Month: November 2014

Hamilton Team Preview: The Continentals Had Their Hart Ripped Out

Hamilton College Continentals

2013-2014 Season: 14-11 (5-5 NESCAC), tied fifth in the NESCAC, reached quarterfinals of NESCAC tournament

Head Coach: Adam Stockwell, fourth season, 41-33 (.554)

Starters Returning: 2

G Jack Donnelly ’16

F Ajani Santos ’16

Breakout Player: F Peter Kazickas ’15

With NESCAC leading scorer Matt Hart gone to Division-I George Washington and crunch time finisher Greg Newton ’14 having graduated, Hamilton will require leaps forward from many players to be as successful as last year. However, their departures will also create an opportunity for other players to step up. Kazickas is one of those players. Splitting time between the bench and the starting lineup last year, he averaged eight points and four rebounds per game in just under 20 minutes per game of playing time. He shot 54 percent from the field and 42 percent from three last year, showing a smooth stroke that will be crucial in replacing the explosive outside ability of Hart. His solid rebounding for his size (6’4″ 193 lbs) will also be important, as Hamilton will have to play much larger than they are to battle on the boards with the multitude of solid big men inhabiting the NESCAC this season. Kazickas is representative of Hamilton’s universal need for breakout seasons from their players, but he also has an impressive skill set that could set him apart from his teammates.

Projected Starting Five:

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

PG Joseph Lin ’15

Lin should move into the lineup full-time in his senior campaign. He didn’t do too much scoring last season and will probably continue to try to distribute this year. He needs to take better care of the ball (34 turnovers) if he’s going to be the primary ball handler, but he also provides some value defensively, as he garnered 23 steals last season.

 

 

Jack Donnelly (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)
Jack Donnelly (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)

SG Jack Donnelly ’16

Donnelly started 17 games last season and averaged 6.2 points per game, the majority of which came off of threes. Seventy-five of Donnelly’s 142 points came from deep. That was far and away the highest percentage on the Continentals. He and Kazickas represent the only real threats from three-point land.

 

 

Peter Kazickas (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)
Peter Kazickas (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)

SF Peter Kazickas ’15

As mentioned above, Kazickas is able to chip in with points and rebounds and stretch the floor a bit with some efficient three-point shooting.

 

 

 

Ajani Santos (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)
Ajani Santos (Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics)

PF Ajani Santos ’16

Santos put up numbers similar to Kazickas last year, but he’s much bigger at 6’7″ and doesn’t stray too far from the hoop offensively. With that in mind, he should be counted on to haul in a few more rebounds this season and create second chances for his teammates.

 

 

 

C Zander Wear ’18

Wear is huge for the NESCAC (6’11” 245 lbs), so he could be an immediate boon for the Continentals. He’s young (17 years old to start the year), so maturity will be a question, but just from his brief highlight tape one can see that he brings a multi-faceted offensive game to Clinton. He’s not afraid to play pick-and-roll basketball away from the basket. He won’t be able to just reach over big men in the NESCAC though like he did in high school and will need to use his body to block out his opponents. Check out his high school tape below:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2wS45u8gSU&w=560&h=315]

Everything Else:

The offseason was not very kind to the Continentals. The graduations of Hart, Newton and crowd favorite and emotional leader Matt Dean ’14 leave several voids in the Hamilton lineup. However, the Continentals should also benefit from an experienced roster. Junior captains Santos and Donnelly return in the starting lineup, and seniors Lin and Kazickas should push into the starting lineup full time. The experience and chemistry of this core is the key to Hamilton overcoming their major offseason losses.

The best case scenario for the Continentals is that these four mesh together well and take a collective step forward. The arrival of the 6’11” freshman Wear provides Hamilton with size and toughness inside that it didn’t have last year that could make Hamilton a silently dangerous team which can threaten the top tier teams. However, the more realistic scenario is that Hamilton simply lacks the offensive firepower and depth to stay with the rest of the league, and ends up locked in a struggle to get into the NESCAC tournament. The Continentals had some tight conference losses last year, including the NESCAC tournament at Middlebury, but at this time the losses (i.e. Hart, Newton) seem to outweigh the gains (Wear, experience). Barring marked improvement from individual players, it could be a tough year in Clinton.

 

Basketball Preseason All-NESCAC Teams

This year appears to be one of the most open races for All-NESCAC in recent years. Only John Swords ’15 (First Team) and Chris Hudnut ’16 (Second Team) return to the NESCAC after Matt Hart and Duncan Robinson transferred and the rest of the players graduated.

Each of us goes through our own individual First and Second Teams. We don’t want to ruin the surprise in order to make you watch the video, but we promise that some of the selections might raise a couple of eyebrows.

 

Middlebury Team Preview: The Panthers Have Loads of Potential

Middlebury Panthers

2013 Record: 17-9 (6-4 NESCAC), third in NESCAC, reached semifinals of NESCAC tournament

Head Coach: Jeff Brown, 18th season (274-167, .621)

Starters Returning: 3

G Matt St. Amour ’17

G/F Dylan Sinnickson ’15

F Hunter Merryman ’15

Breakout Player: Dean Brierley ’15

Though the guard played only 7.7 minutes per game last season, he earned his co-captaincy because of the respect he commands for his work ethic. If you have ever walked by Pepin Gymnasium during the day, at any time of year, you have likely seen Brierley making it rain from all over the court. He is one of the smoothest shooters in practice. The challenge now is for the senior to translate his skills to the game.

Projected Starting Five:

Jake Brown (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)
Jake Brown (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)

G Jake Brown ’17

It is tough to follow one of the best players in program history, but Brown is up to the task. Brown, nephew of coach Jeff Brown, is a different type of player than the departed Joey Kizel, a feisty defender and pass-first point guard. For his position, Brown is probably the best defender on the team. He should see a big bump in production because of increased minutes after playing only 21.7 minutes per game last year.

 

 

Matt St. Amour (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)
Matt St. Amour (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)

G Matt St. Amour ’17

St. Amour began last season starting at the two guard, but struggled shooting the ball, which ought to be his greatest strength. His season was cut short when he succumbed to a torn ACL in early February, but reports are that he has made a speedy recovery and will be active for the season opener. It’s possible that Brierley begins this season starting at the two-guard, but this is a long term prognostication. St. Amour, when he’s healthy and effective, will be in the starting lineup.

 

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

G/F Dylan Sinnickson ’15

Was there a bigger surprise in 2013-14 than Sinnickson? The super athletic swing man had his sophomore season ruined because of injury, but he became the Panthers’ best scoring threat very quickly last year, nearly matching Kizel in every scoring category but free throw percentage. If Sinnickson can get to the line a bit more and hit his freebies at a higher rate, he could make a run for NESCAC Player of the Year. And he should be able to get to the stripe, because his athleticism lets him get to the rim more often than not.

Sinnickson rises for a three-pointer. The swingman shot 42.9 percent from deep in 2013-14.
Sinnickson rises for a three-pointer. The swingman shot 42.9 percent from deep in 2013-14. (Courtesy of Jeff Patterson)
Hunter Merryman (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)
Hunter Merryman (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)

F Hunter Merryman ’15

Merryman was among the nation’s best three-point shooters two years ago, and though he did not hit at quite that high of a rate last season, he still shot over 40.0 percent from deep and averaged 12.3 points per game. Merryman and St. Amour will be counted on to hit open shots in transition.

 

 

 

Matt Daley (Courtesy of Midlebury Athletics)
Matt Daley (Courtesy of Midlebury Athletics)

C Matt Daley ’16

Daley represents the biggest question mark for the Panthers. For anyone that has watched Middlebury over the last two years, the wait for Daley to turn into a day-in an day-out force has been a long one. Much of the inconsistency is due to poor luck, as Daley suffered from mono for much of last season, but when he was healthy early on he had some dominant games. Better than his 24-point performance in the season opener was his all-around effort against Tufts, in which he scored 15 points in just 15 minutes and frustrated Tufts’ Hunter Sabety ’17 in the second half of the game. Daley’s presence will be as important, if not more so, on the defensive end as the offensive end, as he will be needed to shut down some of the NESCAC’s impressive frontcourts, such as Tufts and Amherst.

Everything Else:

In a down year, the Panthers entered the NESCAC tournament as the third seed last season. Despite the loss of some integral parts, this year’s team could be better than last, if everything goes right. The transition game will be the Panthers’ strength, as they will be able to match their opponents’ athleticism at every position.

The rest of Middlebury’s rotation, after the six players listed above, will consist primarily of G Bryan Jones ’17, F Jake Nidenberg ’16, F Connor Huff ’16, C Chris Churchill ’15 and newcomer G Jack Daly ’18.

Jones can be electric and is an above average shooter, but he did not get much time last year as he sat behind Kizel and Brown at the point. He will need to play with energy at all times on the floor if he wants to get significant minutes.

Jones will also be pushed by Jack Daly, whom Coach Brown refers to as “game ready”. Daly has good size for the point at 6’3″, and is strength is the transition game, which fits in perfectly with Middlebury’s style.

Forwards Nidenberg and Huff saw similar minutes last season. The former is a high-energy guy who can chip in with points, boards and defense. Unfortunately, he is still recovering from an injury suffered over the summer and has yet to participate fully in practice. Huff is a crafty offensive player who can come in for a shift and tally a few points.

Churchill has not gotten many minutes in his career, but as a senior and the biggest body on the roster, he will be crucial in spelling Daley and providing strong defense.

The biggest concerns for this year’s team will be the lack of experience beyond the starting five and whether or not someone can step up and become a dominant one-on-one defender. Over the last two seasons, Nolan Thompson ’13 and James Jensen ’14 were able to take the other team’s best offensive player and neutralize his impact, but seeing as Brown stands at 5’10”, he is unable to defend beyond the point guard position. Sinnickson has the size and athleticism to fit the Jensen mold, but he will be relied upon so heavily to score that it might be asking for too much for him to be a shutdown defender as well. We might see some interesting lineups that could free up Daley to defend big 3’s and 4’s.

Despite the inexperience of the second half of the rotation and the defensive questions, Middlebury has enough talent to compete for a NESCAC title.

Fantasy Report Week 8: The Championship

A wise man once said, “If you ain’t first, you’re last.” With that in mind, we didn’t even bother scoring the consolation game. The championship between Lord of the ‘CAC – The Fellowship (Lamont) and Team Lindholm was allegorical to Middlebury’s game against Tufts this past weekend. The matchup was almost entirely decided by QB Matt Milano ’16. Without further ado, here’s the final fantasy scoreboard of the season, and congratulations to the inaugural NbN Fantasy Football champion, Pete Lindholm.

Milano emerged as one of the NESCAC's brightest stars in 2014, and was responsible for seven touchdowns in the season finale against Tufts. (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)
Milano emerged as one of the NESCAC’s brightest stars in 2014, and was responsible for seven touchdowns in the season finale against Tufts. (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)
Lord of the ‘CAC – The Fellowship Team Lindholm
Pos. Player Pts. Player Pts.
QB M. Cannone 1 M. Milano 62
QB C. Rosenberg 0 M. Lippe 16
RB L. Stevens 11 Z. Trause 13
RB T. Grant 22 A. Miller 6
RB M. Gaines 0 L. Ware 0
WR B. Ragone 0 H. Murphy 0
WR L. Duncklee 13 J. Hurwitz 6
WR M. Riley 4 J. Fabien 14
TE N. Dean 0 J. Day 0
FLEX D. Barone 3 J. Semonella 0
FLEX R. Arsenault 2 M. Budness 0
K L. Scheepers -3 M. Dola 6
D/ST Wesleyan 13 Amherst 13
66 136

Trinity Team Preview: The Bantams Are Back

Trinity College Bantams

2013-2014 Season: 15-11 (5-5 NESCAC) fifth in NESCAC, reached semifinals of NESCAC tournament

Head Coach: James Cosgrove, fifth season, 48-52 (.480)

Starters Returning: 5

G Jaquann Starks ’16

G Hart Gliedman ’15

F Edward Ogundeko ’17

F Shay Ajayi ’16

C George Papadeas ’15

Breakout Player: G Andrew Hurd ’16

Hurd arrives in Hartford as a transfer from Central Connecticut State, where he played in only eight games last season. The Bantams have four guards back who played at least 17 minutes a game last season, but Hurd will be in the hunt for minutes right from the jump. Hurd will help out Steve Spirou ’15 and Rick Naylor ’16 as the main guards off the bench. Trinity’s biggest weakness is on the offensive end, and Hurd should help an offense that struggled last season.

Projected Starting Lineup:

Jaquann Starks '16 (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)
Jaquann Starks ’16 (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)

G Jaquann Starks

Starks is returning after starting for two seasons. He has been able to man the point guard position pretty well, leading the team in scoring in 2013-14 while also tallying nearly 100 assists. The Bantams would like to see him take care of the ball just a bit better and get that assist-to-turnover ratio over 2:1, but he’s clearly the engine that makes this team go.

 

 

Hart Gliedman '15 (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)
Hart Gliedman ’15 (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)

G Hart Gliedman

Gliedman is entering his senior year and needs to continue to be a factor for the Bantams. The Bantams need him to continue to thrive on the defensive end. He’s not much of a scorer, but at 6’3″ 200 lbs, he’s a strong, physical guard that fits right in with the Trinity system.

 

 

 

Ed Ogundeko '17 (Trinity Athletics)
Ed Ogundeko ’17 (Trinity Athletics)

F Edward Ogundeko

Trinity’s success on the boards last season is due directly to Ogundeko and the next two names on this list. Ogundeko’s freshman debut was a very successful one as he was pretty close to averaging a double-double (9.2 points per game and 7.5 rebound per game). Ogundeko is particularly good at creating second chances. He averaged 3.5 offensive boards per game last season.

 

Shay Ajayi '16 (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)
Shay Ajayi ’16 (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)

F Shay Ajayi

Ajayi was the Bantams most consistent player last year. The 6’5″ junior was nearly as proficient on the boards as Ogundeko, but brings the added weapon of the three point shot to his game, as he shot nearly 40 percent from deep last season.

 

 

 

George Papadeas '15 (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)
George Papadeas ’15 (Courtesy of Trinity Athletics)

C George Papadeas

The Bantam’s big man from Greece is going to have to play like he did in the second half of the season. He’s had a lot of experience in his time in Hartford. There is a lot of height in the NESCAC right now, and Papedeas is going to have to play big for the Bantams to win.

Everything Else:

The Bantams look to control the rebounding battle again this year. Rebounding and defense wins championships, as they say, and the Bantams led the NESCAC in rebounds last year, averaging 43.2 rebounds per game. What’s more, Trinity’s +9.7 rebound margin per game was the second highest in the nation. The Bantams also held the teams to under 62 points per game last season, second in the NESCAC and 13th in the country. As mentioned, Gliedman is critical to the Bantams’ defense, but so is 6’6″ swingman Alex Conaway ’15 who can guard both smalls and bigs. Needless to say, the Bantams are a team that has built its identity around defense.

On the other hand, Trinity struggles offensively. They were last in both points per game and three-point percentage in the NESCAC last year. In order for the Bantams to win games and get their defense recognized they are going to need to score some points. They didn’t lose a single senior from last year, so Trinity fans will have to hope that individual players can make strides offensively and that another year together will mean better chemistry on offense. Starks, Gliedman, Naylor and the sporadically used Chris Turnbull ’17 can shoot the three and stretch opposing defenses, while the starting trio of big men and Conaway will battle for points down low.

Football End-of-Year Awards: The Definitive Edition

The committee of two has met and after much deliberation has made their decisions. All decisions on awards are final and complaints should be addressed to 472 Smith Union, Bowdoin College. Or the comments section works, too. If you want, take a look at our Mid-Season Awards to see what’s changed. Lastly, these are our own personal opinions of who should win each award. They are not predictions on what we think the NESCAC coaches will decide.

Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics
Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics

Offensive Player of the Year: Quarterback Matt Milano ’16 (Middlebury)

“Another Middlebury quarterback? Really original pick there guys.” Well, Milano didn’t really leave us with much of a choice given how he performed in the month of the year. In fact here are Mac Foote’s stats from last year and Milano’s from 2014.

Player A: 179-289 (61.9 percent), 2004 yards, 6.9 yards per attempt, 24 touchdowns, 3 interceptions.

Player B: 259-421 (61.5 percent), 2766 yards, 6.6 yards per attempt, 26 touchdowns, 12 interceptions.

Player B has a huge lead in yards overall and a slight lead in touchdowns, but Player A was better in yards per attempt and threw a quarter of the interceptions. You could probably tell, but Player A is Foote and Player B is Milano. We don’t put the comparison there to argue that Milano had a better year than Foote did last year, but we just want to put the numbers there so people don’t say Milano was merely a product of the Middlebury system.

The junior took a little time to get settled, but once he did, Middlebury morphed into the hottest team in the NESCAC. Milano put up 18 touchdowns over the last four weeks to go with just one interception, and his yards per attempt rose every week from Week 3 until the end of the season. His play is made even more impressive by the fact that the Panthers averaged only 2.6 yards per rush, worst in the NESCAC, putting even more pressure on the gunslinger. Milano should be even better next year when he and most of his receivers return.

Also considered: Tyler Grant ’17 (Bowdoin), Chudi Iregbulem ’15 (Trinity), Jesse Warren ’15 (Wesleyan) and Mark Riley ’16 (Bates)

Jake Bussani '14 (Courtesy of Wesleyan Athletics)
Jake Bussani ’14 (Courtesy of Wesleyan Athletics)

Defensive Player of the Year: Safety Jake Bussani ’14 (Wesleyan)

The NESCAC website only lists the top 50 tacklers, and Bussani falls well short of making that with only 30 tackles on the year. So how does a player who was only sixth on his own team in tackles win DPOY?

Well, first of all, Bussani won by the narrowest of margins over a host of other worthy players. Then it is important to understand Bussani’s role in the Wesleyan defense; a role that requires him to patrol the deep part of the field. He did that to near perfection with seven interceptions and five pass breakups. Bussani also returned two of his interceptions all the way back for touchdowns. Also, he was part of a secondary that was a good rung or two above everyone else and allowed a minuscule 124.0 yards per game through the air.

Bussani and teammate Justin Sanchez '17 smother Alex Way '16 in the Cardinals' Week 8 shutout. (Courtesy of Williams Athletics)
Bussani and teammate Justin Sanchez ’17 smother Alex Way ’16 in the Cardinals’ Week 8 shutout. (Courtesy of Williams Athletics)

Conference coaches know how good of a player he is considering he has made the All-NESCAC team three times already. Last year his stats were even less impressive with 27 tackles and four interceptions. Given how he has been even better this year, the coaches should recognize him once again.

Also considered: Chris Tamasi ’15 (Amherst), Jaymie Spears ’16 (Amherst), Dan Pierce ’16 (Middlebury) Mark Upton ’17 (Bates)

Coach of the Year: EJ Mills (Amherst)

Head Coach EJ Mills (Courtesy of Amherst Athletics)
Head Coach EJ Mills (Courtesy of Amherst Athletics)

Below is the conversation that we had when talking about Coach of the Year. We weren’t planning on publishing it at the time, but it’s just so juicy that we could not resist.

Adam: Alright, Coach of the Year is another interesting one. Ritter has a strong argument because of how well Middlebury did, but I think Mills deserves it.

Joe: Amherst was expected to be near the top again and Middlebury was supposed to be much worse this year.

Adam: Maybe so, but Amherst went through a lot to be undefeated. They played three QBs and switched their lead running back as the season went along. In close games they went 5-0 which is a testament, too, to Mills’ coaching. When I look at Amherst’s season it seemed like they always played a little better than I was expecting or somehow managed to win games when they got outplayed. The coach deserves credit for that.

Joe: I guess. I just feel like the Coach of the Year award is almost equivalent to a team overall achievement award, because we can’t quantify from the outside how much of a team’s success is due to the coach. I expected Amherst to beat everyone but Trinity and Wesleyan at the beginning of the year. As the year went on I got to realizing that Amherst was the best team, but I was always skeptical of Middlebury. I had them middle of the pack but they clearly overachieved. I don’t want Mills to win just because he coached the best team.

Adam: My argument would be that it wasn’t necessarily clear that Amherst really was the best team. Middlebury got better as the year went along and I think mostly because Milano got more comfortable. I didn’t expect he would get so good so fast and that is why I think Middlebury finished with six straight wins. Obviously coaching matters there, but just seems like the player still has a lot of agency, also.

Joe: True….splitting hairs here at this point. I think both are great coaches and just like talking about it.

Drew Jacobs (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)
Drew Jacobs (Courtesy of Middlebury Athletics)

Rookie of the Year: Running Back Drew Jacobs ’18 (Middlebury)

There wasn’t an absolute standout first year this season that burst onto the scene like QB Sonny Puzzo last year or LB Tim Patricia ’16 the year before, but Jacobs was productive for the pass-heavy Panthers, and among first-year players he was first in rushing yards and third in receiving yards. His production was all over the map, as his total yards went 113, 55, 43, 154, 62, 82 and 8, as he left the game early in Week 7 and sat out all of Week 8. With another year under his belt, though, Jacobs could turn into one of the league’s best backs, but he will still have to fight off the presence of teammate Jonathan Hurvitz ’17 and classmate John Jackson ’18 for playing time.

Also considered: Slotback Frank Williams ’18 (Bates), K Zach Altneu ’18 (Hamilton), RB/KR Amman Weaver ’18 (Hamilton), WR  Mbasa Mayikana ’18 (Colby)

Zach Trause (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)
Zach Trause (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)

Special Teams Player of the Year: KR/PR/RB Zack Trause ’15

Ike Fuchs ’17 made a push for this award in Week 7 when he broke a Wesleyan record with five field goals in one game (and by going 7-7 FG and 8-8 XP in the last three weeks), but Trause’s body of work is enough for him to get the nod. Though most of the fireworks came in Week 2 when Trause followed up his third quarter kick return TD with a punt return TD early in the fourth quarter to seal the Jumbos’ victory, he was an explosive returner all year. His 32.1 yards per kickoff return were tops in the NESCAC and seventh in all of Division-III. Players need 1.2 attempts per game to qualify for leaderboards, so Trause failed to qualify with only eight punt returns, but if he had qualified, his 19.6 yards per punt return would have placed him fifth in the nation.

Trause taking back a punt 49 yards to the house against Bates in Week 2. (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)
Trause taking back a punt 49 yards to the house against Bates in Week 2. (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)

Also considered: Ike Fuchs ’17 (Wesleyan), WR/KR/PR Ryan Rizzo ’17 (Middlebury) and K Phillip Nwosu’ 15 (Amherst)

Feel free to tell us how wrong we are in the comments section.

Conn College Team Preview: Camels Bring Youth and Talent

Departed Senior Matt Vadas '15 (Courtesy of Conn College Athletics)
Departed Senior Matt Vadas ’14 (Courtesy of Conn College Athletics)

Editors Note: This article was written by Josh Moss ’18, a Conn College student.

Connecticut College Camels

2013-2014 Season: 9-14 (2-8 NESCAC), 10th in the NESCAC, missed NESCAC tournament

Head Coach: Tom Satran, 13th season, 117-169 (40.9 percent), Connecticut College Class of 1994

Starters Returning: 3

G Bo McKinley ’16

F/C Zuri Pavlin ’17

F Colin Pascoe ’17

Breakout Player: F/C Zuri Pavlin ’17

Pavlin was overshadowed last year as a freshman somewhat by Hunter Sabety ’17 and Duncan Robinson ’17, but he could be primed for a big season after the departure of all-time NESCAC leading scorer Matt Vadas ’14. He set a program single season rebounding record with 249 rebounds. He ranked first in the NESCAC in rebounding with 10.8 boards per game, and he was the only player to average double digits.  He also showed his talent on offense averaging 10.5 points per game, and it is believed that he is the first Camel men’s basketball player to average a double-double in his rookie season. Now that he is the centerpiece on both ends of the court, Pavlin is ready to battle it out with all the other talented young centers in the league.

Projected Starting Lineup:

Bo McKinley (Courtesy of Conn College Athletics)
Bo McKinley (Courtesy of Conn College Athletics)

G Bo McKinley ’16

The junior dished out 3.8 assists per game to rank seventh in the NESCAC, but will have to take on a bigger scoring role after only averaging 8.2 points per game. He went 30-75 from three point distance (40 percent) while making a seamless transition from the 2-guard spot to the point in a breakout sophomore season. He is a leader on a young team and was voted team captain.

 

 

Zuri Pavlin (Courtesy of Conn College Athletics)
Zuri Pavlin (Courtesy of Conn College Athletics)

F/C Zuri Pavlin ’17

You already got a good idea of what Pavlin can do since he is our breakout player. The sophomore should be ready to make a jump after getting his rookie year under his belt.

 

 

 

Colin Pascoe (Courtesy of Conn College Athletics)
Colin Pascoe (Courtesy of Conn College Athletics)

F Colin Pascoe ’17

Pascoe is the final sure fire starter for the Mules, and he will have to play a much bigger role this year. He started five games last year and averaged 4.5 points per game and 3.0 rebounds per game. He plays a similar position to what Vadas did last year so his minutes should go way up.

 

The other two starting positions are wide open for right now because of all the young players on the roster.

Everything Else:

Last year, Pavlin had an immediate impact in the post while Vadas enjoyed the finest year of his prolific playing career. McKinley made a seamless shift to the point. Aside from their two NESCAC wins, the Camels dropped a 64-61 heartbreaker to Middlebury at the buzzer and were within two possessions in the final two minutes against NCAA Divisin-III runner up, Williams, before they lost a 98-90 decision to the Ephs on February 14.

The Camels have the potential to be a Cinderella story with their young talent. They are looking to turn heads and definitely could make a surprise run into the NESCAC tournament. We will see how this team meshes after losing Vadas.

Who will step up for the Camels this season? Pavlin and Pascoe will be aided in the frontcourt by the big 6’7’’ transfer Daniel Janel ’17 from Adelphi University. Guard Alex Hall ’17 is a solid shooter who could pick up some of Vadas’ production. He averaged 5.1 points in just 15.6 minuter per game of playing time. He netted 15 threes and poured in 21 points in matchup against Mitchell on February 11.

The team will look to push the tempo with young guns like Isaiah Robinson ’18 (Lynn, Mass., Salisbury School), Justin Holmes ’18 (Malibu, Calif., Malibu HS), Lee Messier ’18 (Narragansett, R.I., Tilton School), and Aaron Swenson ’18 (Waltham, Mass., Middlesex School). The first game is this Saturday November 15 against Framingham St. in the Connecticut College Coaches vs. Cancer Tip-Off Tournament. Opening tip is set for 6:00pm.

Also, the team has used a winter break trip to bond and learn more about the game while training in some historic venues. Last year, the Camels took a trip to North Carolina and even had a chance to practice at Duke.

Tufts Team Preview: Optimism Abounds in Medford

Courtesy of Tufts Athletics
Courtesy of Tufts Athletics

Editor’s Note: Unlike football, team previews are being released in no particular order.

Tufts Jumbos

2013-2014 record: 13-12 (4-6 NESCAC), seventh in NESCAC, reached quarterfinals of NESCAC tournament

Head Coach: Bob Sheldon, Jr., 27th season (373-277, .574)

Starters Returning: 3

G Ben Ferris ’15

G Stephen Haladyna ’16

F Hunter Sabety ’17

Breakout Player: G Vinny Pace ’18

With three starters returning and Tom Palleschi ’17 back in the mix (more on that later), the starting lineup is fairly solidified, but Pace has the potential to make a huge impact off of the bench. The 6’5″ combo guard brings great size to the backcourt, where he could be a defensive force. His skills are a mix between that of teammates Ferris, a double-double threat, and the sharpshooter Haladyna. He will have to battle classmate Thomas Lapham ’18, a true point guard, and returner Ryan Spadaford ’16 for bench minutes, but after a little over a week of practice Pace is pushing strongly for time.

Projected Starting Five:

Tarik Smith (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)
Tarik Smith (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)

G Tarik Smith ’17

Smith has big shoes to fill with distributor Oliver Cohen ’14 gone, but he is next level quick, shoots the ball well from deep and got plenty of seasoning under his belt last year (25 games, 18.8 minutes per game). Smith will have the ball in his hands to start most possessions.

 

 

Ben Ferris (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)
Ben Ferris (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)

G Ben Ferris

Ferris, the 2011-12 NESCAC Rookie of the Year, is the undisputed leader on the floor for the Jumbos. The guard missed the first half of last season due to injury, and never got fully into the swing of things. Though he put up points and rebounds similar to what he achieved during his sophomore season, he was much less efficient from the floor. However, after undergoing hip surgery during the summer, reports are that Ferris is as healthy as ever and ready to take this team to the next level.

StephenHaladyna
Stephen Haladyna (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)

G Stephen Haladyna

Of the starting five, Haladyna is the best long-range shooter, and he should get plenty of open shots off of passes from the two big men. He might be the fourth option on this offense, which is a scary thought for opposing teams.

 

 

 

Hunter Sabety (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)
Hunter Sabety (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)

F Hunter Sabety

In the majority of seasons, Sabety would have been the hands down choice for Rookie of the Year after averaging 14.8 points per game (tops on the team) on 65 percent shooting and 6.6 boards per game. Unfortunately for Tufts, the hopes of a third straight ROY honor were dashed by Duncan Robinson. Sabety presents a huge matchup problem for almost every team in the league, and had stretches of dominance in 2013-14.

 

Tom Palleschi (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)
Tom Palleschi (Courtesy of Tufts Athletics)

F Tom Palleschi

Palleschi is the Jumbos’ X-factor, as well as the biggest question mark. He brings size and double-double potential to the front court. A heart condition held the big man out last season, and it’s an amazing story that he will even be on the court again. Palleschi is 100 percent cleared to play, but head coach Bob Sheldon, Jr. estimates that he has not quite returned to his former level of play just yet. That being said, Sheldon also expects the sophomore captain to return to form and be better than ever before long.

Everything Else:

The Jumbos were a sexy pick by some to make a surprise run at the NESCAC title last season, but the squad never got healthy at the same time. Ferris missed almost half the season, Haladyna was sidelined for a handful of games, and, of course, Palleschi never saw the floor. However, if Tufts can avoid the injury bug this season then they have a shot to realize those lofty expectations.

Expect the offense to work inside out on most possessions. It will be a challenge for Palleschi and Sabety, both 6’8″ and about 240 pounds, to mesh together, but if they do then their offensive potential is sky high. Expect a lot of high-low action from the big men, and open shots for the guards. Sabety brings more athleticism to the floor than Palleschi, so he might also be employed to run the base line while Palleschi works to get position inside.

Drew Madsen ’17 will be the primary reserve big man, and the aforementioned Pace and Spadaford should see a decent amount of minutes. The scoring should be spread out fairly evenly across the board, as every player in the starting five is strong offensively.

Look for the Jumbos to get better as the year goes along, as this group builds chemistry that is just now getting the opportunity to foster.

Basketball Season Introduction: Storylines

One sport ends, another one begins. In part because of time issues, our basketball coverage will be a little bit different than our football preseason coverage. We will still have complete team previews for every team in the NESCAC. For more league wide coverage we decided to try something new and make some videos about a variety of topics. Keep checking back all week for lots of material as we stuff all of our coverage into five days.

If you want to skip around in the video, here are the topics that we cover.

0:30: Williams: We have talked at length about the losses Williams endured in the offseason so we go over the guys coming back and where Williams stands right now.

4:26: Amherst: Aaron Toomey ’15, Tom Killian ’15 , and David Kalema ’15 are all gone, while two new Division 1 transfers come in. Amherst is still one of the most talented teams out there.

9:50: Big Men: 2014-2015 could go down as a year dominated by play inside with most of the returning stars from last year being forwards and centers.

11:40: Matt Hart’s Departure: The former Hamilton shooting guard leaves a massive void in Clinton that someone will have to fill quickly.

15:00: Tom Palleschi ’16 Returns: A great story makes Tufts the wildcard of the league this year.

The Lord Jeffs Reign Over 2014: Stock Report 11/10

Courtesy of Amherst Athletics
Courtesy of Amherst Athletics

Maybe it was the game being played under the lights or the NESN TV camera crew, but the NESCAC season ended on a high note with Amherst claiming the undisputed NESCAC championship and Little Three championship by beating their archrival Williams.

Like so many other games, the Jeffs did not look great winning the game, but that does not really matter when you go 8-0. An early miscue put Williams up 3-0, but Amherst scored the next 17 points to gain a comfortable 17-3 lead. The Ephs managed to fight back and score a touchdown with under three minutes left to make things interesting, but Jaymie Spears ’16 recovered the onside kick to ensure the victory for the Jeffs.

In a lot of ways the game was a microcosm of the season for Amherst. They leaned heavily on their defense to come up with stops, and while Austin Lommen ’16 was able to throw for 197 yards, his two interceptions were costly for Williams. Amherst finishes the season with 17 interceptions with Jaymie Spears ’16 leading the way with six on the season and one Saturday. Max Lippe ’15 was efficient but not explosive in the passing game with Gene Garay ’15 his favorite target. Williams slowed down their running game enough which was a major reason for why the game remained close.

Looking back across the season, the Lord Jeffs were not a dominant juggernaut that ran through their schedule, but they remained perfect week after week in different ways. The one constant for Amherst was their defense. The Jeffs were the only team allow less than 10 points per game, and they were able to suffocate teams like Middlebury and Williams. But even the defense faltered a little in the biggest game of the year against Wesleyan. The Cardinals scored 30 points and had 433 total yards in the game, meaning that the offense and special teams needed to come through. And they did just that with the kicking game playing a major role in the victory

The Jeffs were a team that did just enough. They didn’t necessarily control games and finished eighth in the NESCAC in time of possession, but that defense was so good that it didn’t matter most of the time. Against Williams, Amherst only held the ball for 23:54 (less than 40% of the game). The key for the Jeffs was their 5-0 record in games decided by less than 10 points. Amherst never made a mistake that cost them the game, something that is easy to take for granted until you see things like Trinity missing a game winning field goal in the final minute. The Jeffs maintained a mentality that they would never beat themselves, and won games because their opponents struggled to do the same.

That mentality starts with no-nonsense Head Coach EJ Mills and trickles down to the senior leaders on the team Max Lippe ’15 did not play in the first three and a half games, but when called upon he showed no rust and helped to steady the offense in the second half of the year. Phillip Nwosu ’15 struggled at the beginning of the year (Check out our Stock Down section from October 6) but then was carried off the field by his teammates two weeks later after hitting four field goals including the game winner. Chris Tamasi ’15 was a terror off the edge all season tying for the league lead in sacks with five. And Ned Deane ’15, although often overshadowed by Tamasi, played equally well in the middle of the Amherst defense

Almost under the radar, Mills has created a dynasty at Amherst. Before the season we spilled a lot of ink concentrating on how Wesleyan and Trinity appeared to be close to separating themselves from the rest of the NESCAC. Amherst made that look silly. Since 2009, Amherst has collected four of the last six NESCAC titles, three of them undisputed. In 2009, 2011, and now 2014 they finished with a perfect 8-0 record. Since 2009, the Jeffs’ record is 43-5 (89.6%), and the class of 2015 goes out with a 29-3 record and three NESCAC championships.

At a time when Williams has gone through one of its worst downswings in decades, the Jeffs are riding as high as ever. Mills deserves much of the credit for that. He has built a program that is built to contend year after year. Despite playing three different quarterbacks and playing the third string running back for most of the Williams game, the depth of the Amherst program made sure the Jeffs could survive those problems. Mills has done an incredible job recruiting and 2014 was another representation of what a special coach he is.

Stock Up

Courtesy of Greg Sullivan (http://sevenstrong.net/)
Linebacker Joe Diaz ’15 breaks up a Wesleyan pass Saturday. Courtesy of Greg Sullivan (http://sevenstrong.net/)

These will be short because of time constraints, but we do want to mention some of the stars from this week.

Wesleyan Seniors: The most exciting game of the day came between Wesleyan and Trinity with the fourth quarter offering more than enough excitement to go around. Go ahead and read about the whole thing here. The ending was a sweet one for the best senior class at Wesleyan in a really long time. This class coincided with Coach Mike Whalen taking over, and he has a special connection with them. The accomplishments of Wesleyan over the past two years are numerous. Some of the most impressive are in 2013 the first Little Three title in 43 years and beating Trinity for the first time in 14 tries this season. The Cardinals were never able to complete an undefeated season, but that should not diminish their legacy.

Quarterback Matt Milano ’16 (Middlebury): The junior completed his first season as a starter in style by finding open receivers all day long. He finished with an insane 6 touchdowns, 0 interceptions, and 442 yards through the air. Milano came into his own as the season went along despite some early season struggles. He has more than confirmed that he is the next in line to be remembered as a great Middlebury QB. Is it enough for him to take home NESCAC Player of the Year honors? We will release our awards and All-NESCAC team tomorrow while the official announcement will come later this week.

 Linebacker Mark Upton ’17 (Bates): Upton has been a rising star for much of the season on a really good Bates defense, and he played his best game of the season Saturday. He had 11 total tackles, a sack, two pass breakups, and a fumble recovery and return for 34 yards. The fumble recovery was his first of the season after he forced four fumbles over the course of the season. His production was incredibly steady throughout the year as he never finished a game with fewer than 8 tackles. Bates will lose a good amount of players off their defense so Upton will take on even more importance next year.

Stock Down

NESCAC Seniors: Go ahead and call us saps for doing this, but we don’t see any real reason to break down who had a tough game in the final weekend of the season. The only reason that we put NESCAC seniors here is because they unfortunately have played their last game of college football. They all played for varying reasons, but for most of them it came down to loving the game too much not to play it. We would just like to thank them for everything they have given to us over the past four years.