Iba D2 Season 95 Topic

Hoping we can keep D2 relevant in Iba with what seems like a migration toward D1 across worlds. Please post your conference previews here, as well as any other D2 discussion.

I'll start this out with the dynasty rankings. This is similar to alblack's system in some ways (uses the last 5 seasons and post-season is the only factor), but the criteria and scoring I'm sure are different. I still need to add something that shows what a teams ranked the last season, but for now I just wanted to go ahead and get this posted.

Here are the Season 95 rankings based off of seasons 90-94.
1 N. Florida
2 Lander
3 Incarnate Word
4 Dominican
5 Seattle
6 Kennesaw St.
7 N. Alabama
8 USC Upstate
9 CSU, San Bernardino
10 New Mexico Highlands
11 St. Edward's
12 W. Virginia Wesleyan
13 N.W. Nazarene
14 Mount Olive
15 Philadelphia
16 Bentley
17 St. Leo
18 W. Florida
19 Harding
20 Bellarmine
21 Coker
22 Johnson C. Smith
23 Anderson
24 Wisconsin, Parkside
25 Erskine

26 CSU, Los Angeles, 27 Longwood, 28 St. Anselm, 29 UNC, Pembroke, 30 Wayne St. (NE), 31 Northeastern St., 32 Pfeiffer, 33 Shepherd, 34 Rockhurst, 35 Glenville St., 36 Clayton St., 37 Concord, 38 California, San Diego, 39 Armstrong Atlantic St., 40 S. New Hampshire, 41 Ohio Valley, 42 Lock Haven, 43 Gannon, 44 Alaska Fairbanks, 45 Pittsburgh, Johnstown, 46 Chadron St., 47 Mesa St., 48 Felician, 49 Bloomfield, 50 Bowie St., 51 Saginaw Valley St., 52 Limestone, 53 Concordia, St. Paul, 54 Lees-McRae, 55 Minnesota, Duluth, 56 Drury, 57 LIU, Southampton, 58 Charleston, 59 Central Oklahoma, 60 Quincy, 61 St. Andrews Presbyterian, 62 Columbus St., 63 Montana St., Billings, 64 W. Alabama, 65 Oakland City
7/8/2017 3:42 PM
Everyone interested in DII come to Iba. Like Rupp but for DII, not DI.
7/8/2017 7:38 PM
Not a bad idea. It would be nice if nothing else we could get some quality coaches to help make a few conferences a little fuller.

Northern Sun Conference

This season, the conference is looking a little stronger than recent seasons. Whereas last season, there were no pre-season teams ranked, this year three teams have pre-season rankings. With lots changing in top conferences like the Peach Belt and Heartland, look for the Sun Belt to try to move up a level to try make a name for itself as one of the top 2-3 conferences, as the Northern Sun now has 7 coaches.

East Division

Concordia, St. Paul – It is fair to say, the transition and rebuild is over. The last couple of seasons, speespa overhauled the program changing the offensive system and the defensive system twice, while having a very young team, resulting in a PI bid two years ago and barely missing the PI last year, after an upset of 1-seed Minn-Duluth in the CT showed how good CUSP could be this year. Now, with only 2 seniors, the Golden Bears enter the season ranked #7. Having the 3rd overall team rating in D2 (645), speespa’s squad is athletic (65-7th), fast (59-4th, and good defensively (68-4th). Add to the formula effective perimeter scoring (51-15th) and ball handling (54-4th), and this will be an elite squad with deep NT potential and can be considered the pre-season favorites in the East. Look for junior SG George Hillyer (PE 92, BH 88) to key the Golden Bear offense, after averaging 14.9 pts/gm as a sophomore.

Minnesota, Duluth – In mrwiggles first season as coach of UMD, he led the team to a regular season conference title and a 10-seed in the NT. This season the Bulldogs bring back 5 seniors, but also have 5 freshmen, in what looks like a very promising recruiting class. Mixed with winnable games and coach coached human teams in non-con, mrwiggles should both be able to collect some wins and test his squad against strong teams before we reach conference play, and leave UMD in a good position to reach a 3rd consecutive NT. While the team looks like it will be effective scoring from the post (48) with the 20th ranked D2 team in that respect, look for senior SG James Zagrodnik to carry a lot of the load and spark the Bulldog offense, after scoring 17.7 pts/gm last season as a junior.

Northern St. – johnmacdan enters his third season as coach of Northern St., after seeing an 11-game improvement in his second season. This season still might have growing pains with only 4 upperclassmen and 6 freshmen. While overall team ratings are not elite at dominant levels, we are seeing a young team clearly on the rise, with 52 across the board in Athleticism, Speed, and Defense. Effective perimeter play and ball handling (both 48) should also keep the Wolves competitive. After testing themselves against Top 5 teams in exhibition games, Northern St. should be able to achieve success in non-con and will get a nice test against #15 Mesa St on Game8. At this point, it does look like Northern St. should be a lock for a PI bid, but as the young guys mature over the season they could make a run at an NT bid.

Minnesota St., Moorhead – gabby123 is in his 4th season with Minn St, Moorhead and has secured PI bids each of the last two seasons. What is interesting about this team is that overall rankings in key categories like Athleticism and defense don’t tell the whole story. Underclassmen with lower ratings are pulling down the averages, so this team likely will be stronger than they appear via the surface level ratings. The key will be how this strategy plays out with a guy like sophomore SG Stephen Fitzgibbon, where the Ath/Def is low (20/21) but he will be deadly from 3, with already an 86 rating entering his second season. The Dragons will have good scoring options both inside and outside. Senior SG John Taylor (PE 94, LP 60) will be the key player, after averaging 13.3 pts/gm last season.

West

Wayne St. – For a relative rebuild year last season when they entered the season unranked, jt’s squad made it to the 2nd round of the NT and finished ranked #19. This year they start the season ranked #20, but have the 2nd overall team rating in D2, so it is very likely they are again underrated. That said, they do have a very tough non-con schedule, playing 6 teams ranked #14 or better, including playing all 4 Final 4 teams from last season. The Wildcats will also represent the Northern Sun in the Yarnell this season. As always, jt has a squad with a strong defense and athleticism (both 66) that both are top 10 in D2. Where this team could get scary as the season progresses is through the ability to score with multiple options from the perimeter. Led by senior PG Edgar Craft and his 15.4 pts/gm as a junior, the Wildcats have 6 players with 75 perimeter ratings or higher and have the second overall team rating (60) in D2.

Minnesota St., Crookston - coachuk takes over a team that enters the season ranked #16 after winning 21 games and reaching the NT. The Golden Eagles have an interesting mix of players this season. While we wouldn’t consider core ratings like athleticism (42) and defense (51) as being where they need to be ranked 16, they are good in certain categories like speed (56) ranked 9th in D2 and REB (45) ranked 19 in D2. They also have some very effective players at their positions. For instance, senior PG Charles Lewis has ball handling of 97 and passing of 94. Senior PF Gerald Enoch has 83 Reb, 75 blk and 100 LP. Coachuk’s squad is a real unknown this season since they are not strong in certain core areas but clearly have some very talented players that can help them win tough games, and they do play five top 20 team in non-con. The Golden Eagles should reach the NT this season, and the question is whether they can challenge for a CT title and deep NT run or not.

New Mexico Highlands – After a recent long_ge’s successful run in conference play over the last 3 seasons, it will be tough to repeat. The Cowboys have finished the season ranked in the top 25 the last 7 seasons, and have a 57-game conference winning streak that will almost certainly end this season. After last season’s Sweet 16 that finished with an RPI ranking of #2, this seems like a major rebuild with no seniors. That said, this team does have 8 returning players from last year. A lot of how the Cowboys will fare this season will depend on how quickly the young guys develop and take on critical roles of last year’s seniors. Running the FB/FCP, NMHU still will have a fast team (62) ranked second in D2, and effective ball handling (53) ranked 9th. Stamina (76) and FT (C+) are not yet up to normal standards that the Cowboys need to be more elite.
7/8/2017 11:29 PM
The Yarnell will be detailed in its own thread, but I'll go ahead and provide the preview here. Note all previews, ratings, and rankings are based on the status in the preseason.

By the way, I know these world boards like Iba are not as accessible as in the past, so there are probably a good number of folks in Iba D2 who haven't been to the boards. I'll keep these previews up even if it gets kind of sparse here, but if anyone fro other conferences wants to contribute like the old days, I'd sure appreciate it.

This year’s participants, with preseason rankings are:
#1 Wisconsin, Parkside (GLV)
#3 N Florida (Peach Belt)
#11 Pfeiffer (CVAC)
# 20 Wayne St. (Northern Sun)
#27 W Florida (Heartland)
#39 Seattle (Great NW)

Wisconsin, Parkside – After earlier D2 stints at Grand Canyon and Seattle, in which the NT title was won in season 79, tcole23 is now in the 4th season coaching UWP. Already in a short stint, tcole has the Rangers contending, coming off a Final 4 appearance last season and ranked pre-season #1 this season. Bringing a veteran squad of 9 upperclassmen into the season, UWP will run a flex/man system that sports the highest overall ratings in D2 (680). Expect tcole to run a very balanced attack and get everyone involved, as only junior PG George Laymen averaged more than 10 pts (10.9 pts/gm) on a team that has nearly everyone returning. Look at a team here that does a lot of things quite well, with elite ratings in multiple categories. ATH (6th), REB (1st), DE (3rd), BLK (6th), LP (13th), PE (5th).

N. Florida – What is there to say that hasn’t been said? Having won 4 of the last 7 NT’s, you already know teamvip’s squad will be elite and hard for anyone to beat. This year, the Ospreys have a slightly younger team, with 5 upperclassmen, but the pre-season rank of #3 suggests that won’t matter much. What stands out is that UNF has the 2nd rated athleticism in D2 and the top-rated defense. The player to key in on will be 1st Team All-American Daniel Forsyth. Averaging over 17points last season, not only does he have a 100PE rating, but he also is athletic (80), fast (82), elite defensively (100), and can handle and pass the ball (74 & 82). While teamvip has plenty of other effective options to go to, expect to have to contain Forsyth if you want to beat N Florida, not to mention overcoming an elite team defense.

Pfeiffer – Returning to the Yarnell to represent the CVAC, zorzii’s Pfeiffer team comes into the season ranked 11th after a short rebuild that saw the Falcons squad into the NT as a 16th seed. This year, the team does not particular stand out in any one category, yet still has the overall 20th rated team. However, zorzii has individual contributors that are elite at their respective positions that overall ratings do not capture. Perhaps the best individual player in this year’s Yarnell is 1st Team All-American SF Bryon Rey, who averaged 23.7 points/game as a junior. With top-notch speed (86) even for a guard, Rey creates a lot of match-up issues for the defense as a small forward. Plus, he can rain down 3’s at a 40% clip with a 100 PE rating, or he can slash and cause foul problems by driving toward the basket (LP 86).

Wayne St. – Representing the Northern Sun and playing the role of host in place of NMHU this season is jtreeves72 and his Wayne St team. Since it is best to get elite teams into the Yarnell each season, jt’s team fits the bill much better than a rebuilding NMHU squad. Wayne St has received 32 straight NT bids, and most recently went to the Final 4 in season 85. While jt’s squad enters the season ranked 20, they usually start the season a little under-ranked, and they have the 2nd rated team in D2. While the Wildcats will bring a competitive squad to any game through 5th athleticism (66) and the 8th rated defense (66), it is the 2nd rated perimeter play that might cause the teams the most trouble. Having 6 players with a 75 or better PE rating, jt can move the ball around to various scoring options. If a team focuses on the outside too much, the team’s best player might be Honorable Mention All-American C Lawrence Allen with a 98 LP rating. Sr Edgar Craft (98SP, 72BH, 81PAS) also provides a lot of direction and leadership at the Point.

W. Florida - Representing the Heartland this season is cspangler’s W Florida. Entering the 9th season at W Florida, cspangler has gone to multiple Sweet 16’s and one elite 8. This season the Argonauts enter ranked just outside the top 25, at 27. The overall team rating would rank them 14th. A couple of things stand out. First, the freshmen on the team that have not yet developed might weigh on the overall ratings. For instance, the freshmen average 42.5 on defense and 40 in athleticism. To the extent cspangler can shorten the games and limit the freshmen minutes could determine how successful the Argonauts are in the Yarnell. The other factor that catches the eye is the post play, which ranks as the best in D2 (57). Led by 2nd Team All-American PF Daryl Crockett (LP 91), W Florida has several good options, like Luther Potter (LP 100) and John Spence (LP 90). Look for senior SG David Loya (PE 90) to carry a lot of the load as well. The halfcourt press/zone defense could also be an interesting system to see how it works in this tournament.

Seattle – To be fair, while this is a very good team, this probably wasn’t the best season for Seattle to be in the tournament in terms of the class structure, but they have been very good every season, even in years without a lot of seniors, and I really wanted to get them in the Yarnell (ranked 5th in the dynasty rankings). In the last 5 seasons, Seattle has two Sweet 16’s, one Elite 8, and one Final 4 (beating NMHU to get there). This year, the team has only one senior and 6 freshmen. In other recent seasons that they had more freshmen than seniors, davidcrone’s team made the S16 and E8. This season, look for George Jorgenson to play a major role, as he averaged over 10 pts/gm off the bench and shot at a 47% clip from the perimeter. Sr C Max Curtis, honorable mention All-American is also a well-rounded player that could cause some teams issues, with high athleticism, defense and rebounding, but is also a rare center with both post (70) and perimeter (54) ability.
7/12/2017 9:33 PM
The Sweet 16 has a collection of well known coaches. The NT is wide open.
8/11/2017 12:04 PM
GG hackerhog. That team will be nasty next year. Obviously a tough loss for me but as I didn't really build this team it's hard to complain too much.
8/12/2017 10:32 PM
Iba D2 Season 95 Topic

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