Hoopsville Rant: Every Game Counts

Posted on by

After a season hiatus, the Hoopsville Rant returns and the first topic of the season: every game counts!

It seems every season, when late February arrives and it comes time to start seriously talking about the NCAA Tournament, the fans of teams on the proverbial bubble always complain:

“Our team is one of the hottest teams in the nation. That loss to so-and-so in November shouldn’t count against them!”

Or, “they didn’t have their top player when they played so-and-so in that game in December, that shouldn’t be the reason they miss the tournament!”

Guess what… it very well could be.

When the Selection Committee sits down and decides who is in and who is out of this season’s tournament, they aren’t going to look at how teams played only in February, or the last two months, or just the second half of the season, they are going to look at the WHOLE season.

So, any team hoping to make the NCAA tournament has to keep a few things in their minds right now, there are only two ways to get in: win your conference’s automatic bid or be good enough to get one of those coveted at-large, Pool B or C bids.

For those top teams in weak conferences like the NEAC, CUNYAC, HCAC or the Skyline, losing a bad game may not haunt them later. For those in the WIAC, CCIW, ODAC, and even the OAC, a bad loss out of conference could ruin any chance at the Walnut and Bronze, before the tournament even tips-off.

Remember… EVERY game counts, especially when in region.

So, Wash U can’t take a night off against Earlham; Augustana shouldn’t be losing to Coe; Mary Hardin-Baylor can’t take Worcester State lightly; Amherst can’t look past Emmanuel; Rochester can’t ignore
Nazareth; and Baldwin-Wallace needs to play all 40-minutes against Case Western Reserve.

We will find out on March 2nd – Selection Sunday – if the losses experienced by Wash U. to Calvin, Brockport State to Rowan, or Capital to Mount St. Joseph will end up keeping them out of the NCAA tournament or the chance to host.

Just ask Millsaps football. They lost a 21 point lead in the last half of the fourth quarter against Mississippi College in the first game of the season. The starters were on the bench during the rally; it was the first game of the season after all. Millsaps stumbled to Mississippi College in the first game of the season, ended up costing them a tournament bid.

A different look on Veterans Day

Posted on by

I realize this is a bit late in posting on Veterans Day, but it is still appropriate. Over the weekend, I met a US Marine who is getting ready to marry his finance at the Naval Academy in January … just weeks before he plans to ship out for his second tour in Iraq. We chatted many times over the weekend and I got a rare inside look at what is and isn’t going on in Iraq. There were no opinions expressed, just stories told. I enjoyed every second of the time I spent with Jon and thought I may not get another chance to hear from someone who served in Iraq for a long awhile, until today.

I was double-checking schedules (as many of us at D3hoops.com do this time of year) in the Atlantic Region late Sunday night when I ended up on the CUNY Web site. And there was a story about Chris Jaeger, a 22-year-old freshmen for John Jay who has experienced more before he ever cracked open a book in college, than most men will experience in a lifetime. That’s because Jaeger has already served his time in Iraq and witnessed his best friend killed in battle.

I don’t want to ruin the rest of the story for you, but will say it will certainly give you another appreciation for not only the Division III athlete, or a dedicated teammate or determined person, but for our troops in Iraq. Whether you agree or disagree with the political side of the war, our troops are serving the best they can in a very tough and chaotic country. The story of Jaeger will certainly bring a different perspective on who some of those soldiers and marines are. Enjoy:

From the CUNY website:

Four flights over 10th Ave., the soldier-turned-freshman fires up a three-pointer from the left corner, and an instant later, is sprinting 94 feet, forcing a turnover at the other end.

Now here he comes back the other way, tattooed arms pumping, face grimacing from exertion, muscling into rebounding position at the end of a fast break.

There are faster players on the John Jay College basketball team than Bronx-born Chris Jaeger, and better athletes. However, nobody on the team – maybe nobody in the whole city – is better at the transition game.

This is a small excerpt from Wayne Coffey’s Nov. 11, New York Daily News article on John Jay men’s basketball player Chris Jaeger. You may read the complete story on the New York Daily News web site.

What I’ll miss this season

Posted on by

As I mentioned back in April, I’m back in the Washington, D.C., area this season rather than Norwalk, Conn. While the nine months I spent in exile from Northern Virginia, working at another job and planning to move my family, were tough on everyone, it was great for basketball.

So I’ll miss the trips to Amherst and NYU this year. Don’t expect I’ll get up to Keene State again. Not likely going to see Worcester Tech play, though I hear they’ll be a little more exciting this year. Don’t foresee any Skyline games, no trips to Stevens that I call in sick at work to make. But it was a good time getting to see all those new places and meet new people. Hope to get out to as many new places in the upcoming years.

As I mentioned back in April, I’m back in the Washington, D.C., area this season rather than Norwalk, Conn. While the nine months I spent in exile from Northern Virginia, working at another job and planning to move my family, were tough on everyone, it was great for basketball. So I’ll miss the trips to Amherst and NYU this year. Don’t expect I’ll get up to Keene State again. Not likely going to see Worcester Tech play, though I hear they’ll be a little more exciting this year. Don’t foresee any Skyline games, no trips to Stevens that I call in sick at work to make. But it was a good time getting to see all those new places and meet new people. Hope to get out to as many new places in the upcoming years.As I mentioned back in April, I’m back in the Washington, D.C., area this season rather than Norwalk, Conn. While the nine months I spent in exile from Northern Virginia, working at another job and planning to move my family, were tough on everyone, it was great for basketball. So I’ll miss the trips to Amherst and NYU this year. Don’t expect I’ll get up to Keene State again. Not likely going to see Worcester Tech play, though I hear they’ll be a little more exciting this year. Don’t foresee any Skyline games, no trips to Stevens that I call in sick at work to make. But it was a good time getting to see all those new places and meet new people. Hope to get out to as many new places in the upcoming years.

Top 25 News and Notes–Preseason

Posted on by

A new season is about ready to tip off, and D3hoops.com is ready with its preseason polls for the men and women. The women start off with a brand new #1 team in Mary Washington. Last season’s third-place finisher ascends to the top of the preseason poll for the first time in their history. As the Eagles’ star rises, two of the brightest stars in the women’s firmament have dimmed slightly. #11 Bowdoin missed out on the top 10 by a scant 3 votes, ending a record streak of 89 consecutive top 10 rankings. Even more notably, Hardin-Simmons was left out of the voting entirely; this is the first time in the 125-week history of the D3Hoops.com women’s poll that the Cowgirls failed to draw a single vote. This reduces to three the number of teams to rate a mention in every poll: #6 Washington U. and #25 Scranton among the women, and men’s #8 Wooster.

The voters in both polls expect more success from last year’s Final Four teams, placing all eight of them within the top 8 in each poll. Defending men’s champion Amherst starts out as the #2 team, their record 79th consecutive appearance in the top 25. The Bears of Washington U., third-place finishers in Salem, move up to the top spot for the 13th time in their history. Fourth-place Wooster starts the season at #8, extending their record run of top 10 appearances to 54 straight polls. Women’s champion DePauw will begin defense of their title from the #5 position, the 124th time in 125 polls that the Tigers have drawn voting support. All four of the teams that reached Springfield last year earned first-place nods from the voters to begin this season.

Each poll week I’ll post an entry to this blog with some brief thoughts about the poll results, including notes in the following categories:

Debutantes:
This category recognizes programs that make their first-ever appearances in the voting, the top 25, or the top 10. This week’s debutantes include the #16 Plattsburgh St. men, celebrating their first-ever top 25 ranking. On the distaff side, #7 Kean is a top 10 team for the very first time; #18 UW-Whitewater makes their top 25 debut; and Carthage receives voting attention for the first time. Congratulations to these fine programs!

Streakers:
This space is generally reserved for teams that reach round-number (divisible by 10 or 25) consecutive streaks of top 10, top 25, or voting appearances.
Women: #3 Messiah is in the top 25 for the 75th straight week. #1 Mary Washington and #2 Howard Payne have been ranked in 30 and 20 straight polls, respectively. As noted above, #6 Wash. U. and #25 Scranton have received votes in 125 straight polls (i.e., every poll.) Rochester attracted votes for the 25th straight time; #2 Howard Payne and Medaille are included in the voting for the 20th straight week; and Oglethorpe is a vote-getter for the 10th consecutive time.
Men: #5 Augustana and #11 Hope are each ranked for the 30th consecutive week, while #13 Aurora and #18 Elmhurst are in the top 25 for the 10th straight time. #2 Amherst has now been mentioned in the voting for 80 straight polls. Whitworth and St. Thomas have reached 20 consecutive poll appearances, and Trinity (Conn.) received votes for the 10th straight time.

Milestones:
Teams in this category have achieved round-number weeks as a top 10, top 25 (i.e. ranked), or voted-for team, whether consecutively or not.
Women: This poll represents the 50th time that #14 Brandeis has been a top 25 team. #1 Mary Washington is ranked for the 30th time. #6 Wash. U. and #25 Scranton are vote-getters for the 125th time, while #13 Millikin, #21 Emmanuel, and Rochester appear on the voting list for the 75th time each. Oglethorpe and Carroll are on the list for the 20th time each, and #18 UW-Whitewater is in the voting for the 10th time.
Men: St. John Fisher receives votes this week for the 50th time. Other vote-getting milestones include St. Thomas (80 weeks), #19 Puget Sound (60), WPI (40), #14 Mary Hardin-Baylor (10) and Ohio Wesleyan (10). #3 UW-Stevens Point is a top 10 team for the 70th time, and #11 Hope is ranked for the 60th week.

High-Water Marks:
This section recognizes teams that achieve their highest-ever ranking in the D3Hoops.com poll.
Women: #1 Mary Washington, #7 Kean, #12 Luther, and #18 UW-Whitewater each attained their highest ranking this week, while #2 Howard Payne tied their highest-ever mark.
Men: #4 Guilford, #12 Brandeis, #13 Aurora, #14 Mary Hardin-Baylor, and #16 Plattsburgh St. are at their highest levels, while #24 Stevens has matched its top ranking.

Movers and Shakers:
In this category, I make note of the teams that had the largest gains or falls from the previous week’s poll. This will begin for this season with the week 1 poll.

Congratulations and best wishes to all of these programs, and to all players, coaches and fans of D3 hoops. Here’s to another great season!

Meet the PAC, the new NEAC

Posted on by

Baptist Bible, Keystone and Philadelphia Bible from the NEAC to the PAC. Earlier in the fall, the NEAC lost D’Youville to the AMCC. As previously detailed in this category, the Mid-Atlantic Region is all over the place. The Centennial is the only league in the region untouched for all sports, though it did accept two football-only members, which started play this year.

The MAC? The new PAC, really. Now they have Alvernia, Arcadia, Eastern and Misericordia.

The Landmark? The new MAC, with Drew, Juniata, Moravian, Scranton and Susquehanna.

The NEAC? They’re left with Cazenovia, Keuka, Penn State-Berks, Penn State-Harrisburg, Wells and Wilson. They recently added SUNYIT (a full Division III member) and SUNY-Cobleskill (a future provisional member).

What a mess.