Posted by Long Suffering Fan  11/26/2023 7:42 pm | #61 |
Alum1 wrote:
Before I make any comment on the game, I want to personally call out and thank Benny for his completely ill-advised shot up 9 with 14 ticks left. On a lark, I threw $80 on the Colonials at +9.5 as I thought they’d blow out the Hens today. Not a huge payout ($347.50) but a fun rescue. In true Colonial fashion Benny missed the front end of the one and one to make me sweat it, but he made the second amd Max sealed it with a steal on the in bounds. Made this win even more satisfying. I also predicted 81-70, so pretty good karma for me today. 😂😂. 😔
A gutsy bet. My hats off to you.
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Posted by Long Suffering Fan 11/26/2023 7:46 pm | #62 |
Up 3 with ball and 1:23 left. We need to not have an empty possession.
After I posted this, Max took it strong into the lane and hit a 10-12 footer, which didn't quite ice the game (I still have PTSD from F**rfield) but put us firmly in control. I have some complaints with Max' shot selection and decision making, but what a ballsy player. And with all of our youth, lets not lose sight that he is just a second year player. Do you think his not starting was a strategic move by the coach or a bit of discipline? I think discipline, but I hope someone asks the question.
Last edited by Long Suffering Fan (11/26/2023 7:47 pm)
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Posted by BM 11/26/2023 7:50 pm | #63 |
Max was kicked out of two of three games. Better be a disciplinary move.
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Posted by Poog 11/26/2023 8:43 pm | #64 |
I have zero concerns that Caputo does not have the respect or control of his players and team. They may not all be happy with their playing time but this team is not being run by the players or outside kibitzers. Keep Maalox handy if you must, but this season is going to be a fun ride that will only get better as they go deeper into the season.
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Posted by Alum1 11/26/2023 8:59 pm | #65 |
A few random thoughts on the weekend.
* Winning two of three is a good thing. The chaos we are seeing on the floor is not going to be a good thing next Friday and in conference play
* We need to figure out a better defensive game plan pronto. Any team that can hit a few threes and has competent ball movement and lane penetration will come into the game with a chance to hose us.
*. We also need a better plan on offense. The all-out sprint down the court for a wild three or an out-of-control coast to coast drive down the lane is a losing strategy. And I have to assume it’s a strategy after seven games of watching it. Good data point is that we had only 8 assists tonight (Bishop had 4 of the 8) meaning the rest of the team had only 4. Yikes.
* Delaware and Ohio don’t suck, but we ain’t gonna get away with this game plan against better teams.
* Buchanan, Max and Johnson make me like the future.
* I’m very glad I made money this weekend which took the sting out of having to pay for FloSports. Possibly the worst broadcast experience I’ve ever paid for. Just to make sure the experience was complete, FloSports made it very difficult to cancel my subscription. What a shocker.
* I don’t know who Kevin Johnson is, but it do know he’s a certified imbecile. Let’s hope his career arc has peaked and he forever remains the happy idiot of FloSports.
Last edited by Alum1 (11/26/2023 9:09 pm)
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Posted by Mike K 11/26/2023 9:17 pm | #66 |
Gotta love the halftime adjustments! This was a great tourney and experience for all the young guys.
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Posted by gwstudent2024 11/26/2023 9:30 pm | #67 |
I spoke with Caputo following the game and he said Edwards not starting was a disciplinary move. Told me he wanted to set an example for him and others that they should play with emotion but not play emotional. Also said he loved how Max responded to it.
Really great win, shooting 77.8% from the field in the second half is absurd. Thought it was important that they got Johnson involved early in the second half and Buchanan was massive down the stretch. Certainly things to work on but I'm satisfied with a 6-1 record heading to South Carolina.
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Posted by dmvpiranha 11/26/2023 10:53 pm | #68 |
Nice comeback in the second half. Was somewhat disheartened with the effort in the first 20. Being down 13 when the other team was also playing like crap isn't the best feeling. GW was fortunate to not be down more with the lack of effort on both ends. Delaware got so many open looks from 3 but couldn't make anything. Unlike UIC and Ohio, I didn't get the feeling UD was a good team at any point of the game but maybe we caught them tired. Had we played with similar energy in the first half we probably could have hung 100 on them. Davis is a player though and was impressive. Not sure about any of the others.
The past game and a half was a reminder that the team is still fairly young although very talented. There were possessions offensively where it's clear that there are 11 newcomers on the team - some of the turnovers trying to pass to another guy but out of rhythm. There are principles that the young guys have to learn - namely getting back on defense to prevent transition opportunities after missing a shot. Honestly, a significant number of times both UIC and Delaware were scoring it felt due to a lackluster effort getting back. Adding to that point, the freshmen need to know who they are covering to limit transition opportunities because there were times where the team was out of sorts and that led to open three point looks, especially in the first half. Delaware had some nice moments getting back in transition defensively, which I was paying more attention to given our glaring weakness there the past two days. A more seasoned team will improve on that front.
There are personnel limitations apparent inside when Akingbola is either in foul trouble or away from the basket because teams have spaced us out, but that's something out of the team's control. Buchanan/Johnson/Schröder will have to find ways to alter shots inside to prevent teams from just backing us down constantly. I agree with others that teams that can both drive and make 3's will give the team trouble, but I think the young guys will be better about recovering out to the perimeter with time. The effort is there when things are going well (I noticed the increase in energy on D after halftime when offense was flowing better) but it will take time to learn to maintain a high level of defense even when the offense isn't clicking.
Offensive efficiency will improve when: 1) the team plays more together and knows each other's tendencies, 2) the ball actually moves around instead of guys trying to just beat their guy off the dribble, and 3) when they no longer play on that awful Baha Mar court that needed to have a slippery when wet sign. Seriously, the NCAA needs to vet each venue before having an MTE. That was unacceptable this weekend.
JB was stellar as usual. Thankful for the amount of attention he gets which opens things up for others. I do worry what happens next year without him, but I'll enjoy him being on the team while he's still at GW.
DBJ should get rookie of the week honors on Monday or the system is rigged. JB/Max aside, GW goes 0-3 without Buchanan's effort this weekend. No one is perfect, but he just doesn't seem prone to making too many mistakes. Such a change for me and a joy to watch after watching GW have such inconsistency at the 4 spot in recent years.
Garrett was a bit quieter today but I liked his drives to the hoop to keep teams honest. As one of the best offensive threats on the team, there were definitely periods of the game where I wish he was more involved when in the game.
Stretch looked great defensively (5 blocks!) and did a good job on the glass today but offense was a rough watch as others alluded to. It definitely feels he misses a few easy basket opportunities every game but he's still getting into the flow of things. Hopefully he'll be better there by A10 play.
Benny had a nice drive to the hoop early in the game which was much more in control. That was nice to see. People may have complaints about his late game shot attempt but to be fair UIC did the same thing to us yesterday so it is what it is.
The Max experience will likely be a rollercoaster the rest of the way. The ball just simply sticks more when he's in the game/has the ball in his hands but I can't deny that he can make tough shots (his shots are generally line drives so I'm a bit surprised they aren't blocked more, but it works so whatever). His dribble is a bit loose (reminded me a bit of Jamison when he was here) but there's no denying the talent. He has moments on both ends where he's truly electric. No player on the team makes things happen defensively than him so far. Hope he learned his lesson with the ejections, but happy to have a player who cares than one who doesn't.
Will lump Jacoi and Trey together again. Despite the collective rough offensive night for them, I saw improvements with regards to shot selection. Trey actually drove the ball a bit more today and Jacoi wasn't attempting tough shots in the paint. I still feel like that hot shooting game from Trey is on the horizon - hopefully he continues to grow when it comes to shot diversity. Jacoi's true value may not come until next year with JB out of the fold. He can really make plays as a passer, but he'll need to grow as a shot maker otherwise teams will play off him and dare him to make a shot (his stroke isn't bad, but efficiency has to improve). Liked the defensive effort from both.
I guess I'm alone in thinking the commentators weren't absolutely awful (although I came in with rock bottom expectations given the venue/field). I didn't think they were overly insightful and they said a lot of trite stuff, but they didn't make as many mistakes with player names/misidentifying guys as I expected. Max was called a freshman a number of times, and JB and Jacoi were mixed up a few times but overall they got that right. Perhaps it's the Patsos voice effect that I felt hearing clear voices was refreshing.
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Posted by jf 11/26/2023 10:56 pm | #69 |
1) Agree with the Wow.
2)We dug ourselves a hole unnecessarily and have to work on the poor shot selection among other things.
Some of the freshmen are pushing too hard. Delaware tutored us on strategic ball movement, especially the first half.
3) What you can't necessarily teach is heart and determination. Instead of being whipped, we made a determined comeback. Unlike yesterday, it stuck.
Well worth the price and frustration of dealing with FloHoops.
On Saturday, I noted the team's mettle in coming back several times. This time, we took advantage of it and it was a lot of moxie and determination. That's a terrific thing to see and hope it continues.
James' steadiness in dealing with losing or leading is a good example for the younger players. And it was even noticed by the FloHoops announcer, not always a font of basketball insight.
We haven't seen a team at the A-10 level so far, much less the SEC level.
But we have some impressive players, and a bunch of talented ones, so with the same determination, a level head offensively and serious defense, no reason why we can't pull off an upset. Last year, proved it.
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Posted by gwstudent2024 11/26/2023 11:06 pm | #70 |
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Posted by Alum1 11/26/2023 11:37 pm | #71 |
https://gwradio.com/mens-basketball-drops-delaware-with-late-comeback/
Is this your handiwork gwstudent2024? If so, really nice work.
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Posted by BM 11/27/2023 6:58 am | #72 |
We haven't seen a team at the A-10 level so far, much less the SEC level.
jf, KenPom has the last three opponents and Hofstra in the middle of the A-10 pack.
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Posted by Gwmayhem 11/27/2023 10:20 am | #73 |
My top 10 thoughts:
1. Am very curious to see how this past weekend's three opponents fare during their upcoming conference seasons. I thought the Ohio game was extremely high-level. I hadn't realized that UIC is coached by Luke Yaklich, a former Michigan and Texas assistant who specializes in coaching defense. (He was one of the names I was hoping for when MoJo was being replaced). Delaware was the least talented of the three teams but the experience of their upperclassmen should serve them well.
2. One thought about the UIC loss. It was very clear to me that we were only going to get back in this game had we made a series of second half defensive stops. And while UIC did shoot 41% from 3 for the game, where they were killing GW was on their drives to the hole (most notably Rivera, and most notably during the second half). So I could not understand why Stretch sat as much as he did as his shot altering defense seemed to be what was badly needed. Stretch played just 19 minutes and committed just one foul. I get that he's not a huge threat on offense but playing alongside 4 scorers, his defense was badly needed and therefore, his presence would have been justified. One of the very few times I have strongly disagreed with this coaching staff.
3. The slow starts in the past two games seem attributable at least in part to not beginning the game with enough focus and attention to detail. The team has appeared to be lackadaisical for stretches making unforced turnovers and other careless plays. Perhaps this is confidence that it's a long game and that the team is good enough to come back against most anyone. While it's great to have this confidence, what's not so great is digging holes to start games. Going to be much harder to come back against better opponents.
4. Case in point...a sucker play where the opponent scores, starts slowly jogging back up the court only to quickly turn around and steal the inbounds pass. This happened at least twice that I can recall. Just no reason for this if you're truly taking care of the ball and are focused to start the game.
5. While I can understand why some of you would like to see more of Antoine Smith or wonder why Keegan can't be used (or similar questions of this type), I think it's very important to understand that this coaching staff gets paid to win games and not to make everyone as happy as possible. If you're wondering why JB continues to be so ball dominant, it's because this gives the team the best chance at winning. He has been sensational this year at keeping the team in games. When he's fouled particularly during the second half, he's near automatic at the line.
6. The response to "but he's not going to be here next year" is "true, but he IS here this year." Next year, maybe Max emerges as THE guy. Maybe there will not be a sole guy. But to not utilize the weapon that JB is sounds like lunacy to me. Fully agree that the ill advised 25 foot shot is not the answer but letting him drive with the ball and either pull up, finish off the glass, get fouled, or find an open teammate are all recipes for success.
7. Already saw DBJ get better defended yesterday and Saturday than he had been on Friday. He is a tough guard in general but we should not lose sight of the fact that some teams will have the personnel to defend him well. That said, I thought he did a great job of getting the ball to teammates once he was stopped as opposed to trying to finish through two defenders.
8. Am hoping that the rest of Garrett's game (defense, driving to the basket) catches up to his outside shooting. He is one pure shooter. I also wonder how he's taken in all of the attention, much of it national, that he's recently received. Seems very level headed but you can't blame any 20 year old for getting caught up in his own headlines (not that I am suggesting this is or may be the case.)
9. Future backcourt of Trey and Jacoi? So far, so good. I think both possess that mental toughness that winning players often display.
10. Interesting timing for the next game against South Carolina. Confident team headed into a hostile environment against a team wanting revenge for last year. Am guessing attendance exceeds 300, a number not so easily reached in the Bahamas.
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Posted by BM 11/27/2023 11:14 am | #74 |
A lot of the complaints I had about our execution in the last couple of games boil down to our youth and inexperience. Easy to forget that almost all the non-JBIV minutes go to underclassmen and even Stretch's minutes can be called underclassmen minutes based on how little he played at Auburn.
South Carolina will be a big test not just because it'll be our first away game (with +9,000 attendance), but because they are almost the opposite in roster experience with almost all the minutes going to seniors.
[edit: #13 in D-I experience according to KenPom]
Last edited by BM (11/27/2023 11:16 am)
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Posted by Free Quebec 11/27/2023 11:26 am | #75 |
A lot of the complaints I had about our execution in the last couple of games boil down to our youth and inexperience. Easy to forget that almost all the non-JBIV minutes go to underclassmen and even Stretch's minutes can be called underclassmen minutes based on how little he played at Auburn.
South Carolina will be a big test not just because it'll be our first away game (with +9,000 attendance), but because they are almost the opposite in roster experience with almost all the minutes going to seniors.
[edit: #13 in D-I experience according to KenPom]
Their roster is completely different from last year and now they have several really high level shooters. Teams with lots of shooters have given us trouble this year - though CC with almost a whole week to prepare gives me confidence.
Last edited by Free Quebec (11/27/2023 11:26 am)
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Posted by Long Suffering Fan 11/27/2023 12:09 pm | #76 |
After 6 games (a small sample size), I think it is fair to say that at this stage in the season, we can beat teams with a KenPom greater than 200 and compete with teams with a KenPom greater than 100? South Carolina would be an early indication of where we are in the teams from 1-99. No, I don't think we will win this game (even though when you have a scorer like JBIV, he can go off in any game and carry an underdog team to victory), but I am interested in seeing where we are in terms of overall talent. I am hoping it iis a somewhat competitve game.
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Posted by GWRising 11/27/2023 12:35 pm | #77 |
Not concerned in the least with the results this week. We played 3 games in 48 hours, one of which went to 2OTs. We basically played 8 guys. We won 2 out of 3. There was no way we were going to play well the entire time, especially with a lot of players without a lot of experience either playing in college or playing together. I really wouldn't give it another thought. We are where we are supposed to be at this point - a developing team that while better than what we have seen recently, is not yet ready for prime time. Let's see where we are by the second or third week of January. We will have a much better handle on this team's capabilities then and I suspect we will be better. 6-1 is quite alright at this point but we should all know that this team is developing and can grow from here.
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Posted by H&R..71 11/27/2023 2:14 pm | #78 |
Was happy for our guys finishing this trip on a high note!
Nice to have positive momentum and a happy flight home back to campus.
We have 4 bonafide offensive talents averaging double figures. We get 40 rebounds a game. We shoot 3’s and free throws very well. Sounds like a great situation!
What we haven’t done well is start games, minimize turnovers, stay locked in, and be consistent. It’s schizo to shoot 22% in a half and 70% in second half of same game!! Need to modulate the right emotions.
Just look at UConn and FAU. They play angry with a chip on their shoulder whether the shots are falling or not. Yes they are super skilled but they make their opponents feel them! It’s part of winning. You can play with your hair on fire and still be under control.
We have a bunch of stuff to clean up and I’m sure the coaching staff will address it. The most encouraging thing is that CC wants to win and so do the players. They’ve definitely bought in and are enjoying the ride.
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Posted by squid 12/01/2023 7:11 pm | #79 |
https://gwradio.com/mens-basketball-drops-delaware-with-late-comeback/
Is this your handiwork gwstudent2024? If so, really nice work.
GW Radio / WRGW has had some good hoops coverage over the last few years. The Hatchet however, not as much. I think they are having a hard time finding writers who know basketball. I wonder if they can just collaborate or hire writers who do both, like "Special to the Hatchet..." byline style.
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