Thad Matta re Syracuse: "It's like there are 8 of them out there"

[cusetown1]

I like it.

 

[Orangezoo]

me 2.. i think the pressure is on osu .. they have to run their stuff well.. and stay out of foul trouble.. sullinger has had his struggles against longer more athletic squads. the big thing is osu cannot turn the ball over as if they play mtm we will be able to score in the half court. against hounding defensive squads we have used kris and bt, dw to handle the ball. this should help minimize crafts impact. also dion is beasting right now.. his jumper is on and he wants it.. that could be bad news for oh st ... our guardplay and flexibility and depth at forward i think will give osu fits.. as long as they dont get crazy hot from 3 like wisky did..

 

[cusetown1]

me 2.. i think the pressure is on osu .. they have to run their stuff well.. and stay out of foul trouble.. sullinger has had his struggles against longer more athletic squads. the big thing is osu cannot turn the ball over as if they play mtm we will be able to score in the half court. against hounding defensive squads we have used kris and bt, dw to handle the ball. this should help minimize crafts impact. also dion is beasting right now.. his jumper is on and he wants it.. that could be bad news for oh st ... our guardplay and flexibility and depth at forward i think will give osu fits.. as long as they dont get crazy hot from 3 like wisky did..

Sully has man boobs.

 

[4evaOrange]

When people say stuff like that about us you just any but really appreciate the defense that we play. Esp from Matta too. Going to be a very fun game!

 

[longislandcuse]

Have to keep Sully off the glass and contest his shots. Thomas and Buford also scare me, hopefully our zone extends to these guys. They have a talented player in one of those two that they can put at the ft line against the zone and the other to hit threes. We have better guard play and better forwards, just have to limit their advantage downlow. It's RAKEITA's time to shine, Xmas played well against KState and Keita played well against Wisc, were going to need both to play well against OSU. I will be very interested to see how our length and athleticism affects them.

They have good players but when I have seen them against quality competition, I havent been very impressed. I think we have more advantages at positions and depth than they do. Rebound, rebound, rebound.

 

[cusetown1]

Have to keep Sully off the glass and contest his shots. Thomas and Buford also scare me, hopefully our zone extends to these guys. They have a talented player in one of those two that they can put at the ft line against the zone and the other to hit threes. We have better guard play and better forwards, just have to limit their advantage downlow. It's RAKEITA's time to shine, Xmas played well against KState and Keita played well against Wisc, were going to need both to play well against OSU. I will be very interested to see how our length and athleticism affects them.

They have good players but when I have seen them against quality competition, I havent been very impressed. I think we have more advantages at positions and depth than they do. Rebound, rebound, rebound.

Am I the only one who thinks Sullinger is overrated?

 

[longislandcuse]

Am I the only one who thinks Sullinger is overrated?

I think he is as well but we cant let him do against us what he did to Cincy last night. Dude had like 8 points on putbacks.

 

[cusetown1]

I think he is as well but we cant let him do against us what he did to Cincy last night. Dude had like 8 points on putbacks.

I know, those were freaking lucky btw. Those were tough shots to make, and he kept making them.

 

[SU2NASA]

I like it.

To be fair, counting is a junior-level class at Ohio State.

 

[longislandcuse]

What is OSU's depth like? It seems like they plays Craft/Buford/Thomas/Sully all game.

 

[cusetown1]

is Craft really 6'2"?

 

[orangepassion]

I think he is as well but we cant let him do against us what he did to Cincy last night. Dude had like 8 points on putbacks.

That is the key to the game IMO

 

[Knicks411]

What is OSU's depth like? It seems like they plays Craft/Buford/Thomas/Sully all game.

Yeah I think Matta has played a short bench ever since he has been there. Assuming no foul trouble, I'd think all 4 of those guys are playign 35+ minutes.

 

[kingtidge]

It's RAKEITA's time to shine, Xmas played well against KState and Keita played well against Wisc, were going to need both to play well against OSU. I will be very interested to see how our length and athleticism affects them.

Sullinger worries me... guy has been injury prone and inconsistent but seems to be clicking on all cylinders right now...

He's gonna get his, we just need to keep it respectable against him and not let him run rampant in the paint offensively or defensively - scoring or on rebounds... and all without getting into foul trouble... We saw Rakeita get into to trouble against Wiscy and Sullinger is a lot more polished low post than Berggren... Jimmy will need a contingency plan like we've seen in earlier games of sliding Fair or Southerland in if our centers foul out... That proposition worries me the most (along with Scoop trying to outdribble Craft on O - which will be turnover festival if he doesn't let Dion carry a lot of the load bringing the ball upcourt...)

Buford has been cold as of late... If that continues and we can address the two concerns above, I really like our chances in this one...

Of course, those are a lot of ifs...

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

I really really worry about 2 quick fouls on Christmas...Keita doesnt have the beef for Sully/Thomas on the glass.

 

[All4SU]

Was he alluding to 5 players and 3 refs?

 

[Flacusian]

At the center position we've got 10 fouls to give over the course of the game. Rak will be ready and he will have completed the tutorial on what not to do. We have been the recipients of great play from both Baye and Rakeem. I like the vibe that this team has displayed since Fab's untimely departure. We've been getting better play from others as a result of him not being in there. Offensively this is the best we've looked all year.

This team has the talent and poise to get this done. Need good games from KJ & Scoop.

 

[RF2044]

I like it.

I'm nervous about OSU being able to play volleyball on the offensive glass against us.

But I LOVE that they only have 1 day to prepare for the zone, and that they are going to play us straight up man-2-man all game.

I loathe Ohio State. My wife is an OSU grad, as is her whole family, so for me this is personal.

Let's Go Orange!!!

 

[All4SU]

I'm nervous about OSU being able to play volleyball on the offensive glass against us.

But I LOVE that they only have 1 day to prepare for the zone, and that they are going to play us straight up man-2-man all game.

I loathe Ohio State. My wife is an OSU grad, as is her whole family, so for me this is personal.

Let's Go Orange!!!

Of course, they have Greg Paulus to help them get ready.

 

[rrlbees]

I'm nervous about OSU being able to play volleyball on the offensive glass against us.

But I LOVE that they only have 1 day to prepare for the zone, and that they are going to play us straight up man-2-man all game.

I loathe Ohio State. My wife is an OSU grad, as is her whole family, so for me this is personal.

Let's Go Orange!!!

Matta said last night that since he knew Cincy would play some zone (they did for most of the 1st half) and that we play all zone, they did a lot f work the past eek against zone defenses. Of course ours is different than most, but it's too bad they didn't play an all m2m team last night.

 

[rrlbees]

Of course, they have Greg Paulus to help them get ready.

He is the video coordinator so I found it surprising that he was on the bench last night. Bluman would never be allowed on the bench. I think OSU cheated the system to get another coached involved and his title is in name only.

 

[MGP]

Am I the only one who thinks Sullinger is overrated?

Overrated as in what? Not one of the best players in the country? He's not Bill Russell but I don't think anyone rates him as such. Yes, he's a 1st team AA.

 

[cusetown1]

Overrated as in what? Not one of the best players in the country? He's not Bill Russell but I don't think anyone rates him as such. Yes, he's a 1st team AA.

I just never liked his game.

 

[MGP]

I just never liked his game.

Agreed. He can be hot and cold. He's still one of the best though and will be a load for us tomorrow.

 

[cusetown1]

Agreed. He can be hot and cold. He's still one of the best though and will be a load for us tomorrow.

I don't mind him being a load, as long as they don't hit 14 3's.