WBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[RogK]

Best of luck to the Titans and congratulations for their wonderful achievements so far.
Also, best of luck to all the seniors from around the league whose careers ended during the past week. THANKS for playing! Health and happiness to all.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Hoosier Titan, my apology if 'down day' sounded harsh for Mallory - I should have specified 'down shooting day'.  I watched the game on my 17" monitor, but if there was any way to enlarge the picture, alas, I never figured it out - so I watched on about a 3x4" screen!  I had a tough time figuring who was doing what - it was more like 'ant bball'!

IWU begins with what will hopefully be just a tune-up (though I'm confident Mia Smith will not allow the players to think that way!) - 17-11 OWU.  But second round they face either a rematch with DePauw or UWEC - both make me quite nervous.

Assuming (!) they make it to the sectional (dare we hope to host that also?), the 3rd game seems likely to be UWSP.  Surviving that, we would then likely face yet another WIAC team, a rematch of last year's loss to UWW, or have a rematch with Wash U, or face defending champ HPU.  Whew!

And IF we make it to Holland, and survive the semi (don't see anyone in that bracket that particularly scares me, but I'm far less familiar with the women than the men), my guess is we get Hope on their home court for the title!

Truly, a title (if won) would be well-earned!  And if IWU makes it to Holland, so will I!

[Hoosier Titan]

Yes, I just tried watching the archived streaming video.  We usually have TV broadcasts here, but they asked a lot more for the tournament games and didn't get sponsorship, so we are reduced to watching "ant ball" too.  Mallory didn't have a high shooting percentage, but she is moving so well now that she always attracts defenders--and she passes off well, too.

It definitely is a mine field all the way to Michigan.  I'm sure that no one is looking too far ahead, though.  I talked to one of the key players today; they seem very calm and poised. 

And IF IWU makes it to Holland, I will be just recovering from having my wisdom teeth out!  It will be a great inspiration.  One game at a time!

[Mr. Ypsi]

I think I've got the tiebreaker situation figured out for the fourth spot in the conference tournament; perhaps someone can confirm or correct.

Right now Elmhurst is alone in fourth at 7-6 while Millikin and North Central are tied at 6-7.  On Tuesday IWU goes to Elmhurst, while Millikin goes to North Central. 

If Elmhurst beats IWU, they will be at 8-6 and will be in the tournament.

If IWU beats Elmhurst and Millikin beats North Central, Elmhurst and Millikin will both be at 7-7.  Elmhurst holds the tiebreaker:  both they and Millikin were swept by CCIW #1 IWU and #2 Wheaton.  But Elmhurst split with #3 Carthage, while Millkin were swept by them.  Thus Elmhurst would be in the tournament.

If IWU beats Elmhurst and North Central beats Millikin, both Elmhurst and North Central will be at 7-7.  Here, North Central holds the tiebreaker:  Both were swept by IWU, but North Central beat Wheaton.  Thus, North Central would be in the tournament.

So, I don't see any way Millikin makes the tournament.  And, if IWU holds on for the school record (25-0) and beats Elmhurst, the last spot is North Central's to win.

Have I got this right?  Thanks!

Looks right to me.

Re: the bolded line - I'm reasonably sure that would also be a conference record.  Only Augustana (16-0 in 1991) and Millikin (14-0 in 1998) have ever emerged unscathed from the conference battles; while I could not find records on CCIW, Augie, or Millikin websites, I doubt either of them was undefeated for the entire regular season.  Our next goal (well, after a conference tourney title) is to get the CCIW's second national title!

[NOT counting chickens before they hatch, but IF IWU makes it to the Final Four I will try my darnedest to make it to Holland - would I see anyone there?]

I stand corrected.  I just read the d3hoops.com story on the 1998 national tourney, and it mentioned that Millikin was the only undefeated team in the country (until eventual national champ Wash U beat them).  (I still don't know about Augie in 1991.)

So no conference record - yet!  But with 6 more wins ....

[Hoosier Titan]

The Bloomington-Normal Pantagraph has a nice story today about Titans coach Mia Smith:
Smith Rewards IWU

The Pantagraph has steadily been increasing coverage of the IWU women.  While the IWU men were playing, and with the Illinois State men's and women's teams in addition to area high schools, the coverage was pretty minimal.  It's good to see a great team starting to get its due. 

And crowds are growing--over 1000 for both CCIW tournament sessions last weekend.

[Mr. Ypsi]

By the front page predictions, IWU may not even survive the weekend - they have UWEC as their Cinderella in the bracket (though that seemed somewhat forced, and may not really be a prediction).  But they definitely have IWU losing in the third round (if they make it there), since they have UWSP as the national champ.

Go Titans - show 'em up!

[Mr. Ypsi]

BTW, got a solicitation call from 'Mary' tonite.  I told her if the Titans lost this weekend I'd be too depressed to donate this year.  On the other hand, if the Titans won it all I'd be so thrilled I'd double my usual contribution.  She sounded like not a regular fan, but promised to go root for them this weekend!

Hope I haven't violated any NCAA gambling rules!

[Hoosier Titan]

By the front page predictions, IWU may not even survive the weekend - they have UWEC as their Cinderella in the bracket (though that seemed somewhat forced, and may not really be a prediction).  But they definitely have IWU losing in the third round (if they make it there), since they have UWSP as the national champ.

Go Titans - show 'em up!

Eau Claire was picked as the Cinderella in place of Whitewater--and it's definitely hard for me to see them as Cinderellas!  

Ah well, that's why they play the games.  I'm looking forward to the weekend.

I hope Mary was soliciting for the Annual Fund! 

[Mr. Ypsi]

By the front page predictions, IWU may not even survive the weekend - they have UWEC as their Cinderella in the bracket (though that seemed somewhat forced, and may not really be a prediction).  But they definitely have IWU losing in the third round (if they make it there), since they have UWSP as the national champ.

Go Titans - show 'em up!

Eau Claire was picked as the Cinderella in place of Whitewater--and it's definitely hard for me to see them as Cinderellas!  

Ah well, that's why they play the games.  I'm looking forward to the weekend.

I hope Mary was soliciting for the Annual Fund! 

Yes.  Though although from IWU, I don't recall if she said annual fund of what!

[iwu70]

Come on, Ypsi, like with voting in Illinois, "give early and often" to the IWU annual fund! 

[RogK]

Hey Old Hoosier Baller, skafkas and thundermike11, we haven't heard from you in quite a while.
Any thoughts on the end of the '08-'09 season for Elmhurst, Wheaton or other conference teams?

[thundermike]

Now that I am back on the board after a self-imposed hiatus I would love to offer some final thoughts on Wheaton's season.

All things considered, this season was very successful for Wheaton. Coming off a disappointing 07-08 campaign that featured some key injuries, Wheaton wanted to prove that year as a fluke and return to being a top team in the conference. After starting out 3-6, the team needed to do some soul-searching to decide what kind of season this was going to be. Their 13-4 record over the final two months speaks to the character and determination of everyone on the team, starting with the 5 seniors. That group really set the tone and took up leadership that propelled them to an outstanding 11-3 mark in CCIW play. Each of the seniors led the team in a different way and embraced their leadership roles.

The key game that I think turned this season around was the overtime win at Concordia Texas. From that point on, the Thunder played with a confidence that had not been there before. They then started conference play with a bang by blowing out NCC, a game that set the tone for the CCIW season.

Even though the loss in the tournament semifinals was a disappointing end to the season, this team has absolutely nothing to hang its collective head about.

Wheaton now says goodbye to a phenomenal senior class. Kathleen Fidelia has left her mark on the record books at Wheaton College, but beyond her outstanding basketball ability the Thunder will miss her quiet, lead-by-example approach to the game. She is a humble superstar who was the difference maker in many key Thunder victories this season. If not for IWU's incredible season I have to think she would have been the league's most outstanding player. Lynnea Kvam is an outstanding competitor who tied the Wheaton single-season mark for 3s against Carthage in the tournament. She battled back from a very painful Achilles injury and was a huge part of Wheaton's success. Her defensive play skyrocketed at the end of the season and was a huge lift to the team, and she was very deserving of her all-conference status. Noelle Dryden was a huge part of the team, though her stats wont wow you. Her constant 100% effort and willingness to do the dirty work is indispensable. Whitney Edgecombe was a great post presence this season and a great help defender. She is also a vocal leader who keeps things organized. She had some great offensive performances this season as well. Jamie Jones was a huge part of Wheaton's success. Her ability to score inside and outside was a big problem for teams defensively. She made some big shots this year, including the game-winner at Elmhurst. She earned her spot on the all-conference team.

Looking ahead to next year, Wheaton will need its young players to step up into new roles. First things first, they need to get Annie Bowen and Lissie McAlvey back to 100%. Lissie showed a lot of toughness to play through her injury this season, and Annie had a great year that ended prematurely. There is a young nucleus of good players, but they will be tested next year.

As I said, this year was very successful for Wheaton as the team put 07-08 behind them and put themselves in a position to compete for the conference title, though IWU was clearly the class of the CCIW this season. Congrats to the Thunder on a great year.

[mactitan]

I am psyched about tonight.  In a couple of hours I'm heading to the Shirk Center for four + hours of March Madness.  The Titans have never won an tournament game against a team not in the SLIAC - so we can make a little history tonight.  It should be fun tonight - could there be SRO?  It has been awhile since I've been to a game at the Shirk with people standing around the railings.  That is probably too much to ask, but it would be exciting, and not beyond the realm of possibility.

[mactitan]

Another good story in the Pantagraph, along with a small regional summary link. I have not seen the actual paper, but the Titans' visits to the front page of increased as of late.

http://www.pantagraph.com/articles/2009/03/06/usports/doc49b070754e5be508014893.txt

[iwu70]

IWU women up by 11 at half over Ohio Wesleyan.  First game won by Eau Claire over Depauw.