IWU 94 Albion 80

While Albion is not a very strong team this year, I was very impressed with the Titans yesterday. A few thoughts...

• 36-50 (.720) is a ridiculous shooting percentage. (The school record is .783 in a win over Elmhurst on February 2, 1990 - 36-46.) And it's not like the Titans were making layups -- they were knocking down 15-18 footers and 3-pointers at an amazing clip.
• It was nice to see the scoring balance...really nice. As I have said before, for this team to have any chance to contend in the CCIW, Zach Freeman needs consistent offensive help. The Titans need Andrew Freeman, Mike Harrigan, Andrew Gilmore, and Darius Gant to play with the offensive confidence and aggressiveness they played with yesterday.
• Brett Chamernik looked good. That was strongest I have seen him take the ball to the basket in a varsity situation. When Brett comes in for Z. Freeman, he needs to play that hard and look to score down low.
• Andrew Gilmore is a tough kid. His knees are absolutely killing him and he's out there playing as hard as he can.

After seeing 11 non-conference games, I believe this team can get right in the middle of the CCIW contention picture. There is a ton of parity in the league this year, with Augustana, Wheaton, Carthage, Elmhurst, and North Central all looking very strong, but I don't think there is one dominant team. If IWU's supporting cast gives Zach Freeman enough help, these guys can surprise people.

My goal for the Titans -- make the CCIW conference tounament. From there, anything can happen.

Happy New Year, Titans fans!