Now that a full week of games is in the books, we can step back a little bit and dive into some of the early trends emerging. The first game between NESCAC teams happened over the weekend. If Williams’ overtime victory over Wesleyan was any indication, then the NESCAC regular season should be as wide-open as we are hoping.
A major theme is how the sophomore class is asserting themselves as the major playmakers around the league. From players like Zuri Pavlin ’17 and Harry Rafferty ’17 who were already starters from day one to others like Mike Greenman ’17 and Joseph Kuo ’17 who are delivering with increased playing time, sophomores are difference-makers on almost every team in the NESCAC.
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Center David George ’17 (Amherst): The guard play for the Jeffs has been a little uneven, but George has delivered on the promise he showed down the stretch of 2013 to help keep Amherst undefeated. The sophomore’s 7.7 rebounds per game, of which 3.7 are offensive rebounds, are no surprise given his size and athleticism. His offensive game, while still undeniably still somewhat underdeveloped, is unbelievably efficient. He is averaging 13.7 points per game on 75% shooting, the second highest percentage in the NESCAC behind John Swords ’15. Unlike last year when George was often surrounded by shooters on the court, Amherst is playing with two bigs most of the time. He is working with less space to work with but is having no problems scoring with ease. Having two big men in the game at once is also a big reason why Amherst has a rebounding margin of +20 so far.
Guard Jake Brown ’17 (Middlebury): Last year Brown established himself as a dogged defender and player capable of getting into the lane. This year he is going full Rondo as a table-setter for the talented Middlebury wings. He leads the league with 6.5 assists per game despite playing less than 24 minutes a game because Middlebury has been involved in a few blowouts already. He is able to get into the lane with ease and kick it out to Matt St. Amour ’17 or find a cutting Dylan Sinnickson ’15. Though he isn’t scoring much, he showed himself capable of filling Joey Kizel’s role of hitting big shots at the end of games when he hit the go ahead jumper with 30 seconds left against Clark yesterday. Brown will likely play less than 30 minutes a game because of the presence of talented youngster Jack Daly ’18. That should allow him to continue his frenetic pace as he leads the Middlebury fast break game.
Guard Hayden Rooke-Ley ’15 (Williams): The Ephs have struggled out of the gate, but there have been some bright spots so far. The fact that Rooke-Ley has become absolutely locked in as a shooter is one of the brightest. In a blowout of Johnston State, he set a Williams’ record by going 12-15 from beyond the three point line. He did not even attempt another shot from the field or a foul shot. Rumors have it he actually did not go inside of the three point line on offense all game (not actually). What makes the Johnston State game even more impressive is that two days before he went 0-9 from the field, including 0-7 from deep. He was able to fight through a couple of tough games at the beginning of the year before hitting his stride. Yet perhaps the best statistic Rooke-Ley has going so far is his free throw shooting. He is a perfect 28 for 28 from the stripe through four games. No other player has made more than 22 free throws and only one player has even attempted more than 28. That is crazy.
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Tufts’ Shooting: The return of Tom Palleschi ’16 made Jumbo fans ecstatic over the idea of him teaming with Hunter Sabety ’17 as an unstoppable duo inside. The early returns for Tufts have been subpar, but that is not actually because of any problems in the interior. The Tufts offense is struggling because there is not enough shooting right now. The Jumbos are shooting 25.8% from three, the second lowest percentage in the conference. Ben Ferris ’15, Ryan Spadaford ’16 and Stephn Haladyna ’16 were supposed to supply most of the outside shooting. And while Spadaford has hit half of his threes through two games, Ferris and Haladyna are both below 25%. It gets even worse when you combine that with the Jumbos hitting less than 60% of their free throws.
Bates’ Depth: The Bobcats have gotten off to a great start beating two NCAA tournament teams from 2013 on their way to a 3-0 start. The reasons for the quick start are pretty simple. Mike Boornazian ’16 and Graham Safford ’15 are the best backcourt in the NESCAC and have played great so far. Yet, Bates might be overly reliant on those two players. They account for 51.6% of the scoring, 36.8% of the rebounding, and 65.8% of the assists overall for Bates. Throw in center Marcus Delpeche ’17, enjoying an uptick of production this season, into that equation and the numbers become even more ridiculous: 65% scoring, 56% rebounding, and 77% assists. A big reason for Bates slumping down the stretch was because Safford could not continue his high level of play down the stretch. Bates needs other players to step up in order to maintain better balance and not be overly reliant on the play of a few players.