Chicago Marriott Naperville Tipoff Tournament Preview

I'm officially on my weekend from my day job, though in the grand scheme of things, it's not much of a "weekend", as I'm working. Two days. Eight games. A total of probably 10 hours in a gym exercising my vocal cords. And I love every second of it.

North Central has hosted a basketball tournament the weekend before Thanksgiving every year since I can remember (so, 2007 when I first became aware, though the NCC Athletics website traces the tournament's history back to at least 2000). It gets both the men's and women's teams involved early enough, though I wish more people were aware of how entertaining the NCC women's team is. But there's a title drought for both teams, as the women haven't won since a 2008 double overtime thriller against St. Ambrose, and the men missed out on a chance to threepeat last year.

The women's tournament changed formats this year. Back in the day, the first day of games would determine who played when on the second day, where the consolation games took place in the early part of the day, followed by the title games. For a couple years, the men's tournament has had predetermined matchups where NCC gets the 7:30 game both nights. The women are switching to a similar format this year, so they will play at 5:00 on both days. The past couple years, this format has worked to deliver de facto championship games in the later time slots, but of course, upsets can happen.

So before the tournament tips off tomorrow at noon, here's a look at the non-NCC squads making the trip to Naperville.

Women's Tournament

Millsaps College (Jackson, MS)
2013-14: 17-9 (10-4 SAA), Lost SAA Semifinal
Nov. 21: vs Trinity International; Nov. 22: vs NCC
The Majors come into the tournament never having made the trek up to Naperville, much less ever having faced the Cardinals in basketball before. Millsaps features three seniors and a defense that allowed only 56.5 points per game last season. The key people to watch out for are senior point guard Samantha Perez (12.1 PPG on 44% shooting, plus 5.8 assists and 1.8 steals per game) and senior sniper Velvet Johnson (led the 2013-14 Majors with 15.4 PPG on 40.5% shooting, including 38.8% from deep), though sophomore Kala-Jewel Freeman provides an excellent presence down low (47.5% shooting to reach 10.5 PPG, plus a steal and over half a block per game). as does junior Miah Brooks (only 8.2 PPG, but shot 59.3% from the floor and adds an interior defensive presence as well). There's a lot of youth on this team, but only a couple freshmen. They've been around the block a few times, and should pose a challenge on Saturday.

Trinity International University (Deerfield, IL)
2013-14: 3-24 (0-18 CCAC)
Nov. 21: vs Millsaps; Nov. 22 vs St. Mary's
This trip is a first for the Trinity women, who play at the NAIA level. There's some confusion with their 13-14 schedule, as I count 4 wins, but whatever; that's last year. The Trojans lost their top three scorers from 2013-14, which means sophomore JaToya Woods will have to step up her game after averaging nine points a game last year but only shooting 30% from the floor. This team shot poorly from deep (just shy of 26%) in 2013-14, and will need to rely on players like sophomore point guard Arielle Miree (4.7 PPG, 32% from deep) to pick up the slack. The Trojans will also need to rely on some inexperienced players in the post; junior Asja Triplett did not play in 2013-14, though they picked up a 5'11" guard from my alma mater in Sara Childers, and Aurora Christian's girls team has taken a turn of respectability.


St. Mary's College (Notre Dame, IN)
2013-14: 7-18 (5-11 MIAA), Missed MIAA Tournament
Nov. 21: vs NCC; Nov. 22 vs Trinity International
The Cardinals made the trip to Indiana last year to take on the Saints and won a 90-89 thriller. That narrowed the all-time series gap to 3-2 in favor of the Saints, and Friday night might see that get tied. The Saints will have to move on without last year's leading scorer Shanlynn Bias (14.7 PPG), so most of their 2014-15 offense will probably rely on a pair of 5'10" forwards who were right behind Bias last year. Senior Ariana Paul is a double-double threat (13.9-8.1, 42% shooting) and junior Krista Knapke is right up there with her (11.0-7.4, 44% shooting). Both of them struggle with free throws, however (Paul shot 65.6%, Knapke 51.8%), so the Cardinals will have some leeway here. Junior Eleni Shea will also have to step up down low after averaging about nine points a game last year. I'm not sure what to expect in terms of guard play; the Saints attempted a total of 80 threes all season last year, hitting 23. I'll be interested to see how they handle North Central's press.

Men's Tournament

Bluffton University (Bluffton, OH)
2013-14: 10-15 (6-12 HCAC); Missed HCAC Tournament
Nov. 21: vs Wisconsin-Whitewater; Nov. 22: vs NCC
The Beavers are 2-2 all time against NCC, and that tie will be broken on Saturday. Two of Bluffton's four leading scorers are gone, but there are still some key pieces that return for the 2014-15 campaign. Thayne Recker brings the interior attack (13.6 PPG on 63% shooting, plus 6.8 RPG) while Billy Taflinger strikes from the perimeter (10.5 PPG on 42% shooting, but went 12-51 from deep last year. Senior Ryan Ebbeskotte is the floor general who averaged 8.1 points and 4.4 assists per game last year while shooting just shy of 35% from three, and senior Brock Homier is a deadlier deep weapon (37.7% from outside) who will get more time this year.

University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Warhawks (Whitewater, WI)
2013-14: 29-4 (13-3 WIAC); Won NCAA D-III National Championship
Nov. 21 vs Bluffton; Nov. 22 vs Trinity International
Ah, my old nemesis. Whitewater completed the rare trifecta last year, winning a national title in all three major men's sports. They've also historically had the Cardinals' number; they are 8-1 all time against NCC. However, the most recent meeting went to the Cardinals when they bounced the then-defending champs from the NCAA Tournament. At the time I started writing this, the schedule was set so Whitewater would play NCC on Saturday. For whatever reason, that changed, and the Warhawks now play TIU on Saturday. Whitewater's roster for this season isn't available yet, but the Warhawks lost four seniors to graduation. One piece they didn't lose was leading scorer KJ Evans (17.3 PPG on 51.9% shooting, including 36.6% from outside). Quardell Young is another major piece that returns (10.7 PPG on 54.3% shooting, including 43.2% from outside). Most of the starting frontcourt left, so that leaves guys like Steve Egan (5.4 PPG on 52.6% shooting in about 12.6 minutes a game) to pick up the slack, plus whatever youth they brought in this year.

Trinity International University
2013-14: 5-25 (3-16 CCAC)
Nov. 21: vs NCC; Nov. 22: vs Wisconsin-Whitewater
The Trojans are playing in the Tip Off Tournament for the second straight year after taking third place in the 2013 edition (they lost badly to DePauw before righting the ship against Valor Christian). They've never faced the Cardinals before, but get to in NCC's season opener. An amazing five of the top six scorers from last year's team return. Senior center Nate Ball led the way in 2013-14 (12.8 PPG, 8.9 RPG, shot 49% from the floor; in the 2013 tournament, scored 14 of his 16 points and pulled down 11 of his 13 rebounds in the win over Valor Christian), while German sophomore Thomas Amrine was the team's main sniper (11.9 PPG, shot 42.7% from three last year; scored 19 against Valor after getting shut out by DePauw in the 2013 tournament). Justin Peeples (10.0 PPG, 2.7 APG; two points and three assists total in the 2013 tournament, though he only played eight minutes in the Valor win) and Sam Salem (9.3 PPG, 3.2 APG; had three rebounds and one assist in the DePauw loss before bouncing back with 12 points and eight assists in the win over Valor) provide a good balance of scoring and distribution. They have a very tough task ahead of them this year in facing a pair of really good D-III programs.

I'll have writeups for all of the NCC games, plus bonus material on the early games each day. With Saturday's posts, I'll also list the All-Tournament Teams and Tournament MVPs as we really get basketball season kicked off in a big way.