Hollingsworth Garners Conference Player of the Week Honors

Noel Hollingsworth shoots a free-throw against RPI on Saturday, dominating the game with 28 points and 15 rebounds (Pic: Shri Ganeshram)

Preseason 1st-Team All-American Noel Hollingsworth earned the NEWMAC's first Player of the Week award this season after a stellar opening to his junior campaign (Hollingsworth is a senior academically but a junior eligibility wise).  The former Conference Player of the Year averaged 22 points and 10 rebounds over the last week, as the #10 Engineers went undefeated in their three games.

The 6'9" center from Utah is an Electrical Engineering and Computer Science major at MIT, and plans on staying another season to earn his master's and use his final year of eligibility.

#10 MIT Wins "Battle of the Engineers"

The #10 MIT Engineers dominated visiting RPI Engineers 104-75 this afternoon in Rockwell Cage. After a slow start, Tech would go on to score their most points in a game in 20 years. RPI, a 17-8 team last season, pressured MIT throughout the game, but couldn't keep up with Tech's 60 points inside the paint.

6'8" Northeast All-Region big-man Will Tashman is averaging 15 ppg and 10 rpg through three games (Pic: Shri Ganeshram)

MIT had three players score over twenty points, including All-American Noel Hollingsworth with 28 points and 15 rebounds on 12-of-14 shooting. Senior Billy Bender tied a career-high of 24 points, along with 5 rebounds and 5 assists, and All-Region performer Will Tashman dropped in 23 points and 10 rebounds for his second double-double of the season.

Two-time All-Conference selection and former Northeast Region Rookie of the Year Mitchell Kates runs the show (Pic: Shri Ganeshram)

Mitchell Kates led the way at point again dishing out 9 assists with 3 steals, and sharp-shooter Jamie Karraker netted 12 points in just 18 minutes.  MIT out-rebounded RPI by 22 as they move to 3-0 on the season.

Head Coach Larry Anderson in his 17th season at MIT (Pic: Shri Ganeshram)

Tech next travels across the river to Emmanuel College on Tuesday for 7:00pm EST tip-off.

#10 MIT Takes Down Gordon 70-38

The nationally ranked #10 MIT Men's Basketball team took down Gordon College last night in Rockwell Cage 70-38. Tech handled Gordon, conference champions and an NCAA tournament team two years ago, both inside and out, as the Engineers shot 50% from three and 51% from the field to move to 2-0 on the season.

MIT's stifling defense held Gordon to just 14 first-half points (Photo: Shri Ganeshram)

Preseason 1st Team All-American Noel Hollingsworth poured in a game-high 15 points along with 5 boards, 2 assists, and 2 blocks in 23 minutes of action, while fellow All-Region big-man Will Tashman added 9 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assist, 3 steals and a block.

Head Coach Larry Anderson, looking for his fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance  (Photo: Shri Ganeshram)

All-Conference point guard Mitchell Kates added 10 points, 4 steals, and 3 assists in 21 minutes, as he shared time with freshman Paul Dawson, who swarmed Gordon's point guards the length of the court. Billy Bender, Dan Mccue, and Will Dickson added 9, 7, and 6 points respectively.

6'8" freshman Andrew Acker posts up as 6'8" Will Dickson and 6'7" Dennis Levene get in position  (Photo: Shri Ganeshram)

Tech held Gordon to 30% shooting on the night and 0% from three, while out-rebounding their oppnent 35-26. MIT takes on RPI in the "Battle of the Engineers" this Saturday at 2pm in Rockwell Cage.

Bill Johnson signs with Professional Club in Costa Rica

From the official MIT Basketball Website

Former MIT men's basketball player and current assistant coach, Bill Johnson, recently signed a contract to play with ARBA-San Ramon, of the Costa Rican professional league, Liga Superior de Baloncesto. Johnson was also member of the Class of 2005 at Kamiak High School in Mukilteo, Wash., where he was a standout on the school's basketball team.

Johnson '10 joined the coaching staff at MIT following one of the most successful careers in Institute history. The two-time captain, who was part of three 20-win seasons, finished his career as the all-time wins leader in MIT history, the 23rd player to reach the 1,000-point milestone, and finished in the top 10 all-time in three-point percentage, free throw percentage, and blocked shots. Johnson was two-time conference Player of the Week, a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) All-Conference selection, and earned a spot in the NEBCA Division III All-Star Game in 2010. His 40 points versus Clark University on February 18, 2009 sits behind Jimmy Bartolotta '09 and David Koch '62 as the 3rd highest point total in a game in Institute history.

During Johnson's first season on the bench, the Cardinal and Gray recorded a third-straight 20-win season and captured its second NEWMAC title in three years. The Engineers advanced to the NCAA Division III tournament for the third year in a row, defeating Ithaca College in the first round and coming just one game short of the National Sweet 16.

Johnson graduated MIT with a degree in Management Science with a concentration in Finance, a degree in Political Science with a concentration in International Studies, as well as minors in Economics and Theater.

At Kamiak, Johnson was a team captain for the 2004-2005 Knights, along with All-WESCO selection Sean Hermes and former Montana State quarterback Mark Iddins, while helping lead the Mukilteo school to its first and only WESCO 4A Conference Championship and first State Playoff appearance in the school's history.

Johnson takes his talents to San Ramon, COSTA RICA, where he will help ARBA-San Ramon try to capture its first LBS Championship in team history. He also will be working with a non-profit organization, "Beyond Study Abroad," which connects college athletes with disadvantaged communities in the region.

Shaq on the City of Boston...

Celebrations Highlight Big Weekend

It was an eventful and memorable weekend for MIT and MIT Basketball, highlighted by the MIT Basketball Excellence Banquet, Campus Preview Weekend, DAPER's 150th Celebration Reception, and the MIT 150th Convocation.

Campus Preview Weekend began on Thursday, where MIT's Class of 2015 joined each other on campus for the first time. The current and incoming players got a chance to know each other more both on and off the court, and by the end of the weekend, it seemed clear the team is excited about the upcoming season. "It was a great weekend, and we were really impressed with the incoming guys," mentioned Dan Mccue '13, who was recently voted co-captain of the 2011-2012 squad (along with Will Tashman, Mitchell Kates, and Noel Hollingsworth). "With the addition of this powerhouse recruiting class, along with a lot of hard work over the Spring and Summer, we'll be ready to go on October 15th."

Saturday evening was host to the MIT Basketball Excellence Banquet, where players, coaches, staff, alumni, family, and friends joined to commemorate this year's season and say farewell to lone senior Eric Zuk '11. Zuk, after speaking on his time at MIT, was awarded both the Most Improved Player award, as well as the Jack Barry award for the student-athlete who demonstrated the most heart and leadership on the team. 6'8" big-man Will Dickson '14 took home Rookie of the Year honors, while Will Tashman '13 was voted MVP.

The celebrations continued the next morning at DAPER's 150th Celebration at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, where the history of all varsity sports were highlighted. This event preceded MIT's historic 150th Convocation.

(Hundreds gathered for DAPER's 150th Celebration

event Sunday morning)

(Assistant Coach Bill Johnson '10, and captains Noel Hollingsworth '13,

Mitchell Kates '13, Will Tashman '13, and Dan Mccue '13 having a good

time with Coach Anderson at DAPER's 150th Celebration)

(The Men's Basketball Conference Championship trophy

along with some other MIT athletics hardware earned this year)

(Thousands poured in later in the day for the MIT 150th Convocation)

(MIT President Dr. Susan Hockfield, an avid MIT Basketball fan,

speaking at the Convocation)

MIT Tops in World Rankings

QS World University Rankings recently released their world university rankings in the engineering and technology division for 2011, where MIT took top spot in the world in all categories within the division:

1st in World: Computer Science and Information Technologies

1st in World: Civil and Structural Engineering

1st in World: Chemical Engineering

1st in World: Electrical Engineering

1st in World: Mechanical, Aeronautical, and Manufacturing

The publication had MIT ranked overall as the 5th best university in the world in 2010.

More on the QS World Rankings here.

MIT Basketball Excellence Banquet this Saturday

This Saturday, the MIT Men's Basketball team will continue celebrating their 110th anniversary season at the end-of-year MIT Basketball Excellence Banquet. This event honors the 2010-2011 Men's Basketball team that finished 20-9, won their second Conference Tournament Championship, and earned an NCAA Tournament bid for the third straight year. Dinner will be served along with an awards presentation, announcement of the captains for the 2011-2012 season, and Senior Captain Eric Zuk as a speaker. The banquet begins at 6:30pm at the MIT Faculty Club.

Register for the Banquet here.

Celebrations continue the following day at the DAPER and MIT 150th Celebration at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center at 11am.

Event: MIT Basketball Excellence Banquet
Date: Saturday, April 9, 2011
Place: MIT Faculty Club
Time: 6:30pm

Attendees: Players, Alumni, Friends of the Program, Fans, and Parents

DAPER 150th Celebration Set for April 10th

MIT Department of Athletics, Physical Education and Recreation (DAPER) will be holding a celebratory reception on Sunday, April 10, 2011, from 11am-1pm at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. This event will precede the MIT 150th Convocation, beginning at 2pm, that recalls the mid-century convocation and celebrate the scholarly accomplishments of MIT's faculty and students.
The Department invites all members of the MIT community to help commemorate MIT's legacy and recognize 16 varsity teams that have significant anniversary dates ranging from 10 to 110 years, including MIT Basketball's 110th anniversary.
Attendees may register for the DAPER 150th Reception at the following website: http://tinyurl.com/DAPER-150-Event
Those planning to attend both the DAPER reception and the main 150th convocation following DAPER's event will also need to register for a ticket at: http://web.mit.edu/mit150/next-century/

MIT Basketball Helps Kids "Experience MIT"

(MIT Head Coach Larry Anderson brings the kids in for a team huddle)

The Men's Basketball team took part in the 2nd Annual "Experience MIT" program last week, where over 100 sixth-graders from Dorchester, MA came to campus to tour the labs and spend time with MIT varsity athletes. Organized by the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), players from across all sports teamed up to put on a great event for their younger neighbors across town.

"We are so glad we were able to join forces with SAAC and participate in 'Experience MIT'," said Coach Anderson after a day of basketball drills, competitions, and games. "We have a great group of guys in that they are always looking to help others, and it really showed today by the smiles on all of these kids faces."

(Freshman Nick Davis teaches a 6th grader the basics of dribbling)

All in an effort to live out MIT Basketball's mission of "getting it done in the classroom, on the court, and in the community," the team continues to give back to the MIT community and abroad. Earlier in the year the squad helped organize a charity basketball tournament with proceeds supporting the Make-a-Wish Foundation, while during the season both the men's and women's teams raised over $1,000 for breast cancer awareness.