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  • GNAC play this week...

    At the risk of talking to myself... The week yielded some interesting results and due to weather in Vancouver, the games will continue with a make-up game for WOU @ Simon Fraser on Martin Luther Kind day tomorrow.

    Probably the most surprising result was Thursday's with CWU throttling UAA, followed closely by the fact that UAA lost on Saturday too. I'm not counting UAA out by any means; any team can have an off week, have some rough luck, etc, but the only thing I could really pin down when watching a bit of the NNU game with UAA was the lack of zeal with UAA; not sure if they all have a cold or it was just an off weekend, but usually Rusty's passion is transferred to his players to a certain degree. I'm sure NNU is feeling better after back to back wins at home this week; I thought they looked legit against both Alaska schools, so perhaps it has just taken them a bit to get organized.

    In other games, it looks like the Wolves lost in OT again to Tsull's favorite team to hate. Remember, they get a second chance against everyone Tsull. I reckon WOU is still very talented, adjusting to a new coach and will be looking for payback against the Alaska schools, SPU, and WWU in the 2nd half of play. Looks like MSUB had a good week winning by a surprisingly big margin against SMU and playing SPU respectably well. And I'm sure Sparling had to feel good about getting a win in Ellensburg with over 1000 people in attendance. UAF will now face their other two rivals this week in UAA on Tuesday and MSUB on Saturday. I'm fortunate enough to have stuff going on in Anchorage this week, so will probably visit UAA's palace on Tuesday night to see the game. Very curious to see how UAA responds and how MSUB plays this week. Although the rivalry with Durham for UAF may be fading with only 2 Durham recruits left on UAF's team, I have no doubt that Durham would love to beat Rusty; things got volatile between those two in Durham's last year at UAF.

    The big games this week seems to be Alaska schools on Tuesday, WOU @ SFU tomorrow and then WWU @SPU on Thursday, NNU @ WOU on Thursday and the Alaska's at MSUB.

  • #2
    Originally posted by northernGNAChoopfan View Post
    At the risk of talking to myself... The week yielded some interesting results and due to weather in Vancouver, the games will continue with a make-up game for WOU @ Simon Fraser on Martin Luther Kind day tomorrow.

    Probably the most surprising result was Thursday's with CWU throttling UAA, followed closely by the fact that UAA lost on Saturday too. I'm not counting UAA out by any means; any team can have an off week, have some rough luck, etc, but the only thing I could really pin down when watching a bit of the NNU game with UAA was the lack of zeal with UAA; not sure if they all have a cold or it was just an off weekend, but usually Rusty's passion is transferred to his players to a certain degree. I'm sure NNU is feeling better after back to back wins at home this week; I thought they looked legit against both Alaska schools, so perhaps it has just taken them a bit to get organized.

    In other games, it looks like the Wolves lost in OT again to Tsull's favorite team to hate. Remember, they get a second chance against everyone Tsull. I reckon WOU is still very talented, adjusting to a new coach and will be looking for payback against the Alaska schools, SPU, and WWU in the 2nd half of play. Looks like MSUB had a good week winning by a surprisingly big margin against SMU and playing SPU respectably well. And I'm sure Sparling had to feel good about getting a win in Ellensburg with over 1000 people in attendance. UAF will now face their other two rivals this week in UAA on Tuesday and MSUB on Saturday. I'm fortunate enough to have stuff going on in Anchorage this week, so will probably visit UAA's palace on Tuesday night to see the game. Very curious to see how UAA responds and how MSUB plays this week. Although the rivalry with Durham for UAF may be fading with only 2 Durham recruits left on UAF's team, I have no doubt that Durham would love to beat Rusty; things got volatile between those two in Durham's last year at UAF.

    The big games this week seems to be Alaska schools on Tuesday, WOU @ SFU tomorrow and then WWU @SPU on Thursday, NNU @ WOU on Thursday and the Alaska's at MSUB.
    Certainly some interesting scores. I should've gone to the NNU-UAA game last night, had some other plans, really didn't expect that outcome. Bezant went off as did backup Alley, who had a great week.

    The other surprise for me was Alaska winning at CWU (as you noted, an impressive 1K in the stands) with Shabazz going for 30 (!) while only hitting 1 of 8 from 3-point land. He certainly is making a case for GNAC player of the year.

    To WOU -- third OT loss this year, second close loss after the SPU loss. Really disappointing to lose at WWU, though I'll give them credit for rallying from 16 down and hitting a buzzer beater to send it into OT. Coach Pifer has said their goal every game is to hold a team under 40% shooting -- the last few games teams (including St. Martin's) have shot over 50%, that needs to be rectified or they won't win much this year. Physical talent only carries a team so far, eventually you have to play defense, right? Monday's game at SFU will be interesting, I just hope they play a little defense, though I'm not expecting it.

    It appears already that this is SPU's league title to lose, they're good.

    Comment


    • #3
      19 3-pointers and 24/27 from the line. Wow UAA crushed it. As for UAF, Shabazz is having a great year, but is it like Mark McLaughlin all over again? Too much of him and not enough of a team effort?

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      • #4

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        • #5
          All good take-aways from the UAF-UAA game. In an effort to on infrequent years say something positive about UAA, I'll say I enjoyed a blackbean burger and an IPA at the game last night and they weren't too bad. UAF continues to have moments of potential and promise, but there really wasn't too much they could've done if they couldn't keep up at the 3 point line. The only other statistically significant difference was the boards, which showed. I suspect the game in Fairbanks will be closer. With regard to the palace, how do they count 900 people there? That place is so empty with 900 there; building such a large facility was a real mistake, because the atmosphere is really pretty mundane with 900 there. I do not think UAA will get themselves a first round bye in the GNAC tourney, nor do I think they have it in them to win three nights in a row to get to regionals. As far as historic UAA teams, this team has a pretty pedestrian feel (other than Pantovic, who seems to be doing well adjusting to American standards of keeping his elbows down and not using them as an offensive weapon (most of the time).

          I hear you on the Shabazz/McLaughlin comparison CWU... Sometimes he does too much, sometimes not too much. It'll be interesting to see how they develop over the season and into next year too. They certainly will be more dangerous if some other guys can be more threatening more often.

          Refs were lame last night, not letting a heavy breath go without a whistle, for both sides, but it certainly hurt UAF more than UAA.

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by CWU Wildcat Nation View Post
            19 3-pointers and 24/27 from the line. Wow UAA crushed it. As for UAF, Shabazz is having a great year, but is it like Mark McLaughlin all over again? Too much of him and not enough of a team effort?
            I kind of miss interior play in the GNAC. WOU had to rally past SFU last Monday after trailing by 16. They did it by jacking and making 3's. When WOU defends the 3 ball, they often win. Of late, they haven't defended it well. WOU gets hot from outside, they win. I know that's today's game and if you go to any GNAC contest, you'll see a lot of jacking of 3's. Most D2 guys are really good 3-point shooters, often better than d-1 guys because they had to rely on shooting as opposed to jumping over opponents to be good at the game. But I certainly do miss the days of solid interior post play. The GNAC has evolved into a jack-it-up-3 conference, and not much else.

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            • #7
              Originally posted by northernGNAChoopfan View Post
              All good take-aways from the UAF-UAA game. In an effort to on infrequent years say something positive about UAA, I'll say I enjoyed a blackbean burger and an IPA at the game last night and they weren't too bad. UAF continues to have moments of potential and promise, but there really wasn't too much they could've done if they couldn't keep up at the 3 point line. The only other statistically significant difference was the boards, which showed. I suspect the game in Fairbanks will be closer. With regard to the palace, how do they count 900 people there? That place is so empty with 900 there; building such a large facility was a real mistake, because the atmosphere is really pretty mundane with 900 there. I do not think UAA will get themselves a first round bye in the GNAC tourney, nor do I think they have it in them to win three nights in a row to get to regionals. As far as historic UAA teams, this team has a pretty pedestrian feel (other than Pantovic, who seems to be doing well adjusting to American standards of keeping his elbows down and not using them as an offensive weapon (most of the time).

              I hear you on the Shabazz/McLaughlin comparison CWU... Sometimes he does too much, sometimes not too much. It'll be interesting to see how they develop over the season and into next year too. They certainly will be more dangerous if some other guys can be more threatening more often.

              Refs were lame last night, not letting a heavy breath go without a whistle, for both sides, but it certainly hurt UAF more than UAA.

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by tsull View Post

                I kind of miss interior play in the GNAC. WOU had to rally past SFU last Monday after trailing by 16. They did it by jacking and making 3's. When WOU defends the 3 ball, they often win. Of late, they haven't defended it well. WOU gets hot from outside, they win. I know that's today's game and if you go to any GNAC contest, you'll see a lot of jacking of 3's. Most D2 guys are really good 3-point shooters, often better than d-1 guys because they had to rely on shooting as opposed to jumping over opponents to be good at the game. But I certainly do miss the days of solid interior post play. The GNAC has evolved into a jack-it-up-3 conference, and not much else.
                I miss post play too! I just find it much more complex and interesting than three pointers raining or bricking.

                As for being referenced to as a salty Fairbanksan... I'll take that any day. It's generous Hoosierdaddy. I'm sure that you are glad your facility was built before the money dried up in Alaska, as opposed to our half finished engineering facility that sat halfway finished for how many years before funding to finish the facility was scrounged up somewhere. I'm sure as a parent of a recent graduate of high school, you can also appreciate how special it was to see your son play in your facility in your home town. I'm sure your community benefits enormously from the influx of a lot of dollars from around the state during said state tournament. Each trip to Anchorage costs Fairbanks teams about $3000 for the bus and the kids usually have to fork up a couple hundred dollars to cover expenses each time too. Do kids who can't fork up the money go? No. Do parents who can't afford to go get to watch their kids like you watched yours? No. Does Fairbanks or other communities benefit from an influx of dollars during state tournaments? No. Does Fairbanks have gymnasium facilities that could host a basketball tournament? Yes. Does Fairbanks have excellent ski trails where nordic races could be held when there is no snow in Anchorage? Yes. Do those ski races get moved to Fairbanks, when Anchorage doesn't have snow? No. Do Anchorage coaches jump at the opportunity to come up to Fairbanks and play here? Sometimes. It's pretty clear in many sports though that the Fairbanks kids need to play more games against the Anchorage schools so they learn what level of play is needed to compete at the state level. Most teams cannot afford to bus down to Anchorage every weekend though. The West Valley girls basketball team recently hosted a tournament where some Anchorage teams came up, but decided they didn't actually want to play in the entire tournament, so abandoned the scheduled games after the first day of the tournament for other plans... My feeling is that something a little more sensible could have replaced the Sullivan arena. The entire state tournament need not be held in one facility. None of this is your fault Hoosierdaddy, but it is something to keep in mind about how much your community benefits from having that facility and whether those benefits could be spread around to other communities to benefit from occasionally. Not every sport needs to have the state tournament in Anchorage.

                And of course, kids love to come and play in the palace; they're 16 years old and going to the big city is usually exciting. Ask them if they would love to play in their hometown where their whole family and school can be there to cheer for them too though; I bet they'd take that option too.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by northernGNAChoopfan View Post

                  I miss post play too! I just find it much more complex and interesting than three pointers raining or bricking.

                  As for being referenced to as a salty Fairbanksan... I'll take that any day. It's generous Hoosierdaddy. I'm sure that you are glad your facility was built before the money dried up in Alaska, as opposed to our half finished engineering facility that sat halfway finished for how many years before funding to finish the facility was scrounged up somewhere. I'm sure as a parent of a recent graduate of high school, you can also appreciate how special it was to see your son play in your facility in your home town. I'm sure your community benefits enormously from the influx of a lot of dollars from around the state during said state tournament. Each trip to Anchorage costs Fairbanks teams about $3000 for the bus and the kids usually have to fork up a couple hundred dollars to cover expenses each time too. Do kids who can't fork up the money go? No. Do parents who can't afford to go get to watch their kids like you watched yours? No. Does Fairbanks or other communities benefit from an influx of dollars during state tournaments? No. Does Fairbanks have gymnasium facilities that could host a basketball tournament? Yes. Does Fairbanks have excellent ski trails where nordic races could be held when there is no snow in Anchorage? Yes. Do those ski races get moved to Fairbanks, when Anchorage doesn't have snow? No. Do Anchorage coaches jump at the opportunity to come up to Fairbanks and play here? Sometimes. It's pretty clear in many sports though that the Fairbanks kids need to play more games against the Anchorage schools so they learn what level of play is needed to compete at the state level. Most teams cannot afford to bus down to Anchorage every weekend though. The West Valley girls basketball team recently hosted a tournament where some Anchorage teams came up, but decided they didn't actually want to play in the entire tournament, so abandoned the scheduled games after the first day of the tournament for other plans... My feeling is that something a little more sensible could have replaced the Sullivan arena. The entire state tournament need not be held in one facility. None of this is your fault Hoosierdaddy, but it is something to keep in mind about how much your community benefits from having that facility and whether those benefits could be spread around to other communities to benefit from occasionally. Not every sport needs to have the state tournament in Anchorage.

                  And of course, kids love to come and play in the palace; they're 16 years old and going to the big city is usually exciting. Ask them if they would love to play in their hometown where their whole family and school can be there to cheer for them too though; I bet they'd take that option too.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Wolves win 8th straight over CWU, always nice to beat the Wildcats, though I certainly don't have the venom I share for WWU.

                    As noted earlier, if you play defense, good things happen. Wolves got out and defended, which helped them overcome their own so-so shooting night.

                    ????

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Although UAF only has a couple players left that were recruited by Durham, things went well in Montana for them yesterday and not so well for Durham. It was pretty tight most of the second half after the Nooks caught up and there were a lot of block vs. charge calls that were tough calls. One did not go UAFs way, but several did not go Montana's way and Durham lost it after a few of those and picked up two technicals and got tossed out of the game...

                      Bobby Howard's little brother Brendan is impressive; even better than his freshman year last year. Richmond is also quality and they've got some pieces around those two; Green can get really hot from 3. I haven't watched them enough to pin down exactly why they are struggling so much this year, but as I said in the "middle of the season" post by Stump, there's lots of games to go, so we'll see. Things in the middle of the GNAC from UAA, NNU, UAF, WOU, SFU, CWU, & MSUB could really go any way. There are talented teams in there that should be doing better (ahem, UAA, and WOU) and scrappy teams that are making the most of their success (UAF), so I think any 4 of these teams could join WWU and SPU in making the GNAC tourney at this point. Heck, even SMU could still do it (I think, haven't actually done the math, but I don't think anyones out already).

                      The GNAC is clearly down overall this year, but hey, that means the dog fight in the middle of the pack could be pretty fun for the next 10 games too. Anyone think SPU will get beat? My hunch is they will get beat before conference season is over, but maybe not by WWU... Probably not this coming Thursday though! It's still bitterly cold in Fairbanks, but I don't think that trick will work with SPU.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by northernGNAChoopfan View Post
                        All good take-aways from the UAF-UAA game. In an effort to on infrequent years say something positive about UAA, I'll say I enjoyed a blackbean burger and an IPA at the game last night and they weren't too bad. UAF continues to have moments of potential and promise, but there really wasn't too much they could've done if they couldn't keep up at the 3 point line. The only other statistically significant difference was the boards, which showed. I suspect the game in Fairbanks will be closer. With regard to the palace, how do they count 900 people there? That place is so empty with 900 there; building such a large facility was a real mistake, because the atmosphere is really pretty mundane with 900 there. I do not think UAA will get themselves a first round bye in the GNAC tourney, nor do I think they have it in them to win three nights in a row to get to regionals. As far as historic UAA teams, this team has a pretty pedestrian feel (other than Pantovic, who seems to be doing well adjusting to American standards of keeping his elbows down and not using them as an offensive weapon (most of the time).

                        I hear you on the Shabazz/McLaughlin comparison CWU... Sometimes he does too much, sometimes not too much. It'll be interesting to see how they develop over the season and into next year too. They certainly will be more dangerous if some other guys can be more threatening more often.

                        Refs were lame last night, not letting a heavy breath go without a whistle, for both sides, but it certainly hurt UAF more than UAA.
                        Just checking in. Have to agree with you northern. The atmosphere is lacking in the new facility for Bball games. At the Wells Fargo, that place rocked with 1100 people in it stopping their feet and yelling. Problem was that they "upgraded" the bleachers with ones designed for kindergartners. The person in front of you sat between your legs the benches were so narrow. It also dropped the capacity to 850 somehow. I suppose the upper deck area of the AAC provides some seating for special events but the place would have been better for bball with a capacity of about 3000 and not 5500. The cheers during a regular season game get swallowed up by the space.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by Rob_AK View Post

                          Just checking in. Have to agree with you northern. The atmosphere is lacking in the new facility for Bball games. At the Wells Fargo, that place rocked with 1100 people in it stopping their feet and yelling. Problem was that they "upgraded" the bleachers with ones designed for kindergartners. The person in front of you sat between your legs the benches were so narrow. It also dropped the capacity to 850 somehow. I suppose the upper deck area of the AAC provides some seating for special events but the place would have been better for bball with a capacity of about 3000 and not 5500. The cheers during a regular season game get swallowed up by the space.
                          Rob! What's your take on UAA this year? UAF? Hope you are staying warm; been chilly this winter!

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