Eight northeastern schools, all with excellent academic reputations and some of the oldest and fiercest basketball rivalries in the nation played by athletes that – with the rarest of exceptions – are not going to be playing professionally after college so they are playing the last truly competitive games of their lives. No, it is not the Ivy League, it is the Patriot League. In a sport that many have accused of sacrificing more and more of its “purity” for the almighty dollar, leagues like the Patriot League (along with the Ivy and a couple others) stand as shining reminders of what the sport of college basketball truly is at its core.
This year in the PL was supposed to be an epic, epic war pitting Lehigh and their star do-everything lead guard (and future NBA draft pick), C.J. McCollum, against Bucknell and their bruising, yet skilled, big man, Mike Muscala (who Doogan has as his #12 big man in the nation earlier this year. But, to the disappoinment of many, that war never materialized because McCollum broke his foot back in December and missed nearly the entire conference schedule. Without McCollum (and his nation-leading 26 ppg), Muscala was the easy choice for Player of the Year (he also won Defensive POY and Top Scholar-Athlete) and his Bison won the regular season title by 2 full games. Lehigh still managed to go 10-4 in the conference – a tribute to McCollum’s supporting cast – but were actually swept by their bitter rivals, Lafayette, who catapulted them and grabbed the 2-seed, which is big because now the Leopards would host the Mountain Hawks in the semifinals, if both teams survive their quarterfinal tests. A big shout-out to Army for a terrific season and an upper-division finish. Holy Cross and American were both big disappoinments in the PL this year.
CHAMPIONSHIP (March 13th – 18 points)
#1 Bucknell vs #2 Lafayette
In a conference tournament that is almost always VERY chalky, it has happened again this year, as we haven’t had a single road team win thus far. That is good news for the Bucknell Bison, who host this title game on Wednesday night. It is no surprise to anyone that Bucknell is here, but after the start to the season for Lafayette, it is really amazing that they are 40 minutes from a tournament berth.
GrossSr and Mac both have Lafayette in a really nice championship pick if it comes through. Cheryl, Lazarow, LohseJr, Lynch, PapaCim, and Waters all had Lehigh winning this tournament, but the other 19 people all have Bucknell here. If Bucknell completes the all-chalk bracket, GrossJr, J, Lohse, and Rikey will all split the crown with a perfect bracket. If Lafayette wins, GrossSr and Mac will steal the 2013 CTC Patriot title. Sounds like a Civil War a-brewin’ in the Gross household over this one…
Bucknell 64 – Lafayette 56
The Patriot League’s best (healthy) player led the Patriot League’s best team complete a run to the Dance, where they will scare the hell out of some big school out there. Mike Muscala was absolutely dominant, and the Bison take care of a pretty feisty Lafayette team that has to be happy with their 2012-13 season.
19 people nailed this champion, including GrossJr, J, Lohse, and Rikey, who all completed perfect PL brackets to take the 2013 CTC PL crown. This was GrossJr’s 2nd perfect PL bracket in the past 3 years.
SEMIFINALS (March 9th – 12 points each)
#1 Bucknell vs #4 Army
After an all-chalk quarterfinal night on Wednesday, the PL picks up with semifinal action on Saturday. Top-seeded Bucknell took care of business in an unimpressive yet convincing performance against Navy. Army looked rock solid in a 21-point beatdown of American. Can the Black Knights continue a dynamic season and go into Lewisburg and upset the Bison? It’s certainly possible…
All 24 entries have Bucknell winning this game and reaching the finals, with most of them picking the Bison to win this tournament, so whoever did not pick Bucknell as their PL champs should be rooting for the United States Army in this one.
Bucknell 78 – Army 70
In a really tough, hard-fought game, the Patriot League’s finest eliminated America’s finest in the Patriot semis, giving the Bison a shot – at home – go go back to the Dance on Wednesday night. A close game all day, Army actually took a 61-59 lead with just over 4:00 minutes left, but Mike Muscala (who went over 2,000 career points in this one) was just too much down the stretch.
Everyone got this one right, including 16 people who have them winning it all.
#2 Lafayette vs #3 Lehigh
A couple years ago, I did a post ranking the best sports rivalries in the country, and in some research for that post, I uncovered the hidden gem of rivalries. In fact, it is the only one that I found that is universally referred as simply “The Rivalry.” That’s right – I feel comfortable in my ranking of Lehigh-Lafayette as the 11th-best sports rivalry in the country. And, now they will play for a shot at Patriot League supremacy here in Saturday’s semifinal. Lehigh entered this season as one of two prohibitive favorites in the PL (albeit that was with a healthy C.J. McCollum), but they finished in 3rd place, due in large part to the gut-wrenching fact that they were swept by their arch-rivals in a season that was supposed to be a bit of a rebuilding year for the Leopards. That sweep is the tiebreaker for the home court in this one, which Lafayette will enjoy. It looks more and more like McCollum will not be back for this game, which gives the edge back to the home team. Either way, it could be another chapter in – at the very least – the most underrated rivalry in American sports.
This game is, essentially, split right down the middle of the CTC (which makes it rather important game). Twelve people picked Lehigh; eleven picked Lafayette; and Teddy picked Colgate. GrossSr and Mac have the most at stake with Lafayette, as they picked them to win this tournament, while six people (Cheryl, Lazarow, LohseJr, Lynch, PapaCim, and Waters) have Lehigh as their champs.
Lafayette 82 – Lehigh 69
“The Rivalry” most certainly goes to Lafayette in 2013, as the Leopards top off a regular season sweep with a 3rd head-to-head win in the PL semis. The first half was nip and tuck, with Lafayette leading by a deuce at the half, but they opened the 2nd half on a 17-7 run to open up a 12-point lead that they never gave back. Lehigh did get within 5 in the final five minutes, but never any closer, and the Mountain Hawks season is over, as is the STELLAR career of C.J. McCollum. It was a joy to watch you play, C.J., maybe you should have given it one more go here. Then again, never mind – get paid. As for Lafayette, after the start to the season, it is amazing that they are now 40 minutes from the NCAA Tournament. Then again, the home team ALWAYS wins the Patriot League championship.
Eleven people (Alexi, Gersh, GrossJr, GrossSr, J, Lohse, Mac, Primm, Rikey, RDoc, and Stumpf) got this one right, including GrossSr and Mac, who keep alive their champion.
QUARTERFINALS (March 6th – 6 points each)
#1 Bucknell vs #8 Navy
Navy is not a very good basketball team – though they are improving. Bucknell is a legit threat to make noise in the next tournament, so a home game with the Midshipmen might be easily overlooked. But, on paper, this is a serious mismatch.
All 24 people actually have Bucknell going all the way to the finals, and 16 have them winning this tournament.
Bucknell 58 – Navy 42
The Bison got 15 & 13 from PL Player of the Year, Mike Muscala, and cruised to an easy win over a bad Navy team.
The 16 people who picked the Bison to win this tournament should be satisfied with this “taking care of business” result.
#2 Lafayette vs #7 Holy Cross
Lafayette has pretty much already made its season with their surprising sweep of their bitter rivals at Lehigh. Because of that, they earned the 2-seed and a home quarterfinal date with the underachieving HC team. The Crusaders weren’t supposed to be rebuilding and were picked 3rd behind the big two in the PL this year. They have one last chance to make something of 2012-13.
Cheryl, Scoot, and Waters all have the nice upset pick here, though none of them have the Crusaders going to the finals. GrossSr and Mac both have Lafayette winning this tournament.
Lafayette 77 – Holy Cross 54
Lafayette made short work of the Crusaders tonight, ending a very disappointing season for HC. The Leopards, who got 45 points and 16 assists from their star three-man backcourt, cruise into a semifinal matchup at home on Saturday.
Cheryl, Scoot, and Waters miss a nice upset pick. GrossSr and Mac have to feel pretty good right now about their Lafayette championship pick.
#3 Lehigh vs #6 Colgate
Colgate has long been a bit of a Patriot doormat, but this year they showed signs of life and were pretty competitive all season long. Even if McCollum doesn’t play in this one (he’s questionable and has been advised to shut it down for the season because of his impending NBA draft prospect), the Mountain Hawks have considerably more talent and are at home. But, you never know what could happen in a close game without the leading scorer in the country to lean on.
Teddy is on his own with Colgate tonight and actually has them going to the finals. Six people (Cheryl, Lazarow, LohseJr, Lynch, PapaCim, and Waters) have Lehigh repeating as tournament champs this year.
Lehigh 71 – Colgate 64
The Mountain Hawks of Lehigh trailed for the entire first half and most of the second before turning it around and pulling away from a game Colgate team. A somewhat decent season is over for Colgate and the Mountain Hawks have three days to get ready for a road semifinal showdown against their bitter, bitter rivals, Lafayette, who have already beaten them twice this year.
For a while it looked like Teddy might get a big upset on his own, but in the end, the other 23 people get the points here. The six people with Lehigh as their champs can breathe a sigh of relief now.
#4 Army vs #5 American
While American is used to competing for the top of the Patriot League, their fifth-place finish this year isn’t a total disappoinment, considering they are in total rebuild mode. Army, on the other hand, put together one of their best seasons in years and actually place out really well in the advanced analytics because of their outstanding defense. With the winner here probably taking a trip to Bucknell for the semis, the defensive-oriented Black Knights may be better suited to pull off the upset, but we will see if they get that chance.
Ten people (Alexi, Cheryl, Dave, Gersh, GrossSr, Mac, PapaCim, Primm, RDoc, and Stumpf) have American in the minor upset tonight. No one has either of these teams beating Bucknell next round.
Army 65 – American 44
Army’s excellent season continues with a domination of American in the quarterfinals. Larry Toomey had 13 points and 6 boards (more than twice his averages in each) in just 12 minutes, as the Army bench outscored the American bench 29-0. The Black Knights will travel to Lewisburg for a semifinal date with Bucknell on Saturday.
The ten backers of American missed out on this minor upset.
CTC UPDATE
Championship Picks
- #1 Bucknell (16)
- #2 Lafayette (2)
- #3 Lehigh (6)
Biggest Upsets
- QF – #7 Holy Cross (Cheryl, Scoot & Waters)
- SF – #6 Colgate (Teddy)
- Champ – #3 Lehigh (Cheryl, Lazarow, LohseJr, Lynch, PapaCim & Waters)
Previous CTC Champions
- 2008 – Doogan
- 2009 – Alexi
- 2010 – Teddy
- 2011 – Gross (perfect)
- 2012 – Mac (perfect)
FINAL 2013 SCORES
- GrossJr (’11*, ’13*) – 66*
- J (’13*) – 66*
- Lohse (’13*) – 66*
- Rikey (’13*) – 66*
- Alexi (’09) – 60
- Gersh – 60
- Primm – 60
- RDoc – 60
- Stumpf – 60
- Alex – 54
- Bry – 54
- Caleb – 54
- Doogan (’08) – 54
- Dave – 48
- Scoot – 48
- Teddy (’10) – 48
- GrossSr – 42
- Mac (’12*) – 42
- Lazarow – 36
- LohseJr – 36
- Lynch – 36
- PapaCim – 30
- Waters – 30
- Cheryl – 24
