK]

Thunder38, check the assist/turnover leaders in cciw.org. Beth Wellbaum does not lead the league in turnovers either in conference play or overall 25 game stats.
Also, your comments on the upcoming Wheaton/Carthage matchup do not include mention of Cailee Corcoran. She's only the 7th leading scorer in CCIW play and shot over 56 pct. That sounds exactly like the sort of player that Lauren Graham may become. You may not see any need for the Thunder to worry about Corcoran, but I bet Kent Madsen sure does.

[RogK]

My congratulations to the Titans and Mia Smith for another very fine CCIW regular season. I thought there would be a falloff based on how many very good players graduated in recent years.
Seems to me that the IWU program would be a good one to attempt to replicate, given its consistent success.

[RogK]

Here's an interesting note : only four teams have beaten Carthage this season -- IWU, Wheaton, Coe and the U of Chicago.

[Backseat Driver]

Here's an interesting note : only four teams have beaten Carthage this season -- IWU, Wheaton, Coe and the U of Chicago.

Which is why I'm not ready to guarantee a Wheaton victory Friday. Carthage is a very, very good team, and they have plenty of motivation. Wheaton needs another outstanding defensive outing.

Also, your comments on the upcoming Wheaton/Carthage matchup do not include mention of Cailee Corcoran. She's only the 7th leading scorer in CCIW play and shot over 56 pct. That sounds exactly like the sort of player that Lauren Graham may become. You may not see any need for the Thunder to worry about Corcoran, but I bet Kent Madsen sure does.

Wheaton is very well aware of Cailee Corcoran and her talents. Trust me, plenty of time will be devoted to post defense in practice this week.

And don't forget that, just a few pages back, thunder38 pegged Corcoran as 1st Team all-CCIW.

Thunder38, check the assist/turnover leaders in cciw.org. Beth Wellbaum does not lead the league in turnovers either in conference play or overall 25 game stats.

True about Wellbaum, but as a team Millikin is last in turnovers overall, and third-to-last in CCIW play. So, turnovers are an area of concern for the Big Blue.

[RogK]

Thanks for the mediative post, Backseat Driver.
Belated congrats to North Central for finally notching a conference win. A small but welcome amount of happiness for them.
It's possible they'll be the only CCIW team whose season ends with a win.
EC and NP lost their final contests. We'll see how Augie wraps things up tonight (silly me will observe it in person).
Of the four CCIW playoff teams, a maximum of one could end the season with a win.

[iwu70]

RogerK, you are right . . . at this time of year almost no one gets to end their season with a win . . . unless, of course, you really get on a roll and win the national title.  Gotta have dreams, right?  IWU had a great run all the way to the Final Four at home last year, but sadly ended the season with two losses, not one, and finished fourth overall nationally.  I'm sure the women on the team this year who finished that way last would love to see the Titans improve on that run this year, finish with a win for the title or for third place nationally.  The Titan men have finished third in the Final Four three times, and winning that last game, even with the disappointment of not playing in the title game, was a good ending, with much celebrations, banners in the rafters of the Shirk Center etc.  The women got to put up a fourth place banner earlier this year too, when the team from the Final Four year all returned.   The men went all the way in '97 and won the last game of the year in Salem for the national title.

Should be a good weekend of DIIIhoops in The Shirk.

IWU70

[Backseat Driver]

Wheaton handles Augie, 80-63. That's the third time this year Wheaton has cracked 80 points.

Recap: http://athletics.wheaton.edu/news/2012/2/21/WBB_augie2.aspx
Box: http://athletics.wheaton.edu/custompages/wbball/wbb_stats/wwhe25.htm

Wheaton connects on 13-20 (65%) from beyond the arc to finish with 112 made treys in CCIW play.

Natalie Runge with a monster game to close out her career, 26 points on 11-16 shooting, with 4 rebounds.

Final Standings:
1. Illinois Wesleyan 13-1 (20-5)
2. Wheaton 11-3 (18-7)
3. Carthage 10-4 (19-6)
T4. Millikin 7-7 (15-10)
T4. Elmhurst 7-7 (16-9)
6. North Park 4-10 (10-15)
7. Augustana 3-11 (11-14)
8. North Central 1-13 (7-18)

Looking forward to the CCIW tournament this weekend. I'm not sure if I'll be able to make the drive, but I'm sure I will be rewarded with some great hoops if I do.

[RogK]

I was glad to see Natalie Runge have such an outstanding game to finish her career. She's another of our league's players who has fought through injury and has not been discouraged along the way, despite some unhappy W-L results for her team. With those 26 pts, she jumped to 4th in scoring (14.5) in CCIW play.
As noted by Backseat Driver, Wheaton was fabulous from long range. Laura Karsten was practically flawless, scoring 15 pts on just 7 shots, adding 7 rebounds, 8 assists and 0 turnovers in 21:00. A pair of steals, too.
Lindsey Brenneman also was extremely efficient : 5/7 FG (including 3 3FG), 4/4 FT, 5 assists, 0 TO. Breanna Bohlen continued her fine play, contributing energetic defense and 10 pts in 16:00.
Augie's Kristina Howard was a forceful rebounder, seizing 8 in 15:00, and scored 7 pts. Molly Etheridge had 4 steals.

[RogK]

Six sweet smiles :
http://athletics.carthage.edu/index.aspx?path=wbball
click on picture 2, the Lady Red seniors.
They look nice, but they want to block your shots.