Maranatha Baptist Bible College has been riding under the radar for a while now. They are #6 in the power ratings, and personally I think they are way underrated. Maranatha took Kentucky Christian to the wire last year in the national title game, and the core of their team is back. What does Maranatha look like this season, and why are they not getting Laci Peterson involved more?
Maranatha has a stud player in Torey Delozier. She is unbelievably valuable to her team. Delozier is worth 8.05 wins this season according to our WIN SHARES statistic we explained in the Valley Forge post. She is hands down the MVP for the Maranatha’s team. She has a 134.71 Orating, which means if she was allowed 100 possessions in a game she would score 135 points… ridiculous. She is dominate on the glass rebounding 28.30% of her team’s shots. Delozier is a monster on the glass and helps her team have the second best defense in the country allowing 49.64 Points Adjusted. The big win for Marantha is not only is she this good, she is the most “used” player on Maranatha’s team.
What does that mean?
Usage Rate is how many times she touches the ball and is directly involved in the positive offensive possession for her team. She has a USG% of 15.45%. In other words, she is involved in 15.45% of her teams positive possessions on offense.
What am I getting at?
Maranatha uses Torey Delozier exactly as they should. They give her the ball as much as they can, and she produces more often than not, but here is the big question for this post: “Why do they not do the same with Laci Peterson?”
Here is a look at the MBBC USG% rate and and their WIN SHARES.
| Name | Yr. | Pos | GP | USG% | Win Shares |
| Torey DeLozier | Jr | F | 25 | 15.45% | 8.05 |
| Autumn Peotter | Jr | G | 25 | 14.15% | 5.05 |
| Hallie Nelson | Jr | G | 25 | 11.47% | 3.52 |
| Kristin Morrison | Jr | G | 25 | 11.39% | 4.30 |
| Laci Peterson | Fr | C | 24 | 11.05% | 6.38 |
| Erin Steuerwald | So | G | 25 | 10.79% | 0.54 |
| Heidi Fletcher | So | G | 25 | 10.44% | 0.43 |
| Adrianne Reynolds | Jr | F | 23 | 9.12% | 0.65 |
| Kelli Steward | Fr | F | 24 | 9.03% | 0.78 |
| Erin Hockman | Fr | F | 22 | 6.81% | 0.28 |
You can obviously see that their four juniors are comfortable playing with each other, and are massive parts to the Maranatha juggernaut, but what is amazing is that Laci Peterson has been the second best player for Marantha this season, but she has done most of her production without getting the offense ran through her.
There is a possibility that the stats are lying to us. Every statistic breaks down at the extremes, therefore it is possible that we are seeing something that is not really there. Let us know if this is not true, but if it is true, than I think the rest of the country should take note. Maranatha’s second best player is a freshman that still has not assimilated completely into the offense. There is a lot of room for this team to get even better.
Great article! A couple thoughts from a guy who has worked with this team a lot this season.
One, Laci played a year at Illinois Valley Central, so she is actually a sophomore.
Two, I don’t know that the offense runs “through” Torey as much as the amount of talent level and outside shooting ability, combined now with having Peterson to play the 5, allows DeLozier the ability to slash to the bucket, which is the strength of her game. Morrison, Peotter and Nelson are all good jump shooters, while Torey rarely takes a jumper, but drives much more often. Because of her quickness and jumping ability, she is a tough match up for most 4′s to try and guard. And if they bring defense, her court vision enables her to hit the open man on a kick-out or dump off pass to Peterson. Those are just my thoughts, but I am very familiar with the program and have been involved in practices as well as games and have done the online broadcast for every home game. Hopefully that is somewhat insightful.
It is crazy how many times you get a “thumbs down” on your comments.
It’s okay. I am pretty sure I know where they are coming from since it is almost always the same number of them. The best part is, I never get any reason for it and sometimes all I am doing is asking a question. It doesn’t bother me, though.
I too have seen Peterson and Maranatha play this season. They say that you can make statistics say anything you want, and in this case I do believe that is a small part of the story. What the USG% and win shares does not account for is the increased level of play by the Jr. class simply by having Peterson on the floor. The numbers produced by the “fantastic four” if you will, have directly benefitted from teams focus on Peterson. With that being said, I also agree in part with what this article says. Maranatha would be much better in both their conference and as a national title contender if 2 things were to happen.
1) As a team they need to make a conscious effort to get Peterson involved early, often, and then even a little bit more. Her presence and ability require that from the team.
2) Maybe the most important, Peterson must demand her involvement. It seems like Peterson’s soft spoken game stems from her soft spoken personality. If Coach Morrison can find a way to light a fire under her and convince her that a little Jekyll and Hyde is ok in the right setting, Peterson’s numbers and impact could jump tremendously making Maranatha a scary matchup for any team.
A couple weeks ago I made the comment that Laci Peterson was “undeniably” the best center in the MW Region and I was told I was using too strong of language because of Jessica Sikorski from Grace Bible. I think Peterson put an exclamation point on that statement today in the Regional Championship game. Jessica Sikorski was held scoreless by Peterson, with ALL of her points coming when Peterson was NOT on the floor. Grace as a team was held scoreless for the first 8.5 minutes of the game as MBBC held a 24-0 lead to start the game en route to an 81-39 victory.
Cole,
Interesting article. Just curious if you have seen the Lady Saders play this year? As you can probably figure from the name I am related to Laci, her dad actually. So before you read on, let me make it clear I agree 100% that Torey is a stud player and she has a TREMENDOUS amount of athleticism. Her value to the team is well above average. Also, I agree Laci could be more involved offensively.
I have watched LOTS of basketball over the years. Your stats are indeed insightful and thought provoking. I work with numbers and statistics everyday and in my spare time I love looking at basketball stats and trying to draw “conclusions” from what the numbers are telling us. With that said, if you consider Laci is averaging over 4 blocks and 6 defensive rebounds a game and you factor in the opponents shooting percentage you could gain some insight to how many “points she prevents”. Then you could look deeper at the stats and see when opponents are matched up against her they typically score well below their averages. Some of that is the blocking, ball pressure, and the fact she often denies the pass into the lane. In the NAC which has a lot of top athletes she dominated in block shots and had more than the number 2 and 3 girls combined. She has also hovered in the number 2-5 position in blocks per game in the nation of the DIII NCAA. If we just look at stats Laci leads in several other areas and since your article was slanted toward her needing to be more involved offensively we could focus on those. Then we would see her leading in points per game, free throw percentage, and right up at the top of the pack when she steps out beyond the 3 point arc.
What the stats don’t tell us is the TEAM dynamics. For instance Laci played on a team last year with one of the best female point gaurds I have ever watched play. There were several games where Laci and the gaurd combined for over 50 points a game. There were several other girls with well above average skills but they never gelled as a team. So the season ended with several girls who had GREAT stats, but they didn’t go far in the post season. So back to the TEAM. It was about 100 days ago that Coach Mo got some of his players on the basketball court for the first time this sesaon (or ever). Several of them including some seasoned starters, some of the number 6-12 players, and Laci were unable to start practicing until volleyball ended. They landed in Milwaukee on Monday afternoon, and that night were practicing together for the first time as a TEAM. Several days later they were off to Emmaus for their first game of the season. I was there for their second game of the season against Edgewood where it was clear the girls were learning their roles, trying to get their legs back in shape, and wondering what role Laci would play on the team. I can not compliment Coach Mo and his staff enough for what they accomplished in the past 100 days. Fast forward to today where they have created a team atmosphere, where the girls play unselfishly, and if you were there today to see EVERYONE score in the regional championship game and EVERY lady Sader cheering for their teammates on every postion you would know they have something special.
I have never coached at the college level but I have coached various sports (basketball, soccer, baseball, softball) for boys and girls from age 4 through age 18 so I feel like I understand and appreciate when a TEAM plays together. I also supervise a team of 12 supply chain analysts and industrial engineers where teamwork is critical.
As Clint pointed out in his last post, Laci stepped it up a notch today to show the Midwest Region how to play the POST. She missed the Grace game in December so this was the first match up between her and Sikorski. Laci could have scored fairly easily today on numerous postions but she kicked the ball out to gaurds who were TOTALLY open. Would her stats have been better if shot 20 shots today? Yes, would that have helped the team? I don’t think so. The stats could lead us to believe the Saders beat Grace by 10 in December (69-59) without Laci and today they beat them by 42 (81-39) with her so she made all the difference? The reality is the team feeds off the success of each other and they are not concerned with who is the MVP of the team. They are focused on playing TEAM basketball and working hard for each victory and doing their best to learn from each loss.
Midwest Observer, I agree with many points you make. For instance it is pretty easy to figure if a team has to double team Laci, then someone is going to be open. I don’t agree with your comment of “Peterson must demand her involvement”, as that does not promote teamwork. Coach Mo, his staff, and the 12 Lady Saders need to figure out what works for the TEAM and they seemed to have figured it out thus far without us “helping” them! : )
Finally whether they win another game this season or not please keep in mind the faith of these young ladies and their strong belief in using their God given talents to glorify the Lord! I find it very refreshing to see the girls (both teams) play their hearts out and fiercly compete for 40 minutes of basketball and then come together in a circle for a post game prayer.
Compassion is also a BIG bonus that comes throughout the season. For instance Laci was telling us at supper about talking with some of the Grace girls the other night. One of the girls on Grace had a very rough childhood and didn’t have many of the things Laci and some of her teammates took for granted growing up.
I look forward to any and all thoughts on my comments.
Hope everyone has a great weekend!
Mr. Peterson,
You have proven yourself a well-spoken, knowledgeable individual. Please allow me the luxury of clarifying my position. When I said that your daughter must demand her involvement, I did not intend to imply directly or indirectly that she needs to shoot/score more. Trust me, I am as much an advocate for team play as anyone. I in no way was intending for that to come across as a need for arrogance or self-glory on the part of Laci. Let me try to explain this better by using certain examples from games that I have seen this year.
1. Scoring: The lady crusaders have, on more than one occasion, gone through stretches on offense that would make many a basketball fan cringe. Turnovers, shots forced against the shot clock, poor shot selection, etc. During stretches such as these, I would love to see Laci go to the block, put her hand in the air and say as nicely as she can, “give me the ball right now”, then proceed to use one of her 3 highly successful post moves. In this situation, I do not see that as being selfish or detrimental to the team, but rather using her skill for the betterment of the team.
2. Passing: Another instance that I believe she could “demand her involvement” would be to utilize her passing ability. I’m sure you have noticed her desire to be unselfish. I’m sure you have also noticed that Maranatha at times can become extremely perimeter oriented. I’m going to assume that, with your coaching background that you mentioned, you would agree with many of the coaching greats that suggest one of the best times to shoot a 3 is after a kick out from the post. Sometimes when Laci knows the play is not for her, she will allow herself to get lost in the post. If she would demand that involvement, it would draw attention to her and free up her teammates for a more open and most likely a more successful attempt at goal.
3. Communicating: A final way I would like to see Laci demand her involvement is vocally. I don’t mean by simply calling out defensive rotations or calling out encouragement to teammates. Laci clearly has an understanding for the game and a knowledge that some players simply do not have. I would like to see her be more vocal with sharing her knowledge to teammates. There are times throughout the game that you can almost see Laci’s frustration due to a lack of understanding or knowledge. I would love for her to take that lead, which might be tough since she is the new one and a year younger than the 4 juniors. However, I think she has the potential to offer valuable insight to help her team improve. *I have seen her improve the most in this area since the beginning of the season. Hopeful for more to come
With those 3 things in mind, I think we would all agree that we would love to see Laci become more involved on the offensive side. And if she does, watch out….
Clint, Your statement was wrong a few weeks ago and it’s still wrong today. You cannot judge the better of two players based on one encounter. Sikorski “was held scoreless while Peterson was on the floor” because she was double teamed the entire time she was on the floor with Peterson. So the truth is she was held scoreless by Peterson plus one. Peterson could not do it alone. What Sikorski did manage to do was get Peterson into foul trouble, taken off the court there by allowing Sikorski to score 15 points in just over half a game…well on her way to yet another 20+point game. She did the same thing in a game against Kuyper a few years ago. They had held her nearly scoreless the first half (3 points) she came out the second half got three players fouled out of the game and finished with 37 points. Sikorski was voted Midwest Player of the year or MVP or whatever the award was by the midwest coaches for a reason. You can down play her stats all you want (which you HAVE to do if you are to believe Peterson is “undeniably” the best center in the midwest region) but they are what they are. I have a hard time believing a player is “undeniably” the best when there is not a single stat to back the claim up. Sikorski tops the stats in both scoring and rebounding….the bread and butter of post play and has been at or near the top all four years of college play. I did find that Peterson is at the top of the stats for blocking, but blocking is not “showing how to play the post”. Blocking is defense started too late. I agree with midwest observer. You have to want the ball. You have to have the drive to finish the play, the determination to get it done. Peterson looks to be an up and coming post player but I think I will side with the coaches on this one. You can go up against Marantha without an answer to Peterson, you simply cannot go up against Grace without an answer to Sikorski.
A couple of thoughts here. One, region award voting is based on region stats only. Here is the problem with that. Maranatha was clearly head and shoulders above every other team in the midwest region. Their average margin of victory in the NCCAA was in the vicinity of 34 points per game. How does this translate? Very simply. None of MBBC’s starters are going to put up “big numbers” in the NCCAA because Coach Morrison has too much class than to blast teams by keeping the starters in for their usually 30+ minutes. Laci Peterson down the stretch was averaging about 37 minutes per game. As to Peterson’s 3 fouls, 1 was definitely a foul, 1 was a bad call and the other could have gone either way. Sikorski also had 3 fouls in the first half, a stat you neglected to add. Also, as for Laci Peterson’s blocks, you made the comment that “Blocking is defense started too late.” While in some cases that may be true, in Peterson’s it is most certainly not. Come from behind blocks usually are defense started late. But I have watched nearly every Crusader game this season, and Laci Peterson’s blocks were from players trying to challenger her straight on and her blocking them face up (this happened to Sikorski twice btw). I never said Sikorski wasn’t good, but Peterson is just better. Yeah, Sikorski had more points, but there are 3 key factors for that…
1) Jessica Sikorski took 582 shots in 28 games (20.79 shots/game) and this doesn’t count times she is fouled, which means on AVERAGE she is shooting the ball about 25 times a game (not including free throws). The next closest person in NCCAA DII took 131 FEWER shots in THREE MORE games! Peterson took an average of 12.25 shots per game. So yes, Sikorski by all means SHOULD have more points than anyone else in the league because she took considerably more shots than anyone else. You have to keep that stat in perspective, not just look at number of points scored.
2) Maranatha has a balanced attack. On any given night, Morrison, Peotter, DeLozier, Nelson or Peterson could be in double figures, sometimes more than one of them.
3)In that case, MBBC is most likely quite a bit in the lead and again, Coach Morrison lets his starters rest in favor of giving everyone minutes as much as possible. Thus, again, Peterson is getting fewer minutes and taking considerably fewer shots (287 to be precise).
A couple of other thoughts. I will readily admit that Maranatha brought a weak side help defender for the lob pass to Sikorski. However, Peterson did an excellent job of denying a post entry pass. Yet, she still “demanded the ball” (which you were a proponent of) and it lead to several turnovers en route to Maranatha’s 23-0 deficit. Also, it is not as if it kept her from taking shots. She in fact was 0-5 to start the game. And she had plenty of 1-on-1 opportunities to score against Peterson and couldn’t. Not didn’t, but couldn’t. And if you want to say that the fact she scored zero with Laci on the floor is irrelevant, than we were watching different games. If you are indeed the BEST player in the region, why would you continue to force shots? There were two notable players for Grace that could have been wide open when a double team came – Kerri Rudd (who I felt was the most consistent player for Grace in the tournament) and Merrissa Pelletier, a freshman who played 39 minutes and contributed quite a bit for them and should have a good career with the Tigers. Also worth noting, she had 25 points against Moody – a team who played very poor defense, particularly Mitchell who Sikorski simply had to drive by from the FT line every time to score. But those 25 points came on 9-31 shooting. That is 29% against a bad defense (no offense, Moody). Nobody else on the team took more than 7 shots (Stephanie Miller was 5-7 from the field). Kerri Rudd had a double double with 14 points (on 5 FGA) and 14 rebounds. That is incredibly more efficient!
One of the things that has made Maranatha successful is their team concept and nobody “demanding” the ball. I have never seen a team with such a team concept as this. The result, 81-39 in the regional final.
I look back to one of the most dominant players in recent history – Allen Durham from your school (I’m guessing you’re a Grace fan and not just a Sikorski apologist). Durham didn’t always put up great numbers because so many times GBC was running teams out of the gym. But that doesn’t mean that because someone else scored more points they were a better player! He was undeniably the best player in the country. With Peterson it is similar (no, I am NOT comparing her to 3x champ Allen Durham). The similarity is that she a) is a team player who isn’t consumed with personal numbers and b) doesn’t always play a lot of minutes or take tons of shots. Laci also even shared rebounds with Torey DeLozier, a monster on the glass.
Look, I am not trying to slam Sikorski. She is a good player who has had a good career at Grace. Jessica, if you read this, please understand I mean you no disrespect.
Wow. You are wrong with just about everything you said. If you’re going to comment, please do so from an unbiased position. That way you will not confuse fiction for fact. Please note I am not trying to attack you, Bball Fan, but merely your position. Intelligent input is the foundation on which you can build your point. Your statement was filled with inaccuracies and an apparent lack of basketball knowledge. Looking forward to reading more educated posts soon.
Quick question, when’s the last time you’ve ever seen an MVP let their team lose by 42 points in a championship game? Thank you
That is a little harsh. Actually it’s a LOT harsh. If the championship game featured two evenly or even closely matched teams this would be a legit argument. But every coach, player and fan from the tournament who knows ANYTHING about basketball knows Maranatha is by FAR the best team in the region. Their average margin of victory in the nccaa is 34! You are basically asking the best player in Iran why he didn’t keep it close against the Dream Team (the real one with MJ Bird and Magic). It’s just not fair.
Blowout,
WAY too harsh! Clint makes some good points. I don’t know Jessica at all and I only saw her play once so I am in no position to judge her overall talent. I can see her stats which clearly shows she was beyond a KEY player in the Grace program and from the one game I saw her play she had drive and determination and NEVER gave up. More importantly she is someone’s daughter, friend, sibling, etc.
To put this in a different perspective, I would hate to read a post from someone blaming any individual Lady Sader for a loss whether it was a 1 point loss or a 40+ point loss.
Dear BBall Fan,
“Blocking is defense started too late”. Have you ever watched some of the great shot blockers? I would hate to be the one to tell Serge Ibaka or Dwight Howard they only blocks shots because they’re late on defense. Just to help you understand the art of shot blocking, I’ve provided a link for you, http://www.basketball-drills-and-tips.com/basketball-defense.html. Emeka Okafor demonstrates not only the importance of shot blocking, but how the altering of shots is just as critical.
I would also like to say that from what I’ve seen, the ladies of Maranatha are more concerned about being successful as a team rather than winning an individual MVP award. As someone mentioned above, these ladies don’t care who had the most points or the most rebounds, or who got the MVP award, they are just excited to be representing their school at the national tournament.
As for the MVP award, I will say one thing, MVPs will create plays no matter who’s guarding them or how many are guarding them. Creating plays doesn’t necessarily mean scoring. I can only think of one word to describe some of the great MVPs such as Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant, UNSTOPPABLE. So while Maranatha did not have the MVP wearing their colors, it appears they were UNSTOPPABLE in their 81-39 victory!
I wish the Saders the best of luck at the national tournament.
And one more thing, everyone wants to see Laci Peterson get more “aggressive” or “demand” more attention. All I have to say is if she does that, someone better look out because I think she could be UNSTOPPABLE!!
Good luck Saders!!
The implications in the comment above that Jessica is “consumed with personal numbers” and is not a “team player” is indeed disrespectful. Grace Bible is a small college and it looks like the coach doesn’t have the luxury of a bench full of players to use (less than half the size of most teams). It stands to reason the players on the team will take more shots simply because they are on the floor longer. It also appears that the coach likes to run the bulk of his plays through the post position. Does that mean Jessica (as the more experienced post player) is not a team player simply because she shoots more often? I don’t think so. She averaged 3.2 assists per game this season. With over 2500 points on the books (I know, it’s probably some twisted stat) we congratulate you Jessica on your awesome success.
I was not implying that she was consumed with personal numbers. I was merely pointing out that girls on Maranatha’s team are not that way and Maranatha is very balanced, which is WHY Peterson does not have some of those numbers. Also because she plays fewer minutes in the NCCAA. Thus, I believe Laci Peterson is a better center thank Sikorski. THAT is not a slight to Jessica, that is a statement of opinion, though the opnion is based on a good deal of FACT and watching BOTH players play on MULTIPLE occasions. I am going to go out on a limb and guess you have rarely, if ever, seen Laci Peterson play.
However, I do think that there were more than capable players for Grace this year that stepped up like Miller, Pelletier and Rudd. Allowing those players opportunities is only going to open up opportunities to get the ball to your best player because you have to respect the abilities of others. But when one player is taking 31 shots and the REST OF THE TEAM combine for less than that, you’re only making like harder on yourself.
I agree with what you are saying about Jessica taking more shots out of necessity than out of a desire for personal stats. My question is how does Grace struggle so mightily to have a full bench for the girls team when their guys team outnumbers most every other team? Is the recruiting not quite as intense for the girls program? Or are there just not as many co-op players for the girls?
Whew….lots of good reading and thoughts! I will try and address numerous posts & comments. First to circle back to the headline of this article “Laci Peterson needs to get more involved”. I think from the comments overall there is some agreement on this and recognition that Maranatha has some untapped team potential. As everyone knows that when it comes to post season it only takes one bad game and your season is either over or turns in a direction you never anticipated. So, with that said, hopefully the Lady Saders keep on winning!
First I would like to thank Cole for writing an insightful article that got readers attention. From the comments it is clear a sidebar ensued about “who” was really the MVP of the Midwest Region. That is an easy answer, it was Jessica Sikorski, and I congratulate her on the award. I am sure we could find several girls that were contenders for this award and show statistics and logical reasons why someone else was deserving of being MVP. I would also like to commend the Grace team for playing 40 minutes of tough ball and never giving up. They were playing for a third straight day and when you have a roster of 7 girls it is obvious that no one really gets a chance to rest.
So now to address BBall fan. Just curious why you don’t post your name with your comments? I think we are all intuitive enough to realize if you are on this website and commenting on this post you are a “BBall fans”. With that said, I think Kristy Wolfe gave you some insight into basketball strategy and blocking shots specifically. I would like to read your thoughts after watching the link she sent you? As it was pointed out Laci consistently blocks straight on and it is not an act of desperation as she is beat to the basket. Since you are a BBall fan I assume you have watched a Baylor game or two? I see some awesome shot blocking there! I could give you additional stats on games Laci played showing their post players were held well below their average points per game. If you watched the game I like you to elaborate on your comment it was “Peterson plus one”. I was at the game, watched it VERY closely, and for the most part it was a 1-on-1 match-up that Laci dominated. I took over 500 pictures at the game and I have 1 picture where Laci got some weak side help and about 50 where she had things totally under control herself. Laci showed she could shoot the three (twice just to prove the first one was not a fluke), she posted up and made baskets, and drove the lane. For the stats it is clear that Jessica led in several and I don’t believe her high scoring was a result of trying to make her stats better, rather it was a direct result of having a roster of 7 girls and not all of them could consistently score in double digits. Also, it is obvious with a roster of 7 you are likely going to play a lot more minutes than a team with a roster of 10+ girls. I think most readers would agree overall Maranatha played a much tougher schedule than Grace which likely means overall Grace would have better stats. For instance when it comes to rebounding we could dig deeper into stats and compile some additional data. For instance find a game where Grace and their opponent each put up 50 shots and only shot 30%. Assume a Maranatha game also had 100 shots but the shooting percentage was 50%. Grace had 20 more opportunities in that single game to rebound. You could also break it down to minutes played, etc. and find some very interesting trends. Your last comment shows you do not know the dynamics of the Lady Saders and how they approach the game. I would contend it was clear they not only lacked an answer for Peterson, they lacked an answer for the Saders overall! I will go on record again stating that Laci could indeed step up more often (gets us back to the article that started all this..).
Clint, I find your passion for Maranatha inspiring and appreciate the time you put into the program! You were indeed 100% spot on indicating Laci’s third foul was in NO way a foul. I think anyone watching (I know for a fact one official was even surprised by the call) would agree there was no question it was not foul. I have watched enough ball to know sometimes you get the call and sometimes you are left wondering what just happened. I would maintain that Jessica’s third foul was also not a foul and could have gone either way. Her fifth foul was clearly a foul but I thought it was a bit of a weak call as it happened at midcourt and she was trying to slow down and avoid a point guard slowing down in front of her. To give you a little more insight to Laci and the person she is, she wants to win 100% of the games she plays and she is fiercley competitive. When the game is over though it is over and her comment about Jessica fouling out was, “I felt bad for her having to sit on the bench with 5 fouls in the last game of her college career”.
Also a BBall fan, I think I already addressed your comments earlier but just to make it clear, I also congratulate Jessica on a successful career. The roster of 7 speaks for itself in terms of numbers and the pressure that was put on her to score. Again, I mean no disrespect to the Grace program or any Midwest Region school, but Laci is blessed to be surrounded with talented players and an excellent coaching staff.
To reiterate the TEAM concept I think the following article speaks for itself?
WATERTOWN, Wis. – The men’s and women’s basketball teams each had individuals honored with All-Region, Scholar-Athlete Awards and Coach of the Year Awards in the NCCAAII Midwest Region.
Women’s Coach, Clayton Morrison received the Region’s Coach of the Year Award after guiding Maranatha to a 16-11 record, and a Midwest Region Championship.
Morrison also led the team to a school record seven wins in the Northern Athletics Conference, double the previous record of three since joining the Conference.
Junior forward Torey DeLozier, sophomore center Laci Peterson, guards Autumn Peotter and Kristin Morrison were all selected to the All-Region Team.
Of the four, DeLozier and Peterson are eligible for the All-American Award, an honor reserved for the top-five players with the most votes in the Region.
DeLozier led the conference with a 57 FG% while averaging 11.8 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game. Peterson led the team in scoring (12.9 ppg.), rebounding (8.6) and blocks per game (4.1).
Peterson ranked 4th in the NAC in rebounding and 6th in all of the NCAAIII for blocks per game out of 300 ranked players.
Junior guard Hallie Nelson also received Honorable Mention.
I am going to comment on these posts more fully later (when I am not at work dodging co-workers wandering eyes), but I feel it is important to note something right away without waiting. Keep in mind I am at work and therefore unable to put any exact statistics behind my current claims, but these are merely just thoughts.
1. Did Jessica deserve to be named the MVP of the midwest region? YES. (please notice the period, meaning, the end, that’s all, no further comment needed)
2. Could the MVP have gone to Peterson, or Delozier, or maybe even some other player not immediately thought of? Yes. (please notice the period, but also on the Y is capitalized in this answer)
With those two thoughts in mind, let’s end all of the non-sense about who is the better player, Sikorski or Peterson. The fact is you could not know this unless you let each player play a full season for their team, then switch rosters, allow time to familiarize, and play another full season. Laci has done a great job stepping in and leading the Saders in many areas. Jessica has done a great job leading her team for years. They are both very good players and trying to help their teams as best they can.
Simply put, if Jessica played for Maranatha or Laci for Grace, it would not be unrealistic for their numbers to change. Grace needs Jessica to be their go to player and score night in and night out. Maranatha, because of their depth, simply does not need Laci to average 20 shots or 25 points per game to be successful.
Michael Jordan, whom I believe was referenced earlier in discussions, could actually put to rest all conversations. You see, MJ averaged 33.4 ppg in the playoffs and 30.1 ppg in regular season play. Compare that with the 20.1 ppg he averaged when playing in all star games. In my opinion, I would likely compare Jessica to MJ with the Bulls and Laci to MJ in the all star games. Are either one of those any less “great”? I would argue no. All star MJ averaged less minutes and less points because the talent around him was greater, as slight as it may have been (I was a huge bulls fan), than the talent around him on the bulls. So who’s better/more MVP deserving? All star MJ or bulls MJ? Laci or Jessica? Superman or Captain America? I would suggest that decision shouldn’t be made and can’t be made. Jessica was named Midwest Region MVP, congratulations, she had a great season/career and deserved it. Maybe Laci’s senior season will show that she will get the nod over an also deserving “young gun” from a different team. Only time will tell.
I would like to address a couple of thoughts articulated by Midwest Observer. First of all, I cannot believe my good friend Michael Jordan, the greatest player to ever play the game is being mentioned as a comparison to women’s Christian college basketball!! His Airness, in my opinion shouldn’t even be compared to King James or Kobe Bryant, but anyway….since we are gonna pull MJ down to a comparison at this level, I will try and demontrate where I think the analogy breaks down.
When you watched Michael play the game, you never thought to yourself, “Wow, this guys is the best player in the league?” It was undeniable. Nobody was as good as Jordan. Period. However, there were a couple seasons during our second 3-peat that Karl Malone was named league MVP. Did he put up numbers that were good enough to be MVP numbers? Yes. Was he the best player in the NBA? No. But the league didn’t want to give MJ the MVP every season from 91-98 (including the two years he was retired, yet still the best player in the world). So, they found a player who put up great numbers, was a leader on the team and said you are the reason for your team’s success, here is the MVP. This is how I view Sikorski. And I think that is where people struggle. They aren’t trying to take her personal stats and accomplishments away. But I did happen to watch EVERY SECOND of EVERY GAME at the MW Region. So, I understand VanDyne’s frustration with the best player in the league going 9-31 from the field and looking very frustrated in her match up against Peterson, especially when you look at the other players. Going back to the Malone analogy, he had Stockton who was not a real accomplished scorer but could facilitate. Grace had a good point guard who could do similar things with Naomi Walker. Then Malone had outside shooters – Hornecek. For Grace, that was Stephanie Miller, a player who proved that left open from three was a big threat to score. Then you had role players – Ostertag. This is where I see Kerri Rudd. She did the dirty work, picked up rebounds, defended well and could score if needed. Another role player was Russel. I would liken him to Merrissa Pelletier, a great young talent who gave you yet another scoring option. But what made Malone great was involving his teammates and knowing when to “deliver the mail” himself or let somebody else knock down shots.
The point is this. You CAN compare two people in a head to head match up. This match up favored Peterson. No disrespect, it just did. This year’s Crusader team is much like my 72-10 team. They just gel and play well together and it is hard for teams to beat them.
But please, don’t compare anybody to my man, MJ. Because with Michael, NOBODY every questioned whether he deserved an MVP.
I could say more, but I am subbing as a ref in city league for an old buddy name Jerry….none of you would know him.
Thank you, Scottie. Most insightful.
Midwest Oberver,
WELL written! : )
A few more comments.
Midwest Observer thanks for clarifying. Now to your three well written points:
1. Scoring – AMEN!!! I cringed and nearly shed a few tears once.
2. Passing – PRAISE the LORD!
3. Communication – BLESS you for speaking (writing) the truth!
Scottie, most insightful indeed. I am also gald to see you have brushed up on your grammar since I last heard you speak! Do you ever hear from that crazy rebounder Dennis Rodman? : )
Clint, hope to see you in OH next week!
I am trying really hard to find a ride down and place to stay because I really want to go! Was hoping to travel down with the team but it didn’t work out. Hopefully I’ll figure something out!
My thoughts in the MVP debate is this…remove Sikorski from Grace Bible, they probably do not win a game. Remove Peterson from Natha, they still win. Laci may be the better play, however sikorski had “undeniably” biggest impact for her team, thus solidifying her MVP status. I am not saying that to take away from the balanced Natha squad. It is simply truth for this season. Look ahead one season and peterson probabaly wins this award and there is nothing wrong with that. She is deserving of the award but siply not more than Sikorski. MVP is most valuable player. Sikorski brings the MOST VALUE to her team!
Just another perspective from an unbiased source!
I understand your point. Remember a couple things though. One, this isn’t a team MVP award. Yeah, she is the MVP of Grace Bible no doubt. But to win Midwest Player of the Year means you are considered the BEST player in the REGION. Again, I’m not trying to just keep throwing her under the bus, just reminding us to keep in mind what the award is. I don’t think Peterson is the Player of the Year in the Region for what it’s worth. I’m not even sure I would say she is the TEAM MVP. Personally, in my mind that is DeLozier.
My only other thought is this – I think to act like Sikorski is the only good player on the Grace Tigers, thus HAD TO carry the team is not fair to the other girls on the team. As has been pointed out several times by myself and even Pippen, there are good players on that team. To say they don’t win a game without Sikorski is crazy. They are better than several teams they played this year. Consider the following victories – Great Lakes by 52, Crossroads by 69, Crown by 23, Emmaus by 20, Crossroads again by 58, Lincoln by 21, Kuyper by 25, Great Lakes again by 38, Lincoln again by 33, Kuyper by 23, Kuyper by 38. That is TEN games (over half of their 19 wins) that I believe they could have won without Sikorski. Kerri Rudd had 23 points in the ACCA tournament in Joplin yesterday. Sikorski was 2-15 from the field in that game. So, in arguably the biggest game of the season, they won in spite of her (I understand this is not the norm, my point is just that there are more than capable players on this team than people care to admit). After the game, Coach Renzema had this to say – “We showed tonight we are more than just a one person team. We didn’t play our best by a long shot, but we the girls really stepped up and made one more play than our opponent.”
Jessica Sikorski – great player. Best player on her team. End of story. But don’t act like she is the best player because nobody else on that team is any good. Personally, I look forward to seeing what Merrissa Pelletier does in her next 3 seasons there!
My apologies. A bit too much sarcasm I used with saying “they dont win a game”. Obviously they would win, but not as many. I do hope however that Grace’s recruiting class is good because they do lose a lot this year. It wll also be good fr the region too.