Case just beat NYU at Coles, 73-63, completing the season sweep!  In the past 21 years, the Lady Spartans had only beaten NYU once.  This year, they did it twice, and both games involved second-half comebacks.  The home Violets led by 13 early in the second half, but Case outscored them, 38-15, in the last 15 minutes, including an 11-0 run to end the game.  The telling stat of the game was CWRU's 57.4% field goal shooting (27/47).

Brandeis is next on Sunday.  Last week, Case showed that they're capable of knocking them off, though they fell short-- can they get it done this time?

Well I haven't been here in a while, but I got to see the games at Case yesterday when I traveled to Cleveland for the weekend.  This was the first time I had seen the Lady Spartans play under new coach Jennifer Reimer.  Any time Case plays NYU, the game will always be entertaining, intense, and physical, and I did all I could to cheer my alma mater on to victory.  (The fact that I'm originally from the New York area-- how about those Giants?-- and that I applied to NYU for grad school but wasn't offered any financial support only intensified the situation.)

The game went back and forth for most of the first half, with lots of fouls and turnovers, until the visiting Violets scored 10 straight points to open up an 11-point lead.  In years past, I've seen quite a few games that would turn into blowouts at this point, but the Lady Spartans were able to get some momentum and cut the deficit to six at halftime, 35-29.

Just before halftime, the SID at Case must have recognized me from my time there (plus I was wearing my silver throwback jersey that I bought from the athletic department's clearance sale in '04), and he selected me, as well as a current student, to compete in the halftime shooting contest.  I won, with members of the NYU men's team cheering me on; the prize was a gift certificate to a local restaurant.

The intensity resumed quickly in the second half, as Case pulled even with 21st-ranked NYU.  After the lead changed hands a few times, the Lady Spartans went on a 26-7 run to open up the largest lead they have ever held on NYU, at 68-50.  Case's three-point shooting, which had been absent in the first half, turned on; this year's team has even more outside threats than before.  The home team held on for a 70-58 victory-- Case's first ever against NYU at home (the only previous win was in New York, during the dream season of '01-'02).

Sophomore guard Ashleigh Tondo had a double-double, 18 points and 12 rebounds for CWRU; senior Mary Herendeen and freshman Caitlin Henry added 16 and 14 respectively, and senior Ashley Horton pulle down 13 rebounds to move into second place on the all-time list at Case.  NYU's Jessica McEntee led all scorers with 25 points.

Case improves to 10-8 on the season, 3-4 in the UAA, while NYU lost their fourth straight to fall to 13-5, 2-5.  If Case can win four of seven games during the second round of conference play, they could have their best record in the UAA since 2002.  The team has looked promising, even with a smaller roster, and I'm looking forward to seeing how Coach Reimer continues to build the team in the near future.

Now that I've read the boxscore, the loss looks even more painful.  Case fell behind by 19, then rallied for most of the second half to cut the Wash U lead to 1-- then missed five shots in a row that would have given them the lead.

Someday, somewhere, with some group of players, the Case women's basketball team will defeat Wash U.  And this was the closest they've ever come.

Quote from: martin on January 12, 2007, 09:38:11 PM
Friday Jan 12

Chicago 81  at Emory 50
Washington 65 at Case 62

Wash/Case was much closer than expected.  Chicago did a number on Emory.

Yeah, it was the first time that Case so much as lost by single digits to Wash U-- seriously.  This one literally came down to the last shot (a missed 3 at the buzzer).

That being said, I will be very pleasantly surprised if Case can beat undefeated Chicago on Sunday-- though it has happened before (see Rochester, 2004).

Sorry I haven't been here that much this season.  So, Case lost to Emory for the first time in seven years, which leaves them at 8-4 (incidentally the same record as Wash U).  However, even though Wash U is having a down year (and not a "22-5, lose in the 2nd round" kind of down year) I'm still not optimistic about Case's chances.  We'll just have to see how it plays out.

*And yes, this is the time of year where I mention that Case has never beaten Wash U in... what is it now, 26 tries?  I've been away from campus for a while, so I may have lost count.  I do plan on being there for Throwback Weekend, though.

Quote from: mark_reichert on November 20, 2006, 04:26:39 PM

Quote from: martin on November 19, 2006, 08:04:45 PM
What happened to the Bears?  I can see losing to a tough DePauw team - ranled #3.    But then losing to Central?

It's something my Dad and I have worried about for the last two years, particularly last year.  They don't have anybody who can score like Kelly Manning and Danielle Beehler, or any of the previous players that took up the offensive responsibilities.  The sophomores and freshmen might contain such people but they're not there yet.

BTW, does anybody know what the Karma rating is for and why I have -5?

I might as well say it now.  Is this the year that Case finally beats Wash U?

Case won a pair in Cincinnati this weekend, beating host Mt. St. Joseph in a close one (they didn't lead until the last 5 minutes) but then winning more convincingly over Denison.  Freshman guard Ashleigh Tondo had a very impressive debut with 17 points and 11 rebounds, and in the second game, senior Dana Dempsey led four Lady Spartans in double figures.  Tomorrow, Case has their rivalry game with #9 Baldwin-Wallace, a matchup that has produced many memorable games in recent years.  B-W won the last meeting by 3 in a game that literally came down to the last shot.

I've got to pull for CMU as well, even though B-W is a local team (Case didn't play them this year).  Interestingly enough, this is the first season since at least 2000-01 that the Case men have beaten an NCAA tournament team, and they beat two (CMU and Bethany).

Go Tartans (you won't hear me say that too often)!  Do the UAA proud!

Well, at least one of my pre-season predictions came true: the UAA got four teams in the tourney... and Case finished fifth-- not too shabby.  I was surprised to see NYU get in after losing their last four, but I'm definitely not complaining.

So Brandeis makes their first ever tournament appearance, which means that every UAA team has gone at least once to the tourney (Case went once in 2002, Emory last made it in 1997 or 98, Carnegie Mellon last went in 1991 or 92, and Chicago last went in 1989-- someone please correct me if I'm wrong).

And Case extends another streak-- in each of the last six years, they've beaten at least one team who made the NCAA Tournament:

00-01: Baldwin-Wallace
01-02: Ohio Wesleyan, Baldwin-Wallace, Mt. St. Mary
02-03: Wilmington
03-04: Rochester
04-05: Baldwin-Wallace
05-06: Rochester

Good luck to all four UAA teams in the tournament.  Do our conference proud!

Case ends the season with a four-game winning streak, as the seniors who played their last game end up going 6-8 in the UAA all four years.  The Lady Spartans beat Emory, 65-46, in a game that was somewhat of a blowout.

Case held Emory to two points in the first eight minutes and 13 in the first half; yet, their turnovers still allowed Emory to have a reasonable chance to come back.  However, Case then opened up a 47-22 lead with 13 minutes to go, and the outcome was no longer in doubt.  High scorers for the Lady Spartans were Dana Dempsey with 17, Andrea Haylett with 14, and Amber Hammell with 13; she finishes #10 on the all-time scoring list with 910 points.

This game was Case's 12th straight victory over Emory dating back to when I was a freshman.  To keep the streak alive, Case has had to overcome some unusual obstacles or statistical anomalies:

2003: Trailed by 16 points in the second half
2004: Shot 21% from the field
2005: Trailed by nine with a minute to go (won in OT)
2006: Committed 22 turnovers

And the streak still stands.  This was the fewest points Case had allowed all year, and the fewest in a half that I can remember.  Most importantly, Case finishes the year at 13-12 for their first winning season since '02-'03 and fourth in six years.

Case defeated Emory in the season finale today, 89-78.  After the Spartans built an early 11-point lead, the Eagles came back and took the lead before halftime, and after the teams went back and forth early in the second half, Case slowly pulled away.

Carson Oren scored 17 points and pulled down a career-high 21 rebounds; he will graduate with totals of 1,563 and 727, the highest in school history.  Fellow seniors Rich Mullen and Funso Lafe also scored 17, while sophomore Mason Conrad added 14.  Jeff Hall scored 18 for Emory to lead everyone.  Case outshot Emory 60% to 36% for the game.

So Case finishes at 12-13 and 4-10 in the UAA.  The conference record doesn't look like much, but the Spartans have won more UAA games this year than the last two years combined.  (This was also the first time I saw both the men's and women's teams win on the same day since 23 January 2004 against Carnegie Mellon.)  The Spartans finish tied for seventh place with the Eagles.

I will be in Cleveland for the Case-Emory game today, so I won't be able to give updates, but I'll provide a recap when I get back.

Today, I'll root for whatever combination of teams results in the most teams making the NCAA tournament, which means (sorry Allen, but I think your Judges are safe) that I've got to pull for NYU, since they'll probably not make it if they lose.  Rochester also needs to win; Chicago is most likely out.

Case 72, Carnegie Mellon 61, Final

Dana Dempsey set a new career high with 23 points.  Case pulls even at 12-12 and can finish a winning season if they beat Emory at home on Saturday.

CMU is making this one interesting... they trail by only 9 (53-44) with about 8 minutes to go, and they have the ball after a timeout.

Quote from: jagluski on February 19, 2006, 03:48:21 PM
Off the NYU website, I know it hasn't happened since at least 2002-2003, but I bet it has been much longer.  When was the last time NYU lost both games of a home UAA weekend?  

That's a good question.  In '01-'02, NYU went 7-7 in the UAA, but most of their losses were on the road.  We have to consider what pair of traveling partners could have beaten the Violets consecutively.  Case has only one win at Coles (in 2002) and NYU beat Emory at home that year.  I can't remember Rochester and CMU both being strong (or CMU and Emory, who were traveling partners through 2001) at the same time, so it may have been Wash U and Chicago like it was this week.

At the start of the second half, Case leads Carnegie Mellon, 40-23.

Nate Maurer is on the line shooting 2.
First shot is good.  Second shot is good.  :35 to play.

Turnover, Rich Mullen was called for a double dribble, although it looked like an interrupted dribble.

Maurer is back on the line.  Both shots are good; he has 30 points.

After a miss by Case, Maurer was fouled in transition.
He missed both shots with :07 left.  Timeout for Case.

Carson Oren made a quick 3.  Matta is fouled with :02.8.
Both shots are good.

Final score: Carnegie Mellon 80, Case 75

So Wash U will win the UAA if and only if they beat Chicago on the road and CMU loses to Rochester.  In any other situation, CMU wins the title.  All other teams are now eliminated.