WIAC Basketball

Hibernation!

2008-09-21T08:07:00.002-05:00

I had a nice summer hibernation from this little WIAC diary. I have been keeping my eye on all the happenings in the WIAC over the summer. Looks like we will have another good batch of recruits to watch this season.

Is it too early to say that Superior can win the WIAC title? Do they need another year of experience?

As always, I am looking forward to another fun season. Basketball is the only reason why I can survive the damn Wisconsin winters.

Hope everyone is having a great summer!

Pointers Advance and Warhawks Fall

2008-03-07T22:59:00.001-06:00

StP 67 Chicago 53 I have never seen Point come out as flat as they did in this game. It was painful to watch. I was beginning to think hell had frozen over or some other drastic event happened because I have been programmed to see Point play well at all times. Chicago went on a 17-0 run to start the game and yet I was not the least bit worried that Point would lose. Right on cue, Point went on a 26-2 run and headed into the locker room with the lead. Point owned the second half for the most part. Chicago had a couple runs, but Point worked their offense like a charm and they had control of the game.

Beamish was a monster. Single handedly brought the team back from the early deficit. He was money from three and Chicago couldn’t stop the offense that he was creating for himself and for his teammates near the hoop. I’ve seen him play well, but he looked like a MVP in this game.

Scott Hoelzel had a terrific game off the bench. He provided a much needed spark, more like a jump start, when he first got in the game.

Rortvedt was in a walking boot. I don’t think he will see the floor anytime soon.

Chicago was a weird team in the sense that they had very little on court chemistry and their fan base was minimal. They had very few fans, admittedly it’s quite the haul from Chi-town to Minneap, but the fans who were there weren’t into the game at all. The coach pulled the starters when the game was all but over and none of the parents clapped for the players. Very strange.

Speaking of fan base, come on Pointers, where are the students? I seriously didn’t see a single Point student in the crowd! Lots of adults but no students! Point will need to bring some students over tomorrow because Buena Vista had a rowdy and large student section for their game.

I am disappointed that I won’t get to see the WIAC/MIAC match-up that I have waited for, but Buena Vista is a worthy adversary and it will be a great game. The Buena Vista/St. Thomas game was unreal. The atmosphere was D1 level stuff. Noise makers (which had to be put away), painted chests, security throwing people out and a mascot with a rim attached to his back a la “Crunch” at Minnesota Timberwolves games. Every possession was hard fought and the fans were into the game as soon as the players hit the floor for warm-ups. St. Thomas relied too much on the three pointer and came up a bit short. Buena Vista has some big boys inside and Point’s big men will have their hands full tomorrow night. Should be an awesome game.

Loras 71 WW 70 Damn it! The run comes to an end. I thought WW had the tools to go deep in the tourney. What a terrific year for the Warhawks though. Too bad it had to end like this. If anyone was at the game feel free to leave a comment about what the game was like.

St. Thomas

2008-03-06T11:38:00.001-06:00

The madness has just begun. With two WIAC teams in the tourney, we are bound to have one of them go deep into the tourney and hopefully both can do just that. I can’t wait for tomorrow night. It is going to be great to watch the Pointers play some NCAA tourney ball. I am pulling for both Point and St. Thomas to win so I can see that match-up with my own two eyes. Both teams have tough games against Chicago and Buena Vista, so I can’t look ahead too much. In case it happens, I will give my thoughts about St. Thomas’s players, so Pointer fans can know what to expect in case that match up happens.

They start: Joe Scott, Lonnie Robinson, Tyler Nicolai, BJ Viau and David Baker. They play a very aggressive style of defense and they look to push the ball on offense. They rotate a lot of players in and out, very similar to what Point does. The Coach has confidence in his bench and he uses it every game. They handed Winona State their only loss of the season, so that tells you what they are capable of.

Joe Scott: His lights out shot reminds me of Rortvedt’s. He has a lightning quick release and when he is on, St. Thomas is tough to beat. He has more athleticism than most of the guards in the WIAC though. He likes to go to the rack and can throw it home if he needs to.

Tyler Nicolai: Seriously looks like he is 8 years old. I still can’t believe he is in college. He makes Khalifa and Adam Chandler look like they are middle aged men. Runs the offense with a great demeanor though and loves to hit the 3 ball.

Lonnie Robinson: I don’t want to call him a role player because he has more talent than that, but he has definitely stepped up as the leader and glue of that team. He has tremendous ability, but his shot is bit suspect at times. Terrific defender.

BJ Viau: I really like his game. He plays much taller than what he is and he is one of those guys who is always around the ball. He can use either hand to finish around the hoop and he is tremendously athletic. He doesn’t have much of a shot at all, but he low post game makes up for it.

David Baker: David gets to start every game, but eventually gives way to Al “The Real” McCoy for the majority of minutes at center. Baker is a nice player though.

Bench:

Al McCoy: Wow, wait till you see this guy play. He is listed as 6’6”, but I don’t think he is much over 6’3”. Think Charles Barkley. Barkley was short, but everyone assumed he was tall because he played so big. That is how Al plays. He is strong and wide. I have yet to see a big man stop him on the low post. He clears out space better than any D3 player I have ever seen. He can finish against guys much taller than him and no rebound is safe if he is in the game. Don’t let his size fool you though, he is quick and athletic. He is fun to watch!

Anders Halvorson: Freshman with a ceiling that isn’t even close to being approached yet. He plays sort of like Kalsow did. Can go down low, but he is just as comfortable shooting the 3-ball. His post moves are not even close to Kalsow’s, but as he gets stronger and more confident he will be unstoppable. Does a nice job off the bench.

Sam Eicher: Another nice low post player who can step out and hit the 15 footer with ease. He causes issues because he is left handed.

Teddy Archer: I saved the best/worst for last. All I have to say is Dennis Rodman! This guy might be the most polarizing player I have ever seen at the D3 level. He gets into the game and his #1 mission is to get into the head of the opposing teams best player. He has mastered the quiet elbow and flop already. He will draw a stupid foul on someone just by flopping, guaranteed. He jaws with anyone who will talk back. He just wants to mix it up. He has a great ability, but he loves playing that bad boy role. All you need to do is ask a MIAC fan about him and you will get an ear full.

St. Thomas is young and talented and they will be a dangerous team to play. I just hope Point gets the chance!

NCAA Tournament

2008-03-04T10:07:00.002-06:00

I could not be more happy with the release of the brackets yesterday. Not only was I happy to see Point make the tourney, I was also happy to see they will be playing in my neck of the woods!!

Whenever the WIAC games were out of my viewing radius, on a given night, I usually went over and watched St. Thomas play, so I am familiar with them. It's funny because I have been talking about how it would great to see Point and St. Thomas play and it might actually happen! Both teams would match up extremely well with each and I think it would be an outstanding game.

Hopefully both teams can take care of business in the first round!

Whitewater: WIAC Champions

2008-03-02T10:11:00.002-06:00

Congrats to the Warhawks for winning the WIAC tournament! What an unbelievable run these guys put together despite all the road blocks that have jumped in the way as the season progressed.

By looking at the box score and game write-ups it looks like it was an excellent game with high drama at the end and great play by both teams. It would be awesome, if you were at the game, if you left a comment about what the game was like. I would love to hear it.

Hopefully WW can continue the magic in the NCAA tourney and hopefully Point gets the at large bid that they rightfully deserve.

WIAC Tourney: Championship

2008-03-01T08:53:00.002-06:00

I think this is the game that everyone wanted to see when the tourney began. I have not heard any updates on WW's injury situation, but they will need Goodwin to have any chance to beat Point. On the other side, what a story it would be if they found a way to win without Goodwin and Perry. Might be one of the best stories in WIAC history.

Point is sitting right where they want to be and it looks like Semling's strategy of going deep into his bench all season long has paid off. That's what makes Point so great, they show flashes of being extremely beatable during the season, but when it counts they put it all together. It is a quality that champions need.

Should be a great one tonight. For all of you who are going, have fun!

WIAC Tourney: 2nd Round

2008-02-27T11:41:00.002-06:00

Interesting match-ups tonight.

EC has not beat Point since the 01-02 season. I am at the point now where I wouldn't even be surprised if EC found a way to win. No, I still would be surprised.

The WW/Sup match-up is an intriguing match-up. Last time they play there was some bad blood apparently. It was the game that Buchanan got ejected from and it went from being a decent game to a complete blowout/brawl in a couple minutes. I am willing to bet that, that game is still fresh in both teams minds. Superior is talented, playing hot, and not intimidated by anyone, couple that with the fact that Goodwin might not play and most likely won't be 100% if he does play and we might have the makings for an upset. I heard the reffing crew will consist of: Judge Wopner, Judge Joe Brown, and Judge Judy. Hopefully more people make it out for this game. The place looked dead against Stout when I watched it on the net.

Let the madness begin!

2008-02-25T21:04:00.002-06:00

My head is spinning like the girl from the Exorcist right now. Wow, what a crazy night.

EC beats Plt!

Sup beats Osh!

Lax had opportunities to beat Point, but lost in OT.

WW wins without Perry and Goodwin.

Players were putting up huge stats right and left.

Free live video from the WW game.

I need a beverage. I can't even try to make sense of all of this right now.

Tourney Time!

2008-02-25T11:41:00.002-06:00

Unfortunately for me all the top seeds are in areas of the state that are no where near where I live. I will have to stick with live stats and radio broadcasts for the tournament games unless a couple major upsets happen.

I am going to refrain from making any predictions on the games. I will just enjoy them as a world wide web supporter.

I wish all the teams the best of luck and let us hope that two WIAC teams make the tourney this year.

Let the fun begin!

WIAC Games 2/23/08

2008-02-24T14:18:00.001-06:00

Saturday: 2-2

Overall: 50-22

I am pretty pleased with my prediction record. There are a few games that I made bad decisions on, but perfection is unattainable, just ask the Patriots. I figured if I reached 50 correct predictions I would be happy and fittingly that’s where I ended up. Enough about my stupid prediction record, lets talk final standings!

WW 80 RF 75 I am happy to congratulate Whitewater for an absolutely terrific season and for winning the conference title! It is an awesome accomplishment when you are at full strength and to do it after losing your best player and senior leader to an injury, is awesome. It shows how well these guys play together and that they all have tremendous ability to play the game at a high level. Thanks to their new friend Platteville, the Warhawks got to enjoy this one all alone at the top. RF put up a nice effort in the loss, but unfortunately it was not enough for them to make the conference tourney thanks to EC losing to Stout. Tough way to end the year for the Falcons and an even tougher way for Scott Kelly, Willie Wright, and Courtney Davis to end their Falcon careers. Congrats to WW, once again!

Plt 84 StP 65 The Pioneers played the role of spoiler in a big way. I knew Plt had the ability to beat Point, but I would have never imagined Point getting beat this bad. It looks like Point came out a bit flat and Plt took full advantage of it and never looked back. This game reminds me of the game in 2004 when Point lost to Superior in the final game to give RF the title all by themselves. Things turned out OK for Point in 2004 though, and I’m guessing they will bounce back and be ready for the conference tourney. This game just shows how frustrating of a season it must have been for Plt fans at times. They play unbeatable basketball during certain games and then lay the occasion egg against a lower tier team. A great season for the Pioneers none the less.

Sup 77 Osh 67 Another outstanding win for the jackets. What a great season it has been for Buchanan and his boys. I must admit I am excited for Superior. I think Buchanan is doing amazing things up there and it shows how much his hard work on the recruiting trail can really pay off on Wednesdays and Saturdays. He has the program heading in the right direction and it is great to see them as a serious threat in the conference. Similar to Plt, Osh shows signs of brilliance and then they show mediocrity a game later. That has always been Oshkosh’s story since I have followed the WIAC. They are always near the top, but seldom finish at the top. I am not trying to take anything away from TVD and the Osh players though. They lost two tremendous players and new guys stepped up and delivered. I know they exceeded my expectations without a doubt. Osh gets their chance to get some revenge against Sup right away in the conference tourney.

St 78 EC 65 Congrats to Eddie and the Blue Devils for making the conference tournament. I truly thought they had no shot to make the conference tourney after the first half of the conference season, but they somehow managed to keep their spirits up and made the tourney. Another embarrassing loss for EC, considering this game was not even close. They let their rival come in and just dominate them on their home floor. Looking at the box score, it seems like EC had no answer for Webb and Hostetter.

Predictions for 2/23/08 Games

2008-02-23T07:25:00.001-06:00

Wednesday: 2-2

Overall: 48-20

Predictions, lightning round style!

StP over Plt Point is clicking on all cylinders and they have been in this situation before. They will find a way to win this game and take home another conference title.

WW over RF WW lost its best player and has still managed to remain at the top. Hats off to them for a terrific season. They will be enjoying this victory and their share of the conference title when this one is all said and done.

Osh over Sup Once again the Titans had an excellent season, but they will fall a bit short of the conference title. Sup has exceeded everyone’s expectations this season and they should be proud of how they have played this season.

St over EC Stout pulls off the mini upset and manages to sneak into the conference tourney. Also I have to keep my word to not pick the Golds to win.

WIAC Games 2/20/08 (St at RF)

2008-02-21T11:12:00.001-06:00

WW 66 Osh 51 Well I guess this was one of those nights where Oshkosh couldn’t hit their shots and they became a mediocre team. It was also the night where Myles McKay stepped up and said, “enough with all this Goodwin talk, I got some game too.” I was impressed with Myles when I saw him at RF, but Point managed to control him when I saw him last Saturday. Anyone who can drop 42 BARPS can flat out play the game. DSA had a nice game for Osh, but the others just couldn’t find their shots from downtown. Part of that may have been due to WW’s defense, hard to know for sure. Tremendous win for the Warhawks and they put themselves in a great position to have the top record in the conference.

StP 89 Lax 62 Broken record time, Point takes care of the Eagles without too many problems. Rortvedt bounced back from his bad game against WW while Hicklin struggled from the floor in this one. Those two have been bouncing up and down all season. I noticed Khalifa didn’t play in this game. He left the WW game holding his back/side, so hopefully it’s nothing serious. Beamish further proved that he is one of the best all around players in the conference with another terrific line. Lax’s sole bright spot was Austin Scott. I liked how he played against RF and it looks like he might be a bright spot for the Eagles who hold sole possession of 5^th place. Point should be tuned up and ready to go against Plt on Saturday.

Plt 75 EC 58 The battle of Skemp and Beyer looks to have been a good one where neither guy could stop the other. Skemp got the last laugh by dropping 42 BARPS in his team’s victory. Great to see Jeff stepped up when the team needed a pick up after two bad losses. EC keeps riding the roller coaster of inconsistency. Another tough year for the Golds and they will need to find some recruits to pick up Beyer’s slack next season. Plt gets ready for the showdown with Point.

St 75 RF 62 It is kind of sad to think that this may have been the last WIAC game I will see this season. It was not a good way to go out. I don’t think I have ever been to a WIAC game with less energy involved. Both teams were flat, the crowd was flat, the refs were flat, if it wasn’t for the lunar eclipse I may start to think the earth was flat. I almost fell asleep at one point in time (I’m not kidding). I actually thought this would be a hard fought game considering both teams were fighting for their conference tourney rights. Not the case though. Despite coming out with little energy, the Falcons jumped out to an early 21-8 lead and it looked like they might blow Stout out. Then Stout slowly but surely came back and ended up burying the Falcons in the second half.

Eric Hostetter posted a double-double. He is a nice player. Great shot and he handles the ball well.

Brady Hannigan played well for RF. He was one of the few players who showed some heart last night. He has been a bit out of control at times this season, but he played a nice game. He kind of plays like Dennis Rodman. He flies into the stands for loose balls, he hits the floor hard, and he likes to mix it up with the other team. I feel like he is always one push/shove away from starting a bench clearing brawl.

I guess Stout has to like their chances to make the tourney now. All they have to do is beat EC and hope RF loses to WW. I like their odds.

Predictions for 2/20/08 Games

2008-02-19T10:49:00.001-06:00

Saturday 3-1

Overall: 46-18

Osh over WW What a tough way for the Warhawks to end the year, playing the other top teams in three straight games. WW looked tired against Point and it was pretty clear that after Goodwin and maybe McKay they really don’t have too many guys who can get you a bucket when you need one. I think if you shut Goodwin down, you shut WW down. Osh, on the other hand, has five capable scorers who can all hurt you. We have seen that Osh will have their cold nights and they become very mediocre on those nights, but that doesn’t happen too often. I think Osh will win this one.

StP over Lax Point looked unbeatable on Saturday and that was with Rortvedt only hitting one shot all game. They move the ball so well that even if you come in with a good defensive strategy, they can find ways to exploit it. They are the Peyton Manning’s of the WIAC, minus all the endorsement deals. Lax will have a tough time and I don’t see the Pointers having too much trouble.

Plt over EC I wouldn’t want to be EC in this game. Plt is going to come out like a pack of killer bees looking to sting whatever dares to get in their way. After losing the past two games and losing to EC earlier this season, I think the Pioneers will take out some aggression during this one. I guess they could also come out flat and defeated after losing the past two games. Hard to know for sure, but I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt. I would like to see the Skemp/Beyer match-up. That will be a good one.

RF over St RF seals their seat in the conference tourney with a win over Stout. Both teams are probably looking forward to the end of the season where they can start to regroup and get back on track. Both teams need to bring in some nice recruits for the upcoming year or else next year could be a repeat of this season. RF/Stout games are always fun to watch no matter where each of them are in the standings.

WIAC Games 2/16/08 (WW at StP)

2008-02-17T19:34:00.001-06:00

Sup 70 Plt 59 I have been waiting for the big upset that shakes up the conference standings and it finally came. The young and dangerous Yellowjackets come out ready to play and sting the Pioneers. What a turn of events for Plt. Earlier this week, they were on top, looking down on everyone else and now they are on the outside looking in. Jake Smith had a tremendous game and his ability to play both inside and outside really caused match-up problems for Plt. The temperature up north must have affected Plt’s shooters because they were cold, 18-49 from the floor as a team. What a way for Superior to close out their home conference season.

Osh 80 RF 63 Dane Seckar-Anderson was a manchild in this one, putting up a career high 30 points. RF had no answer for DSA and the Defensive Specialist, who put up another double-double. DSA and Johnson were a combined 20-27 from the floor. One small bright spot for the Falcons was that they were able to shut down DJ Marsh, but Osh has way too many weapons. The Titans used this one as a tune up for their big game against WW on Wednesday.

Lax 76 St 65 The Eagles turn things around after their bad loss at RF and take care of business against Stout. Tony Mane shook off the rough outing last Wednesday and dropped 26 on the Blue Devils. Austin Scott did his best Jason Kapono impression by coming off the bench and scoring 12 points all on threes. Stout’s chances of making the conference tourney are fading fast.

StP 76 WW 47 I had a blast heading over to Stevens Point this weekend, despite the heavy snow this morning. This game was definitely worth the trip, despite what the final score may suggest. I got to the game fairly early so I was able to watch the shoot around. Not too many exciting things went on except for, sticking with the All-Star game theme, Tayshaun Drew Prince-Jackson tossing home some nice dunks. It made me think that it would be fun to see a WIAC dunk contest. I would put: Drew Jackson, Willie Wright, Kori Vernon, and Shane Manor in it. I’d put my money on Willie or Drew to win it from what I have seen.

The atmosphere was great at Point. The place was getting full more than 30 minutes before the game started. The thing that I found strange was that the student section at Point was small and their presence on the game was minimal. I didn’t pick up on that last season, but the majority of the crowd was definitely people from the town. That’s my only knock on the crowd there; not much electricity coming from students. The band was the loudest “student” part of the crowd.

The first half was a great up and down battle. WW came out firing early and tried to push the ball and it made for an entertaining first half. Point held their ground nicely and if they would have hit a few more of their open shots they would have went in the locker room with the lead. Rortvedt was ice cold to start and it continued for the whole game. It was the quickest first half I have seen all season.

The second half was a whole different story. Point absolutely took WW to school. It was impressive to say the least. They traded a few buckets to start the half and then with 16:57 to go and the game tied 34-34, Point went on a 26-4 run over the next 8 minutes. Point worked the ball inside and out. Getting open lay-ups and open looks from three. WW could not buy a bucket, as Point put the clamps down on the defensive end. It finally looked like WW missed having Perry on the floor. No one could step up and stop the bleeding. The game was over from then on out and Point made a huge statement in this one.

Some thoughts:

Point did a tremendous job on the defensive end. They really worked hard to keep Goodwin from scoring. They threw several defenders at him and even the shots he made were contested for the most part. They also did a nice job on Vernon, who really struggled to get any open shot down low.

Beamish was the best player on the floor for Point. He played a tremendous all around game and while he doesn’t seem like much of a vocal leader, he definitely leads by example.

Drew Jackson should play more. He is a tremendous talent and his athleticism causes problems all over the court. I guess the one knock on him could be that he is a bit soft, but I thought Point was excellent when he was on the floor. I have to give him props for being a good kid too. He high-fived all the little ball boys for Point and was the nicest player on the team to those kids, while one of his teammates yelled at them for not getting him the ball fast enough.

WW looked tired. That Plt game probably sucked a lot of life out of them. On the other hand, Point looked fresh and ready to go.

Scott Hoelzel had a nice game off the bench. He could be starting for a lot of other WIAC teams.

Point put themselves in the driver’s seat for the conference title with this big victory and I don’t see any reason why they won’t take care of business against Plt next Saturday.

The schedule gods were not nice to WW and they will have another tough game against Osh this Wednesday.

Predictions for 2/16/08 Games

2008-02-15T11:08:00.001-06:00

Wednesday: 1-3

Overall: 43-17

Lax over St I wasn’t real impressed with Lax on Wednesday, but I’m guessing that was one of their worst, if not their worst, game of the season. I have been impressed with how Stout has been playing the second half of the season. They are starting to use their players in a more effective manner. Like RF did, Stout will have to win this game on the defensive end. I have yet to see Stout play well defensively for an entire game though. They would rather out shoot their opponents for wins. I’ll take Lax because I think they can slow down the game and limit Stout’s shots.

Osh over RF The FSN game of the week comes to RF. Unfortunately, I will not be there for the bright lights and sideline reporters. RF played really well on Wednesday and with this game and their final game at WW they have a chance to play spoiler against two teams they battled hard the first time around. If RF plays like they did on Wednesday, they could win this game. The problem is that Lax only has a couple real offensive threats and Osh has 5 legitimate players who can put up big numbers. It is a tough task to stop 5 different guys who know how to put the ball in the hoop. The Hudson boy, Matt Miller, will have an excellent game in front of his hometown fans.

Plt over Sup This will be a nice game for Plt to get their thoughts back in place after a tough loss to WW. Sup has proven that you can’t take them lightly, but Plt has the talent to take care of business without too much trouble up north. Skemp creates match-up problems for all teams, and Superior really lacks an inside presence. I would imagine Skemp should have his way down low and if Sup chooses to double and triple-team him, the guards will get lots of good looks.

StP over WW I feel bad for not giving WW the love after they proved me wrong on Wednesday. They are a tremendous team who has risen up to every challenge put in front of them so far. It is just a gut feeling that Point is going to win this game. Point matches up well with WW and I feel they are one of the few teams who have the tools to limit Goodwin. All I know for sure is that Quandt will be filled to the rafters and I’ll be there. I am just hoping for a hard fought game that comes right down to the wire. I think we’ll have a 4-way tie for first after this weekend!

WIAC Games 2/13/08 (Lax at RF)

2008-02-14T11:31:00.001-06:00

1-3, ouch, that stings!

WW 70 Plt 66 I guess I was right about a couple things when I predicted the outcome of this game. First, it appeared to be a terrific game. By looking at the pictures, the place seemed packed and full of Red Bull inspired energy. Second, Matt Goodwin created some major match-up problems for the Pioneers. By all accounts, this appeared to be an equally played game. No team dominated the other in any statistical category. Just a hard fought game with both teams throwing punch and counter punch combos. It’s hard to know what the key was for WW, but my guess is that Goodwin was the x-factor. He has an amazing ability to score points and lead that team when they need it most. What a statement WW makes by coming into Plt and beating them without Perry. Plt needs a little help from the Pointers on Saturday, but they are still in the thick of it. Sorry, I know this post doesn’t do the game justice, but maybe someone who was there can leave a comment.

St 93 Sup 88 Stout has Superior’s number. The Devils put up a copious amount of points and take home the victory. The Devils were led by Miles Webb, 30 pts and 11 rbs. Webb is a tremendous talent. He has all the skills to be the best player in the WIAC. I just wish I could have seen him play within a well run offense instead of all the one-on-one stuff Stout has been doing all season. He would have been a tremendous player to have alongside the Nonemachers last season. Superior is on a bit of a roller coaster and RF is now in the rear view mirror for the 7^th spot.

StP 89 EC 68 I feel like every time I write up Point games I say the same exact thing. Point comes out, plays their game, and takes care of business. I guess I have to resort to calling Pete Rortvedt, Angela Bassett, and say his groove keeps getting stronger and stronger. It is nice to see that Pete is healthy and playing well. Seriously though, another terrific all around game for the Pointers and they have to be happy with their play. Everything is set up perfectly for the big match-up against WW this weekend. Best of all, I will be there to see it! I can’t wait.

RF 73 Lax 57 I think RF should have Kram Karges night every Wednesday and Saturday. The promo of free t-shirts, popcorn, and snow cones really brought the students out in droves. I was already to start this post out with the line, “I went to Kram Karges night and I all got was this t-shirt,” instead I got to watch RF put up their best performance of the season. They played a great game from the opening tip to the final buzzer. The great thing about it was that it was their defense that provided the spark. They really came out playing hard on the defensive end. Courtney Davis was on Tony Mane like stink on poop and he got him frustrated early. Add in 2 quick fouls by Fehrenbach and solid interior defense and Lax looked like the 2 win team, not RF. It didn’t hurt that Scott Kelly caught a hot hand from his first shot. He put up a game high 24 and Lax had no answer for him. Kelly has been a nice player for RF. He came in as the guy who wore #34 after Melzer left and each season has steadily improved from role player to a dangerous offensive weapon. He seems like a hard working kid who was willing to take on whatever duty was put on him throughout his career. Nice to see him have a game like this. Lax looked out of sorts from the very beginning and I’m not really sure why that was the case. I guess Kramming Karges just does that to teams. Nice team win for the Falcons!

Predictions for 2/13/08 Games

2008-02-12T16:19:00.001-06:00

Saturday: 3-1

Overall: 42-14

Plt over WW There have been many great games played on Bo Ryan’s court in the past, but this has to be one of the biggest games played there in a while. The King of the Mountain will be on top all by themselves after this one and the loser will be sitting in a three way tie for 2nd place at 10-3. I like WW’s athleticism and I think Goodwin and McKay could do some real damage against Plt’s guards. I like Skemp’s size and I think he poses a mismatch with whomever WW decides to throw at him. Whoever can impose their will over the other will come out on top. Even though these teams are very different, it should make for a tremendous game. I wish I could be there. Platteville has not lost at home this season and WW has struggled a bit on the road, so I have to pick Plt for that reason.

StP over EC If you read between the lines I already predicted that Point will win this one and move into that log jam in the second place spot. The last time these teams played the first half was brutal and I truly think that is EC’s intent, to bring their competition down to their level. The sloppier and nastier the game gets the better EC feels about their chances to win. Like I’ve said in the past, Point rarely plays to their competition though, so the Pointers leave Zorn with another win and get ready for their big match-up against WW on Saturday.

Sup over St Stout’s only win came against the Jackets and Stout probably played their best game all season up in Superior. The young ones didn’t play well at all last time and I have to imagine that they will come down to Johnson Fieldhouse with revenge on their minds. Plus this will practically be a home game for Culy and Manor just like EC was. I expect a bigger crowd for Superior than Stout.

Lax over RF RF can only go up after their last performance. Plus it is Kram Karges night, so there should be a good crowd on hand. With that said, Lax will be too much for RF to handle. Mane might torch the nets in Karges with the nice shooter’s background Karges has. Lax takes control of 5th place with a victory over the Falcons.

WIAC Games 2/9/08

2008-02-10T12:19:00.000-06:00

The day of the blow-out is upon us. The victorious teams all had leads of 10+ points going into halftime.

WW 83 St 61 WW joins Platteville on the top of Mt. WIAC. Stout actually led 20-7 halfway through the first half, but they were brought back down to earth with a WW 33-9 run for the remainder of the half. The story of the game has to be Matt Goodwin. He went off for 45 BARPS, 33 of them being points. That included a lights out 8-13 performance from three. He has completely elevated his game to a new level since Perry went down and has to be the main reason why WW is still right in the chase. Stout played without Jerrel “E-Matt” Enerson-Matthews, as the announcer likes to say. Stout couldn’t take care of the ball and coughed it up 17 times. Stat of the game: Goodwin goes 8-13 from three and WW is 8-23 from three as a team.

StP 95 Sup 65 Another 1000th point scored in the WIAC this season. This time it goes to Pete Rortvedt and unlike the others this season Pete accomplished it in his junior season. That boy knows how to put the ball in the hoop. Not much to say in this one. Point put together another solid all around performance and took care of business against a team that they should beat. The young Jackets have graduated to WIAC 200 level classes and got another hard lesson about how easily Point can blow you out.

Osh 78 Lax 63 Talk about balanced attacks. It doesn’t get much more balanced than this for scoring: DSA 16, Defensive Specialist 16, Hot-Sauce Miller 15, Detlef 14, and Marsh 12. Brandon Brown, 0 points, isn’t making me look too good after giving him, “best point guard” in the conference props earlier this season. Miller took another step towards trying to win that title. Osh gets a nice win, which keeps them right in the thicket of the title race.

EC 77 RF 54 All right, I could go off about how I know EC has more talent than RF and anyone who follows the WIAC closely would have picked EC to win. And the only reason why I picked RF is because I wanted to keep my word to never pick EC to win again all season. I could play that card and be that guy, but no one respects those guys. I picked EC to lose and I can eat my humble pie with warm beer. Truthfully, a small part of me thought RF could win. Boy was I wrong. Look at the scoring for RF’s starters: Kelly 5, Hannigan 5, Wright 5, Davis 5, and Robertson 3. What can you even say about that? RF was led in scoring by two freshman: Danny Johnson 8 and Wade Guerin 13. As a team they shot 19-59 from the floor and 11-23 from the line. Beyer put up another MVP like performance with 38 BARPS. Ryan Shea further proved to me that he will have a triple-double before his WIAC career is over. Nice game for Jacob Schlub too. He has been the poor guy who gets to start, but then gets lost in the rotation as the game goes on. He has been playing much better lately, which is nice to see. The race for 5th place is hotter than ever.

Predictions for 2/9/08 Games

2008-02-08T14:53:00.000-06:00

Last Wednesday 3-1

Overall: 39-13

StP over Sup The great thing about predicting Stevens Point games is that they never lose to teams that they shouldn’t lose too. They very rarely play to the level of their competition. With that said, the last Point loss to a bottom tier WIAC team was in the 03-04 season when they lost to Superior, twice! There might just be some magic up there on the north shore. Not this time though. Point is well rested and ready to attempt their second half march to the title.

WW over St WW is coming off a nice win against Luther college and Stout is coming off another loss to Point. With RF's win against Superior, Stout’s chances of making the conference tourney look even more dim. WW has Plt in their sights and they need to take care of business from here on out. I don’t see any reason why WW should not win this game.

Osh over Lax I think all the minutes that the Oshkosh starters have logged over the season are starting to take a toll on them. The legs are probably starting to feel like rubber and the arms are not as light as they were at the beginning of the season. There is no doubt that Osh’s starting 5 is just as good as anyone else’s, but I think they lack of depth will catch up with them down the stretch. Lax appears to be playing their best ball of the year, now that they are healthy. Based on what I said in this paragraph I should pick Lax, but I’ll go with the Titans.

RF over EC RF is looking for its first win streak (we’ll define streak as 2 in a row) in the conference and EC is looking to confuse me even more. The fact that they played Osh so well on Wednesday suggests that they will probably shoot 20% from the floor in this one. I can just see Berkhof going Lou Brown, from Major League, on the team before the game. “We won on Wednesday, if we win tonight, it’s called a winning streak, IT HAS HAPPENED BEFORE.”

WIAC Game 2/7/08

2008-02-08T14:26:00.000-06:00

Plt 78 Lax 77 (2 OT) We had to wait an additional 24 hours for the game, but it was worth the wait. It was a double overtime thriller that featured a dominating performance by the pre-season All American. Skemp put up an impressive 29 points and 16 boards to lead the Pioneers to sole possession of the WIAC lead. The one stat I find kind of nuts is that Lax was 2-14 from three and they still found a way to almost win the game. It looks like the three-pointer is no longer their main weapon. Speaking of “Mane” weapon, Tony Mane went 9-12 on shots other than threes. Not too shabby for the frosh.

WIAC Games 2/6/08

2008-02-07T12:48:00.000-06:00

StP 86 St 58 Stout actually led this game for the first 11 minutes of the game. Then Point’s bench decided to take over. It’s pretty sick that Point could take their top 5 bench players and probably beat half of the WIAC teams. It doesn’t seem fair. The Hicklin and Rortvedt show was back on the marquee, each dropping 18 on the Devils. Stout couldn’t buy a bucket from 3-land. The game was over five minutes into the second half.

Osh 89 EC 87 (OT) The Golds brought their “A” team for this one and gave the Titans a run for their money. Osh was up 78-71 with 1:40 to go and EC went on a 9-2 run to tie the game. The Titans scored all 9 of their OT points from the charity stripe. I guess EC isn’t straying away from their, “lets beat the snot out of them, literally,” strategy. Osh was 11-18 from three. Those boys can shoot the rock. Beyer had another tremendous game, only missing 2 shots all game. Osh breaks the W/L alternating streak with a tough victory. Stat of the game: Ryan Shea’s stat-line: 12 pts, 5 rbs, 7 asts, 6 stls and 2 blks. Wow!

RF 84 Sup 81 (OT) RF WINS! RF WINS! Nice job by the Falcons to maintain their composure and find a way to win. I am happy that they finally got another conference win. I have been hard on RF this season, mostly because I see them the most. I get see them when they are at their worst and their best, just so happens they haven’t been playing well this season. I feel for them though. Losing two point guards is devastating and then losing a couple hard fought games against top tier teams (Plt and WW) doesn’t help the confidence. Then they lose to Superior on a buzzer beater. It’s been one of the years that you put in the “DO NOT OPEN” file cabinet in the brain. Seems like they played a nice game last night and just when they thought they had it won, Dwight Hill hits a 3 at the buzzer to tie the game. If you are a RF player you have to be thinking, “here we go again.” Nice job by the Falcons not getting discouraged though and for finding a way to get the W. Hopefully they can get a couple more. Congrats to Jesse Elling for putting up a career high 18 points. He works he tail off every time he gets in the game, so that was nice to see.

Predictions for 2/6/08 Games

2008-02-06T12:13:00.001-06:00

Last Saturday: 4-0

Overall: 36-12

Plt over Lax We have our first cancellation of the season! Actually it’s just a postponement until tomorrow thanks to the wonderful weather that is sweeping through the southern part of our state. Lax is tough at home and if Mane and Fehrenbach get a spark they can become explosive in a quick hurry. I like how Platteville is playing right now though. I think they really feel like they are the team to beat and that’s mentality you need to have. I’ll take Plt in a close one on Thursday night.

Osh over EC Osh has been as inconsistent as it gets over the past 9 games. They have alternated W/L in the past 9 games. If that pattern follows, this should be a loss for them. They can’t be real happy about losing to EC earlier this season though, so I see them taking a little frustration out on the Golds. Plus I made a promise never to pick EC to win again this season.

StP over St The ultimate team vs the ultimate 1 on 1 team. Point is the best passing team in the conference and Stout is the worst. Point is coming off the much needed bye and hopefully they got their players healthy. This will be a nice game for them to shake the rust off and get their rhythm back kind of like How Stella Got Her Groove Back. Anyone seen that movie? One of the best movie titles ever.

Sup over RF Sup has only won 1 game since these two teams’ last meeting and RF hasn’t won any games. In fact, RF hasn’t won since they were in Arizona over winter break. Something has to give. One team is going to be the other team’s slump buster. I want to pick RF in this one, but I can’t justify it until they prove they can win another game.

Favorite WIAC players: Plt

2008-02-04T13:24:00.000-06:00

Merrill Brunson

Just like Sherm and Werner, Merrill was a cool customer who never really got rattled by pressure situations and never really felt the need to tell people how good he was. I started following the WIAC closely right as Platteville was unbeatable. They were by far and away my favorite team to watch. I’ll never forget the first time I saw them play. They came out for warm-ups wearing the most plain and cheap looking warm-ups I have ever seen. It looked like they got them from Savers or something. They all had the same type of haircut and they went through their warm-up drills with a machine-like efficiency. No missed lay-ups, no bad passes, and they had nothing but business like interactions with each other. It was almost militaristic. Then they came out and worked over their opponent. Brunson was the poster boy for that style. He didn’t do anything extremely fancy (except hit 3’s in people’s faces), but he did everything right. It was always fun watching him play because he fit perfectly in Bo’s swing offense. I don’t think Bo could have manufactured a better player for his system.

I heard a rumor, never found out if it was valid or not, that Brunson’s final decision was between Platteville and River Falls. It’s weird to think about him going to RF. He would have been a great player there, but the Platteville offense truly fit him like a glove.

I have only bought tickets days in advance for one WIAC game in my life and that was for the Plt at EC game back in the 1999-2000 season. It was the best WIAC game I have ever seen. EC came out and completely dominated the game for the first 30 minutes. The whole time I was just waiting for the inevitable Platteville run and sure enough Merrill provided the spark with several huge shots and ultimately led the Pioneers to victory in front of a sold-out Zorn Arena crowd. It was awesome.

My favorite Brunson moment came earlier in that 99-00 season though, when he single handedly outscored River Falls 24-21 at halftime. All you can you do is tip your hat after a performance like that.

WIAC Games 2/2/08 (Plt at RF & Osh at St)

2008-02-03T12:48:00.000-06:00

Two WIAC games in one day and a 4-0 prediction day. Not too shabby. Holy cow, this is going to be a long blog. Better grab a beverage…

WW 85 EC 65 WW holds onto a share of the conference lead by taking care of business against the up and down Golds. Like a good old fashioned baseball brawl, both benches were cleared in this one. Everyone got a chance to see the floor for both teams. The game was tied at 21 with nine minutes in the first and WW went on a 19-6 run to end the half and essentially end the game. EC’s sole bright spot was Dan Beyer once again. Kori Vernon had a nice game with 29 BARPS in 28 minutes. A couple interesting stats: WW shot 43 FTs vs 15 for EC. Kevin Koski was 9-18 from the line. I guess EC tried the “hack-a-Shaq” strategy on him.

Lax 62 Sup 53 Chris Fehrenbach helped pace the Eagles attack with 15 of his 21 points in the first half as the Eagles go on to take sole possession of 5th place in the conference. Superior once again struggled from the floor going 21-57. Dan Culy didn’t step off the roller coaster after last game and he went 1-10 from the floor. Tony Mane had another tough game from the floor also. None of the freshman impressed each other in this one. Andrew Haass is stepping up as Lax’s main inside threat, dropping 11 points and 10 boards.

Plt 71 RF 60 Platteville looked good. They have a nice balanced attack and it was clear that they have 6 different players who could burn you on any given night. Jeff Skemp was an absolute monster in this one. He must have taken his rehab time last season as an opportunity to bulk up a bit because he was huge. It was crazy how much bigger he is than everyone else. I’ve been kind of hard on him, but he definitely made me shut up a bit after this game. He basically had his way out there and he even took one coast-to-coast a la Magic Johnson. The only knock I have after seeing this game is that I would like to see him attack the rim with a little more authority. He’s content to take the lay-up and while he only missed 4 shots all game I think he could have nearly perfect if he went to the rim with a Dwight Howard like ferociousness. He’s a terrific player, no doubt.

RF actually played much better than they did on Wednesday, but they just couldn’t get their shots to fall in the first half. They did a nice job matching Plt’s intensity in the first half and the game got physical early because the refs allowed it. I would say it got borderline chippy at times. Plt came out in the second half and looked like a conference champion. They ran some real efficient sets and jumped out to a 56-40 lead with 10 minutes to go. RF made a slight run towards the end, but it was too little too late.

Osh 78 St 61 I jumped in the car and put the petal to the metal down on I-94 and actually walked into Johnson Fieldhouse right as the game was tipping off, sans Oles though. I have to thank the guy who was driving in front of me, who got pulled over by the state trooper. He took one for the team and opened up the interstate for the rest of us.

Like most of their wins this season, the big three dominated the game for Oshkosh while the Defensive Specialist and Detlef Schrimpf played their roles nicely. It was a nice team win for Oshkosh. Matt Miller was outstanding. He was NBA Jam “on fire!” Running off screens, taking guys off the dribble, and just shooting in people’s faces. It didn’t matter. He was not going to be shut down. The crazy thing was that his shots were hitting nothing but twine. There was no doubt that his shots were going to fall because he had his stroke going. If he is hitting like that I don’t see anyone beating them. Unfortunately for Osh, he doesn’t always shoot like that.

DSA was a monster down low. Stout was without Eric Heisler, so any post presence Stout may have had was gone and DSA took advantage of that. There is no reason why he shouldn’t put up close to a double-double every game. He just needs to learn to keep his hands to himself. He gave that extra little reach at the end of a play and the refs called him every time.

I don’t know if there is anyone in the conference who can keep DJ Marsh from getting to the rim. He has an amazing ability to slash through the lane and he finishes just as good as anyone else in the conference. He is absolutely terrified to take a jump shot though. If he can develop a jumper in the off season, he will be an absolute force next year.

Johnson was fun to watch. He played all 40 minutes and never slowed down. I would say Ryan Shea and him win the Energizer Bunny award for their ability to keep going and going. I sat in the Oshkosh parent section during the game and it was clear why Jordan’s motor keeps running. His mom was cheering loudly and non-stop during the whole game. It was impressive.

It was fun watching TVD dropping f-bombs all game too. The TVD highlight of the game happened when Stout was making a mini-run in the second half and DJ Marsh lost the ball out of bounds. TVD turns and just starts reaming one of the guys on the bench for not being vocal in support of his teammates. Nothing like never getting in the game and still getting your butt chewed.

Stout looked like a much improved team for small stretches of the game. Hostetter looks like he is going to be a nice player for Eddie and the boys. In the end though, it’s just another loss for Stout.

On a positive note, Stout’s varsity reserve put a spanking on UW-Barron County this past week.

Poll Results: 1st Half FOY

2008-02-01T16:52:00.000-06:00

Jake Smith received 25/70 votes for the first half freshman of the year award. Tony Mane came in 2nd with 17/70 votes and Ryan Shea finished 3rd with 14/70 votes.

Jake is a great young talent and a great piece to build around. He is already a tremendous post player. He has some wonderful moves with his back to the basket and he creates match-up problems when he steps outside and hits threes. Once he gets a little better on the defense end and on the boards he will be a complete player and the main offensive weapon for that pesky Superior bunch.

Tony Mane made a late surge in the voting to step up into second. I was really impressed with him. He’s known for his tremendous shooting, but I was most impressed with his ability to move without the ball and get open looks in the lane. He might be a little three point happy at this time, but once he figures out how to play in the WIAC he could be dominant.

Ryan Shea does it all. His stat lines are impressive because there is almost always numbers other than zeros in the BARPS categories. He has so much energy and works just as hard as anyone out there. His athleticism is phenomenal. One of those types of players that you know would be good at any sport he tried.

Culy, Manor, and Hurd also have bright futures and I look forward to seeing these guys lead the WIAC for the next few years.