Game Notes: (MBK) Elmhurst College @ North Central College (2/28/20)

Final Score
Elmhurst 71, NCC 60

Game Summary
This game started out in a similar fashion to the last one between these two teams, as the Cardinals (21-5) were able to trade some early leads with the Blue Jays (22-5), but there was no dry spell for Elmhurst on this night. North Central reached its high water mark about halfway through the first half with an 18-12 advantage and again a few minutes later at 25-19. But then the Jays went on an 8-0 run sparked by back to back threes. They couldn't take full advantage, and the Cardinals battled back to take a 32-31 lead into the locker room. Elmhurst looked fresher and more ready to open the second half, scoring the first five points to take the lead back, but the Cardinals kept it close thanks in part to both teams shooting themselves in the foot a little bit. After each team received a flop warning earlier in the game, North Central drew a technical foul for a flop about five minutes in, allowing the Blue Jays to go up four instead of three. Elmhurst let the Cardinals back in with a Class A technical foul (two shots), and drew a Class B for a flop of their own a few minutes later, the latter of which pulled the Cardinals back within one. But the Jays hit a three the next time down, then after trading layups, an end of bench Cardinal drew a Class A technical, giving the Jays a four point possession to help spark what turned into a 13-0 run to extend their lead to 15. The Cardinals got no closer than seven the rest of the way, as the Jays advance to tomorrow's CCIW title game with The Belt^TM in their possession for the first time this year.

Key Players

• Jake Rhode (ELM): 7-16 FG (4-8 3PT), 7-7 FT; 25 pts, 7 reb, 2 ast. Three weeks after struggling in this same building, Rhode came out guns blazing, hitting an early three, but he only had eight at halftime. He came alive after the break though, scoring 17, including a couple more threes and a perfect 5-5 mark from the free throw line.
• Derek Dotlich (ELM): 5-11 FG (2-6 3PT), 3-3 FT: 15 pts, 2 reb (1 off), 2 ast, 3 stl. Dotlich's first game here was even worse (0-6, including 0-4 from deep if I remember right). But he got an early fast break layup to break out, and hit a couple big threes, one in each half. The three steals were a team high; Lavon Thomas had the other two for the Jays.
• Connor Raridon (NCC): 6-18 FG (1-4 3PT), 5-5 FT; 18 pts, 10 reb (2 off), 6 ast, 1 blk. On a night where pretty much everybody struggled, Connor did all he could to will his team onto the finals. But even his best effort wasn't enough, as the Jays did a pretty good job forcing him into tough shots, and he missed at least one point blank layup that could have turned the tide.

Key Stats

• NCC: 22-60 FG (36.7%), 7-25 3PT (28.0%). That's not going to get it done. Elmhurst played good defense, but like I just touched on, the Cardinals missed, that I can clearly remember, three point blank clean layups in just the second half. It wouldn't have been enough to fully turn the tide, but hitting those maybe stops the bleeding and gives you energy to get a stop. I don't know. The threes not falling tonight either didn't really help.
• ELM: Outrebounded NCC 41-38. Each team had 31 defensive rebounds... meaning the Jays got three additional second chance opportunities, scoring eight second chance points to North Central's four. Combine that with the three missed layups by the Cardinals mentioned above... that's 10 of your 11 points that made the difference. I feel like saying that though does a disservice to the Blue Jays, because the stat line kind of bears out what the eye test tells you. The Jays had more energy and played like it, especially in the second half.

CCIW Semifinal Watch

(3) IWU 74, (2) AUG 70

This was a great one to open the evening. The Vikings (18-8) seemed to be in control for most of it, and actually held the lead for over 36 minutes of game time, and were up by as many as seven in the first half, but the Titans (19-8) came back to tie a couple times before going into the break down 34-31. The Vikings again tried to pull away in the second half, but couldn't get farther than six up, and the Titans managed to come back late to tie a couple times again before taking the lead for good with 1:36 left. Peter Lambesis was ridiculous, putting up a game-high 28 points, Cory Noe added 17, Matt Leritz finished with 11, and Alex O'Neill only had six points but played some great defense to lead the Titans to the upset win. Austin Elledge and Micah Martin each had 19 points to pace the Vikings, while Pierson Wofford chipped in 15.

Bonus Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch
I was really on watch for this in a neutral game. It was Grey Giovanine's second trip to Naperville this season, so it was the second time of getting to look for it. Ultimately, he was chill with regards to the jacket even as he was laying into some of his players, before finally removing it with 4:05 to go in the first half.

Women's CCIW Tournament Watch

• (1) WHE 76 (20-6), (6) NCC 44 (12-15)
• (2) IWU 76 (18-8), (5) AUG 75 (14-13) (OT)

Final Thoughts

I want to get this out of the way first: I felt like I announced a road game tonight. The Blue Jays brought a ton of students to this one, and they were into the game pretty much the whole way, but especially in the second half. I really think their team then fed off that, especially during that key 13-0 run that put the game on ice. I'm not thrilled that North Central couldn't muster a student section in response... but what can you do.

With that out of the way, let me tip my hat to the Blue Jays. After a heartbreaking loss to the Cardinals at Elmhurst back in December, then a rough trip to Naperville three weeks ago, they were clearly up for this one, and definitely outplayed the hosts tonight. They earned their way to the title game, where they are going up against a never-say-die Illinois Wesleyan team for the CCIW's automatic bid. The Blue Jays should be in the NCAA Tournament already; this would be a formality for them. The Titans almost definitely need to win tomorrow night to get in.

As for the Cardinals, I think they're pretty safe. They entered the weekend ranked fourth in the Central, and while they may drop in the final set, they've set themselves up nicely the past few weeks to still have the resume to make it as an at large. They should be far enough away from the bubble that they won't have a ton of drama on Selection Monday. But the loss today, in addition to passing on The Belt^TM to their vanquishers, it also likely ends any chances of NCAA Tournament games in Naperville.

I'll probably do a writeup on the CCIW title game tomorrow or Sunday (maybe Monday, depending) since I'll still be working that game. Monday, once the bracket is out, I'll have a look at what the Cardinals are looking at for a tournament matchup, assuming they do in fact make it.

Game Notes: (MBK) Augustana College @ North Central College (1/22/20)

Final Score
NCC 54, Augustana 53

Game Summary
In another classic between these two rivals, the Vikings (11-6, 5-3) opened the game on an 8-2 run, including a couple early triples that prompted a quick timeout. That timeout from the Cardinals (14-3, 7-1) stopped the bleeding, and they climbed out of the hole, turning the game into a back and forth affair with one tie and five lead changes over the next several minutes, before the Cardinals finally took a little control, leading by as many as five before settling into the break with a 28-25 advantage. The Cardinals couldn't quite pull away in the second half, but managed to create a little breathing room from time to time, getting a couple big threes early in the half for that space. With about ten minutes to go the Cardinals had pushed the lead to eight, and a three point play a minute and a half later gave the Cardinals their biggest lead at nine. The Vikings slowly clawed their way back, pulling within one a couple times, including at that final margin with 38 seconds to go. The Cardinals missed a corner three on the ensuing possession, and Augie called for time with about 11 seconds to go needing one score to win. The Cardinals' defense played it perfectly for the first ten seconds, but after a little bit of a fumble, Augie got off a three before the buzzer... that just rimmed out, allowing the Cardinals to retain possession of The Belt^TM and first place in the conference.

Key Players

• Blaise Meredith (NCC): 6-9 FG (2-4 3PT), 2-5 FT; 16 pts, 11 reb (1 off), 3 ast, 1 blk. I've spent a chunk of the year talking about how Blaise has kind of struggled this year... but he showed up to play last night. He had 10 points and eight rebounds at the break, including hitting an early three to help set the tone, and followed that up a few minutes later with a beautiful stepback three. Later in the game, he was able to attack the basket and get some nice layups. The free throws could have been a little better, but when he attacked the rim and the glass with the impunity he did last night, he's a big reason why the Cardinals escaped with a win.
• Pierson Wofford (AUG): 4-12 FG (0-4 3PT), 7-8 FT; 15 pts, 8 reb (2 off), 1 ast. Wofford was a big reason why the Vikings stayed close in last year's classic, so I was a little surprised that he seemed invisible early on in this game. But he made his presence felt as the game went on, leading his team in rebounding and getting to the basket and the line. He's been a good three point shooter as well this year (37.3%), so to go 0-4 from deep was huge in this one, but he definitely made his presence known.
• Micah Martin (AUG): 3-6 FG, 1-3 FT; 7 pts, 2 reb (1 off), 1 blk. Martin presents a unique challenge for opponents in his 6'11" frame, especially against this North Central team that doesn't have a true big. But Martin really struggled early in this one, missing three of his four first half shots, pretty much all of them early and right at the rim when he should have made them. You also expect a guy of that size to dominate the boards... but he finished with just two. Part of that was due to foul trouble, as he only played six minutes in the first half, sitting with three fouls the rest of the time. He played a clean second half, including getting a couple key layups during Augie's desperate comeback.

Key Stats

• NCC: Outrebounded 42-26. I feel like this is relatively normal for an NCC-Augie game the past couple years, given Augie's hoarding of bigs and outsizing the Cardinals, and sure enough, the numbers agree. The Vikings managed a ridiculous 18 offensive rebounds, leading to 11 second chance points (NCC had four offensive boards for seven second chance points, by comparison). For the Cardinals to win in spite of this is something. Normally I'd put this in Augie's section, but another stat tells the Vikings' tale a little better.
• AUG: 5-23 3PT (21.7%). As a team, the Vikings are shooting 34 percent from beyond the arc this season, so it's a little surprising to see a total this low. Credit the Cardinals for playing good defense, but let's make this number from last night really jarring. The Vikings hit their first two threes of the game, spanning the first two and a half minutes. Over the remaining 37 and a half minutes... that's a 3-21 mark, a 14.3% clip. That usually won't win you games.

Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch

It's time for my favorite feature of the season: The Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch! If you're new to Confessions of a Sportscaster or Division III basketball in general, you may not be too familiar with the gentleman pictured here. This is Grey Giovanine, longtime head coach at Augustana. During his tenure, Augie has become one of the perennial powers at the D-III level, largely due to the coaching of Giovanine. I have nothing but the utmost respect for him as a coach, but it's always fun when Augie comes to town, because watching Grey traverse the sideline is a show in and of itself... especially early in the game because the sport coat he starts the game with is coming off. It's just a question of when.

That question has prompted me to run a pool the past few years (and I even put it up on Twitter with mock gambling lines on Sunday). Tonight, I managed to to actually see the glorious moment with my own eyes: with 15:13 left in the first half, Grey Giovanine removed his jacket following a Micah Martin offensive foul. I had been peeking over shortly before this, feeling like we were on the verge of it, and I tried to swing my head immediately after the offensive foul was called... and sure enough, Giovanine was in the process of ripping his sport coat off. I've never been happier at a basketball game. I ran a pool of probably about ten people last night, with many figuring the jacket was coming off much later in the first half. Kevin, our official scorer, and I both won that pool, figuring the jacket was coming off about seven minutes in. But the 31 percent of respondents who correctly called it on Twitter... you guys also win.

Illinois needs to hurry up and legalize sports betting, because I want to start making this a prop bet.

CCIW Scoreboard Watch

• @ ELM 89 (16-1, 7-1), IWU 72 (11-6, 5-3)
• @ WHE 58 (11-6, 5-3), CRL 54 (9-8, 2-6)
• @ NPU 72 (3-14, 1-7), CAR 68 (11-6, 3-5)
• Bye: MIL (4-13, 1-7)
• WBK: NCC 70 (8-9, 4-4), @ AUG 63 (8-9, 3-5)
• WBK: WHE 62 (12-5, 5-3), @ IWU 59 (12-5, 6-2)
• WBK: NPU 66 (14-3, 7-1), @ CAR 59 (8-9, 3-5)
• WBK: ELM 64 (7-10, 2-6), @ MIL 53 (11-6, 4-4)
• WBK: Bye- CRL (6-10, 2-6)

Final Thoughts

I don't know that my heart rate has totally gone down from last night. Let's watch that final sequence again.

Final from Naperville: North Central 54 Augustana 53 #d3hoops pic.twitter.com/6JxGLvGAJQ

— Bob Quillman (@IWUhoopscom) January 23, 2020

Breathe, Cardinal fans. You escaped with a win. That makes three in a row over the Vikings, the longest win streak since they won seven in a row from 2011 (the last basketball game I ever called for WONC, incidentally) through 2013, including a pair of CCIW Tournament wins. The win also keeps the Cardinals in first place, albeit tied with an extremely good Elmhurst team. I'll go into the CCIW at the halfway point tomorrow and dig into the numbers a little bit deeper.

This was a good win though, and it was nice to see the Cardinals hang on in a game where their closing out of an opponent wasn't as good as it has been on prior nights. It also marks the third straight defense of The Belt^TM for the Cardinals, who seem to like having a supernatural totem hanging out in Gregory Arena.

They'll kick off the second half of CCIW play on Saturday at home, getting Millikin for the second time in ten days. The Cardinals won the first matchup by ten down in Decatur, and that was a tight one at times, so we'll see if the home cooking can give the Cardinals a little more of an edge.

Game Notes: (MBK) Augustana College @ North Central College (1/31/19)

Final Score
NCC 68, Augustana 63

Game Summary
Tipping off a day late due to extreme cold, the Cardinals (18-3, 10-2) managed to stay toe to toe with the Vikings (19-2, 11-1), trading the lead a handful of times and tying at eight separate junctures early in this one, the last of which came at 21-all. Then the Vikings went on one of their expected runs, scoring eight straight to go up 29-21 with just over three minutes to play in the first half, but the Cardinals refused to let Augie put them away, managing to pull back with five at 33-28 by halftime. In the second half a switch flipped as a previously cold-shooting Cardinal team started hitting, knocking down threes on three out of four possessions to grab a 37-36 lead before adding another a couple minutes later to take a 42-36 edge. The Cardinals would push their advantage as high as seven at 44-37 and kept it for a few minutes before the Vikings made their critical push. Aided by a Mike Pollack technical foul, the Vikings embarked on a 9-0 run to take a 56-52 edge. Then the Cardinal defense buckled down and held the Vikings off the board for about five minutes, getting a huge transition layup to take a 57-56 lead followed on the ensuing possession by a clutch three. Augie answered with a contested one at the other end to snap their drought and pull back within one, then had a chance to take the lead at the line, but missed the front end of a one-and-one, and the Cardinals made them pay with a dagger three. North Central went 5-6 at the line in the final 37 seconds to seal the upset.

Key Players

• Matt Cappelletti (NCC): 7-9 FG (3-4 3PT), 1-2 FT; 18 pts, 7 reb (3 off), 1 ast, 2 stl. Cap had a clutch night in this one. He was able to get to the basket for a couple easy looks in this one, and was clutch from beyond the arc. He hit two of his threes in the early going of the second half, including the go-ahead one at 37-36. He also delivered the dagger to push the Cardinals' lead back to four with about 48 seconds to go.
• Blaise Meredith (NCC): 7-10 FG (1-1 3PT), 3-8 FT; 18 pts, 2 reb, 2 ast, 2 blk, 2 stl. The free throw numbers leave a lot to be desired, but the Cardinals don't win last night without his efforts. Blaise scored 13 of his points in the first half to keep the Cardinals in the ballgame, and filled the stat sheet in other places. Maybe most importantly, he didn't hit his head on a backboard like the last time these two teams met.
• Pierson Wofford (AUG): 7-11 FG, 1-1 FT; 15 pts, 6 reb (4 off), 3 stl. Wofford missed a significant chunk of last season, and his return helped push this Vikings team to another level. He showed why last night, wreaking havoc with a couple steals near the midcourt line that he took the other way, including for a fast break dunk during the 8-0 run. He hit a couple big shots in the second half, but it just wasn't quite enough.

Key Stats

• NCC: 7-19 3PT (36.8%). I'm giving the whole line, but it really was a tale of two halves. The Cardinals hit just one of nine from deep, just narrowly missing several of those. In the second half, regression to the mean was the Cardinals' friend, as their 6-10 clip was instrumental in the Cardinals pulling the upset.
• AUG: Tied North Central with 32 rebounds apiece. The first time these teams met, Augie outrebounded the Cardinals 38-25, not unexpected given a level of size disparity in the Vikings' favor. But the Cardinals did a good job neutralizing Augie's bigs; their two tallest forwards, Donovan Ferguson (6'9") and Micah Martin (6'11") combined for just five, with Wofford's six leading the game.

Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch

This almost takes precedence over the game itself. If you're new to Confessions of a Sportscaster or CCIW basketball in general, Augustana has distinguished itself as the premier program in the conference. Much of this is credited to Viking coach Grey Giovanine, who is a hell of a coach. He's also kind of a lunatic with a penchant for throwing off his sport coat, prompting this feature, where we track when the jacket comes off.

I ran a pool involving a few people working last night as well as a couple fans I know. We had a nice range of predictions, most of which had the game going a little way's into the first half before it came off. Instead, we were blessed with a string of three straight offensive rebounds, frustrating Giovanine to no end, and after the final one prompted a swift removal and toss to the manager with 14:20 remaining in the first half. Longtime fan Steve Born won the pool with a guess of 14:30 remaining in the first half. If you want to see the removal and toss in all of its glory, you can see it at about 42:15 of the YouTube video (though I'd go back about a minute before that for the full context).

CCIW Scoreboard Watch

• @ CRL 77 (8-13, 4-8), WHE 70 (15-6, 8-4), 
• @ IWU 84 (12-8, 5-6), MIL 72 (10-10, 4-8), 
• @ ELM 87 (11-9, 6-5), CAR 80 (7-13, 2-9)
• Bye: NPU (4-16, 2-9)
• WBK: @ MIL 81 (7-13, 3-8), NCC 67 (6-15, 4-8)

Final Thoughts

Photo by Mark Black

I have a lot to unpack out of this one. At some point in the future I'm going to do a ranking of the games I've announced for North Central, and as of right now, this one is the leader in the clubhouse. Augustana came into the game ranked #1 in the country in the D3Hoops poll, and when you factor in the conference race, this was a huge one. Coming into last night, Augie had won every matchup in Merner since I became the full time men's announcer, so to get that monkey off my back was nice.

It's North Central's second ever win over the number one team in the country; the first was a win at Illinois Wesleyan back in 2006. It's also bound to catapault the Cardinals up from #22 in the rankings next week. From a conference standpoint, the other important result broke the Cardinals' way with Carroll upsetting Wheaton. It gives North Central a two game lead for the #2 spot and the bye in the conference, while pulling within a game of Augustana. The remaining schedule does favor the Vikings, but if they lose another one and North Central runs the table, many of the tiebreaker scenarios will favor the Cardinals. The Wheaton rematches for both teams are the key, in my view.

I'm not going to waste too much space here talking about regional rankings, but I'll touch briefly on them. The first set comes out next week, and while this win probably won't have too big of an impact with this first set, it definitely will in the second set.

Finally, I have to say how proud I am of the crowd turnout last night. On a still bitter cold night with classes having been cancelled, a good-sized contingent of students came and packed the west bleachers. Early in the game, I saw someone with a banner of the Augustana logo, except the Viking face was replaced with Crying Jordan. I've never been so proud of a student section, especially since that whole side really came to life in the final 2:30 of the game. I don't think you can discount the impact that had down the stretch. And of course, they stormed the court when the final buzzer sounded. Thankfully no one got hurt, but when you beat the top team in the country, you have to do it.

The Cardinals have their second bye this weekend, then continue their three-game homestand with Illinois Wesleyan coming to town on Wednesday.

Game Notes: (MBK) Augustana College @ North Central College (2/7/18)

Final Score
Augustana 71, NCC 65

Game Summary
The Vikings (17-5, 9-4) pretty quickly silenced the crowd in this one, opening the game on an 8-0 run. The Cardinals (16-6, 9-4) brought Mike Pollack off the bench, and a couple threes got the team back into it, with an Alex Sorenson bucket a couple minutes later narrowing the gap to three. But the Vikings responded with a 10-0 run sparked by back to back Nolan Ebel threes. The Cardinals couldn't make a dent into the lead as Augie would lead by as many as 17 before settling in with a 32-16 halftime advantage. North Central made a bit of a push early in the first half, narrowing the gap to 11 just over five minutes in and forcing an Augustana timeout, but that break stopped the bleeding and prompted an 8-0 Viking run to push the lead back to 19. Augie seemed to have an answer for every Cardinal basket, but holding onto a 16 point lead with eight minutes to play, the Cardinals made their fateful final push, cutting the lead to single digits with four minutes to play, pushing it back under that mark for good with two and a half left, and coming within four at 69-65 with a minute to play. Augie split a pair of free throws, and on the ensuing possession, Mike Pollack missed a three which effectively ended the game.

Key Stats

• Chrishawn Orange (AUG): 8-12 FG (2-2 3PT), 4-6 FT; 22 pts, 4 reb (1 off), 1 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl. Orange has killed the Cardinals at Gregory Arena in his three games here, and last night was no different. He scored Augie's first eight points before taking more of a backseat offensively, but did a ton of damage as the game went along, finishing perfect from the field in the second half and scoring the remaining 14 of his points.
• Nolan Ebel (AUG): 5-12 FG (2-4 3PT), 6-8 FT; 18 pts, 6 reb (1 off), 3 ast. Ebel was clutch last night as well. He had 10 at halftime and didn't shoot particularly well in the second half, but he scored Augie's final six points to seal the victory.
• Alex Sorenson (NCC): 8-14 FG (2-3 3PT), 1-3 FT; 19 pts, 7 reb (2 off), 5 ast, 1 blk. Alex struggled mightily in the early going of this one; he was 1-6 from the floor with just two points at the break as Augie did a fantastic job defensively on him. But he kept working in the post in the second half to help collapse the defense while getting his points, and hit a couple threes to help spark the late comeback attempt. All in all he ended with a solid night for his part.

Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch
Far and away, this is my favorite part of writing up these game notes... and my favorite non-game related aspect of the season on either the men's or the women's side. As a refresher for those of you who are new to either Confessions of a Sportscaster and/or CCIW men's basketball, Augie head coach Grey Giovanine is one of the best coaches in the country... and also one of the biggest head cases. As I understand it, he's mellowed to some degree from past years, but the most fun thing to watch for in these games is Grey's suit coat.

Big game coming up for NCC men’s basketball against Augie on Wednesday... which means I’m on #GreyGiovanineJacketWatch! When do you think the Vikings coach will remove it?

— Lucas Mitzel (@northsider89) February 5, 2018

For years I've run an unofficial pool to see when people think it's coming off. One year I even won a Mountain Dew out of the deal from our former official scorer. This year there are no stakes other than pride and the sheer joy of seeing the coat come off. Last night, Grey took it off with 12:00 remaining in the first half. North Central SID Clark Teuscher won this year's unofficial pool with a guess of seven minutes in.

CCIW Scoreboard Watch

• WHE 107 (15-6, 8-4), @ IWU 95 (16-5, 9-3)
• Millikin is eliminated from the CCIW Tournament
• @ CRL 73 (9-12, 5-7), CAR 69 (12-9, 7-5)
• MIL 87 (11-11, 4-9), @ ELM 70 (11-11, 4-9)
• Elmhurst is eliminated from the CCIW Tournament
• (Tues): @ NPU 87 (5-16, 1-11), East-West 71
• (WBK): @ MIL 73 (6-15, 1-11), NCC 70 (5-17, 3-10)

Final Thoughts

I talked about how big this game was in yesterday's regional ranking post. Unfortunately, the Cardinals did not come out strong in this one as Augie played fantastic defense all night and hit some shots to pull away early. The Cardinals had some decent looks early on that just didn't fall, as they didn't shoot well in the first half, but shot very well in the second. Unfortunately, Augie heated up offensively as well to have an answer for every potential Cardinal run. They earned a tough road win, their fifth in a row in Naperville. As much as I'd like to complain about some perceived bad calls or the lack of Erwin Henry, Augie absolutely deserved to win this game.

This hurts the Cardinals big time. Illinois Wesleyan lost, which had set the stage for the Cardinals to potentially grab first place in the CCIW. Instead, they're effectively third because Augie is now locked into the tiebreaker over North Central with the head to head sweep. Wheaton's win also brings them within half a game of the Cardinals for third place. It's becoming a fairly crowded top of the conference now, and even though Illinois Wesleyan has lost two straight, they're still a threat at the top.

The other problem is that the Cardinals have a bye on Saturday, so they will idle at 9-4 in the conference until next week. The other contenders are all playing teams in the bottom four of the league this Saturday, so all have opportunities to gain ground on the Cardinals or put them in the rear view mirror. North Central returns to action with their final regular season home game on Valentine's Day when Carroll comes calling.

Game Notes (MBK): Augustana College @ North Central College (1/4/17)

Final Score
Augustana 82, NCC 71

Game Summary
This was a tough one as the Cardinals (8-5, 2-2) couldn't buy a basket in the early going and falling behind 12-4. The Vikings (10-3, 3-1) had an answer for every perceived Cardinal push, and would lead by as many as 11 points as the half progressed. But the Cardinals finally made a bit of a sustained run, scoring seven straight at one point to pull within three, but Augustana had an answer again and pushed the lead back to eight before taking a 42-37 lead into the locker room. NCC scored almost immediately to kick off the second half to get back within three, but Augie answered with a three a minute or so later and would push the lead back up to nine. Again the Cardinals pulled back within three, but another 7-0 Viking run pushed the lead back to 10. The margin stayed in that 7-10 point range, but the Cardinals would get no closer than within six, and the Vikings would lead by as many as 12 before Grey Giovanine called off the dogs with under a minute to go.

Key Stats

• Chrishawn Orange (AUG): 3-12 FG (2-5 3PT), 9-10 FT; 17 pts, 3 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl. Overall, not the best night from the floor for Orange (who as I recall played really well in this matchup last year), but he hit a couple of key threes to fend off Cardinal comeback attempts, and he was magnificent at the free throw line. All in all, a pretty good night.
• Pierson Wofford (AUG): 4-5 FG (1-1 3PT), 2-2 FT; 11 pts, 12 reb (5 off), 1 ast. I kind of remembered Wofford having a decent game, but it wasn't until I looked at the box that I realized he actually played really well, notching the game's only double-double. Those five offensive rebounds were killer, and with Augie scoring 17 second chance points in this one, those went a long way towards giving Augie the victory.
• Erwin Henry (NCC): 4-8 FG (0-2 3PT), 5-6 FT; 13 pts, 5 reb (2 off). Erwin had to sit out much of the first half due to foul trouble, but gained some ground in the second half, helping key one of North Central's major runs to trim Augustana's lead by putting home layups and getting to the line. It was just too little, too late, and Henry's four turnovers, including one very careless one prompted by way too much dribbling, offset a little bit of his production.

CCIW Scoreboard Watch

• @ Wheaton 78 (6-6, 2-1), Carroll 71 (6-6, 1-2)
• @ Illinois Wesleyan 73 (10-3, 2-2), Millikin 64 (2-10, 0-2)
• Carthage 82 (9-3, 3-1), @ North Park 76 (9-2, 2-2),
• BYE: Elmhurst (5-7, 1-2)
• (WBK): NCC 117 (8-5, 2-2), @ Carroll 86 (0-11, 0-3)

Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch
This is by far my favorite non game-related function with my NCC Game Notes series. If you're unfamiliar with the CCIW or Division III basketball, Grey Giovanine is a hell of a basketball coach. He is also... kind of a head case. Non-Augie people are kind of tired of his shtick, because of the way he works officials, but the fun part with him is watching for when his suit jacket comes off. It often comes off quickly, but that's when you know the game has truly begun.

#CCIW play starts up tomorrow in #d3h, and this is my big question ahead of NCC-Augie: When is the #GreyGiovanineJacketWatch on full alert?

— Lucas Mitzel (@northsider89) January 3, 2017

I made that Twitter poll in advance of last night's game just for giggles, but Coach Giovanine made me wait. Given NCC's struggles, he was relatively composed until later in the half. He removed his jacket with 5:42 left on the clock in the first half. I didn't even get to see it; he just came over by the scorer's table and the jacket was off. Oh well, I got a Mountain Dew out of it.

Final Thoughts

I really want to complain about the officiating, because it was not very good, but it wouldn't do any good. NCC was called for 13 first half fouls which prompted early bench time for Alex Sorenson, who had two, and Jack Bronec also had to sit late with two fouls, and Matt Cappelletti picked up three in the first half. It led to a 17-10 free throw advantage for the Vikings, but considering the Cardinals couldn't buy a basket early in the game, I can't blame the officials for this one. Augustana earned this victory, and those first few minutes where they jumped out to that 12-4 lead were the key.

Big picture-wise, a loss to Augie, even at home, is understandable, but really hurts the Cardinals' cause as we move along in the season. Their underwhelming non-conference performance put a lot of pressure on the Cardinals to play well in CCIW play, and two home losses, even to the top two teams in the standings, does not bode well. The Cardinals need to regroup and get ready for Saturday, because things don't get easier with early CCIW Player of the Year favorite Jordan Robinson and North Park coming to town.

Game Notes: (MBK) Augustana College @ North Central College (2/3/16)

Final Score

Augustana 86, NCC 78

Game Summary
In the biggest game of the season with revenge on their minds, the Cardinals (15-6, 8-2) started okay out of the gate, getting the opening bucket six seconds in. The Vikings (20-1, 9-1) were able to bounce back quickly however and turn the game into a battle of attrition. The Cardinals took an 18-12 lead early and seemed to be in control before the Vikings stormed back. Augie would lead by as many as nine points late in the half, but a Cardinal surge got North Central back within three by halftime with a 37-34 score. The Cardinals struggled early in the frame as Augie rebuilt its lead to as big as 12 points. After a couple timeouts to stop the bleeding, the Cardinals went to work and used a 12-4 run to eventually cut Augie's lead to one at 62-61, but the senior Vikings stepped up their game and turned the contest into one of trading buckets and the Cardinals got no closer than within two in the final minutes, missing multiples looks from three in a tough loss.

Key Stats

• Hunter Hill (AUG): 9-13 FG (5-8 3PT), 2-3 FT; 25 pts, 5 reb (1 off), 2 ast, 1 stl. Hill is one of Augie's top two scorers and came into last night shooting 43.5 percent from beyond the arc. All five of his threes came at huge moments of the game, including one to put Augie up nine in the first half. He came through most at the end after the Cardinals pulled within one. He passed the ball on the perimeter, then circled through the lane to the corner, the Cardinals lost track of him... and he buried a wide open three. Very next possession after a Cardinal basket, Hill passed off on the perimeter, circled through the lane to the opposite corner, again the Cardinals left him alone... and again he buried a wide open three. Absolutely inexcusable defense, but credit to Hill. Dude is a great shooter with a phenomenal sense for the moment.
• Ben Ryan (AUG): 9-15 FG (0-1 3PT), 3-4 FT; 21 pts, 4 reb, 2 ast. Ryan is Augie's best offensive post player, and he was a killer inside. Connor Raridon was on him for significant chunks of the game and Ryan was able to take advantage both in the post as well as in the midrange game. One of the fans who sits directly behind the scorers' table said it best post game: these were the two guys you had to stop, and you couldn't.
• Jagger Anderson (NCC): 8-15 FG (0-3 3PT), 3-8 FT; 19 pts, 4 reb (3 off), 3 ast, 1 stl. Jagger looked really good last night, even against a stout Viking defense. When he was able to get one on one or in transition, he was unguardable. He hit a couple of absolutely ridiculous layups and got to the line for a couple and-ones. However, his shooting line was representative of the night for the Cardinals.
• NCC: 5-28 3PT (17.9%), 7-15 FT (46.7%). I'm adding a fourth key stat for this game because those two percentages are crucial to what happened in the game. The Cardinals had a ton of open looks from three, but started the game 0-10 or so from outside and missed a ton at the end. Going into the game the Cardinals shot 36 percent from beyond the arc, and failed to reach even half of that. On an average night, a few of those open look misses fall, and we're talking about a different result. The free throw thug I've mentioned a couple times as this team's biggest weakness, and it definitely hurt last night. You can't miss your freebies against a team like Augie. You just can't.

CCIW Scoreboard Watch

• @ Elmhurst 96 (18-3, 8-2), Carthage 70 (8-13, 2-8)
• North Park 74 (14-7, 6-4), @ Wheaton 61 (5-16, 1-9)
• Millikin 61 (7-14, 1-9), @ Illinois Wesleyan 59 (11-10, 5-5)

Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch
My good friend Geoffrey Clark insisted I do this segment for every opposing CCIW coach, but it is Augustana's coach who truly inspired its birth. By all accounts, Grey Giovanine is the nicest guy you could ever meet, but get him coaching a basketball game and he can get pretty hot. I've always noticed working Augie games that his jacket tends to come off very quickly. It was on for most of the first half in the meeting in Rock Island, but that was a fluky game. Last night, Giovanine's jacket came off at the 14:01 mark of the first half, much to the delight of not only me, but some of ye fans who sit directly behind me.

Final Thoughts

I said going into the game that there was no way in hell the Cardinals would start the game 1-26 from the field again. That game in Rock Island was a credit to just how good Augustana is, but the Cardinals missed a ton of shots early that they normally make in that game. A similar thing happened last night from beyond the arc. A couple more hits makes this a different ballgame.

At the end of the day though, this game was all about the mental side and execution. The Cardinal offense was, to be blunt, very bad in terms of ball movement and shot clock management, and the lapses on defense to leave Hunter Hill wide open on back to back possessions late after he's already burned you multiple times is indefensible. Even so, the Cardinals hung with this Augie team to the bitter end. That has to count for something.

Big picture-wise, this game had far-reaching implications. The win by North Park, losses by Carthage and Wheaton, and 0-9 start in conference by Millikin means that the latter three teams have all been eliminated from CCIW Tournament contention. That leaves five teams fighting for four spots, with Augustana just needing one more win to lock up a berth in the tournament. The Cardinals are in a tie for second, but currently hold the head to head tiebreaker over Elmhurst, and North Park is two games back in fourth place with a one game lead on Illinois Wesleyan for the final spot. Effectively for North Central though, the Cardinals are two games back of Augustana with three to play because the head to head tiebreaker rests firmly with the Vikings. This means that the Cardinals probably only have one home game left this season, and the CCIW Tournament will not be held at Gregory Arena, which also lessens the chances of North Central hosting the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament.

This makes the final four games for North Central all the more crucial. It begins on Saturday with Senior Night against Illinois Wesleyan, who I'm sure is coming to Merner with revenge on their minds. The Cardinals can clinch a berth in the CCIW Tournament with a win though, and the schedule doesn't get any easier after Saturday, with three straight road games to close it out, including a trip to Elmhurst. Hopefully the Cardinals have short memories and can bounce back on Saturday.

Game Notes: (MBK) Augustana College @ North Central College (1/14/15)

Final Score
Augustana 75, NCC 64

Game Summary
The #9 Cardinals (13-2, 3-1) came out tough but got into early foul trouble. The top ranked Vikings (14-1, 4-0) played them close despite cold Cardinal shooting. Tied at 27, Augie made a run ignited by a Jawan Straughter dunk plus a foul and led by as many as ten before a late three made it 41-34 at the break. After scoring on their first possession to make it 41-36, the Vikings answered with a run and North Central completely lost their composure, with Charles Rosenberg picking up a technical after a jump ball, and Augie scored 14 unanswered to go up 55-36. Todd Raridon called for time, and the Cardinals fought back into the game, going on an 11-0 run of their own to make it interesting. The Cardinals would close the gap to five at 57-52, but Augie got an unconventional three point play and were able to clamp down and hang on for the win.

Key Stats

• Jack Burchett/Charles Rosenberg (NCC): 3-13 FG (0-1 3PT), 3-4 FT; 9 pts, 10 reb (2 off), 3 ast, 3 blk, 1 stl. The Cardinals largely need these guys to play well to have a chance at winning, and they didn't have it last night. Burchett went scoreless on five shots but led the team with six rebounds. Credit Augie's defense for clamping down and double teaming both guys when they tried to make a move in the post, but it was clearly an off night for both.
• Danielius Jurgutis (AUG): 6-8 FG (1-2 3PT), 5-5 FT; 18 pts, 2 reb (1 off). It was hard to pick one outstanding Viking. I was planning on going with Jawan Straughter, but he only had six points and five boards (but those six points were probably the biggest of the game). Jurgutis led the team in scoring, splitting his points evenly between halves and playing good defense.
• Jayme Moten (NCC): 8-15 FG (5-10 3PT), 1-2 FT; 22 pts, 5 reb (2 off), 4 ast. Jayme had a monster game, hitting that key triple before halftime to make it a single digit deficit, then all but singlehandedly answered the Augie run, catching fire from outside the arc and picking up a couple lay ups to boot. If the inside game ever struggles, we know he can take over if he has to.

Around the CCIW

• Carthage 70 (6-8, 2-2), @Elmhurst 68 (12-3, 2-2)
• @Wheaton 88 (8-7, 1-3), North Park 82 (9-6, 0-4)
• @Illinois Wesleyan 93 (11-4, 3-1), Millikin 60 (6-9, 1-3)

Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch
This is a special one-time (per season) feature with this game. If you've followed CCIW basketball for any decent stretch of time, you'll know that one of the most entertaining figures to watch is Augustana head coach Grey Giovanine. From what I understand, off the court he's the nicest guy ever, but on the court he is a maniac. The most fun thing to do is see when his suit jacket comes off. The official scorer and I figured it would be off by about two minutes into the game, but he seemed mellow at first. While he did yell more as the game went on, the jacket remained on to the point that I even texted Geoffrey Clark to tell him the shocking development. Eventually, we lucked out: the jacket came off with 4:52 left in the first half following one of the Cardinals drawing a charge.

Final Thoughts
I seem to harp on this sort of thing way more than I should with these games... but the officiating last night was absolutely horrendous. Probably more horrendous than it usually is when I complain. I probably could have made an entire blog post just on that. Multiple over the back fouls missed, a couple traveling calls missed during that Augie run in the second half, Cardinals getting called for fouls when Augie players are arm-barring them, an obvious backcourt violation call that was inexplicably overturned... you get the idea. It was awful. All of that said... that isn't why the Cardinals lost. They lost because their frontcourt couldn't score and got into foul trouble. They lost because they lost their composure during the Augie run. They lost because they got into early foul trouble and the Vikings made them pay at the free throw line. It's a tough loss, but that's why Augie is number one in the country.

It's a home double header on Saturday. The NCC women bounced back from their loss at Wheaton last weekend with a 95-82 win at Augustana last night, and face off against an Elmhurst team that is pretty good in both men's and women's basketball. The Cardinals will look to improve to 4-1 in conference and try to maintain their ranking in front of a raucous home crowd.