Not as bad as it seems.

[TNBearcat3]

3 losses to 3 teams in the top 11 by 14 total points. Does it suck that we didn't pull out the Butler and ISU game, absolutely. However after taking a step back our season is far, far from done. We have a ton of potential that we still haven't seen, and I think we need to trust Mick at this point to bring us to our full potential. IF we start clicking, the AAC should look out. GO BEARCATS!!

 

[GarradJ21]

3 losses to 3 teams in the top 11 by 14 total points. Does it suck that we didn't pull out the Butler and ISU game, absolutely. However after taking a step back our season is far, far from done. We have a ton of potential that we still haven't seen, and I think we need to trust Mick at this point to bring us to our full potential. IF we start clicking, the AAC should look out. GO BEARCATS!!

My thoughts exactly. I try to stay positive even though I am angry about it, but realistically we have a lot of potential and a lot to look forward to. SMU is the only team that scares me in our conference but even they can be beat as they got tested by Colorado last night. We will be fine. Still time for an exciting year.

 

[Bulldog01]

We looked bad at times against the bums

 

[mdchick]

We looked bad at times against the bums

Which one of the 20 point wins was that in?

 

[waterhead]

We looked bad at times against the bums

All teams look bad at times

 

[jacobkdoyle]

We also looked like a pro team at times against those bums.

 

[Bulldog01]

We also looked like a pro team at times against those bums.

I didn't see them games.

 

[Bulldog01]

All teams look bad at times

Not up for debate

 

[jacobkdoyle]

I didn't see them games.

Robert Morris

 

[westsidecat]

Not as bad as it seems?

rpi in the mid 70's.

Beat no one in OOC play.

Best OOC wins are two A-10 squads.

Destroyed in the Shootout.

Now the mighty AAC schedule comes calling.

5th year senior still playing like a freshman.

Horrible choices made by your 3 year floor general.

Yea, It's all good.

 

[ZCat]

We also looked like a pro team at times against those bums.

No way. Iowa State looked fantastic running against us. I don't think we ever looked that good. Now some of their run outs were due to our bad shots. We have got to fix that

 

[jacobkdoyle]

No way. Iowa State looked fantastic running against us. I don't think we ever looked that good. Now some of their run outs were due to our bad shots. We have got to fix that

I don't mean NBA.

 

[waterhead]

Not as bad as it seems?

rpi in the mid 70's.

Beat no one in OOC play.

Best OOC wins are two A-10 squads.

Destroyed in the Shootout.

Now the mighty AAC schedule comes calling.

5th year senior still playing like a freshman.

Horrible choices made by your 3 year floor general.

Yea, It's all good.

Based on what I have seen so far we are just a smidge away from being a top 10 caliber team. We should have won two games against teams who are top 10 (ish) and after the opening minutes of the X game we ended up playing them about even up the rest of the way on the road against a top 5 (ish) team.

The question is what do we need to do to be in that elite conversation...what needs to happen?

Have to cut turnovers
Can't spot good teams 10 points to start the game
Need someone to be a closer
We need to do a better job closing on that corner 3

I think the growth of Jacob Evans over the rest of the year will be a key factor in our success this year! I think we need to start him and also finish with him in the game.

 

[UCBearcats]

Based on what I have seen so far we are just a smidge away from being a top 10 caliber team. We should have won two games against teams who are top 10 (ish) and after the opening minutes of the X game we ended up playing them about even up the rest of the way on the road against a top 5 (ish) team.

The question is what do we need to do to be in that elite conversation...what needs to happen?

Have to cut turnovers
Can't spot good teams 10 points to start the game
Need someone to be a closer
We need to do a better job closing on that corner 3

I think the growth of Jacob Evans over the rest of the year will be a key factor in our success this year! I think we need to start him and also finish with him in the game.

The key to success for this team rests with our offense. Turnovers have been the #1 killer of our team this season and turnovers are a symptom of poor offense. We've shown on occasions that we have the ability to score points but we seem to be reluctant to do it. We only play a scoring brand of basketball when we're forced into it by other teams. We need to come out stronger to open games and look to impose our will on the other team, the problem is I still think we're going through an identity crisis as to what our will is. Mick needs to fully embrace the idea of scoring the basketball, if he does this team has all the potential to go far, if he doesn't we'll see another early round exit.

Shaq Thomas should play a lot less minutes and Evans should start. There is absolutely zero reason why Shaq should continue to start for this team, he's a turnover waiting to happen. I don't care if his defense in a little better than Evans at this point, his turnovers and poor offense hurt this team much more than his slightly above average defense helps.

The same can be said for Kevin Johnson, I don't care about his defense, he kills us on the offensive end with his poor passing, turnovers and bad shot selections. Cobb might get a little freewheeling on offense sometimes but he needs to be in the game substantially more than KJ. I'll take Cobb's reduced defensive output all day over KJ's turnovers and poor offense. The ROI with KJ and his defense isn't even close.

I think what a lot of people fail to realize is that our defense is still very good. We're tough to beat in the half court, our only real weakness is defending the corners which hopefully we can fix. It's our turnovers which are a symptom of our poor offense that is killing this team. It's tough to play defense and hold a team to a low scoring output when you're constantly turning the ball over.

Less KJ and Thomas, more Evans and Cobb, more emphasis on offense and scoring, less turnovers, better defense.................we can be a very good team, it's really all on Mick from this point forward.

 

[M64W]

VERY OBSERVANT

The key to success for this team rests with our offense. Turnovers have been the #1 killer of our team this season and turnovers are a symptom of poor offense. We've shown on occasions that we have the ability to score points but we seem to be reluctant to do it. We only play a scoring brand of basketball when we're forced into it by other teams. We need to come out stronger to open games and look to impose our will on the other team, the problem is I still think we're going through an identity crisis as to what our will is. Mick needs to fully embrace the idea of scoring the basketball, if he does this team has all the potential to go far, if he doesn't we'll see another early round exit.

Shaq Thomas should play a lot less minutes and Evans should start. There is absolutely zero reason why Shaq should continue to start for this team, he's a turnover waiting to happen. I don't care if his defense in a little better than Evans at this point, his turnovers and poor offense hurt this team much more than his slightly above average defense helps.

The same can be said for Kevin Johnson, I don't care about his defense, he kills us on the offensive end with his poor passing, turnovers and bad shot selections. Cobb might get a little freewheeling on offense sometimes but he needs to be in the game substantially more than KJ. I'll take Cobb's reduced defensive output all day over KJ's turnovers and poor offense. The ROI with KJ and his defense isn't even close.

I think what a lot of people fail to realize is that our defense is still very good. We're tough to beat in the half court, our only real weakness is defending the corners which hopefully we can fix. It's our turnovers which are a symptom of our poor offense that is killing this team. It's tough to play defense and hold a team to a low scoring output when you're constantly turning the ball over.

Less KJ and Thomas, more Evans and Cobb, more emphasis on offense and scoring, less turnovers, better defense.................we can be a very good team, it's really all on Mick from this point forward.

Very good insight--I agree!

 

[L-T]

The key to success for this team rests with our offense. Turnovers have been the #1 killer of our team this season and turnovers are a symptom of poor offense. We've shown on occasions that we have the ability to score points but we seem to be reluctant to do it. We only play a scoring brand of basketball when we're forced into it by other teams. We need to come out stronger to open games and look to impose our will on the other team, the problem is I still think we're going through an identity crisis as to what our will is. Mick needs to fully embrace the idea of scoring the basketball, if he does this team has all the potential to go far, if he doesn't we'll see another early round exit.

Shaq Thomas should play a lot less minutes and Evans should start. There is absolutely zero reason why Shaq should continue to start for this team, he's a turnover waiting to happen. I don't care if his defense in a little better than Evans at this point, his turnovers and poor offense hurt this team much more than his slightly above average defense helps.

The same can be said for Kevin Johnson, I don't care about his defense, he kills us on the offensive end with his poor passing, turnovers and bad shot selections. Cobb might get a little freewheeling on offense sometimes but he needs to be in the game substantially more than KJ. I'll take Cobb's reduced defensive output all day over KJ's turnovers and poor offense. The ROI with KJ and his defense isn't even close.

I think what a lot of people fail to realize is that our defense is still very good. We're tough to beat in the half court, our only real weakness is defending the corners which hopefully we can fix. It's our turnovers which are a symptom of our poor offense that is killing this team. It's tough to play defense and hold a team to a low scoring output when you're constantly turning the ball over.

Less KJ and Thomas, more Evans and Cobb, more emphasis on offense and scoring, less turnovers, better defense.................we can be a very good team, it's really all on Mick from this point forward.

Turnovers are not that big of a problem. Our turnover rate is better than the #1, 3, 4, 6, 8, and 12 teams in the nation, just to name a few. Temple is number 1 in turnover rate. How are they doing overall? Shaq might turnover the ball some, but he has done well in most of the other categories. If you want to reduce turnovers, get Ellis out of the lineup. He is a turnover machine. Shaq is a senior and worked his ass off over the summer, and generally has played well. But, he has become the whipping boy in here for some reason. Ellis and Johnson deserve more of the turnover conversation.

 

[UCBearcats]

Turnovers are not that big of a problem. Our turnover rate is better than the #1, 3, 4, 6, 8, and 12 teams in the nation, just to name a few. Temple is number 1 in turnover rate. How are they doing overall? Shaq might turnover the ball some, but he has done well in most of the other categories. If you want to reduce turnovers, get Ellis out of the lineup. He is a turnover machine. Shaq is a senior and worked his ass off over the summer, and generally has played well. But, he has become the whipping boy in here for some reason. Ellis and Johnson deserve more of the turnover conversation.

Shaq has had some good moments this season against inferior teams but he's looked awful in the big games we've played. I do agree that Ellis is a huge TO problem but who else plays if Ellis doesn't?? There isn't anyone pushing him off the floor right now like Evans is with Shaq.

It's not just the traditional TO with Shaq, he contributes to offensive struggles when he's on the floor. Shaq does nothing to keep our offense moving and many times he's the one taking a bad shot with the clock winding down, to me those are just as bad as turnovers. Shaq was miserable to open that IAST game and shouldn't have even been of the floor. The combination of Shaq and KJ kept us from ever being able to make a sustained run in the Xavier game. Every time we cut the lead one of them would get a turnover or hoist up a poor shot. Shaq is an offensive liability and I'm sorry but there is no way he should be playing over Evans.

 

[L-T]

In my opinion, the single biggest issue with this team, by far, has been our inside game. When the ball goes in there, it rarely results in points, and often results in a turnover with Ellis. Our outside shooting is ok, but they need time and space to get a good shot off. Our inside players are not doing enough to open up our outside shooters. If Ellis, Clark, and Deberry start playing like we expected them to play before the season started, you'll see our outside shooting improve, and hopefully our turnovers reduced. The combination of those 3 improvements should make us closer to a top 10-15 team instead of a fringe top 25 team.

 

[waterhead]

Per 40 minutes of basketball our bigs are the same or better in most of the categories from last year with a couple of exceptions. Ellis turning the ball over is the only one that stands out.

Name...pts...reb...TO's...blocks

Ellis 2015...13.8...10.1...3.1...2.7
Ellis 2016...16.8...13...3.8...2.6

(scoring more, rebounding better, turning it over more)

Clark 2015...11.2...10.4...1.6...1.9
Clark 2016...14.6...12...1.8...1.8

(scoring more, rebounding better)

DeBerry 2015...15.9...8...2.7...3.7
DeBerry 2016...15.8...11...2...3.2

(Rebounding better, turning it over less, blocking less)

 

[Bearcat_NTS]

Btw we are still ranked #22 in the AP poll.