WBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[RogK]

Haven't looked at the full-season conference FT pct leaders in a long time. Here are the top 10, as listed on cciw.org, minimum 2 made per game :
Amy Hicks (A) .855
Devin Vaughn (E) .846
Molly Etheridge (A) .843
Stephanie Kuzmanic (C) .813
Lexi Baltes (IW) .802
Fiona McMahon (E) .781
Larynn Shumaker (NC) .763
Bobbi Johns (NC) .753
Ellie Zeller (W) .744
Chaney Tambling (A) .738
Good work, all.
(pause) - - did further research on good FT shooting in the league :
best who hasn't missed - CeCe Cortez (M) 8/8;
best who have missed 1 FT - Annie Shain (NP) 14/15, Kim Schwerdtmann (E) 14/15, Gabby Chapa (C) 11/12;
best of those just short, quantity-wise, of making the official leaders -
Karen Senette (E) .878 (36/41)
Hannah Lipman (E) .833 (35/42)
Maryssa Cladis (NC) .827 (43/52)
Hannah Considine (W) .825 (33/40)
Katie Swanson (E) .822 (37/45)
Brittany Pittas (NP) .805 (33/41)
Lots of Elmhurst Bluejays, eh?

[iwu70]

Warm congrats to Colleen McMahon on her Player of the Week award. She had a monster week, some great performances for sure.  Hope she continues in this way vs. "the system" vs. NCC and then in the big game at home vs. Carthage.  I see Carthage remains in the top 10 in the new D3hoops poll.  Some tepid love for IWU in the ORVs category. 

Keep going TITANS -- just grind them out, get to Saturday and the big showdown with the Redpeople. 

Do hope Baltes gets consideration for 1st Team All-CCIW.  I think she deserves it. 

IWU70

[RogK]

iwu70, early in the season, we discussed IWU's strength of schedule. Now that most of the season is done, we can agree that IWU has faced tough opponents. I'm not sure of the exact formula used by Massey, but they have IWU's SOS as 10th in D3. Others in the CCIW : Wheaton 16, Carthage 26, Augie 50, Elmhurst 54, North Park 57, Millikin 65, North Central 77. All 8 are well within the top 1/5th of the 437 D3 schools listed.
Of course wins and losses are still relevant.
Five of the top eight SOS are in the Northwest Conference. Does that add or subtract validity of the ranking? Beats me. U of Chicago has the highest SOS outside that conference.

[Gregory Sager]

Greg, can you clarify this? The roster passed out to the fans on Saturday had Natalie Gath as number 4 and Tess Godhardt as 3.

Yes, because the NCC online roster listed Gath as #4 and Godhardt as #3. NPU SID Kevin Shepke reprinted the NCC online roster for Saturday afternoon's game program, which is customarily the way that SIDs assemble game programs. (The NCC online roster has since been changed to reflect the numbers that Gath and Godhardt actually wore on Saturday.)

As the broadcaster, did you get a roster based on the official one submitted to the scorer's table?

No. I get a copy of the game program from Kevin as part of my game-prep package, and that's what I use for calling the game. I always check with the official scorer (Aaron Coleman) about five to eight minutes before tipoff in order to find out who's starting for both teams (NCAA rules require that the starters be indicated in the scorebook ten minutes before scheduled tipoff). And I always consult with an opposing coach during the shootaround to check on pronunciations, and at that point the opposing coach will usually tell me which players are scratched and which players will be wearing different numbers.

However, I was running late on Saturday (thank you, CTA  ) and didn't arrive at the gym until about eight minutes prior to tipoff. By the time that I discarded all of my winter gear and got myself situated, it was time to go on the air. (And thanks again, by the way, for coming up to the booth before I went on the air to inform me that Lauren Hernandez was out for NCC.) I thus didn't get the chance to confer with either Aaron or one of the NCC coaches before the game started.

Did that one also have the wrong numbers?

I honestly don't know. PA announcer Tim Dykes called Godhardt "Gath" throughout the game, so Aaron Coleman never corrected him. But that doesn't necessarily mean that the numbers were wrong in the scorebook. I can attest from having sat in Aaron's seat for many years that the official scorer has a lot going on while a game is in progress -- and that's especially true when one of the two teams in the game is playing the Grinnell System.

Godhardt wore number 4; I don't think Gath got in the game at all. The stats still attribute Godhardt's play to Gath. Can't this be fixed?

It already has. My guess is that either Michelle Roof, NCC SID Clark Teuscher, or (most likely) Clark's assistant Andrew Sauer called Kevin and asked him to fix it, and he complied. Now you need to work on CCIW SID Mike Krizman, who still has the box score as it was originally submitted -- and the CCIW stats thus reflect Godhardt's line from Saturday being attributed to Gath. Give Mike an e-mail at mkrizman@cciw.org -- he's very good about responding to these sorts of requests.

Also, if NC submitted the wrong uniform numbers to the scorer's table, a technical could have been assessed, right? Can the offficials initiate such a tech, or would North Park have needed to point it out?

The answer given by badgerwarhawk is the same that I would've given:

Generally the official are made aware of errors by the scorer.  In WHITEWATER the procedure to fill in the score book goes like this.  First the scorer will take a game program to the coach and ask them to review it for any changes.  The coach then makes whatever corrections are necessary.  Then the scorer will advise the coach that they will enter the information in the score book taking the corrections into account.  The scorer will also request that the coach check the information entered into the score book once it is completed and initial the score book after they have reviewed the entries.  It's worked out pretty well.

That's how I handled things when I was the scorer, and that's how Aaron Coleman does it as well.

Or did NC correctly submit number 4 for Godhardt?

As I said, I don't know. It really doesn't matter anymore, since the game is over and the official box score has been amended to reflect reality in terms of which Cardinal played and which one didn't. As I said, all that's left is for someone to inform the league's SID that the official box score has been amended.

If you watch the archive of the webcast, you'll notice that, like Tim Dykes, I referred to Godhardt as "Gath" throughout the game, since I was working off of the game program. I don't know most opposing CCIW women's basketball players by sight, as I usually see them only once a year and I rarely see them more than four times. I did notice afterwards when I looked at the NCC online roster that Godhardt is a blonde while Gath is a brunette, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything, either. Hair color is hardly a given, especially where females are concerned.

[Gregory Sager]

Seems IWU the only team now that can really come close to pinning a loss on Carthage.

That's simply not true.

NPU lost to Carthage by 13 in Kenosha in a game in which the Vikings had the Lady Reds' lead down to eight with 2:11 to go before they faded. They will get Carthage in the crackerbox a week from tomorrow. North Central, which is a humble 10-12, 3-8, lost by four to Carthage last week in a game in which the Cardinals had a chance to tie or win in the final ten seconds.

I'm not saying that NPU has a great chance to pull off an upset of the Lady Reds -- Massey gives the Vikes a 10% shot, which I'd say is about right -- but it's a puncher's chance, nevertheless. Elmhurst, which hosts Carthage tomorrow night, is in the same boat; the difference is that, unlike NPU, the 'jays were absolutely walloped by Carthage in the January game up in the Toolshed, so the 'jays may have some matchup problems there that NPU doesn't. (It's not easy to identify matchup issues if you didn't actually see the game.)

But to say that Illinois Wesleyan is "the only team now that can really come close to pinning a loss on Carthage" just isn't true.

iwu70, early in the season, we discussed IWU's strength of schedule. Now that most of the season is done, we can agree that IWU has faced tough opponents. I'm not sure of the exact formula used by Massey, but they have IWU's SOS as 10th in D3. Others in the CCIW : Wheaton 16, Carthage 26, Augie 50, Elmhurst 54, North Park 57, Millikin 65, North Central 77. All 8 are well within the top 1/5th of the 437 D3 schools listed.
Of course wins and losses are still relevant.
Five of the top eight SOS are in the Northwest Conference. Does that add or subtract validity of the ranking? Beats me.

It subtracts. The Northwest Conference is on a geographicaaly-imposed island as far as D3 is concerned. Only 36 of the 81 non-conference games that NWC teams played this season were against D3 foes -- a far smaller percentage than is typical of D3 leagues, because the NWC is so far away from everybody else in this division. That skews their SOS pretty badly, because all of that NAIA influx into their SOS adds a random element nobody else has. Plus, the NAIA teams that they play -- Corban, Concordia (OR), Evergreen State, etc. -- are members of the Cascade Conference, which has similar issues in terms of being situated at a vast geographic distance from everybody else as far as the NAIA is concerned.

[RogK]

Thanks for the explanations, Greg.
Do you agree that Rachel Torres is North Park's most likely 1st nominee for all-CCIW honors based on what has transpired so far (not knowing who'll shine in the next five games)? Several others have had multiple outstanding games, too.
If NP wins the 4th spot, I could see them having two players honored.

[Gregory Sager]

Rog, I'd say that either Rachel Torres or Soly Roman has the best chance at All-CCIW recognition for NPU, based upon conference play. (All-CCIW voting only takes conference games into consideration.) Right now, though, Liz Rehberger is the player who is really making the Vikings go.

I'm not really concerned with the All-CCIW team, though. I'll let you and iwu70 worry about it. NPU is a share-the-wealth team in which nobody has posted any significant or notable statistics (although Torres does lead the league in steals per game in CCIW play). I'm more focused upon the standings and upon what North Park has to do to get to the CCIW tourney.

I will point out, though, that the three players that I've mentioned here are a freshman, a sophomore, and a freshman. The future looks very bright for NPU women's basketball.

[iwu70]

RogK, thanks for the info on SOS.  I'm not surprised it played out this way -- as I had indicated earlier.  IWU has six losses, all to pretty good teams in the top 25 or nearby.  Hopefully the IWU SOS will help them now down the stretch, making them better and tougher come tournament time.  I just hope they have a chance to dance.  We'll see.  19-8 may not do it.  Of course, if they can beat CC soon and have 1-1 in the tournament, perhaps 20-7 would be enough.  Not sure.  Anyway, they've had a good overall season, even with the six losses so far.  15-6 given who they have played is a pretty good achievement.  Game @ Shirk vs. CC should be a good one.

Greg, I'd be delighted if you are right -- that someone other than IWU pins a loss on CC.  Please prove me wrong.  I take your points -- saw the CC vs. NCC and thought NC really missed a big big chance to win that game.  It came down to poise and Kuzmanic again coming up big at key moments.  But, I'll stand by my basic point that I doubt anyone will beat CC in the remaining games.  Of course, I hope IWU will win at The Shirk on the 15th.  IWU does have the best chance given how they are playing now and that the game is at home.  Still, tough to beat CC as they are a pretty complete team with so many weapons. 

********

A big big congratulations to Lexi Baltes on being named to the national "good works" team awarded by the national women's coaches.  Only 10 players nationally named for this important award for good works, contributions to the community.  Way to go Lexi!  Mia Smith called the award to Lexi "huge!"  Lexi gets to travel to Nashville to receive the award, meet the other winners, participate in a community service project during the D1 Women's Final Four.  Another Titan following Minor Myers' mantra "to go out and do well, but more importantly, do good."  Full story on the IWU website now -- at iwu.edu -- sports section.  Good stuff.

Good luck to all the teams, players and coaches for the remaining games of this CCIW season.  I hope several CCIW teams get into the Dance in a few weeks' time. 

IWU70

[Gregory Sager]

Greg, I'd be delighted if you are right -- that someone other than IWU pins a loss on CC.  Please prove me wrong.

No, that's not what I said ...

But, I'll stand by my basic point that I doubt anyone will beat CC in the remaining games.

... and, no, that's not what you said, either.

This is what you said:

Seems IWU the only team now that can really come close to pinning a loss on Carthage.

"Really come close to pinning a loss on Carthage" is not the same thing at all as actually beating Carthage.

For the record, I did not say that NPU will beat Carthage. I did not say that anyone will beat Carthage. My comment was strictly based upon the fact that other teams besides the Titans have the ability to possibly pull off an upset of the Lady Reds. Your original statement discounted that possibility as far as Elmhurst, North Park, and Millikin are concerned.

[iwu70]

Go NPU, Elmhurst and Millikin!  Beat the Redpeople!

Let's hope you are right Greg and that one of these teams turns their snowball's-chance-in-hell to a win over Carthage.  I would be DE-lighted.  Perhaps your NPU squad, Greg, has the best chance, playing at home in the Crackerbox.  Go for it!

Kuzmanic has been side-lined two games now, though I'm pretty sure she re-appears for the game @The Shirk on Saturday night.

IWU70

[RogK]

This evening, we have the rematches of the January 22 games. I was considering seeing Carthage at Elmhurst, but am discouraged by the fact that Elmhurst managed only 33 pts the first time around. So, I'll stay on Metra a few more stops and see Wheaton host North Park. NP won the earlier contest 73-68.
I'm hoping for a 56-55 score tonight (at halftime!).

[Gregory Sager]

You can hope all you like, Rog. You can also hope to win the Powerball this coming weekend. There's about as much of a chance of that swinging your way as there is of NPU and Wheaton playing to a 56-55 halftime score tonight.

[iwu70]

IWU and NCC, yes 59-59 at the HALF!

'70

[iwu70]

Titans fight back from 20 down, but still go down 121-113 vs. NCC at the Shirk.  Another total points scoring record.  A big loss for the Green, perhaps taking them out of the conference race and perhaps out of the dance too.  Tough loss.  NCC played well, gave the Titans some of their own medicine tonight, pressing the entire time, probably winning the TO battle.  NC is a different team with Tess Goddhardt. 

Gotta regroup now, get back up for CC coming into town on Saturday.

IWU70

[Mr. Ypsi]

Titans fight back from 20 down, but still go down 121-113 vs. NCC at the Shirk.  Another total points scoring record.  A big loss for the Green, perhaps taking them out of the conference race and perhaps out of the dance too.  Tough loss.  NCC played well, gave the Titans some of their own medicine tonight, pressing the entire time, probably winning the TO battle.  NC is a different team with Tess Goddhardt. 

Gotta regroup now, get back up for CC coming into town on Saturday.

IWU70

Well, the Titan's likely needed to win the tourney anyway to make the dance.  This just makes it harder, since now the conference tourney is almost certainly in Kenosha, even if we beat Carthage in B'town.