Game day!!! 
Happy New Season everyone.
Let’s have a great time talking GW hoops - both the positive and the opportunities in the next few months.

Hopefully more positive!!

GW 78 Mercy 62.  Lead a little larger but the walking get some playing time at the end

GW0509 wrote:

The Dude wrote:

We got a line yet?

GW -16.5
O/U 147.5

Excited to see the team with all its new parts back in action.  Expecting a bumpy season with a few surprises in store, and one monster year from DBJr 

Lets get it started tonight
 

Cold shooting but defense is definitely not where it needs to be .  Down 11

Can't get a video?

I have blind faith in GW but the first half was a tough watch

Shouldn’t be beating us off the dribble

Lots to like, lots to shake your head at. Jury will be out for a few games. All judgement suspended until we face a team worthy of being called D-1. That’s not Mercyhurst.

Rocky start in which our question marks around three point shooting, being able to stop dribble penetration, and forcing turnovers all caused huge problems.  But then we turned up the defense and seemed to relax and pulled away comfortably.

The biggest positives for me, besides some individual player observations, were that we appear to be a much more physical team than in years past (we bullied them inside, which isn’t something we’ve really done the last several years) and in the second half we started moving the ball pretty well with no clear ball dominant player.


Castro was a revelation. What really surprised me was his passing. For much of the first half our best offense was his high-low passing. And he was really aggressive on the boards. Very athletic and didn’t seem afraid to mix it up down low.  Foul trouble in 2H was a problem, though a couple were unlucky.  Double double with 4 assists in 27 minutes.

Moss was also impressive. For those who didn’t see it, he had what could stand as the play of the season.  After a sloppy sequence led to a 3 on 0 break for Mercyhurst( Moss (who seems to be the fastest player we’ve had in a while), turned on the Jets and came from well behind the play to steal the ball.  He also showed really nice quicks on drives to the basket.  Needs to work on keeping his man in front of him, though. 

DBJ looked like what we expect. Took a couple of bad threes, but otherwise was a man among boys.

Hutch had a quiet game. Seemed to just be moving the ball around the perimeter and not looking to score or to create. Only took 3 shots (all threes) and missed them all.  I’m guessing he’ll show more in future games.

Last starter, Drumgoole, had a pretty bad game, especially in the first half.  I think he was nervous and pressing but he struggled on defense, couldn’t hit a shot, and got in foul trouble in the first half.  Second half he played a bit better (though one horrible possession he dribbled for like 25 seconds and then I think turned it over). He made two threes when he took it slower and in rhythm. Other times he seemed to be rushing his shot.  He’s a veteran and I have no doubt he’ll play better, especially because he’s another player who is more physical than what we’ve had recently.

Hansen was fairly quiet, but two things stood out to me.  One, he moved the ball really well. Two, while he’s not the most athletic player, his positioning was really good.  Smart player who knows where to be. 

Autry had a really bad game that included sailing two skip passes well into the stands. Not sure why he was so off.

Chris Jones also got a lot of playing time (I think first off the bench, or at least first guard). Could see some talent. Moves well and has length. But he also looked like a guy playing his first game in over a year and first college game. He did get to the line a couple of times and while his first two looked incredibly nervous, he was much more comfortable and swished the second two.  Not sure what he’ll look like as the season goes on.

Bevins got four minutes. Seems to have some size and can move. Hit a late three for his only shot. Clearly needs to get stronger during his career but I liked the cameo.

Overall, rough first half, excellent second half (and covered the 16.5 spread). We didn’t look like a team poised to make a big impact in the A10 but then again it’s only one game and once we shook the nerves off, we were pretty good. 

Hopefully we continue to improve each game.

Tough game to analyze, mainly because GW was so much bigger, faster and stronger than Maryhurst, it would be hard to get a good handle.   Case in point is Castro.    If he could do all season what he did yesterday, then he is a good one.   But there was nobody on Maryhurst who could physically match up with him.   Same with Buchanan.    He had  a very good night because there was nobody on the other team that was big, strong or fast enough to stop him on the drive.   Agree with Autry's off night, but he seems more creative in his scoring.     Moss could be this year's "keeps both teams in the game"  (copywright Wisconsin Colonial) player.   When he was good, he was great, and when he was bad, he was awful.    Agree with sentiments on Drumgoole.   Coach talked about an 8 man rotation.    Starters last night were Buchanan, Hutchinson (who other than not turning the ball over much did not seem to do much),  Castro, Moss and Drumgoole.   Clearly Autry and Hansen are 6 and 7.   Last night, Caputo  seemed to be trying out Jones and Bevins (both playing their first college game) as 8.   I have a feeling that is going to be the case for the first several games, before a decision is made.   Jones' weight (muscle) gain is noticable.  Note that Nessah was out with a minor injury.  I would guess he to is in the running for that #8 in the rotation.  Clearly Zam and Harvey are not currently in the running for #8.  Also there were minutes with both Castro and Hansen were in the game together, but I didn't really see any positive from that last night. Wonder if we were just playing with that or if that is part of the game plan.    As we are all aware, they play vastly different games.      I didn't think Hansen got as many touches as he needs.  I hear his strengths are 3 point shooting and passing.   I agree with I believe Free or whoever pointed out what a good passer Castro was last night.   But overall, Hansen looked like a player learning a new system.   Whatever offense we run (it wasn't readily apparent last night), they sure as hell didn't play it at Cornell.   What really bothered me last night was what was one of my complaints from last season, namely how slow we are on the defensive rotation.   Got repeatedly beat on that early in the game.  Twice stepping on the out of bounds line early in the game gave me feelings of deja vu from last season, though we  seemed to keep the turnovers down.    Now if Buchanan is going to have a shot to make it in the NBA,  he is going to show the world that he has some serious shooting range.    He doen't seem to have improved his free throw shooting.   Notwithstanding, he is clearly the leader on the court and easily our best player.  Easy prediction for one of the all conference teams.   What I really got a kick out of  was when were getting bitch slapped  by Mercyhurst early in the game, Buchanan turned to the team and twice shouted "wake the fuck up",    After that, we made our run that allow us to tie the game that first half and cover the spread...I mean really break it opened the second half.    Of course I would be remiss if I did not reference the three point shooting.    In the end,  we won because we were able to manhandle a smaller, slower and weaker team.  We were getting most of the rebounds and beating them to most of the loose balls.   Mercyhurst looked exhausted coming out of the locker the second half and was no longer able to do what they did in their very impressive first 10-12 minutes of their first D1 game.      Lets see how this physical game will translater against stronger competition.  Finally, just wanted to say how great it is to be back to the Smith Center watching men's basketball.    Seeing the regulars for the first time of the season was great, and then to be treated to a win.    Very few places I would rather be than at the Smitty watching a game.   See everyone on Friday.

Last edited by Long Suffering Fan (11/05/2024 11:50 am)