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Summit league teams non conference


Keenan Henderson

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Even tonight, a 4-4 Rutgers team, who had lost on the road to Ilinois by 35, came home and beat the 1 ranked team Purdue.  Teams often play 35-40 points better at home than on the road.  Just unbelievable that there is that much difference!

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The rim seems bigger, the refs are friendlier, and the fan encouragement is plentiful. That makes winning on the road that much more impressive.

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I think it has a lot to do with the increased reliance on 3-point shooting, which for obvious familiarity reasons favors home teams, and can cripple a visiting team that doesn’t adjust well to the new shooting environment. 

Which is why I’m such a proponent for emphasizing inside play on offense (and subsequently getting to the free throw line more) when playing on the road. 

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Outstanding points from Old Titan...so it will be VERY hard for ORU to win at Missouri State tomorrow afternoon unless we take the ball inside....A LOT!.....hopefully Coach Mills reads our board....😉:hc_mills:

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Western Illinois up to 87 in the NET rankings, currently the highest Summit team.  When was the last time they finished the season better than 300 RPI? Wild. 

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58 minutes ago, EagleManiac said:

Western Illinois up to 87 in the NET rankings, currently the highest Summit team.  When was the last time they finished the season better than 300+ RPI? Wild. 

That is pretty surprising!

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6 hours ago, theeagleman5 said:

Outstanding points from Old Titan...so it will be VERY hard for ORU to win at Missouri State tomorrow afternoon unless we take the ball inside....A LOT!.....hopefully Coach Mills reads our board....😉:hc_mills:

Clarification:  by “inside play” - in addition to traditional post play, I also mean drives under control to the basket, making the extra pass offside when the driving lanes are cut off, and back door cuts against typically over-aggressive defense, all with the objectives of getting the ball in the paint and to the rim. 

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SDSU bounces back from their showing against Idaho to beat Washington State at the buzzer on a three.  Not sure how good WSU is but maybe a middle or bottom team in the PAC-10.  Still a great win for the Jackrabbits.

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Meanwhile....we can't beat Central Arkansas and Missouri State....ugh. 😬

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A little off topic but Washington State earlier in the season beat Arizona State 51-29 and it was 18-10 at halftime.  Sounds like a football game.  Maybe the ugliest game in college basketball this year.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Based upon non-conference play (and using Ken Pomeroy as the number-cruncher), the Summit League teams have separated themselves into four very distinct categories (national ranking in parenthesis):

Prohibitive favorite, projected record 18-0:

SDSU (94)

The Jackrabbits are so far ahead of the rest of the league, they should be favorites in every conference game - home and away.

Contenders 14-4:

Western Ill (159)

NDSU (163)

ORU (165)

These three teams should split home/away with each other, and should be favored in all other games (except SDSU).

Spoilers 9-9:

UMKC (229)

USD (234)

These two teams will be unlikely to finish in the top four, but could determine how seeds 2 - 4 are slotted, as they will be a tough road opponent for any of the contenders.

Bottom Feeders 3-15:

Saint Thomas (293)

Denver (329)

Omaha (337)

UND (346)

These four teams will definitely pull the league's rating down, but shouldn't win many games as they will only be favored when another bottom feeder comes to town.  But, then again, ORU lost at 344 Central Arkansas and SDSU lost at 339 Idaho, so...

 

In a normal season, every team will trip up a time or two and step up at least a couple of times during the season, so it is unlikely that SDSU will finish the conference schedule at 18-0.  That said, I would be very surprised if the top four seeds in March were earned by any teams outside the favorite/contenders.  For ORU, the key to this analysis is to not fall behind the other contenders.  They must sweep the bottom feeders, win three of four with the spoilers, split with the contenders, and hope to pull off an upset against the favorite.  This week is pretty important, with an opportunity to take on a spoiler and the favorite, so a win or two would put the team on the right trajectory.   

 

 

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

WIU plays at Iowa Wednesday Night. Leathernecks are an 18.5 point dog. Let's see how they fare against a very good Big Ten team...🤨

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Iowa Hawkeyes cover 92-71....ouch.....:wiu:

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