Thoughts on the Duke win and the ND game

[JeremyCuse]

Impressive to come away with a win against a smart Duke team despite the huge disparity at the X. This Duke team while good lacks of the firepower and overwhelming talent of prior Duke teams. Real good attack with Guterding and Bruckner but a suspect midfield and little depth. Rowe is excellent and they have some nice defensive pieces but Duke has never been able to completely re-load after their graduation losses from the 2014 championship season. Very high recruiting classes to the last 4-5 years but they have had some players not pan out. Danowski is a great coach but they lose a lot again to graduation this year (Rowe, Bruckner, Fowler, Zenker, and a few poles) Still a really good win over a team that was on a 5 game winning streak with some real nice wins.

As for us I thought we played a gritty game and that the Defense was excellent for 3+ quarters. I thought we did a great job getting checks on Duke shooters just as they were letting go. I lost count of how many times a Duke shooter got checked just as they were releasing the ball. I thought Firman did a nice job on Guterding and held him in check for the most part. I wasn't a huge fan of the call to go zone as Duke is a smart team so they eventually were able to find gaps and take advantage of cuts to the middle of the field where they would absorb a few checks and wind up with a good look 6-8 yards out. They did this to perfection in the fourth where they scored 4 goals. Some of that might have bee the SU d getting tired as we struggled to get on shooters hands on the cuts to the middle. I though Molloy like the rest of the D was excellent for 3 quarters but struggled in the fourth as I don't believe he had a save. Will be interesting to see if we try to zone, ND. I wouldn't recommend it based on the amount of weapons they have and Perkovic's ability but I guess we will see. Thought the D did a great job to draw a shot clock turnover late but nearly blew the game when Bruckner got that great look with about 5 seconds left. I think Bomberry was covering him and did a half slide on Guterding who was dodging, he has to know you can't give Bruckner an inch there especially with Firman covering Guterding, it wasn't like we had a SSDM on Guterding and a slide was needed. When SU has issues its usually guys sliding early or sliding for no reason, have to clean that up because Wynne, Garnsey, and Perkovic will exploit that to death.

Offensively I thought we did a real nice job trying to score in transition and in usettled situations. I thought Solomon was aggressive which is what this team needs. He did have a few bad shots in the second half that were easy saves for Fowler but you have to take the good with the bad with him right now. I thought Evans had a good first half. He was aggressive, had a great pass for an assist, and made an outstanding move from X on a dodge that he probably should have scored on. In the second half he reverted back to bad Evans turning the ball over 2-3 times on bad passes, taking bad shots, and struggling to make an impact. He did have an assist in the second half to finish with two assists but he has now scored 2 goals in the last 4 games. Again I hate to keep harping on it but at some point you have to wonder if the lack of scoring forces Desko's hand to give Voigt and Rehfuss some more PT. Mariano was Mariano, that last goal was a thing of beauty and he again was clearly SU's best offensive weapon. We need to give him the ball more to create as he is drawing a lot of attention and slides and the offense is at its best when the ball is in his stick. If were going to keep him at middie he needs to be on the field with both lines as the offense struggles when he is not on the field. Bomberry had a good game, that shot to pull SU within one after we got down 2 was huge. My only criticism is that he continues to drop at least 1-2 passes a game where he is wide open. Happened again in the fourth quarter and led directly to a Duke goal. He also didn't appear to put a ton of effort to grab the gb on that dropped pass, we need him to clean that up.

Trimboli continues to grow as he gets more PT on the first line. SU is very comfortable with him handling the ball late two games in a row and that shot in OT was a thing of beauty. Need him to dodge the left alley a little bit as he is only going to the right so far but have to love the fact that he is only a freshmen and is already showing such promise. I thought the offense as a whole really ground to a halt when the second mid line was in. Mariano wasn't on the field and the only dodger is Solomon. Twice in the second half the second line came on and the Offense couldn't do anything. Dearth needs to be on the second line and I would like to see Romano or one of the frosh get a run with second line as Carlin and Simmons aren't giving much at this point. Lane tried to dodge and took a few shots but didn't put anything on net and just looks uncomfortable out there. Still hoping he can put it all together at some point this year like he did against UVA.

As for Ben, he clearly isn't at 100%, doesn't look like the same player out there. He has struggled in his career against Rowe but never anything like that. He was getting beat clean and desperately trying to scrum up the draw and one point was basically holding on to Rowe for dear life. You have to wonder if 2+ seasons of taking 95% of the draws has caught up to him physically. Thought Varello did an excellent job coming in cold against a guy as good as Rowe. Going 6 for 8 against him is outstanding. Not sure why Desko tried Williams again for one more after Varello won two straight, baffling. We caught a break on that draw in OT, Rowe appeared to have simply dropped the ball after winning it clean and Bomberry did a hell of a job to scoop that in traffic.

As for ND, real tough game. Their D is legit as guys like Epple, Sexton, Doss etc are some of the best in Div 1. The only good news is that a lot of those guys are Seniors and ND loses a ton to graduation this year. Their offense can run hot and cold as they haven't found a replacement for Kavanaugh yet but there is plenty of talent there. Perkovic is Perkovic and Garnsey is one of the top attackmen in Div 1. I am assuming SU is going to put Firman on Garnsey, Bomberry on Wynne and Fusco/Helmer on Perkovic. Going to really need to watch our slides as Wynne is deadly on the crease. Outside of maybe UVA this probably the most talented offense we have seen this year when they are playing at their peak. Going to need win faceoffs and Ben's history against PJ Finely is a mixed bag. May see Varello again if he struggles. From an offensive standpoint I suspect were going to struggle to score. Epple and Sexton are both really good so they may take Mariano and Bomberry out completely. The secondary guys are really going to need to step up if were going to have any chance.

 

[Orangello]

I do not have a good feeling about tomorrow's game. ND has too many weapons and while the D has played better than expected so far this year, they have a tendency to have one or more really bad quarters a la the 4th quarter against Duke. A bad quarter against ND could quickly lead to a 4 or 5 goal deficit. Our O also does not match up well with their D. If we can limit our TO's on O we might have a puncher's chance. Really need to have one of Mariano, Sergio, Trimbo or the Bomber have an out of the mind game.

 

[JeremyCuse]

I do not have a good feeling about tomorrow's game. ND has too many weapons and while the D has played better than expected so far this year, they have a tendency to have one or more really bad quarters a la the 4th quarter against Duke. A bad quarter against ND could quickly lead to a 4 or 5 goal deficit. Our O also does not match up well with their D. If we can limit our TO's on O we might have a puncher's chance. Really need to have one of Mariano, Sergio, Trimbo or the Bomber have an out of the mind game.

Unfortunately I believe you are right, I don't think we have the offensive firepower or depth needed to really attack this ND defense. They held UVA to 10 goals and Maryland to freeking four. If you look at our matchup two years ago they shut down Rice and Staats but Donahue went off for 8 goals. You have to have a solid top 6 who can beat there secondary defender if your going to beat ND (see Denver), we had that in 2015 and if not for a very late goal off a faceoff we would have won. This year we simply don't have that as Donahue was the third attackmen on that team, Evans is that guy this year and he has 7 goals all year long. Assuming ND doesn't double pole the midfield Salcido or Trimboli will have to off for us to have a chance.

 

[Orangello]

My kingdom for a DD or KR. We so very desperately need a feeder who can create in and around the goal. I feel like Bomberry can play in front of the net but as you note above, he has been having the dropsies at key times on feeds and then not pursuing the gb. I am encouraged about the offensive talent we have coming in at attack and mid next year.

 

[HtownOrange]

"Let me 'splain you two somethin'"*:

Take a step back, put on your Orange colored glasses, forget you two know lacrosse - Jeremy, this step is only until you need to write the post game report! - and be like those of us who lack the depth of understanding of the game and simply enjoy it, then you can make your prediction. Syracuse by 2. Yes, you heard it from me, a fan, with limited understanding of the game, living in Texas (not a lot of lacrosse here yet - but we get credit for Mullins!), and still a fan of the right Orange (not the UT burnt orange). That, or 2 to 4 beverages designated for the adult fans only, and then you can see things my way.



*I once had a student that used to say, "Let me 'splain you somethin'", thus it became a great line in the class when one person had to explain something to another.

 

[Scoot1217]

I enjoy your posts and agree with a lot of what you say. However, it is obvious you have a negative bias towards Jordan Evans. You repeatedly remark on his turnovers, and I believe early this year you called him a "turnover machine." In the above post in regards to the Duke game you said "..turned the ball over 2-3 times on bad passes..." At the game I went to Evans only had one turnover, one. For the season he has seven, the same as Salcido and Bomberry, and four less than Mariano. I believe a number of his turnovers are on passes that should have been caught. I can not remember Evans having crucial turnover this year. I would call Salcido's ill advised pass that never reached a triple teamed Bomberry with a minute and half left in the Army game "crucial." Instead of holding for last shot it gave Army that opportunity, and we know how that worked out. In the Virginia game Evans out hustled a UVA defenseman to poke, and then pick up an apparent turnover in the last two minutes so SU could take the last shot.

Not to go on too much, he leads the offensive players in ground balls, and is tied in caused turnovers. In comparison to a first team AA, Evans has one less goal with 24 less shots and has about double the shooting and shots on goal percentages. He works well with all the other attacks and should have at least four or five more assists. I have not seen a short stick on him all year. Most importantly, the other players and coaches have confidence in him.

My feeling is while maybe not the superstar many thought he would be, he is a very good lacrosse player. He is experienced and the definition of a "team player." He needs to keep that aggressiveness that I agree can come and go. Too many people see that number and look for a Mike Powell, which he is not. What you get is a solid performance on a 6-1 D1 lacrosse team that has already played five top twenty teams and faces its biggest test tomorrow.

 

[JeremyCuse]

I enjoy your posts and agree with a lot of what you say. However, it is obvious you have a negative bias towards Jordan Evans. You repeatedly remark on his turnovers, and I believe early this year you called him a "turnover machine." In the above post in regards to the Duke game you said "..turned the ball over 2-3 times on bad passes..." At the game I went to Evans only had one turnover, one. For the season he has seven, the same as Salcido and Bomberry, and four less than Mariano. I believe a number of his turnovers are on passes that should have been caught. I can not remember Evans having crucial turnover this year. I would call Salcido's ill advised pass that never reached a triple teamed Bomberry with a minute and half left in the Army game "crucial." Instead of holding for last shot it gave Army that opportunity, and we know how that worked out. In the Virginia game Evans out hustled a UVA defenseman to poke, and then pick up an apparent turnover in the last two minutes so SU could take the last shot.

Not to go on too much, he leads the offensive players in ground balls, and is tied in caused turnovers. In comparison to a first team AA, Evans has one less goal with 24 less shots and has about double the shooting and shots on goal percentages. He works well with all the other attacks and should have at least four or five more assists. I have not seen a short stick on him all year. Most importantly, the other players and coaches have confidence in him.

My feeling is while maybe not the superstar many thought he would be, he is a very good lacrosse player. He is experienced and the definition of a "team player." He needs to keep that aggressiveness that I agree can come and go. Too many people see that number and look for a Mike Powell, which he is not. What you get is a solid performance on a 6-1 D1 lacrosse team that has already played five top twenty teams and faces its biggest test tomorrow.

Appreciate the post, let me try to clarify a few of your comments. In regards to Evans himself I don't have a negative bias. As I noted in my original post I thought Evans played very well in the 1st half. Was aggressive, had a real nice assist and had an excellent dodge on a move from X that I haven't seen all that year that he probably should have scored on. I think most people understand that Jordan isn't Mike Powell or Dan Hardy or Cody Jameson or some of the others who have worn #22. I don't think anyone is looking for him or expecting him to put up 4-6 pts a game. That being said as a Senior and a player starting attack wearing #22 I think we were all hoping for a break out Senior season that simply hasn't materialized yet.

In regards to turnovers I called Evans a turnover machine in regards to last year when he led the team and struggled with it badly. I have complimented him several times this year about playing within himself and rarely turning the ball over until the St. Johns game. As for last week I maybe mistaking him for someone else but I remember him having a couple of turnovers in the second half, perhaps he was only credited with one but he definitely struggled in the second half of the game outside of his assist to Bomberry. Evans has some good traits, he rides well, does a good job on scrums getting gb's and clearly has the trust of the staff, and doesn't force the issue to much when he knows the team needs a goal, I don't think anyone would dispute those positive traits.

The issue is that as the third attackmen on Syracuse he has 7 goals in 7 games including 2 in the last four games despite extensive playing time. That's simply not sustainable. Also I have to note that in the UVA example you noted about Evans outhustling the UVA pole for the GB, that occurred because Evans initially dropped the ball/pass which led to that near turnover. You mentioned Salcido, he has taken some hits on here as well for his play at times but he also is drawing a LSM most games and has 16 assists from the midfield which is pretty impressive. You are correct his turnover against Army was not good and we have also chastised Bomberry on several occasions for dropping passes on the crease where he was open.

I think its clear that Evans is going to be mainstay at attack for the rest of the year and he does a lot of the little things that help a team out. But if this team is going to make a serious run in May its going to need more point production from him or someone in that spot. I think I speak for the majority of the board when I say that there would be nothing better then to see Evans have a monster second half of the season and really end his career on a positive note. As I mentioned this team is going to need him and need him to play well if there going on any sort of a run in the tourney. On the other hand I try to be honest with my assessments about what I am seeing out there. Certainly doesn't make me right or some type of authority on SU or Jordan Evans but it is my opinion.