My Take

[sutomcat]

I find breaking down these games against scrub teams increasingly worthless. South Carolina State reminds me of peer school North Carolina State. Crappy.

JB used the game more than anything as an opportunity to play PC and TT a lot. I think he wants them both as ready as possible for the USC and UW games coming up.

That meant TL played only forward last night; really rare for him. AW played the vast majority of his minutes at SG. That was also unusual. TB only played 16 minutes. Wasn't particularly good in that span. Don't think he is worried about TB; I think he really wanted to see how AW did on defense playing up top. Even though it was just SC State, thought AW did pretty well there.

We tried our press a lot. It was really ineffective. The team looked kind of flat. I don't like how PC handles things as the safety. He lets players get behind him and struggles to catch up and defend too often. Had never seen another SU center play it that way. Don't think JB wants him to do this.

South Carolina State did their best to disrupt the SU offense, switching between the 2-3 zone they opened with to a man to man defense, and even mixed in some zone press at times.

Frank Howard was bothered when Indiana (Pa) opened in a match up zone in the first exhibition game but handled the different defenses like a pro. Really looked comfortable and in control last night no matter what was thrown at him, as does JG when he takes over the PG role. JG will just take about twice the shots FH does in the same block of time.

I am kind of stunned by how well Frank is shooting from the 3 point circle. Right now, no one is guarding him, so this has to be taken with a grain of salt, but even if all he can do this year is shoot 35% from the 3 point circle on wide open looks, it really helps the offense work as it forces a defender to have to cover him, so someone like TL can't be doubled (and it makes it easier for FH to drive for scores, which he is looking increasing adapt at).

There was a period of time again when FH and JG played together, which is another reason TB didn't play that much. I think he just wanted to see how that played out. Looked like they both were playing PG during these times...

JG continues to shoot really from the 3 point circle. Again he isn't being covered out there and it won't be that easy starting Saturday but scouting reports are going to say he can shoot it deep and he has to be covered and that makes a big difference in how the SU offense can operate. John even got a dunk last night, which was probably the high point of the night for me (and the rest of the crowd). Got some steals, has a way of getting into tight places and coming out with the ball.

TR started the game missing a couple of bunnies. Was disappointed with that. Rebounded it well though and did his unusual good job with the dirty work down low.

TT had a solid game. Still struggles at times deciding whether to get the shooter or stay inside and help protect there but he is very agile and athletic and I think he is going to be a excellent defender over time. He had 4 blocks; all of which were made playing forward. Could rebound more, especially on the offensive boards, but he spends a lot of time on the perimeter right now. Looks good driving to the hole even against quick little guys, which is hard to do for a 6'10 guy. It should have been close to impossible to carve out some serious playing time at forward with TR, TL and AW on this time. But it looks like TT is going to do the impossible right now. This ultimately might mean more minutes at C for TL and more minutes at SG for AW. Or less minutes for TR period. One of the most interesting things for me to see in the USC and UW games is how TT does, and how much time he gets to show his stuff.

AW looks like a man among boys right now. He is a better passer than advertised and he continues to drive with the ball better than expected. Another guy who rebounds far better on the defensive boards, again mostly attributable to his presence mostly on the perimeter.

Good to see TL have a really strong game. He did it playing only forward too, which is good to see. There have been some problems early in the season with everyone trying to find their roles on this team and perhaps no one has struggled to figure this out more than TL. He was in top form last night though.

DC2 continues to get limited minutes and continues to do well in the time he is given. Finishing really well now, rebounding well, and his defense has been quite solid. JB loves a good shot blocker though and is trying to grow one and DC2 is going to have to pay the price. When we need a scoring presence inside, or toughness in the post, he will be there for this team and we will be happy we have him. Hope his improved finishing is not just a function of the opposition. It might be. There have been a lot of short fellas playing center for the tomato cans we have been playing.

PC got the ball in good position a number of times and failed to put points on the board. Had what should have been a routine alley off dunk just bounce off his hands. Had the little SC State players rip the ball out of his hands a couple of times. His arms are not strong enough right now and he has a common bad habit for big men of dropping his hands when he has the ball. When he does that, he loses it just about every time. Still, he makes some impressive blocks, often coming from bad attack angles because he doesn't really know what he is doing out there. His agility and raw athletic ability is undeniable and he even made a good pass again. Looks like he will be a good passer down the road.

Some general observations now that the cupcake part of the season is over:

We have 5 players regularly shooting 3s who are shooting over 39% from the 3 point circle. AW has the worst percentage at 39.4%. FH is shooting 7 of 12 for 58.3%!

AW is going to lead the team in 3s made. Already has 13 made compared to a bunch of games with 6 or 7. At this point, he looks like he is going to get over 100 for the year.

TL leads TR in what should be a good race for best rebounder 29 to 26. DC2 has 24 though in much fewer minutes.

FH's 11 dimes last night extended his lead over JG in the battle for most assists. He now leads 29-20. I think that one is not going to be very close by the end of the year. TB only has 6 so far, which is less than AW (10) and TL (8). Hope his assist numbers get better over time.

The race for the most steals should be a lot more interesting. Right now, FH has 7, JG has 6, with TB at 5 and AW and TL at 4.

PC leads the team in TOs with 8, which is kind of alarming but not shocking. He also leads in blocks with 10. TL has 7. TT had 4 last night but had none in the 3 games before that.

AW has played the most minutes so far but is only ahead of TL by a small margin. Those two are going to fight it out for this honor all season.

AW also has the most FTs, indicating he is drawing the most fouls. His 14 lead TL's 10. But DC2 has 8 in a little more than half the minutes.

Probably won't see FH or PC playing late in a tight game, at least not on offense. So far this season, FH is 1 of 5 shooting FTs (but 7 of 12 shooting 3s). PC is 0-7. Gillon is 5 of 6, as advertised. And TR is 9 for 9.

Syracuse University Athletics - 2016-2017 Men's Basketball Cumulative Statistics

It has been fun watching these guys trying to figure out how to play together through the dress rehearsals. Looking forward to seeing what happens now that the real season is starting.

 

[Cheriehoop]

Tyler Battle was having his ankle or foot tended to. He had his left shoe off and was given ice on the sideline. It didn't look too serious but did effect his playing time in the 2nd half.

I totally agree that it's been fun watching these guys play and trying to figure out their roles and how to play with each other. Last night was a fun night seeing the work in progress. You can see some players' confidence slowly grow. PC is getting better each game defensively and is moving better out there. Lydon and DC have been monsters on the glass. Lydon has been great in doing the "little things" on the court that makes a team successful, making that extra pass, tipping balls etc. DC in his limited minutes has been giving it all when he's out there and has really improved getting up and down the court. He has some excellent post moves. So far this effort to limit his minutes , saving stress on his knees but going all out in those minutes, seems to be working. He's even shown a nice soft touch out to around 8 feet. Roberson is becoming more aggressive on the offensive end, a monster on the boards and pure money from the free throw line. Frank Howard is the obvious better facilitator out there, initiating the offense and getting his teammates involved. Gillon is the energizer bunny always putting pressure on opponent's defense looking to get to the basket. AW is showing more diversity in his offense taking it to the basket and helping out handling the ball when we're being pressured. Just love his step back jumper - so smooth! Thompson has been a great surprise, an athletic energetic shot blocker with a fun to watch motor who has proven so far to be a real offensive threat.

It will be interesting to see how we react and improve against teams with greater physicality and size.

The walk ons came in with well over 2 minutes with SU at 93 points and delivered our first 100+ point game since 2012. Was a fun evening overall - now to continue the consistency and improvement in our march to a special season against better and better competition.

 

[iommi]

Outstanding writeup as usual, Tom.

A few thoughts on what you said and a few additions:

Chukwu on the press reminds me of a little kid learning to play soccer. If you ever watch a team of 6-year olds, they all just run to wherever the ball is. That's what PC does. To amplify your point, he needs to think of himself more as a goalie. Stay at home and guard the rim. He's in the backcourt far too much.

I like how JB never seems to yell at PC. You can tell JB likes him, understands that he tries hard and knows he has a lot of work to do.

Love what we are getting from AW3 but I'm not crazy about how he seems to have a gunner mentality. It wasn't so obvious this game, but in our last game he was hunting for shots in the second half when he was ice cold. There was one possession in the first half last night, when DC had tremendous position inside. White ignored him and fired up a three. His passing has been fine but he needs to look for his teammates more often. No one can deny how tremendous he's been, so I don't want to come off too negative.

I get your points as to why Battle's minutes were limited but I don't have to like it. JB could've just as easily given TB some more minutes in the second half at the 2 in place of AW3. Battle still needs floor time to get himself comfortable, not matter how talented he may be. I hope he's unleashed on Saturday. His family will be there for sure, so he should get an opportunity to shine. Battle and his dad, Gary, expected Tyus to come in and play significant minutes. That I know for a fact, let's just say.

Howard's shot is not a product of the competition IMO. Yes, he's been open but you can tell he and the staff have completely reconstructed his shot mechanics. Kudos. And at 6'5" and a high release, he should be able to shoot well over a hand.

Also, Howard's vision is amazing. Those no look passes! He's so confident and aggressive.

Gillon has gotten a little sloppy the past couple games. He needs to tighten that up. Also, those crazy-angle and/ or high arc layups have been falling less frequently. Not worried. Gillon dunked but hes capable of even better. This guy can throw down like Jonny Flynn did against Rutgers. I was there for that one-- one of my favorite SU dunks ever.

Roberson had the quietest double-double I can remember. He did rebound his own miss once or twice, so that helps the rebounding numbers. Lunch pail effort from him.

Great to see Lydon hot from deep. He needed that. He also hustled a lot. Great effort. Team looked sluggish to say the least in the first half.

Taurean reminds me of Chris Bosh. Feathery jumper. Can attack the rack when he puts his mind to it. That one dunk he had was impressive. He got off the floor very quickly. Explosive.

Awesome to see how the bench was going crazy for the walkons. No surprise my main man Matty Moyer was leading the cheering section.

 

[iommi]

Ugh Cheriehoop on Battle. He has a history of foot injuries, major and minor. Don't like that it cropped up again. Hope it's no big deal.

 

[Toga]

On the press PC needs to run down court, plant his feet one inch outside the arc under the basket and stay there. Come on man!

 

[RF2044]

Great post, Tom. One minor quibble--I don't see what you're seeing with White driving "with the ball better than expected." What he IS doing is running the floor well in transition and finishing when he gets passes that enable him to take it to the rim without putting it on the floor. Is that what you're referring to? He's terrific in transition, IMO.

 

[jordoo]

If you ever watch a team of 6-year olds, they all just run to wherever the ball is.

I see you know the horrors of u7 soccer as well. Bless those coaches! I don't know how they do it. My last child just started this season he's 5. The good news is that if they stick with it viewing becomes much more enjoyable. My oldest is 11, made the travel team for our county and they won that league this fall. The coaches did an excellent job bringing the offense along over the course of the season. They did have the luxury of having an incredible goalie and probably the best midfielder. The bad news is I just signed my daughter up for indoor this winter with the same club and they are already sending out forms for spring which goes during her softball season. Soccer wasn't year round when I was a kid.

 

[iommi]

Great post, Tom. One minor quibble--I don't see what you're seeing with White driving "with the ball better than expected." What he IS doing is running the floor well in transition and finishing when he gets passes that enable him to take it to the rim without putting it on the floor. Is that what you're referring to?

Yeah, White's handle is not very good.

 

[jordoo]

Yeah, White's handle is not very good.

He can use the threat of his shot to get straight line drives but that's about it. I agree for a 2G his handle is very limited.

 

[iommi]

I see you know the horrors of u7 soccer as well. Bless those coaches! I don't know how they do it. My last child just started this season he's 5. The good news is that if they stick with it viewing becomes much more enjoyable. My oldest is 11, made the travel team for our county and they won that league this fall. The coaches did an excellent job bringing the offense along over the course of the season. They did have the luxury of having an incredible goalie and probably the best midfielder. The bad news is I just signed my daughter up for indoor this winter with the same club and they are already sending out forms for spring which goes during her softball season. Soccer wasn't year round when I was a kid.

Our daughter doesn't play it but it was a good cliche for me to use to illustrate my point. Our daughter does karate-- that's scary in itself. When she screams, "AYYY YAAAA," at the top of her lungs, they can hear her underneath the hair blowers at the beauty salon next door.

 

[iommi]

Cheriehoop Good post. I should've brought up Coleman. He's been playing well. He took the ball down a couple times. That drives me nuts. But he's playing well offensively. And he grabs every rebound he can. He seems to never drop them. I'm resigned to his defense never being great. No mobility and just doesn't protect the rim.

My dad always calls big guys like Coleman, "space-eaters." Problem is Coleman is big but for a guy who should be a space-eater, opposing players get in his space but still get around him to the basket easily.

I hope Coleman and Chukwu work well as an offensive/ defensive tandem but as I've said, with 4-only Roberson needed for his rebounding prowess, TL will have to play some 5. It doesn't matter how effective DC and PC are, TL will have to play some center (and some 3), even though TL is a natural stretch 4.

 

[Cusefan0307]

Great synopsis Tom. I thought JB kept Lydon at the 3/4 most of the game last night to get him prepared to play big minutes there later in the season. It was good to see him hit shots from the wing. I thought the biggest reason he was struggling with his shot is because it is completely different shooting from the wing than it is on the top of the key.

I also noticed Battle take his shoe off on the bench in the second half and made a separate thread about it. I hope he is ok. We need him, and he along with Lydon probably have the most room for improvement going forward.

 

[zhanjuzi]

Cheriehoop Good post. I should've brought up Coleman. He's been playing well. He took the ball down a couple times. That drives me nuts. But he's playing well, offensively. And he grabs every rebound he can. He seems to never drop them. I'm resigned to his defense never being great. No mobility and just doesn't protect the rim.

My dad always calls big guys like Coleman, "space-eaters." Problem is Coleman is big but for s guy who should be a space-eater, opposing players get in his space but still get around him to the basket easily.

I hope Coleman and Chukwu work well as an offensive/ defensive tandem but as I've said, with 4-only Roberson needed for his rebounding prowess, TL will have to play some 5. It doesn't matter how effective DC and PC are, TL will have to play some center (and some 3), even though TL is a natural stretch 4.

We are really going to need Coleman against Wiscy as Hap is true beast (he almost single handily destroyed the Hoyas last night .. watched it .. not pretty) . PC will get eaten alive and I don't think TL can handle him either .. this is the one early game I'm really concerned about.

 

[Jack Hall]

I find breaking down these games against scrub teams increasingly worthless. South Carolina State reminds me of peer school North Carolina State. Crappy.

JB used the game more than anything as an opportunity to play PC and TT a lot. I think he wants them both as ready as possible for the USC and UW games coming up.

That meant TL played only forward last night; really rare for him. AW played the vast majority of his minutes at SG. That was also unusual. TB only played 16 minutes. Wasn't particularly good in that span. Don't think he is worried about TB; I think he really wanted to see how AW did on defense playing up top. Even though it was just SC State, thought AW did pretty well there.

We tried our press a lot. It was really ineffective. The team looked kind of flat. I don't like how PC handles things as the safety. He lets players get behind him and struggles to catch up and defend too often. Had never seen another SU center play it that way. Don't think JB wants him to do this.

South Carolina State did their best to disrupt the SU offense, switching between the 2-3 zone they opened with to a man to man defense, and even mixed in some zone press at times.

Frank Howard was bothered when Indiana (Pa) opened in a match up zone in the first exhibition game but handled the different defenses like a pro. Really looked comfortable and in control last night no matter what was thrown at him, as does JG when he takes over the PG role. JG will just take about twice the shots FH does in the same block of time.

I am kind of stunned by how well Frank is shooting from the 3 point circle. Right now, no one is guarding him, so this has to be taken with a grain of salt, but even if all he can do this year is shoot 35% from the 3 point circle on wide open looks, it really helps the offense work as it forces a defender to have to cover him, so someone like TL can't be doubled (and it makes it easier for FH to drive for scores, which he is looking increasing adapt at).

There was a period of time again when FH and JG played together, which is another reason TB didn't play that much. I think he just wanted to see how that played out. Looked like they both were playing PG during these times...

JG continues to shoot really from the 3 point circle. Again he isn't being covered out there and it won't be that easy starting Saturday but scouting reports are going to say he can shoot it deep and he has to be covered and that makes a big difference in how the SU offense can operate. John even got a dunk last night, which was probably the high point of the night for me (and the rest of the crowd). Got some steals, has a way of getting into tight places and coming out with the ball.

TR started the game missing a couple of bunnies. Was disappointed with that. Rebounded it well though and did his unusual good job with the dirty work down low.

TT had a solid game. Still struggles at times deciding whether to get the shooter or stay inside and help protect there but he is very agile and athletic and I think he is going to be a excellent defender over time. He had 4 blocks; all of which were made playing forward. Could rebound more, especially on the offensive boards, but he spends a lot of time on the perimeter right now. Looks good driving to the hole even against quick little guys, which is hard to do for a 6'10 guy. It should have been close to impossible to carve out some serious playing time at forward with TR, TL and AW on this time. But it looks like TT is going to do the impossible right now. This ultimately might mean more minutes at C for TL and more minutes at SG for AW. Or less minutes for TR period. One of the most interesting things for me to see in the USC and UW games is how TT does, and how much time he gets to show his stuff.

AW looks like a man among boys right now. He is a better passer than advertised and he continues to drive with the ball better than expected. Another guy who rebounds far better on the defensive boards, again mostly attributable to his presence mostly on the perimeter.

Good to see TL have a really strong game. He did it playing only forward too, which is good to see. There have been some problems early in the season with everyone trying to find their roles on this team and perhaps no one has struggled to figure this out more than TL. He was in top form last night though.

DC2 continues to get limited minutes and continues to do well in the time he is given. Finishing really well now, rebounding well, and his defense has been quite solid. JB loves a good shot blocker though and is trying to grow one and DC2 is going to have to pay the price. When we need a scoring presence inside, or toughness in the post, he will be there for this team and we will be happy we have him. Hope his improved finishing is not just a function of the opposition. It might be. There have been a lot of short fellas playing center for the tomato cans we have been playing.

PC got the ball in good position a number of times and failed to put points on the board. Had what should have been a routine alley off dunk just bounce off his hands. Had the little SC State players rip the ball out of his hands a couple of times. His arms are not strong enough right now and he has a common bad habit for big men of dropping his hands when he has the ball. When he does that, he loses it just about every time. Still, he makes some impressive blocks, often coming from bad attack angles because he doesn't really know what he is doing out there. His agility and raw athletic ability is undeniable and he even made a good pass again. Looks like he will be a good passer down the road.

Some general observations now that the cupcake part of the season is over:

We have 5 players regularly shooting 3s who are shooting over 39% from the 3 point circle. AW has the worst percentage at 39.4%. FH is shooting 7 of 12 for 58.3%!

AW is going to lead the team in 3s made. Already has 13 made compared to a bunch of games with 6 or 7. At this point, he looks like he is going to get over 100 for the year.

TL leads TR in what should be a good race for best rebounder 29 to 26. DC2 has 24 though in much fewer minutes.

FH's 11 dimes last night extended his lead over JG in the battle for most assists. He now leads 29-20. I think that one is not going to be very close by the end of the year. TB only has 6 so far, which is less than AW (10) and TL (8). Hope his assist numbers get better over time.

The race for the most steals should be a lot more interesting. Right now, FH has 7, JG has 6, with TB at 5 and AW and TL at 4.

PC leads the team in TOs with 8, which is kind of alarming but not shocking. He also leads in blocks with 10. TL has 7. TT had 4 last night but had none in the 3 games before that.

AW has played the most minutes so far but is only ahead of TL by a small margin. Those two are going to fight it out for this honor all season.

AW also has the most FTs, indicating he is drawing the most fouls. His 14 lead TL's 10. But DC2 has 8 in a little more than half the minutes.

Probably won't see FH or PC playing late in a tight game, at least not on offense. So far this season, FH is 1 of 5 shooting FTs (but 7 of 12 shooting 3s). PC is 0-7. Gillon is 5 of 6, as advertised. And TR is 9 for 9.

Syracuse University Athletics - 2016-2017 Men's Basketball Cumulative Statistics

It has been fun watching these guys trying to figure out how to play together through the dress rehearsals. Looking forward to seeing what happens now that the real season is starting.

Great write up, agree w so much you see.

One thing that slightly worries me about Battle (and i love his ability and think he plays plenty of mins no matter what): i have believed for over a decade now that JB relies very heavily on dribble drive principles for his Offense. And what i see is that, no matter what defense is thrown at us by these inferior teams, Howard and Gillon are able to attack and drive into the heart of these defenses and make plays. On the other hand, Battle is struggling to do this. He is mostly just surveying the defense off the dribble and then giving the ball up. If this continues this could eat into Battles mins slightly and we could see more of Howard/Gillon, just as JB was so comfortable using a two guard combo of Scoop/Triche/Dion as any combo of those 3 were very good at dribble drive. I still think TB has great potential this year, he may already be our best athlete and he has tremendous upside, his shot has been great and he excels in open court obviously. But until he learns to successfully attack a half court D off the dribble, i will watch closely

 

[orangefan13]

Anyone want to go out on a limb and say Chuckwu will start finishing some under the basket this year?
Is he doing it in practice, or is he a year away?

I get the silent feeling he is like Roberson last year, when the lights are flashing he will show up Bigtime. I Predict he plays his best game yet against wisky.

 

[iommi]

Great write up, agree w so much you see.

One thing that slightly worries me about Battle (and i love his ability and think he plays plenty of mins no matter what): i have believed for over a decade now that JB relies very heavily on dribble drive principles for his Offense. And what i see is that, no matter what defense is thrown at us by these inferior teams, Howard and Gillon are able to attack and drive into the heart of these defenses and make plays. On the other hand, Battle is struggling to do this. He is mostly just surveying the defense off the dribble and then giving the ball up. If this continues this could eat into Battles mins slightly and we could see more of Howard/Gillon, just as JB was so comfortable using a two guard combo of Scoop/Triche/Dion as any combo of those 3 were very good at dribble drive. I still think TB has great potential this year, he may already be our best athlete and he has tremendous upside, his shot has been great and he excels in open court obviously. But until he learns to successfully attack a half court D off the dribble, i will watch closely

Interesting perspective and it's a good observation. I will say that Battle is very adept at attacking and using a short 12-15 foot pull-up. I expect that to come out of his arsenal soon. It will happen. He's tremendous from mid-range in half court and on the break.

 

[721Comstock]

We are really going to need Coleman against Wiscy as Hap is true beast (he almost single handily destroyed the Hoyas last night .. watched it .. not pretty) . PC will get eaten alive and I don't think TL can handle him either .. this is the one early game I'm really concerned about.

Granted, competition level, but - our 2-headed C had 11 & 11, with 4 blocks.

Thankfully, we've got lots of large bodies to use at the 5 & 4, so we can keep throwing another guy in there against Hap, and hopefully something works for us.

Would LOVE to beat Wisky, but - losing to them in their place, wouldn't be in any way a bad loss. Likely lots of good teaching opportunities.
That said - would prefer to get those opportunities AND pull of an impressive road win.

 

[sutomcat]

Thanks for the kind words.

I agree about TB. He is having problems getting to the basket now. It is a huge jump going from high school to college and he is trying to figure it out. The good news is that he is shooting it well from the outside and he has generally been smart enough to not force it when he isn't able to finish inside. Though he has shown a little uncharacteristic bad judgement on this front recently.

Part of it is the adjustment but I think part of it is trying to find his role. He is a frosh and knows this team is not all about him. But you can see him trying to slash at times and not being 100% successful at it. As he gets older, stronger and more used to playing with players his size and strength, he will get better at it.

Worse case, maybe he spends an extra year or two in Syracuse, going to college, enjoying the experience, being a part of some great teams and learning how to be an adult. SU is a great place for him.

It will be fun to watch him develop.

 

[RF2044]

Granted, competition level, but - our 2-headed C had 11 & 11, with 4 blocks.

Thankfully, we've got lots of large bodies to use at the 5 & 4, so we can keep throwing another guy in there, and hopefully something works for us.

Would LOVE to beat Wisky, but - losing to them in their place, wouldn't be in any way a bad loss. Likely lots of good teaching opportunities.
That said - would prefer to get those opportunities AND pull of an impressive road win.

Sure it would... if we have desires on being a top 5 team.

The B1G is immensely overrated this season--all of the "top" teams in that conference were. We need to come out of that game with a road win, which will start to open some eyes.

No shame in losing, like you say, but that is a statement game opportunity.

 

[iommi]

Sure it would... if we have desires on being a top 5 team.

The B1G is immensely overrated this season--all of the "top" teams in that conference were. We need to come out of that game with a road win, which will start to open some eyes.

No shame in losing, like you say, but that is a statement game opportunity.

Kohl is a tough place to play. Wiscy has all of their starters back and about 95% of their production back. Happ is a beast. Nigel Hayes is Preseason Big Ten POY.

This is a tough matchup for a team still developing early-season chemistry. Big Ten might be overrated but when I saw this game on the schedule, I thought it'd be a tough matchup and still think so, despite Wiscy having stubbed their toe once.

As you said, would be a statement win. I'm sure AW3 can give us a great scouting report, being a former Big Ten player, not that JB needs it. Still, I'm sure giving his teammates some specific Wiscy player tendencies can't hurt.

 

[OrangeTown]

Thanks for the kind words.

I agree about TB. He is having problems getting to the basket now. It is a huge jump going from high school to college and he is trying to figure it out. The good news is that he is shooting it well from the outside and he has generally been smart enough to not force it when he isn't able to finish inside. Though he has shown a little uncharacteristic bad judgement on this front recently.

Part of it is the adjustment but I think part of it is trying to find his role. He is a frosh and knows this team is not all about him. But you can see him trying to slash at times and not being 100% successful at it. As he gets older, stronger and more used to playing with players his size and strength, he will get better at it.

Worse case, maybe he spends an extra year or two in Syracuse, going to college, enjoying the experience, being a part of some great teams and learning how to be an adult. SU is a great place for him.

It will be fun to watch him develop.

This is what I've heard also, and that it also played a big part in Quade's decision. In general, the fact that it seems likely we have both Frank and Tyus still here next year.

 

[FrancoPizza]

I get the silent feeling he is like Roberson last year, when the lights are flashing he will show up Bigtime. I Predict he plays his best game yet against wisky.

I fear you will be greatly disappointed, young padawan. He's at least a year or two away from anything more than situational duty. I expected that he was raw offensively, but it's quite disappointing to see that he really lacks the instincts for blocking shots, especially when JB predicted he would become one of the elite shot-blockers in the country this year.

 

[Brooky03]

I love the use of '3 point circle'

 

[Brooky03]

I fear you will be greatly disappointed, young padawan. He's at least a year or two away from anything more than situational duty. I expected that he was raw offensively, but it's quite disappointing to see that he really lacks the instincts for blocking shots, especially when JB predicted he would become one of the elite shot-blockers in the country this year.

Chukwu is leading the team with 2.5 blocks per game and averages only 18 minutes. I'm not going to look up the numbers, but 5+ blocks per 40 minutes has to rank pretty high. You also have to factor in the reality that these short teams are avoiding taking shots in the paint specifically because he's in the game. He'll face more shots against better teams and that should increase his bpg.

 

[bballbeadle]

Ugh Cheriehoop on Battle. He has a history of foot injuries, major and minor. Don't like that it cropped up again. Hope it's no big deal.

The mystery for me has been solved. I saw Battle walk towards the tunnel carrying a bag of ice. I thought it was for his hand, but now understand it was for his foot. Hope it's nothing.

Yes, the Battle Cat needs to be unleashed! But we have so much talent, and as good as he is supposed to be, he is only a freshman. I like him a lot!