#4 MIT, Karraker Make History

The nationally-ranked #4 Engineers took down Wheelock College 71-47 last night for their 12th win in a row and the best start in the 111-year history of the program. Also setting the history mark was Jamie "Cakes" Karraker. On his seventh trifecta of the night, "Cakes" notched his 232nd career three-pointer, surpassing the great Jimmy Bartolotta (2009) on the all-time three-point list. Through Dec. 11, Karraker is second in the nation in 3FG made per game (4.4).

6'8" Will Tashman snags a board. He is averaging 10.3 rebounds a game this season (Pic: Tom Gearty)

Behind Karraker's 23 points was All-American Noel Hollingsworth's 18 points and 8 rebounds. Hollingsworth is averaging 19.3 ppg and 7.3 rpg on the year. Senior Billy Bender filled the stat sheet again with 15 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals to end his incredible first semester. All-Region performer and last year's NEWMAC Tournament MVP Will Tashman grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds in 22 minutes, and two-time All-Conference point guard Mitchell Kates dished out a game-high 6 assists.

Will "Big Country" Dickson gets a feed from Freshman Paul Dawson (Pic: Tom Gearty)

The Engineers also saw valuable contributions from the bench, including three blocks and a dunk from high-flying freshman Matt Redfield, as well as 4 assists from veteran "Lieutenant" Dan Mccue. Tech out-rebounded the visiting Wildcats 35-23, dished out 22 assists on 29 makes, and shot 42% from three.

Freshman Matt Redfield throws one down. Redfield is averaging a block every 6 minutes (Pic: Tom Gearty)

The team takes a break for finals and the holidays, and returns to action in the new year on January 4th versus NEWMAC opponent Springfield College.

NYTimes: MIT Scientists Capture Speed of Light

MIT's Media Lab

Scientists in MIT's world-renowned Media Lab have created an imaging system that captures light moving at the nanosecond level. The Media Lab has been a popular choice among undergraduates for UROPs, MIT's Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program. This allows students to work alongside Nobel-Prize winning professors and researchers who are working on projects like the one mentioned above. 

Many of the MIT basketball players have taken advantage of "UROPs". For instance senior Dan Mccue worked with Professor Stephen Ansolabehere on a political science research project that analyzed campaign financing, while senior Arni Lehto spent time at the Hatsopoulos Microfluids Lab. "UROPs are an incredible opportunity," Mccue notes. "You get the chance to get your hands on ground-breaking research, all while getting funding and/or academic credit."

Read more on the Media Lab work in the New York Times:  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/13/science/speed-of-light-lingers-in-face-of-mit-media-lab-camera.html

MIT #4 in Nation

MIT Basketball moved up to #4 in this week's D3Hoops.com Top 25 poll. The Engineers, with a nation's-best record of 11-0, have beaten their opponents by an average margin of victory of 27 points. They are shooting 52.5% from the field, 40.2% from three, and have a +11.5 rebounding margin. This is the program's highest national ranking ever.

NEWMAC foe WPI is currenly ranked 20th in the country, while other Northeast Region teams Williams (#7), Amherst (#6), and Middlebury (#1) were ranked as well.

Read more about the Top 25 poll here: http://d3hoops.com/top25/men/2011-12/week3

Karraker Earns POW

Sharp shooter Jamie Karraker was honored for his career performances last week by earning NEWMAC Player of the Week. MIT has now owned the award for three of the four weeks. Karraker, a senior with another year of eligibility left, shot the lights out for the undefeated Engineers, connecting on 17 three-pointers in the three games, while posting a career-high of 27 points versus UMass-Boston, and then topping that with 28 points against Salem State. Karraker is averaging 15.7 points per game this year while shooting a red-hot 44.4% from three, and is seven three-pointers away from becoming MIT's all-time three-point leader.

Karraker is a computer science whiz who spent last summer in California interning with Facebook and training with teammate Will Tashman and Stanford players.

Read more here: http://newmacsports.com/sports/mbkb/2011-12/POTW/mbkbPOTW121211

MIT Blurb in the Herald

"No. 7 MIT better Kates than Never" 

http://bostonherald.com/sports/college/basketball/view.bg?articleid=1387535&srvc=sports&position=2

#7 MIT Wins Thriller at Tufts

The nationally-ranked MIT Engineers took down Tufts University in dramatic fashion in front of a bustling crowd at Cousens Gynasium yesterday afternoon. Down six with four minutes left, Tech scored on timely possessions to grab their 11th victory in a row, and solidify a nation-best 11-0 record.

The hero of the game was none other than All-Conference point guard Mitchell Kates. Kates scored on several key possessions, and stole two key balls on defense, one of which sealed the game. The captain finished the night with 14 points, 4 rebounds, 4 steals, and 3 assists.

All-American Noel Hollingsworth dominated throughout, scoring 26 points on 10-of-15 shooting along with 11 rebounds. All-Region performer Will Tashman grabbed 6 caroms off the glass, including a block that saved the Engineers, while Billy Bender and Jamie Karraker pitched in 8 points and 7 points, respectively. 6'7" Freshman Dennis Levene played 15 valuable minutes for MIT, grabbing timely rebounds and two momentum-changing charges.

MIT finishes off the semester with Wheelock College on Wednesday at 7PM in Rockwell Cage.

#7 MIT Downs Salem State

The #7 MIT Engineers led by as much as 28 points over visiting Salem State, and eventually cruised to a 78-66 victory tonight at Rockwell Cage. Tech accumulated 9 steals and 6 blocks on defense, while dishing out 17 assists offensively. Salem State, who boasts 18 league championships and 21 NCAA Tournament appearances, could not handle MIT's inside and outside game, as the Engineers shot 40% from three and scored 46 points in the paint.

Mitchell Kates drives past Salem State's Andrew White. Kates is majoring in Computer Science (Pic: Tom Gearty)

After scoring a career-high 27 points on Tuesday, Jamie Karraker decided to one-up that with a 28-point performance tonight versus the Vikings. Karraker connected on 7 three-pointers, now just 8 three-pointers away from becoming MIT's all-time three-point field goal leader.

Senior Billy Bender swarms Salem State's Apollos Wade. Bender currently has a 73-23 record while playing at MIT (Pic: Tom Gearty)

All-American Noel Hollingsworth poured in 20 points along with 6 rebounds, 5 blocks, and 2 steals. This is Hollingsworth's ninth game in double-digits and fifth time scoring 20 or more points. Fellow big-man Will Tashman produced his sixth double-double of the season with 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists.

6'9" Noel Hollingsworth keeps Salem State's Hamed Akanni at bay. Hollingsworth, who has another year of eligibility, has 835 career points (Pic: Tom Gearty)

Mitchell Kates showed why he is one of the best point guards in the nation, finishing the night with 14 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds, and 2 steals. Senior Billy Bender added 6 points and 10 rebounds.

Freshman Paul Dawson runs the show. Dawson, a biological engineering major, led his high school team to two state championships in Georgia (Pic: Tom Gearty)

Tech travels to Tufts University on Saturday at 3pm. The Tufts Jumbos are 6-2 on the season, with their only two losses coming in overtime.

#7 MIT Goes to 9-0

#7 MIT continued their winning ways with another dominating performance over University of Massachusetts - Boston. Tech soared to a 51-19 first half to eventually earn their ninth straight win 90-47. The Engineers continued to distribute the ball efficiently on offense, dishing out 27 assists on 32 makes. Defensively they held UMass to 32.7% shooting.

Point Guard Mitch Kates leads the league in assists and ranks second in steals (Pic: Tom Gearty)

Dan Mccue, a senior with another year left of eligibility, nails the jumper. Mccue is 5th in the conference in assist-to-turnover ration (Pic: Shri Ganeshram)

Leading the way was sharp-shooter Jamie Karraker who connected on a program record 9 three-pointers. Karraker, who scored a career-high 27 points on the night, is currently sitting at 40 three-pointers on the season while shooting an incredible 47.1%. Karraker, a junior eligibility-wise, is 15 three-pointers shy of being MIT's all-time three-point leader (former Engineer great and teammate of Karraker's Jimmy Bartolotta has 231 career three-pointers).

6'7" freshman Dennis Levene throws one down during warmups. Levene was also a member of U-20 Danish National Team (Pic: Shri Ganeshram)

Jamie Karraker scorched the nets with an Institute record 9 three-pointers, while dropping a career-high 27 points (Pic: Tom Gearty)

All-American Noel Hollingsworth, NEWMAC's Player of the Week, added 20 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, and 3 blocks, while big-man Will Tashman owned the boards with 11 rebounds. Billy Bender filled the stat sheet with 13 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 2 steals as he continues his stellar senior campaign. Point guard Mitchell Kates ran the show again with 5 assists and 4 steals.

High-flyin' 6'8" freshman Matt Redfield gives the Engineers a great future (Pic: Tom Gearty)

The Engineers moved to #7 in the national rankings this week, the program's highest ranking ever (Pic: Shri Ganeshram)

Tech next faces Salem State, who has received Top 25 votes and recently defeated then-#3 Williams College, this Thursday at 7pm in Rockwell Cage.

MIT vs. UMass-Boston Highlights

MIT Moves Up to #7 in Polls

The MIT Engineers moved up two spots to #7 in the D3Hoops.com Top 25 Poll. This is the highest national ranking the Engineers have received in the 111-year history of the program.

Fellow NEWMAC rival WPI moved up to #15 in the polls, while Northeast region teams Williams (#8), Amherst (#2), and Middlebury (#1) were all ranked.

Read more about the rankings here: http://d3hoops.com/top25/men/2011-12/week2

Two teams that Tech will be playing this week, Salem State and Tufts, received Top 25 votes as well.

MIT travels to UMass-Boston tonight for 7PM EST. Live video of the game can be found on Little East TV: http://www.littleeast.tv/play/index.cfm?fuseaction=embstay&id=2622B694CD

Statistically Speaking

This is how MIT stacks up statistically in the NEWMAC. Stats are for games through 12/04/2011. Only statistics in which MIT is top 2 in the NEWMAC as a team and top 15 in individual categories are listed.

MIT

Statistic	Value	NEWMAC
3FG%	40.7	1
3FGM	7.6	1
Steals	10.1	1
Points	84.9	2
Assists	18.5	2
Blocks	4.6	2
D. Reb.	29.4	2
FG%	50.4	2
FT%	74.0	2
FTM	16.8	2

Billy Bender

Statistic	Value	NEWMAC
3FG%	54.2	1
FG%	63.3	3
O. Reb.	4.5	6
3FGM	1.6	8
Points	12.1	10
FT%	78.6	11
Reb.	5.6	11
A/TO	1.4	11
Steals	1.4	12
Assists	2.6	14

Will Tashman

Statistic	Value	NEWMAC
Reb.	10.9	1
D. Reb.	8.0	1
O. Reb.	2.9	5
Blocks	1.1	6
Points	12.8	7
FG%	58.2	8
Assists	3.5	8
Steals	1.6	10
A/TO	1.2	14

Noel Hollingsworth

Statistic	Value	NEWMAC
Points	18.5	1
O. Reb.	3.25	1
Blocks	2.0	2
FG%	61.9	4
Reb.	7.4	5
D. Reb.	4.1	8

Mitchell Kates

Statistic	Value	NEWMAC
Assists	5.5	1
A/TO	2.75	1
Steals	2.4	2
FT%	82.1	6
Points	11.4	13
FG%	50.8	14

Jamie Karraker

Statistic	Value	NEWMAC
3FGM	3.9	1
Points	13.9	5
3FG%	44.3	5
Steals	1.4	12

Dan Mccue

Statistic	Value	NEWMAC
A/TO	2.0	5
Steals	1.3	15