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01-09-2012, 11:34 PM
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#1 | ||
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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If a tree falls...A collaborative dynasty (FBCB)
BACKGROUND
 Northwest Central Illinois State University is located in the hamlet of Swanberg, Illinois near the border of Iowa and Illinois. The women's basketball program began there in 1970 and has been uncharacteristically successful for the tiny state university known largely for its agriculture programs and for creating the "most police offers per capita of any school in Illinois," according to its program literature. Despite this, the school has an unfortunate name and is looking to rebrand. You'll eventually help with this process this season. But what we're really here for is to talk women's basketball. Yes, women's basketball. Jay White (muns) has just taken over as the 9th head coach in the history of the program. One notable thing about the Governors (that's the mascot) women's basketball program is their coaches have gone on to do big things at other schools. Nearly half of the former head coaches are still head coaches are "more prestigious" programs. After three years at Rocky Mount State where they had an extremely unlikely run to the NCAA title three years ago, White left to become an assistant at Pac-12 program Washington for two years before finally get the reins of his own program. Most told him that NWCI is a good place to start your career. The program is well supported and the team dominates the Central West Athletic Association which doesn't have a bid to the NCAAs, but were able to qualify for the post-season the past few years without it. Well, after last season the CWAA and the East Coast Athletic Association agreed to merge (sans SIU-Edwardsville which joined the Horizon League) to form the Trans-Continental Conference, which will be a 16-team league of two divisions. It'll make the road to the NCAAs harder for NWCI to make the post-season, but that's the price of business. I will be taking over as recruiting coordinator for the Governors under Coach White, as Kim Harris where I will build a resume to eventually take over my own program. During each post-season, we'll do our own version of FOFC's Top Gun, where we pick our own tournament teams and try to outgun each other to pick the best players in the game who manage to go the furthest. Ideally, Coach White will get better gigs and so will I. Last edited by Young Drachma : 01-25-2012 at 11:56 AM. |
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01-20-2012, 11:50 AM
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#2 |
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Coordinator
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Maassluis, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
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!
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* 2005 Golden Scribe winner for best FOF Dynasty about IHOF's Maassluis Merchantmen * Former GM of GEFL's Houston Oilers and WOOF's Curacao Cocktail |
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01-20-2012, 11:56 AM
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#3 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Mays Landing, NJ USA
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DC is writing a dynasty about his period?
Probably won't end up on my must read list.  |
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01-20-2012, 04:32 PM
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Head Coach
Join Date: Dec 2009
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!@#$%
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01-20-2012, 04:44 PM
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Bounty Hunter
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
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Quote:
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No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor. |
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01-20-2012, 05:43 PM
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#6 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Las Vegas
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brilliant! Golden Scribe nominee.
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Xbox Live Gamertag: k0ruptr My Favorite Teams : Chicago White Sox - Carolina Panthers - Orlando Magic - Phoenix Suns - Anaheim Ducks - Hawaii Warriors - Oregon Ducks |
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01-23-2012, 11:54 PM
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#7 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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I just saw these replies. Well played, gentlemen. Now I'll ruin it with a real dynasty.
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Current dynasty: OOTP25 Blitz: RTS meets Moneyball | OOTP Mod: GM Excel Competitive Balance Tax/Revenue Sharing Calc | FBCB Mods on Github Last edited by Young Drachma : 01-24-2012 at 01:30 AM. |
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01-24-2012, 01:05 AM
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#8 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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The 1994-95 season was a real barn burner. The Final Four featured Oklahoma State, Vermont, UCLA and Cinderella club South Dakota State. The Jackrabbits were the most unlikely team. They came in as an #8 seed, Vermont was a #10 seed though they'd been to the Final Four two years earlier.
In the end, the Cowgirls claimed their 2nd straight title over UCLA. NWCI had a crazy run to the Elite 8. It's what propel the former coach Sherlyn Kerby-Philbin to leave after one year to take a new job at Ole Miss. Jay Wright takes over a program that has one bonafide star in one Allison Peach, a native of Manteno, Illinois who was a 1st team All-American in 1994 and was the driving engine to this team's success at the national level. Going into her senior year, the 6ft. 2-guard is hoping to get her team over the hump and will rely on her new coach to make it possible. The league HTML is going online now, so you can get a glimpse of how this league operates, our history (I've been simming since 1941) and we'll be on our way. Last edited by Young Drachma : 01-24-2012 at 01:39 AM. |
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01-24-2012, 01:45 AM
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#9 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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Northwest Central Illinois State is taking suggestions for a new name and identity. The Board of Trustees are requesting ideas from the public on how to rebrand itself in the future. Known primarily for agriculture, criminal justice and vocational education programs, NWCI is trying to position itself nationally especially as the success of its women's basketball looks to raise its national profile.
After this "listening period" a name will be decided upon by the trustees depending on the suggestions provided. Last edited by Young Drachma : 01-24-2012 at 01:45 AM. |
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01-24-2012, 06:13 PM
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#10 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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Just a short 2 months ago I was sitting in some rinky dink diner at 4:30am talking with my friend and coaching mentor Charlotte Pegram about how in the hell we lost to The Portland State Vikings 72-59 in the A2 Championship game (The A 2 is our version of the NIT). That was a long night filled with short conversations, more than my fair share of rum refills and long periods of silence. Charlotte and I had been through a lot together on the basketball court the past 6 seasons. She helped me grow from being just some stat geek who loved basketball to a real live in your face coach having a vast amount of fundamental basketball knowledge. That night it was my turn to try to help her, maybe ease her pain and I failed miserably...
Now I am on a plane from Washington to Illinois taking a big step and a huge leap of faith. I decided to leave my comfort zone at Washington to accept the Head Women’s basketball position at North West Central Illinois State University. (I know exactly what you are thinking....where the hell is that??? Come on you have to remember I just said I was taking a huge leap of faith here.) As I look out the plane window I can’t help but remember that night 2 months ago and I start to wonder am I going to fail miserably in this situation as well? I did my homework. I called the previous coaches who had the job before, spoke with other coaches who had a sense for what the conference was like, and how the team was. You know, the ‘how can I improve this place by being there type of thing’. Everybody that I had spoken to raved about how the community got behind the Women’s basketball program big time 3 years ago and the freight train was coming down the tracks this year. Everybody told me this was going to be NWCI’S year. From that stand point alone it seemed like an awesome job. On my two interviews, it was made very clear to me that this was a program that was going to soar on the back of Star Senior Allison Peach and this whoever took this job was going to have a winner. Now I don’t think I am a dummy, and half of my job as a coach is being a salesman so I hope I would be able to recognize when I am getting duped but this didn’t seem like it at all. The pitch was very compelling, honest and straightforth. I didn’t get the feeling that they were trying to sell me shoddy goods here. Allison in fact was a household name all around the nation, and everyone (including myself) wondered why she chose this little small town’s University when she could have gone anywhere she wanted. Who ever got offered this job could capitalize on the success of last years Elite 8 team’s exposure, have another good showing this year, recruiting would be on the upswing and someone could really build a program off of that. They had me sold real quick. Back on the plane I must have dozed off thinking about the past and knocked my briefcase off of my lap and papers were just everywhere. Thankfully one of the flight attendants had been so gracious and helped me pick up what felt like my life. As I was thanking her for all of her help she handed me the last batch of papers and on top were the applications for Assistants. I needed to start a staff and it needed to be done yesterday. In my 6 short years as an assistant you do get to know a ton of coaches, and depending on what conference you are blessed to be coaching in, some better than others. I had a mixed bag of friends in the coaching community since I had been at Rocky Mountain State for 3 years, and just spent the past 3 at Washington. The problem I was having was that none of the coaches that I wanted to bring with me would leave their current gig’s which in all honestly were a lot better than what I was trying to convince them to do with me. I had the University put out an ad on the NCAA news website 3 days ago, and was hopeful that somebody decent would apply. All the applicants that did apply so far were now in my lap again and as I looked over the one on top I couldn’t help but laugh. I hit the button to summon the flight attendant. If I was going to pick a staff to interview out of this bunch I was going to need a rum and coke, This plane trip was going to be a long long ride. Last edited by muns : 01-24-2012 at 06:53 PM. |
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01-24-2012, 08:20 PM
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#11 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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As we reached the middle point on the plane ride and my 3rd rum and coke I turned on my lap top to check my email. I logged into my newly created NWCI account and sifted through about 400 some odd emails. I had some fans sending me well wishes already, some HS coaches giving me their contact info and then I stumbled upon an email from a Kim Harris dated 3 days ago whos email subject line was "You are DUMB".
Seriously??? Couldnt the University afford a spam filter? There is no way I am going be dealing with this stuff all year. I need to remember to send an email to our IT department or hire some GA to screen my emails first. Kim Harris, Kim Harris, where does that name ring a bell from?? Oh well, DELETE....... I kept scrolling down and there was this name again, Kim Harris. Would you believe me if I told you that the email had the exact same subject line??? DELETE Then it happened 4 more times. The exact same subject line, from the exact same person, 3 consecutive days in a row. My interest was now peeked and I opened up the email dated for today. The body of the email said in big bold capital letters If you dont hire me. HA!! I couldn'tt believe it. Im dumb if I dont hire her? Or was it a him? It was coming back to me now, I did read a resume for a Kim Harris, thats where I had recognized the name from. I needed to see this resume again now. I fumbled around in my briefcase for a bit until I finally found it. I actually had already placed it in my maybe pile for Recruiting Coordinator, which by the way wasnt all that big. This person had spunk, and while the methods in which she/he got my attention are something I more than likely wouldnt have used, it clearly had worked. It got me to open up the email, and read the resume. If that worked on me, I wonder what this person could do with 18 year olds athletes????? Her resume looked better than I expected or remembered. She was 33, went to Vermont, played 4 years there and then spent another 2 being their Graduate Assistant. She wasnt sure if she wanted to get into coaching full time, so she tried being a high school coach. All she did there was win 100+ games and a few conference titles in her 5 years as Head Coach at Champlain Valley Union High School. The more I read the more and more intrigued I became. I also found out that her husband taught full time in the NWCI Psychology Department. Boy were those emails starting to make some sense now! My head started to spin and before I knew it I was thinking how I could use Kims influence on her husband to get my team prime tutors, get to know their faculty more, the works. The wheels were officially turning in my head. I could see something like this really working in my favor. I shot off an email to the athletic office manger that said I wanted this person in my office tomorrow for an interview. As long as this person could hold a conversation and not trip over their tongue in an interview I may have just found my first hire. All those thoughts of me failing were starting to vanish, and with one funny email (ok ok more like 6) I was starting to feel much better about my new Journey. All it takes in this sport is one possession, one play, one shot, one ball bouncing your way and your season turns. Maybe Kim Harris was my ball bouncing my way . The neat thing about this was, I hadn't even stepped on the court yet. |
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01-24-2012, 09:15 PM
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#12 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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The first time I met Jay White, I wasn't sure what to think. he seemed to know his stuff. He took copious notes and reminded me less of a basketball coach and more as a salesman that was trying to close a deal. Our interview consistent of three phases, each lasting several hours.
He wanted to know how committed I was, whether I was just going to do it for a year and leave him hanging or not. He seemed to appreciate the fact that I'd already been on campus for a year and had voluntarily helped the last coaching staff out during practices, so I know most of the girls. And yes, it does help that I can get them prime tutors for what everyone regards to as "the best team on the NWCI campus," is admittedly isn't saying a lot. But an Elite 8 run last year in the women's tournament, NWCI saw applications increase by 9%, a big deal for a small state university targeting students in specific majors. So now we're on a map, we're not sure if we're on the map, but for years we've been the best program in our conference and with the move to the new TransCon conference, but I've been doing my homework as a basketball stat head. He offered me the job the next day. I don't really know what to think about being a college coach, but I think being in this situation is that different from working with the kids in other instances. I like it, it's fun and I think that we fell into a good spot. I don't think about being a head coach, I just want to make these guys get it together. Last edited by Young Drachma : 01-24-2012 at 09:42 PM. |
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01-24-2012, 09:47 PM
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#13 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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With Kim signed on I conducted the next set of interviews for the other 2 coaching spots quickly with her right by my side.
She seems to have a knack that is hard to explain, and I like the fact that she is showing me the ropes around here. It's always tough walking into a new coaching situation and trying to get adjusted, especially when others might not want you around. We decided that our lead scout is going to be Nyla James. Nyla has a ton of experience (17 years as an assistant) at 4 other institutions and I think her experience is going to be a nice asset to both Kim and I. She has coached at Lipscomb, Stephen F. Austin, Texas-Arlington, and Florida Gulf-Coast. (Game wise her rating as a scout is 43). Our last addition to the coaching staff is Coaching Assistant Mary Williams. Mary was a nice find, and other than Kim was someone that I was surprised applied. She is above average when it comes to teaching kids defensive tendencies and I am more of a defensive guy myself, so we seemed to have hit it off. She has 16 years of experience at 5 different places including, Stephen F. Austin, Wichita State, Oral Roberts, Harvard and Cleveland State. (Game wise her ratings are 20 & 63) Overall I think I am happy with how these candidates turned out. I don't think we have the most talented staff, but it seems solid for my first go round. I think we have a nice balance of youth and experience and they all seem as eager as I am to get started. My only issue that I am sure I am going to have to deal with is the fact that all 3 of my assistants are women. I know that it is important to have at least one on the staff, but 3???? I think I might be asking for trouble here in this department and I hope that we can all survive what I am sure is going to be a wild ride this year. |
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01-24-2012, 10:03 PM
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#14 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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After getting the staff all together for bonding it was time to start talking turkey.
We had 2 open scholarships and it was currently right smack in the middle of the Transfer period. After some debate on if we should use both up, Kim and I decided it would be best to use 1, as we graduate 2 seniors this year. That 3rd unused scholarship will be used to recruit 3 new freshman and that will help to keep our roster balanced. We were working as a team beautifully. We hit the phones pretty hard and boy let me tell you, Kim just doesn't stop. I can already tell she might be the best thing I do here, and its just the first month on the job. She caught wind that a big time transfer wasn't happy in the Big East, did her homework on her and presented it to me with a big bow on it. I believe the quote was "Jay I set you up for this one, now its your turn to close this thing out and knock it down!!!" The kid she was talking about was the 84th ranked best player in the land last year as a Freshman. She was an All state 6'1 Sophomore from New Jersey named Alexis Friedman. This kid wasn't all that bright, but the coaches that talked to Kim all said she wasn't a behavior problem. She just didn't like Seton Hall anymore. As previously stated Kim did the homework, put the time in and in no time had Alexis wanting to talk with me about getting a scholarship. It was a no brainer, and we officially just signed our first kid to NWCIS! I think this might be my first project for Kim's husband and our tutoring program. Alexis is a beast on the post defensively (game rating wise 68 post D, 78 blocks). As long as she hits the books, she should have a nice impact on our team going forward. I couldn't be any happier with how my first few months have started to shape up here at NWCIS!!! Last edited by muns : 01-24-2012 at 10:04 PM. |
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01-24-2012, 10:16 PM
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#15 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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This year's OOC schedule starts with our annual Cornfield Classic which will feature Southern University, William & Mary and Yosemite University of California.
We wanted to balance out some competitiveness in the schedule with a chance to collect wins not knowing how the conference will look and realizing we don't want to waste our last year of Allison Peach playing in the A2 or something. What it results in, is a schedule featuring three teams in the Top 15 pre-season RPI, three ranked teams including UNLV, Notre Dame and defending Final Four team in South Dakota State (that was a game that was a carryover from the previous regime, fwiw) In early February, we'll play a Bracketbuster game on ESPN against Ivy-League upstart Darmouth. The result? A pre-season RPI of 18. A program that's went 87-12 over the past three years, the expectations couldn't be higher.  Code:
Last edited by Young Drachma : 01-25-2012 at 12:01 PM. |
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01-25-2012, 01:39 AM
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#16 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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Annawan, Illinois - The Swanberg City Observer has reported that NW Central Illinois State University is considering several names for both its new institutional moniker. "We've been talking about a variety of possibilities," said Associate Dean Patrice Lee.
A variety of names have been assembled during the fact-finding process, but among the preliminary favorites are names that give the school a larger profile. "We realize that people don't necessarily know where Northwest Central Illinois is," the name made sense when we were an up and coming school. But now? We feel like it's outgrown our profile. Some of the suggested names include Lincoln State, Illinois A&M, Deneen University (after former Illinois Governor, U.S. Senator and Congressman Charles S. Deneen), Charles H. Percy University after longtime U.S. Senator Charles Percy and a bevy of other names including keeping the current name have been proposed. The "listening session" will continue for another week before the committee decides on a list of finalists. "We want to make sure we pick a name that represents our institution as a proud, growing state university in Illinois without focusing too heavily on geography since our current name already does that," said Lee. |
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01-26-2012, 11:35 AM
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#17 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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So as we kick of the basketball season I am anxious to see what all these kids can do on the basketball court. Everybody has told me on the phone that they are just as excited as I am, but I'll wait to see that the first day I am allowed to be with them in the gym.
I already know Allison Peach is going to be an absolute monster (1st team All American Last Year), but everybody else I have just watched on tape. While you can get a gist of what a player can do on tape, you really don't get that true feeling until you see someone live and in person. I am also a tad bit worried about our experience level. While I'm sure Allison will be able to bail us out of bad situations with her play and come up huge being a leader we only really have 3 players that have made over 20 shots in games before and 6 total that have made at least 1 shot. That isn't exactly a big confidence boost going into the Preseason. As I look at our schedule I can't complain one bit. I think we have a balance of win able games, and then some games that are also going to both test us on the court, but test our will to win. We have some strong teams we are gong to face here. I hope we are up to the challenge. The last thing that is on my mind before we start to get these girls into shape is this new name thing the University is looking at. While I would love to stay focused on basketball, I understand the way politics affect sports, and in turn how sports affect politics, especially at a smaller school. I got to see that while I was under Charlotte Pegram at Rocky Mountain State and on a smaller scale while at Washington. I just know my team is going to get used somehow in this with appearances, and pictures, and speaking engagements.Heck how could the school not. I mean we do have if not the best player in the nation, but a player that is in the top 3. That's nice pub to use for a school wanting to change stuff and make a push nationally in some markets. I just hope that I am able to manage some of this and keep people focused on why they chose to come here, to win ball games, and to get a good education. Last edited by muns : 01-26-2012 at 11:43 AM. |
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01-26-2012, 01:08 PM
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#18 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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As the Preseason winds down and we are full blown getting ready for our first game against Southern I figured I should get into the team.
Really not sure how we are going to stack up. We have some wonderful guards, but we are young on the post. Should be an interesting combo. At the Center spot we are going to go with Kennedi Castleman, She is a 6'4 237 pound Junior who transfered here last year from T&M-CC. She has ok moves in the post offensively and has better handles than the rest of my post players, so she looks to be the best choice from that perspective. What I like the most about her is her hustle, and that she can body people up on Defense. I am unsure the most at how I am going to play everybody down there so she is gonna get first crack at it. At the Power Forward spot is going to be a 6-2 Freshman who was All State last year in Illinois. Claire Johnson is going to be an interesting match up for most teams in the future because her natural spot is Small Forward. Again Im not sure what to expect on the post from this team and while Claire doesnt yet posses all the skills I would like on the post, at the moment she is going to have to do. She will be much quicker and more athletic than other post players (which will help us press some) and thats what I am hoping will help us win some ball games. I do think her future is as a Small Forward though. At the Small Forward spot I am going with Junior Kailyn Salgado. Kaitlyn is the 2nd most athletic player we have on the team and also a returning starter that went to the Elite 8 last year. She averaged around 6 points, 3 boards and 2 assists last year from the same position. She can dish the ball with the best of them and has one of the better jumpers on our team. Im hoping for a break out year for her this season. As the Shooting Guard spot its an easy choice. First team All American and Senior Allison Peach will just do her thang at any point in time she wants to. Watching her preseason and in the drills all I need to do is roll the ball on the court and watch her do her magic. She almost average 30 a game last year and I see more of the same for her this year. She has the freedom to do whatever she wants whenever she wants on the court. She will get mins at every single position on the court and I hope to have plays in from each spot for her. I am not going to be the reason she doesnt go off this year, so the reigns are comnig off the pony so to speak. From the Point Guard position is Senior and returning starter Margot Fryer. Margot can do a little bit of everything and im hoping the team is going to rely on her a little bit more this year when Allison needs a rest here and there. She averaged around 9 points a game last season and 2 steals. With her and Allison on defnese, its going to be tough match up for anyone scoring wise. I love the we I think we are going to be able to match up with other guards and Margot is a big reason why. First off the bench will be Sophmore Guard Alexis Kirby. Other than Allison she has the best natural instinct as a PG and can get people the ball passing wise in spots thats just un canny. At 5-9 though I just couldnt start her and go with 3 guards due to my post situation. She should get a ton of mins and has a bright future ahead of herself here. 2nd off the bench is Freshman Guard Jaslene Gurney- She can do a bit of everything and looks nice as a freshman. She just needs to get more experience and his the weight room some more. 3rd off the bench is another Freshman Natalie Wingate- At 5'10 Natalie will be splitting time between the SF spot as well as both guard positions. She eventually is going to have a really nice jumper if she puts the time in. I like the fact that she is also pretty fiery on defense as well. 4th up and first post sub is the newest player and transfer Alexis Friedman. Im hoping she will live up to her 84th ranking coming out of high school 2 years ago. She is our best best post defender by far and im really hoping she adjusts to the new atmosphere and her new coaching staff. Being in rural Illinois is a bit different than being at Seton Hall. 5th up and the last player I am going to highlight is another Freshman. PF Madison Rice is another big body for us and at 6'3 I hope she develops. Madison is lacking some offensive skills, however she is strong and can handle the ball. She always is in the correct position on defense and that is somethign you just can't teach. I expect and hope that she gets a lot of mins and develops into an option on the post for us off the bench. |
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01-26-2012, 03:41 PM
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#19 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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PICK THE NEW MASCOT FOR NWCISU - Front Office Football Central
Please help us pick a new mascot for NWCI, even though the university is coming up with a new school name too. |
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01-27-2012, 01:09 PM
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#20 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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The first month of the season starts of with a total bang and I couldnt be any happier. Ok strike that, I coach for a living, of course I could be happier. Nobody in this business is ever happy unless you have won the last game played of the season.
The first game was against Southern which we won 75-53. Allison was the main attraction like she should be in just about every game we play this year and dropped 33 points in 36 mins. To almost score a point a game in women's basketball is just flat out amazing. Natalie Wingate chipped in 10 points off the bench as I was extremely happy with her effort in that game. I did however make my first mistake of the year after that game. I was so amped that as I spoke to the media I let a comment fly out of my mouth that ehhhhhh if I am being honest I shouldn't have. My SID barely spoke to mefor the rest of the week, but the fan base got more energized back home at that point. Chalk that one up to being a rookie head coach that wears his heart on his sleeve. I can't ever recall my mentor Charlotte ever doing something like that. I should have paid more attention to how she handled the media. I moved on pretty quicky after that and wanted to start to get us ready for our next game against Loyola of Illinois. In case you are wondering all I said was: "We shot 61% in that game and if we give efforts like that, we will be in the final four, you can take that to the NWCI bank!" The second game was much of the same. We totally crushed Loyola of Illinois 102-55. Allison was the player of the game but should have been the player of the month nationally after only 2 games. She went 17-22 from the floor to go along with 8 assists as she lead the charge with 37 points in 37 mins. I was also happy to see Kennedi Castleman grabbed 10 boards and score 9 points from our center position. I feel our post players are our weak spot and it was nice to see her get some confience after our 2nd game. I didnt make any boneheaded mistakes after that game even though we shot 65% from the floor. Our 3rd game had me worried going into it. It was going to be our first real test for our team as we played an Alabama team who was 3-1 on the year. It's one thing playing the first 2 teams we played, but it's a totally different ball game playing a big time school, with big time money, who can get their state's best players. We arent at that point yet, but I think if we keep winning we will get there, hopefully quickly. We ended up winning 79-48. Allison again was well Allison as she had 33 that game, but the real surprise was the way SF- Kailyn Salgado played. She had 14 points and was all over Alabama's Bria Eckerson. That in my mind was one of the reasons why we won that game and Kailyn is quickly becoming a kid that I want to try to feature more. I'm gonna ask coach Williams to work with her extra after practices to see if she is up for that challenge. Our next 2 games were agaisnt Grambling State and Wyoming. Both of those were also wins for us 64-49 and 98-69. Grambling really slowed the ball down against us which was a really smart coaching move. I think its going to be interesting to see if other coaches try to do that. It limits Allison's touches and instead of shooting 60%, if she has an off night (like she did) and she shoots 45% other teams will have a better shot at beating us. The next game was going to be the game that I put some pressure on our players and coaches. It was the big battle against UNLV who was 5-2 at that point and was projected to be a player nationally this season. I prob was a little harder on the staff that I needed to be that week, but I really wanted a victory, and I had them watch a ton of game tape. I wanted every little tendancy UNLV had. Nothing was going to catch me by surprise that game. I wanted it bad!!! We got off to a slow start that game and was up 5 at half. Very low scoring as neither team was hitting shots. Allison stepped up in the second half and basically told the world, this is my game and I determine the outcome. She ended up with 41 points on 17-23 shooting. Defensively that tape watching really helped. Only one UNLV kid was in double figures as we just put the clamps on them. We shot up #4 in the polls after that game and you couldnt wipe the smile off my face. We were really doing this. This coaching staff of wannabe's was winning games and was ranked 4th in the nation. Our kids were just working so hard and believing everything we had to tell them. I couldn't have wrote a better script to start the season and was on cloud 9. That is until I made my 2nd mistake of the season. |
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01-27-2012, 08:09 PM
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#21 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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We were riding high, and I mean really high. Practices were going great, Allison was getting huge time on sportscenter with all her jumpers, we were ranked 4th in the nation. Things really couldnt be going any better.
We jumped on the plane from UNLV to go back home and went straight to the Hotel we were staying at. We were due to play in State rival Illinois in a day. When we got to the hotel, I told everyone to get some sleep and that we would grab some dinner at 7 and have a shoot around at Illinois at 10:30. I went up to my room and just crashed . Come 7:00 we rounded up the troops and went to Olive Garden. Usually (due to budget) we would do an Old Country Buffett so that the kids could eat as much as they wanted and get actual food that they wanted to eat. This time was different, I splurged a little bit While there the coaching staff and I sat down and were just talking basketball in general and having a good time. It was wonderful to see everyone so happy, laughing and having fun. We were enjoying the moment and everyone was taking it in. After everyone was done stuffing their faces we jumped on the bus and took the ride to Illinois. The kids went into the locker room, found the training room and then started to stretch. The coaching staff and I just talked about how wonderful it would be to beat Illinois at their house, in front of what we all imagined would be a lot big time in state recruits. I could see it in Kims face, tomorrow was going to be a big day for NWCI, not only in terms of recruiting, but in terms of how the state now viewed our program. Everyone and their mother knew how good Allison was, but we needed to prove it wasnt just her. We were a team, a single unit, and not some funny car clown show that just had the best player in the nation to showcase. We went through the shoot around like I figured. It wasnt hard, we went over the game plan, and we got a ton of shooting in. It wasnt until after the Illinois game that I realized my mistake. Looking back on it now, it was easy to see why Illinois beat us 66-59. I let up Instead of pushing everyone and keeping everybody focused, I let everyone live in and enjoy the moment. In letting everyone do that I also let the program down. Thats a tough balance to have in the coaching profession especially with women, and I screwed it up pretty bad. Game wise they slowed the ball down and were knocking Allison around pretty good. She shot 5-15 and every team we play from here on out is going to watch that game. I basically handed over the blue print on how to beat us on a silver platter. Allison did have double double but it was hard to say she had a good game. She went for 20 and had 10 boards but we werent there. We were still back in the UNLV locker room celebrating. That game still burns thinking back on it, and for this next month of games, this feeling is all these kids are going to have burned into their heads. We are not going to feel like this again on my watch. |
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01-29-2012, 12:27 PM
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#22 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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Coach White said that he was tired of talking to the press after his faux pas in Illinois, but the past few months have been good at least from the perspective of our team as a mid-major.
We head into the February swoon ranked in the Top 25, but naturally our conference schedule keeps us out the real upper echelon. There are some rumors that along with our name change, that we'll be joining a new conference next year but I don't pay attention to that stuff, it's above my pay grade. Code:
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According to Bubble Watch (tm) we are slated for the tournament though, we still don't to take the foot off the gas. Our conference tournament is abnormally early -- it starts in mid-February -- which is good because it gives our girls a few weeks off from games before the start of the post-season, but that layoff could be bad if the simulated practices aren't giving them what they really need. No matter how many practice players we have, it's very different than playing in-game. Code:
RECRUITING We've recruited one player so far in Jaida Houk from nearby Moline. She's a 5'11" SF who was also pursed by Wisconsin and Creighton and we offered a scholarship first. She wanted to play close to home and we think she has the size to help us and the potentials to be a solid player through 4 years. With the impending loss of Allison Peach and our point guard Margot Fryer, we need to protect ourselves from the inevitable rebuilding year. So we're going to recruit transfers to fill those gaps in-between. We have at least 2 scholarships for that purpose, as we think we'll fare better in the transfer market than with freshman recruits who know of us, but are getting far more prestigious offers. Code:
Last edited by Young Drachma : 01-29-2012 at 12:37 PM. |
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01-29-2012, 12:48 PM
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#23 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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NW CENTRAL ILLINOIS STATE INVITED TO HORIZON LEAGUE FOR 1996-97 SEASON
 Indianapolis - The Horizon League announced today that its members voted to approve the application of Northwest Central Illinois State University to become its 12th member effective with the 1996-97 season. "We could not be happier to invite NWCI to join us. They have accomplished themselves as one of the finest emerging universities in the country and athletically, their commitment to success for all of their students is something we believe to be in tandem with the values of our membership," said Jerry Halsom, Commissioner of the Horizon League. NWCI, which plans to announce a new name on March 1st, will be joining after spending their D1 existence in the old Central West Athletic Association which merged with the East Coast AA this past year to become the new behemoth Trans-Continental Conference. The Governors are dominating their new league in trademark fashion again, but while NWCI officials said they appreciated their time with the group of schools, they believe they've got a bigger mission elsewhere. "We're no longer a sleepy school off interstate 80. We have a national and increasingly global footprint. Our students do agriculture research in Central Asia. Our faculty boasts Fulbright Scholars and our students win fellowships and go on to contribute in vital fields such as veterinary medicine, education and criminal justice. We believe this move is part of our effort to become a more globally recognized education brand and we're excited to join the Horizon League's membership," said L. Pamela Evans, President of NWCI. |
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02-01-2012, 04:28 PM
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#24 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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NWCI to become Cambridge University in Illinois in August 1996
 CAMBRIDGE, ILLINOIS - The community of Cambridge, Illinois, Henry County Chamber of Commerce and several other organizations formed an alliance to entice Northwest Central Illinois State University to expand its branch campus in the county seat of Cambridge, Illinois as its new flagship. Starting August 1st, the NWCISU will lessen the mouthful of its name and emerge as less unwieldly name and with the possibility of more prestige - Cambridge University in Illinois. The "in Illinois" part added to ensure that no one confuses a smaller, rural state affiliated university with a prestigious university in the UK. "We considered the name "Cambridge State" but didn't think anyone would know where that was and figured keeping the Illinois in our name was linking our name with our new one," said Mitchell Braxton, director of institutional branding and marketing. "Plus, keeping the CUI letters although in a different order are a kind of link too. We're proud to be NW Central Illinois State. We just found it hard to market in a modern athletic marketplace." "We though we had an asset here and we ought to grow it," said K. Barnes Mitchell, a member of the city's economic development council who was instrumental in the move. Under the plan, Cambridge University graduate programs, as well as official business will move to the new $80 million campus complex in downtown Cambridge, Illinois. Most other programs will remain at the current campus in unincorporated Swanberg. "It is our hope that by aligning the new name with our educational programs, we will increase the value of our degrees and advance the University's status in the eyes of the community." said Dr. Joseph E. Afdahl, President of Cambridge University. "Much of the world has changed since Cambridge was founded in 1968 and so has the mission of the College. This is a defining moment in Cambridge's history. We believe that change is how we grow, and Cambridge is actively growing and changing as an institution to better serve the state, our nation and the world." The athletic programs will actually begin carrying the Cambridge name this spring, said school officials hoping to capitalize on a likely post-season basketball appearance. Few on campus were sad to see the old name go. "It was always really hard to explain where Northwest Central Illinois was. The new name is way better," said Linda Sackell, a second-year student majoring in elementary education from Muncie, Indiana. This change is just one in a series of changes for the upstart institution. They announced late last year a move to the Horizon League starting next season for all sports. Cambridge will also be unveiling a new athletic look for this upcoming season, but those plans are being kept under wraps until this off-season. "So it'll be fitting that we spend the whole year as the Governors, but come back next year with a new nickname and sporting the entire look of Cambridge U," said women's basketball head coach Jay White. "We're excited, the girls are excited for the new name and we're even prouder to take the flag of CUI with us into battle this post-season." |
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02-02-2012, 01:54 AM
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#25 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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Here's the Bubble Watch as of February 7, 1996:
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Our last three regular season games prior to the conference tournament were a mixed bag: Code:
I though we'd be able to get past Dartmouth, but not only did we lose to them in a Bracketbusters game on national television, but dropped a game two days later to conference-rival Patrick Leahy College in Vermont. We finished off South Hill to go 13-2 in TransCon play and now have to get pumped for the task of winning the conference tourney title to assure ourselves of an A1 tourney bid. Wondering how we stack up nationally? Try the #1 scoring team in the nation. Code:
We can say that our offense is largely attributed to Allison Peach and when she goes, it will be a sad day for us. It'll be interesting to see how far she can take us going forward. Code:
Speaking of Allison Peach, she's the #1 scorer in the nation and is a projected Top 5 pick in the WNBA draft. Code:
Last edited by Young Drachma : 02-02-2012 at 01:56 AM. |
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02-02-2012, 02:05 AM
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#26 | |
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Join Date: Apr 2001
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The TransCon conference tournament features just the Top 8 teams from the 16-team conference, so it's not a marathon.
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In the semis, we'll take on Healy while Patrick Leahy takes on Bantam the other game. Cambridge 90, Healy 66 Patrick Leahy 68, Bantam 47 So we'll face off the team that beat us last week for the auto-bid of the new TransCon. A PLC win would really alter the dynamics of the post-season picture because all accounts have the Governors of Cambridge as a lock for the tourney and a TransCon champ not named Cambridge nee NWCISU would take someone's opportunity away. So it's a big game. Code:
Allison Peach logged a double-double as the Governors became the first team in the nation to punch a ticket to the Big Dance with a 76-65 win over the Beavers of Patrick Leahy. It's a huge win for the Cambridge program and ensures that the whole nation will for at least a while be told of the new name of the program as the world watches. How far can we go? I can't say...but at least we'll get a chance to participate. Last edited by Young Drachma : 02-02-2012 at 02:08 AM. |
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02-02-2012, 10:19 PM
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#27 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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So it's now A1 tournament time. We have made it, as a #6 seed in the West region.
Here's the West bracket: 1 Cal v. 16 Southern 8 Duke v. 9 UAB 4 Iowa State v. 13 Charleston State 5 Northwestern v. 12 Fresno State 2 Drexel v. 15 Ohio 7 Stanford v. 10 Villanova 3 LSU v. 14 Austin Peay 6 Cambridge v. 11a Yellowstone/11b VCU The other top seeds are: Midwest: Notre Dame East: North Carolina South: Tennessee Last year's Final Four teams were Vermont, South Dakota State, Oklahoma State and UCLA. SDSU returns to this year's tournament as the 9th seed in the Midwest, but the real shocker here is the fact that for the first time since 1958, the Oklahoma State Cowgirls won't be in the A1 tournament. It's astounding, but the school had been feasting for years on recruits from the west but didn't get anyone this year to help keep the juggernaut going. Vermont missed out this year too, finishing 14-17 overall and tied for 2nd in the America East. Meanwhile, defending national finalist UCLA is the #2 seed in the South region. It's hard to say where we'll end up in this event. I think we should be able to last through the Round of 32, but LSU will be a tough haul for us to overcome and so, this might not be the year for us to go into overdrive and fluke our way into the tournament. But given it's the end of Allison Peach's career, it'd be great if we could make a run. I hope Coach White cooks up something tasty for us going into the Big Dance. ----------- The next thing we'll do is pick our six top gun players from tourney teams. The game will be played like the FOFC game, where you get the same # of the points for each round your player plays in and the person with the most points wins. One of the players has to be from a seed ranked ten or lower. Last edited by Young Drachma : 02-03-2012 at 07:18 PM. |
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02-03-2012, 06:33 PM
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#28 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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The HTML is updated. Also, if you have a hankering to be a future recruit, we'd be happy to have you. This dynasty has been one where even before I made it a collaborative deal, I've been inserting players into the game who are far and away better than the talent in-game. So if you stop in and want to see yourself immoralized as a future women's star hoopster recruit, be sure to let us know.
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02-04-2012, 11:12 AM
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#29 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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Wow has this year been once heck of a fun ride, not only for the kids but for the coaching staff and our University Community.
Lets recap: 1. They hired me on a gutsy call (being a big named assistant is only half the battle) 2. I in turn hired Kim and the rest of the rag tage coaching staff 3. We achieved the highest ranking in University History #4 in the nation 4. We changed the University name 5. We have changed Conferences (again) 6. We won the First Trans Continental Conference Title in the leagues history It's already been a banner of a year and we aren't even close to being finished yet. I'm also expecting Senior Allison Peach to win Player of the Conference, and also be named National Player of the year. Hopefully that will be the cherry on top as I am hopeful we can make a deep tourney run. Speaking of the tourney the pressure is on, and I think we are all feeling it. I don't think it would be this bad around here if last years team didn't make an Elite Eight run. The campus is buzzing, I have some 600+ phone calls on my cell and University phone, Kim is getting non stop calls about kids wanting to come down and visit already for next year. The interviews, the pep rallies, all the Alumni just strolling around here beaming with pride. If I'm being honest it makes me want to take a huge gulp, but the problem is my mouth is so damn dry I can't. We haven't exactly had the best practices since winning the league title, and I think in part its because the kids all know the deal and are tense. Once we get out to our site, I think they will settle in and we can get this show on the road. Once again having Allison being the leader and basically team mom is a huge help and comfort to the other kids. I think its hilarious that everyone calls her "grandma", but she takes it in stride and wears it like a badge of honor. With 10 freshman and sophomores on the team that influence and leadership is just a god send. In looking at the bracket, I want to play Yellowstone just because I think its a better match up for us, and they start some young kids. I am hoping the moment is going to be way to big for them right off the bat and that just being on the same floor as Allison Peach makes em all scared. You would be amazed how women even as athletes and competitors get scared or intimidated. Allison always gives us a little edge in that department even against the best of teams. I don't like the fact that if we win our first game that LSU is sitting right there. They are a tough team defensively and if they follow the blue print to beat us this year, I honestly think it will be a real tough game for us. I would never admit that to anyone but that game makes me nervous, IF we even get that far. Fingers are crossed, prayers went up, pep rallies have been had, The University President has wished us all well..... Now in Allison we trust Last edited by muns : 02-04-2012 at 11:15 AM. |
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02-04-2012, 12:10 PM
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#30 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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FIRST ROUND: 6 CAMBRIDGE V. 11 VCU
VCU beat Yellowstone 54-47 and so, we'll take on the 11th seed Rams who went 22-11 this year in the CAA. Their leading scoring is senior guard Sophia Garrick who put up 14.1 PPG, their point guard Jana Andino and PF Natalia Hurst also chip in double digit points. Whereas our offense runs through Allison Peach. We'll need everyone to contribute if we're going to knock these guys off.
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Here's the other action in the West Region ------- 1 Cal def. Southern 83-66 8 Duke def. UAB 75-59 13 Charleston State def. Iowa State 73-70 5 Northwestern def. Fresno State 74-70 2 Drexel def. Ohio 78-75 7 Stanford def. Villanova 51-49 3 LSU def. Austin Peay 58-46 As far as upsets in other regions: 10 Tulsa knocked off 7 Towson 56-43 in the Midwest region 9 South Dakota State beat 8 Southern Wyoming 77-69 in that region too, but we know SDSU are a defending Final Four team. So this wasn't really an upset. 12 Princeton knocked off 5 NC State in the South region 63-49 11 St. Peters beat 6 Mississippi State 59-58 in the South region to advance 10 Old Dominion beat 7 Hawaii 57-56 on a buzzer beater as well. In the east region, chalk ruled the day except when 12 Morgan State got past 5 Yosemite 55-42 in their 1st round game. |
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02-04-2012, 12:54 PM
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#31 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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(3) LSU v. (6) CAMBRIDGE
You would think LSU would be a powerhouse in our world, but they're actually not. In all of the years we've been doing this, the Tigers have advanced to the Final Four just once. This was one of the years they thought they might have a shot, after going 24-8 in the regular season, reeling off 18 of 20 at one point during the year.
They're led by the threesome of Avery Patch, Abby Schall and Allison Thompson who account for nearly 35 PPG for the squad. They rebound well, distribute the ball effectively and are well coached to boot, their HC Alayaah Stumpf has nearly 700 career wins. Still, the Governors are the top scoring team in the nation, LSU gives up over 58 points per game and that might be the one advantage would could exploit to take them out. Code:
Allison Peach was on fire and simply could not be stopped, almost outscoring LSU by herself, helping advance the Governors to the Sweet 16 for the second straight year. In other action throughout the West Region: 1 seed Cal knocked off Duke 90-79 5 seed Northwestern ended Cinderella Charleston State's season 64-61 2 seed Drexel continued their push towards a return trip to the Elite 8 with a 63-48 drubbing of Stanford. In upset news: 12 Princeton continued their run, beating Georgetown 60-47 to punch their ticket to the Sweet 16 for the first time in school history. 12 Morgan State did the same thing after a triumph over 4 Washington 79-73, the Lady Bears will take on UNC for a shot at the Elite 8. |
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02-04-2012, 01:29 PM
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#32 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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SWEET 16: (2) Drexel v. (6) Cambridge
So here in this game we have two teams that were in the Elite 8 last year, but this year only one will get to make a return trip.
Drexel had a hell of a year. They went 30-5 in the CAA and are led by the two-headed monster of point guard Alani Wight and Emma Noon, who combined for 30 PPG and have been lights out in this tournament this far. We'll need to keep scoring (big surprise) if we want to advance, meaning Allison will need to basically play outside of her head again if we want a realistic shot. Code:
Allison Peach came up big, what I didn't anticipate is that fellow senior Margot Fryer would join her in the assault on the Dragons of Drexel to take the Governors back once again to the doorstep of the Final Four. |
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02-04-2012, 02:19 PM
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#33 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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Meanwhile, over in the A2 tournament, South Carolina beat Iona 54-46 to claim the title. Houston Baptist and Toledo were the other two teams that made the A2 Final Four.
In the A1 Elite 8, here are the regional finals for each region: West: 1 California v. 8 Cambridge Midwest: 1 Notre Dame v. 2 USC South: 1 Tennessee v. 2 UCLA East: 12 Morgan State v. 3 UConn Yes, that's not a typo. Morgan State beat UNC by 10 points to advance to the Elite 8 and to keep their Cinderella run going. The Lady Bears are led by the duo of Madelyn Beamer and Jabrielle Fuhrman and guard Tianna Vo is also pitching in big this post-season. They're all juniors, but I have no idea if they could ever replicate a performance like this ever again. This is our version of George Mason, because even back when Rocky Mount State won the national title -- that team had bonafide stars who just happened to play for them -- this is nothing like that. |
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02-04-2012, 02:28 PM
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#34 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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ELITE 8 RESULTS
Morgan State 66, UConn 63 UCLA 60, Tennessee 46 Notre Dame 63, USC 47 Cal is led by Lilly Bennett and they live and die by her talent. But with the emergence of our 1-2 punch of Margot Fryer and Allison Peach, we're a lot more confident than we were in our ability to close games. Code:
It was a blowout victory, after a 15-point halftime lead. Our duo were unstoppable and with that, we punch our first-ever ticket to the Final Four. Our story is somewhat overshadowed by the insanity of Morgan State advancing past UConn. Madelyn Beamer had 19 points, Jabrielle Furhman scored 14 and Tianna Vo put up 10 in their victory over the Huskies. Cinderella isn't quite ready to go home yet. |
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02-04-2012, 02:39 PM
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#35 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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Besides our obvious 1st time participants in the Final Four (Morgan State, Cambridge) we've got two other teams that have prestigious names but not the sort of pedigree in the women's game of our universe as you'd expect.
This is Notre Dame's first Final Four appearance since 1971. The program has won three previous titles, the last coming in 1969. Meanwhile, we are in the best days of the UCLA's women's program's history. They lost in last year's national title game to Oklahoma State and lost in the Elite 8 the year before that (1993) but prior to this run, their last Final Four came in 1975, which was a program first. In the semi-finals, we'll have South region champ UCLA taking on West region champ Cambridge. In the other national semi-final, Notre Dame out of the Midwest will take on East region upstart 12th seeded Morgan State. Both teams face long odds to advance, but with how they're playing anything is possible right now. I don't have the history to support this, since the game doesn't record it but I'm almost certain no seed this low has ever advanced this far. It's astounding. I noticed them when I was doing my top-gun roster for this season, noticing they had some horses that might be able to take them far. I didn't expect, however, that they'd get THIS far along. |
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02-04-2012, 02:50 PM
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#36 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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In the first national semi-final, Morgan State was up 37-31 at halftime. They didn't let up and have done the absolute unthinkable. Notre Dame went 17-1 during the regular season in the Big East. Lost 4 games all year to teams far better than Morgan State's competition at 27-10. But it seems the Lady Bears got hot at the right time.
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Finley Cheney averages 5.2 PPG this season as a senior and Mary Church who scored 10 points in 18 minutes as a reserve. This is a team effort that's just without parallel. Meanwhile, in our game: Code:
I don't really know what to tell you other than UCLA couldn't hang with the Governors. The halftime score was 40-17. UCLA came out flat and we were anything but. It sets up the most unlikely championship game in the history of this league. There simply isn't a real parallel to this kind of game at any other point. Other mid-major teams to win national titles include: 1990: Temple (25-12) def. Wyoming 1992: Rocky Mount State (37-0) def. Vermont 1991: Wyoming (38-1) def. Rocky Mount State 1982: Xavier (22-13) def. Cal Other mid-majors in the championship game: Vermont (1987, lost to UConn) Columbia (1977, lost to Villanova) Western Michigan (1961, lost to Duke) Pepperdine (1946, lost to Virginia) So there's your list. 11 teams since 1941 in nearly sixty years of play. Except this year where two teams with a combined seed of 18 will play for the title. There's no parallel. No comparison and while it's an awesome story it's not I arranged or aided. I'm as flabbergasted as you are non-existent reader. And I don't know how the Governors will fare against the juggernaut club from Morgan State. Rocky Mount State played in the MEAC when they won their national title, so this won't be the first HBCU or first MEAC team to claim a title should Morgan State manage to win. This would be a huge boost for the Trans-Continental Conference if Cambridge was staying, but the Horizon League has to be excited to be scoring such a big haul in the form of a national title finalist. |
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02-04-2012, 02:55 PM
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#37 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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1996 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
CAMBRIDGE v. MORGAN STATE In what's likely to be one of the least watched games in recent memory, these two teams will duke it out in a battle of Cinderellas. One has to think we have a lethal weapon in Allison Peach that Morgan State will find it hard to compete with. Code:
The difference in this game was turnovers. Morgan State hadn't been turning the ball over all postseason and did 19 times in this game. Their scorers that bailed them out of the semi-finals against Notre Dame could do no such thing against the Governors. Couple that with 5 of 21 from the 3 point arc and it spelled doomsday for the Lady Bears. I'm not exactly sure how to quantify this successful season. It was an Elite 8 team, so I think knowing that we had a sparkplug to take us all of the way had to be on the forefront of our minds, but this is like Butler if the shot win in. VCU if their run had never ended in real life. We're not sure what the future will hold for the new Cambridge University in Illinois program that started the year with an unwieldy name in a location that no one could quite pinpoint. We're one thing now that matters at all - National Champions and no matter what happens, no one will ever take that away from us. |
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02-04-2012, 02:57 PM
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#38 |
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Dark Cloud
Join Date: Apr 2001
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Here are the national awards. The snub of Jay White cannot be overstated!
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Last edited by Young Drachma : 02-04-2012 at 02:58 PM. |
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02-06-2012, 08:59 PM
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#39 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Baltimore MD
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National Champs
National Champions National Freaking Champions It doesn't matter how many times I say it, the way that I say it, or how I've been called it. I am no where near getting used to the feeling, and I get the chills thinking about it. It's hard to imagine that our toughest test of the Tourament was our first round game with VCU. We just had no answer for Sophia Garrick and her 41 points that night. It didn't matter what we did, she just ripped apart every defense I through out there. I did't like the fact that Allison only took 10 shots, but she was running ragged on defense trying to keep up with Garrick. The coaching staff and I talked about taking her off of her so she could rest on defense, but we thought if she was dropping that on Allison what the heck would she do to anyone else. Anyways that was a bad game for us on offense, but we pulled through. Next up was LSU After our first round game I think the kids realized this was no joke and we werent playing teams that had no shot at beating us anymore. Heck a 11 seed took their best shot at us and came darn near close to sending us home. Practices became more crisp, but they also became much shorter. At the end of the season if your kids dont know it, they arent going to pick it up, and its best to just go ahead with what you got and save legs. I picked that up from my mentor and have always stood by that. It's a shame to see some of the kids on other programs loose their legs at the end of the season because the coach doesnt believe in pulling up any. There is a difference between getting over everything you need to cover and having 2-3 hour practices every session. With us, if we spent more than an hour at practice going hard, Kim needed to grab me (and she did). Nobody on our team was going to be tired. We were going to have fresh legs. In the LSU game I was happy that our Center Kennidi Castleman played a nice game. She has progressed during the season into a player ive trusted more and she has rewarded us with her play. LSU had a hard time keeping her off the boards. Giving us another posession is always a dangerous thing and we took full advantage of just that. Besides the feeling after the National Championship game I was prob most proud of our kids durning the Sweet 16 game against Drexel. We had a ton of foul trouble and we had to use our bench a bit more than I like to do, but our kids once again stepped up and took on the challenge. Natalie Wingate came up huge that game on 18 mins and scored us 10 points. After the game looking at the kids faces was just priceless. It was a total team effort that game, and for these 10 Freshman and Sophmores, thats an awesome feeling to have at that moment in the tourament. The Elite 8 was a moment where I thought our legs just put us over the top. We dropped 100 on CALI the #1 seed in our side of the bracket and they didnt know what to do, we just ran all over em with our guards, and as Coach Kim said earlier Margot Fryer was in full swing of a stretch of games that she playing on another level. We all knew Allison was capable of going off for 40 every night but nobody (including us) was thinking she would have a stretch of 63 points in 3 games. She put her head down and told the other teams, "feel free to key on Allison, Ill take over that stretch of the game". It was beautiful to watch. UCLA was up next and they couldnt keep up with our guards either. Beating them by 39 had me really worried that the team would lose focus and start to think nobody could beat them. Going into the championship game thats not exactly the kid of feeling any coach would want to have. On the flip side of that our confidence was just overflowing. I had kids that don't play thinking they could score 25 if I put them in the game. It was fun to see in practice. Our coaching staff was funny to be around. None of us wanted to really talk about what was happening to our team because none of us wanted to be the reason we started to fall apart. Our conversations werent really conversations. They were more like 2 liners as we walked by one another on the court, in practice, or at the dinner table. We tried to keep the talk light and on everything but basketball. This is also the time that started to get frustrating to me. Doing media sessions after every practice, and then the interviews was fine, but some of the questions you would get asked were from left field and I was constantly on my toes. Did Allison and I have an icy relationship, Did Kim have more pull in the locker room, was I leaving after the season was over to take another job. What people don't understand is that you never see the underbelly of basketball. You just see what you want to see or hear what you want to hear. "No Allison and I have a great relationship. No Ice there". "The girls are like daughters to me. Of course Kim had more pull in the lockeroom. What player doesnt like the first assistant more?? Its like being the back up QB in the NFL." On top of that she was the head woman, and they counted on her for the stuff that frankly I didn't want to deal with or flat out couldnt. What the heck kind of question was the last one? "I am in the middle of a championship run and someone is going to ask me about another job?" "NEXT" That part of the game got old real quick. In the Title game, I honestly couldn't figure out what the heck Morgan States coach was doing. I don't mention the name because she wasn't too happy with my post game comments but it is what it is. She let her starting Point Guard foul out in only 8 mins of game time. She took some gambles that didnt need to be taken and we just took advantage of that. I mean Allison is a mis match for anyone, and then you have a back up playing the rest of the game. A middle school coach could create match up problems with that. Allison went off for 31 on 11-19 shooting. We didn't do anything but take advantge of some dumb coaching mistakes that game. Morgan State was on a tear to get there too. A 12 seed making the title game is just fantastic and you can't take anything away from them at all. We were the National Champs. We were the team to watch that night. We were the best team in the Country, and boy was it a fun ride! The day after we all celebrated our butts off (I swear Captain Morgan needs to sponser me now), the plane ride home was more than interesting. I had a ton of voicemails but a few I wasn't expecting. That underbelly of basketball that I was talking about earlier was showing me a side I had yet to experience and I had no clue how I was going to handle it |
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