MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[KnightSlappy]

the..."I simply didn't come ready to play" award goes TO..... Albion College, who is down 56-18 with 15 minutes left

Oh my. I have nothing else to say.

Albion must have finished well, they ended up 48 points. That's the fourth time in seven conference games that they've failed to hit 50 points.

[Dark Knight]

Hope over Olivet and Trine +54.

Calvin oner Olivet and Trine +55.

[NW Hope Fan]

Hope over Olivet and Trine +54.

Calvin oner Olivet and Trine +55.

I'm telling ya... 2/11 is gonna be a battle!

[goodknight]

Not much drama in the Van Noord Arena tonight, as the Knights thumped the outmanned Comets 93-65.
Calvin led by double-digits early and built the lead throughout behind Snikkers (22 points), Powell (18 points), DeBoer (12) and Kruis (11).  Another stellar shooting night for Calvin, hitting 59 percent from the field.

To be charitable, Olivet is not very good at basketball right now.

Very big game for the Knights at the Van Noord on Saturday, when the Bulldogs come calling to start the second round of the conference season.

[Erm Schmigget]

UW Whitewater lost to Stevens Point tonight, raising the possibility they could be ranked #2 next week.  If #1 Middlebury can figure ot a way to lose to #13 Williams (which just lost at home v. #7 Amherst by only 2), Hope could find themselves in the top spot.  I agree w/ NWHF's earlier comment, and don't put much stock in polls, especially when you try to compare teams with no common opponents.  But it's kinda fun to have your team be considered #1 anyway, and it would add to the Rivalry history and lore if one team is ranked best in the land at tipoff of a Rivalry game.

Go Williams!

[scottiedawg]

Keene St. is no patsy on 1/31 either. #53 currently in Massey; Williams is #36. And even their third game on 2/3 is vs #121 Bowdoin, which would be 3rd among MIAA teams.

[HopeConvert]

Hope over Olivet and Trine +54.

Calvin oner Olivet and Trine +55.

Hope over Calvin +16

[KnightSlappy]

Hope over Olivet and Trine +54.

Calvin over Olivet and Trine +55.

Hope's win over Trine came on the road, so they probably deserve 2 or 3 points of upward adjustment. Still, very close.

[Stinger]

Hope over Olivet and Trine +54.

Calvin oner Olivet and Trine +55.

Hope over Calvin +16

says the Calvin grad...

[sac]

Hope 85 Trine 62

Hope's defense was probably the difference in this one, not sure the score properly reflects Hope's effort on the defensive end of things.  Ian Jackson couldn't get any good looks tonight, Billy Seiler and Logan Neil were in his jersey all night and Hope's switching, communication and awareness of Jackson on defense were superb.   Hope was not going to let Jackson beat them and they made sure of it.  Jackson couldn't even attempt a shot in the 2nd half.  On the inside Tim Pearcy had a terrible night shooting the ball, I think he had a lot of trouble with Van Arendonk, Snuggerud, Holwerda and Ray.  So the Dutchmen pretty much took away 2 of Trine's 3 headed scoring monster and left the offense to Scott Rogers and the capable Chris Kent.  Unfortunately for Trine almost 1/3 of their points tonight were meaningless, scored in the games last 8 minutes when it was pretty much over.

Offensively Hope was a well oiled passing machine with Nate Snuggerud being the primary benefactor, boy did he have a man sized game.  Lots of great movement and crisp passing, and I thought great shot selection all night from the Dutchmen.  Really nice to see Billy Seiler play well and contribute great minutes on both ends of the court.  Overall this was a really solid team effort as Hope had 34 points off the bench and I really can't think of anyone who struggled.

The one and only negative was probably turnovers but so many of these were from Hope trying to make plays or losing the ball after making a great defensive play.  I really didn't feel like Hope was sloppy with the ball at all.  I will give Trine a lot of credit for their energy and effort on defense, they were there all night and didn't make things easy for Hope which is probably why I'm so thrilled with how Hope played.  They really had to earn it.  For awhile Trine did a great job cutting off some of the usual passing lanes but eventually Hope figured it out and the lead just kind of gradually expanded.

It's a nice way to finish off the first half of the league schedule.

http://www.miaa.org/mbb/stats/1112/0125trho.htm

[sac]

standings with +/-........+1 for road wins/-1 for home losses

Hope          7-0       +3
Adrian        5-2        +2
Trine          4-3       +1
Calvin         4-3       0
Albion         3-4       -1
Alma          2-5       -1
Kzoo          2-5        -2
Olivet         1-6       -2



Saturday-- Adrian @ Calvin is obviously the game of the day.  Kzoo and Alma are pretty close to each game being a must win to make the tournament if they aren't already.

Saturday, January 28
Alma at Hope, 3 p.m.
Adrian at Calvin, 3 p.m.
Albion at Olivet, 3 p.m.
Kalamazoo at Trine, 3 p.m.

What's left

Adrian:  @Calvin, HOPE, TRINE, @Olivet, ALMA, KZOO, @Albion
Albion:  @Olivet, CALVIN, HOPE, @Trine, @Kzoo, @Alma, ADRIAN
Alma:    @Hope, TRINE, OLIVET, @Calvin, @Adrian, ALBION, KZOO
Calvin:   ADRIAN, @Albion, @Kzoo, ALMA, HOPE, @Trine, @Olivet
Hope:    ALMA, @Adrian, @Albion, KZOO, @Calvin, @Olivet, TRINE
Kzoo:    @Trine, OLIVET, CALVIN, @Hope, ALBION, @Adrian, @Alma
Olivet:   ALBION, @Kzoo, @Alma, ADRIAN, @Trine, HOPE, CALVIN
Trine:    KZOO, @Alma, @Adrian, ALBION, OLIVET, CALVIN, @Hope


One thing that stands out is how Albion has its 3 toughest games all at home in Kresge.  The Britons will have a chance at least to push for a tournament slot but they're going to have to probably win two out of their Calvin/Hope/Adrian home stretch and not lose on the road anywhere.

[oldknight]

Fresh off her one week foray into and through the Golden State, the ever perceptive Mrs. OldKnight had several interesting comments from last night's action. She entered VNA, looked at the Comets' record in the program, and wondered out loud what had happened to Gene Giffords' coaching skills. It only took her 5 minutes of play to recognize that her sorrow for KVS and his player losses was compeletely misplaced because Olivet is a team bereft of talent. Quite a comedown from the McClary years. I told Mrs. OK that Calvin seems to have mysteriously become a better shooting team the last few games and she then pointed out  the obvious--the Knights shot selection is greatly improved and maybe that had something to do with it. I hate it when she notices something I should have seen.

[Dark Knight]

Kuyper 78 Grace Bible 67, snapping Grace Bible's 69-game win streak vs. NCCAA teams.

Kuyper is now ranked 4th in the NCCAA, and I don't think they'd finish last in the MIAA.

[goodknight]

Hope over Olivet and Trine +54.

Calvin oner Olivet and Trine +55.

Hope over Calvin +16

says the Calvin grad...

We've tried everything -- interventions, exorcism -- and still he continues in his stubborn apostasy.

He could be Frisian, and thus hopeless.   

[Happy Calvin Guy]

the Knights shot selection is greatly improved

In my observation both Tom Snikkers and Bryan Powell have significantly improved their discipline and shot selection.  Bryan is actually listed amongst the league leaders for FG% for MIAA games--you could've gotten long odds on that before the season started.  Kudos to both of them for their maturity and leadership.  On this board I've consistently expressed a belief that for this Knight team to succeed, they need Tommy to step up and be THE leader.  To me leadership means positive vocal leadership to teammates, respectful coachability/listening, handling ref calls against him in a non emotional way, unselfish play on the offensive end of the floor, and better shot selection.  I see big strides in all of those areas and commend him for that.  You can count Tommy amongst those who have seen the biggest improvement from the non-conference portion of the season to the league schedule.   Don't look now but if this continues he could actually be part of the MVP discussion before all is said and done.  Perhaps his individual and the team struggles in the early part of the season have forged maturity.

Bryan is so effective with his mid range jumpshot and slashing to the hoop and finishing.  He seems to have mostly given up on trying to chuck 3's which is a great thing.  The difference in his shooting % between a 17 foot jumper and a 22 foot jumper is staggering.  He and Rietema are awesome in the open floor, and even KVS made some references in the post game interview to trying to alter their game to "get up and down the floor" more quickly with that personnel. 

Others I've seen great improvement throughout the season:  Rietema, Van Eck, Dykstra.  I disagree with KS on Van Eck--I think he will be an important part of the squad in 2012-13.  Dan Stout gives me the impression of a young Brent Schuster--tall, thin, and good rotation on his shot.   

I realize this year's version of Olivet tends to make teams look good, but I from what I've seen in recent weeks the Knights could still make a season out of this.  Saturday will be a great litmus test for how far we have or haven't come.