Why Moss?  He has not been very good for us on either side of the ball.

Agree

H&R..71 wrote:

With at least 2 games remaining and 30 games in the books, we have a pretty good idea of where this team is at.  Sure, it would be nice if foul shots and three pointers went in at a higher rate, but they haven't.  It's frustrating for fans and coaches alike and most importantly the players. But it's only a couple of aspects of the game.  The 17-4 runs have all come from stellar team defensive play.  CC alluded to going 10 deep.  We can't control inconsistent shooting but on D we can gut punch the opposition.  Against Loyola we were on our heals all game and they manhandled Jacoi by jumping him two plays in a row.  When we play on our toes and not retreating we can be damn good.  We seem to lose most 50/50 balls.

With media timeouts at 16,12, 8 and 4 I think we should press all game.  My fav 5 (controversial) is Castro, Jun, Autry, CJ, and Moss.  Depending on matchups and full court sprints can sub in liberally with Jacoi, Sean, Gerald, and Ty.  

The offense has been the most uncreative in a long time.  Give the ball to Castro, clear out and let him create.  Give it to Hansen clear out and let him create.  Where is the double pick to get Autry an open look?  Where is the drive and dish to anyone?  CJ forces a drive one on 3.  Gerald forces a drive and if he misses is on the ground with no prayer of playing transition D. 

We know what we have.  Play to our strength on D which means 40 minutes of effort. With 8 built in timeouts plus all the other timeouts, there could be plenty of stoppages to catch a breather.  We need to minimize the empty trips on offense.  

Fordham plays well at home and has nothing to lose.  No matter who our first opponent is in the tourney, we have to bring the energy.  And who knows, maybe we hit some threes.

So...thinking we'll play Wednesday?

Yes Alum’04, I think we’ll come to play Wednesday because there’s a lot on the line.

Anyway, just wanted to say I'm so proud of the guys for coming out on Senior Night and getting a nice win to wrap up the regular season home slate and give a nice send off to Sean, Keegan and Gerald.

Unlike the University of Michigan, which was more concerned with making a splash off the court with all the headlines about Vlad Goldin's family coming to watch him for the first time, his ridiculous fiancée in the stands and Juwan returning to Crisler Center for his son's final game. Only to get blown out by 20 at home against a mediocre Illinois team. UM has early round NCAA tournament exit written all over it.

/rant

Last edited by Alum '04 (3/03/2025 8:21 am)

Hate to sound off after a double-digit win but this team sure likes to make things harder on itself than necessary.  In building a 17 point halftime lead, it was apparent that GW could score from most places on the floor while playing suffocating defense as well.  The Explorers had not won a game since defeating GW, and if the early announcement of Fran Dunphy's pending retirement had an intended consequence of lighting a fire under this team, let's just say that this has not worked.

So, how to protect a 17 point lead?  Well, here's how not to.  Go 1-13 from the floor over the first 11:30 of the second half.  The one basket was a Castro dunk and 7 of the 12 misses were three point attempts.   Again, the team was not down by 17 at the half; it led by that amount.  Why is a streaky at best and downright poor at worst three point shooting team allowing La Salle back into the game with all of these empty possessions, especially when considering that GW was getting to the basket whenever it wanted with little difficulties?  In fact, GW ended up winning this game (after watching their 17 point lead cut to 2) because it eventually figured out that Christian, Trey A. and Slim could actually score on higher percentage shots or on free throws.  

Response to DMVPiranha:  "Make it make sense."  You mean, why a team who shoots 31% from 3, the second worse percentage in the A10, would be so reliant upon three point shooting and dunks/shots at the rim?  I have two thoughts.  First, this is the offense CC believes in and was conceived when Garrett Johnson was expected to play.  I don't think Drumgoole being this inconsistent was being counted on.  It would be fair to counter as to why this offense wasn't scrapped once Garrett was lost over the summer.  That leads to my second point which pertains to identity.  This is the offense that CC wants to show would-be transfers and high school recruits.  He wants to say that GW plays fast and isn't afraid to take 3's early in possessions.   The goal is to attract shooters.  If a year in which we struggle playing this way leads to landing the players he wants in the future to play this way, then I'm sure CC believes the short-term sacrifice is worth it.  

Response to FQ:  Lacking confidence in midrange shooting is both highly speculative and counterintuitive.  A 10-15 foot jump shot will be easier for almost every basketball player to make than a three point shot.  I understand effective FG% but it should also be understood that two point attempts include drives to the baskets which frequently lead to free throws.  

Additional points:

1.  Two pregame moments stood out.  The first was when the entire team followed Keegan Harvey and his family members onto the court to congratulate him and serve as the background for his Senior day photo.  In a day and age where we are more hard-pressed to come up with players who exceed two years in a GW uniform, Keegan remained at GW for 3 1/2 years.  His popularity must boil down to his being a great teammate.  For someone who has barely played, this was gratifying to see.  The second was the aforementioned Fran Dunphy tribute which saw almost everybody inside the Smith Center on their feet applauding and each of our players and coaches congratulating him on his forthcoming retirement.  Nice touch by CC wearing a Mr. Big Five t-shirt at the postgame press conference.

2.  For the many times we have fouled three point shooters this season and have offered exasperated reactions, I believe that we got one in our favor on Trey Autry's attempt that resulted in three made free throws.

3. I suppose this is human nature to some extent but felt we were so dialed in defensively on McKeithan and D. Jones in the first half, only to watch Corey go off in the second half.

4.  CC commented in the presser how much he enjoyed the Saturday at 6:00 pm crowds these past two weeks.  GW may very well lobby for this start time for future home Saturdays when the team is not playing on USA or CBSSN. 

5.  GW second half shooting stats:  5-12 on two point shots, 1-9 on three point shots, 16-23 on free throws.

6.  On Saturday, Slim led GW in field goals made, attempted and percentage, offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, and points.  He tied for the team lead in fre throws made, assists, and blocks.  Just name your price!