A.I.I. News
02.25.2010 - [Men's Basketball - D2]

The Association of Independent Institutions (A.I.I.) will kick off its Men's Basketball Division II Conference Tournament this weekend in Denver, Colorado. Hosted by Johnson & Wales University teams from Marygrove College, Ohio Dominican University and Walla Walla University in addition to the host school will descend on the Mile High City to determine the conference champion and the A.I.I.'s berth to the 19th Annual NAIA Division II Men's Basketball National Championship in Branson, Missouri. All games will be held at the Wildcat Center on the northeast Denver campus.

Saturday, February 27, 2010

5pm    #1 Johnson & Wales University vs. #4 Marygrove College

7pm    #2 Ohio Dominican University vs. #3 Walla Walla University

Sunday, February 28, 2010

1pm    Consolation Game - Loser of #1/#4 vs. Loser of #2/#3

3pm    Championship Game - Winner of #1/#4 vs. Winner of #2/#3

 
Looking at the teams…

JOHNSON & WALES UNIVERSITY

Johnson & Wales University heads into the tournament as the defending A.I.I. Champion and the top seed. The Wildcats are 15-13 on the season and 5-0 against A.I.I. opponents. Under fifth year head coach Jeff Culver, JWU has had a season spanning from NAIA Division II to NCAA Division I opponents. The ‘Cats opened their 2009-2010 season on the road facing Lewis-Clark State College and fellow A.I.I. foe Walla Walla University. JWU went 1-1 on the trip to set the tone for the rest of the season. Throughout the season, JWU faced one ranked opponent, University of Sioux Falls, with the Cougars taking the victory. The Wildcats held strong throughout the season and went 3-3 against local NCAA Division II RMAC institutions. JWU found themselves up against Southwestern College and Northern New Mexico College where the Wildcats dominated adding four more conference victories to their season.

Nate Lark (Dayton, OH) and Andrew Baker (Broomfield, CO) were each named A.I.I. Player of the Week for the weeks ending December 2 and December 8 respectively. Baker also led JWU in scoring averaging 13.78 ppg while also adding 5.96 rpg to the ‘Cats defense. Lark led the team in rebounds and blocks and proved to be a dominating force defensively for JWU. Ethan Fisher (Fort Collins, CO) drove the Wildcats offense with his control of the floor while Nick Maly (Broomfield, CO) added quality shooting of .481 from beyond the arc. Each also led JWU from the line with Fisher shooting .745 and Maly hitting .742. MJ Crespin (Greeley, CO) showed his own on each end of the court after spending the majority of last season injured. The time recuperating only fueled his desire to be a go-to-guy for JWU. Crespin was third in scoring and averages 3 assists per game.

The Wildcats look to use the home court advantage in their favor and repeat as conference champions on route to the national tournament.

OHIO DOMINICAN UNIVERSITY

Despite losing two 1,000 point scorers from last year's 15-15 squad, the Ohio Dominican men's basketball team had high expectations entering its final year as a member of the NAIA. ODU entered the season loaded with experience, especially at the guard positions. Of the ten returning players, eight were at the guard position and of those eight six averaged double digits minutes the previous season.

Standing in the way of another successful season for Head Coach Artie Taylor and the Panthers was one of the toughest schedules in recent history. In all, the Panthers squared off against four NAIA Preseason Top 25 teams playing three of the four twice, five NCAA members, and two future GLIAC foes.
The tough slate lived up to its billing as ODU opened up the season losing its first five games. The Panthers quickly bounced back winning six of their next seven games, but could not carry the momentum into the New Year losing nine of their next eleven matchups.
Even though their record stands at 9-16, ODU has recorded several highs throughout the course of the season. The Panthers brought home two championship trophies, winning the ODU Red Roof Inn Thanksgiving Classic and the Holland Sentinel Community Classic in Holland, Michigan. In both tournaments, sophomore Aaron Gibbs (Oberlin, OH) garnered the Most Valuable Player award. ODU also knocked off former AMC rival and NAIA 12th ranked Cedarville University to snap a six year, 12-game losing streak to the Yellow Jackets. Senior point guard Adriene Rodriguez (Lorain, OH) capped off his final season in the black and gold by becoming the 21st player in school history to surpass the 1,000 point mark.

Walla Walla University

Coming to Denver as the third seed in the tournament, Walla Walla University is 8-15 on the season with a conference record of 1-2. Walla Walla faced off against Johnson & Wales University early in the season with JWU taking the victory in the matchup. The Wolves are in their second season of membership in the NAIA and look to build upon the success of their young program. WWU schedule has had them up against multiple members of the Cascade Collegiate Conference as well as NAIA Divisions I's Frontier Conference.

Walla Walla is led in scoring by Gerard Dauphin (Kent, WA) who averaged 13.44 ppg while Mark Moore (Canton, OH) averaged 14.38 ppg in just 13 games this season. Freshmen Ryan Spady (Dallas, TX) was the Wolves leader in rebounds with 5.57 per game while Dauphin averaged 2.83 steals per game. Walla Walla graduates just one senior so this young squad is preparing to become a dominated force in the Pacific Northwest.

Marygrove College

Marygrove College travels to Denver as the only other team from last season's A.I.I. tournament. The Mustangs are 8-19 on the season with a 2-1 conference record. The Mustangs' season featured matchups across the NAIA landscape as well as several NCAA programs. Under the helm of Glen Donahue, Marygrove is on pace to be a decisive team in the USCAA and A.I.I. With one senior graduating, Coach Donahue's Mustangs have the base to maintain their current level of play and only further increase the competitiveness and athletic prowess this ever growing squad is capable of.

The Mustangs' Marcus Hopkins (Southfield, MI) leads the team in scoring where he averages 14.70 ppg while Eric Johnson (Southfield, MI) contributes another 12.58 ppg. On the defensive end, Justin McKinney (Detroit, MI) holds his own bringing down 8.39 rpg and 1.08 bpg.