Do the Maine Shuffle: Stock Report 4/21

Williams and Bates split their non-conference doubleheader.
Williams and Bates split their non-conference doubleheader. (Courtesy of Williams Athletics)

As promised, the best drama during the weekend happened in the East where Trinity took two of three from Bowdoin while Colby lost two of three to Tufts. The question however, is did any of that really matter? Trinity, Bowdoin, and Colby all have five losses already while Bates only has two. Colby and Bowdoin are close to eliminated while the Bantams need a lot of things to happen to make the playoffs, but they absolutely must win their series against Bates when they meet.

Amherst and Wesleyan both swept their series, but the games were generally close. The Jeffs relied on their pitching in the first two games before mashing four homers in the final game to complete the sweep of Hamilton. Wesleyan also snuck by Middlebury in the first two games, before also hitting four homers in the final game of the series to win easily.

To put in perspective the type of coincidence it is that both Wesleyan and Amherst hit four home runs on Saturday, consider that amongst every NESCAC team, the only other game where a team had four or more homers was when Tufts hit six in a 28-2 dismantling of Brandeis.

Stock Up

Starting Pitcher Sean Meekins ’15 (Trinity)

The Bantams were on the ropes Saturday after falling to 2-5 following their loss to Bowdoin Friday. That was when Meekins declared an extension to the playoff hopes of Trinity and pitched an absolute gem in the first game of the doubleheader. He went all seven innings allowing only three hits and one walk. Despite the lead-off hitter reaching in three of the first five innings, no Bowdoin player advanced past second base ALL game. In fact, after a single to lead off the fifth, Meekins retired the final nine Bowdoin hitters without the ball leaving the infield. The shutout brought his season ERA to 1.91 to go along with a 10.36 K/9 rate. Along with Jed Robinson ’16, Meekins has kept Trinity on the edge of the playoff race and overcome an offense that struggles to score.

Bates

The idle team in the East must have enjoyed watching their rivals beat up on each other. Seeing Bowdoin and Colby lose two of three must have been especially sweet. The Bobcats are not out of the woods yet of course. They have still only played five NESCAC games and have to face Tufts this upcoming weekend. Going 5-2 over the NESCAC stretch run seems unlikely, but simply taking two of three from Trinity would mean Bates could win only one of their other four games and still make the playoffs by virtues of tiebreakers. Yes, that would put Bates at 6-6, but in a division without any weak links, 6-6 might end up being enough. And they weren’t really idle this weekend either since they played three games. A split of a Sunday doubleheader against Williams makes it a little easier to overlook a 22-8 loss to Endicott where the Bobcats made seven errors.

Tufts Hitting

The Jumbos are known foremost for their pitching, but their lineup has also consistently been a well above average unit. Tufts has won all three of their NESCAC series in similar fashion this year. They lose the first or second game by a little and look vulnerable heading into the final game of the series. Then the offense turns it on and the game ends up being a blowout. The Jumbos are averaging 13.66 runs per game and winning by an average margin of 10.66 runs in the final game of their series.  Not sure why they decide to only score once the stakes are so high in that final game, but they definitely tend to mash against subpar hitting. They have scored at least 15 runs in eight different games this year and have passed 20 runs in three of those games. Those numbers make their league leading 285 runs scored this season a slightly misleading number. Still, this is a very good hitting team right now.

Stock Down

Bowdoin Offense

Heading into Saturday the Polar Bears were 3-3 with the chance to jump into the drivers seat for the two seed with a sweep of Trinity. Instead, the offense went completely cold wasting quality starts from Erik Jacobsen ’15 and Harry Ridge ’16. In the first game Meekins completely shut down the lineup. Then the lack of depth was exposed during the final game. In the bottom of the second they loaded the bases with nobody out and their 7-8-9 hitters coming up. Bowdoin managed to push only one run across on a wild pitch and Trinity escaped only down one. The game ended in a similar situation when there were runners on second and third with no outs and 7-8-9 coming up. Bowdoin had already scored one run that inning to cut the Trinity lead to 6-3, but the next three hitters all got out to seal the win for the Bantams. A golden opportunity slipped through the fingers of the Polar Bears who now face long odds at making the playoffs.

Outfielder Kenny Collins ’17 (Hamilton)

Collins looked like a rising star earlier in the year. After completing his freshmen year hot to raise his season average to .359, he was on a tear as well in 2015 with an average above .400 only a few weeks ago. However, he has gone cold at the plate and has not recorded a hit in Hamilton’s past five games. He ended up not starting the second game on Saturday against Amherst but ended up pinch hitting in the seventh inning. Unfortunately, he struck out with the bases loaded to end the game. Now coming into the game as a pinch hitter is not easy of course, but the moment must have surely been frustrating for Collins. His struggles have come at the same time as the Continentals’ offense has gone cold overall. He should get back on track at some point which will give Hamilton a needed boost.

NY QB Brandon Tobin to Transfer to Hamilton College for 2015 Season

Brandon Tobin '18 will join Hamilton College this fall to play quarterback. (Courtesy of Pace University Athletics)
Brandon Tobin ’18 will join Hamilton College this fall to play quarterback. (Courtesy of Pace University Athletics)

Brandon Tobin ’18 started three games at quarterback for Division-II Pace University this past season as a true freshman, and before that was the Section I-AA Offensive MVP in the state of New York as a senior at Arlington High School.

In 2015, Tobin will be taking snaps as a member of the Hamilton Continentals.

Tobin joins a long list of higher-division quarterbacks to join the NESCAC over the past half decade, which includes two-time NESCAC Offensive MVP McCallum Foote ’13 (via Brown), Williams’ starting QB Austin Lommen ’16 (Boston College), Colby backup Michael Ecke ’17 (UCONN) and the incoming Jared Lebowitz ’17 (UNLV).

The 6’1″, 200 lbs. righty signal-caller will complete the spring semester at Pace University, focusing on lifting and finishing strong academically before turning his attention toward learning the Hamilton playbook this summer and joining the Continentals in the Fall.

According to Arlington High School Head Coach Dom DeMatteo, Tobin showed an ability to pick up the offense quickly as a junior for the Admirals, but ceded time early on to a senior at quarterback. By the fourth week of Tobin’s junior season, DeMatteo was unable to keep Tobin off of the field, and the junior began playing more and more snaps as the season went along. As a senior Tobin spent the entire season as the Admirals’ undisputed starting quarterback and leader.

Nor was Tobin a one-way player. According to DeMatteo, Tobin earned the starting job at field corner with ease as a junior, and were it not for the need to be cautious with the team’s future star QB, Tobin’s toughness would have allowed him to move to linebacker.

And, lest we forget, Tobin also dabbled in punting, kickoffs and placekicking.

The last of which did not come easy to Tobin. Realizing a void at the kicking position, DeMatteo decided to have Tobin try out his leg. The first day was pretty unsuccessful, but DeMatteo says that Tobin went home that night, researched placekicking and came back the next day looking like a professional.

Tobin admits that he spent three to four hours watching YouTube videos that night in an effort to improve his placekicking.

Coach DeMatteo put it quite simply.

“He’s not just a quarterback. He’s a football player.” – Arlington HS Head Coach Dom DeMatteo

That is an easily tossed around cliché but one that certainly applies to Tobin.

But for Tobin, the moniker “student-athlete” means something, which was the NY native’s primary motivation for deciding to transfer from Pace.

When first looking at colleges, Hamilton was on the shortlist of schools that Tobin and his family had to decide among, but in the end the opportunity to play under scholarship at Division-II Pace became a deciding factor.

Brandon Tobin signing his national letter of intent to play football at Pace University in March 2014. (Courtesy of Arlington High School Athletics)
Brandon Tobin signing his national letter of intent to play football at Pace University in March 2014. (Courtesy of Arlington High School Athletics)

After a semester in which Tobin was unimpressed by the academic landscape at his current school, Tobin decided to pursue his release from Pace and began searching for a new home. The QB also stressed that his decision was not driven by football, but rather was based primarily on his desire to challenge himself academically.

Now that the decision is final, it is time to turn our attention to next season and decipher what this means for the Hamilton College football program.

Current sophomore Chase Rosenberg ’17 will be the incumbent at quarterback for Head Coach Dave Murray, who chose not to comment on the news of Tobin’s transfer. However, with the Continentals coming off of an 0-8 year in Murray’s first at the helm, one has to believe that nothing will be guaranteed to any of the returning players.

Tobin stated that Murray had not promised the transfer anything in terms of playing time, but certainly allowed that there would be an opportunity for Tobin to compete for a starting job with Rosenberg once camp opens.

For Tobin’s part, he has not seen Hamilton play with Rosenberg under center, nor has he spoken to his future teammate, but he looks forward to the position battle that will take place this Fall.

Tobin, it would seem, has the skills to play in the NESCAC. As a senior at Arlington, Tobin threw eight touchdowns and secured eight more on the ground, compiling over 1,400 yards of total offense. In his first season at Pace the results were much more varied, but his 17-35 (48.6 percent), 1-0 TD-INT performance against Southern Connecticut State provides a glimpse of what the righty can do.

Aside from the statistics, Tobin should be a great addition for a team that will need to stay committed despite a history of poor performance. According to DeMatteo, Tobin is the rare type of player that combines his athletic gifts with the ability to lead both vocally and by example. Since taking over at Arlington in 2007, DeMatteo has not had a more complete football player.

“[He was the] best compete package, intelligent, athletic, physical, could make all the throws on the field. There was really nothing that we asked Brandon to do on the field that he could not do.” – Dom DeMatteo

The recent lack of success for Hamilton did not deter Tobin, who encountered a similar situation when he enrolled at Pace last year, where he joined a program in the midst of a coaching change looking to turn over a new leaf. Now, Tobin hopes to be part of a rebirth for the Hamilton program under Dave Murray, and the transfer is excited to play for his new coach and the Hamilton staff.

Coach DeMatteo feels strongly that a wave of success is coming for Tobin and his new team.

“I sincerely believe that Hamilton College hit a home run with this kid.” – Dom DeMatteo

As for Tobin, he stuck to his humble nature and refrained from predicting the heights that his new team will achieve, saying only,

“I’m very thankful to be given the opportunity.” – Brandon Tobin

March Player of the Month: Joe Jensen ’15 (Hamilton)

Joe Jensen '15 is a star on the track and the diamond. (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)
Joe Jensen ’15 is a star on the track and the diamond. (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)

New feature that we are adding to the arsenal on the website. Every month we are going to pick one athlete to single out for his individual achievements recently. The Player of the Week awards released by the NESCAC are great, and we wanted to put our own spin on it. By making it a month long deal, we can take a larger sample size. First up is Centerfielder Joe Jensen ’15 from Hamilton.

In March, Jensen has elevated his already exceptional play to yet another level. He was in the top three in the NESCAC in batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage at the end of the month. His OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) was 1.362. Probably his most impressive statistic was his .525 batting average. Of course, a slugging percentage of .775 and on-base percentage of .587 aren’t bad either. He has been held hitless in only one game so far this season. Jensen was at his hottest during a five-game stretch to open the season from March 16-19 when he had multiple hits in all six games.

For comparison’s sake, Barry Bonds had the finest hitting season we could ever see in 2004 for the Major Leagues. He finished the year with a .609 OBP and .812 SLG percentage. Those are unfreaking real numbers for the Majors, steroids or no steroids. They aren’t as impressive in the NESCAC, but still pretty damn good. Also just to make it clear, I’m not accusing Jensen of being on steroids by comparing him to Bonds.

Still, he is a lot stronger than he was a year ago. Jensen is hitting for power with six extra base hits so far after hitting only three all of 2014. He also hit his first career home run in the opening game of the year for the Continentals.

All of those hitting statistics do not take into account Jensen’s All-American track speed. He has nine stolen bases and has been caught only once so far, despite everybody this side of the Mississippi knowing he is likely to steal as soon as he gets on first base. Jensen has been on first base with the opportunity to swipe second (i.e. nobody in front of him) 17 times this season and has attempted 10 steals in those situations, taking nine bags. That’s a ridiculous 58.8 percent attempt rate and 90 percent success rate. Jensen actually has three errors and no assists so his fielding has not been flawless, but we are sure he is tracking down plenty of balls in the gap that don’t show up in the box score.

The Top Ranked Division-III draft prospect according to Baseball America, Jensen is unlikely to hit above .500 for the year, and he is actually already below that mark after going 1-5 on Wednesday, April 1. Still, he is putting a spectacular exclamation on a career that has seen him go from a freshmen year where he hit .170 to now. His story is an unusual one, and it is far from over. Congrats Joe!

Your Continental Breakfast: Hamilton Baseball Season Preview

Joe Jensen '15 could have a massive senior season. (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)
Joe Jensen ’15 could have a massive senior season. (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)

2014 Record: 10-16 (2-10, Fifth in the NESCAC West), missed NESCAC playoffs

Starters Returning: 10 (8 position players, 2 starting pitchers)

Projected Lineup: (Stats are from 2014)

CF Joe Jensen ’15 (.398/.495/.430, 0 HR, 9 RBI)
RF Kenny Collins ’17 (.359/.422/.372, 0 HR, 15 RBI)
LF Ryan Wolfsberg ’17 (.273/.359/.364, 1 HR, 13 RBI)
3B Andrew Haser ’17 (.250/.291/.350, 1 HR, 9 RBI)
SS Chris Collins ’17 (.280/.353/.307, 0 HR, 8 RBI)
C Brett Mele ’17 (.237/.384/.271/0 HR, 7 RBI)
1B David Rose ’16 (.176/.167/.353, 0 HR, 3 RBI)
DH Mike Chiseri ’16 (.242/.395/.273, 0 HR, 5 RBI)
2B Brian Ferrell ’16 (.120/.241/.120, 0 HR, 0 RBI)

LHP Jjay Lane ’15 (1-4, 5.35 ERA, 3.74 K/9, 33.2 IP)
RHP Cole Dreyfuss ’16 (1-3, 6.75 ERA, 5.83 K/9, 29.1 IP)
RHP Finlay O’Hara (1-1, 3.38 ERA, 4.22 K/9, 21.1 IP)

Offensive Overview:

Almost the entire lineup returns from what was a very freshmen-heavy contingent a year ago. The one MAJOR exception to those freshmen was center fielder Joe Jensen ’15. The speedy outfielder enjoyed an incredible junior season and was voted by Baseball America this winter as the best Division-III professional prospect in America. Teams are forced to pitch to him because he is so fast that walking him is almost like a lead-off double because he can steal second base almost at will. He is the most likely player to keep Mike Odenwaelder ’16 from winning NESCAC POY again. Besides Jensen, the Collins twins, Chris and Kenny, will be major cogs in the lineup again as sophomores. Ryan Wolfsberg ’17 is another of those sophomores looking to improve after playing a lot as a freshmen. This lineup was one of the worse ones in the NESCAC because of how many freshmen got serious at-bats, but they should be much improved and at the least the top of the lineup will scare pitchers because of Jensen.

Defensive Overview:

The Continentals struggled in NESCAC play to make the simple play and ended the year with 30 errors in 12 NESCAC games, the most of anyone in the league. Again, Jensen is the best glove where he uses his All-American track speed to catch everything in the outfield. Having two freshmen, Chris Collins ’17 and Andrew Haser ’17, man the left side of the infield a year ago showed as those two combined for 22 errors. Expect a good amount of improvement as the two get more comfortable this season. Brett Mele ’17 is back at catcher where he will provide a steady presence behind the plate.

Pitching Overview:

The pitching staff is the area where Hamilton is probably the weakest. As a sophomore in 2013, Jjay Lane ’15 was one of the best pitchers in the NESCAC with an ERA well below 2.00, but last season he was touched up to the tune of a 5.35 ERA. Never a power pitcher, Lane only struck out 14 batters all season, and his defense let him down a good amount of the time as well. The Continentals are hoping that he will be able to rebound this year. Cole Dreyfuss ’16 really struggled a season ago, but he will get another chance this season, and Finlay O’Hara ’17 will try to build on a freshman year where he showed promise. None of those three is a strikeout heavy pitcher so they will rely a lot on their defense behind them. The hope is that Lane can be an ace and Dreyfuss and O’Hara are able to keep the ball on the ground as much as possible.

Storylines to Watch

1. Does Jensen have another level?

The somewhat amazing thing about Jensen is that he has improved leaps and bounds during his time at Hamilton. His freshman year he hit .170 in 53 at-bats, and his sophomore year showcased his speed more than his bat. Only last season did he emerge as an absolute force at the plate. His sudden ascent to an actual MLB draft prospect took virtually everybody by surprise. Already this season Jensen has hit a home run, something that he never did a year ago. That could hint at him being more than just somebody who is able to get on-base like crazy. It would also make the talk about him being drafted become a lot more realistic. Despite being on one of the worst teams in the league last year, Jensen is unquestionably one of the top five players in the NESCAC, and he could finish the year as the very best one.

2. Where does their opponents’ BABIP end up?

For the uninitiated, BABIP stands for “batting average on balls in play” which basically takes away strikeouts and home runs. In general research has found that pitchers actually have little control over their BABIP, though there are some notable exceptions. So a lot of it is luck, and for a staff like Hamilton that doesn’t strike out a lot of hitters, luck can be very important. The difference between a low opponents’ BABIP (good for Hamilton) and a high one (bad) is significant enough that we could look back at Hamilton’s season differently just based on that. A good defense that limits errors will also help the pitching staff, of course.

3. What is their ceiling?

Jensen is going to be very good, and the lineup around him should be much improved. Unfortunately for Hamilton (Middlebury and Williams too), Amherst and Wesleyan just have way more talent than them. The Continentals went 2-10 in conference last year, and they were fifth in the West because they lost the head-to-head tiebreaker to Middlebury. A third place finish in the West is certainly possible given the room for improvement amongst their younger players, but their lack of any dominant pitcher will make beating Amherst or Wesleyan in even one game a tall task.

Biggest Series: April 24-25 home against Williams

A season ago Hamilton ended the NESCAC season on a low note by being swept at Williams. That result was a big reason why they ended up in the cellar, but the series could be very different in New York this year. A series victory could be enough to lift Hamilton into third place.

All-NESCAC Team

The 2014-15 NESCAC men’s basketball season was marked by parity and unpredictability. But through it all, a few players played exceptionally well all season long. As Wesleyan showed in their title run, the five best individual players do not always make up the best team (not a dig at Wesleyan, who is filled with talented and hard-nosed basketball players), but I think any team in Division-III would be hard-pressed to compete with this NESCAC All-Star squad.

NbN Player of the Year: G Lucas Hausman ’16

Lucas Hausman '16 rose above the rest down the stretch this season. (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics/CIPhotography.com)
Lucas Hausman ’16 rose above the rest down the stretch this season. (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics/CIPhotography.com)

NbN Defensive Player of the Year: C John Swords ’15

John Swords '15 had this kind of height advantage in every game he played this season. It's tough to beat a team when you can't get a clean look inside the paint. (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics/CIPhotography.com)
John Swords ’15 had this kind of height advantage in every game he played this season. It’s tough to beat a team when you can’t get a clean look inside the paint. (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics/CIPhotography.com)

NbN Rookie of the Year: G Johnny McCarthy ’18

Johnny McCarthy '18 showed that he has the tools to be a complete player in the NESCAC, scoring 10.7 PPG, shooting 35.5 percent from deep, snagging 6.7 RPG, dishing out 2.4 APG and swiping 1.8 SPG. (Courtesy of Amherst Athletics)
Johnny McCarthy ’18 showed that he has the tools to be a complete player in the NESCAC, scoring 10.7 PPG, shooting 35.5 percent from deep, snagging 6.7 RPG, dishing out 2.4 APG and swiping 1.8 SPG. (Courtesy of Amherst Athletics)

NbN Coach of the Year: Joe Reilly, Wesleyan 

Coach Joe Reilly out-coached his competitors on the way to earning Wesleyan University's first-ever NESCAC Championship. (Courtesy of NESCAC.com)
Coach Joe Reilly out-coached his competitors on the way to earning Wesleyan University’s first-ever NESCAC Championship. (Courtesy of NESCAC.com)

NbN First Team All-NESCAC

Graham Safford '15 (Courtesy of Bates Athletics)
Graham Safford ’15 (Courtesy of Bates Athletics)

G Graham Safford ’15

Safford gets the nod over some other deserving point guards for his durability and leadership of a Bates team that will be playing in the NCAA Tournament. It’s the age old debate – should Most Valuable Player (or All-Conference) awards go to the best overall player or the best player on the best team? In this case, Safford does get a little benefit of the doubt for his team’s success, but no one else played close to the minutes that Safford played, and the senior leader kept up the intensity on both ends of the court all season long, leading the Bobcats to the second-most wins in school history (20 in 2005-06 under, you guessed it, Wesleyan head coach Joe Reilly) and the second NCAA Tournament in school history (Bates played in the 1961 NCAA Men’s College Division Tournament, now Division-II).

Lucas Hausman '16 (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics)
Lucas Hausman ’16 (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics)

G Lucas Hausman ’16

Hausman went from solid upstart to our NESCAC Player of the Year in a short period of time. While winning three straight NESCAC Player of the Week awards, the first time that feat has been accomplished in NESCAC history, Hausman averaged 27.8 points per game while shooting 57.3 percent (63-110) from the field and maintaining near perfection from the charity stripe (83.3 percent, 30-36). Hausman has a unique ability to draw contact in the lane and finish shots off balance. Hausman finished the season as the scoring champion by a wide margin in conference games, and did it while shooting nearly 50 percent overall, helping carry a squad that suffered some critical injuries all the way to the Pool C bubble. Unfortunately, Bowdoin missed out on the NCAA Tournament. Fortunately, though, the NESCAC has one more year to enjoy watching Hausman play. Or unfortunately, if you’re an opposing coach.

Dan Wohl '15 (Courtesy of Williams Athletics)
Dan Wohl ’15 (Courtesy of Williams Athletics)

F Dan Wohl ’15

Wohl was the POY favorite before Hausman caught fire, but nonetheless the senior put up a great campaign. Wohl was the fourth-leading scorer on the NCAA runner-up squad a year ago, but took on a lot more responsibility this season and responded incredibly well. As a case study of Wohl’s versatility – Wohl had a tough day from the field in the Ephs’ Quarterfinal loss to Bowdoin, yet the senior racked up 10 boards and seven assists against just a single turnover. Wohl also rebounded the ball extremely well and presented one of the toughest defensive challenges for opposing players in the league. His athleticism and length allowed Wohl to shutdown opposing team’s 2-4’s. For example, Wohl shut down Second-Teamer Dylan Sinnickson ’15 in Williams’ matchup with the Panthers to the tune of a 3-11 FG performance and 0-4 from deep. It may be even tougher for Williams to replace this year’s class of Wohl, Hayden Rooke-Ley ’15 and Ryan Kilcullen ’15 than last year’s, if that’s even imaginable.

Connor Green (Courtesy of Amherst Athletics)
Connor Green (Courtesy of Amherst Athletics)

F Connor Green ’16

Green came into the NESCAC’s final weekend as possibly hotter than Hausman, but hit a serious road block against Bowdoin and Wesleyan. Give those teams credit for forcing Green into tough shots and long threes, attempts that at other times Green seemed to hit as easily as lay ups. When you talk about guys that can score in different ways, Green is tops on the list. He handles the ball like a point guard, though he stands 6′ 4″, and his 200+ lbs. frame means that he can bully most defenders and is unaffected by contact inside. Not to mention his 48.2 three-point percentage in NESCAC games. Green is already comfortably a part of Amherst’s 1,000 point club, and if he stays healthy could find himself as the second-highest scorer in Amherst history by the time his career ends.

John Swords '15 (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics)
John Swords ’15 (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics)

C John Swords ’15

Swords was the only member of the 2014 All-NESCAC First Team to return to the league this season, and his play warrants another nomination to the All-NESCAC team. We were concerned by the health of Swords’ knees when the season began, and even though he was less than 100 percent all season long, Swords played more than 30 minutes per game and discouraged teams from entering the paint all year. Swords grabbed 9.8 rebounds and tossed 2.1 blocks per game while putting up productive, if unspectacular numbers from the field. Swords scored “only” 12.9 points per game, but he did do it on 69.0 percent shooting, the fourth-highest mark in the NCAA as of March 1 among qualified players.

NbN Second Team All-NESCAC

Joseph Lin (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)
Joseph Lin (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)

G Joseph Lin ’15

If we were giving out the award, Lin would easily be the NESCAC’s Most Improved Player. Despite a late season injury that cut his campaign short, Lin was among the best distributors in the league on a team that we didn’t expect would have a ton of great shooters. Lin was in the top-ten nationally in assists per game, slightly ahead of Safford and Middlebury’s Jake Brown ’17, while also shooting for a better percentage from the field than either player.

 

Luke Westman '16 (Courtesy of Colby Athletics)
Luke Westman ’16 (Courtesy of Colby Athletics)

G Luke Westman ’16

Two point guards make our All-NESCAC Second Team, but there should be no complaining as Westman was equally as impressive as Lin. Westman’s 73.2 percent from the field is basically unheard of from a guard, even though he just barely missed the cut to qualify for NCAA statistics (five made field goals per game). Westman is one of the most athletic guards in the NESCAC. He will return next year to lead inarguably the most talented class of rising seniors in the league.

 

Dylan Sinnickson (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)
Dylan Sinnickson (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)

F Dylan Sinnickson ’15

Sinnickson looked like a lock for All-NESCAC First Team consideration for much of the season, but his scoring took a major hit in conference games. Nonetheless his ability to grab rebounds (10.5 per game) was a difference-maker for a Middlebury team that lacked any consistency from its big men. Remember the name, because Sinnickson has one more year of NCAA eligibility, and there’s a better than 50-50 chance that the athletic swingman will be on the court for another NCAA college next season.

 

Tom Palleschi '17 (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)
Tom Palleschi ’17 (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)

F Tom Palleschi ’17

Palleschi was a wild card coming into this season after missing all of 2013-14, but the reclassified sophomore didn’t miss a beat and improved on his statistics from his freshman year campaign, averaging 12.0 PPG and 6.1 RPG. Most impressively, once Hunter Sabety ’17 went down with a knee injury, Palleschi stepped up his game and became Tufts’ most important player, scoring double figures in seven of nine contests counting forward from the first game without Sabety. What’s more, Palleschi was a force defensively, rejecting 2.4 shots per game, 0.3 more than the seven-footer Swords. If anyone can challenge Green for most-diversified offensive game, it’s Palleschi, who can play with his back to the basket or face up from 15 feet away.

Zuri Pavlin '17 (Courtesy of Conn. College Athletics)
Zuri Pavlin ’17 (Courtesy of Conn. College Athletics)

F Zuri Pavlin ’17

Amidst a disappointing season for the Camels, Pavlin shined once again, surpassing the Conn. College single-season rebounding record that he set last year as a freshman and leading the team in scoring with 13.7 points per game. Pavlin doesn’t have amazing height (6′ 5″) or strength, but he has an incredible knack for using his body to get rebounds. Watch out next year, as one more year under the belts of Pavlin and front court mate Isaiah Robinson ’18, a bruiser in his own right, could make for a fearsome front line.

 

On the Outside Looking (L)in: Hamilton Season Wrap Up

Hamilton fell short all too often this season. The Conts nearly knocked off Bates on the road in early February, but eventually lost 73-71. (Courtesy of Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)
Hamilton fell short all too often this season. The Conts nearly knocked off Bates on the road in early February, but eventually lost 73-71. (Courtesy of Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

Season Record: 14-10 (2-8), missed NESCAC Tournament

For a team that lost the NESCAC’s top scorer, Matt Hart, to transfer and a couple of critical players to graduation, to start this season 7-0 and then 10-2 seemed a miracle to some, which I’m sure was some motivation to the Continental players. All they heard all of season was about how the program was going to take a major step back with the departure of Hart, and yet the Conts came out firing, something that wasn’t missed by their former teammate.

Unfortunately for Hamilton, it all came crashing down after the first NESCAC game of the season. At the time, it seemed like a small hiccough because the Continentals played Amherst so tightly, and the play of captain Joseph Lin ’15 was a hot topic, as well.

Hamilton dropped its first four conference games, burying itself in a hole that it would not recover from. A 67-64 win over Williams kept the Continentals’ hopes alive, and two subsequent out-of-conference wins got the team’s confidence up, but after that four more conference losses put the nail in the coffin. Hamilton was able to end its season on a high note, though, with a fairly drama-free victory over Conn. College that began in a very unorthodox way. But more on that later.

High Point: 46-44 win at Hobart Sunday, January 4

Hamilton played five teams this season who made it into the final public NCAA Regional Rankings, which are used to determine at-large bids for the NCAA Tournament. Trinity, Amherst, Bates and Bowdoin all got the best of the Conts, but Hamilton was able to squeak out a win against East Region Hobart, which finished the season at 18-8 and now is hoping for an at-large bid that is unlikely to come. Still, to win a back-and-forth, ugly game on the road against a team that is on the cusp of the NCAA Tournament seemed like a statement win at the time for Hamilton.

Joseph Lin (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)
Joseph Lin (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)

MVP: Joseph Lin ’15

This is an easy pick. If there was such an award, Lin would likely garner the Most Improved Player in the NESCAC award. Lin came off the bench mostly last season, and played 21.8 minutes per game, tallying 5.6 PPG on 40.2 percent shooting, 24.5 percent from deep and 66.7 percent from the line, 2.6 RPG, 1.8 APG and a 1.4 A/TO ratio. In 2014-15 those numbers improved drastically: 29.2 MPG, 13.5 PPG, 45.5 percent FG, 38.5 percent 3PT, 74.7 percent FT, 2.7 RPG, 6.4 APG, 2.3 A/TO.

Lin worked his way into the starting lineup a few weeks before conference play began and became a mainstay in the starting five, distributing well to shooters Peter Kazickas ’15 and Jack Donnelly ’16 and inside to Ajani Santos ’16, earning a Player of the Week Honor along the way. Sadly, Lin’s season ended on crutches after he went down at Bates on February 7. In a nice gesture, Lin was able to grab one last basket in a Continentals uniform in his final game.

Player to Watch in 2014-15: Zander Wear ’18

Santos and Donnelly are known commodities at this point, but the real wild card for Hamilton will be the improvement of the near-seven-footer Wear. Listed at 6’11”, 245 lbs., Wear has better size than any big man in the NESCAC next season. The youngster appeared in 20 games, though he didn’t see very many minutes, and really didn’t do much in his short stints on the court. However, there is plenty of time for him to work on his footwork and skills before next season, and the kid is not afraid of contact, if his high school recruiting video is any indication:

How often do you see highlight tapes start with a player taking a bunch of charges?

A la John Swords ’15 for Bowdoin, Wear is a rare commodity that few teams can boast of and could single-handedly make the Continentals a contender next season.

The 10 Most Important People This Weekend

Graham Safford '15 might be holding flowers, but he still has his eyes on the prize: two wins this weekend. (Courtesy of Bates Athletics)
Graham Safford ’15 might be holding flowers, but he still has his eyes on the prize. (Courtesy of Bates Athletics)

Usually in our weekend preview we tell you three players who we think are going to have a significant impact on the weekend. Given how big of a weekend this one is, three is simply not going to be enough. The criteria for this is not simply the best players on each team. The most important players are the ones who will have the biggest impact on how we look back on the weekend.

10. Small Forward Peter Kazickas ’15 (Hamilton)

The emergence of Joseph Lin ’15 has overshadowed the improvement of Kazickas, another senior who has stepped up in his final season. Last season Kazickas was a secondary option for Hamilton and only made 0.4 threes per game. This season he is shooting an unfathomably hot 59.1 percent from three in conference while making four times as many threes as last year. Yes, Hamilton is officially eliminated from the tournament, but as Williams learned earlier, traveling to Clinton is not an easy task. The Continentals could play spoiler to Wesleyan, if Kazickas shoots like he has been recently.

9. David George ’17 (Amherst)

If George watched the Middlebury-Bowdoin game, he was salivating at all the dunks John Swords ’15 had against the Panther frontline. He could have a great game Sunday if Amherst makes a concerted effort to get him the ball. George has been a very good player this year for the Jeffs, but he has not been close to the dominant force he looked like for parts of the NCAA tournament. He is shooting 52.8 percent from the field which honestly is not a great percentage for a big man. A big game going into the NESCAC tournament will put fear in Amherst’s opponents.

8. Shooting Guard Hayden Rooke-Ley ’15 (Williams)

Any doubt about who the best pure shooter in the NESCAC is was put to rest by Rooke-Ley Friday night against Bates. He went 6-8 from three, many of them with a hand in his face. To shoot for the season 46.7 percent from three given the difficulty of most of those shots is impressive. Finding him in transition is an absolute must. Rooke-Ley might not create very many opportunities for others, but he cashes in on the ones he has. At 4-4, Williams could be primed for a 2-0 weekend against Wesleyan and Conn College. If they got to 6-4, it would be the first time all season they have been more than a game away from .500 in conference.

7. Guard BJ Davis ’16 (Wesleyan)

Staying in front of Davis is a nightmare, and he gives Wesleyan more dynamism in their offense now that the Cardinals are running more offense through him. The Cardinals might need to win both of their games this weekend, and Davis is the one player who can truly be a difference maker for them. His shooting percentages are not great recently as he is drawing opponents’ top defenders. In conference games Davis is Wesleyan’s leading scorer and passer with 13.6 PPG and 4.0 APG. It is possible that on Saturday Williams puts Dan Wohl ’15 on Davis. If that is the case, Davis will probably try to use his quickness to get in the lane and forgo shooting from outside.

6. Point Guard Jake Brown ’17 (Middlebury)

Nobody thought that Middlebury would be here, needing at least one victory in the final weekend against Trinity or Amherst to even think about making the tournament. Brown could be important in very different ways. Friday against Trinity, Brown will defend Jaquann Starks ’16. Starks has been in double-digits the last five games, but Brown will be a real challenge for him. If Brown shuts down Starks, the Bantams offense could grind to a halt for long periods. Then, on Sunday Brown might take advantage of his athleticism against Reid Berman ’17 to get into the lane and cause Amherst headaches. Last Sunday Brown was limping at periods with what looked like an ankle injury, and if he is less than 100 percent, Middlebury will be in even bigger trouble than they are already.

5. Center John Swords ’15 (Bowdoin)

A fired up Swords is the best type of Swords, and that is the version we saw on Sunday against Middlebury. It probably helped that he only had one game that weekend and did not have to worry about his knees. Though his offensive production against Middlebury was great, it will be his defense and rebounding that Bowdoin really relies on this weekend. Because Tom Palleschi ’16 did not play last year, Swords and him have not matched up for significant minutes yet. The two will likely spend the beginning of the game feeling each other out with Palleschi probably relying on his jump shot initially.

4. Power Forward Sam Willson ’16 (Colby)

Willson is basically the entire Colby frontcourt right now. We aren’t sure because Colby does not publish the height of their players on their website, but based off of this photo, after Willson, Luke Westman ’16 was the second tallest player who played for Colby against Middlebury. Willson wasn’t even supposed to start this year, but a preseason injury to Patrick Stewart ’16 and more recent injury to Chris Hudnut ’16 leaves Willson as the only big man left. Offensively his role is the same as he is still really a stretch four who is good in pick and roll situations. On defense is where he will really make or break the Mules’ weekend. He could have a tough time going against Tom Palleschi ’16 and Marcus Delepeche ’17. He will need to use his strength and rely on help from his teammates to keep Colby afloat down low.

3. Center Tom Palleschi ’16 (Tufts)

In the first half against Williams, Palleschi looked unstoppable draining midrange jumpers, hook shots, and layups down low on his way to 22 points. Then suddenly in the second half he went cold and didn’t score in the final 17:20 of the game. That was a big reason why Williams came back to win and plunge Tufts back into the thick of things. Without Hunter Sabety ’17, Palleschi is the only inside threat for Tufts. He has to exploit Colby who is still playing without Chris Hudnut ’16. If Tufts stumbles Friday then Palleschi will have to deal with Swords. His ability to hit shots from outside might give Swords problems, but he has to make them first.

2. Power Forward Dylan Sinnickson ’15

His Player of the Year candidacy is over after last weekend, and Sinnickson just has not looked like the same explosive inside-out threat that we saw earlier this year. In his past four conference games, Hamilton was the only one where he scored more than 13 points or grabbed more than nine rebounds. He needs to be the man for Middlebury for at least one game this weekend. Something like a 20 and 15 performance. He most certainly has to outplay Connor Green ’16 when those two meet on Sunday. Maybe returning to Pepin will help Sinnickson to get back to the player who looked almost unstoppable for stretches earlier in the season.

1. Point Guard Graham Safford ’15 (Bates)

We have been saying all season that Safford is the single most important player to any team. There is a reason why he is averaging an insane 36.9 MPG. But how much of a toll is it taking on him? The last two Friday NESCAC games Safford has averaged 26.0 PPG, but on Saturday that average dips all the way down to 9.5 PPG. Both of those games have still been wins, but they were against Hamilton and Conn College, the two worst teams in the NESCAC. Bates might struggle Saturday against Colby. So maybe Safford knows that Friday is the game that Bates needs to win. After all, he was in the Bowdoin gym Sunday afternoon watching Middlebury and Bowdoin play.

Decision Time: Weekend Preview 2/13

This weekend is all about preparing for the playoffs. Trinity has the top seed under wraps, but otherwise no team has clinched a home playoff game. There is a scenario in which six teams, Bates, Amherst, Bowdoin, Tufts, Colby and Williams, could all finish 6-4. In that case, Amherst, Bowdoin and Williams would host playoff games. However, if Amherst loses on Sunday to Middlebury they could end up going on the road next weekend if Tufts and Williams both win out; Bowdoin will probably lose a top-four seed if they lose to Tufts; and Williams needs to sweep to have any chance of hosting next weekend.

Meanwhile, at the bottom of the ladder, the Panthers likely need one win to carry them through to the tournament, but they play two of the league’s best in Trinity and Amherst. They hold the tie-breaker over Wesleyan, but the Cardinals also get a soft matchup in Hamilton before they play Williams. If Wesleyan wins both games, they will almost certainly be playing playoff basketball. What’s more, Williams, who as I just mentioned has a chance to host, could miss the playoff altogether if Middlebury pulls off two upsets, Wesleyan sweeps, Colby wins at least one and the Ephs collapse and lose to both Conn. and Wesleyan.

Suffice to say it will be a chaotic weekend. We are breaking up the weekend preview somewhat so check back in later today for our look at the most important players for this weekend. Here are the best games to watch over the next few days. With the added flair of a prediction for each.

1. Trinity at Middlebury, Friday 7 PM

The Bantams are unlikely to rest on their laurels since the top seed is still unfamiliar to them, while the Panthers are fighting for their playoff lives. Trinity should be able to slow Middlebury down on the break, but Jake Brown ’17 and Co. will try to push the tempo nonetheless. Though Middlebury has been criticized for their defense recently, these are still the two top defenses by field goal percentage allowed, so it will be physical and could get ugly. These teams are also 1-2 in rebounding margin, but a large part of the Panthers’ success on the boards comes from Dylan Sinnickson ’15 out-jumping his matchups. Unfortunately for him, the Trinity forwards who will likely guard Sinnickson, Alex Conaway ’15 and Shay Ajayi ’16, are great at boxing out and will make rebounding difficult.

I think we see a lot of points but not necessarily great shooting numbers. These teams are going to be running up and down the floor a lot, so the benches could be a factor, which I actually think plays to Middlebury’s advantage, but it’s not enough for me to side with the Panthers.

Prediction: Trinity 79, Middlebury 75

2. Wesleyan at Hamilton, Friday 7 PM

I don’t think Wesleyan can handle the Ephs on Saturday, so if they want to make the tournament then they have to beat Hamilton. I hope Joseph Lin ’15 (assuming Lin returns from an injury sustained at Bates) and BJ Davis ’16 go at each other all game because they are both great penetrators who distribute well. Neither is too shabby at shooting the long ball, either. I think in some sense those two offset one another. So I think this comes down to inside play, and Wesleyan clearly has the edge. Hamilton does not rebound well, even with seven-footer Zander Wear ’18 getting more minutes lately, while Wesleyan has a few forwards who can bang on the boards. The Cardinals’ front court holds the advantage on both ends of the floor, and they just need this game more. If there is going to be a game where Hamilton can play at another level and win a big game it will be at the seniors’ last home game on Saturday against Conn.

Prediction: Wesleyan 73, Hamilton 64

3. CBB Battles: Bates at Bowdoin, Friday 7 PM and Bates at Colby, Saturday, 3 PM

The CBB is always full of drama. Technically, Bates won it back in December when the three matched up in non-conference play, but for a second suppose these game count towards the CBB as well. Colby has gone 1-2, dropping its first matchup with Bates and splitting with Bowdoin, Bates is 2-0 having beaten each team once already and Bowdoin is 1-2. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they all ended up tied.

Bates should still be favored in their matchup with the Polar Bears, though the return of Neil Fuller ’17 really strengthens their bench. Fuller is likely still shaking off some rust, but he was a 24.5 MPG starter for Coach Tim Gilbride before he went down with injury so he is a boost for a team that had been running out a pretty short rotation. We’ll have to wait and see if John Swords ’15 and Matt Palecki ’16 can handle the Delpeche duo. Last time these two teams met, Malcolm and Marcus combined for 21 points and 17 rebounds, but what’s even more impressive is that Swords had just five points and three boards.

Matt Palecki '16 will have his work cut out for him tonight. Not many players can out-jump the Delpeche brothers like Palecki did here. (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics)
Matt Palecki ’16 will have his work cut out for him tonight. Not many players can out-jump the Delpeche brothers like Palecki did here. (Courtesy of Bowdoin Athletics)

Prediction: Bates 62, Bowdoin 58

As for the Saturday tilt between Bates and Colby, Ryan Jann ’16 has been a man possessed recently. He’s taking a lot more shots in the absence of Chris Hudnut ’16, but somewhat surprisingly for someone who suddenly has to take on a lot more responsibility, they are mostly going in. In four games without Hudnut, Jann is 26-56 (46.4%) from the field and 12-21 (57.1%) from deep and his confidence just seems to be growing. I don’t think Jann alone is enough for me to pick Colby in this one, but he sure is fun to watch.

Prediction: Bates 80, Colby 71

The Race Gets Tighter: Fantasy Report 2/11

Zuri Pavlin '17 was unstoppable on the boards this weekend, grabbing 29 rebounds. (Courtesy of Conn. College Athletics/Anika Goodhue Photography)
Zuri Pavlin ’17 was unstoppable on the boards this weekend, grabbing 29 rebounds. (Courtesy of Conn. College Athletics/Anika Goodhue Photography)

With Bowdoin thrashing my very own Panthers last weekend, my only chance to earn any bragging rights this winter over Adam is if I can thoroughly annihilate him in fantasy basketball. I had been cultivating a nice lead in the points, assists and rate categories, but as of last week blocks, steals and three pointers made seemed to be slipping out of reasonable grasp. With that in mind, and the loss to injury of two of my skilled big men, Hunter Sabety ’17 and Chris Hudnut ’16, I was forced to make some roster decisions. I would have loved to add sharpshooter Hayden Rooke-Ley ’15, but Adam had waiver priority and beat me to the punch, but I was satisfied to add Connor Green ’16 and Matt Daley ’16. I didn’t end up playing Daley this weekend, but I’m hoping for a big week from him in the final weekend coming up. Adam was forced to sit his best rebounds/blocks contributor, John Swords ’15, who had only one game, which gave me some hope that I could close the gap in those categories. Here’s how our lineups shook out:

Lord of the ‘CAC (Adam) Lin and Tonic (Joe)
Position Player Player
Guard G. Safford J. Starks
Guard D. Wohl L. Westman
Guard H. Rooke-Ley C. Green
Forward A. Santos E. Ogundeko
Forward D. Sinnickson D. George
Forward Mar. Delpeche H. Merryman
Forward S. Ajayi Z. Pavlin
Bench J. Brown J. Lin
Bench J. McCarthy M. Daley
Bench J. Swords L. Hausman

I rolled out a lineup with a little bit less scoring potential than usual. Of course, Lucas Hausman ’16 only had one game, but I also kept Joseph Lin ’15 on the bench who is among the league’s best at scoring. However, I felt good about the matchups I had. Two of my guards this week are very good rebounders, and I was hoping for a big week from beyond the arch from Jaquann Starks ’15, Green and Hunter Merryman ’15. Zuri Pavlin ’17 stepped up huge for me with 21 rebounds against Trinity. My strategy worked on the boards, but it was a cold week for my squad from deep, aside from Green who netted 10 of my 15 three pointers:

Category Lord of the ‘CAC Lin and Tonic
Points 235 178
Assists 26 18
Rebounds 100 116
Steals 7 13
Blocks 6 9
FT% 87.7% (64/73) 66.1% (37-56)
FG% 46.2% (73/158) 42.3% (63-149)
3PT Made 27 15

While I took over the advantage this week, the percentage gaps shrunk considerably, which makes me nervous. It will be tough to hang onto the slim margins I’ve created, but it’s always better to be ahead in a tight race than behind. Here are the composite standings:

Category Lord of the ‘CAC Lin and Tonic Leader
Points 829 899 Joe
Assists 125 144 Joe
Rebounds 418 419 Joe
Steals 69 62 Adam
Blocks 65 48 Adam
FT% 74.0% (194/262) 75.1% (266/354) Joe
FG% 45.6% (288/631) 47.5% (318/670) Joe
3PT Made 78 40 Adam

Overall Score: Joe 5-3

Traveling to Maine Carries Significant Risk: Stock Report 2/9

Malcolm Delpeche '17 flushed this one home as the Bobcats slipped by Hamilton on Saturday, Feb. 7.
Malcolm Delpeche ’17 flushed this one home as the Bobcats slipped by Hamilton 73-71 on Saturday, Feb. 7.

The Maine triumvirate of Colby, Bates and Bowdoin combined on the weekend to go 4-0 at home. Behind hot shooting from Ryan Jann ’16 who finished with 26 points, the Mules beat Middlebury for their first win without Chris Hudnut ’16. Then on Sunday Bowdoin blitzed their way to an easy win over the Panthers to drop Middlebury to 3-5 in the NESCAC.

Meanwhile, Bates’ vaunted home-court advantage once again took center stage as the Bobcats pulled out close wins over Williams and Hamilton. The wins bring the Bobcats’ home record to 12-0 and 6-0 in NESCAC play. While you have probably heard all about how Alumni Gym rattles opponents, Colby and Bowdoin also boast great home records. Colby is 7-2 overall and 2-2 in the NESCAC at home, and this season has seen a resurgence in student attendance in Waterville. Bowdoin does not have as many students at their games (though I am one of the proud few), but the Polar Bears are 6-1 overall and 3-0 in the NESCAC when they play in Brunswick.

Of the three losses between them, two of them came at the hands of one of the other with Colby beating Bowdoin in Brunswick in December and the Polar Bears returning the favor in Waterville a few weeks ago. So the only team that has managed to come from out of state and beat a Maine school is Williams which beat Colby on January 17.

Stock Up

Center John Swords ’15 (Bowdoin)

As the only returning player from the All-NESCAC First Team, expectations were high for Swords coming into the season, but he has fallen short of them on the offensive end. Sunday was the Swords that Bowdoin fans were hoping for. The seven footer scored 20 points on 10-13 shooting, and at least five of his baskets came on dunks.  Swords attacked from the very beginning of the game, forcing Chris Churchill ’15 to pick up two early fouls. He was not afraid to put the ball on the floor and go to the hoop, something that he has been hesitant to do for long stretches this season. He also took it personal when he got called for an offensive charge drawn by Matt Daley ’16 and attacked Daley the next time he got the ball down low. It was only one game, but if Swords continues to play like he did on Sunday, Bowdoin will be difficult for teams to handle.

Shooting Guard Rick Naylor ’16 (Trinity)

Sometimes it is hard to pick out specific players on Trinity who are difference makers beyond Jaquann Starks ’16. That isn’t meant to insult the ability of anyone on the Bantam roster, but they are so balanced that picking out individuals is difficult. Naylor is certainly a role player averaging 5.8 PPG for the season, but he has come up big in recent weeks. First against Bowdoin he carried Trinity down the stretch on offense, and on Friday he helped Trinity outlast a determined Wesleyan squad. He went 5-6 from three on his way to a team high 17 points. On offense, Naylor is pretty much a straight shooter with 63 percent of his made shots coming from deep. In conference play he is shooting 54.5 percent from three, the second highest percentage in the league. On the other end, Naylor fits perfectly into the hard-nosed style Trinity plays. Despite averaging only 20.6 MPG, he has fouled out of four games so far this season, the fourth most in the NESCAC this season.

Guard Connor Green ’16 (Amherst)

Not that Green’s stock was necessarily low, but it has sky rocketed recently as the Lord Jeffs have started to look more like the perennial title contenders that we are used to seeing. Over the last four games, Green has scored at least 24 points three times and thrice snagged double digit rebounds. Last week we handicapped the Player of the Year race and Green came in with the fourth best odds to win the award. If we ranked these players again today Green would probably have the second best odds and the gap between Green and favorite Dan Wohl ’15 would be much smaller than it was then. Amherst is playing much better of late, blowing out some of the NESCAC’s bottom feeders and a couple tough Maine teams. It took awhile for Coach Dave Hixon to work out the rotation, but he seems to have found a serviceable point man in Reid Berman ’17 and a reliable bench scorer in Jeff Racy ’17. The Lord Jeffs are dangerous right now and Green is only elevating his game as the season goes on.

Stock Down

Hamilton’s Luck

Honestly, I feel terrible for the Continentals. They have played better than their 1-7 record would indicate. On Saturday Hamilton almost pulled off the upset at Bates. A layup from Joe Pucci ’18 put Hamilton up 71-66 with 1:36 to go, but Bates scored the final seven points to storm back for the win. For the Continentals, it was merely the latest close loss. Six of their seven losses in conference have been by single digits. It is a shame, too, because they play a fun, uptempo brand of basketball with an eclectic crew. Peter Kazickas ’15 is lights out shooting the ball, and he also rocks the best ‘mun’ (man bun. It is a hairstyle I swear) in the NESCAC. Ajani Santos ’16 has a nice post game, and Joseph Lin ’15 is one of the most clever players I have seen. Because of tie-breakers, Hamilton is already eliminated from the NESCAC tournament. We knew Hamilton would miss the transferred Matt Hart, but this group exceeded expectations even if the final records don’t show it.

Clarity

Remember when I said that this weekend was going to go a long way in figuring out the NESCAC picture? Yeah, well I lied about that. Going into next weekend, the number of scenarios that can end up happening are endless. Trinity will host a quarter-final game, Bates will host for sure as long as they win one of their games this weekend, and Amherst will host for sure if they win against Middlebury. If those three host, then the winner of Tufts-Bowdoin will host the fourth game. Unless Colby or Williams goes 2-0 on the weekend and Tufts beats Bowdoin, then the Ephs or Mules would host because they both own the tiebreaker over Tufts. If Colby, Williams and Tufts are all 6-4 then Williams would host because they went 2-0 against those teams, but if Bates loses both games then there could be a four-way tie…OK we give up. Personally I am rooting for the scenario where Bates and Amherst go winless for the weekend, Tufts beats Bowdoin, and Williams and Colby go 2-0. That would mean that all six of those teams would finish at 6-4.

Middlebury Defense

There were some questions about the quality of Middlebury’s competition at the beginning of the year, but nevertheless their domination was impressive enough for us to rank them at the top of our initial power rankings, and a big part of that decision was the Panthers’ commitment to defense. Coach Jeff Brown challenged his guys to be the best defense in the country this season, and for a good chunk of the year the Panthers were ranked in the top five nationally in field goal percentage defense. In Middlebury’s first 13 games, during which stretch they started 13-0, they allowed 70 points only twice and both were easy victories. In the subsequent 11 games, opponents have scored 70 points seven times and Middlebury has gone 7-5. This weekend Colby and Bowdoin combined to shoot 47.3 percent from the field against the Panthers. Even Jake Brown ’17, possibly the best perimeter defender in the NESCAC, struggled against the athletic Lucas Hausman ’16 on Sunday. If Middlebury is going to right the ship (and even make the NESCAC tournament), they will need to get back to playing good defense.