My MidSeason Awards Show
By John Scognamiglio
A la Bill Simmons I have looked at the MIAA men's basketball programs and have come up with the following awards:
Team of the year: Southwest Baptist
With all apologies to Northwest Missouri State, Southwest Baptist has been at the top of the MIAA all year long. Even though they are ranked behind NWMSU in the regional rankings, the purple Bearcats are now ranked 4th in Division II. They lead the MIAA in scoring offense with over 85 points a game and have two dynamic players in Sheldon Pace and Frans Steyn.
Surprise of the year: No surprise here with Truman State University
This was a team picked last in the MIAA preseason poll. This was a team that up until two weeks ago was seven seconds away from being undefeated. Overall, they are probably the most balanced team in the conference in terms of scoring and defense. The Bulldogs have a great floor general in Chip Sodemann, and the re-emergence of Grant Agbo as a scoring threat make this squad a good inside-outside team in terms of scoring.
Most Valuable Offensive Player: Michael Hicks of CMSU
CMSU was the team to beat in the MIAA preseason poll and it is because of this young man. Hicks is the leading scorer on a 14-4 Mules team that currently sits in third place in the conference behind Southwest Baptist and Northwest Missouri State, averaging 21.3 points per game. In two of the Mules losses, he was held to 16 points by St. Edwards and 14 points by Truman State. The other two losses came in shootouts to Southwest Baptist and Emporia State, where he still scored 28 and 25 points respectively. As Hicks goes, so goes the fortunes of Central Missouri.
Most Valuable Defensive Player: Derek Lindsey of Truman State
Lindsey has been consistently been called upon to shut down offensive threats throughout the season. In the pre-conference schedule, he shut down Titus Byrd to 18 points combined in two games. Lindsey was the Bulldog to shut down Michael Hicks in the Bulldogs victory in Warrensburg at the start of the conference season. Lindsey is also an offensive threat, leading the MIAA in assist to turnover ratio at 4.58, almost two full points ahead of Sheldon Pace, who is second. Lindsey is also the Bulldogs second leading scorer with 10.5 points per game.
Coach of the Year: Jeff Guiot of Southwest Baptist and Jack Schrader of Truman State
I really don't want to be a homer and give the award outright to Coach Schrader, but I can't overlook the great squad Coach Guiot has in his second season in the MIAA. Each coach has surprised the conference. Coach Guiot has a talented team that has enjoyed a great start, losing only to Northwest Missouri State in the regular season. Those purple Bearcats are now ranked fourth in Division II. Coach Schrader does not have the same level of playmakers as other schools in conference, but he has had four years to cultivate the play of Sodemann and Lindsey, and three years with Agbo, Andy Calmes, and Austin Kirby. Schrader has proved to the rest of the MIAA that squads do not need team of all-stars, and a great team is five individuals out on the court who move and think and play as one.
A la Bill Simmons I have looked at the MIAA men's basketball programs and have come up with the following awards:
Team of the year: Southwest Baptist
With all apologies to Northwest Missouri State, Southwest Baptist has been at the top of the MIAA all year long. Even though they are ranked behind NWMSU in the regional rankings, the purple Bearcats are now ranked 4th in Division II. They lead the MIAA in scoring offense with over 85 points a game and have two dynamic players in Sheldon Pace and Frans Steyn.
Surprise of the year: No surprise here with Truman State University
This was a team picked last in the MIAA preseason poll. This was a team that up until two weeks ago was seven seconds away from being undefeated. Overall, they are probably the most balanced team in the conference in terms of scoring and defense. The Bulldogs have a great floor general in Chip Sodemann, and the re-emergence of Grant Agbo as a scoring threat make this squad a good inside-outside team in terms of scoring.
Most Valuable Offensive Player: Michael Hicks of CMSU
CMSU was the team to beat in the MIAA preseason poll and it is because of this young man. Hicks is the leading scorer on a 14-4 Mules team that currently sits in third place in the conference behind Southwest Baptist and Northwest Missouri State, averaging 21.3 points per game. In two of the Mules losses, he was held to 16 points by St. Edwards and 14 points by Truman State. The other two losses came in shootouts to Southwest Baptist and Emporia State, where he still scored 28 and 25 points respectively. As Hicks goes, so goes the fortunes of Central Missouri.
Most Valuable Defensive Player: Derek Lindsey of Truman State
Lindsey has been consistently been called upon to shut down offensive threats throughout the season. In the pre-conference schedule, he shut down Titus Byrd to 18 points combined in two games. Lindsey was the Bulldog to shut down Michael Hicks in the Bulldogs victory in Warrensburg at the start of the conference season. Lindsey is also an offensive threat, leading the MIAA in assist to turnover ratio at 4.58, almost two full points ahead of Sheldon Pace, who is second. Lindsey is also the Bulldogs second leading scorer with 10.5 points per game.
Coach of the Year: Jeff Guiot of Southwest Baptist and Jack Schrader of Truman State
I really don't want to be a homer and give the award outright to Coach Schrader, but I can't overlook the great squad Coach Guiot has in his second season in the MIAA. Each coach has surprised the conference. Coach Guiot has a talented team that has enjoyed a great start, losing only to Northwest Missouri State in the regular season. Those purple Bearcats are now ranked fourth in Division II. Coach Schrader does not have the same level of playmakers as other schools in conference, but he has had four years to cultivate the play of Sodemann and Lindsey, and three years with Agbo, Andy Calmes, and Austin Kirby. Schrader has proved to the rest of the MIAA that squads do not need team of all-stars, and a great team is five individuals out on the court who move and think and play as one.
posted by Anonymous at Tuesday, January 24, 2006
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