2nd half of the season

[cincyalum2014]

Okay we are going into game 15, which marks the halfway point into the season, they have been playing for 2 months now and we are sitting at 8-6 with the tournament pretty much a long shot at this point. I wanted to see everyone's opinion on what they expect/ think/ etc on the back half of the season.

I think we end the season worst case with a record of 15-15 and lose in the first or second round of the conference tournament. Best case I see us finishing the season at maybe 20-10, win a few games in the conference tourney, maybe long shot to win it, who knows at this point.

Couple things that stand out to me are we are halfway into the season and we are still talking about the "system". Our defense is a sieve most of the time, we turn the ball over at an alarming rate, our 2nd half adjustments are pretty much non existent. We continue to blow big leads, which we could very easily be 5-9 right now, with blown leads by Illinois State, Valpo and UNLV. I like the offense of Vogt, his defense leaves a lot to be desired, his in ability to guard the perimeter kills us against stretch bigs, I would like to see more Diarra over Sorolla, more Davenport and Harvey over McNeal and even at times Jaevin (who like many shooters is very hit or miss). I get this team was thrown together kind of last minute and JB does deserved time but we returned 3 top players and the emergence of Chris Vogt, our only losses at this point should of been to OSU, X and Iowa. The former conference player of the year is a shell of what he was and its time for everyone to realize that the old Jarron is gone. Its not time to Jump off the JB boat yet but I would be lying if I said I wasn't very disappointed to how the first half of the season went.

 

[Queens_NYC]

An NCAA at-large bid is not in the picture at this point unless we go on an extended winning streak soon.

We have yet to play a very good team at home this season, so who knows if we have what it takes to beat teams like Memphis, Wichita and Houston at Fifth Third, yet alone on the road.

If we can win all but 1 or 2 AAC games at home and go over .500 on the road, we should put ourselves in a good position to make a run in the AAC tourney and at the very least get a decent NIT seed.

Like the OP mentioned, we've been erratic enough where it's also likely we could bomb out, continue to lose close games, and not even make the NIT.

I'd like to think the first scenario has a better chance of happening.

 

[mdchick]

Gotta win the conference tourney, which realistically is a lottery at this point, legit anyone could win this conference tournament, jarron Cumberland is on our team, so there’s always a chance, but as far as the rest of the season goes, it’s over, I’m still watching every game, but the regular season is over, you lose to bowling green/Colgate/and Tulane that’s way too many bad losses and we don’t have enough good wins to make up for it in our future.

Seriously think it’s possible we can make the championship in our conference tourney, just simply because I don’t think our league is good this year.

 

[waterhead]

If the team doesn't mentally check out I think we have enough talent to make a splash in the AAC tourney provided we see continuous improvement up until that point. I can't see a sudden change of events leading us to an at large.

I think we still have one of the best rosters. A chip and a chair in the conference tourney is all we need. If you have never heard that reference it has to do with gambling...only needing a single chip and a chair to sit at the table to make an unlikely comeback. I have been there before in poker tournaments and it can be done even if it's unlikely. If we are playing our best basketball late season we can win the conference tourney but we will have to see how the team responds.

If we happen to crap the bed...we need to play Harvey and Diara a bit more

 

[mdchick]

If we happen to crap the bed...we need to play Harvey and Diara a bit more

Agree, especially diarra, he’s starting to turn into something, still not great, but doesn’t look lost and his athleticism is undeniable

 

[waterhead]

Agree, especially diarra, he’s starting to turn into something, still not great, but doesn’t look lost and his athleticism is undeniable

I love Diara. I love his attitude and energy. If he can slow it down a bit...he can be a very good player

 

[sirthought]

Ya know once so many players announced they were leaving the program and seeing who was available for the season I knew this was going to be tough one. I don't think any of us had the information to know how much Cumberland's injury had set him back. I think it's been more him playing injured than the new system affecting him.

Anyhow, even though as a fan you hate to see the losses, especially when much of it was due to some dumb mistakes, but overall I've been really excited with the change in direction from the coaching staff. It was always a joy to watch UC win, but the style of play was getting a bit depressing year after year.

So, I've just been soaking in figuring out what the heck the new system is. That's fun in my book. We're seeing Dayton, which uses mostly the same style, having great success with just a couple of players better than us. That's something to look forward to.

If I try to bet on their chances for tournament play I'm just going to be disappointed, so I'm just trying to enjoy one game at a time.

 

[skyblade]

I love Diara. I love his attitude and energy. If he can slow it down a bit...he can be a very good player

I think every knows by now that I am a big Diarra fan (and not so much of a Vogt fan). Diarra has played very well pretty much every game since the game @Xavier. He still makes a boneheaded play every now and then, but he seems to have turned the corner to being a net positive player. I said at the beginning of the year that he is our most important player to develop if we are going to win in March and I still believe that. Diarra's elite athleticism is rare at the NCAA level (because guys with Diarra's combination of size and athleticism who have basketball skills are in the NBA). If he can give 15 minutes of high energy, elite defense and rebounding, while not making mistakes on offense, it will make a big difference in close games.

He plays hard, defends at an extremely high level and seems to have the right attitude. Brannen said on the radio show that he has earned the minutes and will continue to get them (he said more as a 4, but I anticipate him taking some of Sorolla's minutes as well).

As a side-note, I'd like to see us play the "huge" lineup sometime. Vogt center, Scott PF, Diarra SF, Williams SG, Jarron PG. We'd lack in ball handling, but it would be very tough for other teams to score and rebound against us. Probably wouldn't go very well, but would be fun to watch.

 

[justinhub2003]

I think every knows by now that I am a big Diarra fan (and not so much of a Vogt fan).

I had no idea.

 

[waterhead]

I think every knows by now that I am a big Diarra fan (and not so much of a Vogt fan). Diarra has played very well pretty much every game since the game @Xavier. He still makes a boneheaded play every now and then, but he seems to have turned the corner to being a net positive player. I said at the beginning of the year that he is our most important player to develop if we are going to win in March and I still believe that. Diarra's elite athleticism is rare at the NCAA level (because guys with Diarra's combination of size and athleticism who have basketball skills are in the NBA). If he can give 15 minutes of high energy, elite defense and rebounding, while not making mistakes on offense, it will make a big difference in close games.

He plays hard, defends at an extremely high level and seems to have the right attitude. Brannen said on the radio show that he has earned the minutes and will continue to get them (he said more as a 4, but I anticipate him taking some of Sorolla's minutes as well).

As a side-note, I'd like to see us play the "huge" lineup sometime. Vogt center, Scott PF, Diarra SF, Williams SG, Jarron PG. We'd lack in ball handling, but it would be very tough for other teams to score and rebound against us. Probably wouldn't go very well, but would be fun to watch.

Pre season I had Diara as an X-Factor as well...especially with all the glowing reports coming early on from practice etc. Especially when we were thinking Vogt and Sorolla were maybe going to be less that serviceable. It was a poor start for Diara but I hope he is coming around. If he can give about 8 minutes at the 4 and 5 minutes at the 5 and be a plus player...it's going to help us.

He is obviously a guy you can switch on most positions on D and easily follow bigs to the perimeter. But he struggles to score in the post and I worry when he puts the ball on the floor so he has limitations on offense. He's not the best passer...nor does he like to...but he needs to pass rather than turn it over. I think you have to limit his decisions on offense and just let him rebound and guard for the most part. Any points he scores should be a bonus and easy decisions like put backs and ally oops with an occasional jumper late in clock.

He's very jittery on offense...but his jitters are more of an asset on D as long as he's not making poor decisions like missing a box out, or going for blocks he can't reach, or missing assignments.

 

[cincyalum2014]

I think every knows by now that I am a big Diarra fan (and not so much of a Vogt fan). Diarra has played very well pretty much every game since the game @Xavier. He still makes a boneheaded play every now and then, but he seems to have turned the corner to being a net positive player. I said at the beginning of the year that he is our most important player to develop if we are going to win in March and I still believe that. Diarra's elite athleticism is rare at the NCAA level (because guys with Diarra's combination of size and athleticism who have basketball skills are in the NBA). If he can give 15 minutes of high energy, elite defense and rebounding, while not making mistakes on offense, it will make a big difference in close games.

He plays hard, defends at an extremely high level and seems to have the right attitude. Brannen said on the radio show that he has earned the minutes and will continue to get them (he said more as a 4, but I anticipate him taking some of Sorolla's minutes as well).

As a side-note, I'd like to see us play the "huge" lineup sometime. Vogt center, Scott PF, Diarra SF, Williams SG, Jarron PG. We'd lack in ball handling, but it would be very tough for other teams to score and rebound against us. Probably wouldn't go very well, but would be fun to watch.

The monster lineup of...

C-Vogt
PF- Sorolla
SF- Tre Scott
SG- Diarra
PG-Jarron

Jarron shoots every shot and the 4 other players crash the boards. This lineup would be an absolute shit show but would be funny to watch and at this point how the season is going you can't help but laugh at times.

 

[waterhead]

Count me out on the monster lineup.

I like Vogt in for scoring and Scott for rebounds. But we can't run the motion with 4 bigs who can't dribble and one who can't or won't pass the ball.

 

[cincyalum2014]

Count me out on the monster lineup.

I like Vogt in for scoring and Scott for rebounds. But we can't run the motion with 4 bigs who can't dribble and one who can't or won't pass the ball.

was more of a joke..... Id never want that line up

 

[waterhead]

was more of a joke..... Id never want that line up

I figured it was not serious...but there were a couple of posts that mentioned it so I thought there was at least a small inkling to try out a lineup with more than 2 bigs. If we had some bigs that could dribble or play make...I might be interested. Say like Tari Eason as a 3 next year in some instances with a 5 and a 4 on the court

 

[Loser Mentality]

At some point, somebody(Players only) needs to emerge as THE LEADER! From the classroom to the court.

Seems like nobody wants to take over the game in this open offense. The Defense has been decent enough to keep us in games, but with no offensive leadership, we will continue to see winnable games slip away.

We jacked up 27 3 point shots last game. If we make half of those 3pt attempts as 2 pt buckets, we win by double figures easy.

Hope these wing guys quit test driving this offense. Take control to be in control which takes leaders and risk takers at this point.

 

[cincyguy13]

At some point, somebody(Players only) needs to emerge as THE LEADER! From the classroom to the court.

Seems like nobody wants to take over the game in this open offense. The Defense has been decent enough to keep us in games, but with no offensive leadership, we will continue to see winnable games slip away.

We jacked up 27 3 point shots last game. If we make half of those 3pt attempts as 2 pt buckets, we win by double figures easy.

Hope these wing guys quit test driving this offense. Take control to be in control which takes leaders and risk takers at this point.

Yep, at some point players have to have pride, and say I’m not losing this game. Stop giving the other team the ball, make free throws, and go get a rebound. These thing are not coaching. It’s doing what it takes to win a game. I remember when cronin would take about Kenyon and those guys wanting to fight each other after a loss. You just don’t see that fire.

 

[waterhead]

Yep, at some point players have to have pride, and say I’m not losing this game. Stop giving the other team the ball, make free throws, and go get a rebound. These thing are not coaching. It’s doing what it takes to win a game. I remember when cronin would take about Kenyon and those guys wanting to fight each other after a loss. You just don’t see that fire.

I like Brannen but I am NOT giving him a free ride. Most of that stuff IS coaching or coach-able and we saw that with Cronin (and I am not an apologist). The coach can get his team to do the things he wants them to do by using the bench or any other means necessary. Sometimes we felt Cronin did too much of that but he did get results. I want a healthy mix of overbearing dad and supportive dad.

If nothing else we need to tighten the screws in crunch time. If you turn it over (unnecessarily) you need to come out (in crunch time). Our free lancing has lead to a lot of turnovers when the game is on the line. Tighten the screws just a little at the end of games.

 

[waterhead]

I feel like we have a good chance against anyone with Jarron at PG. Also if we stop shooting early/mid clock mid to long range jumpers. If we are under 5 seconds on the clock go ahead and let it fly if you must. Also Scott and McNeal no more 3 pointers unless 5 seconds or less on clock with ball in hand. If we haven't gotten a good look with 7-10 seconds left get the ball back in Jarron's hands. Lower turnover avg by 2-3 per game. Keep feeding the paint and crashing boards.

That's it...we can still make the dance with that formula. Wasted possessions from TO's or poor shot selection have been the majority of our downfall. We can get back 5-10 wasted possessions per game if we follow this formula. If we lose on a poor shooting night...so be it

 

[waterhead]

We have the #1 remaining SOS in conference. That is both good and bad. We need the quality wins but they will be hard to get. Win all home games would be a great start. If we drop the road games at Houston and WSU we are still in good shape sitting on 4 losses. Likely we could spare one more loss in there somewhere. I don't think 6 losses gets us in

 

[waterhead]

We have the #1 remaining SOS in conference. That is both good and bad. We need the quality wins but they will be hard to get. Win all home games would be a great start. If we drop the road games at Houston and WSU we are still in good shape sitting on 4 losses. Likely we could spare one more loss in there somewhere. I don't think 6 losses gets us in

Per T-rank...Temple on the road is the next hardest game we have left after Houston and WSU road games (each +6 pts or higher). T-rank has Temple as +0.4 pt favorites which makes it a virtual toss up. Gotta go get this one...