Category Archives: General

Part I: 10 questions for 2010

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Now that the holidays are over, maybe you’re getting into the swing of the 2009-2010 Division III basketball season. Or maybe you’ve been following the season since the mid-November tip off and are trying to make sense of the results so far. Or maybe you’re just killing time waiting for the next bowl game to begin. Whatever the case is, here are 10 burning questions for the Division III basketball season as we enter 2010.

Northeast: Is Williams ready to return to prominence?

If you’ve only been following Division III basketball since 2005, you may wonder “what prominence?” The Ephs have been a respectable 83-46 the past five years, but are just five games over .500 in the NESCAC with one NCAA tournament appearance (1st round loss to Brockport State in 2008). But go back farther and Williams came within one shot of winning consecutive national championships. This years’ team has started 10-1 with the lone loss at undefeated No. 4 Randolph-Macon 79-74. In that game the Ephs had a 16-point second half lead before the Yellow Jackets rallied. Williams’ margin of victory has been impressive but just one of those wins come over a team with a winning record. The next big test comes in a visit from current No. 11 Amherst on January 9.

My two cents: The Ephs have started fast before. Let’s see what they do in the NESCAC.

Northeast: Can Amherst win the women’s title?

Speaking of Amherst, the No. 2 Lord Jeffs are 10-0 and the only team besides current No. 1 Illinois Wesleyan receiving first place votes. Look at the results to date and it’s easy to see why. Amherst went to the national semifinals last year where their talented but small guards struggled to get on track against Washington U. and TCNJ. This year’s team has a very balanced attack where all five starters score more than seven points per game and the leading scorer is reserve post player Lem Atanga McCormick. A deep NCAA tournament run isn’t a given with the depth of the NESCAC and the region as a whole but Coach G.P. Gromacki has a knack for leading his teams on them. Circle the games at No. 4 Bowdoin on January 29 and at No. 17 Tufts on February 6th for a preview of what the postseason has in store for the Lord Jeffs.

My two cents: They have the best chance of anyone east of Ohio, but I’d still slot them behind IWU, Wash U and Hope at full strength.

Atlantic: Can Richard Stockton repeat in the NJAC?

The Ospreys started last season in the middle of a pack of teams who were “also receiving votes” in the Top 25. But they finished it in the national championship game. This season the Ospreys were ranked No. 5 in the first poll but have slid out of the rankings with three loses, two of them coming at home. Just because Richard Stockton has had a different trajectory in the polls to this point doesn’t mean this season cannot end like last season. This year’s squad is a little different. Jerome Hubbard, an outstanding long-range shooter who stretched defenses, has graduated. DiAndre Brown, a transfer who averaged 12.7 points and 6.4 rebounds per game for Eastern Nazarene last year, has taken his place in the starting lineup. The Ospreys were picked as the overall preseason favorite in the NJAC and, despite the 0-1 start, playing in the weaker NJAC south should help them build momentum for the conference tournament. But the return of low post presence Abdoulaye Ouedraogo to William Paterson after spending a season at NAIA Georgetown (Ky.) makes the Pioneers another team to watch.

My two cents: The Ospreys win the NJAC south but fall in the tournament at home.

East: Who is the best team in the East region?

Coming into the weekend, you could have made a good case that Medaille (12-0) was the best team in the region after the Mavericks gutsy win at No. 9 John Carroll. But then Medaille squeaked by Mount Aloysius (4-5) and John Carroll got crushed by Bethany on Saturday, taking some luster off that upset. Still, there is a void atop this region. Rochester is the only team getting votes (or, to be more accurate, “vote”) in the Top 25 at 7-1. Plattsburgh has the same record pending their semester opening match-up with No. 7 Middlebury. St. John Fisher was the preseason favorite in the Empire 8 but lost to Hobart. Ithaca lost a lot to graduation but has a solid 8-2 start. Perennial Liberty League favorites St. Lawrence and Hamilton are just 7-10 to start the season. How about Oneonta State (8-1)? Looks like Upstate New York has a lot of upside for exciting conference races.

My two cents: On a hunch, I’ll say Plattsburgh State. We’re due for another surprising tournament run by a SUNYAC squad.

Mid-Atlantic: Who will win the inaugural Landmark Conference automatic qualifiers?

The stakes are higher in the third year of Landmark play as the Conference has completed its two year waiting period and now has an automatic qualifier. Scranton has won all but one of the titles – men’s and women’s, regular season and tournament, both seasons. On the women’s side, Scranton is always a good bet but not sure one. No. 19 Moravian defeated the Lady Royals at their place already. We’ll learn pretty quickly if Drew (8-0) is for real since the Rangers host Scranton and Moravian next weekend. The men’s side looks wide open. Want to make a case for Catholic because of Preseason All-American Jason Banzhaf? Go ahead. Favor Merchant Marine because of its 9-2 start? Fine. Defending champion Scranton scuffled through non-conference play at 6-5 but can get back on track in conference play.

My two cents: Scranton in women, Catholic in men.

    Part II comes tomorrow.

Willamette’s strange trip to Portland

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From Willamette’s sports information director, as the Bearcats men’s basketball team had a trip worth writing about.

By Robert McKinney

SALEM, ORE. — It’s the holiday season. With that in mind, we are happy to bring you an interesting story that features a winter journey and a major battle against a bigger foe. You’ll find excellent determination and fortitude exhibited by the characters in our tale.

It’s not quite an epic story. It just seemed that way while it was happening.

The Not-So-Short Road Trip

We begin our journey by meeting up with the Willamette University men’s basketball team at about 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 29, as the Bearcats were loading onto a charter bus for their 45-minute road trip to take on Portland State University. The ‘Cats, who compete in NCAA Division III, were scheduled to face their in-state rivals from NCAA Division I at 5:05 p.m.

As the team departed, a changing mixture of rain, sleet and snow was falling. By the time the Bearcats were on Interstate 5 heading north toward Portland, the combination of winter weather and holiday travel had the roadway filled with traffic — but the lanes were moving only a bit under their regular pace.

By the time Willamette’s bus was nearing the Newberg exit, traffic was even more packed and was moving at a slow clip. Occasionally, the bus had to stop to wait until traffic started moving again.

This slow pace continued into the outskirts of Portland, past the I-205 interchange and past the exit for the Bridgeport Village mall. Just a couple of mile later, the bus came to a halt with the Landmark Ford auto dealership outside the west-facing windows. Landmark Ford remained in our sight for another 1 hour and 30 minutes, as traffic moved at most the length of two football fields.

Eventually, our gallant bus drive made the key decision of the trip. It was choice that probably made the difference in being able to start the game before Tuesday turned into Wednesday. The drive took the I-5 truck route near exit 294.

The truck route veers at most a few hundred yards away from the main lanes of I-5 and goes for less than a mile before reuniting with the roadway. As it turned out, the truck route allowed the Bearcats to bypass a multi-car wipeout in the north-bound lanes while also avoiding two jack-knifed tractor trailers in the south-bound lanes.

Willamette was now only about seven miles from the Portland State campus. And the north-bound lanes were almost free of traffic. The few vehicles passing through after completing the truck route were met with more snow and ice on the road, but were able to make steady progress through “the curves” and down into Portland.

After reaching the area near downtown, the Bearcats encountered another traffic logjam on I-405. Cars, trucks and the bus carrying the Bearcats all came to a halt.

With the bus completely stopped, Head Coach Kip Ioane asked post player Joe Penkala (Sr., So. elig., Niles, IL/Loyola Academy) to check the GPS on his phone to see how far away the team was from PSU. Penkala said that the PSU campus was 0.9 miles away.

Ioane, his assistant coaches and the Bearcats got off the bus, moved to the far right side of the roadway, and headed to the nearby exit to downtown. A short time later, the ‘Cats arrived at the PSU gymnasium.

It was about 8:15 p.m., roughly 5 hours and 45 minutes after the team pulled out from the Sparks Center on the Willamette campus.

WU Athletic Director Mark Majeski, along with myself, plus the wife and children of Assistant Coach Nelson Lomax, reached the campus minutes later on the bus. We were all glad to have reached our destination, but we had to wait for the PSU vs. Oregon State University women’s basketball game to be completed before the Bearcats could take on the Vikings.

The PSU and OSU women’s teams were warming up when the Bearcats arrived at the Peter W. Stott Center. The women’s game, originally scheduled to start at about 7:15 p.m. following the men’s game, tipped off at approximately 8:30 p.m. after OSU had difficulty getting from its hotel to the PSU campus.

Everyone in Willamette’s traveling party — players, coaches and support staff — grabbed dinner at a nearby Subway sandwich shop while the women’s game was in progress. The Subway employees, who were also making sandwiches for OSU’s post-game meal, did an outstanding job and the meal was great. The food seemed even better after the lengthy ride to Portland.

The Bearcats Take on the Vikings

The on-the-court battle between Willamette and Portland State finally got underway at 10:43 p.m., more than five-and-a-half hours later than scheduled. A hearty group of just over 320 fans — including a vocal contingent of Bearcat faithful — were on hand to watch the encounter.

Willamette gave the Vikings all they could handle. The Bearcats held a couple of early leads and the teams were tied four times during roughly the first six minutes. PSU put together a run to build a 32-21 advantage with just over nine minutes left in the half.

The remainder of the game was a nearly continuous string of alternating offensive surges by the two teams. Willamette would pull closer, then PSU would extend the lead with a run of its own.

Early in the second half, the Vikings built a 17-point margin at 60-43 with 17:46 remaining and it appeared PSU might turn the game into a rout. The Vikings’ hopes of a sizable win disappeared when Willamette answered with a 7-0 run. Eventually, the Bearcats cut the lead to 71-64 with 12:43 to go.

PSU shot back out to a 14-point lead, only to have Willamette pull within six points, 80-74, with 6:30 on the clock. The rest of the game was similar. WU was unable to catch the Vikings, but the ‘Cats reduced the deficit to seven points with less than a minute remaining and forced PSU to make 5 of 6 free throws in the final 33 seconds. PSU won the game, 97-90, with the action ending at about 12:40 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 30.

Mitchell Reaches 1,000 Points

Cameron Mitchell (Sr., Post, Portland, OR/Grant HS/U. of Redlands) put on a stellar performance in his hometown. He scored 10 points in the first half and finished the night — and the early morning — with a game-high 28 points. He also grabbed nine rebounds.

Mitchell’s scoring barrage moved him to 1,000 career points. He has scored 858 points at Willamette since he transferred to the Bearcats. He scored 142 points as a freshman at the University of Redlands.

Although Mitchell led the way, he wasn’t the only Bearcat with quality stats during the game. Taylor Mounts (So., Post, Kailua, HI/Iolani School) scored 13 points, grabbed five rebounds and earned two steals. Ryan Meehan (So., Wing, Beaverton, OR/Beaverton HS/MSU-Billings) tallied 12 points, hit 3 of 5 three-pointers and earned two assists, two blocked shots and two steals.

Scott Schoettgen (So., Wing, Columbia, CA/Sonora HS) recorded 11 points, sank 3 of 5 three-pointers and hauled down five boards. Marcus Holmes (Jr., G, Seattle, WA/Garfield HS) finished the game with 10 points and six assists. Robbie Kunke (Jr., Wing, Clackamas, OR/Clackamas HS) registered eight points and led all players with 10 assists and five steals.

The Bearcats made many athletic plays and scored several points off fast-break opportunities. Willamette connected on 10 three-point baskets and forced the Vikings into 22 turnovers. After losing the ball 15 times in the first half, Willamette made just six turnovers in the second half.

Both teams excelled at shot blocking. The Vikings were credited with seven blocks, while the Bearcats blocked four shots.

Willamette’s offense, with its dribble-drive emphasis and quality passing, worked well throughout most of the game. The Bearcats shot 49.3% overall, including 51.4% in the second half. Mitchell was 13 of 20 from the field, as he increased his season scoring average to 20.7 points per game.

The Bearcats don’t have to worry about traveling this weekend. They will open Northwest Conference play at home on Saturday, Jan. 2 against Whitworth University and on Sunday, Jan. 3 against Whitman College. Both games are scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. (PST) at Cone Field House.

Don’t D-III teams want to win?

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Some misguided sports psychologist studied a soccer team and a tennis team and came to the following conclusion:

Division I athletes wanted to win, but those playing in Division III wanted to make friends.

I think all of us here know that’s not true. Thankfully, Division III has a sports psychologist of its own: St. Thomas men’s basketball assistant coach John Tauer. He wrote a response to this blog:

The majority of Division III athletes I have coached or coached against are highly motivated by many factors, not just making friends. one of those factors is competition — individuals and teams in Division III work incredibly hard. Division III athletes are not on athletic scholarships. As a result, they may actually have higher levels of intrinsic motivation than their Division I and II counterparts.

While this is certainly preaching to the choir, I still think it’s worth passing along. I think it’s important to highlight and debunk every misconception about Division III athletics, every time possible.

All-Star Game a welcome change

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The Division III third-place game is an anachronism and its time has passed. So it’s good to see it go.

Although indeed, sometimes the third-place game is a spirited, wide-open entertaining affair, it cannot be ignored that the game often features one, if not two teams that truly don’t want to be there. Someone has had their heart ripped out the night before, must come back for a walk-through the next morning (though often a coach will pass on the team’s allotted time) and play a game which doesn’t do much except allow one team to go home with an extra win.

Of course, someone goes home with two losses at the end of a season that should be celebrated.

So, for the NABC to step in and do something immensely positive for Division III men’s basketball is a great step forward for our game. We hope the WBCA will consider doing something for women’s basketball as well.

This will give an additional 16 or so players who never would have gotten the Salem experience a chance to perform in front of Division III fans and be recognized. Fans who drove to southwestern Virginia to see their team play will have reason to stick around and see their best senior player or players in action the next day. And they’ll get to see a bunch of All-Americans on the floor as well, giving some context to fans who don’t get to watch D-III games on television.

It’s a win-win. And I hope it stays a part of the Salem experience for many years to come, like the NABC has done for Division I and Division II.

Midnight madness in D-III

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The first day of practice is not that far away, on Oct. 15. And while many schools will hold a late-night “practice” in front of fans to kick off the season, we have a pair of truly mad games going on at midnight on Nov. 15, the first day games can be played.

Chatham is going to kick off the Division III basketball season for us at 12:01 a.m. EST on Nov. 15, which is a Saturday night/Sunday morning. They’ll be hosting Wilson.

“We are very excited about this unique opportunity,” Chatham coach Mark Katarski said. “We spoke with Wilson College about the idea last winter, and both agreed that it would be a great experience for the student-athletes and our fans.”

Following one hour later, St. Norbert is going to be hosting Silver Lake, a non-Division III school, in a game tipping off at midnight CST Sunday morning. The Green Knights have a long non-off day in between and host UW-Oshkosh at 7 p.m. CT on Monday.