Gottlieb co-worker

[cusetown1]

I think JB forgot the DePaul game in 2006 and the Kansas NCAA game in 2001.

But it is amazing how our expectations ebb and flow.

Depaul would have beaten the '92 Bulls in that game.

 

[moqui]

We have 9 games left and this guy guarantees we will "lose 5 or 6 more games" because we have some "serious, serious problems" LOL. I'll take the under.

I think that is a non-controversial assessment: 4 more losses in the toughest portion of the schedule, then one in the BET

and, this team does have serious problems - the half court offense has been the achilles heel of this team all year long, regardless of how many syracusefan.com posters pooh-pooh it.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

I dont know how anyone could look at this team and not see problems. It's been masked a bit because we havent had to play a ton of world-beaters. But, this team is going to have to fight to win its 2nd round tourny game and my guess is, we'll be in a toss up Sweet 16 game..and we know how SU teams fare in the Sweet 16, historically.

 

[690West]

I think that is a non-controversial assessment: 4 more losses in the toughest portion of the schedule, then one in the BET

and, this team does have serious problems - the half court offense has been the achilles heel of this team all year long, regardless of how many syracusefan.com posters pooh-pooh it.

No one is saying its a controversial statement. Its simply a poor assessment. He stressed and labored as he said, "serious, serious problems" That is simply ludicrous. So, we're not great in the half court. Teams that are great in the half court are 16-3 right now.

 

[OttoMets]

This is a really minor disagreement, and I think this sounds far more shrill than I mean it to, but UConn really hasn't owned us. 9-11 against then since 2001 and 6-4 in our last 10 games against them.
2001 - 1-0
2002 - Didn't play, and the Big East should be ashamed of itself for that.
2003 - 0-2
2004- 1-2.
2005 - 1-2 (BET win)
2006 - 1-1
2007 - 2-1
2008 - 0-1
2009 - 1-1
2010 - 1-0
2011 - 1-1

One correction - I think that should be 1-1 for 2004; Boston College was our only Big East Tournament opponent that year.

Of course, if we'd taken care of Alabama in the Sweet Sixteen, we'd definitely have ended up 1-2 against UConn.

 

[Knicks411]

Didn't Bilas post a stat that we are like second in the BE in half court offense? or I did I make that up? I was surprised when I read it.

 

[HoustonCuse]

Ryan Burr = Mother of All Tools.

Literally the worst on-air personality ESPN has rolled out since Tom Brennan.

 

[cusetown1]

I think that is a non-controversial assessment: 4 more losses in the toughest portion of the schedule, then one in the BET

and, this team does have serious problems - the half court offense has been the achilles heel of this team all year long, regardless of how many syracusefan.com posters pooh-pooh it.

The majority of the coaches that have played SU would disagree that SU has any problems.

 

[cusetown1]

I actually like the half court offense, to be honest. They make their shots, and pass very well. The only problems I have is when Kris put the ball on the floor and Dion starts forcing the issue. Neither of these have happened that often so it isn't that big of an issue. This isn't your run of the mill Syracuse team. They are very, very good.

 

[NKR1978]

One correction - I think that should be 1-1 for 2004; Boston College was our only Big East Tournament opponent that year.

Of course, if we'd taken care of Alabama in the Sweet Sixteen, we'd definitely have ended up 1-2 against UConn.

You're right! I'm amazed the 04 team was able to get a win against UConn and if we played them in the tournament it could have gotten ugly. On that note, I was as big a Texas fan as you can find in the 2003 Sweet 16, our NC team, as great as it was, didn't match up well with Connecticut.

 

[cusetown1]

You're right! I'm amazed the 04 team was able to get a win against UConn and if we played them in the tournament it could have gotten ugly. On that note, I was as big a Texas fan as you can find in the 2003 Sweet 16, our NC team, as great as it was, didn't match up well with Connecticut.

they were minus Okafor in that game.

 

[NKR1978]

they were minus Okafor in that game.

That explains everything.

 

[OttoMets]

You're right! I'm amazed the 04 team was able to get a win against UConn and if we played them in the tournament it could have gotten ugly. On that note, I was as big a Texas fan as you can find in the 2003 Sweet 16, our NC team, as great as it was, didn't match up well with Connecticut.

I was on the same page. Texas came out of that region by beating UConn and Michigan State, and I wanted no part of either of those teams again.

 

[DoctorBombay]

What did he say in this interview that's so controversial? Man, are we being thin-skinned or what?

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

What did he say in this interview that's so controversial? Man, are we being thin-skinned or what?

He implied we are not perfect... grab the pitchforks!!

 

[cspades99]

The interview was fine, but his weekend watch blurb is pretty hilarious:

John Gasaway: Sound the alarm and batten down the hatches because the upset alert's on full blast for Syracuse. They're welcoming West Virginia to the Carrier Dome on Saturday, and I just can't imagine the Mountaineers playing two consecutive terrible games. (Oh, yeah, they were terrible against St. John's, trust me.) I'm guessing that by now Bob Huggins has spoken to his team and pointed out the flaws in his players' performance in a calm, nonjudgmental and supportive manner. I also think Jim Boeheim's players are a little more freaked about Fab Melo's absence than they need to be -- or at least they're playing like it. I say the Mountaineers win a tight one.

----

What the hell is he talking about? Rak sure didn't look freaked out on Monday. And last time I checked, Fab isn't affected 3 point shooting.

 

[Cusefan95]

The interview was fine, but his weekend watch blurb is pretty hilarious:

J I also think Jim Boeheim's players are a little more freaked about Fab Melo's absence than they need to be -- or at least they're playing like it. I say the Mountaineers win a tight one.

I think we overestimate how much basketball these guys actually watch. He saw the highlights of the ND game, concluded that Syracuse was rattled by Melo's absence, And that's that. Really, the folks on this board know more about basketball - not just Syracuse or the Big East, but college basketball as a whole - than all but 3-4 people at ESPN. Knight, Bilas, Doug...really, that's about the list of people that sound reasonably well informed most of the time. Everyone else is an assclown stealing money.

 

[Knicks411]

I think we overestimate how much basketball these guys actually watch. He saw the highlights of the ND game, concluded that Syracuse was rattled by Melo's absence, And that's that. Really, the folks on this board know more about basketball - not just Syracuse or the Big East, but college basketball as a whole - than all but 3-4 people at ESPN. Knight, Bilas, Doug...really, that's about the list of people that sound reasonably well informed most of the time. Everyone else is an assclown stealing money.

I doubt this is true except for a few people (and I don't consider myself one of them). Gassway, for one, writes a book that covers every team in college hoops. And he tweeted during the ND-Cuse game about the game, so I think he was watching it.

Just because he doesn't agree with your opinion doesn't mean he is an idiot or doesn't know what he is talking about.

I think it's fair to say that we know more than most people on ESPN about SU, and maybe even the BE, but on a national basis, I don't think so.

Edit: To be fair, I'm a big Gasaway fan and I am sticking up for him here. There are some guys on ESPN I do find pretty stupid.

 

[moqui]

I doubt this is true except for a few people (and I don't consider myself one of them). Gassway, for one, writes a book that covers every team in college hoops. And he tweeted during the ND-Cuse game about the game, so I think he was watching it.

Just because he doesn't agree with your opinion doesn't mean he is an idiot or doesn't know what he is talking about.

I think it's fair to say that we know more than most people on ESPN about SU, and maybe even the BE, but on a national basis, I don't think so.

Edit: To be fair, I'm a big Gasaway fan and I am sticking up for him here. There are some guys on ESPN I do find pretty stupid.

the ironic thing is that Gasaway is pretty high on Syracuse; he thinks they are one of the truly elite teams in college ball this year and a legitimate Final Four candidate. And, he thinks my half court offense critique is all wet (I have offered him a counter-argument, but that is for a different thread).

 

[Knicks411]

Was this the thread I asked the question about the points per possession in the half court offense? did I imagine seeing that?

I feel like Gasaway doesn't really think WVU is going to win, but I think he sees WVU as an underrated team, and it's a good spot to put in a plug for them, so to speak. That's how I read it at least.

 

[moqui]

Was this the thread I asked the question about the points per possession in the half court offense? did I imagine seeing that?

not sure if you asked it in this thread but, yeah, Bilas did have a stat on that - IIRC, he said that SU is less than a point per possession on half court possessions, but that is still good enough for 2nd in the Big East.

I wrote that most teams tend to get demoralized after SU's big turnover-fueled runs, and there defense suffers as a consequence - both teams tend to just go through the motions and trade baskets in 2nd halves. Against well coached, disciplined teams that make a concerted effort to slow SU down (2nd half Marquette, Pitt after the 1st timeout, Notre Dame), SU's half court offense looked pretty bad. It's a very small sample, and you can certainly argue that I have cherry picked data that supports my hypothesis, but its my gut feeling about this squad.

 

[Knicks411]

not sure if you asked it in this thread but, yeah, Bilas did have a stat on that - IIRC, he said that SU is less than a point per possession on half court possessions, but that is still good enough for 2nd in the Big East.

Yeah, I believe the number was like .92 or something. That was pretty jarring to me; .92 is a pretty poor number in the context of overall offense, but it goes to show how much harder it is to score in the half court.

Against well coached, disciplined teams that make a concerted effort to slow SU down (2nd half Marquette, Pitt after the 1st timeout, Notre Dame), SU's half court offense looked pretty bad. It's a very small sample, and you can certainly argue that I have cherry picked data that supports my hypothesis, but its my gut feeling about this squad.

Well, I do think you have cherry picked your data,though it doesn't necessarily mean you don't have a point. And for the most part, I've been agreeing with you; the half court offense, at the very least, seems like it's stagnant and not all that good. (Pitt, for the game, we lit them up. I know you said after th e first tv TO, and the numbers would be worse without their best 5 minutes, but take out the best 5 minutes for any team, you know?)

As I said, the half court offense does feel stagnant, but it's probably pretty good. Definitely not great. And we are a pretty good offensive rebounding team (though the loss of Fab may change that) which helps as well, and we don't turn the ball over, so while it may look bad a lot of the time, at the very least, we are getting shots up, which gives us a chance. Obviously, we lack the big man you can dump it into and get a bucket or a foul. I think, for the most part, it's going to be hard for teams to slow us down too much. ND did slow us down, but we turned them over 18 times in a 62 possession game, including 9 steals, which is basically right at our average of one every 7 possessions or so. (They slowed the game down possession wise, but we were still getting our TO is what I mean)

Basically, at this point, it's nearly February. I think at this point we're going to force a ton of TO against whoever we play, which is going to fuel our break. We're not going to turn the ball over much, giving us more shots than the other team. And the ones that we miss, we're going to get a high % of them. So while the half court offense is unlikely to have the fluidity we'd like to see, I am not too worried by it. (I reserve the right to change this opinion tomorrow ar about 3).

 

[moqui]

Basically, at this point, it's nearly February. I think at this point we're going to force a ton of TO against whoever we play, which is going to fuel our break. We're not going to turn the ball over much, giving us more shots than the other team. And the ones that we miss, we're going to get a high % of them. So while the half court offense is unlikely to have the fluidity we'd like to see, I am not too worried by it. (I reserve the right to change this opinion tomorrow ar about 3).

the problem I have with that is, yes, it is nearly February, but it turns out that our schedule has been heavily backloaded, with only 2 legit (in my eyes) NCAA caliber opponents so far. I certainly hope I am wrong, but I think the good teams looming will expose SU more than the mediocre opponents in the rear view mirror.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

I just hope to see a lot of Gonzaga type teams standing in front of us in the 1st and 2nd weekend of the tournament. Soft teams that don't defend. I don't want to run into anymore physical teams like Marq, Butler, Alabama, etc of years past. Inevitably, they won't let us run and they will get us into those uncomfortable rock fights that we don't seem to win in March.

 

[Knicks411]

the problem I have with that is, yes, it is nearly February, but it turns out that our schedule has been heavily backloaded, with only 2 legit (in my eyes) NCAA caliber opponents so far. I certainly hope I am wrong, but I think the good teams looming will expose SU more than the mediocre opponents in the rear view mirror.

I think that is fair, for the most part. Which is why we probably aren't the second best half court offense in the BE. But I don't think we have to be much better than that to be the best team int he conf, or one of the best in the country.