My Take

[sutomcat]

This has to be short, lots going on.

Encouraging game. Brown has played well all season but we throttled them. Perhaps the most encouraging thing was how well we played in the second half. particularly the start of the second half.

This has been a huge issue for this team all season, but it was not a problem last night.

I think a big reason was matchup issues Brown had with the Syracuse players. Teams have been having good success putting a tall, lanky, athletic player on Buddy. Buddy can't really get a good shot off against this type of player going inside and he has even had problems getting his jumper off against this kind of player. When teams do this to us, they are usually putting their center or a big forward on Buddy, and it means there is a great matchup elsewhere that we need to take advantage of. Buddy has usually been unable to find the guy with the mismatch, so teams have been able to get away with this tactic to date.

Last night, Buddy usually had a guy his size or smaller on him and it seemed he could go inside whenever he wanted and get a good shot. Looked like they were running a lot of pick and rolls too, with Jesse starting near the foul line, and when he got it there, Buddy would try and beat him man to the spot directly behind Jesse, where he got a few open looks for 3s. When Buddy was covered, it was usually by the center who had Jesse and switched off. When they switched, Jesse headed for the basket and got a couple baskets/drawn fouls.

Good play, makes good use of our talent. Hope to see more of this in the future.

Good to see Buddy in Killer Mode again. Liked the 5 rebounds and another game with a bunch of assists. t is easy to take him for granted but he is a pretty special player.

Speaking of taking advantage of mismatches, thought Joe did another good job identifying mismatches and getting the ball to the player with the advantage. He ran the offense really well last night. Made some nice passes, lots of good decisions, and his shot selection was again solid. If he makes good decisions on when to shoot, his shooting percentage is going to be very good. I think this is pretty much a given now. He also played one of his best games defensively, anticipating passes and getting steals. Great game for him, other that his usual couple of inexplicable unforced turnovers. He has cut down on these pretty well, isn't where he needs to be but I see a lot of progress and like where he is at right now. Let's see how he does in conference play, I am sure he will get a lot of pressure in his face that will be uncomfortable to deal with.

JB3 rebounds better with a beard. That is the one conclusion I think we all can agree on. I was really happy one time when he was driving in the paint, had a guy in his face and instead of forcing a bad shot, saw Jesse and set him up for a dunk. Jimmy is a good passer and if he can find the open guy when he drives, it will make him a lot more effective.

Was again really pleased with what I saw from Symir. I know it was only Brown but he is playing with a lot of confidence right now and doing a really nice job finding the open man. I think he ended up with 7 assists and 0 turnovers. And he made a 3. Happy for him. It is good to see him playing a lot. I think JB playing the subs more in the first and second halves might have played a role in how much better we played as a team in the second half.

Brown was flummoxed by the zone for a long time, and dug a deep hole for themselves, but give them credit. They made some adjustments, started getting the ball into the paint regularly and started scoring a lot of points in the latter part of the first half. It is nice JB has the new option of stacking the guards to cut down on that. Looked like he made that adjustment and it was very effective making it harder for Brown to get it into the paint. It will be interesting to see how much JB uses this tweak in future games.

Thought Cole had a nice job offensively but I wish he hit the boards harder. Jimmy did a really nice job down low getting boards but he needs help. Jesse wasn't great on the boards either. Looked like he lost a few boards he was in position for. Just couldn't hold on to them. His hands were solid early in the season. Not sure if he is just frustrated, or nervous but he needs to be more of a factor rebounding, especially against a team like Brown. Weird to see him struggling with FTs now too.

Benny got a lot of PT and JB gave him the opportunity to play through a number of mistakes. The adjustment from HS to college is a big one and almost everyone struggles making it. Benny is not exception. It was good to see him getting a chance to learn from his mistakes, and getting a chance to make changes and address issues in real time. He has to get tougher, smarter, more assertive. I think he will get there and hope JB is able to find some minutes for him each game to help further his development. Think he can become a meaningful contributor in the second half of the season if JB is patient with him. That said, right now, he is costing us points a lot and it is hard to take that hit when wins are desperately needs and the margin for victories is so thin.

Thought Frank had a typical game. When he is in, players are able to get to the rim way easier than when Jesse is in. But Frank is a better rebounder I think, and might be a better finisher too (i.e. he dunks whenever he can).

Hope we play like this again Wednesday and Saturday. Cornell isn't great and this is a good time to play Virginia, who might be getting slowly better but are not playing like a Tony Bennett coached team yet.

A 3 win week would be awesome.

Fingers crossed.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

This has to be short, lots going on.

Encouraging game. Brown has played well all season but we throttled them. Perhaps the most encouraging thing was how well we played in the second half. particularly the start of the second half.

This has been a huge issue for this team all season, but it was not a problem last night.

I think a big reason was matchup issues Brown had with the Syracuse players. Teams have been having good success putting a tall, lanky, athletic player on Buddy. Buddy can't really get a good shot off against this type of player going inside and he has even had problems getting his jumper off against this kind of player. When teams do this to us, they are usually putting their center or a big forward on Buddy, and it means there is a great matchup elsewhere that we need to take advantage of. Buddy has usually been unable to find the guy with the mismatch, so teams have been able to get away with this tactic to date.

Last night, Buddy usually had a guy his size or smaller on him and it seemed he could go inside whenever he wanted and get a good shot. Looked like they were running a lot of pick and rolls too, with Jesse starting near the foul line, and when he got it there, Buddy would try and beat him man to the spot directly behind Jesse, where he got a few open looks for 3s. When Buddy was covered, it was usually by the center who had Jesse and switched off. When they switched, Jesse headed for the basket and got a couple baskets/drawn fouls.

Good play, makes good use of our talent. Hope to see more of this in the future.

Good to see Buddy in Killer Mode again. Liked the 5 rebounds and another game with a bunch of assists. t is easy to take him for granted but he is a pretty special player.

Speaking of taking advantage of mismatches, thought Joe did another good job identifying mismatches and getting the ball to the player with the advantage. He ran the offense really well last night. Made some nice passes, lots of good decisions, and his shot selection was again solid. If he makes good decisions on when to shoot, his shooting percentage is going to be very good. I think this is pretty much a given now. He also played one of his best games defensively, anticipating passes and getting steals. Great game for him, other that his usual couple of inexplicable unforced turnovers. He has cut down on these pretty well, isn't where he needs to be but I see a lot of progress and like where he is at right now. Let's see how he does in conference play, I am sure he will get a lot of pressure in his face that will be uncomfortable to deal with.

JB3 rebounds better with a beard. That is the one conclusion I think we all can agree on. I was really happy one time when he was driving in the paint, had a guy in his face and instead of forcing a bad shot, saw Jesse and set him up for a dunk. Jimmy is a good passer and if he can find the open guy when he drives, it will make him a lot more effective.

Was again really pleased with what I saw from Symir. I know it was only Brown but he is playing with a lot of confidence right now and doing a really nice job finding the open man. I think he ended up with 7 assists and 0 turnovers. And he made a 3. Happy for him. It is good to see him playing a lot. I think JB playing the subs more in the first and second halves might have played a role in how much better we played as a team in the second half.

Brown was flummoxed by the zone for a long time, and dug a deep hole for themselves, but give them credit. They made some adjustments, started getting the ball into the paint regularly and started scoring a lot of points in the latter part of the first half. It is nice JB has the new option of stacking the guards to cut down on that. Looked like he made that adjustment and it was very effective making it harder for Brown to get it into the paint. It will be interesting to see how much JB uses this tweak in future games.

Thought Cole had a nice job offensively but I wish he hit the boards harder. Jimmy did a really nice job down low getting boards but he needs help. Jesse wasn't great on the boards either. Looked like he lost a few boards he was in position for. Just couldn't hold on to them. His hands were solid early in the season. Not sure if he is just frustrated, or nervous but he needs to be more of a factor rebounding, especially against a team like Brown. Weird to see him struggling with FTs now too.

Benny got a lot of PT and JB gave him the opportunity to play through a number of mistakes. The adjustment from HS to college is a big one and almost everyone struggles making it. Benny is not exception. It was good to see him getting a chance to learn from his mistakes, and getting a chance to make changes and address issues in real time. He has to get tougher, smarter, more assertive. I think he will get there and hope JB is able to find some minutes for him each game to help further his development. Think he can become a meaningful contributor in the second half of the season if JB is patient with him. That said, right now, he is costing us points a lot and it is hard to take that hit when wins are desperately needs and the margin for victories is so thin.

Thought Frank had a typical game. When he is in, players are able to get to the rim way easier than when Jesse is in. But Frank is a better rebounder I think, and might be a better finisher too (i.e. he dunks whenever he can).

Hope we play like this again Wednesday and Saturday. Cornell isn't great and this is a good time to play Virginia, who might be getting slowly better but are not playing like a Tony Bennett coached team yet.

A 3 win week would be awesome.

Fingers crossed.

The first ten minutes of the game was the best we might have played all season only to come out and have a phenomenal run to start the 2nd half. It was if Brown hadn't anticipated that Cuse might switch to a 1-3-1 or 1-1-2-1 or whatever you want to call Plan B. That defense works great with Buddy's height. I thought Symir struggled with it at first but eventually made a couple great plays as well.

 

[Ragman2000]

"This will be short, so sorry." Tom as he proceeds to write a novel of thoughtful assessment.

"I can do this all day." Captain America, or maybe also Tom, probably.

 

[ar inj]

Nice write-up but one disagreement, the IIId is not a good passer. He tends to be a black hole and throws really slooooow passes. It is like he needs to literally stop and think before he does anything. And why did he fall on the court last night more times than I could count.

Not to be total negative. I like his old man game around the basket ... most of the time.

 

[sutomcat]

Nice write-up but one disagreement, the IIId is not a good passer. He tends to be a black hole and throws really slooooow passes. It is like he needs to literally stop and think before he does anything. And why did he fall on the court last night more times than I could count.

Not to be total negative. I like his old man game around the basket ... most of the time.

I agree about JB3 not passing as much I would like. I have called him a black hole a few times in my posts.

That is why I liked seeing him make a nice pass. Hope to see more of that in the future.

All the teams in the ACC do a great job scouting. They see tendencies. If JB3 can make some passes while driving, it will make us harder to defend...and him significantly more effective.

 

[Nicknack]

I like your statement about Boeheim being patient with Benny. He needs minutes but that obviously has to be balanced by doing what we need to win as our margin for error now is so slim. I wouldn't be surprised if one night, things just click for him and he never looks back - he needs to gain more confidence.

I like Symir, just wish he had a bit more fire power. As for Cole, if he could get going consistently, we're a much more difficult team to defend. While we have looked below average in some games this year, we could be a scary team offensively if some of the pieces would come to life (mainly Cole and Benny).

 

[721Comstock]

I like your statement about Boeheim being patient with Benny. He needs minutes but that obviously has to be balanced by doing what we need to win as our margin for error now is so slim. I wouldn't be surprised if one night, things just click for him and he never looks back - he needs to gain more confidence.

I like Symir, just wish he had a bit more fire power. As for Cole, if he could get going consistently, we're a much more difficult team to defend. While we have looked below average in some games this year, we could be a scary team offensively if some of the pieces would come to life (mainly Cole and Benny).

It was when JB subbed in all 3 of: Frank, Sy, and Benny that Brown closed the big lead down, and in a hurry.

Thankfully we kept it at 20+ the entire 2nd half, even when those guys got in.

I think that's JB biggest mistake - doing a hockey line switch with ALL 3 of those guys subbing in at once. We lose too much scoring, and as energetic as Frankie is (and a good rebounder), he's nowhere near the same rim protector that Jesse is.

He needs to only have 1-2 of the bench guys in at any time.
Especially while it's still early and/or a competitive game.

Unless it's a 2nd half blowout, where it doesn't matter.

 

[Nicknack]

It was when JB subbed in all 3 of: Frank, Sy, and Benny that Brown closed the big lead down, and in a hurry.

Thankfully we kept it at 20+ the entire 2nd half, even when those guys got in.

I think that's JB biggest mistake - doing a hockey line switch with ALL 3 of those guys subbing in at once. We lose too much scoring, and as energetic as Frankie is (and a good rebounder), he's nowhere near the same rim protector that Jesse is.

He needs to only have 1-2 of the bench guys in at any time.
Especially while it's still early and/or a competitive game.

Unless it's a 2nd half blowout, where it doesn't matter.

Yeah, I don't like the hockey line switch strategy either. I'd like to see at times, just Benny come in and play with the starters rather than him with Frank and Symir. I also think he could have brought in someone from the bench earlier.

 

[Consigliere]

Tom saying "this will be short" ranks right up there with "I am pleased with my performance."

Joe with 7 assists and 5 steals (combined with Symir with 7 assists) is a real indication of how well the offense was moving. He is third in the league in assists now. The three turnovers on their face don;t look bad but at least two appeared to be completely unforced.

Team really needs a blue collar rebounding machine (like the good Tyler Roberson). Cole, Jimmy and Jesse all are decent with averages around 6 or 7 a game, but no one goes after every missed shot like it's his the way Roberson did. Frank seems to play with a bit of that mindset, but Jesse is so much better in virtually every other phase of the game that I don't see him getting an increasingly larger role to plug that gap.

 

[sutomcat]

It was when JB subbed in all 3 of: Frank, Sy, and Benny that Brown closed the big lead down, and in a hurry.

Thankfully we kept it at 20+ the entire 2nd half, even when those guys got in.

I think that's JB biggest mistake - doing a hockey line switch with ALL 3 of those guys subbing in at once. We lose too much scoring, and as energetic as Frankie is (and a good rebounder), he's nowhere near the same rim protector that Jesse is.

He needs to only have 1-2 of the bench guys in at any time.
Especially while it's still early and/or a competitive game.

Unless it's a 2nd half blowout, where it doesn't matter.

Agree, hate subbing in all 3 subs at once. Stagger the subs JB, stagger the subs.

Also, any thread about this game would be lacking unless the hair of that one dude on Brown is mentioned.

Noah Meren has the most amazing hair style I ever seen. That includes the guy from Flock of Seagulls and Bowser.

He couldn't play a lick but his hair has a tubular, complex three dimensional structural thing going on.

What is this all about? Is he going for a lion's mane? Is he going to build a whole lion with that thing over time?

I am interested to see how this progresses over time. Hope he keeps growing it over forever.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

Agree, hate subbing in all 3 subs at once. Stagger the subs JB, stagger the subs.

Also, any thread about this game would be lacking unless the hair of that one dude on Brown is mentioned.

Noah Meren has the most amazing hair style I ever seen. That includes the guy from Flock of Seagulls and Bowser.

He couldn't play a lick but his hair has a tubular, complex three dimensional structural thing going on.

What is this all about? Is he going for a lion's mane? Is he going to build a whole lion with that thing over time?

I am interested to see how this progresses over time. Hope he keeps growing it over forever.

I was going to create a special thread on his hair plus create it's own twitter handle and instagram page. I need to re-watch the hair in slow motion but it didn't appear to move much. It kind of reminded me of an upside down hoop skirt. I'm with you on doing more research. It's a phenomenon.

 

[Nicknack]

Agree, hate subbing in all 3 subs at once. Stagger the subs JB, stagger the subs.

Also, any thread about this game would be lacking unless the hair of that one dude on Brown is mentioned.

Noah Meren has the most amazing hair style I ever seen. That includes the guy from Flock of Seagulls and Bowser.

He couldn't play a lick but his hair has a tubular, complex three dimensional structural thing going on.

What is this all about? Is he going for a lion's mane? Is he going to build a whole lion with that thing over time?

I am interested to see how this progresses over time. Hope he keeps growing it over forever.

Ahhh, yes, I almost forgot about the hair. While watching the game, I was envisioning him trying to put a shirt on over that nest. Try putting a shirt on with a ball cap on. Not an easy feat. I like dreads, but that thing is something else... Don King on steroids.

 

[HoustonCuse]

Agree, hate subbing in all 3 subs at once. Stagger the subs JB, stagger the subs.

Also, any thread about this game would be lacking unless the hair of that one dude on Brown is mentioned.

Noah Meren has the most amazing hair style I ever seen. That includes the guy from Flock of Seagulls and Bowser.

He couldn't play a lick but his hair has a tubular, complex three dimensional structural thing going on.

What is this all about? Is he going for a lion's mane? Is he going to build a whole lion with that thing over time?

I am interested to see how this progresses over time. Hope he keeps growing it over forever.

I was assuming there is some sort of lampshade like wire structure under there holding it up.

 

[bballbeadle]

Agree, hate subbing in all 3 subs at once. Stagger the subs JB, stagger the subs.

Also, any thread about this game would be lacking unless the hair of that one dude on Brown is mentioned.

Noah Meren has the most amazing hair style I ever seen. That includes the guy from Flock of Seagulls and Bowser.

He couldn't play a lick but his hair has a tubular, complex three dimensional structural thing going on.

What is this all about? Is he going for a lion's mane? Is he going to build a whole lion with that thing over time?

I am interested to see how this progresses over time. Hope he keeps growing it over forever.

I thought he looked like King Tut.

 

[UD1954]

Funny how excited we now get beating Ivy league schools.....used to look at a game like this more like a scrimmage when we were good....

 

[NorSyr66]

Agree, hate subbing in all 3 subs at once. Stagger the subs JB, stagger the subs.

Also, any thread about this game would be lacking unless the hair of that one dude on Brown is mentioned.

Noah Meren has the most amazing hair style I ever seen. That includes the guy from Flock of Seagulls and Bowser.

He couldn't play a lick but his hair has a tubular, complex three dimensional structural thing going on.

What is this all about? Is he going for a lion's mane? Is he going to build a whole lion with that thing over time?

I am interested to see how this progresses over time. Hope he keeps growing it over forever.

I hate being yet another to pick up on "the hair" player but my first thought was would this give him an advantage on picking up fouls under the basket when the refs see an arm hitting his hair or on a three point shot when the defender's hand hit his hair?

 

[ar inj]

I agree about JB3 not passing as much I would like. I have called him a black hole a few times in my posts.

That is why I liked seeing him make a nice pass. Hope to see more of that in the future.

All the teams in the ACC do a great job scouting. They see tendencies. If JB3 can make some passes while driving, it will make us harder to defend...and him significantly more effective.

Yes, hope we see more passing because I almost fell out of my chair when he passed. I could have got hurt. And as I caught myself, I said to the guy next to me, "Jimmy just passed the ball."

 

[MSOrange]

Agree, hate subbing in all 3 subs at once. Stagger the subs JB, stagger the subs.

Also, any thread about this game would be lacking unless the hair of that one dude on Brown is mentioned.

Noah Meren has the most amazing hair style I ever seen. That includes the guy from Flock of Seagulls and Bowser.

He couldn't play a lick but his hair has a tubular, complex three dimensional structural thing going on.

What is this all about? Is he going for a lion's mane? Is he going to build a whole lion with that thing over time?

I am interested to see how this progresses over time. Hope he keeps growing it over forever.

I was watching with my dad and he commented about someone's hair right after Jesse Edwards did something, so I assumed he was talking about Jesse. Jesse's hair isn't THAT wild but then I saw Noah. Wow that is something else!

 

[DoctorBombay]

JG3 was our best player last night. Hence the muted response from the usual suspects. Lol

 

[hoopsupstate]

You noticed JB3 didn’t have any drives going to his right. They played his right hand all night. He almost got a charge trying to go right. ACC teams will do the same thing.

 

[stuckinbig11]

Agree, hate subbing in all 3 subs at once. Stagger the subs JB, stagger the subs.

Also, any thread about this game would be lacking unless the hair of that one dude on Brown is mentioned.

Noah Meren has the most amazing hair style I ever seen. That includes the guy from Flock of Seagulls and Bowser.

He couldn't play a lick but his hair has a tubular, complex three dimensional structural thing going on.

What is this all about? Is he going for a lion's mane? Is he going to build a whole lion with that thing over time?

I am interested to see how this progresses over time. Hope he keeps growing it over forever.

Hair made Rosie B. seem 8-feet tall.

 

[CousCuse]

Much respect to Bourama Sidibe. It must of took a tremendous amount of will and training and pain to get back into condition to play in a game. Great work.

 

[Nicknack]

Great game, but one play stood out to me in the second half. At about the 15:10 left in the second half, Buddy takes a 3 pt shot and misses. Edwards comes down and makes an amazing rebound. It was fantastic. Really good. We haven't had a center in a while that could make that kind of play.

He was visibly amped after getting the rebound and saving it to Swider. He wanted the ball back to seal the deal. Instead, the ball got to Buddy and he clearly looked for his own shot rather than rewarding the big guy. I was disappointed in that play, because that's too often what happens with a couple of our guys - looking for their own. Don't get me wrong, I love watching Buddy shoot the ball, and Jimmy was looking good too from deep. However, they can always get their shot, but you HAVE to reward the big guy on plays like that. Otherwise, they get less active. Feed the beast!

 

[kcsu]

Agree, hate subbing in all 3 subs at once. Stagger the subs JB, stagger the subs.

Also, any thread about this game would be lacking unless the hair of that one dude on Brown is mentioned.

Noah Meren has the most amazing hair style I ever seen. That includes the guy from Flock of Seagulls and Bowser.

He couldn't play a lick but his hair has a tubular, complex three dimensional structural thing going on.

What is this all about? Is he going for a lion's mane? Is he going to build a whole lion with that thing over time?

I am interested to see how this progresses over time. Hope he keeps growing it over forever.

I call him Pharoah

 

[CardiacCuse]

It was when JB subbed in all 3 of: Frank, Sy, and Benny that Brown closed the big lead down, and in a hurry.

Thankfully we kept it at 20+ the entire 2nd half, even when those guys got in.

I think that's JB biggest mistake - doing a hockey line switch with ALL 3 of those guys subbing in at once. We lose too much scoring, and as energetic as Frankie is (and a good rebounder), he's nowhere near the same rim protector that Jesse is.

He needs to only have 1-2 of the bench guys in at any time.
Especially while it's still early and/or a competitive game.

Unless it's a 2nd half blowout, where it doesn't matter.

I dont see any huge spikes in margin here. i see a steady gap in the first half basically and then a widening gap in the second...when sy etc played a lot. i dont buy the narrative you are selling.