Just got back from watching Eastern Oregon, which was rolling with 10 minutes left thanks to some impressive shooting in the second half. The same crew of officials that Morningside had this morning were doing this game, and they weren't any better. They actually had to go to the replay to determine who an early foul was on in the lane, when myself, Adam Tyhurst and Matt Culhane all clearly saw who it was from the other end of the court. How did our six eyes see the right number from there, but the six eyes on the court didn't?
It seems like a guarantee that there are going to be a few touch fouls on the perimeter called in the opening minutes no matter what. That could be a factor, as we'll be up on Grand View's shooters. We'll have to play them close, but keep our hands off.
Today's shoot-around was pretty good. I spent most of the time chatting with our "Honorary Coaches," Mark Sill from Hiland Dairy and Kevin Gerard from Country Mart. They're both great guys and have been really accommodating during our stay. The honorary coaches program is pretty cool, and a good way to tie teams into the region and give them someone in the area to give some support.
One interesting thing I took from today's shoot-around: during the team's layup drills, Ike Muoneke and Preston Broughton were standing under the basket to give guys a little contact or a hand in their face while they were going up. Since these tournament games are typically a little rougher inside, hopefully this tactic paid off to get our guys used to the contact down low.
Today hasn't been quite as long as I thought it would be, although maybe it's been worse for the players. However, everybody seems relaxed and adaquately prepared. We'll be going to the gym to see the game prior to ours, which is No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan and Fisher. The winner of our game will face that winner, so it will be a good chance to get a little scouting in, and I think it's good because it mirrors our regular season routine. If I can, I'll check back in with one more post from the gym before tip off.
**The DWU women's basketball team has signed two recruits thus far, and both are on display this weekend in the Class B State Tournament. Click here to read about Sully Butte's Elizabeth Lamb, and here to read about Summit's Brittany Hills, both courtesy of the Aberdeen American News.
**I actually found one place in Branson that carried the Big Ten Network so I could watch my Minnesota Golden Gophers beat Northwestern to advance in the Big 10 tourney and hopefully clinch a spot in the big dance. I wasn't the only Gopher fan in the Branson area today. Another guy who actually graduated from Minnesota's journalism school the same year as me was in town for business and looking to watch the game and a family from the cities also showed up to watch the game. So it's been a good day of basketball for me so far, now let's hope it continues tonight.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Some Game Day Links
Good morning from Branson. Just got back from watching most of the Morningside game. The Mustangs hung on for a 2-point win, so the GPAC is now 2-1 at the tourney. Kind of a weird, sloppy game with lots of turnovers and not a lot of flow. Also, another game with strange officiating.
The team is watching film on Grand View right now, with lunch to follow and a shoot-around at 2 p.m. I'm heading to Branson's only sports bar to catch my alma mater, the University of Minnesota, in the first round of the Big Ten tournament before meeting back up with everyone before practice.
At the tournament, each team gets to warm up during halftime of the previous game, so we saw Black Hills State and Cal-State East Bay warming up, and we came away with one impression. One of CS-EB's players looks EXACTLY like Kobe Bryant. I'm not sure what that means, but if he plays like Kobe, the Hills could be another upset victim.
Here are a few links regarding today's game to get you pumped for the Tigers' tip tonight at 9:15 p.m....
-Click here for my preview of the game.
-Click here for the Daily Republic's preview, and also click here for their Tiger Zone blog. Leah Rado has a few blog entries leading up to the game that are worth checking out.
-Click here for Grand View's men's basketball page.
-Click here for DWU's tournament page.
That should tide you over for now.
The team is watching film on Grand View right now, with lunch to follow and a shoot-around at 2 p.m. I'm heading to Branson's only sports bar to catch my alma mater, the University of Minnesota, in the first round of the Big Ten tournament before meeting back up with everyone before practice.
At the tournament, each team gets to warm up during halftime of the previous game, so we saw Black Hills State and Cal-State East Bay warming up, and we came away with one impression. One of CS-EB's players looks EXACTLY like Kobe Bryant. I'm not sure what that means, but if he plays like Kobe, the Hills could be another upset victim.
Here are a few links regarding today's game to get you pumped for the Tigers' tip tonight at 9:15 p.m....
-Click here for my preview of the game.
-Click here for the Daily Republic's preview, and also click here for their Tiger Zone blog. Leah Rado has a few blog entries leading up to the game that are worth checking out.
-Click here for Grand View's men's basketball page.
-Click here for DWU's tournament page.
That should tide you over for now.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
USF?
I'll just mention it quickly and then move on, but USF is in the Sweet 16. We were at the Keeter Gym for the last few minutes of their upset of No. 3 Cedarville, which stands as the biggest upset of the day. USF matched up well with Cedarville, and made enough plays at the end to hold off the heavy favorites. We just got back to the hotel after the Parade of Champions and the first half of the Ozarks-Aquinas game. The winner of that one will play USF Friday, and I can't believe I'm saying this, but I won't be surprised if the Cougars streak continues. March Madness indeed.
Speaking of March Madness, I wanted to share a quote I overheard from a reporter in the green room tonight: "They call the NCAA Tournament March Madness, but if basketball people really want to experience March Madness, they should spend the week at this tournament. This is truly March Madness. The other one is Money Madness." Interesting take. It certainly is a crazy scene on the Ozarks campus, but the two tournaments obviously have very different setups. Imagine if the NCAA's field of 65 was at one site with just two off-days. It's the nature of the beast.
Speaking of the green room and comparisons to the NCAA tournament, here's one I feel confident making: the NAIA DII hospitality room blows the Final Four's out of the water. I was lucky enough to get a press pass to the 2001 Final Four at the Metrodome when I was a sophomore journalism student at Minnesota, but that spread doesn't hold a candle to what they offer in Point Lookout. They have two tvs with live feeds of the games going on, couches, tables, chairs, etc., and an unbelievable spread of food and snacks. In fact, I might be getting up for Morningside's 8:30 a.m. tip just to take advantage of the breakfast there.
Click here to read the preview I wrote for tomorrow's game vs. Grand View. Here are a few thoughts of my own that I couldn't put in the preview after seeing a little of the Vikings on tape in the last game - the MCC title game vs. Iowa Wesleyan, which they lost by a point.
-Their point guard Grant Burns is a real playmaker and they have two excellent outside shooters in Aussie native Rohan Greaves and Greg Schulz. On the tape I saw both those guys not only hit threes with ease, they hit them from really deep. Burns is a terror in the open court too, and if he can get into the lane and either create and score or kick to those shooters, they seem to be at their best.
-I didn't see much from their inside game, although Iowa Wesleyan had a very good inside player which could have been a big part of it. Cory Viet averages 17 and 7, but I'd guess Brady Wiebe and Ike Muoneke and even Mike Long could have big days inside.
-Grand View only gives up 62 on defense, but its hard to tell from the tape we saw how much of that is chalked up to style of play and competition. They seemed to pressure the ball OK, but they occasionally lost shooters and cutters, so if we get our offense moving and everyone works themselves into the flow, there could be decent scoring opportunities for us in the half court.
-The officiating down here is weird, to put it nicely. They seem to let a lot of contact go uncalled under the hoop, but guys get whistled for a lot of touch fouls away from the basket. Whichever team adjusts quickest to the way the game is being called could be at a huge advantage. Hopefully that's where our Branson experience pays off.
That's all for now. I'll be back with another round of photos tomorrow at some point, along with any other thoughts leading up to the tip. Remember, there are a lot of ways you can follow the game, all the links are on our special tournament page. Also, there will be a viewing on the DWU campus in the Sherman Center, so feel free to go there to root the Tigers on with other fans.
Tomorrow's going to be a long day.
Speaking of March Madness, I wanted to share a quote I overheard from a reporter in the green room tonight: "They call the NCAA Tournament March Madness, but if basketball people really want to experience March Madness, they should spend the week at this tournament. This is truly March Madness. The other one is Money Madness." Interesting take. It certainly is a crazy scene on the Ozarks campus, but the two tournaments obviously have very different setups. Imagine if the NCAA's field of 65 was at one site with just two off-days. It's the nature of the beast.
Speaking of the green room and comparisons to the NCAA tournament, here's one I feel confident making: the NAIA DII hospitality room blows the Final Four's out of the water. I was lucky enough to get a press pass to the 2001 Final Four at the Metrodome when I was a sophomore journalism student at Minnesota, but that spread doesn't hold a candle to what they offer in Point Lookout. They have two tvs with live feeds of the games going on, couches, tables, chairs, etc., and an unbelievable spread of food and snacks. In fact, I might be getting up for Morningside's 8:30 a.m. tip just to take advantage of the breakfast there.
Click here to read the preview I wrote for tomorrow's game vs. Grand View. Here are a few thoughts of my own that I couldn't put in the preview after seeing a little of the Vikings on tape in the last game - the MCC title game vs. Iowa Wesleyan, which they lost by a point.
-Their point guard Grant Burns is a real playmaker and they have two excellent outside shooters in Aussie native Rohan Greaves and Greg Schulz. On the tape I saw both those guys not only hit threes with ease, they hit them from really deep. Burns is a terror in the open court too, and if he can get into the lane and either create and score or kick to those shooters, they seem to be at their best.
-I didn't see much from their inside game, although Iowa Wesleyan had a very good inside player which could have been a big part of it. Cory Viet averages 17 and 7, but I'd guess Brady Wiebe and Ike Muoneke and even Mike Long could have big days inside.
-Grand View only gives up 62 on defense, but its hard to tell from the tape we saw how much of that is chalked up to style of play and competition. They seemed to pressure the ball OK, but they occasionally lost shooters and cutters, so if we get our offense moving and everyone works themselves into the flow, there could be decent scoring opportunities for us in the half court.
-The officiating down here is weird, to put it nicely. They seem to let a lot of contact go uncalled under the hoop, but guys get whistled for a lot of touch fouls away from the basket. Whichever team adjusts quickest to the way the game is being called could be at a huge advantage. Hopefully that's where our Branson experience pays off.
That's all for now. I'll be back with another round of photos tomorrow at some point, along with any other thoughts leading up to the tip. Remember, there are a lot of ways you can follow the game, all the links are on our special tournament page. Also, there will be a viewing on the DWU campus in the Sherman Center, so feel free to go there to root the Tigers on with other fans.
Tomorrow's going to be a long day.
From the Media Room...
Checking in quick from the Media Room at Keeter Gymnasium. Our guys are watching No. 10 Mount Vernon Nazarene and Bellevue right now, so I just stopped in here to get a little work done. I just sent out my official preview for tomorrow's game, so I'll link to it once it goes up on our site.
We caught the second half of Evergreen State's win over Bluefield, in which 5-11 Nate Menefee went off for 48 points to lead his squad to a comeback win. He just missed the tournament single-game record, which is 53 points. It was an incredible performance. He did most of his damage going to the basket, and he almost did it in spite of his teammates. They weren't going out of their way to get him the ball, which was crazy for how well he was playing. For movie fans, he reminded me of Kyle Watson from Above the Rim.
After this, we're heading out for a dinner with our honorary coaches, and then back to Keeter tonight for the parade of champions. I'll hopefully have some photos from that. Look for another update from me this evening.
We caught the second half of Evergreen State's win over Bluefield, in which 5-11 Nate Menefee went off for 48 points to lead his squad to a comeback win. He just missed the tournament single-game record, which is 53 points. It was an incredible performance. He did most of his damage going to the basket, and he almost did it in spite of his teammates. They weren't going out of their way to get him the ball, which was crazy for how well he was playing. For movie fans, he reminded me of Kyle Watson from Above the Rim.
After this, we're heading out for a dinner with our honorary coaches, and then back to Keeter tonight for the parade of champions. I'll hopefully have some photos from that. Look for another update from me this evening.
Wednesday update
Hola. Here's a quick update with some random thoughts with a few free minutes between practice and lunch. After lunch we'll be heading to Keeter Gymnasium to take in some of the afternoon games, and I'll be working on a preview of tomorrow's matchup with Grand View either on press row or in the media room, which is run by Northwestern SID Matt Bos. Nice to have a GPAC connection in a convenient spot!
-I'm shorter than most of the players, so I can't imagine how some of them are dealing with the Quality Inn's shower. I'm 6-0, and the shower head is right at my shoulder. The bathrooms in this joint definitely weren't designed with a basketball team in mind.
-Last night we had some Papa John's delivered to the hotel. Our delivery guy's name? "Dad" according to his nametag. He left us with this deep thought: "You know, a lot of people go on to do great things with their lives. Then they order pizza from me." Quite an experience.
-Ike Muoneke and Mitch Bain are vying for the team's American Idol award. Ike was singing a number from The Lion King on the bus the other day, and yesterday at Taco Bell Mitch was singing "I'm not gonna write you a love song." Then they joined together for a rendition of "Billie Jean" as we were getting on the bus. Spectacular.
Off to lunch at Wendy's. I'll check back in later with thoughts from the games we see, and some notes on Grand View. GPAC starts 0-1 after a rough second half by Briar Cliff this morning.
-I'm shorter than most of the players, so I can't imagine how some of them are dealing with the Quality Inn's shower. I'm 6-0, and the shower head is right at my shoulder. The bathrooms in this joint definitely weren't designed with a basketball team in mind.
-Last night we had some Papa John's delivered to the hotel. Our delivery guy's name? "Dad" according to his nametag. He left us with this deep thought: "You know, a lot of people go on to do great things with their lives. Then they order pizza from me." Quite an experience.
-Ike Muoneke and Mitch Bain are vying for the team's American Idol award. Ike was singing a number from The Lion King on the bus the other day, and yesterday at Taco Bell Mitch was singing "I'm not gonna write you a love song." Then they joined together for a rendition of "Billie Jean" as we were getting on the bus. Spectacular.
Off to lunch at Wendy's. I'll check back in later with thoughts from the games we see, and some notes on Grand View. GPAC starts 0-1 after a rough second half by Briar Cliff this morning.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Photos from Tuesday's Practice
There has to be a better way to do this, but here's my attempt at sharing some photos from Tuesday's practice.
Coaches Matt Culhane, John Hemenway and Clint Farrar oversee the action. 
A view of practice from the track.
Coach Hemenway goes over some half-court defense
Mike Long shoots a free throw
The Blue and White teams huddle up
Brady Wiebe shoots a free throw
Mark Mingo, Preston Broughton, Kevin Ball,
Adam Tyhurst and Clint Farrar look on from the sideline
Ike Muoneke goes to the basket
Ike Muoneke, Chase Walder and Scott Nelson stretch out at the end of Tuesday's workout
Coach Hemenway introduces the Tigers to the honorary coaches
And finally....
The baddest assitant coaches in Branson.
Seems like a good note to end on for now...
First update from Branson
Hello from Branson, Missouri! I don't want to rub it in, but it's gorgeous here today ... T-shirts and shorts weather gorgeous ... so we're enjoying that while it lasts. The weather is supposed to take a turn for the worse tomorrow.
Just got back to the Quality Inn from the Tigers' 11 a.m. practice. I have a bunch of photos that I'll post later on today when I get a chance. Practice went well. The guys were shooting the ball pretty well, and some of the offensive sets looked real crisp - especially towards the end. When practice wrapped up, the team had a brief meeting with the honorary coaches (local businessmen who sponsor the teams down here) and we're about to head out for lunch.
The trip down was long (about 10 hours), but not too bad. We had a quick stop for lunch at a McDonald's somewhere in Iowa, and from there the trip actually went pretty fast. I spent a good portion of it watching The Dark Knight on my laptop. Great movie.
Once we got checked in at the hotel and settled, we had dinner at one of the best BBQ places I've ever been - Rib Crib. If you're coming down this week for the game, make sure to get there. Assistant Coach Matt Culhane,possibly the most loyal reader of this blog, was so excited for Rib Crib he spent time Sunday night browsing their on-line menu, so he already knew what he was getting before we were even seated.
After lunch today, we'll be heading over to the Ozarks campus for both coaches and SID meetings at 3 p.m. Tonight the players will be going to the Dixie Stampede with the honorary coaches. I'll check back in later today with another update and the photos from practice.
Just got back to the Quality Inn from the Tigers' 11 a.m. practice. I have a bunch of photos that I'll post later on today when I get a chance. Practice went well. The guys were shooting the ball pretty well, and some of the offensive sets looked real crisp - especially towards the end. When practice wrapped up, the team had a brief meeting with the honorary coaches (local businessmen who sponsor the teams down here) and we're about to head out for lunch.
The trip down was long (about 10 hours), but not too bad. We had a quick stop for lunch at a McDonald's somewhere in Iowa, and from there the trip actually went pretty fast. I spent a good portion of it watching The Dark Knight on my laptop. Great movie.
Once we got checked in at the hotel and settled, we had dinner at one of the best BBQ places I've ever been - Rib Crib. If you're coming down this week for the game, make sure to get there. Assistant Coach Matt Culhane,possibly the most loyal reader of this blog, was so excited for Rib Crib he spent time Sunday night browsing their on-line menu, so he already knew what he was getting before we were even seated.
After lunch today, we'll be heading over to the Ozarks campus for both coaches and SID meetings at 3 p.m. Tonight the players will be going to the Dixie Stampede with the honorary coaches. I'll check back in later today with another update and the photos from practice.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Gearing up for Branson
Well, the wait is over and all the details are official. The Dakota Wesleyan University men's basketball team is headed back to Branson, Mo., for the NAIA DII Men's Basketball National Tournament, and this time we even managed to get a seed (even if it is the last one).
The 16th-seeded Tigers open tournament play Thursday in the final game of the two-day first round. DWU will tip off against Grand View College from Iowa at 9:15 p.m. I'd guess that No. 16 might be better than 14 or 15 though, because if we would've been put in one of those spots, we couldn't have played GPAC rival Briar Cliff, who plays No. 15 Indiana Southeast. So if we were in either one of those places, we likely would have played against the host school, College of the Ozarks, which is a first-round draw no one wants. Instead, Ozarks will play the team that knocked us out a year ago, No. 14 Aquinas. We'll take our chances with a neutral-court game against Grand View rather than a road game in a hostile environment against Ozarks.
I'll do an in-depth preview of the first-round matchup likely on Tuesday, but here are some quick facts. Grand View is 24-8 and the eighth at-large team selected to the field. DWU and GVC actually have several common opponents, Dordt, Briar Cliff, Midland Lutheran College, and more, so these teams should be able to learn a little about one another before Thursday. It might not be the guessing game that some of these tournament matchups can be.
The team (and me) leaves Monday morning at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday there are coach and SID meetings at College of the Ozarks, and Tuesday night the teams all attend the Dixie Stampede with the first round tipping off Wednesday morning at 8:30 a.m.
For all your tournament needs, we've created a special page with info and links about the Tigers trip to the National Tournament. Click here to view the page. Feel free to send me suggestions of other things that should be added, and use the "comment" feature on this post to start talking about your hopes and expectations for Branson. I'll be blogging frequently during the trip, so feel free to ask questions and check back often for updates on everything.
Now, let's take a quick look at some of the other Tiger sports in action this week...
Jordan Harer had a great start to the NAIA Wrestling National Championships yesterday with a pair of wins to reach the 141-pound quarterfinals. This morning, Harer was slated to wrestle the No. 1 seed in his part of the bracket, but I wouldn't be surprised if he kept winning and moved on. All the other DWU wrestlers went 0-1 on the first day, and will begin wrestlebacks this morning. Click here to read the release from Day One.
I just received word from Florida that DWU baseball won its first game today against St. Xavier University, which puts the Tigers at 14-2 overall and extends the winning streak to nine games, including all seven in Florida. DWU will wrap up its "regular" spring break schedule this afternoon against Notre Dame College, and tomorrow it will play in the Spring Break Championship, likely as the No. 1 seed. Click here to read about the first six wins in Florida. And for curious fans, the Tigers moved up to fifth in the last conference ratings, and the next NAIA poll comes out on Tuesday, March 17. It will be interesting to see if we can stay hot, and whether or not that will get us into the rankings.
Softball also opened its season in Florida, and coach Marie McCarthy has been happy with how her young team has played in its 2-2 start. DWU's roster is just three sophomore and 10 freshmen this season with no seniors or juniors, so calling it a young team would be a colossal understatement. But the Tigers have been solid thus far against some good competition and appear to have some solid players to build the program around. Click here for the first day recap, and here for the second day.
And finally, the Tiger track athletes will compete at the National Indoor Meet today, all around 3 p.m. Natalie Wipf runs the 400 at 2:55 and Frank Thompson and Alex Liberty will compete in the high jump at 3 p.m. Stay tuned for updates.
The 16th-seeded Tigers open tournament play Thursday in the final game of the two-day first round. DWU will tip off against Grand View College from Iowa at 9:15 p.m. I'd guess that No. 16 might be better than 14 or 15 though, because if we would've been put in one of those spots, we couldn't have played GPAC rival Briar Cliff, who plays No. 15 Indiana Southeast. So if we were in either one of those places, we likely would have played against the host school, College of the Ozarks, which is a first-round draw no one wants. Instead, Ozarks will play the team that knocked us out a year ago, No. 14 Aquinas. We'll take our chances with a neutral-court game against Grand View rather than a road game in a hostile environment against Ozarks.
I'll do an in-depth preview of the first-round matchup likely on Tuesday, but here are some quick facts. Grand View is 24-8 and the eighth at-large team selected to the field. DWU and GVC actually have several common opponents, Dordt, Briar Cliff, Midland Lutheran College, and more, so these teams should be able to learn a little about one another before Thursday. It might not be the guessing game that some of these tournament matchups can be.
The team (and me) leaves Monday morning at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday there are coach and SID meetings at College of the Ozarks, and Tuesday night the teams all attend the Dixie Stampede with the first round tipping off Wednesday morning at 8:30 a.m.
For all your tournament needs, we've created a special page with info and links about the Tigers trip to the National Tournament. Click here to view the page. Feel free to send me suggestions of other things that should be added, and use the "comment" feature on this post to start talking about your hopes and expectations for Branson. I'll be blogging frequently during the trip, so feel free to ask questions and check back often for updates on everything.
Now, let's take a quick look at some of the other Tiger sports in action this week...
Jordan Harer had a great start to the NAIA Wrestling National Championships yesterday with a pair of wins to reach the 141-pound quarterfinals. This morning, Harer was slated to wrestle the No. 1 seed in his part of the bracket, but I wouldn't be surprised if he kept winning and moved on. All the other DWU wrestlers went 0-1 on the first day, and will begin wrestlebacks this morning. Click here to read the release from Day One.
I just received word from Florida that DWU baseball won its first game today against St. Xavier University, which puts the Tigers at 14-2 overall and extends the winning streak to nine games, including all seven in Florida. DWU will wrap up its "regular" spring break schedule this afternoon against Notre Dame College, and tomorrow it will play in the Spring Break Championship, likely as the No. 1 seed. Click here to read about the first six wins in Florida. And for curious fans, the Tigers moved up to fifth in the last conference ratings, and the next NAIA poll comes out on Tuesday, March 17. It will be interesting to see if we can stay hot, and whether or not that will get us into the rankings.
Softball also opened its season in Florida, and coach Marie McCarthy has been happy with how her young team has played in its 2-2 start. DWU's roster is just three sophomore and 10 freshmen this season with no seniors or juniors, so calling it a young team would be a colossal understatement. But the Tigers have been solid thus far against some good competition and appear to have some solid players to build the program around. Click here for the first day recap, and here for the second day.
And finally, the Tiger track athletes will compete at the National Indoor Meet today, all around 3 p.m. Natalie Wipf runs the 400 at 2:55 and Frank Thompson and Alex Liberty will compete in the high jump at 3 p.m. Stay tuned for updates.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Thoughts on Upset Thursday
So Dakota Wesleyan survived on a crazy night in the GPAC, and somehow, we were the only ones. On a night where No. 1 Morningside, No. 3 Briar Cliff and No. 4 Northwestern all lost, the No. 2 Tigers found a way to escape the quarterfinals with a 67-65 win over Dordt. If you weren't there or haven't heard how we pulled it off, click here for my release and here for The Daily Republic's story.
Other than Hastings' blowout of Northwestern, the other two games were insane too. Briar Cliff scored four points in the final 10 seconds to force overtime, but Concordia scored a late basket in OT and benefitted from a technical on the Chargers (called a timeout with none left) to win by four. And Morningside nearly pulled out another miracle victory, but Thomas Frames blocked a last-second shot to give Sioux Falls the win.
Click here to read about the Briar Cliff-Concordia game. Click here for the Argus Leader's USF story and here for the Sioux City Jounal's take on Morningside's loss. Here's the Argus Leader's "College Roundup" leading with the Tigers.
Now for some of my thoughts on Upset Thursday:
1. How hot is Sioux Falls right now? They certainly looked better than their record when they beat us at home last Saturday. Then they went on the road and took down Dana, who many considered to be a solid sleeper in the GPAC tournament, and added Morningside to their victim list on the road. The Cougars hit the road again tomorrow to take on Hastings at 3 p.m. in what should be a good game between two teams playing really good basketball at this point. Wouldn't it be something to have a DWU-USF rematch for the tournament title Tuesday at the Corn Palace? Although it will take impressive wins by both South Dakota teams for that scenario to become reality, it's fun to thinking about having another shot at the Coo with a title on the line.
2. How helpful is the bye? With three out of four top seeds losing at home after having most of the week off, it begs the question of how helpful the bye actually is. It's entirely possible that the GPAC's best team were hurt a little by the extra time off, while their foes were able to stay in rhythm and generate some momentum heading into Thursday's games. I know at this point of the season, rest is huge, especially for a team like DWU where injuries have taken a toll on depth, but I also think teams get used to a certain schedule or rhythm, and when the conference tournament throws that off, weird things can happen. However, as the lone remaining top seed, let's hope the weirdness is over and things play out according to seed from here on out.
3. Officially Branson bound? The speculation about DWU's third-straight trip to the National Tournament is that the Tigers are locked after last night's win, especially with Briar Cliff and Morningside losing. DWU should leapfrog Briar Cliff in the final poll, and it could pass Morningside with one or two more wins. Either way, the Tigers appear to safely be in the field. However, the big question now centers on how many teams the GPAC will send to the tournament. Morningside is a lock with the automatic bid for winning the regular season title. DWU is a lock for an at-large bid, and could win the automatic bid for the postseason title. However, beyond that it's not so crystal clear. It could be just the Mustangs and Tigers, it could be three or even as many as four. Briar Cliff should be in the field with an at-large bid, but stranger things have happened. If there are a bunch of upsets across the country in the conference tournaments, and teams that weren't originally headed to Branson steal some at-large bids, the Chargers could be on the outside looking in, the way Dordt was last season. However, it's also plausabile that either Hastings, USF or Concordia wins the GPAC postseason title and gets a bid, and both DWU and Briar Cliff are selected for at-large spots, giving the conference four teams. After last night, none of these scenarios would surprise me. After hearing that the GPAC has been "down" all season, it would be a pretty interesting twist to see four schools head to Branson.
4. Home-Corn-Palace-Advantage. Going by the numbers, DWU should really benefit from having home-court advantage the rest of the way in the tournament. The Tigers are 13-1 at home this season and have won 13 straight games, with their only loss coming to No. 5 Black Hills State in overtime in the season opener. In the past three seasons, DWU is 40-6 at home, and its won 18 straight home games against GPAC opponents. However, as we learned Thursday, home court advantage doesn't guarantee anything.
5. Finding the right formula. By now, it's clear that Brady Wiebe and Mitch Bain are going to have to lead the way for the Tigers to be effective, and they'll need one other starter to score in double figures, along with a few key contributions from the bench, even if they're small. Last night, it was Ike Muoneke adding the extra scoring punch with 10 points, including some huge baskets in the second half, and Jordan Long came off the bench to give the Tigers six first-half points that kept DWU in the game. The Tigers will need a similar formula Saturday to beat Concorida and move on. I thought that Long's minutes in the first half were huge, and I liked what DWU did substitution-wise. By working in Jordan and Mike Long, Jordan Miller and Rocky Nelson early and often, it kept DWU's starters fresh enough to finish off the crucial final stretch. If that group can give the Tigers a little lift off the bench, we instantly become much more dangerous.
6. Deja Vu. So it was just 10 days ago that DWU played an intense GPAC game against Concordia in the Corn Palace, and here we are doing it again. Click here to read the recap of that game, when the Tigers scored the last eight points of the game to earn the seven-point win. Check our DWU Men's Basketball Page later today for my official preview of Saturday's game. It should be a good one, and with four area high school playoff games serving as the opening act, there should be a good crowd on hand. Try to get to the Corn Palace at 8 p.m. to see if the Tigers can move on to the title game.
Other than Hastings' blowout of Northwestern, the other two games were insane too. Briar Cliff scored four points in the final 10 seconds to force overtime, but Concordia scored a late basket in OT and benefitted from a technical on the Chargers (called a timeout with none left) to win by four. And Morningside nearly pulled out another miracle victory, but Thomas Frames blocked a last-second shot to give Sioux Falls the win.
Click here to read about the Briar Cliff-Concordia game. Click here for the Argus Leader's USF story and here for the Sioux City Jounal's take on Morningside's loss. Here's the Argus Leader's "College Roundup" leading with the Tigers.
Now for some of my thoughts on Upset Thursday:
1. How hot is Sioux Falls right now? They certainly looked better than their record when they beat us at home last Saturday. Then they went on the road and took down Dana, who many considered to be a solid sleeper in the GPAC tournament, and added Morningside to their victim list on the road. The Cougars hit the road again tomorrow to take on Hastings at 3 p.m. in what should be a good game between two teams playing really good basketball at this point. Wouldn't it be something to have a DWU-USF rematch for the tournament title Tuesday at the Corn Palace? Although it will take impressive wins by both South Dakota teams for that scenario to become reality, it's fun to thinking about having another shot at the Coo with a title on the line.
2. How helpful is the bye? With three out of four top seeds losing at home after having most of the week off, it begs the question of how helpful the bye actually is. It's entirely possible that the GPAC's best team were hurt a little by the extra time off, while their foes were able to stay in rhythm and generate some momentum heading into Thursday's games. I know at this point of the season, rest is huge, especially for a team like DWU where injuries have taken a toll on depth, but I also think teams get used to a certain schedule or rhythm, and when the conference tournament throws that off, weird things can happen. However, as the lone remaining top seed, let's hope the weirdness is over and things play out according to seed from here on out.
3. Officially Branson bound? The speculation about DWU's third-straight trip to the National Tournament is that the Tigers are locked after last night's win, especially with Briar Cliff and Morningside losing. DWU should leapfrog Briar Cliff in the final poll, and it could pass Morningside with one or two more wins. Either way, the Tigers appear to safely be in the field. However, the big question now centers on how many teams the GPAC will send to the tournament. Morningside is a lock with the automatic bid for winning the regular season title. DWU is a lock for an at-large bid, and could win the automatic bid for the postseason title. However, beyond that it's not so crystal clear. It could be just the Mustangs and Tigers, it could be three or even as many as four. Briar Cliff should be in the field with an at-large bid, but stranger things have happened. If there are a bunch of upsets across the country in the conference tournaments, and teams that weren't originally headed to Branson steal some at-large bids, the Chargers could be on the outside looking in, the way Dordt was last season. However, it's also plausabile that either Hastings, USF or Concordia wins the GPAC postseason title and gets a bid, and both DWU and Briar Cliff are selected for at-large spots, giving the conference four teams. After last night, none of these scenarios would surprise me. After hearing that the GPAC has been "down" all season, it would be a pretty interesting twist to see four schools head to Branson.
4. Home-Corn-Palace-Advantage. Going by the numbers, DWU should really benefit from having home-court advantage the rest of the way in the tournament. The Tigers are 13-1 at home this season and have won 13 straight games, with their only loss coming to No. 5 Black Hills State in overtime in the season opener. In the past three seasons, DWU is 40-6 at home, and its won 18 straight home games against GPAC opponents. However, as we learned Thursday, home court advantage doesn't guarantee anything.
5. Finding the right formula. By now, it's clear that Brady Wiebe and Mitch Bain are going to have to lead the way for the Tigers to be effective, and they'll need one other starter to score in double figures, along with a few key contributions from the bench, even if they're small. Last night, it was Ike Muoneke adding the extra scoring punch with 10 points, including some huge baskets in the second half, and Jordan Long came off the bench to give the Tigers six first-half points that kept DWU in the game. The Tigers will need a similar formula Saturday to beat Concorida and move on. I thought that Long's minutes in the first half were huge, and I liked what DWU did substitution-wise. By working in Jordan and Mike Long, Jordan Miller and Rocky Nelson early and often, it kept DWU's starters fresh enough to finish off the crucial final stretch. If that group can give the Tigers a little lift off the bench, we instantly become much more dangerous.
6. Deja Vu. So it was just 10 days ago that DWU played an intense GPAC game against Concordia in the Corn Palace, and here we are doing it again. Click here to read the recap of that game, when the Tigers scored the last eight points of the game to earn the seven-point win. Check our DWU Men's Basketball Page later today for my official preview of Saturday's game. It should be a good one, and with four area high school playoff games serving as the opening act, there should be a good crowd on hand. Try to get to the Corn Palace at 8 p.m. to see if the Tigers can move on to the title game.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Action-paked Saturday
If you're a DWU sports fan, it doesn't get much better than Saturday's schedule.
The track team is in Lincoln, Neb., for the GPAC Championships. The wrestling team is in Hastings, Neb., for the NAIA North Regional. The baseball team is in Kansas taking on Bethany College and Peru State College. And there are also a couple of basketball games in Sioux Falls, in case you hadn't heard.
On top of that, our volleyball team and men's soccer team both just announced the start to their 2009-10 recruiting classes, and we have a new athletic director.
It's been a busy week to be a Tiger, and that continues on right through Saturday.
For previews of everything going on this weekend, check each team's individual sport page on the DWU Athletics Web Site. They should all be online by early evening.
Also, make sure to stay tuned to the Daily Republic's Tiger Zone Sports Blog throughout the weekend for news, previews, game stories and photos from DWU's action this weekend. All Tiger fans should have that URL either memorized or bookmarked.
If any baseball or softball fans, friends, parents or families are reading this, the Tiger team and individual pictures are now available for sale on the Inertia Sports Media site. Click here for baseball and here for softball. HERE is the link to Inertia's college sports photos site, where any DWU games they shot this year would be listed. This is another spot that DWU parents and fans should keep an eye on. They should be putting up a few of our basketball games soon.
I don't know about you, but I plan on being in Sioux Falls tomorrow to see our basketball teams close out the regular season. Both the women's and men's games have seeding implications for the GPAC tournament, and obviously the men can clinch a GPAC title, the No. 1 seed in the tournament and an automatic bid to nationals with a win over the Cougars.
The USF men are on a five-game slide, so it will be interesting to see how they approach this game. They lost at home to Mount Marty on Wednesday, so it would be easy to assume the wheels have completely come off, but I'd bet they'll be pretty excited to have a chance to beat DWU on the last day of the season with the GPAC title on the line, so expect USF to play better tomorrow than they have the last two weeks. Having said that, hopefully the Tigers play to their potential and earn their share of the championship, and let's hope Dordt can do us a favor and knock off Morningisde so the Tigers can have the title all to themselves.
For a breakdown of all the seeding implications for both the men and the women, and all the possible playoff scenarios, see their individual sport pages this evening for my official previews.
Good luck to all the Tiger teams this weekend in Sioux Falls, Lincoln, Hastings and Kansas, and safe travels to all the DWU fans and families that are hitting the road to cheer the Tigers on. Hopefully next week there will be a lot to celebrate at Dakota Wesleyan!
The track team is in Lincoln, Neb., for the GPAC Championships. The wrestling team is in Hastings, Neb., for the NAIA North Regional. The baseball team is in Kansas taking on Bethany College and Peru State College. And there are also a couple of basketball games in Sioux Falls, in case you hadn't heard.
On top of that, our volleyball team and men's soccer team both just announced the start to their 2009-10 recruiting classes, and we have a new athletic director.
It's been a busy week to be a Tiger, and that continues on right through Saturday.
For previews of everything going on this weekend, check each team's individual sport page on the DWU Athletics Web Site. They should all be online by early evening.
Also, make sure to stay tuned to the Daily Republic's Tiger Zone Sports Blog throughout the weekend for news, previews, game stories and photos from DWU's action this weekend. All Tiger fans should have that URL either memorized or bookmarked.
If any baseball or softball fans, friends, parents or families are reading this, the Tiger team and individual pictures are now available for sale on the Inertia Sports Media site. Click here for baseball and here for softball. HERE is the link to Inertia's college sports photos site, where any DWU games they shot this year would be listed. This is another spot that DWU parents and fans should keep an eye on. They should be putting up a few of our basketball games soon.
I don't know about you, but I plan on being in Sioux Falls tomorrow to see our basketball teams close out the regular season. Both the women's and men's games have seeding implications for the GPAC tournament, and obviously the men can clinch a GPAC title, the No. 1 seed in the tournament and an automatic bid to nationals with a win over the Cougars.
The USF men are on a five-game slide, so it will be interesting to see how they approach this game. They lost at home to Mount Marty on Wednesday, so it would be easy to assume the wheels have completely come off, but I'd bet they'll be pretty excited to have a chance to beat DWU on the last day of the season with the GPAC title on the line, so expect USF to play better tomorrow than they have the last two weeks. Having said that, hopefully the Tigers play to their potential and earn their share of the championship, and let's hope Dordt can do us a favor and knock off Morningisde so the Tigers can have the title all to themselves.
For a breakdown of all the seeding implications for both the men and the women, and all the possible playoff scenarios, see their individual sport pages this evening for my official previews.
Good luck to all the Tiger teams this weekend in Sioux Falls, Lincoln, Hastings and Kansas, and safe travels to all the DWU fans and families that are hitting the road to cheer the Tigers on. Hopefully next week there will be a lot to celebrate at Dakota Wesleyan!
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Wild night in Sioux City
If you were in Sioux City, Iowa, last night for the DWU-Morningside game, I'm jealous. I listened on the radio, and it sounded electric. What a game bewteen two great teams, and what a statement for DWU to go into that environment and pull out as big a road win as its had in awhile.
A few thoughts from last night's game:
-Brady Wiebe should be starting to generate some GPAC Player-of-the-Year buzz. That was his second 27-15 game in 10 days. And the thing that is probably starting to scare teams the most: he's just a sophomore. Also, I read a thread on a GPAC hoops message board yesterday where fans were trying to predict the award winners, and all the Coach-of-the-Year votes were going to Todd Barry from Briar Cliff. Really? If DWU wins the league without its top two players, I think John Hemenway should be a lock for his second GPAC COY award.
-All day yesterday, I kept getting the feeling Ike Muoneke would have a huge game, and I'm glad I was right. What a monster job on the boards against a tough, physical Morningside front line, and it seemed only fitting that Ike was the one to seal the game from the free throw line.
-Mitch Bain's play at the point is getting more and more efficient. Last night: 5 assists, 1 TO. If they can keep getting just one turnover from their primary ballhandler, the Tigers will be in good shape the rest of the way. It doesn't hurt when he scores 17 like he did last night either, and his back-to-back threes in the first half gave DWU some extra cushion it ended up needing.
-How many times do announcers refer to a "rare four-point play?" Well, how about an even more rare five-point play. Things were looking awfully good for the home team when they went up three late, but Wiebe's 3-point play, plus the technical on Morningside coach Jim Sykes, instantly put DWU up two. Kudos to Wiebe for knocking down all three from the charity stripe with the fiesty Morningside students trying their best to be a distraction.
-Anyone else who listened on KMIT heard Tim Smith talk about the respectful handshakes beteween teams following the game. Great display of character and respect by both teams after going to war with each other for 45 of the most intense minutes of the entire season.
So now DWU is alone at the top. The key, obviously, is staying there. It's probably a good thing that Mount Marty's only league win was against Concordia, who was leading the GPAC at the time. So its would seem the Lancers are the perfect opponent for Sunday - it SHOULD be a game Weselayn can win easily, but at least the Tigers know the Lancers are capable of pulling a stunning upset. Hopefully they can recover from Wednesday's battle and take care of business Sunday to earn another 20-win season, which are becoming the norm for Hemenway-coached teams.
Wrestling throws a shutout
How often do you get to see a shutout in wrestling? Not often, I've found in my years covering the sport, but last night was an exception at the Wellness Center as now-No. 19-ranked DWU dropped Minnesota West CC by the score of 51-0.
The Bluejays were open at three weight classes, so the Tigers essentially started with an 18-0 advantage. But DWU did a great job in the seven matches that were actually wrestled. Jordan Harer, now ranked third in the NAIA at 141 pounds, and Derek Ashley were impressive with first-peroid pins, and Jeff Holmes, Ray Rickenbach and Danny Hutcheson all really got after it to earn three of the quickets technical falls I've seen. Tanner LaValliere had a nice win in the night's closest match, and Brandon Goodwin also earned a solid victory.
Dakota Wesleyan has been really good in its last three appearances, and it will be fun to see how they fare Wednesday when it takes on Morningside and Grandview College in Sioux City on Tuesday night. If DWU can score a pair of wins that night, it will really be rolling as the postseason gets closer.
Here are some links to the coverage of last night's DWU events:
-Here is the official relese from the 51-0 wrestling win. The men's basketball and women's basketball releases should be online later today. I'll link them once they're online.
-Click here for the Mitchell Daily Republic's Tiger Zone Blog, which features all their coverage from last night's game. Or click here for wrestling, here for men's basketball and here for women's basketball.
-Click here for the Sioux City Jounal's story from last night's men's basketball game. There are some interesting quotes from Morningside coach Jim Sykes, and an interesting interpertation of Ike Muoneke's rebounding. Click here for the women's story.
-Click here to see the Siouxland Sports Authority's photos from last night's men's game.
Enjoy. Just a reminder - basketball polls come out Monday afternoon and wrestling polls follow on Tuesday...it will be interesting to see if we can move up in both.
A few thoughts from last night's game:
-Brady Wiebe should be starting to generate some GPAC Player-of-the-Year buzz. That was his second 27-15 game in 10 days. And the thing that is probably starting to scare teams the most: he's just a sophomore. Also, I read a thread on a GPAC hoops message board yesterday where fans were trying to predict the award winners, and all the Coach-of-the-Year votes were going to Todd Barry from Briar Cliff. Really? If DWU wins the league without its top two players, I think John Hemenway should be a lock for his second GPAC COY award.
-All day yesterday, I kept getting the feeling Ike Muoneke would have a huge game, and I'm glad I was right. What a monster job on the boards against a tough, physical Morningside front line, and it seemed only fitting that Ike was the one to seal the game from the free throw line.
-Mitch Bain's play at the point is getting more and more efficient. Last night: 5 assists, 1 TO. If they can keep getting just one turnover from their primary ballhandler, the Tigers will be in good shape the rest of the way. It doesn't hurt when he scores 17 like he did last night either, and his back-to-back threes in the first half gave DWU some extra cushion it ended up needing.
-How many times do announcers refer to a "rare four-point play?" Well, how about an even more rare five-point play. Things were looking awfully good for the home team when they went up three late, but Wiebe's 3-point play, plus the technical on Morningside coach Jim Sykes, instantly put DWU up two. Kudos to Wiebe for knocking down all three from the charity stripe with the fiesty Morningside students trying their best to be a distraction.
-Anyone else who listened on KMIT heard Tim Smith talk about the respectful handshakes beteween teams following the game. Great display of character and respect by both teams after going to war with each other for 45 of the most intense minutes of the entire season.
So now DWU is alone at the top. The key, obviously, is staying there. It's probably a good thing that Mount Marty's only league win was against Concordia, who was leading the GPAC at the time. So its would seem the Lancers are the perfect opponent for Sunday - it SHOULD be a game Weselayn can win easily, but at least the Tigers know the Lancers are capable of pulling a stunning upset. Hopefully they can recover from Wednesday's battle and take care of business Sunday to earn another 20-win season, which are becoming the norm for Hemenway-coached teams.
Wrestling throws a shutout
How often do you get to see a shutout in wrestling? Not often, I've found in my years covering the sport, but last night was an exception at the Wellness Center as now-No. 19-ranked DWU dropped Minnesota West CC by the score of 51-0.
The Bluejays were open at three weight classes, so the Tigers essentially started with an 18-0 advantage. But DWU did a great job in the seven matches that were actually wrestled. Jordan Harer, now ranked third in the NAIA at 141 pounds, and Derek Ashley were impressive with first-peroid pins, and Jeff Holmes, Ray Rickenbach and Danny Hutcheson all really got after it to earn three of the quickets technical falls I've seen. Tanner LaValliere had a nice win in the night's closest match, and Brandon Goodwin also earned a solid victory.
Dakota Wesleyan has been really good in its last three appearances, and it will be fun to see how they fare Wednesday when it takes on Morningside and Grandview College in Sioux City on Tuesday night. If DWU can score a pair of wins that night, it will really be rolling as the postseason gets closer.
Here are some links to the coverage of last night's DWU events:
-Here is the official relese from the 51-0 wrestling win. The men's basketball and women's basketball releases should be online later today. I'll link them once they're online.
-Click here for the Mitchell Daily Republic's Tiger Zone Blog, which features all their coverage from last night's game. Or click here for wrestling, here for men's basketball and here for women's basketball.
-Click here for the Sioux City Jounal's story from last night's men's basketball game. There are some interesting quotes from Morningside coach Jim Sykes, and an interesting interpertation of Ike Muoneke's rebounding. Click here for the women's story.
-Click here to see the Siouxland Sports Authority's photos from last night's men's game.
Enjoy. Just a reminder - basketball polls come out Monday afternoon and wrestling polls follow on Tuesday...it will be interesting to see if we can move up in both.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Pre-game
First and foremost, congrats to the DWU wrestling team. The Tigers are now tied for the No. 19 ranking in the country and junior Jordan Harer moved up to the No. 3 spot in the NAIA at 141 pounds. DWU will put its ranking on display tonight at home against Minnesota West Community College. Bring a radio and an earpiece and come out to the Wellness Center so you can see the Tigers at home for the final time this season, and still keep up with the basketball action in Sioux City. Click here for the complete NAIA rankings.
Gearing up for the Games
Here are some links previewing tonight's basketball action - DWU at Morningside - in Sioux City, Iowa.
-Preview story from the Mitchell Daily Republic
-Preveiw story from the Sioux City Journal
-The official DWU release
-Morningside College's preview of the women's game
In tonight's huge men's game, I can't shake the feeling that points in the paint and free throws are going to be big. Last year when the Tigers handed No. 1 Morningside its first loss of the season, they did a lot of their damage after halftime from the free throw line. DWU has shown a knack for getting to the line in its recent winning streak, especially sophomore forward Brady Wiebe, and getting those fouls and points against the Mustangs tonight will be really important. I thought it was interesting in the Sioux City Journal's preview that Coach Sykes was worried about some the matchups. Hopefully the Tigers can identify those early and take advantage. Don't be surprised if the Mustangs focus on Wiebe and Mitch Bain, and as a result, Ike Muoneke or Scott Nelson takes advantage and has a really big game on offense tonight, or if someone comes off the bench to provide a huge spark like Rocky Nelson or Mike Long.
Conversely, DWU is defintely going to want to avoid fouls on the other end. Without Colby Fitzgerald, our depth isn't quite what it was two weeks ago. Staying out of foul trouble tonight will be key.
I've also spent a lot of time thinking about what will happen with the tempo. I know I addressed it yesterday, but I just can't predict if Morningside will try to run with DWU, slow the Tigers down, or find some sort of middle ground. The saving grace here is that our defense has been much improved since the first half against Dordt, so if it turns into more of a grind-it-out game, the Tigers should be better equipped to hang with that style.
The women tip off in an hour and 19 minutes, wrestling starts an hour later, and men's basketball shortly after that. I'd say it's a big night for DWU sports, but that'd be quite an understatement. Enjoy the games!
Gearing up for the Games
Here are some links previewing tonight's basketball action - DWU at Morningside - in Sioux City, Iowa.
-Preview story from the Mitchell Daily Republic
-Preveiw story from the Sioux City Journal
-The official DWU release
-Morningside College's preview of the women's game
In tonight's huge men's game, I can't shake the feeling that points in the paint and free throws are going to be big. Last year when the Tigers handed No. 1 Morningside its first loss of the season, they did a lot of their damage after halftime from the free throw line. DWU has shown a knack for getting to the line in its recent winning streak, especially sophomore forward Brady Wiebe, and getting those fouls and points against the Mustangs tonight will be really important. I thought it was interesting in the Sioux City Journal's preview that Coach Sykes was worried about some the matchups. Hopefully the Tigers can identify those early and take advantage. Don't be surprised if the Mustangs focus on Wiebe and Mitch Bain, and as a result, Ike Muoneke or Scott Nelson takes advantage and has a really big game on offense tonight, or if someone comes off the bench to provide a huge spark like Rocky Nelson or Mike Long.
Conversely, DWU is defintely going to want to avoid fouls on the other end. Without Colby Fitzgerald, our depth isn't quite what it was two weeks ago. Staying out of foul trouble tonight will be key.
I've also spent a lot of time thinking about what will happen with the tempo. I know I addressed it yesterday, but I just can't predict if Morningside will try to run with DWU, slow the Tigers down, or find some sort of middle ground. The saving grace here is that our defense has been much improved since the first half against Dordt, so if it turns into more of a grind-it-out game, the Tigers should be better equipped to hang with that style.
The women tip off in an hour and 19 minutes, wrestling starts an hour later, and men's basketball shortly after that. I'd say it's a big night for DWU sports, but that'd be quite an understatement. Enjoy the games!
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Some links for Wednesday...
Here are some links with pretty good coverage leading up to Wednesday's DWU at Morningside basketball games.
DWU Website
-The preview story I wrote today should be up on our men's basketball and women's basketball web pages sometime tonight. A pretty in-depth, stat-heavy look at both teams.
Morningside Website
-Extensive weekly preview done for the men's game by Morningside SID Dave Rebstock, who turned 50 today. Happy Birthday, Dave!
Mitchell Daily Republic
-Leah Rado's column about the Tigers' continued plight despite the key injuries to Colby Fitzgerald and Preston Broughton
-Story about Mitch Bain's POW award, the Tigers' jump to No. 14 and the Bo LaCroix signing.
-The Daily Republic's new Tiger Zone blog can be found: here. All DWU coverage will go up on this blog, as well as other insight and bonus coverage. This should be a great resource for DWU fans. Their preview of Wednesday's game should be up on here later tonight.
Sioux City Journal
-Story about the latest NAIA polls, and a little about Wednesday's games.
-Story from this weekend about Morningside's games against Concordia and DWU.
How to keep up with Wednesday's games
-Link to 105.9 KMIT's Web site - the official Tiger Radio Network. Click "Listen Live" for Tim Smith and Bob Sprang's call.
-Link to Morningside's live Web cast of the games. Click "Video Streaming" starting at 5:30 p.m.
-Link to live stats from both games.
That should be enough fodder about Wednesday for now. I'll check back tomorrow during the day with any new links, and some extra thoughts and analysis leading up to the games.
Don't forget. DWU wrestling is also home tomorrow against Minnesota West Community College. Come to the Tigers' final home dual at the Wellness Center at 7 p.m. or follow the action live on the Web. Log onto InterMatWrestle.com and click on the "Live Scored College Matches" link. Select "Dakota Wesleyan University" and "NAIA" with the appropriate dates to find the live scoring link.
DWU Website
-The preview story I wrote today should be up on our men's basketball and women's basketball web pages sometime tonight. A pretty in-depth, stat-heavy look at both teams.
Morningside Website
-Extensive weekly preview done for the men's game by Morningside SID Dave Rebstock, who turned 50 today. Happy Birthday, Dave!
Mitchell Daily Republic
-Leah Rado's column about the Tigers' continued plight despite the key injuries to Colby Fitzgerald and Preston Broughton
-Story about Mitch Bain's POW award, the Tigers' jump to No. 14 and the Bo LaCroix signing.
-The Daily Republic's new Tiger Zone blog can be found: here. All DWU coverage will go up on this blog, as well as other insight and bonus coverage. This should be a great resource for DWU fans. Their preview of Wednesday's game should be up on here later tonight.
Sioux City Journal
-Story about the latest NAIA polls, and a little about Wednesday's games.
-Story from this weekend about Morningside's games against Concordia and DWU.
How to keep up with Wednesday's games
-Link to 105.9 KMIT's Web site - the official Tiger Radio Network. Click "Listen Live" for Tim Smith and Bob Sprang's call.
-Link to Morningside's live Web cast of the games. Click "Video Streaming" starting at 5:30 p.m.
-Link to live stats from both games.
That should be enough fodder about Wednesday for now. I'll check back tomorrow during the day with any new links, and some extra thoughts and analysis leading up to the games.
Don't forget. DWU wrestling is also home tomorrow against Minnesota West Community College. Come to the Tigers' final home dual at the Wellness Center at 7 p.m. or follow the action live on the Web. Log onto InterMatWrestle.com and click on the "Live Scored College Matches" link. Select "Dakota Wesleyan University" and "NAIA" with the appropriate dates to find the live scoring link.
Good Time to be a Tiger
Other than last week's knee injury to senior star Colby Fitzgerald, the Dakota Wesleyan University men's basketball team has enjoyed two pretty spectacular weeks, setting up Wednesday's huge showdown at Morningside. This will be the first in a series of blogs over the next 48 hours leading up to the tip in Sioux City, so to start, let's recap how we got here...
The Tigers ran off four-straight wins at home, including a 27-point blowout of Dordt and a 22-point thrashing of No. 13-ranked Briar Cliff despite losing Fitzgerald for the season early in the first half. DWU also added wins over an underrated Nebraska Wesleyan team and Hastings to improve to 18-5 overall and 9-2 in the GPAC.
In the past two weeks, DWU jumped from the "Others Receiving Votes" portion of the Top 25 poll to 22nd, and then all the way to 14th yesterday. The team's recent tear apparently hasn't gone unnoticed.
Also, the Tigers had the GPAC Player-of-the-Week in each of the last two weeks, and frankly, I doubt either player received too much competition for the honor. Brady Wiebe took home the award on Jan. 19 after averaging 21.5 points and 12 rebounds in the wins over Dordt and NWU. He shot 63 percent from the floor and 95 percent from the line.
Mitch Bain was also honored this week for his role in the wins over Briar Cliff and Hastings. Bain averaged 21.5 points, 7.5 assists, 3.0 steals and 3.0 rebounds in the two wins, and he set a new career high for points in each game. His 19 points Wednesday was a new high for the junior, and he set the bar even higher with 24 points Sunday.
On top of all of that, Coach Hemenway added another recruit in the process. Hurley, S.D., star Bo LaCroix signed his Letter of Intent Friday, and we released the signing yesterday. Things are going pretty good when you can do so well in the present and build for the future at the same time. This is a nice signing for the team. LaCroix is 6-7, can play four positions and has won state titles in both basketball and football in high school. When a school like DWU can land a proven winner who's averaging around 27 and 14 this season, that's a good get.
So these incredible two weeks bring us to the present. Wednesday, No. 14 DWU travels to No. 15 Morningside with first place in the GPAC on the line. I can't wait.
I'll check back later today with some links leading up to the showdown in Sioux City.
The Tigers ran off four-straight wins at home, including a 27-point blowout of Dordt and a 22-point thrashing of No. 13-ranked Briar Cliff despite losing Fitzgerald for the season early in the first half. DWU also added wins over an underrated Nebraska Wesleyan team and Hastings to improve to 18-5 overall and 9-2 in the GPAC.
In the past two weeks, DWU jumped from the "Others Receiving Votes" portion of the Top 25 poll to 22nd, and then all the way to 14th yesterday. The team's recent tear apparently hasn't gone unnoticed.
Also, the Tigers had the GPAC Player-of-the-Week in each of the last two weeks, and frankly, I doubt either player received too much competition for the honor. Brady Wiebe took home the award on Jan. 19 after averaging 21.5 points and 12 rebounds in the wins over Dordt and NWU. He shot 63 percent from the floor and 95 percent from the line.
Mitch Bain was also honored this week for his role in the wins over Briar Cliff and Hastings. Bain averaged 21.5 points, 7.5 assists, 3.0 steals and 3.0 rebounds in the two wins, and he set a new career high for points in each game. His 19 points Wednesday was a new high for the junior, and he set the bar even higher with 24 points Sunday.
On top of all of that, Coach Hemenway added another recruit in the process. Hurley, S.D., star Bo LaCroix signed his Letter of Intent Friday, and we released the signing yesterday. Things are going pretty good when you can do so well in the present and build for the future at the same time. This is a nice signing for the team. LaCroix is 6-7, can play four positions and has won state titles in both basketball and football in high school. When a school like DWU can land a proven winner who's averaging around 27 and 14 this season, that's a good get.
So these incredible two weeks bring us to the present. Wednesday, No. 14 DWU travels to No. 15 Morningside with first place in the GPAC on the line. I can't wait.
I'll check back later today with some links leading up to the showdown in Sioux City.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Defense does it
It seems like the prevailing thought from Dakota Wesleyan's 86-59 win over Dordt last night at the Corn Palace can be summed up in one word: wow.
11:25 into the game, there probably weren't any people in the Corn Palace who thought the Tigers would end up winning by 27. At that point, DWU was down 18, 29-11, and the Defenders had just ripped off an 8-0, bookended by 3-pointers.
However, DWU came back with its own 6-0 run behind baskets from Ike Muoneke, Chase Walder and Mitch Bain, and then something drastic happened -- the Tigers turned up the D. The final 26 or 27 minutes, DWU played as good on defense as I've seen in my two years watching the Tigers. After the initial 18-point deficit, DWU outscored the Defenders 75-30 over the game's final 29 minutes, and they made life very uncomfortable for Dordt -- particularly leading-scorer Logan Kingma, who managed just five points.
The other promising trait that emerged Wednesday was the way the Tigers buried Dordt. DWU displayed an absolute killer instinct that, if they can carry it over, could serve them really well down the stretch. A team like the Defenders is more than capable of making a big run at almost any point, and the fact that DWU suffocated them and didn't allow that to happen should give the team confidence that it can put anybody away once it gets a lead in the second half.
In my experience, this isn't a trait teams simply possess, it's something they have to learn. Hopefully Wednesday was a sign that it's ingrained with DWU now. We'll see how this trait develops this weekend against Nebraska Wesleyan, who should be a decent test and a huge contrast of style, and especially Wednesday night when Briar Cliff comes to the Corn Palace.
If DWU can carry the two things it found Wednesday night - suffocating defense and the ability to put teams away - into the final month of the regular season, the Tigers should be right in the running for the GPAC crown.
However, a long look at the remaining schedule shows it won't be easy. DWU still goes to Morningside, Briar Cliff and Sioux Falls, and hosts the Chargers, Northwestern and conference-leading Concordia. It will be very interesting to see how many losses the GPAC champ finishes with. Morningside and Concordia have a little easier time with more games against the southern schools, so DWU's head-to-head matchups with those schools will be huge.
One last point - with how good DWU was on defense last night, it's easy to overlook what it did on the offensive end. However, the Tigers were shooting around 20 percent from the floor 12 minutes into the game. They finished above 50 percent as a team, including 70 percent in the second half. Part of that comes from getting hot, but a lot of it comes from running the offense efficiently and getting good shots and easy baskets. The Tigers got a lot of looks in close, and a lot of layups in transition. Once they started getting in the groove, the 3-pointers started falling too, to the tune of 75 percent in the second half. It was a snowball effect on both ends of the floor last night.
DWU will host three big games over the next week and a half -- Sunday vs. Nebraska Wesleyan, Wednesday vs. No. 11 Briar Cliff and next Sunday vs. Hastings. Do yourself a favor and catch them on this home stand -- they'll need to play well and build momentu before traveling to Morningside.
11:25 into the game, there probably weren't any people in the Corn Palace who thought the Tigers would end up winning by 27. At that point, DWU was down 18, 29-11, and the Defenders had just ripped off an 8-0, bookended by 3-pointers.
However, DWU came back with its own 6-0 run behind baskets from Ike Muoneke, Chase Walder and Mitch Bain, and then something drastic happened -- the Tigers turned up the D. The final 26 or 27 minutes, DWU played as good on defense as I've seen in my two years watching the Tigers. After the initial 18-point deficit, DWU outscored the Defenders 75-30 over the game's final 29 minutes, and they made life very uncomfortable for Dordt -- particularly leading-scorer Logan Kingma, who managed just five points.
The other promising trait that emerged Wednesday was the way the Tigers buried Dordt. DWU displayed an absolute killer instinct that, if they can carry it over, could serve them really well down the stretch. A team like the Defenders is more than capable of making a big run at almost any point, and the fact that DWU suffocated them and didn't allow that to happen should give the team confidence that it can put anybody away once it gets a lead in the second half.
In my experience, this isn't a trait teams simply possess, it's something they have to learn. Hopefully Wednesday was a sign that it's ingrained with DWU now. We'll see how this trait develops this weekend against Nebraska Wesleyan, who should be a decent test and a huge contrast of style, and especially Wednesday night when Briar Cliff comes to the Corn Palace.
If DWU can carry the two things it found Wednesday night - suffocating defense and the ability to put teams away - into the final month of the regular season, the Tigers should be right in the running for the GPAC crown.
However, a long look at the remaining schedule shows it won't be easy. DWU still goes to Morningside, Briar Cliff and Sioux Falls, and hosts the Chargers, Northwestern and conference-leading Concordia. It will be very interesting to see how many losses the GPAC champ finishes with. Morningside and Concordia have a little easier time with more games against the southern schools, so DWU's head-to-head matchups with those schools will be huge.
One last point - with how good DWU was on defense last night, it's easy to overlook what it did on the offensive end. However, the Tigers were shooting around 20 percent from the floor 12 minutes into the game. They finished above 50 percent as a team, including 70 percent in the second half. Part of that comes from getting hot, but a lot of it comes from running the offense efficiently and getting good shots and easy baskets. The Tigers got a lot of looks in close, and a lot of layups in transition. Once they started getting in the groove, the 3-pointers started falling too, to the tune of 75 percent in the second half. It was a snowball effect on both ends of the floor last night.
DWU will host three big games over the next week and a half -- Sunday vs. Nebraska Wesleyan, Wednesday vs. No. 11 Briar Cliff and next Sunday vs. Hastings. Do yourself a favor and catch them on this home stand -- they'll need to play well and build momentu before traveling to Morningside.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Resolutions for 2009...
I've never been the type of person that made New Year's Resolutions, but for some reason, I decided to try to make a few in 2009. The reason I'm writing this, is because one of them is to re-dedicate myself to keeping this blog fresh now that the calendar has flipped to January. Things have been exceptionally busy in the DWU athletics office this year, and I let some of my other responsibilities take precedence over blogging, but I'm going to do a better job of it from here on out, so to start off on the right foot, here's a super-sized blog to kick off what looks to be a great 2009 for Tiger athletics.
What a Wrestling match...
It isn't often that a wrestling dual meet goes down to the wire the way a basketball game or a football game can, but Wednesday the Tigers hosted Hastings College, and the winner wasn't decided until the third period of the final match of the night. DWU had a nice crowd in the Wellness Center on Wednesday, and they were treated to a heck of a match.
Click here to read my official press release about the win, which details Kyle Henderson's thrilling victory to give DWU the win. Since that release has most of the details, I'll use this space for some extra analysis, but Henderson's clutch win ended up being the difference, and he deserves tons of credit for stepping up in a huge spot.
Sometimes in a match like Wednesday's, the way a team loses matches can be just as crucial as some of the wins. For example, I think Blake Hodne was kind of an unsung hero of the win, despite an 11-3 major deicison loss. Hodne was up against Hastings's Jameon Rush, who is ranked No. 6 in the NAIA. Though Rush ended up getting four points for the Broncos, Hodne really wrestled well, especially early, and the fact that he avoided getting pinned or even a technical fall was a boost for the Tigers. It's clear the Broncos count on Rush to score big points for them every time out, but Hodne did a solid job staying with him, and he was never in any real danger of getting pinned. That was smart wrestling.
Malik Stewart and Billy Murtha also had impressive wins Wednesday. Stewart had one of the most exciting matches of the night, as he willed himself to a late reversal to score a 4-2 win. And Murtha, in his first action of the season, notched a solid 6-2 win to build up the DWU lead at the time.
It was good to see the Tigers win a close dual after dropping a close one to open the GPAC season at Briar Cliff. Hopefully they can keep it rolling with three more duals at home this month. Dana is here on the 15th and Sioux Falls comes to Mitchell on the 21st, and those will both be big matches for DWU.
So close...
Football is often described as a game of inches. It's hard to use the same analogy with basketball, but it certainly seems like it applies itself to the DWU women's basketball team thus far this season.
Right now, the Tigers sit at 9-9 overall and 2-4 in the ridiculously difficult GPAC. However, if a few shots would've fell at key times or the ball had bounced a slighty different direction a number of times, the Tigers could be in a much different position.
Let's just start by looking at two games: one-point losses to Dakota State and Sioux Falls. Both games could have very easily gone the other way. Had that happened, DWU is sitting at 11-7 overall and 3-3 in the GPAC. Compare that to 9-9 and 2-4, and a few points really make a huge difference on the landscape of the entire season.
To go a step further, the Tigers had chances to beat Jamestown, Kansas Wesleyan, Doane, Northwestern and Mount Marty (many of which are nationally ranked). All those losses were between six and 10 points, and DWU held second-half leads in many of those losses. If even two of those games could have gone DWU's way, then the team is sitting 13-5 overall with maybe a 4-2 or 5-1 record in the toughest women's basketball conference in the country. That would get a team into the rankings, and bolster national tournament hopes.
Instead, the Tigers have hovered around the .500 mark all year. After winning 18 games last season, hopes were high for DWU in Aaron Kahl's second season, and it's possbile to just look at the Tigers' record and say that they didn't take another step forward this year as expected.
However, I beg to differ. I think that when you factor in the number of ranked teams DWU has played, and how close most of its games have been, the Tigers are perilously close to being an upper-echelon team, both in the GPAC and the NAIA.
The second half of the season will provide ample opportunity for DWU to turn some of those close losses into victories, starting with Sunday's trip to take on No. 9 Hastings. The Broncos desparately need a win, so they'll be ready for DWU, and winning on the road in the GPAC is never easy. After Sunday's game, DWU will host four in a row, all winnable, so that could be just what the Tigers need to build some momentum for a late-season surge.
I'll check back early next week with some thoughts on the men's basketball race for the GPAC title. Happy New Year!
What a Wrestling match...
It isn't often that a wrestling dual meet goes down to the wire the way a basketball game or a football game can, but Wednesday the Tigers hosted Hastings College, and the winner wasn't decided until the third period of the final match of the night. DWU had a nice crowd in the Wellness Center on Wednesday, and they were treated to a heck of a match.
Click here to read my official press release about the win, which details Kyle Henderson's thrilling victory to give DWU the win. Since that release has most of the details, I'll use this space for some extra analysis, but Henderson's clutch win ended up being the difference, and he deserves tons of credit for stepping up in a huge spot.
Sometimes in a match like Wednesday's, the way a team loses matches can be just as crucial as some of the wins. For example, I think Blake Hodne was kind of an unsung hero of the win, despite an 11-3 major deicison loss. Hodne was up against Hastings's Jameon Rush, who is ranked No. 6 in the NAIA. Though Rush ended up getting four points for the Broncos, Hodne really wrestled well, especially early, and the fact that he avoided getting pinned or even a technical fall was a boost for the Tigers. It's clear the Broncos count on Rush to score big points for them every time out, but Hodne did a solid job staying with him, and he was never in any real danger of getting pinned. That was smart wrestling.
Malik Stewart and Billy Murtha also had impressive wins Wednesday. Stewart had one of the most exciting matches of the night, as he willed himself to a late reversal to score a 4-2 win. And Murtha, in his first action of the season, notched a solid 6-2 win to build up the DWU lead at the time.
It was good to see the Tigers win a close dual after dropping a close one to open the GPAC season at Briar Cliff. Hopefully they can keep it rolling with three more duals at home this month. Dana is here on the 15th and Sioux Falls comes to Mitchell on the 21st, and those will both be big matches for DWU.
So close...
Football is often described as a game of inches. It's hard to use the same analogy with basketball, but it certainly seems like it applies itself to the DWU women's basketball team thus far this season.
Right now, the Tigers sit at 9-9 overall and 2-4 in the ridiculously difficult GPAC. However, if a few shots would've fell at key times or the ball had bounced a slighty different direction a number of times, the Tigers could be in a much different position.
Let's just start by looking at two games: one-point losses to Dakota State and Sioux Falls. Both games could have very easily gone the other way. Had that happened, DWU is sitting at 11-7 overall and 3-3 in the GPAC. Compare that to 9-9 and 2-4, and a few points really make a huge difference on the landscape of the entire season.
To go a step further, the Tigers had chances to beat Jamestown, Kansas Wesleyan, Doane, Northwestern and Mount Marty (many of which are nationally ranked). All those losses were between six and 10 points, and DWU held second-half leads in many of those losses. If even two of those games could have gone DWU's way, then the team is sitting 13-5 overall with maybe a 4-2 or 5-1 record in the toughest women's basketball conference in the country. That would get a team into the rankings, and bolster national tournament hopes.
Instead, the Tigers have hovered around the .500 mark all year. After winning 18 games last season, hopes were high for DWU in Aaron Kahl's second season, and it's possbile to just look at the Tigers' record and say that they didn't take another step forward this year as expected.
However, I beg to differ. I think that when you factor in the number of ranked teams DWU has played, and how close most of its games have been, the Tigers are perilously close to being an upper-echelon team, both in the GPAC and the NAIA.
The second half of the season will provide ample opportunity for DWU to turn some of those close losses into victories, starting with Sunday's trip to take on No. 9 Hastings. The Broncos desparately need a win, so they'll be ready for DWU, and winning on the road in the GPAC is never easy. After Sunday's game, DWU will host four in a row, all winnable, so that could be just what the Tigers need to build some momentum for a late-season surge.
I'll check back early next week with some thoughts on the men's basketball race for the GPAC title. Happy New Year!
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