Monthly Archives: December 2009

DIII Christmas List

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Time sure flies when you’re taking finals. It’s been almost 3 weeks since I last checked in. At that time Gordon College had just lost a tough game to our rival Endicott College in the middle of the Redneck Doublewide portion of the season. It didn’t get any easier from there. We travelled to unbeaten MIT the next Saturday afternoon to take on the Engineers. After getting punched in the mouth 10-0 to start the game (this is becoming a pattern) we bounced back off the mat and played toe to toe with MIT the rest of the way. We held a slim 3 point margin with just under a minute to play when MIT hit a 3 to tie it. We battled into overtime but eventually fell by 5. It was a tough, hard fought game between two very strong New England region teams. While moral victories are not the type we are looking for this time of year, we can find one in having a chance to beat the #22 team in the country on their home floor. Unfortunately, the win column doesn’t show moral victories and we fell to 4-3. We closed the Redneck Doublewide with a good home win against Wheelock College. Wheelock had previously beaten 3 of our conference rivals, so to close the first half of our season with a win against them was encouraging. Needless to say 5-3 heading into Christmas is not where we expected, nor hoped we would be. (Yes, I did just make correct use of the word nor.) With that being said, we’re probably not the only ones who wish the Holiday season had gone a little bit differently. What?  Too soon?

Anyway, in order to see if Santa can help us, along with the rest of the teams looking turn things around after Christmas, I have compiled a DIII basketball Christmas list of what every DIII basketball player, or at least me, really wants for Christmas. (Okay, maybe not that)

1) Wins – This is an obvious one. Everyone is hoping Santa brings some wins this Christmas. I’m going to put a shout out to New York City Tech, Cazenovia, Bard, Kalamazoo, FDU-Florham, Bluffton, Eastern Nazarene, Maine-Presque Isle, Maine-Farmington, Schreiner, Methodist, Caltech, and Bethany Lutheran because I think they could use one a little more than most right now. (Unless they made the naughty list this year) Credit for this information must go to the D3hoops forum for updating this list.

2) Respect – This may be the top on most DIII basketball players’ wish lists. I know I’m preaching to the choir on this website, but there is some very good basketball played at the DIII level. Most people don’t get that.  When they hear DIII they think, “well that must be worse than DII ‘cuz 3 is worse than 2.” Little do they know that many teams at the Division III level could compete at the DII level on a nightly basis. Unfortunately, we are left to continue to defend our level of play and let our game speak for itself. Ok, enough sour grapes for one blog.

3) Sean Wallis and Aaron Thompson of Wash U to graduate – I mean, seriously guys. Come on! 2 National Championships aren’t enough? Even Michael Jordan went to play baseball for a while. Let’s let someone else have a chance. For the record, I’m rooting for Transylvania Tuesday night. That is all.

4) Restricted Area for Charges – I know that the charge/block call may be the most difficult one in sports. I get that. But how about making it just a tad bit easier on officials by giving them a line to designate the restricted area rather than a magic, make believe, imaginary, pretend area that is literally called “under the basket.” You can read for yourself, but you are considered “under the basket” if any part of the defender’s foot is “under the basket.” Really. So the referee, who has probably worked 5 other games that week and is exhausted from his 50 hour work week at his real job, now must make a split second decision as to whether any part of a man’s foot lies underneath a cylinder that is 10 feet above the ground all while the man is colliding with another man traveling at a high speed without the aid of a line on the ground. Yeah, that makes sense. Thanks NCAA. One more video for good measure.

5) Non-Fast Food on road trips – Hey, I love the McDonald’s dollar menu as much as the next guy (okay maybe not that guy), but a change of pace would be great. Our team was treated to Chipotle Burritos for the first time in my 4 years after our last away game. It was glorious. Let’s keep that up.

6) Fan Support – This is not a Gordon College wish. We are lucky. We have one of the best fan sections in New England and the best in TCCC. However, I’m guessing, based on some of the other schools in our conference, other teams are not as lucky. That is a shame. Playing DIII basketball is unlike any other sport at any level. For 6 months out of the year, players spend 3-4 hours every day practicing/preparing for games. This does not include time spent on road trips and away games. On top of that, there are no traveling tutors, no over generous boosters to “help” us through class, and even fewer professors who understand the commitment it takes to play a college sport. (There are no professors at Gordon College who fit this description. Absolutely none.) And we do it at some of the most demanding academic institutions in the country. Why, you ask? Because we love it. If there are any fans reading, do your classmates a favor, attend some games, paint your chest, and scream loudly, and cheer for your lab partner, he deserves it.

Finally, just like my mom always says, it’s not Christmas until Rasheed Wallace is singing Christmas carols.

Merry Christmas!

Insider: Seeing the light

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Justin Riley, whose Chapman Panthers have risen to No. 12 in the latest rankings, is blogging about his experience this season. Here is his latest entry.

From the first time I picked up a basketball at age five to my college days, I could never escape the word “teamwork.”

“Why does it always have to be about the team, coach”?
“Why does he get to shoot the ball more than I do?”
“I am better than he is!”

These quotes bring back memories of me in my high school days of basketball when I struggled with the concept of teamwork and being a team player. During those days, I was known as the kid with talent who would make or break practices. If it was a good day, practices would go really well; if it was a bad day, let’s just say there were several arguments between me, coaches and teammates.

As I entered college, that poor attitude still haunted me.

“Why isn’t coach playing me as much?”
“Coach is biased. I’m going to quit!”

When would the light switch on and I’d finally figure out that maybe, it is not about me? When was I going to finally grow up and realize that the only way to be successful was to put my ego aside and see that “I” don’t win championships, “we” do.

15 years later… the light finally turned on.

For the first time, I can honestly express how it feels to be a part of a selfless team that is willing to do whatever it takes to win. With this attitude and commitment to each other, we are off to a 7-0 start. We just recaptured the Lee Fulmer Tournament championship this past weekend after a four year hiatus from the top.

In the three games of the tournament, we held our opponents (UC Santa Cruz, Cal Lutheran, and George Fox) to a 30% shooting average and out rebounded each team by 14.6. These games were the first defining point of the season because every member of the team had the same attitude: team defense first, scoring second.

It feels great to be connected with a group of guys who want nothing more than to get a chance to play in the postseason and prove to the doubters that we have the talent and can compete with the best teams. On December 9, we begin a three-game home stand against the very talented and well-disciplined Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Redlands and La Verne.

I can’t say enough how much I respect the guys I play with and am very excited to continue down this road of success. As Mia Hamm stated, “I am a member of a team, and I rely on the team. I defer to it and sacrifice for it, because the team, not the individual, is the ultimate champion.”

The Four Seasons of DIII Basketball

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Thanksgiving is over and Christmas is just around the corner and everyone knows what that means…Christmas Music! Here at Gordon our team celebrates this time of year in style with a phenomenal mix of Christmas music ranging from Taylor Swift to Mariah Carey to Mannheim Steamroller. If anyone is interested in creating a similarly stellar mix, you can see our playlist here.

Not only does this time of year mean great music, it also begins round two of the Division III college basketball season. Despite only being allowed to play 25 regular season games, DIII teams still find it necessary to play three games per week on a regular basis. This is due to the commitment most schools make to facilitate the entire student-athlete experience. Because of this the DIII hoops season is divided into four neatly packed segments. Round one falls between the start of the season and Thanksgiving break. I will fondly refer to this as The Middle School Dance Period, because all teams are excited to be there, yet nervous about its prospects and most teams are not quite sure how good their moves are just yet. I call the second period, which contains the games crammed between Thanksgiving and finals, The Redneck Doublewide Period. This is because there are a few too many games, packed in a little too short of a time period, and you must become pretty comfortable with who you are because people are going to start seeing your flaws. The third period, called The Pre-Party Party Period, comes; yep you guessed it, right after Christmas and contains the post-new year’s tournament and any preparatory games before conference play. At this point of the season most teams convene at a central location to see teams they wouldn’t normally play and show off a little bit before the big show. The fourth and final period of the season is what all of the teams prepare for all season long; the conference season, or as I like to call it, The Family Reunion. By this point in the season there are no secrets. Sometimes, you even know things you would rather not know.  (Disclaimer: In no way are these metaphors directed at any member of my own family. I love you all and can’t wait to see you over Christmas.) Teams are forced to spend time with the people that know them best and everything becomes a competition. Some teams are like the cousin you don’t really talk to but acknowledge out of necessity at family functions. No good or bad blood exists here, but common affiliation forces your acquaintance. Some teams are like the annoying little nephew who would like nothing better than to be like you, and you would like nothing better than for them to go away. Alas, they never do. Another class of relative is the one you respect, and maybe even enjoy their company, yet at the end of the day it is important to leave feeling that you’re just flat superior.  However there are a select few who act as the relative who has constantly battled you for attention your entire life. You pretend their successes and failures aren’t important, but they are. You make sure to bring up their most embarrassing moments at the most inopportune times. Honestly, these are the people you really look forward to seeing. Family Reunion time is the opportunity to outshine and prove to everyone that you are the prized child and deserve the attention. In this case the attention desired is that of the NCAA Tournament.  (I realize I left out the post-season, but let’s not put the cart before the horse.  We’ll address that in due time.)

Having recently completed the Middle School Dance Period, our team has compiled a 4-2 record. Our first loss was a disappointing one to a strong Westfield State team in a game where we shot a scorching 28 percent from the field. This loss was not due to a lack of effort, intensity, or defense. The only way to lose a game in which you hold your opponent to 54 points is to shoot poorly, and that we did. Our three Middle School Dance wins came against last year’s NAC champion Husson, a hard working Maine Maritime squad, and a participant in last year’s Sweet 16 Salem State. To give you some perspective on the Salem State win, the last time Gordon College beat the Vikings, Charlie Weis was considered a valuable coaching commodity. It’s been a while. Tuesday night began The Redneck Doublewide with a home victory over Eastern Nazarene College. It was important to start this portion of our season off strong in order to build some momentum heading into a great rivalry game against Endicott College. Unfortunately we were unable to sustain any momentum we had created Tuesday night and fell 70-67 to our rivals. We trailed by 18 points with ten minutes remaining in the game and fought our way back to take the lead with two minutes remaining. Despite this, we were unable to finish our comeback and ultimately fell to the Gulls. After a tough loss a team can find out a lot about their character. I am confident in our team’s character and our ability to bounce back in the face of adversity. We have two remaining games this semester against currently undefeated MIT and one-loss Wheelock. This portion of the non-conference season is extremely important as top teams begin to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. In order to consider ourselves among the region’s top teams we must represent ourselves well against other high quality opponents. The rest of the Redneck Doublewide Period gives us an opportunity to do that. If we play disciplined, hard-nosed basketball every possession over the next week I am confident we will be happy with where we stand heading into the Pre-Party Party Period.