Game Date: Mar 13th, 2038

Ripon

Team: Ripon Red Hawks [ID #812]

Location: Ripon, WI (Midwest)

Conference: I.1 [Division 1]

President: purple3594
          [since March 28th 2020 | last seen April 25th 2024]

Coach: Arnie McDermott

Arena: Willmore Center

Rating: 485.24 - Overall Position: #7

Fan Mood: 117.62

Alumni Mood: 228.80

Prestige: 186

Team Notes:

• Nov 18 2037: 3-star prospect Desmond Maxwell committed.
• Nov 04 2037: 3-star prospect Duane Murphy committed.
• Sep 03 2037: Harley Brambilla was hired as the new assistant coach.
• Sep 03 2037: Assistant coach Ethan Ragan leaves to pursue head coaching opportunities.
• Mar 15 2037: Made the national tournament field.
• Feb 12 2037: 3-star prospect Mark Jean committed.
• Dec 13 2036: 3-star prospect Kyle Whithters committed.
• Dec 04 2036: 3-star prospect Lewis Martini committed.
• Nov 05 2036: 3-star prospect Travis Hamilton committed.
• Aug 28 2036: Promoted to conference I.1.

Record:

Wins: 23 Losses: 18 Pct: .561     Conf Wins: 18 Conf Losses: 12 Conf Pct: .600 Conf Rank: 4     Last10: 4-6 Streak: L1

Pts Ave: 79.9 - 71.9     Pts Diff: +8.1     Team Power Index: 149.0

Press Releases:

Apr 02 2035: 2035 Season Recap - by purple3594 on November 16th, 2023

Super Seniors
Back-to-back sub-par recruiting classes inevitably resulted in consecutive demotions. The silver lining: those lost classes meant tons of playing time for the 2030 recruiting class. In their last two years, Lamonte Wynn and Ike Callaway advanced Ripon to S16 twice, returned it to LL2, and became program all-timers. Career ranks:

Wynn:
1st assists
4th minutes
4th steals

Callaway, 3 contacts:
1st minutes
1st steals
1st 3pm
3rd points
33.9 o3%
39.4 3%

Defensive Minded
Conference opponents registered lowest efg (48.8), scored least pitp (31.5), second least 3pm (6.7) and 3% (32.4) on ~79 possessions. Toni Olivera led the defense with a conference 42.8 oefg at c (!!).

Andrew Merrill Rising
A 7-man rotation emerged with Merrill as the lead pf after 14-pot Phil Knepper's late-season injury. As a starter, Merrill was 11-1, including 6-0 in final 6 must-win regular season games to secure promotion. At 21.7 conference minutes, his Freshman of the Year award came as a pleasant surprise, but was well-earned for the cornerstone big man.

Spread the Floor
Next year, who's spacing the floor? Season 3% for returning guards: Bret Scully (32.6), Joe Powell (28.7), and Knepper (17.4). Shooting will dictate the team's ceiling.


Oct 17 2026: 2026 Ripon Year in Review - by purple3594 on July 6th, 2022

Recap: In Coach Tom Rinaldi’s final season, the Red Hawks won its final regular season game to place tenth and survive relegation. Two draftees, Scott Cranford (10, Magic) and Jimmy Sala (28, Pacers), graduate having overseen the program through two promotions. The 22nd ranked four-man recruiting class hopes to keep Ripon in LL2 as new head man Arnie McDermott starts his rebuild.

Overall:
50.6 efg / 52.9 oefg

Superlatives:

MOP: Jimmy Sala (11.7 ppg, 9.9 rpg, 1.6 bpg, 53.9 efg, 47.4 oefg)
Finally a clear cut starter in the frontcourt, Sala cleaned the glass and defended his position well. With an excellent frame, efficient shot, and untapped potential, Sala played his way into the first round.

Rookie: Cristian Lozano (9 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 1.4 bpg, 57.8 efg, 50.7 oefg)
The 10 pot redshirt freshman became a mainstay in the frontcourt; he started 26 games. The 7+ footer had the best net efg on the team. He’ll battle to keep his starting spot next year.

Breakout (predicted): Larry Blair (4.1 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 50.4 efg, 57.4 oefg)
After an underwhelming freshman campaign, Blair’s enjoyed an exceptional preseason. He scored 28 and 27 points in two potg performances. With Sala off to the pros, Blair will compete with holdovers Jordan Fontana and Lozano as well as upstart freshmen for the starting job; he has the inside track right now.

Ahead: Less Rinaldi, Cranford, and Sala, it’s a new chapter in Ripon. With the 11th best preseason conference TPI, McDermott must balance surviving relegation and developing the kids. Interesting choices ahead.

PB’s:
Manager Ranking: 54

Grade: C


Mar 31 2025: 2025 Ripon Year in Review - by purple3594 on May 5th, 2022

Recap: After claiming its second promotion and conference playoff title in as many years, Ripon’s most talented team capped off a remarkable season with an Elite 8 run. All-conference Scott Cranford will lead the Red Hawks in its first ever LL2 campaign.

Overall:
Offense 55.8 efg%, 1.03 PPP;
Defense 47.8 oefg%, 0.83 oPPP
Led conference in PPP, fg% and steals

Superlatives:

MOP: Tyrod Hornsby. Although Cranford posted outstanding numbers (19.6 ppg, 5 apg, +13 net efg), undersized center Hornsby controlled the paint on both ends scoring on 61.9 percent of his twos and only conceding 41.5 percent of those shots on defense. He tallied 14.9 ppg and 9.2 rpg to dictate the Red Hawks inside/out attack.

Rookie: Eddie Uchikawa. The 10 pot redshirt freshman was originally characterized as “playable depth” but he eventually asserted himself as the team’s preferred starting SG. On a team starved for outside shooting, Uchikawa averaged 1.6 3PM on 35.9%. He also paced the team in steals at 2 per.

Recruit: Larry Blair. Although one-time five star Rhett Earl hopes to find footing as the marksman this team craves, Blair gets the nod with frontcourt starters Bill Anderson and Hornsby graduating.

Breakout (predicted): Jimmy Sala. In the S16 and E8 games, Rodger Brandt scored 22 and 21, respectively – an expanded role for Brandt raises this team’s ceiling. But, next year’s projected C Sala also delivered in an expanded role in the tourney averaging 7 rpg, 2.3 bpg, and 28% o2fg. Has Coach Rinaldi finally figured out how to use these two? They played well under pressure.

Ahead: Backcourt continuity, frontcourt turnover. The recipe for next year’s team may need tweaking, but backcourt experience and talent should keep Ripon in contention. Next year’s starting TPI (as of Dev 15): 147.4

PB’s:
Manager Ranking: 56
Final Team Ranking: 15
Final TPI: 157.7

Grade: A



Apr 01 2024: 2024 Ripon Year in Review - by purple3594 on March 10th, 2022

Recap: After seven years in IV.5, Ripon’s best-ever team won a pair of trophies and will return to LL3 for the first time since 2009. On the back of that strong conference showing, the Red Hawks earned its first-ever bid into the D1 tournament as a 2 seed, but it fell short in the first round against perennial power Tennessee. A strong core returns next year hungry to challenge for trophies and to advance deeper into March.

Overall:
Offense 56.3 efg%, 1.04 PPP;
Defense 49.2 oefg%, 0.84 oPPP
Net +7.1 efg, +.2 PPP
Led conference in efficiency markers (fg%, 3fg%, efg%, PPP, oPPP) and steals

Backcourt:
Scott Cranford, 15.4 ppg, 3.4 apg, 1.4 spg (+9.6 net efg)
Walt Bruno, 7.8 ppg, 4.8 apg, 1.5 spg (+9.5)
Rodger Brandt, 8ppg, 2.6 apg, 1.1 spg (+2.2)

Cranford emerged toward the end of the year, earning potg honors in all four conference tournament games. His climb has been steady; from sixth man to starting shooting guard, and he figures to be the team’s centerpiece moving forward. Beside him, Bruno steadily manned the point with strong efficiency numbers, but a lack of counting stats from the marquee position might force coach Rinaldi to push him off the ball next year. If Bruno lands at SF, Brandt will have his chance.

Frontcourt:
Paul Hodge, 17.4 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2 spg (+19.7!)
Tyrod Hornsby, 13.1 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 1.4 spg, 1.4 bpg (+9.4)
Bill Anderson, 9.6 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 1.4 spg (+5.1)
Nick Rucker, 10 ppg, 4.1 rpg (+8.7)
Jordan Fontana, 7.1 ppg, 4.5 rpg (+5.3)
Jimmy Sala(-7.4)

Hodge was a 3&D ace this year. In addition to leading the conference in steals and +/-, the 2-time all-conference was top five in points, 3pm, 3p%, and potg. Historically, no Ripon player has swiped more in a year than Hodge in 2024. He rounds out his career fourth in steals and ninth in points. Fellow senior, Nick Rucker, the school’s most efficient three point shooter in history, graduates, too. Still, four post players return including Hornsby who started every game. Anderson and Fontana complement Hornsby well, and a jumbo lineup of all three could be in the cards, as well.

Recruiting:
RS Eddie Uchikawa, SF, 102, 10 Pot
RS Benny Slack, C, 102, 10 Pot
#177 Brett Pavone, PG, 116 SI, 12 Pot
Cristian Lozano, C, 97 SI, 10 Pot

With Bruno’s potential swap to SF, Uchikawa becomes important playable depth, particularly at shooting guard. If his physical traits translate and his rise mimics Hodge, the Red Hawks would be thrilled. Slack and Lozano should have more time to develop; Hornsby and Anderson will be seniors next year. Point-of-the-future Pavone is poised to redshirt.

Ahead: Hodge is a massive loss, no doubt about it, but next year’s team is supposed to be better. We’ll see.

PB’s:
Manager Ranking: 93
Final Team Ranking: 25
Final TPI: 155.9
RPI: 5 (.614)

Grade: A, simply for promoting out of Groundhog Day



Apr 03 2023: 2023 Ripon Year in Review - by purple3594 on January 13th, 2022

Preseason Expectations
For the first time in school history, Ripon opened the year with a 140+ TPI. Still, a tough promotion battle loomed as five other IV.5 schools sat above the Red Hawks in the TPI standings.

Conference Result
Projected 6th; Finished 6th.

Notable
-The team topped the league in 3p% for the second straight year.
-Willie Tyler led the conference in assists (7.6 apg). He graduates as the top assist man in school history (808).
-All-Conference Paul Hodge ranked fifth in scoring (17.4 ppg) and third from distance (43.9 3fg%).
-In addition to Tyler (41 GS), former Freshman of the Year, Carmelo Amador (40), will graduate.

Recruiting
-Following its most impressive recruiting haul in program history, Coach Tom Rinaldi whiffed on his top targets. After a grueling two year battle, No. 1 Gordon Watkins spurned the in-state Red Hawks for national runner up Western Michigan.
-Rinaldi quickly pivoted to out-of-state Harvey Buchanan, but it was only a short flirtation before he called it for conference foe, College of Charleston.
-Top targets off the board, Ripon mined Benny Slack out of Illinois. He projects as a big man at the next level, but the Red Hawks certainly hope he sprouts in the next year or two to reach his potential.
-New Yorker Eddie Uchikawa also pledged. An absolute specimen, the team aims to develop him in the mold of Hodge.
-Former no. 35 Rodger Brandt and no. 491 big man Jordan Fontana look to carve roles coming off their redshirt seasons.

Season Grade
The boys placed right where they were pegged: C.

Looking Forward
While graduating a starting PG and C typically means a regression, there are plenty of capable players eyeing the vacated playing time. After all, next year's iteration will have the program's highest ever starting TPI.



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