Sean Kilpatrick

[WAITE HOYT 2]

fellas, I have very little problem with SK's shot selection. If he is open he needs to shoot it as do other players on the team. The guys need to undestand their game. Rubles should not shoot anything outside. unfortunitely he gets stuck on occassion with the ball in his hands and the shot clock running down and has to hoist one. Sometimes he goes brain dead and fires one up. SK is a big piece of our offense asking him to pass up open looks because he is cold is not what a scorer does. Thanks goodness he kept his confidence lastnight and continued to shoot. That doesn't mean we wshouldn't spread the ball around or that he shouldn't make the extra pass only that if he is open he should shoot it.

 

[L-T]

fellas, I have very little problem with SK's shot selection. If he is open he needs to shoot it as do other players on the team. The guys need to undestand their game. Rubles should not shoot anything outside. unfortunitely he gets stuck on occassion with the ball in his hands and the shot clock running down and has to hoist one. Sometimes he goes brain dead and fires one up. SK is a big piece of our offense asking him to pass up open looks because he is cold is not what a scorer does. Thanks goodness he kept his confidence lastnight and continued to shoot. That doesn't mean we wshouldn't spread the ball around or that he shouldn't make the extra pass only that if he is open he should shoot it.

Based on last night's results, I agree. My faith in SK has been restored for the time being. Plus, his support group didn't shoot it so well last night. Hope the trend of picking each other up continues.

On a side note, is fouling Rubles in the act of shooting one of the most stupid bonehead blunders that a player can commit defensively? As a coach, I would have to make that player run a lot of suicides for that mistake.

SK was big last night, but Rubles might have been bigger, simply because he pretty much scored all his points at crunch time when that game was starting to slip away. And, there was one particular defensive stand he made with 4 or 5 minutes left that was a thing of beauty. He was man on man with one of the Temple players. We had just regained the lead, so a defensive stop was badly needed at that moment. The Temple guy tried every fake in the book and made about three different super quick moves to try to get around Rubles and and he snuffed every one with his incredibly quick feet. The guy ended up launching about a 27-footer from the sideline in desperation at the buzzer and we rebounded and went down to stretch out the lead. It was great to see SK find the touch again, but I really loved Rubles' leadership and effort in that 2nd half and that defensive stand at that moment was the play of the game for me.....and that's just because my eyes were focused at that moment right on Rubles and the effort that he put in to stopping that guy was a thing of beauty.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

Comment from SK

''Coach (Mick Cronin) was really basically telling us you've got to play offense with a lot of confidence, you can't be afraid to shoot,'' said Kilpatrick, who matched his season high with 23 points. ''That's something that kept clicking in the back of my mind, 'Just keep shooting.'''

If SK doesn't provide the outside threat it affects our inside spacing and our ability to drive to the hoop. Asking him to quit shooting so much is not practicle either. A shooter needs to be confident everytime the ball leaves his hand. He is a HUGE piece of our offense. When he is scoring it takes the pressure off the other guys. I want his mentality to be I missed the last shot but the next one is gong in. Not I'm not hitting my shots so I better not shoot as much. That is the WORST thing you can ask a scorer to do. This team will live and die with how well Sk plays. The team gets opportunities off his game. That has changed since the beginning of the year but the reality is we need him to be confident and relaxed as the others grow into their roles. It is nice when others pick up the slack but to win big games he needs to hit shots and draw fouls.

I'm not saying SK is perfect but we are 16-2 and ranked. A big part of that is him knowing when to shoot a 3 and when to drive and get to the foul line. His 3 attempts are down and his FT's are up. The team is on a role and others are growing.

 

[#BearcatNation]

I'm 100% fine with SK shooting when he's comfortable with the shot, but I don't see how Guyn is allowed to shoot so many threes. Unless he's unbelievably wide open, there's no reason for it. His goal should not be to get an open three. Two attempts per game is plenty, if not too many. He just flat-out is not a good shooter.

 

[Patrick Bateman]

Comment from SK

''Coach (Mick Cronin) was really basically telling us you've got to play offense with a lot of confidence, you can't be afraid to shoot,'' said Kilpatrick, who matched his season high with 23 points. ''That's something that kept clicking in the back of my mind, 'Just keep shooting.'''

If SK doesn't provide the outside threat it affects our inside spacing and our ability to drive to the hoop. Asking him to quit shooting so much is not practicle either. A shooter needs to be confident everytime the ball leaves his hand. He is a HUGE piece of our offense. When he is scoring it takes the pressure off the other guys. I want his mentality to be I missed the last shot but the next one is gong in. Not I'm not hitting my shots so I better not shoot as much. That is the WORST thing you can ask a scorer to do. This team will live and die with how well Sk plays. The team gets opportunities off his game. That has changed since the beginning of the year but the reality is we need him to be confident and relaxed as the others grow into their roles. It is nice when others pick up the slack but to win big games he needs to hit shots and draw fouls.

I'm not saying SK is perfect but we are 16-2 and ranked. A big part of that is him knowing when to shoot a 3 and when to drive and get to the foul line. His 3 attempts are down and his FT's are up. The team is on a role and others are growing.

With Lawrence out for a while in our already thin front court I would have to say that the team will live and die on Jackson. If he gets into foul trouble it will be hard to beat anybody. He needs to stay in the game.

That said the seniors need to step up from here on out in every game.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

Based on last night's results, I agree. My faith in SK has been restored for the time being. Plus, his support group didn't shoot it so well last night. Hope the trend of picking each other up continues.

On a side note, is fouling Rubles in the act of shooting one of the most stupid bonehead blunders that a player can commit defensively? As a coach, I would have to make that player run a lot of suicides for that mistake.

SK was big last night, but Rubles might have been bigger, simply because he pretty much scored all his points at crunch time when that game was starting to slip away. And, there was one particular defensive stand he made with 4 or 5 minutes left that was a thing of beauty. He was man on man with one of the Temple players. We had just regained the lead, so a defensive stop was badly needed at that moment. The Temple guy tried every fake in the book and made about three different super quick moves to try to get around Rubles and and he snuffed every one with his incredibly quick feet. The guy ended up launching about a 27-footer from the sideline in desperation at the buzzer and we rebounded and went down to stretch out the lead. It was great to see SK find the touch again, but I really loved Rubles' leadership and effort in that 2nd half and that defensive stand at that moment was the play of the game for me.....and that's just because my eyes were focused at that moment right on Rubles and the effort that he put in to stopping that guy was a thing of beauty.

Agreed!!! Rubles was big last night especially in the second half. He does a lot of the dirty work for this team that doesn't always show up in the stat sheet. It is also frustrating to hear fans rip him for missing a shot. Our three seniors all have holes in their games but their effort and leadership is second to none. It is really fun watching the kids develop and the upper classmen lead the way. Don't know where will end up at end of the year but it has been a blast watching this compete.

 

[L-T]

Comment from SK

''Coach (Mick Cronin) was really basically telling us you've got to play offense with a lot of confidence, you can't be afraid to shoot,'' said Kilpatrick, who matched his season high with 23 points. ''That's something that kept clicking in the back of my mind, 'Just keep shooting.'''

If SK doesn't provide the outside threat it affects our inside spacing and our ability to drive to the hoop. Asking him to quit shooting so much is not practicle either. A shooter needs to be confident everytime the ball leaves his hand. He is a HUGE piece of our offense. When he is scoring it takes the pressure off the other guys. I want his mentality to be I missed the last shot but the next one is gong in. Not I'm not hitting my shots so I better not shoot as much. That is the WORST thing you can ask a scorer to do. This team will live and die with how well Sk plays. The team gets opportunities off his game. That has changed since the beginning of the year but the reality is we need him to be confident and relaxed as the others grow into their roles. It is nice when others pick up the slack but to win big games he needs to hit shots and draw fouls.

I'm not saying SK is perfect but we are 16-2 and ranked. A big part of that is him knowing when to shoot a 3 and when to drive and get to the foul line. His 3 attempts are down and his FT's are up. The team is on a role and others are growing.

I don't think anybody wanted him to quit shooting, just not take 10 3s when you've only made one....or when you've only made 4 of your last 33. Try something inside the three that's more high percentage, or draw the foul.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

With Lawrence out for a while in our already thin front court I would have to say that the team will live and die on Jackson. If he gets into foul trouble it will be hard to beat anybody. He needs to stay in the game.

That said the seniors need to step up from here on out in every game.

Patrick with or without Lawrence that has always been a key. JJ does so much more then score. It isn't always popular on this site to say but any coach in America will tell you Defense wins games. JJ provides the defense we need. He not only has elevated his game offensively but he is someone the other team has to account for when they venture into the lane. He is a huge player for this team on both ends of the floor. I would also add if SK didn't stretch the floor for him he would be doubled constantly. Both players are essential for us win.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

I don't think anybody wanted him to quit shooting, just not take 10 3s when you've only made one....or when you've only made 4 of your last 33. Try something inside the three that's more high percentage, or draw the foul.

Its not that easy L-T. The defense isn't brain dead. They no when a player is struggling to hit a jumper. Saying he should stop shooting and drive is easy from the stands but the defender is smart enough to know to give hm room until he makes you close the gap. As pointed out I could careless how many he misses. I want him thnking the next one is going in not I better stop shooting. Fact is if he or JJ don't bring it everynight we are in trouble against good teams.

 

[Patrick Bateman]

Patrick with or without Lawrence that has always been a key. JJ does so much more then score. It isn't always popular on this site to say but any coach in America will tell you Defense wins games. JJ provides the defense we need. He not only has elevated his game offensively but he is someone the other team has to account for when they venture into the lane. He is a huge player for this team on both ends of the floor. I would also add if SK didn't stretch the floor for him he would be doubled constantly. Both players are essential for us win.

I guess my point is that if SK is off, there are other players that can shoot from 3 to stretch the floor. When JJ is on the bench there is nobody else that can give UC the dimension he gives, hence we live and die with JJ.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

Most coaches will tell you. They will never pull a kid for taking a good shot and missing it. They understand the confidence it takes to play the game. Huggs said this many times. But if you don't guard you will be on the bench before the horn quits sounding. I'm sure that is one of the many things MC learned from Huggs. Defense never goes in a slump. defense is knowing your souting report and effort. Also did anyone notice that on at least two occassions lastnight MC pulled SK from the game for losing his man defensively. Nice to see MC sending the same messages regardless who you are or how long you been here.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

I guess my point is that if SK is off, there are other players that can shoot from 3 to stretch the floor. When JJ is on the bench there is nobody else that can give UC the dimension he gives, hence we live and die with JJ.

Patrick what other player besides Sk is going to draw the respect of the defender and open up the inside for JJ. I'll ask it this way. Your defending Guyn, The ball goes into JJ. Do you stay with Guyn or double JJ. My point is the only player that can come close to getting that kind of respect is SK.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

Anyone think that there may have been some correlation between SK shooting better and Temple playing a zone. My thinking is for a guy shooting jump shots it is much easier physically to find a hole in the zone, with a lot less energy expended running around off screens being held and trying to quickly get a good look to release a shot then if Temple played a man to man. SK plays at least 30 minutes a game. Playing against a zone has to be easier on the legs then man to man. We all know legs are essential to a good jump shooter.

 

[L-T]

Most coaches will tell you. They will never pull a kid for taking a good shot and missing it. They understand the confidence it takes to play the game. Huggs said this many times. But if you don't guard you will be on the bench before the horn quits sounding. I'm sure that is one of the many things MC learned from Huggs. Defense never goes in a slump. defense is knowing your souting report and effort. Also did anyone notice that on at least two occassions lastnight MC pulled SK from the game for losing his man defensively. Nice to see MC sending the same messages regardless who you are or how long you been here.

Lol, that mentality almost bit Mick in the a$$ big time last night. When Pepper hit that three with a couple minutes left in the 1st half, Mick went ballistic and yanked SK to the bench. I think JJ was already out, so the net effect is that Temple went on that late run to draw within 2 by half. After about 3 quick baskets, Mick was frantically trying to get SK back in. Forgiveness is a wonderful thing and it appeared that Mick quickly forgave SK for his defensive lapse. That quick punishment for a defensive lapse really turned that game around and almost backfired.

 

[Patrick Bateman]

Patrick what other player besides Sk is going to draw the respect of the defender and open up the inside for JJ. I'll ask it this way. Your defending Guyn, The ball goes into JJ. Do you stay with Guyn or double JJ. My point is the only player that can come close to getting that kind of respect is SK.

Guyn is the worst example possible. Sanders, Shaq and Thomas all shoot better percentage from 3 than Kilpatrick. Without JJ, there is nobody to throw it in to the low post that is a scoring threat. We go as JJ goes.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

Guyn is the worst example possible. Sanders, Shaq and Thomas all shoot better percentage from 3 than Kilpatrick. Without JJ, there is nobody to throw it in to the low post that is a scoring threat. We go as JJ goes.

Patrick I don't care what their percentage is they are not going to provide the same level of respect or attention that SK does. We go as both JJ and Sk go.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

Lol, that mentality almost bit Mick in the a$$ big time last night. When Pepper hit that three with a couple minutes left in the 1st half, Mick went ballistic and yanked SK to the bench. I think JJ was already out, so the net effect is that Temple went on that late run to draw within 2 by half. After about 3 quick baskets, Mick was frantically trying to get SK back in. Forgiveness is a wonderful thing and it appeared that Mick quickly forgave SK for his defensive lapse. That quick punishment for a defensive lapse really turned that game around and almost backfired.

That is the short term view. The longterm view is the youngsters know it doesn't matter who you are if you don't guard you don't play. I say MC handled it well. We won and he sent a message to the team. When you running a team with 9 healthy players forgiveness can come quickly.LOL

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

Lol, that mentality almost bit Mick in the a$$ big time last night. When Pepper hit that three with a couple minutes left in the 1st half, Mick went ballistic and yanked SK to the bench. I think JJ was already out, so the net effect is that Temple went on that late run to draw within 2 by half. After about 3 quick baskets, Mick was frantically trying to get SK back in. Forgiveness is a wonderful thing and it appeared that Mick quickly forgave SK for his defensive lapse. That quick punishment for a defensive lapse really turned that game around and almost backfired.

Also sometimes you got to lose the battle to win the war. Wasn't that when Peppers banked in the three from the top of the Key?

 

[Patrick Bateman]

Patrick I don't care what their percentage is they are not going to provide the same level of respect or attention that SK does. We go as both JJ and Sk go.

If SK is not hitting and Shaq/Sanders/Troy hit some shots to stretch floor, which their percentages indicate they can, I guarantee they will get the attention of the defense. Especially if they sag and double the post.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

If SK is not hitting and Shaq/Sanders/Troy hit some shots to stretch floor, which their percentages indicate they can, I guarantee they will get the attention of the defense. Especially if they sag and double the post. With JJ out who is going to demand attention in the post?

Patrick, again no way do the three players you mentioned get the attention needed to take the pressure off of JJ. Both players are keys to us continuing to improve and win. I hope you don't thnk I'm trying to minimize the effect JJ has on the games because nothing could be farther from the truth. He is essential to us winning but so is SK. I also don't think the three you mentioned are ready to handle the pressure to perform as does SK at this time.