| Sam Longwell, above, and
Marco Coppola are the super sophomores for surging
WPI. WPI athletics photo |
The numbers never lie -- or at least that's how the saying goes.
Tell that to Chris Bartley, and he will tell you that, in fact, sometimes numbers do lie.
The WPI men's basketball coach entered his 12th season with one of his youngest rosters he's had while at the school. Of his 15 players, only four are upperclassmen. The remaining 11 are underclassmen, including six freshmen.
Even the most optimistic supporter was approaching the 2012-13 season with the "R" word in mind. As it turns out, the Engineers may not have been rebuilding as much as they were reloading.
WPI sits at 14-0 overall (2-0 in the NEWMAC) and is ranked No. 8 in this week's D3hoops.com Top 25 poll. The Engineers could match last season's win total by the end of January. Those are the numbers Bartley cares about.
"I think there might have been a sense out there we would be young and rebuilding and I think we are," Bartley said in an email Wednesday. "We have just been lucky enough to start the process with some wins. We never talk about or think about the age or experience of our roster. We feel like the execution of what we do is more important to success than how old the guys are that are trying to execute."
Sophomore guards Marco Coppola and Sam Longwell have cemented themselves as the Engineers' top two go-to performers. Coppola leads the team in scoring (17.4 PPG) and provides 3-point range. Longwell, who averages 14.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3 assists per game, is a well-rounded player capable of impacting games in a number of areas.
"Well, they are very different types of players but are versatile and complement each other well," Bartley said. "They basically have all of the skills, athleticism, and size you need to be a successful player at our level."
Freshmen guards Zach Karalis and Aaron Davis have stepped right into pivotal roles -- Karalis as that of sixth man and 3-point sniper, and Davis as that of starting point guard and floor general. Karalis' 25 3-pointers and 53 percent shooting from beyond the arc both lead the team. Davis' 54 assists and 31 steals both lead the Engineers.
WPI's young core has, so far, played with a level of maturity exceeding their years.
"We have a committed group of guys and have played consistently," Bartley said.
WPI needed that consistency when it weathered a seven-game stretch over 15 days from Nov. 24 to Dec. 8. Bartley said the team's ability to successfully navigate that stretch -- a string Bartley admits was a first for him in coaching -- was the most impressive accomplishment of the season. Included in that stretch was a strong victory over Rhode Island College.
"I had never had a schedule like that and as a coach it looked daunting to tackle," Bartley said. "We just stayed in our 'minefield,' not looking forward or backward and focused on what we needed to do each day. Some days we had to rest and just focus on the mental aspect of the game; other days we had to get after it in practice and keep our edge."
Twenty-win seasons are not unusual for WPI under Bartley's guidance. Barring a stunning change in momentum, the Engineers will once again reach that plateau.
| Sophomore Marco Coppola leads
the Engineers in points with 17.4 per game. WPI athletics photo |
But Bartley said this year's team has strong on-court chemistry. Unlike players' ages or a team's record, chemistry is unquantifiable. But ultimately, it can push a good team over the top into greatness.
"One thing that stands out about this group is we have legitimate on-court chemistry," Bartley said. "Our guys have a good sense of how we need to play and who we are and, maybe just as importantly, who we are not. We have done a good job of playing confidently while also playing within ourselves and as a team."
Though the Engineers remain undefeated, the NEWMAC schedule is still young. Teams like Springfield (11-4, 2-0) and MIT (10-3, 1-1) will push WPI for the conference title. WPI hosts MIT and Springfield on Jan. 19 and Jan. 23, respectively, in a key two-game stretch.
"We have to play it out," Bartley said. "Most of the teams in the NEWMAC have a core group of returning starters and players. We don’t have as many rotation players back as some, but we will hopefully find a way to manage."
The Engineers have done just fine so far -- not even the numbers could lie about that.
Men's Northeast: Eastern Connecticut starts '13 strong
A basketball season is a marathon, not a sprint. Eastern Connecticut was one of the finalists in the race last season, advancing to the Sweet 16, where it fell to eventual national runner-up Cabrini.
This season, the Warriors are again off to a nice start. They have started too hot, which could forecast a poor finish. Nor have they started slowly, with no hope of catching up to the pack. The Warriors sit at 9-5 overall and 3-1 in the LEC, good for second in the conference behind Rhode Island College.
Eastern, led by the balanced attack of junior guard Brian Salzillo, junior forward Mike Garrow, senior forward Chris Robitallie, senior guard Joe Ives and freshman guard Trachone Preston, has won three of its four games since the calendar flipped to 2013, including a nice non-conference win over Salisbury.
The Warriors also have a head-to-head win against Rhode Island College from back in early December, so that bodes well for them in the conference race. Keene State and Southern Maine should contend in the LEC, but expect the conference title to come down to either RIC or Eastern Connecticut.
Men's East: Oswego State being pushed in SUNYAC
Last season, Oswego State won more than 20 games for a second straight season, cruised to a SUNYAC conference title and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
The Lakers could very well repeat those first and third accomplishments this season. But, at least in the early going, the SUNYAC conference race is shaping up to be a much tougher fight.
Oswego's overall record of 9-2 is the best in the conference through Wednesday, but four teams hold a better conference record. Oswego dropped a surprising 67-57 contest to Oneonta State Tuesday night, which left the team at 2-2 through its first four conference games. The Lakers could still pull away from the pack, but it's worth noting that they've already lost more SUNYAC games this season than the last two seasons combined.
Forward Hayden Ward has been dominant for the Lakers. The senior captain is averaging 21.5 points per game, which is good for 25th in the country. He also leads the team in rebounding and blocks, and has generally put together an All-America-caliber season.
Buffalo State, a team that won 18 and 23 games the last two seasons, respectively, leads the SUNYAC right now. The Bengals and Lakers will match up this Saturday in Oswego in one of the conference's top matchups so far.
Women's Northeast/East: Keep an eye on Mass-Dartmouth
Last season, Mass-Dartmouth finished with its first winning season in 19 years. But that might just be the start.
This season's team looks like a true contender in the LEC.
The Corsairs sit at 10-2 overall (3-1 LEC), despite a disappointing 54-51 loss to Eastern Connecticut Tuesday night. Prior to that setback, Mass-Dartmouth had won seven straight.
Senior forward Colleen Moriarty (17.1 PPG, 7.4 RPG) and junior forward Erika Bornemann (11.4 PPG, 10.4 RPG), former teammates at Canton High School in Canton, Mass., have turned into a dominant low-post duo at the college level. Moriarty and Bornemann both stand taller than six feet, and can make life difficult for opposing teams in the paint.
The engine that drives the offense is sophomore guard Kelsey Garrity (9.9 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 4.7 APG), who does a little bit of everything.
Fifth-year coach Amanda Van Voorhis has turned this team from a 3-23 squad in his first season to a second-place team in the LEC in less than five full years. The Corsairs do have a tough stretch coming up, with conference games against Salem State, No. 13 Southern Maine and Rhode Island College in the next week.
Top 25: Middlebury, Rochester in top five
Middlebury (No. 3) and Rochester (No. 4) remained in the top five in this week's D3hoops.com Men's Top 25 poll.
WPI saw the biggest jump, from No. 14 to No. 8. Williams (No. 18), Albertus Magnus (No. 19) and Amherst (No. 21) were also ranked. MIT, Rhode Island College, NYU, Stevens and Oswego State also earned votes.
Amherst again led regional teams in the D3hoops.com Women's Top 25 poll, checking in at No. 6. Tufts (No. 8) and Southern Maine (No. 13) also remained in the top 15 teams.
Babson held steady at No. 22, while Williams, Ithaca and Bridgewater State each garnered votes.
Quick hits
James Jensen's last-second block secured Middlebury's 70-69 win over Tufts this past Saturday. Tufts' Tom Palleschi led all scorers with 27 points in the loss. ... Quarry Greenway finished with 23 points and six rebounds to lead Johnson and Wales to an 82-75 win against Suffolk on Tuesday. The Wildcats improved to 4-1 in GNAC play. ... Sedale Jones tallied 21 points, eight rebounds and seven assists as Curry knocked off Roger Williams 72-61 on Tuesday. Curry remains the only unbeaten CCC team in conference play. ... Carl Yaffe scored 23 points and Kyle Stockmal added 15 points as NYU defeated Hunter 81-65 on Tuesday. The Violets bounced back from a 65-59 loss to Brandeis in their UAA opener. ... Frank Mitchell and Travis Warech each tallied 24 points and Ithaca shot 54 percent from the field in an 89-71 win over Utica on Tuesday. The Bombers won their fifth straight and improved to 4-0 in the Empire 8. ... John Ivy's 24 points sparked Brockport State to an 87-78 win vs. Geneseo State on Tuesday. Jordan Jones scored a game-high 27 points off the bench for the Blue Knights. ... Alex McCullough finished with 23 points, seven rebounds and four blocks as the New Paltz State women edged Cortland State 59-56 on Tuesday to improve to 11-0. The Hawks sit at 5-0 in the SUNYAC. ... Kaitlin Donahoe scored a game-high 26 points, including the go-ahead runner in the final seconds, to lift Bowdoin to a 65-63 win against Emmanuel on Monday. Bowdoin has won four straight after a 3-4 start to the season.
Contact me
Whether you have an interesting story idea, know of a player or coach approaching a career milestone, or just want to talk basketball, I want to hear it. Please reach out to me at andrew.lovell@d3sports.com. You can also follow me on Twitter (@andrew_lovell).
The numbers never lie -- or at least that's how the saying goes.
Tell that to Chris Bartley, and he will tell you that, in fact, sometimes numbers do lie.
The WPI men's basketball coach entered his 12th season with one of his youngest rosters he's had while at the school. Of his 15 players, only four are upperclassmen. The remaining 11 are underclassmen, including six freshmen.
Even the most optimistic supporter was approaching the 2012-13 season with the "R" word in mind. As it turns out, the Engineers may not have been rebuilding as much as they were reloading.
WPI sits at 14-0 overall (2-0 in the NEWMAC) and is ranked No. 8 in this week's D3hoops.com Top 25 poll. The Engineers could match last season's win total by the end of January. Those are the numbers Bartley cares about.
"I think there might have been a sense out there we would be young and rebuilding and I think we are," Bartley said in an email Wednesday. "We have just been lucky enough to start the process with some wins. We never talk about or think about the age or experience of our roster. We feel like the execution of what we do is more important to success than how old the guys are that are trying to execute."
Sophomore guards Marco Coppola and Sam Longwell have cemented themselves as the Engineers' top two go-to performers. Coppola leads the team in scoring (17.4 PPG) and provides 3-point range. Longwell, who averages 14.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3 assists per game, is a well-rounded player capable of impacting games in a number of areas.
"Well, they are very different types of players but are versatile and complement each other well," Bartley said. "They basically have all of the skills, athleticism, and size you need to be a successful player at our level."
Freshmen guards Zach Karalis and Aaron Davis have stepped right into pivotal roles -- Karalis as that of sixth man and 3-point sniper, and Davis as that of starting point guard and floor general. Karalis' 25 3-pointers and 53 percent shooting from beyond the arc both lead the team. Davis' 54 assists and 31 steals both lead the Engineers.
WPI's young core has, so far, played with a level of maturity exceeding their years.
"We have a committed group of guys and have played consistently," Bartley said.
WPI needed that consistency when it weathered a seven-game stretch over 15 days from Nov. 24 to Dec. 8. Bartley said the team's ability to successfully navigate that stretch -- a string Bartley admits was a first for him in coaching -- was the most impressive accomplishment of the season. Included in that stretch was a strong victory over Rhode Island College.
"I had never had a schedule like that and as a coach it looked daunting to tackle," Bartley said. "We just stayed in our 'minefield,' not looking forward or backward and focused on what we needed to do each day. Some days we had to rest and just focus on the mental aspect of the game; other days we had to get after it in practice and keep our edge."
Twenty-win seasons are not unusual for WPI under Bartley's guidance. Barring a stunning change in momentum, the Engineers will once again reach that plateau.
But Bartley said this year's team has strong on-court chemistry. Unlike players' ages or a team's record, chemistry is unquantifiable. But ultimately, it can push a good team over the top into greatness.
"One thing that stands out about this group is we have legitimate on-court chemistry," Bartley said. "Our guys have a good sense of how we need to play and who we are and, maybe just as importantly, who we are not. We have done a good job of playing confidently while also playing within ourselves and as a team."
Though the Engineers remain undefeated, the NEWMAC schedule is still young. Teams like Springfield (11-4, 2-0) and MIT (10-3, 1-1) will push WPI for the conference title. WPI hosts MIT and Springfield on Jan. 19 and Jan. 23, respectively, in a key two-game stretch.
"We have to play it out," Bartley said. "Most of the teams in the NEWMAC have a core group of returning starters and players. We don’t have as many rotation players back as some, but we will hopefully find a way to manage."
The Engineers have done just fine so far -- not even the numbers could lie about that.
Men's Northeast: Eastern Connecticut starts '13 strong
A basketball season is a marathon, not a sprint. Eastern Connecticut was one of the finalists in the race last season, advancing to the Sweet 16, where it fell to eventual national runner-up Cabrini.
This season, the Warriors are again off to a nice start. They have started too hot, which could forecast a poor finish. Nor have they started slowly, with no hope of catching up to the pack. The Warriors sit at 9-5 overall and 3-1 in the LEC, good for second in the conference behind Rhode Island College.
Eastern, led by the balanced attack of junior guard Brian Salzillo, junior forward Mike Garrow, senior forward Chris Robitallie, senior guard Joe Ives and freshman guard Trachone Preston, has won three of its four games since the calendar flipped to 2013, including a nice non-conference win over Salisbury.
The Warriors also have a head-to-head win against Rhode Island College from back in early December, so that bodes well for them in the conference race. Keene State and Southern Maine should contend in the LEC, but expect the conference title to come down to either RIC or Eastern Connecticut.
Men's East: Oswego State being pushes in SUNYAC
Last season, Oswego State won more than 20 games for a second straight season, cruised to a SUNYAC conference title and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
The Lakers could very well repeat those first and third accomplishments this season. But, at least in the early going, the SUNYAC conference race is shaping up to be a much tougher fight.
Oswego's overall record of 9-2 is the best in the conference through Wednesday, but four teams hold a better conference record. Oswego dropped a surprising 67-57 contest to Oneonta State Tuesday night, which left the team at 2-2 through its first four conference games. The Lakers could still pull away from the pack, but it's worth noting that they've already lost more SUNYAC games this season than the last two seasons combined.
Forward Hayden Ward has been dominant for the Lakers. The senior captain is averaging 21.5 points per game, which is good for 25th in the country. He also leads the team in rebounding and blocks, and has generally put together an All-America-caliber season.
Buffalo State, a team that won 18 and 23 games the last two seasons, respectively, leads the SUNYAC right now. The Bengals and Lakers will match up this Saturday in Oswego in one of the conference's top matchups so far.
Women's Northeast/East: Keep an eye on Mass-Dartmouth
Last season, Mass-Dartmouth finished with its first winning season in 19 years. But that might just be the start.
This season's team looks like a true contender in the LEC.
The Corsairs sit at 10-2 overall (3-1 LEC), despite a disappointing 54-51 loss to Eastern Connecticut Tuesday night. Prior to that setback, Mass-Dartmouth had won seven straight.
Senior forward Colleen Moriarty (17.1 PPG, 7.4 RPG) and junior forward Erika Bornemann (11.4 PPG, 10.4 RPG), former teammates at Canton High School in Canton, Mass., have turned into a dominant low-post duo at the college level. Moriarty and Bornemann both stand taller than six feet, and can make life difficult for opposing teams in the paint.
The engine that drives the offense is sophomore guard Kelsey Garrity (9.9 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 4.7 APG), who does a little bit of everything.
Fifth-year coach Amanda Van Voorhis has turned this team from a 3-23 squad in his first season to a second-place team in the LEC in less than five full years. The Corsairs do have a tough stretch coming up, with conference games against Salem State, No. 13 Southern Maine and Rhode Island College in the next week.
Top 25: Middlebury, Rochester in top five
Middlebury (No. 3) and Rochester (No. 4) remained in the top five in this week's D3hoops.com Men's Top 25 poll.
WPI saw the biggest jump, from No. 14 to No. 8. Williams (No. 18), Albertus Magnus (No. 19) and Amherst (No. 21) were also ranked. MIT, Rhode Island College, NYU, Stevens and Oswego State also earned votes.
Amherst again led the D3hoops.com Women's Top 25 poll, checking in at No. 6. Tufts (No. 8) and Southern Maine (No. 13) also remained in the top 15 teams.
Babson held steady at No. 22, while Williams, Ithaca and Bridgewater State each garnered votes.
Quick hits
James Jensen's last-second block secured Middlebury's 70-69 win over Tufts this past Saturday. Tufts' Tom Palleschi led all scorers with 27 points in the loss. ... Quarry Greenway finished with 23 points and six rebounds to lead Johnson and Wales to an 82-75 win against Suffolk on Tuesday. The Wildcats improved to 4-1 in GNAC play. ... Sedale Jones tallied 21 points, eight rebounds and seven assists as Curry knocked off Roger Williams 72-61 on Tuesday. Curry remains the only unbeaten CCC team in conference play. ... Carl Yaffe scored 23 points and Kyle Stockmal added 15 points as NYU defeated Hunter 81-65 on Tuesday. The Violets bounced back from a 65-59 loss to Brandeis in their UAA opener. ... Frank Mitchell and Travis Warech each tallied 24 points and Ithaca shot 54 percent from the field in an 89-71 win over Utica on Tuesday. The Bombers won their fifth straight and improved to 4-0 in the Empire 8. ... John Ivy's 24 points sparked Brockport State to an 87-78 win vs. Geneseo State on Tuesday. Jordan Jones scored a game-high 27 points off the bench for the Blue Knights. ... Alex McCullough finished with 23 points, seven rebounds and four blocks as the New Paltz State women edged Cortland State 59-56 on Tuesday to improve to 11-0. The Hawks sit at 5-0 in the SUNYAC. ... Kaitlin Donahoe scored a game-high 26 points, including the go-ahead runner in the final seconds, to lift Bowdoin to a 65-63 win against Emmanuel on Monday. Bowdoin has won four straight after a 3-4 start to the season.
Contact me
Whether you have an interesting story idea, know of a player or coach approaching a career milestone, or just want to talk basketball, I want to hear it. Please reach out to me at andrew.lovell@d3sports.com. You can also follow me on Twitter (@andrew_lovell).
