SMU Round 2

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Bearcat_NTS said:
Yep. We need to enjoy this stretch run with Titus, Justin and SK. They are truly special leaders (tonight not withstanding)...
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There could be a few issues next year.... Defense will be different (cant switch everywhere with the new bigs coming in). Offense will be very very very concerning.
 
TheLivingLegend said:
There could be a few issues next year.... Defense will be different (cant switch everywhere with the new bigs coming in). Offense will be very very very concerning.
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I recall the year after Logan graduated, Cincinnati was something like 17-13 and got bounced by Gonzaga (game where Huggins and Chuck were booted). I see something similar next year.

UC could very well start 3 sophomores, a junior and a JUCO guy. We haven't had a team that young in a while.
 
TheLivingLegend said:
I missed the postgame... What did Mick have to say?
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UC didn't bring any toughness, SMU was the tougher team for 40 minutes. Our biggest problem was bad offense (turnovers and bad shots), UC could never get set on defense because of it. Was upset that UC started over trapping and helping when they cut it to 7. He said there was 11 minutes and no need to continue to trap- and it lead to an 11-0 run. Also said they got nothing from the supporting cast, though Jackson & Kilpatrick didn't play well either...
 
This is probably the least upset about a loss I've been in a long time. I guess sitting at 11-1 in conference play helps with that. The quick NBA-like Thursday-Saturday turnaround with a flight across the country was bogus. Pretty much zero time for game prep (even though we already scouted them once this year).

However, going forward, we absolutely have to get something from our bench. Getting single digit points from your bench isn't going to cut it, especially when a couple of your starters already struggle to score as it is. We need our reserves to get some confidence back and play with assertiveness. We can't rely on two guys to score going forward.

You have to tip your cap to SMU though. They have a very balanced team who can beat you a lot of ways. I feel like almost everything went their way tonight but they definitely opened up my eyes a bit more tonight. They had like 6 top 50 recruits at the game too, including a couple top 20 guys. They will absolutely be a problem in this league for a while.
 
Thanks..

I kno Mick talked about this after last game.. I really believe that they have to focus on getting Justin the ball a little more in the post. He has proven to shoot a extremely high percentage when he gets the ball deep in the post.

Him having the ball in the post will open alot of for other guys and they HAVE to be able to make an open step in three.
 
TheLivingLegend said:
Thanks..

I kno Mick talked about this after last game.. I really believe that they have to focus on getting Justin the ball a little more in the post. He has proven to shoot a extremely high percentage when he gets the ball deep in the post.

Him having the ball in the post will open alot of for other guys and they HAVE to be able to make an open step in three.
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No scoring the need to shoot ft a game to win in the tourney
 
UCalum08 said:
We did beat a top 25 team this week too. If we fall anything past 12 I would be disappointed. Glad SMU biggest memory this year will be our game. This won't matter come March. I thought how SMU finished the game was bush league. Trying to throw alley oops and show boating is lame when youre up 20. I'm not blaming the refs because we deserved to lose but they were absolutely bush league.
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Get ready to be disappointed, the media hates us. They were dying for us to lose this game so they could justify their initial judgment on this team. They don't believe in us, although we clearly have earned everything we have been given. We only have 8 real scholarship players (Dave doesn't count). We've been playing with 7 since Lawrence went out for a month and KJ really hasn't played much. This was going to happen to us, it was just a question of when.
 
TheLivingLegend said:
^^ sadly I think Dave is a better option right now than lawerence... Bash away... but his defense is really really bad.
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He was starting to play well in the first half of the Memphis game. Mick said he was finally understanding the defense but that month out really set him back. Still think he'll contribute something in a key game down the stretch...
 
Very soft around the rim. Cant protect the rim at all. Is terrified of contact.

Offensively can hit a jumper but turns it over alot.
 
TheLivingLegend said:
^^ sadly I think Dave is a better option right now than lawerence... Bash away... but his defense is really really bad.
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DN, JL, TC and the walk-ons. They could have played as well tonight.
Actually, looking at the stats, other than the fact they shot 55%, all the stats are fairly equal (except 2:1 assists).
We were just out-played, out-hustled.............we out-slopped them - but that's not a category we want to claim.
 
Bearcat_NTS said:
I recall the year after Logan graduated, Cincinnati was something like 17-13 and got bounced by Gonzaga (game where Huggins and Chuck were booted). I see something similar next year.

UC could very well start 3 sophomores, a junior and a JUCO guy. We haven't had a team that young in a while.
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We have surprised people this year, we lost Cash and JaQuon and we still recovered nicely. Losing SK will be hard, but I actually think we could be better down low. I love JJ, but outside of him and Rubles, we have nothing. DeBerry, Strickland, Moore, that's a lot of options. Caupain, Lawrence, and KJ all have some experience after this year. Morman is an unknown. I think Clark will make an immediate impact with his hustle and gritty mentality that Cronin loves. We will be an NIT/possibly bubble team, IMO.
 
TheLivingLegend said:
^^ sadly I think Dave is a better option right now than lawerence... Bash away... but his defense is really really bad.
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I didn't mean it as a bash to Dave, Cronin likes to go man and we can't use Dave in man. We don't use him much, he is just there when Mick wants to be a little bigger out on the floor.
 
TheLivingLegend said:
Very soft around the rim. Cant protect the rim at all. Is terrified of contact.

Offensively can hit a jumper but turns it over alot.
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No doubt. Cincinnati has had him at the 5 at times. The front court depth next year will definitely help. At least we'll have 2 actual 5 men. He needs to face up more on offense in the next few years rather than posting (since they never throw it to him).
 
Bearcat_NTS said:
No doubt. Cincinnati has had him at the 5 at times. The front court depth next year will definitely help. At least we'll have 2 actual 5 men. He needs to face up more on offense in the next few years rather than posting (since they never throw it to him).
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The weight room will be his best friend this off-season if he is smart and wants to get the NBA quicker.
 
Had to DVR the game and just got done watching it. We were due for a loss. I was glad we pulled out the win on Thursday because traveling so far and playing less than 48 hours later vs. a good team is a tough task and I definitely didn't want them losing twice this week. It was in the cards for SMU tonight. Take the L and move on. We need someone else to knock off Louisville for us to give us our two game cushion back. We can harp all day on how bad we played but it is pointless. Things didn't go our way tonight. Hostile crowd, every loose ball seemed in their favor, the refs buying into the home cooking, although other than the fantom technical they kept us in it in the first half with foul calls and getting to the line. A 20 point loss counts the same as a one point loss. We have a week off and a home tilt vs. Houston. Get some rest and re-focus. A road game in February does not define your season.
 
Pitiful performance. They were never mentally there. You could see that the energy and focus were left in Cincy. Move on close strong. Think the week off will be good for them. Especially the frosh.
 
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Bearcat_NTS said:
He was starting to play well in the first half of the Memphis game. Mick said he was finally understanding the defense but that month out really set him back. Still think he'll contribute something in a key game down the stretch...
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I agree.JL needs time to get acclimated again. Like a lot of younger guys he seems to let one mistake compound and become 2 or 3 more. The mental toughness will come for. JL, TC, and KJ. We were going to have a clunker sooner or later. They've played a lot of close games and pressure minutes lately. They looked liked a team that had an eye on the coming week off.
 

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