MBB: NESCAC

[BaboNation]

Apologies if this has been posted before - popped up on my feed:

Alex Stoddard won the 2026 Best Documentary Short from the Summer League Film Festival for his feature "The Kid from Boston", the story of Terrance Clarke.

Also, again if you haven't seen it, check out the "Sideline Story" the documentary he produced with Spencer Spivy and 3 others on the 2022-2023 Williams basketball season:

https://vimeo.com/1118584699

This is as well-produced as anything I've seen at any level.  Super talented young men and women who put this together.  If this doesn't get you pumped for the upcoming season, what will it take?

[SpringSt7]

Stoddard is one of the cooler stories in the NESCAC that never really got a lot of run because there were so many guys in the COVID roster/eligibility blender (which seems like a walk in the park compared to the current situation!) but he always had knee injuries and after playing in 16 games as a sophomore (COVID junior) and then missing his entire 22-23 season, he made the decision to retire. But then he came back to school and realized that if all of his friends were going to be playing basketball that he should just try to play and even if he got hurt again he would at least get to be on the bench and travel with the team.

Well he managed to stay the healthiest he had been and had a breakthrough with his knee treatment/rehab and played in all 28 games. Then he went to Babson for his 4th year of eligibility and averaged 10 points per game in 27 minutes, including scoring 22 points in a career high 45 minutes played in a double OT win against eventual national champion Trinity. And now doing all this great stuff - well done!

[D3BBALL]

Alex is a tremendous person, anyone that has met him will tell you that. As Spring said Alex and others hurt very much by Covid and Alex with injuries. The game I remember most was his senior year at Williams, championship game against Trinity. Alex had 18 points (I think his career high at Williams) 6-8 from three and was the player that kept Williams in the game in the 2nd half.

[jumpshot]

Alex Stoddard is an outstanding young man ... smart, resilient, courageous and hard-working. Best wishes to another fine EPH!

[SpringSt7]

Hamilton College alum and LA Clippers President of Basketball Operations Gillian Zucker was in the news this week.

[NYHoopsGuru]

Given how weak this NESCAC senior class is and the potential keys to the offense, is Jared Berry a realistic POTY candidate?

- Guru

[D3BBALL]

Given how weak this NESCAC senior class is and the potential keys to the offense, is Jared Berry a realistic POTY candidate?

- Guru

I think he should be, especially since the biggest barometer seems to be scoring. Trinity in its starting lineup will have 1 proven scorer and that is Berry. Ayles, Norris and Davis could all step up and will need to do so, but Berry could average close to or more than 20 points per game. Now most teams will know this and that could hurt Berry as he may be doubled team and his height could hurt him. But he plays much bigger than his height and has no fear against bigs. He also moves without the ball very well and takes it to the basket as well as anyone in the league, so he could get mores chances at the line. And unlike this year he won't lose votes to a teammate. He is going to play 10+ more minutes per game than he has ever played and probably is going to get more shots per game than anyone on a trinity team has taken in the past 4 years.
I think Pouye is the favorite, if he stays healthy he can just dominate/affect the game in many ways.

[nescac1]

I think Berry is a realistic candidate but pretty far down the list.  I feel that Zach Wolinski continues to be a bit overlooked and is clearly the best returning player in the conference, and also is on the team likely to be the pre-season favorite which will help his cause.  He had a very strong year last season, 18-4-2, and seems to work really hard on his game based on what a leap he made from his first year and even throughout the season last year (he averaged 21.5 ppg over his last ten games, half of which were post-season games).  He is virtually tireless, playing nearly every meaningful minute of the season, despite having to work really hard to find his spots.  He can easily get to 20 ppg if he makes modest improvements in his 3 point shooting, which seems likely.  And he should get more opportunities to be a creator on the ball with Pohlman graduating.  I could easily see him getting to 20-5-5 next year, which are clear POTY numbers. 

After Wolinsky, I'd say Pouye (probably most talented guy in the league but he can be taken out of a game on offense at times, but certainly the highest upside guy) and Neville (who looked VERY good for Amherst down the stretch) would be my next two guys.  Then there is a group including Berry, Rein, Chin, Dylan Watson, dark horse Ricardo Nieves who have an outside chance, but I'd be surprised if one of the top three didn't end up POTY. 

And yeah, this really is one of the weakest NESCAC senior classes in memory.  Of the top 15 scorers from last year, I think Pouye is the only rising senior who will be playing next year (I think Rideout is not returning for Hamilton, but not certain on that, if he is back that's two).  Will make for a less predictable league than the last few seasons. 

[el_jefe_90]

A guy I think could be a surprise is Ben Lyttle at Wesleyan. 8.9ppg and 7.7rpg a year ago and has always been solid in his role. He was also excellent at the end of the season. Scored in double figures in the final 8 games and had 5 double-doubles during that stretch.

While they bring back some good players, they do lose Sam Pohlman, Fritz Hauser and Jackson Cormier. That could mean Lyttle gets more chances.