My Take

[bballbeadle]

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.

Iommi, I can't remember the name of their tall guy with the beard but I'm pretty sure he is gone.

 

[Brooky03]

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.

I wonder if the injuries are the result of his pigeon toed-ness

 

[sutomcat]

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.

I have been pleasantly surprised by his ability to finish in transition and to get to the basket in half court settings.

More the former than the latter, but he is clearly looking to take advantage when he gets face guarded and has been successful to date on his forays inside. Usually drawing fouls rather than finishing with baskets. This is a big reason why he is leading the team in free throws attempted.

 

[SWC75]

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.

I wouldn't expect to see much of Chukwu vs. the Badgers. I think they will be too strong for him and we'll see more of Coleman.

 

[SWC75]

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.

Like I've said, most college basketball teams are jigsaw puzzles without all the pieces. This team is a Rubik's Cube. it has all the pieces but the key is to find the right combinations.

 

[SWC75]

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.

I love his gunner mentality. if Tyler Roberson doesn't get a rebound, we don't want him to stop trying. White is supposed to provide scoring and a outside threat. i don't want him to stop shooting just because he's hit a dry spell.

 

[realorange]

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----

Looks like Cherie is priming some future game announcers for the name.

 

[RF2044]

I have been pleasantly surprised by his ability to finish in transition and to get to the basket in half court settings.

More the former than the latter, but he is clearly looking to take advantage when he gets face guarded and has been successful to date on his forays inside. Usually drawing fouls rather than finishing with baskets. This is a big reason why he is leading the team in free throws attempted.

Not a big deal--agree to disagree . He had a play in the first half where he traveled attempting a drive. he definitely seems more comfortable making a single dribble to free himself up or catching and shooting. I think we'll see less driving from him once the competition / athleticism of the opposition gets better.

 

[Cheriehoop]

Too many T's in too few years for this peanut brain

 

[CusefanATL]

Tyler Battle

Popcorn and soda

 

[iommi]

I love his gunner mentality. if Tyler Roberson doesn't get a rebound, we don't want him to stop trying. White is supposed to provide scoring and a outside threat. i don't want him to stop shooting just because he's hit a dry spell.

That's not want I meant. Shooters have to shoot. What I meant is sometimes it looks like he wants to "get his." There is a difference. Another poster made a similar post in another thread and I wholeheartedly agree with it. This is a kid who put his name in the draft and pulled his name out. I'm not saying he's selfish, just perhaps trying to pad his stats when the games are well in hand.

 

[iommi]

Iommi, I can't remember the name of their tall guy with the beard but I'm pretty sure he is gone.

They have every significant player back. I think you're referring to Frank Kaminsky, who was on the team two years ago and is now on the Charlotte Hornets.

 

[jimsonjunction]

Like I've said, most college basketball teams are jigsaw puzzles without all the pieces. This team is a Rubik's Cube. it has all the pieces but the key is to find the right combinations.

And by the end of the season, JB will be the dude who can figure it out in less than 10 seconds while wearing a blinfold.

 

[SWC75]

And by the end of the season, JB will be the dude who can figure it out in less than 10 seconds while wearing a blinfold.

 

[bballbeadle]

They have every significant player back. I think you're referring to Frank Kaminsky, who was on the team two years ago and is now on the Charlotte Hornets.

YES!! TWO years ago. My my my, how time flies.