First game of the season

[FireballPhil]

That I have been able to watch. After reading this board so far this season, there has been a lot of doom and gloom posted. Luckily I have been around long enough to know which posters to take seriously and those...well you know. Here is my quick impressions of what I saw. Feel free to pick it apart at your own desires.

Game started a little slow, falling behind what 5 or 7 points before finally making a run to take the lead. First basket wasn't until 16+ minutes so going 3 +minutes without a basket is a little disconcerting, but somewhat typical of a few past teams. Once they took the lead, even though it seesawed back and forth for a bit, I never felt in any danger and felt we were going to win.

Texas Southern was a decent team, with a decent coach. You could tell the guards practiced against as big of guys as we have, because they weren't scared to drive inside, and was able to lay it high off the glass many times. Also the many alley-oops they scored on showed how together this team was, they will continue to grow as well and could upset a few teams later in the season.

Those who said Frank Howard was worthless-I want some of what you are smoking. I don't smoke it myself but could get rich off selling it. He had a few times where he passed into some very questionable places, but overall did a very solid job leading the team. It is very different without him on the floor. When Battle is off the floor you see a scoring drop off but with Frank off the floor it seems as if a lot of cohesiveness is lost. If he continues to get better,the sky is the limit for him. No he isn't there yet, but shows very capable of reaching it.

Battle sat out much of the first due to foul issues and it was interesting to see how the team would react without him. They score what, 38 first half points, mostly without him on the floor. If the forwards and centers could- 1. catch the ball and- 2. finish at the rim we would have been over 50 at the half. Second half he kind of took over and scored at will. Against some top flight teams he is going to struggle a bit more, so we need those dropped passes and missed bunnies to start falling. He will be playing in the NBA one day soon, as he oozes potential.

Geno was decent first half but unable to carry it over into the second half. Especially disappointing was in garbage time he was unable to take over the game. Maybe he is still having to make adjustments to our system but as a 5th year senior I expected much more out of him. He has the potential to be a great sixth man, time will tell if he completes the adjustment and begins to shine.

Both centers were adequate. I am reminded of the Rony Seikaly times where they can block shots but offense started slowly. And foul shooting was atrocious. I don't get the feeling that it is going to get any better there. But if they can get as good as the finished Rony, that is okay by me.

I have conflicting feelings about foreign dude. I can see potential, but am unsure how long it will take before he realizes it. I don't believe this year, but can see him breaking out next year. I fear the lack of english is hurting his development but he is smart enough and skilled enough to eventually become a good player.

Brissett was very underwhelming tonight. He shows good confidence but his shot was just not there. He is the one I feel could make or break this team this year. If he can score consistently, not necessarily in great volumes but just enough to become a threat, I think this team goes dancing and ends up in the top 25. If he doesn't, we are going to struggle against some of the better teams and be on the bubble. Again.

One thing is for sure, taking out all the starters is not a good idea. Went from 27 to 12 point lead in what seemed like seconds. Offensively I didn't see enough screens, and definitely not enough double screens. Defensively they were okay, but you could see a lot of the newer guys still running back to their "spot" and starting defense once they get there. This allowed Texas Southern to just blow by them a few times for easy buckets. This will disappear as they mature and play games. Hopefully sooner than later.


One last quick note-on Howard Washington. He looks very green but shows confidence handling the ball. I don't think he is going to get any serviceable minutes this year but it is hard to tell what he is like because when he was on the floor the other guys on there with them looked like a high school team. Put him out there with some of the other starters and we can get a better picture...but I suspect he just isn't ready yet. We have 7 guys this year that are going to play. The rest need time...a lot of time.

 

[Zelda Zonk]

That I have been able to watch. After reading this board so far this season, there has been a lot of doom and gloom posted. Luckily I have been around long enough to know which posters to take seriously and those...well you know. Here is my quick impressions of what I saw. Feel free to pick it apart at your own desires.

Game started a little slow, falling behind what 5 or 7 points before finally making a run to take the lead. First basket wasn't until 16+ minutes so going 3 +minutes without a basket is a little disconcerting, but somewhat typical of a few past teams. Once they took the lead, even though it seesawed back and forth for a bit, I never felt in any danger and felt we were going to win.

Texas Southern was a decent team, with a decent coach. You could tell the guards practiced against as big of guys as we have, because they weren't scared to drive inside, and was able to lay it high off the glass many times. Also the many alley-oops they scored on showed how together this team was, they will continue to grow as well and could upset a few teams later in the season.

Those who said Frank Howard was worthless-I want some of what you are smoking. I don't smoke it myself but could get rich off selling it. He had a few times where he passed into some very questionable places, but overall did a very solid job leading the team. It is very different without him on the floor. When Battle is off the floor you see a scoring drop off but with Frank off the floor it seems as if a lot of cohesiveness is lost. If he continues to get better,the sky is the limit for him. No he isn't there yet, but shows very capable of reaching it.

Battle sat out much of the first due to foul issues and it was interesting to see how the team would react without him. They score what, 38 first half points, mostly without him on the floor. If the forwards and centers could- 1. catch the ball and- 2. finish at the rim we would have been over 50 at the half. Second half he kind of took over and scored at will. Against some top flight teams he is going to struggle a bit more, so we need those dropped passes and missed bunnies to start falling. He will be playing in the NBA one day soon, as he oozes potential.

Geno was decent first half but unable to carry it over into the second half. Especially disappointing was in garbage time he was unable to take over the game. Maybe he is still having to make adjustments to our system but as a 5th year senior I expected much more out of him. He has the potential to be a great sixth man, time will tell if he completes the adjustment and begins to shine.

Both centers were adequate. I am reminded of the Rony Seikaly times where they can block shots but offense started slowly. And foul shooting was atrocious. I don't get the feeling that it is going to get any better there. But if they can get as good as the finished Rony, that is okay by me.

I have conflicting feelings about foreign dude. I can see potential, but am unsure how long it will take before he realizes it. I don't believe this year, but can see him breaking out next year. I fear the lack of english is hurting his development but he is smart enough and skilled enough to eventually become a good player.

Brissett was very underwhelming tonight. He shows good confidence but his shot was just not there. He is the one I feel could make or break this team this year. If he can score consistently, not necessarily in great volumes but just enough to become a threat, I think this team goes dancing and ends up in the top 25. If he doesn't, we are going to struggle against some of the better teams and be on the bubble. Again.

One thing is for sure, taking out all the starters is not a good idea. Went from 27 to 12 point lead in what seemed like seconds. Offensively I didn't see enough screens, and definitely not enough double screens. Defensively they were okay, but you could see a lot of the newer guys still running back to their "spot" and starting defense once they get there. This allowed Texas Southern to just blow by them a few times for easy buckets. This will disappear as they mature and play games. Hopefully sooner than later.


One last quick note-on Howard Washington. He looks very green but shows confidence handling the ball. I don't think he is going to get any serviceable minutes this year but it is hard to tell what he is like because when he was on the floor the other guys on there with them looked like a high school team. Put him out there with some of the other starters and we can get a better picture...but I suspect he just isn't ready yet. We have 7 guys this year that are going to play. The rest need time...a lot of time.

Went from 27 to 12 point lead in what seemed like seconds

Did we really ever have a 27 point lead? The announcer mistakenly said so at one point, but the math portion of his brain wasn't working. It was actually 17. So, "in a matter of seconds" is kinda overestimating how long it took for us to 'lose' that lead.

Unless we were blowing them out during one of the many periods when my espn feed was frozen, and we really were up 27 at some point...

 

[orange79]

Did we really ever have a 27 point lead? The announcer mistakenly said so at one point, but the math portion of his brain wasn't working. It was actually 17. So, "in a matter of seconds" is kinda overestimating how long it took for us to 'lose' that lead.

Unless we were blowing them out during one of the many periods when my espn feed was frozen, and we really were up 27 at some point...

Largest lead was 53-30.

 

[DoctorBombay]

That I have been able to watch. After reading this board so far this season, there has been a lot of doom and gloom posted. Luckily I have been around long enough to know which posters to take seriously and those...well you know. Here is my quick impressions of what I saw. Feel free to pick it apart at your own desires.

Game started a little slow, falling behind what 5 or 7 points before finally making a run to take the lead. First basket wasn't until 16+ minutes so going 3 +minutes without a basket is a little disconcerting, but somewhat typical of a few past teams. Once they took the lead, even though it seesawed back and forth for a bit, I never felt in any danger and felt we were going to win.

Texas Southern was a decent team, with a decent coach. You could tell the guards practiced against as big of guys as we have, because they weren't scared to drive inside, and was able to lay it high off the glass many times. Also the many alley-oops they scored on showed how together this team was, they will continue to grow as well and could upset a few teams later in the season.

Those who said Frank Howard was worthless-I want some of what you are smoking. I don't smoke it myself but could get rich off selling it. He had a few times where he passed into some very questionable places, but overall did a very solid job leading the team. It is very different without him on the floor. When Battle is off the floor you see a scoring drop off but with Frank off the floor it seems as if a lot of cohesiveness is lost. If he continues to get better,the sky is the limit for him. No he isn't there yet, but shows very capable of reaching it.

Battle sat out much of the first due to foul issues and it was interesting to see how the team would react without him. They score what, 38 first half points, mostly without him on the floor. If the forwards and centers could- 1. catch the ball and- 2. finish at the rim we would have been over 50 at the half. Second half he kind of took over and scored at will. Against some top flight teams he is going to struggle a bit more, so we need those dropped passes and missed bunnies to start falling. He will be playing in the NBA one day soon, as he oozes potential.

Geno was decent first half but unable to carry it over into the second half. Especially disappointing was in garbage time he was unable to take over the game. Maybe he is still having to make adjustments to our system but as a 5th year senior I expected much more out of him. He has the potential to be a great sixth man, time will tell if he completes the adjustment and begins to shine.

Both centers were adequate. I am reminded of the Rony Seikaly times where they can block shots but offense started slowly. And foul shooting was atrocious. I don't get the feeling that it is going to get any better there. But if they can get as good as the finished Rony, that is okay by me.

I have conflicting feelings about foreign dude. I can see potential, but am unsure how long it will take before he realizes it. I don't believe this year, but can see him breaking out next year. I fear the lack of english is hurting his development but he is smart enough and skilled enough to eventually become a good player.

Brissett was very underwhelming tonight. He shows good confidence but his shot was just not there. He is the one I feel could make or break this team this year. If he can score consistently, not necessarily in great volumes but just enough to become a threat, I think this team goes dancing and ends up in the top 25. If he doesn't, we are going to struggle against some of the better teams and be on the bubble. Again.

One thing is for sure, taking out all the starters is not a good idea. Went from 27 to 12 point lead in what seemed like seconds. Offensively I didn't see enough screens, and definitely not enough double screens. Defensively they were okay, but you could see a lot of the newer guys still running back to their "spot" and starting defense once they get there. This allowed Texas Southern to just blow by them a few times for easy buckets. This will disappear as they mature and play games. Hopefully sooner than later.


One last quick note-on Howard Washington. He looks very green but shows confidence handling the ball. I don't think he is going to get any serviceable minutes this year but it is hard to tell what he is like because when he was on the floor the other guys on there with them looked like a high school team. Put him out there with some of the other starters and we can get a better picture...but I suspect he just isn't ready yet. We have 7 guys this year that are going to play. The rest need time...a lot of time.

What impressions, if any, did you have of Moyer?

 

[bballbeadle]

I think we were up by 23. And yes, the lead disappeared faster than our cats when they see the cat carrier. But Boeheim put Battle and Frank back in and we righted the ship.

We seem to be a team that starts slowly - again. But I am having more confidence in them. After the two exhibition games, I was quite worried. If OP saw those two games, he would be worried, too! So good to see Thorpe have a good first half. Needs to keep it up. I agree about Oshae. He has fantastic potential and today he was wobbly. Hopefully, every game he learns. We need him.

Moyer was given a lot of time in the first half and didn’t do much. After Boeheim took him out, he talked to him for a fairly long time but not at all in a mean way. Looked like he was really trying to teach him. Moyer has waited for a whole season for his place in the sun and it may not come this year. It’s gotta be tough.

Two more games in the next 3 days but Monday there will be snow. Won’t bother me but may make it difficult for my daughter to get in from Liverpool. I love the first snow of the season! I love walking to the Dome in the snow. I’m a little cray cray, I guess.

 

[AZOrange]

Not sure on Marek? Man I love this kid

 

[20Plus]

Good take but Geno was much better than decent in the first half

 

[MSOrange]

That I have been able to watch. After reading this board so far this season, there has been a lot of doom and gloom posted. Luckily I have been around long enough to know which posters to take seriously and those...well you know. Here is my quick impressions of what I saw. Feel free to pick it apart at your own desires.

Game started a little slow, falling behind what 5 or 7 points before finally making a run to take the lead. First basket wasn't until 16+ minutes so going 3 +minutes without a basket is a little disconcerting, but somewhat typical of a few past teams. Once they took the lead, even though it seesawed back and forth for a bit, I never felt in any danger and felt we were going to win.

Texas Southern was a decent team, with a decent coach. You could tell the guards practiced against as big of guys as we have, because they weren't scared to drive inside, and was able to lay it high off the glass many times. Also the many alley-oops they scored on showed how together this team was, they will continue to grow as well and could upset a few teams later in the season.

Those who said Frank Howard was worthless-I want some of what you are smoking. I don't smoke it myself but could get rich off selling it. He had a few times where he passed into some very questionable places, but overall did a very solid job leading the team. It is very different without him on the floor. When Battle is off the floor you see a scoring drop off but with Frank off the floor it seems as if a lot of cohesiveness is lost. If he continues to get better,the sky is the limit for him. No he isn't there yet, but shows very capable of reaching it.

Battle sat out much of the first due to foul issues and it was interesting to see how the team would react without him. They score what, 38 first half points, mostly without him on the floor. If the forwards and centers could- 1. catch the ball and- 2. finish at the rim we would have been over 50 at the half. Second half he kind of took over and scored at will. Against some top flight teams he is going to struggle a bit more, so we need those dropped passes and missed bunnies to start falling. He will be playing in the NBA one day soon, as he oozes potential.

Geno was decent first half but unable to carry it over into the second half. Especially disappointing was in garbage time he was unable to take over the game. Maybe he is still having to make adjustments to our system but as a 5th year senior I expected much more out of him. He has the potential to be a great sixth man, time will tell if he completes the adjustment and begins to shine.

Both centers were adequate. I am reminded of the Rony Seikaly times where they can block shots but offense started slowly. And foul shooting was atrocious. I don't get the feeling that it is going to get any better there. But if they can get as good as the finished Rony, that is okay by me.

I have conflicting feelings about foreign dude. I can see potential, but am unsure how long it will take before he realizes it. I don't believe this year, but can see him breaking out next year. I fear the lack of english is hurting his development but he is smart enough and skilled enough to eventually become a good player.

Brissett was very underwhelming tonight. He shows good confidence but his shot was just not there. He is the one I feel could make or break this team this year. If he can score consistently, not necessarily in great volumes but just enough to become a threat, I think this team goes dancing and ends up in the top 25. If he doesn't, we are going to struggle against some of the better teams and be on the bubble. Again.

One thing is for sure, taking out all the starters is not a good idea. Went from 27 to 12 point lead in what seemed like seconds. Offensively I didn't see enough screens, and definitely not enough double screens. Defensively they were okay, but you could see a lot of the newer guys still running back to their "spot" and starting defense once they get there. This allowed Texas Southern to just blow by them a few times for easy buckets. This will disappear as they mature and play games. Hopefully sooner than later.


One last quick note-on Howard Washington. He looks very green but shows confidence handling the ball. I don't think he is going to get any serviceable minutes this year but it is hard to tell what he is like because when he was on the floor the other guys on there with them looked like a high school team. Put him out there with some of the other starters and we can get a better picture...but I suspect he just isn't ready yet. We have 7 guys this year that are going to play. The rest need time...a lot of time.

Glad to see you post here Phil. Know you're a big NBA fan - I wasn't sure you watched our games anymore to be honest. Good recap although I am much higher on Geno's 1st half performance and Marek's overall performance than it seems you were.

 

[Niastri]

Did we really ever have a 27 point lead? The announcer mistakenly said so at one point, but the math portion of his brain wasn't working. It was actually 17. So, "in a matter of seconds" is kinda overestimating how long it took for us to 'lose' that lead.

Unless we were blowing them out during one of the many periods when my espn feed was frozen, and we really were up 27 at some point...

I take this chance to again impugn ESPN for their terrible coverage.

They still make half a billion a month on their cable subscription fees!

Instead of entering and being cutting edge in the area of digital streaming, they are fighting the old guard action of making it terrible so they don't lose their cable subscribers.

Verizon and AT&T are all in on video via streaming, one of the reasons for the latters purchase of Direct TV and now Time Warner.

All of which amounts to nothing but stock movement except...

The stupid ACC signed up with the idiot who is fighting progress!

We went far backwards in our local coverage with the decision to go ACC network. Worse, we gave ESPN the ability to control our visibility.

 

[Cheriehoop]

I was shocked at half time when we had 38 points and they switched the scoreboard to the starters names and stats to start the 2nd half. It was because in the first half our 5 starters had scored a total of 13 of those 38 points. Yikes.

I was thinking how well JB was handling minutes for the bench and starters. Tyus was off in the first half both offensively and defensively giving Geno Thorpe a great opportunity to gain confidence, experience. He seemed very comfortable playing with Frank. I sure hope both view the other as an asset in trying to meet each player’s goals with Geno being a 5th year player and Tyus looking for early entry. The team needs them and like the old saying, a rising tide lifts all boats. Tyus had a great second half and was money, Frank was solid, had 8 assists and really settled down after a stretch in the first half where he committed some back to back sloppy turnovers. Marek had an awesome stat stuffing game and what a great move by JB putting him in the high post where his high B.B. IQ, passing ability(7 assists) and court vision helped change the game. He’s a very good rebounder(9 rebounds) and just has an innate nose for the ball (even led the team with 2 blocks)both offensively and defensively. If he develops a shooting touch, he could be the best all round player we’ve had in a long time. Who would have thought we’d be getting 8 for 10 shooting, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals , 17 points from our 2 centers Pascal and Sidibe in their total 40 minutes? Oshae had a really off game shooting, taking a surprising 12 shots(made just 2) but led the team with 10 boards. Matt had a very quiet game and needs to find a way to get in the flow. It may just take time for him to get in a groove , on the plus side he doesn’t seem to make glaring mistakes (despite slow rotations defensively covering corner shooters )but currently just seems invisible out there.

Texas Southern is a scrappy, well coached, hard playing team. Despite their small backcourt they penetrated, showed no fear and only had 4 shots blocked in total while blocking 2 of ours. Nice to see improvements and development because we need to make more of them before playing the tougher teams we’re going to face. JB is doing so much teaching on the sidelines, he’s standing most of the game, talking to players throughout the game. It’s fun to watch. I think he likes the effort these players are putting into practice. We only had 10 turnovers, yet 21 assists this game, a big improvement over the past few ones. Have to get over those tentative, slow, sloppy starts and easing up, losing focus when we have leads.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Not sure on Marek? Man I love this kid

Kid knows how to play. Future fan favorites

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

That I have been able to watch. After reading this board so far this season, there has been a lot of doom and gloom posted. Luckily I have been around long enough to know which posters to take seriously and those...well you know. Here is my quick impressions of what I saw. Feel free to pick it apart at your own desires.

Game started a little slow, falling behind what 5 or 7 points before finally making a run to take the lead. First basket wasn't until 16+ minutes so going 3 +minutes without a basket is a little disconcerting, but somewhat typical of a few past teams. Once they took the lead, even though it seesawed back and forth for a bit, I never felt in any danger and felt we were going to win.

Texas Southern was a decent team, with a decent coach. You could tell the guards practiced against as big of guys as we have, because they weren't scared to drive inside, and was able to lay it high off the glass many times. Also the many alley-oops they scored on showed how together this team was, they will continue to grow as well and could upset a few teams later in the season.

Those who said Frank Howard was worthless-I want some of what you are smoking. I don't smoke it myself but could get rich off selling it. He had a few times where he passed into some very questionable places, but overall did a very solid job leading the team. It is very different without him on the floor. When Battle is off the floor you see a scoring drop off but with Frank off the floor it seems as if a lot of cohesiveness is lost. If he continues to get better,the sky is the limit for him. No he isn't there yet, but shows very capable of reaching it.

Battle sat out much of the first due to foul issues and it was interesting to see how the team would react without him. They score what, 38 first half points, mostly without him on the floor. If the forwards and centers could- 1. catch the ball and- 2. finish at the rim we would have been over 50 at the half. Second half he kind of took over and scored at will. Against some top flight teams he is going to struggle a bit more, so we need those dropped passes and missed bunnies to start falling. He will be playing in the NBA one day soon, as he oozes potential.

Geno was decent first half but unable to carry it over into the second half. Especially disappointing was in garbage time he was unable to take over the game. Maybe he is still having to make adjustments to our system but as a 5th year senior I expected much more out of him. He has the potential to be a great sixth man, time will tell if he completes the adjustment and begins to shine.

Both centers were adequate. I am reminded of the Rony Seikaly times where they can block shots but offense started slowly. And foul shooting was atrocious. I don't get the feeling that it is going to get any better there. But if they can get as good as the finished Rony, that is okay by me.

I have conflicting feelings about foreign dude. I can see potential, but am unsure how long it will take before he realizes it. I don't believe this year, but can see him breaking out next year. I fear the lack of english is hurting his development but he is smart enough and skilled enough to eventually become a good player.

Brissett was very underwhelming tonight. He shows good confidence but his shot was just not there. He is the one I feel could make or break this team this year. If he can score consistently, not necessarily in great volumes but just enough to become a threat, I think this team goes dancing and ends up in the top 25. If he doesn't, we are going to struggle against some of the better teams and be on the bubble. Again.

One thing is for sure, taking out all the starters is not a good idea. Went from 27 to 12 point lead in what seemed like seconds. Offensively I didn't see enough screens, and definitely not enough double screens. Defensively they were okay, but you could see a lot of the newer guys still running back to their "spot" and starting defense once they get there. This allowed Texas Southern to just blow by them a few times for easy buckets. This will disappear as they mature and play games. Hopefully sooner than later.


One last quick note-on Howard Washington. He looks very green but shows confidence handling the ball. I don't think he is going to get any serviceable minutes this year but it is hard to tell what he is like because when he was on the floor the other guys on there with them looked like a high school team. Put him out there with some of the other starters and we can get a better picture...but I suspect he just isn't ready yet. We have 7 guys this year that are going to play. The rest need time...a lot of time.

Frank's always done well in the preseason. Hope it continues, but the real tests are upcoming.

 

[SoBeCuse]

Fireball! Glad you posted. By far Frank’s best game in awhile, IMO. We’ll see moving forward.

 

[upperdeck]

not sure where TS gets all the love.. their whole league has like 1-2 wins between them, so who knows if they are solid or not and no one will know by year end either.

 

[NYCSUGrad]

I think we were up by 23. And yes, the lead disappeared faster than our cats when they see the cat carrier. But Boeheim put Battle and Frank back in and we righted the ship.

We seem to be a team that starts slowly - again. But I am having more confidence in them. After the two exhibition games, I was quite worried. If OP saw those two games, he would be worried, too! So good to see Thorpe have a good first half. Needs to keep it up. I agree about Oshae. He has fantastic potential and today he was wobbly. Hopefully, every game he learns. We need him.

Moyer was given a lot of time in the first half and didn’t do much. After Boeheim took him out, he talked to him for a fairly long time but not at all in a mean way. Looked like he was really trying to teach him. Moyer has waited for a whole season for his place in the sun and it may not come this year. It’s gotta be tough.

Two more games in the next 3 days but Monday there will be snow. Won’t bother me but may make it difficult for my daughter to get in from Liverpool. I love the first snow of the season! I love walking to the Dome in the snow. I’m a little cray cray, I guess.

Just a little cray cray?

I kid! I love walking from my hotel, usually the Hotel Syracuse, to campus in a light snow, not much wind and please no icy patches!

 

[two3zone]

not sure where TS gets all the love.. their whole league has like 1-2 wins between them, so who knows if they are solid or not and no one will know by year end either.

They get the love because we played them. Don't remember the last cupcake we played that wasn't an "excellent" team, or the "best in their league".

 

[sususpicious]

The "foreign dude" - who is actually named Marek - went for 10-9-7. (Admittedly, it was not against top-notch competition.) And as for his English or lack thereof, he seems to have a better "understanding" of the game than many of our players who do know the language. I realize that at about 170-180, he can be victimized by a stiff breeze. Definitely needs some pounds. But I am not "conflicted" at all. If only all of our freshmen played the game this way!

 

[orangedave]

Kid knows how to play. Future fan favorites

From the fan reactions I've seen at the Dome as well as on line comments, I think he's already a fan favorite.

 

[FireballPhil]

The "foreign dude" - who is actually named Marek - went for 10-9-7. (Admittedly, it was not against top-notch competition.) And as for his English or lack thereof, he seems to have a better "understanding" of the game than many of our players who do know the language. I realize that at about 170-180, he can be victimized by a stiff breeze. Definitely needs some pounds. But I am not "conflicted" at all. If only all of our freshmen played the game this way!

I agree that he has a good understanding of the game, which is why I said even through his lack of knowledge of English he seems to learn. Remember please I am basing all this off one game I have actually had the time to watch ( I am a second shift supervisor so the ability to watch games especially during the week is not very good). I read this board every day however, and have since it's original inception how many years ago. But your post shows exactly why I am conflicted on him being a true contributor this year. Sure he has skill, but gets pushed around easily. He shows flashes of offense yet occasionally struggles especially against bigger guys. And the ACC will have many more big guys than smaller ones. I am cautiously optimistic on him and if he blossoms it greatly helps the teams cause.

 

[FireballPhil]

not sure where TS gets all the love.. their whole league has like 1-2 wins between them, so who knows if they are solid or not and no one will know by year end either.

Did you watch how they played? They have capable outside shooters, a good big guy, and a very good high low game. They play defense and have a good coach. Could they compete in the ACC? No. Could they win the NC? No. But is this a good win against a decent midmajor type team? Absolutely. They have all the pieces to pull off an upset over a good team.

 

[FireballPhil]

I was shocked at half time when we had 38 points and they switched the scoreboard to the starters names and stats to start the 2nd half. It was because in the first half our 5 starters had scored a total of 13 of those 38 points. Yikes.

I was thinking how well JB was handling minutes for the bench and starters. Tyus was off in the first half both offensively and defensively giving Geno Thorpe a great opportunity to gain confidence, experience. He seemed very comfortable playing with Frank. I sure hope both view the other as an asset in trying to meet each player’s goals with Geno being a 5th year player and Tyus looking for early entry. The team needs them and like the old saying, a rising tide lifts all boats. Tyus had a great second half and was money, Frank was solid, had 8 assists and really settled down after a stretch in the first half where he committed some back to back sloppy turnovers. Marek had an awesome stat stuffing game and what a great move by JB putting him in the high post where his high B.B. IQ, passing ability(7 assists) and court vision helped change the game. He’s a very good rebounder(9 rebounds) and just has an innate nose for the ball (even led the team with 2 blocks)both offensively and defensively. If he develops a shooting touch, he could be the best all round player we’ve had in a long time. Who would have thought we’d be getting 8 for 10 shooting, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals , 17 points from our 2 centers Pascal and Sidibe in their total 40 minutes? Oshae had a really off game shooting, taking a surprising 12 shots(made just 2) but led the team with 10 boards. Matt had a very quiet game and needs to find a way to get in the flow. It may just take time for him to get in a groove , on the plus side he doesn’t seem to make glaring mistakes (despite slow rotations defensively covering corner shooters )but currently just seems invisible out there.

Texas Southern is a scrappy, well coached, hard playing team. Despite their small backcourt they penetrated, showed no fear and only had 4 shots blocked in total while blocking 2 of ours. Nice to see improvements and development because we need to make more of them before playing the tougher teams we’re going to face. JB is doing so much teaching on the sidelines, he’s standing most of the game, talking to players throughout the game. It’s fun to watch. I think he likes the effort these players are putting into practice. We only had 10 turnovers, yet 21 assists this game, a big improvement over the past few ones. Have to get over those tentative, slow, sloppy starts and easing up, losing focus when we have leads.

I was thinking the same thing about Coach talking to the kids, not aa lot of yelling. Even though he shook his head in disgust many times, he never really went off on a player.

 

[FireballPhil]

Glad to see you post here Phil. Know you're a big NBA fan - I wasn't sure you watched our games anymore to be honest. Good recap although I am much higher on Geno's 1st half performance and Marek's overall performance than it seems you were.

I did like Genos's first half game. If he can get a whole game together he will be one of the two pieces the teams needs to compete against the elite. The other is Marek (or Moyer but based on what little JB played him I am guessing he is a lot further behind). Thought Marek and Geno both did well, I am just concerned against better competition how they will fare. They both have the ability, but will they be able to adjust to the stronger quicker league play? If they can than we are golden and will compete. If they don't, we are on the bubble. IMO.

I follow the team every year. I don't post much because I don't get to see many games. But since 1986 I have been following and watching and will always follow the team. So even if I don't post, I am here lurking!

 

[FireballPhil]

Did we really ever have a 27 point lead? The announcer mistakenly said so at one point, but the math portion of his brain wasn't working. It was actually 17. So, "in a matter of seconds" is kinda overestimating how long it took for us to 'lose' that lead.

Unless we were blowing them out during one of the many periods when my espn feed was frozen, and we really were up 27 at some point...

I don't know. I wasn't watching the score, just heard it announced. But then I look at the score and it was 12. And TS did score a bunch which is why JB ended up bringing back in some of the starters.

 

[FireballPhil]

What impressions, if any, did you have of Moyer?

Couldn't really get any. He was really only in at garbage time and the group he was with weren't what one could exactly call a cohesive unit. From the limited time I would say he looks raw, especially for a redshirt. Not sure the extra time did him any good. But then I don't remember what he looked like last year so maybe it did. He deferred a lot to his teammates which suggests to me he doesn't have the confidence he needs in himself yet. But again, if he isn't on the floor with the other big dogs it is hard to compare and see what he is really capable of. I will reserve judgement on him for the time being.

 

[SoBeCuse]

I just realized Texas Southern was without their leading scorer? Is that right? That changes a bit my post-game mostly glowing report.