November 11, 2004
MCRHL Travels to Columbus November 13-14
Twenty-three games are on the MCRHL docket this coming weekend, most of them regular season games, and all but one in Grandview Heights, Ohio, near Columbus.
The
biggest game of the weekend with both national and regional
implications is probably the game Saturday at 5:00, when Western
Michigan, the 14th ranked team in the country, hosts
Michigan State, the second ranked team nationally. Ken Jung,
currently the leading scorer in the country with 25 points (averaging 5
points per game), will lead the Spartans into the game with a 5-0
record, while Western Michigan has spread out their scoring on their
way to a 3-0 record. The winner of this matchup will have an
early upper hand in the fight for first place.
When
you talk about the Columbus area though, you have to talk about Ohio
State, and the 2-1 Buckeyes will play four league games close to home,
including one against in state rival Miami, who has come out as a very
competitive team in the early season. A lot more should be
learned about both of these teams, as Miami will also play four regular
season games this weekend.
Michigan
and Illinois will be two other teams to keep an eye on this weekend, as
this weekend will set the course for the rest of the season, especially
in Illnois? case. The Fighting Illini have played six league
games resulting in a 1-5 record, but have shown much improvement, have
had the toughest schedule in the league, and have pulled out a win
against Michigan already. That season series will finish with a
game on Saturday at 2:15. After only two league games, it?s
unclear where Michigan will move in the standings this year, but four
games this weekend should help.
In
the Development Division, with the shorter league schedule of only 12
games, things are already shaking out a bit. Michigan B, who has
started the season at 1-2, has three big league games, which will be
important to them to keep them from falling out of reach of the top of
their conference early in the year. Ohio State B will be playing
their first games of the season, and in the conference with Michigan B,
and two teams ranked fourth and sixth nationally among B teams, they
will need a strong performance to put themselves in position to make
the playoffs. The University of Dayton will also be making their
first appearance of the season, and will look to get off to a
competitive start to contend for a conference title with Michigan Tech
and Northern Illinois.
For scores and standings updates, check MCRHL.com early next week, and check NCRHA.com always for national news and updates.