The Bantams hosted the first round of the NCAA Tournament, won both games and advanced to the Sweet 16, where they beat Bates. (Courtesy of Bantam Sports)
Season Record: 23-7 (9-1, Lost NESCAC Semifinal to Wesleyan, lost NCAA Elite Eight to #4 Babson)
It was the year of the “others” this season in the NESCAC, the “others” being anyone but the triumvirate of Amherst, Williams and Middlebury. While the Caesarian Amherst went through a rocky season but ultimately made it back to the NESCAC Championship game and made some noise in the NCAA Tournament, the Pompeian Williams and Crassī Middlebury (sorry for the Ancient Roman indulgences) fell well short of their own hopes and dreams. Therefore, the time was ripe for someone else to approach the throne, and this year no one did that better than a pair of Connecticut teams. While Wesleyan got the best of Trinity in the NESCAC Tournament and ultimately won the title, Trinity posted the best NESCAC record, earning the right to host the NESCAC Tournament, and forged through the NCAA field all the way to an overtime game in the Elite Eight.
The Bantams fought the perception all year long that they were an all-defense, no-offense squad, exploding for 80 or 90 points a few times. Jaquann Starks ’16 was a constant threat, and on any given night someone was bound to emerge and join Starks in the scoring binge – Rick Naylor ’16, Shay Ajayi ’16, Ed Ogundeko ’17, George Papadeas ’15, Alex Conaway ’15 or anyone else was liable to have a double-digit scoring night at any time. Meanwhile, the Bantams’ vaunted defense continued, allowing a league-best 62.7 points per game. In their three NCAA Tournament wins, Trinity allowed less than its average, permitting 55, 47 and 62 points over those three games.
High point: NCAA Sweet 16 win over Bates, 79-62, March 13
Losing in the NESCAC Semifinal had to be a big let down for the tournament favorites, but this mid-round matchup with the Bobcats served as a de facto championship as the Wesleyan Cardinals watched from home. Trinity dominated for the final 26 minutes of this ball game, putting to rest any doubts about the best team in the NESCAC over the course of the entire season. Yes, it would be nice to have that piece of NESCAC hardware in the trophy room in Hartford, but the excitement of the Bantams’ NCAA run can’t be matched.
MVP: PG Jaquann Starks ’16
Starks won’t take anybody by surprise next season. He’s one of the NESCAC’s best point guards. (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)
Trinity was one of those teams that really played team basketball. As I mentioned already, everyone on their roster could contribute offensively, and defense is by definition dependent on five guys playing well together. And yet, Starks rose above the rest, especially with his NCAA Tournament performances. Starks scored 80 points over those four games, looking more confident offensively than ever before, and improved as the tournament went on. As Trinity fans know, Starks is really a combo guard, and often Andrew Hurd ’16 will take over more of a point guard role, but especially in the Bantams’ last two games they were able to just give the ball to Starks and let him attack the basket. As you might have noticed, we snubbed the Hartford native for our NbN All-NESCAC Team. Have no worries, Mr. Starks, you will be on the shortlist of All-NESCAC Preseason candidates next season.
Player to Watch in 2015-16: G Rick Naylor ’16
Rick Naylor ’16 (30) is known for his three-point shooting, but he can play some defense as well. (Courtesy of D3Photography.com)
Naylor played a lot of minutes this season (19.8 per game) and had some solid performances, including a stretch of four games out of five in double digits in late January and early February, but his role should expand next season with the graduation of defensive whiz Hart Gliedman ’15. This is just a hunch, but Naylor is my pick to slide into the starting lineup, instead of Hurd. The strategy of bringing Hurd off the bench as the sixth man, moving Starks to the two-guard and giving either another guard or forward a rest worked so well for Trinity this year that Coach James Cosgrove shouldn’t toy with that formula. Naylor is a dead-red shooter who hit 36.3 percent of his three point attempts this season and shot more threes than anyone on the Bantams’ squad not named Starks. I think that Naylor’s scoring numbers (5.4 per game this season) could easily double in 2015-16.
Literally every single position player who got at-bats last season is back this season, and the Bantams are hoping that those players can make a massive improvement on their performance from a season ago. Indeed, they have to because this offense sputtered and was one of the worst in the NESCAC last season. The only thing that this group did well was draw walks. Besides that they didn’t do much. They didn’t hit for a great average or for much power. They only stole twice in conference games so opposing pitchers always felt comfortable, something that is a huge advantage. The bottom of the lineup contributed nothing. Wolfe was one of the bright spots, but this unit needs to be much better all around. Manager Bryan Adamski will be flexible in getting a lot of different guys at-bats as he continues to search for his best starting group so don’t be surprised if the lineup ends up very different than the one listed above when conference play rolls around.
Defensive Overview:
The Bantams need to be more sure-handed this year. They finished with the second lowest fielding percentage in the NESCAC, ahead of only Hamilton. The correlation between errors committed and finish in the standings is actually surprisingly closely correlated. The left side of the infield, Moossmann and Pidgeon, combined for 13 errors on the season. Both of them had fielding percentages barely above .900. One area where Trinity did do decently was defending the running game. Opponents stole 10 bags against them in conference play which ties them with Amherst for the fourth-lowest amount in the NESCAC.
Pitching Overview:
Meekins and Robinson are pretty firmly entrenched as the top two starters. Meekins struggled a little in conference play in part because of control problems. Robinson was not originally a regular part of the weekend rotation, but he pitched his way into this spot. His seven inning, two run start against Wesleyan in an end of season non-conference game was one of the bright spots for the Bantams last season. Behind those two, things are pretty wide open. Speer is the frontrunner right now based on the big strides he has taken in the offseason, but expect him to have a short leash given his limited experience. The positive side is that Adamski is a pitching coach first and he had great staffs at Amherst. He could have possibly brought in an impact freshman arm who will be able to make an instant impact for the Bantams.
Storylines to Watch
1. Was last year a fluke?
To call last year a disappointment for Trinity baseball would be somewhat of an understatement. Go watch this video of players and Adamski before the 2014 season began talking about their hopes for last year. You hear talk of winning the NESCAC as if it’s almost a given. Obviously a lot of coaches and teams emphasize setting high goals, but I don’t think anyone at Trinity was expecting to finish the season below .500. Their 4-8 NESCAC record is the worst for the Bantams since at least 2000 (there aren’t available records for further back). For Adamski, now in his second season, he needs to make large tangible gains on the playing field in order to show that 2014 was a blip for the Bantams. Trinity is considered a baseball powerhouse, and they have dipped before only to come back just as strong. Adamski has to show that last season was a brief though severe dip.
2. Where does the beef come from?
And by beef we mean raw power. The Bantams finished dead last in slugging percentage last season. In their 12 NESCAC games, they had an abysmal .268 mark. They didn’t hit a single home run in conference, and Wolfe was the only player to hit one all season. The fact that Trinity is somewhat known for their power hitters makes the outage last season all the more confusing. Guys like Pidgeon and Cullinane have to provide some additional pop. Obviously the NESCAC isn’t the big leagues where guys are about to go yard on the regular, but two home runs for an entire team all season is pathetic. For comparison’s sake, Nate Pajka ’15 has four home runs THIS SEASON for Bates. Go look it up.
3. Can they win close games?
We are going to beat this to death over the next couple of weeks, but that second spot in the East really looks like it is there for the taking. Still, this is going to be an uphill battle for the Bantams. Last season, all four of their conference victories came by one run. Yes, they lost a few close games as well, but they were closer to going 2-10 than 6-6. They need to continue to find ways to win close games. Their lack of many power hitters means they are unlikely to blow many teams out, but if they get on-base then they might be able to manufacture runs and pull out some victories.
Biggest Series: April 3-4, home against Colby
Trinity has their two home conference series in back-to-back weekends. They play Colby in this one and then Tufts a week later. The Bantams need to jump all over the Mules and have some confidence before playing the Jumbos a week later. The talent is there for a quick rebound in Hartford, and a key for them is going to be believing that they are capable of it. Last season they didn’t win a single one of their conference series, so notching one early will go a long way.
The Trinity defense made life really tough for Graham Safford ’15 in his last game as a Bobcat. (Courtesy of D3Photography.com)
Sometimes real life and other commitments get in the way of our NESCAC coverage, so we don’t have the time to put forth our usual comprehensive preview. Here’s a few brief thoughts about Friday’s action and Saturday’s matchup.
So, the Sweet 16 matchup between Trinity and Bates played out almost exactly as we had anticipated. Ugly basketball (27 turnovers combined), awful shooting (36.4 FG% combined), physical post play, foul trouble (50 combined), and a final score that would have been in the mid-sixties but for bunches of free throws at the end of the game (79-62). But damn was it entertaining. The margin didn’t stray beyond three points either way until late in the first half, when a Chris Turnbull ’17 triple started an 11-3 run for the Bants on which the half ended. Bates battled back a few times to keep it interesting, but the defense was too good and the shooting too bad for Trinity. Even though Bates went to the free throw line an astounding 42 times, they couldn’t make enough of those freebies to close the gap. Trinity now looks forward to Babson, a top-five team and the host of this Sectional, at 7 PM Saturday night.
What went wrong for Bates – The Facts
As the second half ticked away, Bates started feeling like they need to score points in bunches, but the Bobcats were unable to do that and ended up an abysmal 2-20 (10 percent) from three point range. All game long the Bobcats attacked the basket, but couldn’t hit free throws, finishing 28-42 (66.7 percent) from the stripe. Graham Safford ’15, who played much of the second half with his right knee in a wrap after coming down awkwardly – who knows how much that affected him – and Mike Boornazian ’16 shot 8-32 (25 percent) from the field. Hart Gliedman ’15 absolutely neutralized Safford in this one. We knew that the Bates guards had to play well and account for a lot of the team’s scoring if Bates was going to win. But they didn’t get much help, either. The Delpeche brothers tallied 26 points, but the rest of the team added up to just nine points (six for Billy Selmon ’15, three for Mike Newton ’16). And just like last time these two teams played, Trinity dominated the rebounding battle, grabbing 45 boards to Bates’ 32.
Looking forward to Trinity (23-6) at #4 Babson (28-2)
I’ve watched Trinity probably half a dozen times this year, and I’ve watched Babson for probably half a dozen minutes. I’m exaggerating, because I saw about a half of Babson’s game with Johns Hopkins last night, but in any case I don’t feel qualified to make a prediction of such an important game when I barely know one team. What I can say from the little bit I watched of Babson last night is that 1) they play really, really good man-to-man defense and 2) they pass the ball incredibly well.
Granted, most of that passing was against Hopkins’ 2-3 zone, so I don’t know how the Beavers will fare against Trinity’s tough man-to-man, but Babson should be used to that kind of intensity because they practice against themselves every day. Bates beat Babson earlier this season, but it would be a mistake to predict this game based off of common opponents. Trinity should still have an edge in the front court, as usual, but it’s not by much. I saw some nice moves from Babson’s 6’7″ senior forward John Wickey tonight, and I think the Beavers big men bring a much more skilled offensive game than the young Delpeche twins. On the other end, I wouldn’t be surprised if George Papadeas ’15, Alex Conaway ’15 and Ed Ogundeko ’17 account for less than 15 points combined.
I’m going to be pulling hard for the Bants tomorrow. I want to see a NESCAC squad in the Final Four. But from watching a little bit of Babson last night, I would have to say that the Beavers are favored. Again, I’m not making an official prediction. But if I were…
It’s not unheard of for two NESCAC teams to be meeting this late into the NCAA Tournament. As a matter of fact, it happened just one year ago when Amherst and Williams duked it out in the national semifinals. What is unusual, though, is to see Bates and Trinity, two schools not known for their basketball pedigree, still alive and starting to believe that a National Championship isn’t that far-fetched of an idea.
Let’s take a moment and think about where these two teams came from. You might have heard already, but Bates College is playing in its first-ever NCAA D-III Tournament, which has brought Bates alums out of the woodwork to support the current team.
“I’ve heard from players from the 1950s right up to last season. You win a few games and people become very aware of your basketball program.” – Bates Coach Jon Furbush to the Portland Press Herald,
Also, consider this: Bates was 1-9 in the NESCAC last year, the worst record in the league. Now, just over a year later, they are one win away from being the last NESCAC team standing. And when they look back on this season, there will be plenty of highlights from their NCAA Tournament run to remember. Bates’ players hope to add a few more before it is all said and done.
On the other side, Trinity had some experience with NCAA Tourney basketball before the season began. The only problem was that none of that experience came from the players. Head Coach James Cosgrove led Adelphi University to the D-II Tournament four times and Endicott to the D-III Tournament once as head coach. Assistant Coach Tyler Simms played on back-to-back NCAA Tournament teams at Trinity in 2007 and 2008, but never advanced past the first round. Now, the Bantams’ players have almost as much NCAA Tournament experience as their coaching staff.
Last time they met: Jan. 16 at Trinity. Trinity 66 – Bates 59
From 1-5, including #21 Alex Conaway ’15, Trinity can defend with the best of them. (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)
In a game that started a miniature two-game skid for the Bobcats that seems to have been the turning point for Bates, Trinity dominated the first half and held on for a six-point lead at home. It was an off shooting night for Bates’ two top scorers, Graham Safford ’15 and Mike Boornazian ’16 (6-21, 28.6 percent, combined). Meanwhile, Trinity spread the wealth, per usual, with three players in double figures, and played its patented shutdown defense.
“Trinity has proven all season long what a great defensive team they are and against us was no exception. They did a good job scouting us and identifying some of our tendencies, but we also didn’t shoot the ball anywhere near the level we’re capable of.” – Mike Boornazian
The game was incredibly evenly-matched statistically. The only differences came in the rebounding and free throw shooting departments, both of which Trinity dominated. The Bants outrebounded Bates 42-32, and hit 20-26 free throws, compared to 11-14 for the Bobcats.
A last bit of Trinity-Bates history to nibble on. Trinity leads the all-time series 31-13, dating back to 1947. The last Bobcat victory came in February 2013.
Storylines to Watch
1. Have student fan bus, will travel
Alumni Gym in Lewiston, ME gets pretty crazy sometimes for men’s basketball games. The Staake Gymnasium is going to feel a lot like Alumni on Friday night. The tiny Babson home court (650 seats, 1,000 capacity) will provide the ideal setting for the scores (dare I say, hundreds?) of Bobcats fans who will be traveling down via a school-organized fan bus. The bus seats 55 students, and the College sold an additional 50 for students who wanted to organize their own transportation. Trinity, meanwhile, goes on spring break starting on Friday, and many students have already taken off to enjoy better weather elsewhere.
Adding to the Bobcats’ home court advantage, potentially, is that Bates has already won two games at Staake, to open the season, at the Babson Invitational, including a three-point victory over the host Beavers.
“It’ll definitely be nice to get back on the court that got us off to a 2-0 start earlier this year. We all really liked the atmosphere that the gym provided, and we have a lot of Bates supporters in the area, as well as people who will be making the trip down. It’s going to be a fun time and always nice knowing we have Bobcat Country supporting us.” – Mike Boornazian
Trinity center Georgios Papadeas ’15 doesn’t see Babson Park as presenting a home court advantage for Bates.
“I don’t believe playing in Babson gives Bates an advantage. They didn’t win against us at that court so I believe that those two wins are irrelevant to Friday’s game.” – Georgios Papadeas
2. Frontcourt physicality
There were 42 fouls committed the last time these two squads competed, 25 by Bates. Max Eaton ’17 even earned four in just 13 minutes! Bates alone has committed 40 fouls in their two NCAA Tournament games. Both Delpeche brothers fouled out late against St. Vincent in the first round. For Trinity, they’ve faced some foul trouble in the Tournament but have managed to keep everybody on the floor. The personal foul numbers will be important to monitor in this one, though, as both teams feature tough front courts.
“I think both teams are very talented in that department. Trinity has an impressive front court, but I also think Malc and Marc [Delpeche] have consistently proven that they are two of the best big men in the conference. It’s going to be a great battle.” – Mike Boornazian
Statistically, both teams are similar in blocks per game (Trinity, 3.9; Bates, 3.3) and rebounds per game (Trinity 39.0; Bates, 38.4), but the Bantams had a significant margin in rebounding margin (7.3, compared to 4.9 for Bates). Nevertheless, Trinity recognizes the dangerousness of the Bates big men.
“The twins are a dynamic combo. I respect their toughness. From our part we will try to be physical and block them out. They are long and athletic and extremely dangerous. We can’t let them get going.” – Georgios Papadeas
Forward Mike Newton ’15 has a more aesthetic view of what makes the Delpeche duo so formidable.
“The best part is that they aren’t scared to bang on anyone.” – Mike Newton
When you get this look from Marcus Delpeche ’17, you know that you’re in trouble. (Courtesy of Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)
That kind of protection at the rim allows Billy Selmon ’15 to pressure ball handlers on the perimeter and changes the offensive attack.
3. The efficiency of Bates’ guards
Even though Safford was an NbN All-NESCAC First Teamer and both he and Boornazian are 1,000 point scorers, no one would mistake the pair for a couple of Luke Westmans. Of NESCAC players that attempted at least 12.5 field goals per game (Safford has attempted exactly 12.56 FG per game, Boornazian approximately 12.7), Safford was the only player under 40 percent from the field, and Boornazian ranks fourth out of sixth. They’re both great players and among my first choices if I need to take a shot to win the game, but I think their below average shooting percentages will be particularly hurtful in this game where I don’t anticipate the Delpeches, Newton and Eaton grabbing many O boards.
4. The Trinity offense with Andrew Hurd ’16 on the court
Jaquann Starks ’16 is comfortable with the ball in his hands, but Trinity’s O runs smoother with Starks at the two-guard. (Courtesy of Hartford Courant/Peter Casolino).
Point guard Jaquann Starks ’16 gets all the press, but the Trinity offense is actually better when Hurd handles the ball and Starks shifts to the two-guard. I wish I had the advanced statistics to back up that claim, but keep an eye on this backcourt combination tonight and see for yourself. Starks isn’t much of a distributor and is probably Trinity’s best three point shooter. Hurd also brings some underestimated pesky defense to the floor with him, and can frustrate the opposing team’s point man. He gives up quite a bit of size and strength to Safford, though, so Hurd may be better suited to keep Selmon from making an impact on offense. For Selmon’s part, he will be blanketing Starks all day, which means that the pressure is on Hurd to make an impact offensively.
5. Late game execution
The Bobcats are looking for a shot at redemption against Trinity. (Courtesy of Portland Press Herald/Gabe Souza)
I would be shocked if this game turned into a blowout. Therefore, it will come down to which team executes better in crunch time, and who makes their free throws. Neither team was fantastic hitting free throws this season, but Trinity held a slight edge. When it comes to closing out ball games, the general perception is that Bates has the advantage because of the heroics of Safford and Boornazian. Sometimes nerves get in the way when players are unsure of what to do as the seconds tick away. That doesn’t happen with Safford.
“It’s amazing. There are times when I want to make a call in the game, and he’s bringing the ball up and before I even say it, he calls it. … He’s absolutely another coach on the floor. … I think what he does from a sheer leadership standpoint is the reason why we’re successful.” – Bates Head Coach John Furbush to the Sun Journal.
However, of the Bantams’ 22 wins, 10 have come by six points or less. And I don’t think that is because Trinity isn’t dominant. I think it’s because they enjoy playing in close games. When the going gets tough, the defense gets tougher, and teams have a brutal time getting buckets. Additionally, if Bates wants to put its best free throw shooting team on the floor, they’d have to take off a lot of the starters. Safford, is the only starter for Bates that shot over 80 percent from the stripe. Meanwhile, Trinity can put Starks (89.5 percent), Hurd (88.9 percent), Chris Turnbull ’17 (85.7 percent), Papadeas (78.1 percent) and Rick Naylor ’16 (77.8 percent) or Shay Ajayi ’16 (71.3 percent) on the court and not give up too much defensively.
Trinity X-Factor: Ed Ogundeko ’17
It had to be a big guy, right? Ogundeko was playing like a grown man down the stretch this season, putting up huge rebounding numbers and a couple of nice offensive performances despite not playing much more than 20 minutes per game. In the NCAA Tournament Ogundeko has played 24 minutes total. Coach Cosgrove has basically relied on his starting five plus Hurd to win ball games. But, in a matchup where both front lines go deep and I could foresee a flurry of fouls on either side, I think the time is ripe for Ogundeko to step back up. I don’t need big scoring out of him, I just need him to stop whichever Delpeche is feeling it at the time.
Bates X-Factor: Adam Philpott ’15
For Bates, it’s no secret that the starting five does most of the heavy lifting, but Philpott does a lot of the little things that make a team go. He can do a little bit of everything offensively, and fits right in with Coach Jon Furbush’s feisty defense. Boornazian called Philpott the best sixth man in the NESCAC. He’ll have to play like it to best the Bantams on Friday.
“For me embracing the role of sixth man with the talent that we have was very easy. … [Graham Safford’s and Mike Boornazian’s] ability to beat their defender and get into the lane creates a lot of open opportunities for me on the perimeter and it’s my job to knock them down.” – Adam Philpott
Prediction:
Before we go any further, let me say a big congratulations to both teams for making this unexpected run to the Sweet 16. That being said, I don’t think either squad would be content with calling it quits now. Both squads believe that they can win a national title for the first time in school history. And these have to be two of the toughest, grittiest teams in all of Division-III, which should make for some must-watch TV.
How is this one going to play out? Expect it to be back-and-forth all day. If Bates can grab some offensive rebounds that will lead to some easy buckets and make up for some of the guards’ missed jumpers. I don’t expect Trinity to shoot much better, though. This one could be ugly.
Don’t expect the crowd noise to get into the Bantams’ heads too much.
“As athletes though we have trained to focus on the game and block all other factors that don’t contribute to the game.” – Georgios Papadeas
I really don’t think, even down the stretch, that 100-plus screaming Bobcats fans will change the outcome of this game. Whether the crowd is cheering for or against you, there are bound to be jitters when you’re in a single possession game as the clock ticks down.
All right, enough preamble. I’ve gone back and forth on this game all day, so let me just make a pick and stick to it. I’m going with the Bantams, partly because they’ve beaten Bates before, partly because they’ve given up just 51.0 points per contest in the NCAA Tournament. Partly because, as Sean Meekins reported, Bates basketball wears seat belts on the bus. I jest, of course. Everyone should wear seat belts all the time.
So there it is. We’ve picked against Bates twice now, and gotten it wrong both times. We’ve also picked in favor of Trinity, and gotten it right both times. Something’s gotta give.
The Bates student body is ready to make the trip to Babson (Courtesy of Bates Athletics)
NothingbutNESCAC: In the lead up to the big game tomorrow night, we wanted to give everyone the chance to hear from some more, well, partisan viewpoints. We managed to get the student announcers for Trinity (Sean Meekins and Carson Kenney) and Bates (Connor Colombo and Rob DiFranco) on one email chain. We told them to lay out their arguments for why their respective team would win. All four also happen to play baseball, which added to the friendly banter back and forth.
Sean Meekins (Trinity): I honestly may not watch the game. If there is any chance of a college game being a shut out, it is this one on Friday night.
Connor Colombo (Bates): I completely agree with you man; Bates’ defense is that good that Trinity may be shut out. Good prediction on your part….
Carson Kenney (Trinity): What’s going on boys. Hope everyone is enjoying this Monday evening. Just want to clarify: is this the same Bates that Trinity beat by 7 earlier this year when Safford and Boornazian combined to shoot a glorious 6-26 from the field? Or is there another Bates in upstate New York or something?
Rob DiFranco (Bates): Remind us: Is this the same Trinity College Bantams that caught an L against a school called Merchant Marine who held a 2-11 record at that time?
CK (Trinity): Ahhh I knew this would come up. Let me take this Sean. That game actually was wild because somehow our women’s team showed up instead of the men’s team (classic mixup). Since it was our fault for the mixup, they decided to play the ball as it lies and count it as a real game.
Yeah I actually got nothing for that one. I was hoping neither of you two remembered that. Point: Bates, for that one. All sarcasm aside, Safford and Boornazian scare me since the generally accepted blueprint to winning March Madness is good guard play. So Starks/Hurd/Gliedman will have to step up. But I like our bigs over Bates bigs. Papadeas and Ogundeko will give Delpeche all he can handle. Plus Ajayi and Conaway typically cause match up problems at the 3/4
CC (Bates): College basketball is reliant on good guard play when it comes to the tournament as you said. Looking back to that match-up between Bates and Trinity earlier in the season, you mentioned that Bates lost by 7 with Boornazian/Safford shooting a poor 6-26 from the field combined. How have they fared in this tournament so far? Well, they are averaging 44 PPG combined, while Trinity’s leading scorers (Stark and Ajayi) have only averaged 25.5 combined, nearly a 20 POINT difference!! Not to mention the Delpeche twins and Boornazian have combined for 8 blocks down low while Trinity’s starting forwards have only combined for 4 blocks so far. So it seems Bates has the better offensive backcourt as well as the better defensive frontcourt right now….let’s just say that’s not a good thing for the Bantams as they are about to face a red hot Bobcat squad
CK (Trinity): No doubt Boornazian and Safford can play well. But as far as the Big Man block argument: Delpeche^2 and Boornazian have combined for 8 blocks but for Trinity, Ogundeko, Papadeas, and Conaway combined for 8 as well in both tourney games. Albeit, Ogundeko and Papadeas are rarely on the court at the same time, and Conaway, who’s a starter, has 4 of those 8. Kid can jump out of the gym and guard just about anyone.
As far as scoring goes, no doubt that Bates is heating up at the right time and again, Boornazian and Safford are a two-headed monster that no team wants to face right now. But from what I’m seeing, and was the case against Trinity last time, their shooting efficiency is pretty tough. Against Stockton, the two combined for 32 points, yes. But they combined to shoot 32 percent (9-28) which isn’t great offensive efficiency. One of the Delpeche twins had 17 points and shot over 50 percent but I’m going to assume a handful of those points from the field came off of clanks from Safford or Boornazian since he had 4 O-Rebs that game. Not to say this is bound to happen, but looking at season stats, Safford, who is the team’s leading scorer, is eighth out of 11 in shooting percentage of players for Bates who have played in more than 15 games (37.9 percent). He shoots two pennies over 30 percent from beyond the arc. However he is second on the team (by 0.1) in field goals attempted per game.
Trinity also held opponents to 38.2 percent shooting from the field this season (32.1 percent from 3-pt land) so I have a feeling the Bates offense will slow down a bit on Friday. For what it’s worth: Trinity faced a Colby-Sawyer team who had 2 players combine for 88 points in the two games leading up to their game against Trinity… they combined for 15 points against the Bants. Trinity also faced a Salisbury squad whose leading scorer put up 37 the night before against an Eastern Connecticut squad (that beat Colby this year by 21, the same Colby team that Bates beat twice by only a combined score of 11). Against Trinity, that player put up an earth shattering four (FOUR) points. Point being: Trinity’s defense welcomes team’s leading scorers with open arms.
Also, Bates players hate snow days. *Drops the mic*
Jaquann Starks ’16 driving against Salisbury last weekend. (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)
RD (Bates): As I take the microscope off of our All-NESCAC First Team PG and our most recent thousand point scorer (Boornazian as a junior) and their “poor” offensive efficiencies, I wanted to express some facts prior to this game. The game will be played at Babson College which might as well be in Lewiston, Maine. Bates has won two games on that court this season including against the nationally ranked Babson squad. Not to mention, carloads of intoxicated Bates students (driven by a designated driver) as well as local alumni will be filling up Staake Gym. Cat Country is notorious for getting rowdy and rattling opponents. That will definitely test the Bantams at the free throw line. In my eyes, Wellesley, Massachusetts looks a lot like home-court advantage for Bates and we know the Bobcats can do in their natural habitat (12-1 record at home). The Bants are going to have to look to their own team to gather some momentum because I don’t think there will be much in the bleachers.
On a less serious note, our team manager/supervisor of morale – Mike Tomaino – can beat your team manager one on one. Sent from night class, Spanks.
CK (Trinity): The one thing that jumps out to me on the Trinity side is the play of Shay Ajayi over the last month or so. The last time the Bants faced Bates, Ajayi scored only two points on 1-4 shooting. However in the last eight games Trinity has played (dating back to January 31 against Colby) Ajayi has put up double digits seven out of the eight games, all above his season average. This means he should have plenty of confidence coming into Friday night. If he plays like he has been lately, it will help spread the ball and give Bates more to worry about from an athleticism standpoint.
SM (Trinity): Bates basketball wears seat belts on the bus.
CC (Bates): Trinity basketball jumps from the free throw line.
CK (Trinity): Game, Set, Match: Connor Colombo. Also, I just saw Andre Drummond tweet at Boornazian? Can one of you guys explain that to me?
CC (Bates): Boornazian and Drummond go way back to the chain link net days in the backyard growing up. Both are good friends from Connecticut and still keep in touch very often. Mike has even lived with Andre during the summers and worked out with NBA stars like Kevin Love to improve his game. Yes, Andre has been to Bates before and yes, he did put on a show in Alumni during some pickup ball.
CK (Trinity): Since it’s the Sweet 16 and I’m feeling myself after predicting Trinity’s first round game point differential spot on and only being two off in the second round, I’m gonna say Trinity wins this one 76-73 in an overtime thriller. At which point I expect Mr. Colombo to write a hand written congratulatory note that can be delivered to the Larocque household where I will pick it up at Easter.
In all seriousness, this has all the makings for a great college basketball game. Wish we could be there. Best of luck to you guys this [baseball] season as well, except for the weekend of March 27.
SM (Trinity): Bates obviously has the home court advantage, which is garbage because Trinity is the higher seed. But I think the rest has helped Trinity recover after the battles this weekend. I think Trinity wins this one 64-59. I feel like their defense is going to come to play. It also helps Trinity that Bates wears ankle socks with black new balances, which is an absolute dusty look, and based on looks alone Trinity will pull this one off by five. It is unfortunate Trinity students will be on break because as the visiting teams know from hockey games, the fans are a major factor (Bates didn’t get the invite to the whole NESCAC hockey party). In other notes, mens’ hockey is going to the Frozen Four. If you want to throw that prediction into the mix, lock it up and throw away the key.
CC (Bates): Touché Carson. Although your score predictions may be straight out of a genie’s magic ball, I think putting this game into overtime is a bit of a stretch. I’m guessing Safford and Boornazian combine for a whopping 50 points and their three point shooting is above 45 percent. I don’t know what your relationship is with the Trinity basketball players, but us baseball players have a strong bond with the basketball team and I have never seen a more confident group than this one. Safford has done all he can this offseason and regular season to be ready for the position he is in now. The senior is ready to play the biggest game of his career. Philpott, Selmon, the twins, Newton, and Boornazian also know they all need to give their best efforts to push this team into the Elite 8. Final score: 72-65 Bates. Good luck to all the players participating in this ever so exciting NESCAC sweet sixteen matchup, and may the best team win.
Goodnight fellas… and no matter what the result, I’m sure we all want to see one of these NESCAC teams represent the conference in the Final Four. Connor Colombo, aka Bumbo, signing off.
SM (Trinity): Carson just said, “If they score 50 points, I will crab walk around campus for a week.” That’s how confident he is that this won’t happen.
RD (Bates): I’m gonna say Bobcats by six, 62-56, after cutting a halftime deficit. I don’t think Boornazian and Safford will combine for 50, but they’ll obviously contribute enough for Bates to win down the stretch. But if they do happen to combine for 50 I need some footage of this crab walk. Anyways, good luck fellas and hopefully a NESCAC squad will be represented in the Natty Ship. See you on the diamond.
CK (Trinity): Let the record show that I never actually said that…
Though it doesn’t get the publicity that the D-I tournament does, the D-III hoops tourney is even more chaotic and wide-open than what is commonly called March Madness. The first two rounds of the tournament are played on back-to-back days. Keeping track of all the action is borderline impossible, but somehow the miracle workers at D3Hoops.com do it.
Luckily for us, we only worry about one conference, though with four NESCAC teams in the tournament it was still a little crazy. Wesleyan lost in the first round to Skidmore while Amherst fell in the second round to St. John Fisher. However, Bates and Trinity both won their Regionals and now will face against each other at Babson at 5:30 PM on Friday.
Stock Up
Shooting Guard Mike Boornazian ’16 (Bates)
Well let’s see, Boornazian averaged 20.0 PPG, helped Bates advance to the Sweet 16, and scored his 1,000 career point. Not a bad weekend. Friday night Boornazian played second banana as Graham Safford ’15 controlled the proceedings with 30 points and 10 assists. On Saturday against Stockton, Safford struggled a bit, and it was Boornazian who carried the load. He finished the game with 17 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two blocks. He scored 14 of his points in the first half before going cold for most of the second half. Boornazian did a good job of adjusting and handed out all three of his assists during the second half, including one very pretty layoff that led to an easy Adam Philpott ’15 layup. Combined with a big game from Malcolm Delpeche ’17 (17 points and 10 rebounds), Boornazian helped the Bobcats overcome a subpar game from Safford and advance. Guard play becomes magnified in the tournament, and Bates should feel confident knowing they have both Safford and Boornazian.
Trinity Defense
They call the NCAAs the Big Dance, and the Bantams made sure to dance with the one that got them there: their defensive effort. The Bantams had started clamping down already before their loss to Wesleyan in the NESCAC semifinals (the score was 55-52 after all), but something tells me that Coach Jim Cosgrove was able to really get the message through to his players because of that loss. Things looked bad for Trinity early as their first round opponent, Colby-Sawyer, came out firing and held a 24-8 lead with 10:27 left in the first half. Then Trinity regrouped during a 20-second timeout and allowed only SIX points for the rest of the half. After scoring 24 points in 9:33, it took Colby-Sawyer exactly 26 minutes to score their next 24 points. At that point the score was 53-48 in the Bantams’ favor, and the Bantams hung on for the victory. Then Trinity played even better defense on Saturday holding Salisbury to 47 points on 29.5 percent shooting.
Shay Ajayi ’16 tallied 22 points and 12 boards in the Bantams’ two victories this weekend. (Courtesy of Trinity Sports Information/NESCAC.com)
Point Guard Andrew Hurd ’16 (Trinity)
Andrew Hurd is slight but he is very good defensively. Great timing and hands to get steals.
Though he comes off the bench, Hurd was crucial for Trinity this weekend. Hurd, a transfer from Central Connecticut State this fall, has become a more integral part of Trinity’s success as the season has gone along. When he is in the game, he takes over the primary ball-handling duties and allows Jaquann Starks ’16 to work off the ball. Unlike Starks, Hurd looks to pass when he gets into the lane, and his two assists in the final minutes were the difference for Trinity against Colby-Sawyer. Though he is only 5’10” and 160 lbs (he looks like he weighs even less if that is possible), Hurd is a very good defender. He seems to have an innate sense of knowing what the opposing ball-handler is going to do. He combines that with great lateral movement and quick hands to get a lot of steals. He had seven alone this weekend. Hurd adds another wrinkle to Trinity that makes them tougher on both ends of the floor.
NESCAC Overall
I think this weekend demonstrated just how good of a league the NESCAC is. Williams, Amherst and Middlebury are all known and respected nationwide as great programs because of their success, and some people wrote off the NESCAC as simply not being very good this year because those teams weren’t on top. So for the league to go 5-2 this weekend and send two teams to the Sweet 16 is very impressive. Bates and Trinity are certainly not associated with basketball, even though Trinity has won in the not so distant past. Over the past three seasons, seven different teams from the NESCAC have made it into the tournament. That number could very well jump up even further next season if Colby or Tufts delivers on the promise we saw this season. But first, we have one final NESCAC match-up to dissect and predict.
Stock Down
Momentum
Wesleyan was unquestionably the hottest team entering the tournament while Amherst was also playing well entering this weekend. However, it was Bates and Trinity, the two teams that struggled down the stretch, that ended up advancing. Now you might be saying, ‘What do you mean Trinity struggled down the stretch? They went 9-1 in the NESCAC and barely lost in the semifinals to Wesleyan?’ Well, Trinity had won five of their last six games by single digits (the other game was against Conn College) before losing to Wesleyan. Obviously the Bantams’ style means they play close games, but this was still a concerning trend. The time off seemed to help Bates a lot in terms of regaining their mojo while the loss for Trinity helped them to refocus. Obviously, Wesleyan winning the NESCAC tournament is the biggest accomplishment of any team this season unless the winner of Bates-Trinity ends up going to the Final Four. I just want to point out that counting out teams because they haven’t been playing well lately can make you look stupid. That is what Bates did to me as I picked against them twice.
Point Guards Jayde Dawson ’18 and Reid Berman ’17 (Amherst)
As good as Reid Berman ’17 was on Friday, he struggled on Saturday and sat out for much of the second half with foul trouble. (Courtesy of Amherst Sports Information/NESCAC.com)
If you have read us all season, you know how much we have focused on the point guard situation for Amherst since the graduation of Aaron Toomey ’14. First, we do need to acknowledge that Berman played a fantastic game on Friday finishing with a career high 28 points. Unfortunately on Saturday neither point guard had a very good game which was just part of the reason why Amherst lost. The Jeffs ran into a St. John Fisher team that shot the ball lights out from deep (22-23 from the line too), and they couldn’t keep up because their offense was too disjointed. Dawson and Berman combined for 13 points, five assists, and six turnovers.
Bowdoin
Of course Bowdoin didn’t play this weekend, but it must have hurt the Polar Bears to watch Bates advance to the Sweet 16 and not just because Bates and Bowdoin are such bitter rivals. After all, it was only a few weeks ago that Bowdoin demolished Bates 98-70 in Brunswick in a game that showed just how good the Polar Bears were. However, they missed out on the tournament by a couple of spots and ended up at home this weekend. The Polar Bears still might have had to win the NESCAC tournament just to make it into the Dance though. Bowdoin will not enjoy watching Bates take on Trinity, a team they lost to by one point.
It was a shame to see the season end for the NESCAC Champ Wesleyan Cardinals and Amherst, but all NESCAC fans will have something to watch this Friday night when Trinity and Bates play for a shot at the Elite Eight and, potentially, a date with top-five Sectional host Babson. More on that to come, but right now here’s a couple quick hitters from a wild weekend of NCAA basketball for the NESCAC.
– Amherst’s Connor Green ’16 struggled offensively down the stretch, but he did manage to sink two trey balls in the Jeffs’ season-ending loss, giving him 78 on the season. That’s the highest total in the NESCAC this season, and one more than teammate Jeff Racy ’17 and Jack Mackey ’16 had on the year. The Jeff scoring leader also finished with 464 points on the season, third in the NESCAC and 73 behind scoring champ Lucas Hausman ’16.
– Mike Boornazian ’16 hit three free throws with 2:58 left in the second half last night to give him 17 points on the game and 1,000 in his career. With that make he joined teammate Graham Safford ’15, Williams’ Dan Wohl ’15 and Green as the players who shot their way into the 1,000 point club this season. On the list of departing seniors who got close are Dylan Sinnickson ’15 (884, and he didn’t play his sophomore season), John Swords ’15 (923), Hunter Merryman ’15 (948, just 51 in his freshman year), and, in gut-wrenching fashion, Hayden Rooke-Ley ’15, who scored 999 points in the midst of an injury-riddled career.
– Bates and Trinity are meeting in the Sweet 16 this Friday night. Two NESCAC teams haven’t met that deep into the NCAA Tournament since … oh yeah, last year’s Final Four, when Williams dominated Amherst in the semifinal, avenging three regular season losses to the Jeffs.
– More Bates news! The victory on Saturday was the Bobcats’ 21st of the year, a new program record. The previous high was 20, achieved in 2005-06 under current Wesleyan Head Coach Joe Reilly.
– Speaking of wins records and Wesleyan, the Cards finished the season at 19-9, one win shy of tying the program record set in 2011-12 when Wesleyan went 20-6.
– Friday was the first time that Amherst had played an NCAA First Round game since 2011. The Jeffs received a bye and hosted a Regional for three years from 2012-2014. The loss also stops a run of two straight Final Four appearances for Amherst. The Jeffs are now 37-17 all time in the NCAA Tournament.
– The Bantams hadn’t won an NCAA Tournament First Round game since 2004 when they beat Lasell but lost in the Second Round. The last Elite Eight trip for Trinity came in 1999, and the last Final Four in 1995. Trinity is now 10-8 all time in the NCAA Tournament.
Hope you enjoyed these fun facts. Let us know if we missed any historic events this weekend!
What an amazing first round of NCAA Tourney games all across the country. It was only day one and we already know that there will be a new team cutting down the nets as Wisconsin-Whitewater lost on a three-pointer at the buzzer. Three NESCAC teams moved on to the Round of 32 as Wesleyan was the only team to fall last night. Trinity was able to muscle past a tough Colby-Sawyer team who was up 24-8 at one point. The Bantams survived thanks to gritty performances by senior center George Papadeas ’15 (Athens, Greece) and Alex Conaway ’15 (New Haven, CT). They move on to play a Salisbury team that beat Eastern Connecticut 66-54 in the evening’s first matchup. Salisbury rode the back of junior big man Wyatt Smith (Abingdon, MD) who put up a game high 37 points and brought down nine boards. These two teams have never met before and will square off tonight at 7:00 PM in Hartford, CT.
The Trinity crowd is ready to cheer on the Bantams for one last time at Oosting’s Gym. (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics) For more photos of the game, Trinity has a full gallery here.
How Did They Advance?
Trinity
Trinity had a terrible first half yet somehow managed to head into the locker room on a 15-6 run that cut the Colby-Sawyer lead to 30-23. Colby-Sawyer’s leading scorer and NAC Player of the Year Peter Donato ’16 (Portland, ME) scored 21 points and pulled down nine rebounds. He was helped out by Wol Majong ’16 (Manchester, NH) who had 11 points, but the rest of the Chargers didn’t contribute much. The Bantams opened up the second half with a flurry of baskets from Conaway, Papadeas, Shay Ajayi ’16 (Brooklyn, NY) and Jaquann Starks ’16 (Hartford, CT) and looked like a different team. Papadeas was all over the place with hustle play after hustle play, and a big dunk from Conaway got a once depleted fan section back in business.
Andrew Hurd ’16 came off the bench and provided major quality minutes for the Bants, moving Starks off the ball. Hurd finished with a very solid stat line of eight points, four steals and five assists. Four Bants finished with double digits (Conaway, Ajayi, Papadeas, Starks). Trinity had an uncharacteristically bad night from the free throw line going 15-23 (65.2 percent) but managed to hit some big ones late in the game to ice it.
Salisbury
This part of tonight’s preview could be completed in two words (Wyatt Smith) but let’s try and stretch this out a bit. Smith put up 37 and nine on 16-20 shooting. Guard Gordon Jeter ’17 (Easton, MD) helped put up his share of buckets tallying 14 points and nine rebounds, but past those two, the Sea Gulls got little to nothing from anyone else. Eastern Connecticut had two players put up 10 apiece but struggled from an offensive standpoint. The Warriors shot a dismal 31.7 percent from the field (19-60) and allowed Smith to have a field day in the paint.
Smith came into the game averaging a little over 12 points per game, one of only two Salisbury players averaging double digits. But Smith was a man among boys tonight against the Warriors. Anytime he touched the ball in the paint, he was going to get his and Eastern Connecticut didn’t have anyone to put up a fight against him.
Players to Watch
Trinity
C, George Papadeas, Senior, 6’8″ 228 lbs.: Ed Ogundeko ’17 (Brooklyn, NY) had an off night and was battling a foot injury all week. That didn’t matter last night because the Greek big man willed the team to victory. Papadeas is a high motor player and a very strong post presence. With Ogundeko banged up, Papadeas will have to play like he did in the second half for a full 40 minutes on Saturday night if the Bantams want to move on to the Sweet 16. As a fan though, it will be very fun to see him battle it out against Smith in the post all night.
F, Shay Ajayi, Junior, 6’6″ 203 lbs. Ajayi will cause issues for Salisbury simply because of his height. Smith is Salisbury’s sole talented big man and he will be occupied with Papadeas and Ogundeko all night so Ajayi will be able to get open and get to the basket if he so desires. Along with Ajayi, Conaway should play a pivotal role in this game as he is also a 6’6″ swingman and will be a problem for whichever Sea Gull he guards.
Salisbury
C, Wyatt Smith, Junior, 6’5″ 215 lbs. Smith’s back has to be hurting from carrying Salisbury on Friday, and if I were a betting man, I would lay the house on Salisbury feeding the Washington, DC native his share of the ball again on Saturday. Smith will no doubt be a force in the paint, but he will meet a more formidable pair of opponents in Papadeas and Ogundeko. Smith has very soft hands and great touch for a big man so he has a repertoire of moves to bring out against the Bantams.
G, Gordon Jeter, Sophmore, 6’5″ 175 lbs. Jeter needs to have a big game to help Smith out in leading the Sea Gulls on offense. The sophomore from Maryland’s Eastern Shore will cause issues for Trinity as he is a 6’5″ guard who can shoot the ball and drive the lane to create fouls. Jeter is averaging 8.2 points a game but will need to put up a lot more than that to see Salisbury get to the Sweet 16.
Prediction
This game has only two distinct scenarios that I possibly see happening. Salisbury beat a Eastern Connecticut team that struggled mightily and had its flaws, but it did so thanks to two players. Wyatt Smith is a beast; that is not up for discussion. He will score a lot of points on Saturday night. But will anyone else for the Sea Gulls? I feel like Trinity will come out firing on all cylinders now that they have that first win under their belt in front of their home crowd. Home court definitely played into their win on Friday as the team helped get the place going in the second half. If Trinity struggles to get things going on offense however, and allows Salisbury to stay in the game, anything can happen. That being said, I just don’t see how a Salisbury team with only two players averaging double figures can outperform a Bantams team that has so many scoring options. All things considered…
The Bantams are excited to be playing on their home court for the first round of the NCAA Tournament. (Courtesy of Bantam Sports)
We’re finally here folks. The most exciting time of the college basketball season is upon us. Even though there are still three-plus feet of snow on the ground in most of New England and green grass is nowhere to be seen, at least it’s finally time for some March Madness in the D-III world. For a Trinity team that hasn’t been to the dance since 2008, these are exciting times as they prepare to take on Colby-Sawyer who hasn’t tasted the post-season since 2002-03.
The last time these two teams met was also the first and only time these teams have met with Trinity beating the Chargers convincingly, 75-47 back in the 2001-02 NCAA Tournament. Coming into Friday’s match up, Trinity will be looking to bounce back after being eliminated from the NESCAC Tournament by eventual champions Wesleyan while Colby-Sawyer is riding a three-game winning streak after knocking off Castleton State and Husson to win the North Atlantic Conference Tournament. The winner of this game will move on to play the winner of Eastern Connecticut State and Salisbury the following day.
How Did They Get Here?
Trinity: At-Large Bid out of the NESCAC
Last Game: 55-52 Loss against Wesleyan
Defense, defense, defense. At least that’s what Coach James Cosgrove has been preaching to his team all year long, and it has shown. The Bantams led the NESCAC this season in points allowed, shutting down teams to the tune of 63.1 PPG. They also ranked second in the NESCAC in rebounding margin (+7.8) and tied for first in the league in field goal percentage defense, limiting teams to a measly 38.3 percent from the field. Ed Ogundeko ’17 (Brooklyn, NY) leads Trinity in rebounding, pulling down 8.1 boards per game, followed by Shay Ajayi ’16 (Brooklyn, NY) at 6.3 rebounds per game.
Offensively, the Bants are led by point guard Jaquann Starks ’16 (Hartford, CT). The junior is averaging a team high 13.5 PPG. Starks was recently named to the All-NESCAC First Team and has been the cog that keeps the Bantam’s offense moving this season. Before the team’s loss to Wesleyan where Starks struggled, scoring only 11 points on a 3-12 shooting performance, he averaged almost 17 points during the team’s six straight wins. Aside from Starks, Trinity’s scoring is spread out. Three or more players have scored double digit points 20 times this season. Both Ogundeko and Ajayi average just about 10 PPG (9.8 and 9.7 PPG, respectively), George Papadeas ’15 (Athens, Greece) is putting up 7.8 PPG, Alex Conaway ’16 (New Haven, CT) is averaging 6.8 PPG, and three more Bantams are averaging over five PPG. As a team, Trinity is averaging 70.0 PPG, good for seventh in the NESCAC, and led the conference in free throw attempts, something that will play a major factor in their success this postseason.
Trinity had won seven straight games before falling to Wesleyan in the conference tourney, an impressive end to the NESCAC regular season, good enough to win the regular season title. The Hartford Courant caught up with Coach Cosgrove upon hearing of their at-large selection and he had this to say: “We have to clean up some things. We hadn’t been playing great but had been winning. Sometimes you lose perspective of what got you there. Now you get back to watching film, looking at some blemishes, and working on details. … I think it’s fitting that the last game for members of this senior class will be an NCAA Tournament game.”
Colby-Sawyer: Automatic Bid (NAC Conference Champion)
Last Game: 86-73 Win against Husson
Offense. Scoring. Points. Anyway you put it, Colby-Sawyer has been somewhat of an offensive juggernaut this season averaging 79.4 PPG, one of the highest averages in the entire nation. They are led by the attack combo of center Peter Donato ’16 (Portland, ME) and guard Wol Majong ’16 (Manchester, NH). Donato collected both NAC Player of the Year as well as NAC Defensive Player of the year. The undersized big man (more on that below) puts up 14.7 PPG while bringing down 6.8 boards per contest and is flanked by Majong who is second on the team in scoring with 14.2 PPG. The Chargers as a team shoot pretty well from the field, shooting 44.5 percent, and hit about one out of every three three pointers they put up. Aside from Donato and Majong, Colby-Sawyer relies on 6’4” forward Mike Dias ’15 (Carver, MA) who averages 12.2 PPG, guard Zach Bean’15 (Scarborough, ME) averaging 10.2 PPG, and guard Koang Thok ’15 (Portland, ME) averaging 9.2 PPG.
Defensively the Chargers allow 66.4 PPG, good for second in the NAC behind Castelton. It’s tough to gauge Colby-Sawyer’s defense other than what their stats provide. The NAC only had four out of 10 teams finish better than .500 on the season so the Chargers defensive stats could be a bit misleading. Donato leads the team in rebounding, pulling down 6.8 boards per game followed by forward Jake Maynard ’15 (Shelburne, VT) who averages 5.7 rebounds per game.
The Chargers will enter the tourney riding a three-game winning streak as well as having won eight of their last nine due largely in part to their offense. They won the NAC title for the first time since joining the conference in 2011-12 and are looking to continue their winning streak into Saturday.
Trinity X-Factors
G Jaquann Starks ’16, 5’9″ 160 lbs. The Bantams floor general has come up huge for the Bantams this year more often than not but had a bit of an off game last time out against Wesleyan (11 points on 3-12 from the field). Trinity will need him to be firing on all cylinders if they are going to keep up with the Chargers offense.
C Ed Ogundeko ’17, 6’6″ 225 lbs. Note the height listing here. Ogundeko is a relatively undersized center but boy does he get his. He’s Trinity’s go-to-guy in the paint averaging nearly a double-double and will undoubtedly look to go to work against a small Colby-Sawyer team. He only had two points against Wesleyan but expect the big man from Brooklyn to bounce back for tourney time. More than anything Ogundeko is a force on the boards. In 10 conference games against strong competition, Ogundeko averaged 20.3 MPG but hauled down 9.5 boards per contest.
Ed Ogundeko ’17 is among the best when it comes to cleaning up the glass. (Courtesy of Bantam Sports)
F Shay Ajayi ’16, 6’6″ 203 lbs. Ajayi is Trinity’s second leading scorer but something tells me his impact in this game is going to be because of his height and length. The 6’6″ forward can stretch the floor on offense and is a matchup nightmare for opposing teams. With Colby-Sawyer playing a guard-heavy lineup, most of which are no taller than 6’2″, whoever guards Ajayi is going to have their hands full.
F Alex Conaway ’15, 6’6 210 lbs. Another matchup problem for Colby-Sawyer comes in the form of Conaway who is a defensive workhorse and able scorer for the Bants. Conaway averages 6.8 PPG and contributes on the glass as well. Look for him to be an X-Factor in this game on defense.
Colby-Sawyer X-Factors
C Peter Donato ’16, 6’5″ 180 lbs. Colby-Sawyer’s go-to-guy. Donato was named NAC Player of the Year as well as Defensive POY and leads the Chargers in scoring (14.7 PPG). Donato is a hybrid center who causes all sorts of issues for opposing teams. He’s a freak athlete with an enormous wingspan which means he plays a lot bigger than his 6’5″ height may imply. He can be neutralized if sent to the line (54.9 percent FT), but can be dominant down low.
G Wol Majong ’16, 6’2″ 170 lbs. Majong is the Kobe to Donato’s Shaq (as far as Colby-Sawyer’s team is concerned). If he gets open, Trinity beware because he can shoot (.409 3-PT%, .860 FT%, 14.2 PPG). The Second Team All-NAC guard went off in the conference tourney putting up 27 against Castleton and 22 against Husson.
F Mike Dias ’15, 6’4″ 220 lbs. Dias is averaging 12.2 PPG, good for third most on the team, however this stat isextremely misleading. The Charger’s senior surpassed the 1,000 point total last season as a junior. He’s led the Chargers in scoring the two seasons before this one (16.3 PPG his sophomore year, 14.2 PPG last year) but for some reason has been wildly inconsistent this season. However he is getting hot at the right time dropping 18, 17 and 20 points in his last three games, as well as helping Donato on the boards averaging 5.2 RPG.
G Koang Thok ’15, 6’3″ 180 lbs. Thok is on this list because he’s a bit of an enigma. He averages 9.2 PPG this year but similar to Dias, has the potential to go off. He’s coming into this game off of 22- and 15-point scoring games respectively but he’s not a great shooter, especially for a guard (.263 3-PT%, .366 FG%). He is, however, a pest for other teams defensively as he plays a lot bigger than his 6’3″ height may suggest.
Three Storylines to Watch
1. Which Trinity team will come to play?
Will it be the gritty Bantams defensive squad that puts up around 55-60 points and still wins by eight-plus or will it be the huck and chuck Bants team that plays like they did against Middlebury towards the end of the regular season and puts up 90+ points but gives up 85? If the Bantams want to win this one, something tells me it’s going to have to be the tough defensive team that shows up. As mentioned, Colby-Sawyer puts up just about 80 points a game so the Bantams will be in trouble if this game turns into a barn burner. But it certainly is not going to be easy to do. Trinity will look to slow the game down when possible while Colby-Sawyer is going to look to run and utilize a very athletic starting five. But something tells me that Trinity will dictate the pace of this game, though whatever pace that may be is yet to be determined.
2. A Matchup Nerd’s Heaven
This games biggest subplot is how these two teams matchup and there are a couple different angles one could take on this. Let me lay them out for you:
–Trinity’s guards vs Colby-Sawyer’s guards: Starks is Trinity’s biggest offensive threat as far as scoring is concerned and is a lot to handle no matter whom he’s playing. He can shoot, drive and pass and is generally fearless. However on the other side of the ball, Majong is the exact same thing for the Chargers. He can shoot the lights out of the gym, get to the basket and is a strong player physically. The Bantams will need contributions from Hart Gliedman ’15 (New York, NY) and Chris Turnbull ’17 (Ridgewood, NJ), who are capable of getting hot from the three-point line, in order to keep up with the Chargers backcourt and the Chargers will need Thok to compliment Majong and take some of the scoring pressure off of the bigs. Speaking of which…
–Trinity’s two-headed monster vs. Colby-Sawyer’s two-headed monster: Ogundeko and Papadeas vs. Donato and Dias, WWE style, 10 rounds. Wait that’s not it … Trinity is capable of putting out a variety of lineups and I’m sure Coach Cosgrove has something up his sleeve with this one. Generally speaking, Ogundeko and Papadeas are rarely on the floor at the same time as they are both the same type of player. Both are very polished down low with great rebounding ability. Ogundeko plays a lot bigger than his height and Papadeas is tenacious in everything he does. On the other side, Donato is a Center who can run and pass like a guard and uses his quickness to get other team’s bigs into foul trouble early and often. Dias is a strong, prototypical post player who plays with his back to the basket, has a nice jumper from 15 feet in and is a menace on the boards as well. There’s only so much room in the paint on a basketball court and with these four bigs set to battle it out, make sure to put the kids to bed early on game day.
Can Wol Majong ’16 and Co. topple the Bantams on Trinity’s home turf? (Courtesy of Colby-Sawyer Athletics)
–Everybody else: This is where there is a bit of a gap between the two teams and very well could be the deciding factor on Friday. Trinity has seven players capable of scoring double digits on any given night. Colby-Sawyer is somewhat thin after you get past their first six with no one averaging more than 3.9 PPG. This means that the Chargers live and die by their starters, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing when you have starters as capable as they do, but they won’t be playing the entire game so when they’re out, the scoring is going to have to come from someone else. Look for guys like Conaway, Ajayi, Gliedman and Rick Naylor ’16 (Sudbury, VT) to take advantage of a weak Charger’s bench.
3. Home Court Advantage
I’m glad we were able to get Trinity Days out of the way. With the school administration sending out an email blast about the big weekend and Trinity not having ever hosted an NCAA Tournament, campus is buzzing and Oosting’s Gymnasium should be packed this weekend. I do think this will play a factor on Friday. The Bantams are looking to rebound after a tough loss against Wesleyan on their own court last weekend and Coach Cosgrove will certainly have his squad ready to go. Not to take away from Colby-Sawyer’s great season, but they have not been challenged too often, especially not on the road. That will certainly change on Friday at 7:30 in Hartford when they face a Trinity team that has been receiving Top-25 votes consistently to end the regular season and is currently ranked second in all of New England.
Prediction
This is tough. I have been going back and forth on this game every couple of hours and it’s twice as tough because I have to be as objective as possible, and for those who know me, it’s nearly impossible for me to be objective when it comes to my teams. That being said, I truly think these two teams matchup extremely well. Donato and Dias down low are a force and Majong balances out the attack on the perimeter. However, Trinity has four regular players who are 6’6″ or taller and I think that is going to cause Colby-Sawyer some issues outside of Donato and Dias. I see Ajayi guarding Donato since they both match up from an athleticism stand point even though Ajayi isn’t a center. I see Ogundeko and Dias going back and forth all game with Papadeas coming in and holding it down as well. I see Conaway having his way with whoever guards him, as he’s just too athletic and big for any of the Chargers’ smaller players who will most likely be on him. I see Turnbull, Gliedman and Naylor dropping three’s early and often. I have a gut feeling that Starks, in front of a crowd in the city he grew up in, goes off. That being said, Trinity will be in trouble if they get down early because Colby-Sawyer is too good offensively for teams to come back from big deficits. All things considered…
— Wesleyan Basketball (@WesleyanHoops) March 1, 2015
Raise your hand if at the beginning of the season you had Wesleyan winning the NESCAC championship. Heck, raise your hand if you had them winning it going into this weekend. Sure, we picked Wesleyan to upset Trinity and make the finals before the weekend began, but we didn’t think they would be able to overcome the Jeffs on Sunday.
It was only 16 days ago that Wesleyan was 3-5 in the NESCAC. They had also just lost to Amherst by 17 points. BUT IT DIDN'T MATTER TODAY.
Throughout the season a lot of different teams could claim to look like the best team in the NESCAC. First it was Bates, then briefly Middlebury, then Trinity for a long time, and finally Wesleyan. Of course, the Cardinals were the ones who were the best at the end when it really mattered.
And that is an important thing to point out. The Cardinals were the best team this weekend. They won two very close competitive games against Amherst and Trinity, but they were winning for the majority of both games. The Jeffs and Bantams had to really fight just come back and make it a game in the final minutes. The Cardinals were the team that looked the most confident in the biggest moments. They were the only team this weekend that was capable of both making outside shots and getting interior points with Joseph Kuo ’17 and Rashid Epps ’16. Their defense was masterful for most of the game against Trinity. The Wesleyan team probably felt like they were on their homecourt because of the multitude of Wesleyan students who came out to support them.
The formula for the Cardinals has changed slightly in terms of ingredients from the beginning of the season, but the final result of solid defense and rebounding combined with balanced scoring has been the same all year. We say the formula has changed because some players like BJ Davis ’16, Joe Edmonds ’16 and Jack Mackey ’16 stepped up their play as the season went along. The wonderful thing about how Wesleyan plays is that they recognize very well which players are feeling it for a particular game. For example, Edmonds was the hero against Bates in the quarterfinal scoring 22 points. Then he struggled with foul trouble and didn’t make his first couple of shots against Trinity so Coach Joe Reilly played him only 16 minutes. Instead, Reilly was able to play Harry Rafferty ’17 and PJ Reed ’17 for more minutes, and the two sophomores did a great job of stepping up.
Though Wesleyan’s win is certainly surprising, we knew going into the weekend that anyone could win the championship. No team stood out as especially dominating, even though Trinity went 9-1 in conference play. As Howard Herman of the Berkshire Eagle pointed out, Wesleyan was the hottest team going into the weekend, something that mattered more this season than in years past. The Cardinals have been routinely discounted by us and others when talking about NESCAC contenders. The title of our season preview for Wesleyan was “Overlooked Cardinals Return Everyone.” After this weekend, it is hard to overlook Wesleyan anymore.
Stock Up
Wesleyan Fans
As mentioned above, the Wesleyan student fans were exceptional in turning out to help root on their team. Obviously it is a short drive from Middletown to Hartford, but it still takes a good level more commitment than simply walking out the door and into the gym. The semifinal atmosphere was awesome with Wesleyan and Trinity fans dueling it out in the stands while the two teams played it out on the floor as well. The Cardinal faithful were loud and boisterous, something that does not always happen at NESCAC games. In the finals, Wesleyan students far outnumbered Amherst students who could not be bothered to make the trip south from Massachusetts. Wesleyan has been in the news for the wrong reasons recently, and though it was obviously just a couple of basketball games, Wesleyan students were able to concentrate on something positive associated with their school. As somebody wrote on the Wesleyan Yik Yak, “After a tough week, thank you to Wesleyan basketball for giving us something to smile about.”
Point Guard Jayde Dawson ’18 and Forward Eric Conklin ’17 (Amherst)
A big reason for the buzz surrounding Amherst entering the season was Dawson and Conklin, two transfers from Division One schools. Both struggled to adjust to the NESCAC, and ended up being near the end of the rotation down the stretch. Then this weekend both were huge almost out of nowhere. For Dawson, the ability has always been there, but he struggled to fit into the Amherst system and took too many bad shots. Then, suddenly against Bowdoin he looked calmer and more in control. He was able to get to the basket consistently and scored 21 points, the only time this season he has scored more than 20. He was a little more erratic in the finals going 6-15 and turning the ball over four times, but he still scored 14 points and handed out five assists.
Conklin meanwhile found it hard to get playing time with David George ’17 firmly planted in the starting position. Then yesterday he just started hitting shots and didn’t stop. Nearly all of his points were simple shots from the block because Conklin did such a good job winning deep position. He finished the game with 19 points on 9-9 shooting. Both Conklin and Dawson were on the court during the final stretch, something they have not done all season. No other NESCAC team can claim two D1 transfers, much less two that usually don’t even play that often.
Parity
So all season we have been a little negative about how the NESCAC being so even this year could end up hurting the league for NCAA bids. Instead, that parity ended up helping the league as four teams got in. Amherst, Bates, Trinity and Wesleyan are all going dancing. Wesleyan would not have made the NCAA Tournament without their run to win the NESCAC tournament, and the other three teams got at-large bids. Bates and Amherst got their bids in large part because of some of their non-conference victories. For Bates their win over Babson was huge while Amherst boasted one of the best records against regionally ranked opponents. Trinity got their bid because of their 9-1 conference record. Four teams making the tournament from the NESCAC is rare. The last time it happened was in 2008 when Amherst, Bowdoin, Middlebury and Trinity made it. Usually the NESCAC will get two or three teams into the tournament. So why did the NESCAC end up doing better than it usually does in terms of bids? Well things broke almost perfectly for the NESCAC in a couple of ways. First, as said above, Wesleyan only made the tournament because they won the automatic bid. Then, around the country there were not too many upsets in conference tournaments which kept a lot more at-large bids open. Finally, teams that scheduled aggressively out of conference like Bates and Amherst get rewarded by the NCAA which uses Strength of Schedule extensively in their selections.
Stock Down
Forward Connor Green ’16 (Amherst)
We don’t know if something was wrong with the junior scorer this weekend physically, but he looked out of sorts in both games. His 3-14 outing against Bowdoin obviously didn’t matter because the Jeffs still won by 20, but Amherst really could have used some more offense from him yesterday. Instead, Green went 2-11 from the field and finished with eight points in 26 minutes, taking a lot of bad shots and deep, contested three pointers. Coach Dave Hixon benched him for much of the second half and overtime going instead with Jeff Racy ’17 for most of the game. Green is known as a streaky shooter, but his struggles this weekend went beyond just not being able to shoot well. He failed to adjust to his poor shooting and rarely looked to attack the basket finishing the weekend with only three foul shots. What makes this weekend all the more curious is that Green came in scorching hot and had an outside shot at resting away NESCAC Player of the Year honors from Lucas Hausman ’16. He needs to get back on track if Amherst wants to make a deep tournament run.
Trinity and Bowdoin Benches
Maybe the craziest stat from this weekend is that the non-starters for Trinity and Bowdoin, the two semifinal losers, had two points combined. Two points! The only scoring came on a jumper from Ed Ogundeko ’17 early in the first half of the Trinity-Wesleyan game. Now the lack of scoring from the Bowdoin bench is not shocking because the Polar Bears have leaned heavily on their starters all season. However, for Trinity getting only two points from their bench is almost unheard of. In their quarterfinal game, Trinity’s bench nearly outscored the starters 34-32. Guys like Ogundeko, Rick Naylor ’16 and Chris Turnbull ’17 usually offer a good amount of scoring punch for the Bantams. On Saturday for some reason all of them failed to get going and Coach Jim Cosgrove was forced to adjust. Andrew Hurd ’16 did play a lot down the stretch over Jaquann Starks ’16, but Hurd did not look to score much, though he did distribute the ball well. One of their calling cards all year has been their depth, so it was surprising to see Trinity’s bench fail to show up this weekend.
