Game 2: Valparaiso (Tuesday, Nov 17 10am)

ElmCityRhody · Unread post by **ElmCityRhody** » 8 years ago

You hit your FTs, you win that game

So sick of this BS FTs always killing us

Year after fucking year

ENOUGH ALREADY

ElmCityRhody · Unread post by **ElmCityRhody** » 8 years ago

13-24..

Not counting the front ends of 1 and 1s

You got to be kidding me

emBARONsing

This is how you "honor" EC ???

Unreal

So pissed of this shit

Rhody83 · Unread post by **Rhody83** » 8 years ago

So many comments/points made. I was at the game. Some comments and different opinions to what has been posted:
1) Four's interview after Game 1 was misquoted. He said he took 250 shots in the morning. The interviewer asked how many were 3s. Four's response was 60%. He never mentioned FTs.
2) When Thompson came in during first half they had him on the wrong player or there was a switch - a quick G and it should've been the 3. He was fine defensively in the 2nd.
3) You can't shoot 37% FG and win many games against a competitive team. Why did that happen? Our three returning starters shot 11-32! When has Hassan missed 7 shots. We missed a lot of open shots and took a lot of bad shots.
4) Don't lump JT in with the bad FT shooting. He is a good FT shooter.
5) Iverson will not be a scorer. He was overrated by this board. He can play D, pass and rebound.
6) Biggest disappointment is JTs shot. So much said that he would be a good shooter this year.
7) We didn't go at Fernandez with Hass or Earl when he had 3 and 4 fouls.
8) Garrett played much better in the 2nd half
9) The turnover pass by Hass leading to a 3 for Valpo was as much JTs fault. He is the G and just turns and runs up court. Hass was passing it to him - giving the ball to a G to bring it up
10) Rhody looked better in the first half when Earl came in for Iverson.
11) We had 9 blocks! Great D
12) Aleady mentioned Hass and Earl need to finish more when they are fouled. They are strong. Their FT shooting will be a liability all year.
13) we would've had a 7 man rotation with the Fr being added in as the year progressed. A 7 man rotation with all players good enough to play 25-30 minutes is all that is needed.
14) I really like Four. I hope he is the leader of the team when they start the A10 season
15) The season and hopes we had for it are not over. We will need to shoot better to have a chance to Dance.

ace · Unread post by **ace** » 8 years ago

I think I expected worse today, and I'm not the only one. After everything, they needed to play a game, just wish it could have been a different opponent/circumstance.

It's great for the players to try to rally and do it for EC, but the reality is that they lost their best and most experienced (at URI) player- best free throw shooter, best guard fg%. He gets a lot of attention, but he also absorbs a lot of the pressure. Everything has been building to this season. No one wanted a buffer or less expectations this year. I wanted people to appreciate EC but not in this way.

Every practice since last Spring through September when they finally had the new team together to the preseason centered around having this configuration of players, with EC as the focus. You don't get over that mentally or otherwise in a few days. The reactions I saw from Friday night through the weekend were those coming from a bad life situation not just basketball. It changes everything, on and off the court. But whoever said it above is right- it doesn't mean the season is over, but it doesn't mean they need just time either. Everyone was excited to finally play the style that was expected. Now, it's all changed. They'll win this year, but it's not what anyone wanted.

This was way more depressing than I meant it to be. Sorry about that. This is still a tremendous group of guys to get behind. That hasn't changed at all.

SmartyBarrett · Unread post by **SmartyBarrett** » 8 years ago

TruePoint wrote:I can't make excuses for the free throw shooting. That is the one thing that I don't have much of an argument for, except to say that maybe we just accept that we are not a good free throw shooting team and that we will have to win games other ways despite our poor FT shooting. I mean, at what point does it become silly to expect that we suddenly are going to shoot it at 80% from the line as a team?

I think the sample size is large enough that this is an accurate assessment. It's unrealistic to expect things that this team isn't capable of as constructed. I think it was DiSano who tweeted that one of the only ways to improve FT shooting on this team is through recruiting. Like Adam, I think it's silly to insinuate that this team doesn't practice FTs. The more logical explanation is they're simply not a good FT shooting team.

Rhody83 · Unread post by **Rhody83** » 8 years ago

Looked up at stats during a 2nd half time out and URI had 0 fast break points. Not sure if they got any after that.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 8 years ago

Ace, you nailed it about depressing......

Their entire style that they were going to play, has changed back to last season's.

They will run and gun against the weak sisters, but big deal.

They will not be able to replace EC's scoring, and the fact that opponents had to respect EC's driving and scoring ability. He could score in bunches.

Four will help with his 3 pt. shooting, but better teams will slow him down and not allow him to get multiple open looks.

The only way this team will be able to loosen things up, will be the development of Akele and Thompson.

Otherwise, this is a 6 man team, just like last season.....

ace · Unread post by **ace** » 8 years ago

I don't know about all that. It's frustrating, but I'm still optimistic. They've only played 80 minutes so far.

spar · Unread post by **spar** » 8 years ago

luke wrote:Ya know I think today's game bothered me so much because we see the same problems that existed for the past
two seasons. So when I hear it said that it was just one game, I don't look at it that way. If the way this one
game went was an anomaly I would agree, but it wasn't an anomaly. Will the whole season continue to show the
same issues? I don't know. can the team improve rapidly enough to salvage the rest of the season? We can only
hope. It is possible that the players right now are suffering a bit of a crisis of confidence with their ft shooting
and overall shooting, and it could change with just a few shots dropping. That's why they play the games.

This is kind of where I'm at. I'm going to stay as positive and optimistic as I can, but the recurring issue with the FT's chaps my ass beyond belief. I guess I'm just having trouble accepting the fact that we kind of "are what we are" from the stripe. Hit 3 more todat for 67% overall and Four is shooting for the win at the end vs trying to get us into OT. It just sucks knowing it is going to cost us games this year just like it did last year as Steveystuds pointed out. Obviously, we had some turnover issues and poor shooting overall today as well, but I'm a little more forgiving on those fronts since we all know what this team has been through the last 4 days. I think they were probably so charged up and ready to go out and win one for EC that they may have been pressing themselves too much offensively. Who knows, but some patience will be required as they "reset" things offensively. We all know what we're getting on the defensive end every game. It just boggles my mind that with all the FT practice we know these guys are getting, there doesn't seem to be any improvement. I get that some guys just aren't good at them, but as with most things in life, practice SHOULD drive some improvement. I hope they make me eat my words moving forward.

DanInAZ · Unread post by **DanInAZ** » 8 years ago

Billyboy78 wrote:Paid attendance was 4000 something. Let's discuss the "warm bodies" again. It's a good thing we had 5 different elementary schools there or attendance would have been 3000 or less. When I got to the RC, I expected to see a couple of thousand students waiting outside. There were 20. Yes, I counted, 20!!!!! More did filter in as time went on. But, I'm guessing there were around 300 there. That's a disgrace. At the start of the game, we had 3 cheerleaders. A few more came in during the game. I'm betting we're the only home team on ESPN that didn't have a band in attendance. Embarrassing. I've mentioned that a crazed basketball atmosphere is very important to Dan. Ace confirmed that I am right about that. So, I'm pretty sure it's true. A national TV game. 300 students. 3 cheerleaders. No band. That's far from a crazed basketball atmosphere. We don't deserve Dan Hurley here. And I don't care what time the game was. Basketball is not that important to this university on many levels. I will always be a huge fan of this team and I have been for over 40 years. Right now, I'm totally disgusted. Love the team. Hate the support. Who will our next coach be?

Agree. If Dan leaves URI it will be because of this lack of support, which I have seen as long as I have been a student there in the mid 80's. Pathetic. Only game I saw over the marathon that didn't have a close to or full house.

URI marketing/promoting has always been as Coach Geza Henni would say, 'Bush league'. If only there were more elementary kids allowed to take the road trip we could have had standing room only. *sigh*

Ramblinrose · Unread post by **Ramblinrose** » 8 years ago

I missed the game because of work. I bet a lot of fans did. But fan support is always wait and see. Crowds pick up if the team is good. Now that we're playing for the NIT, big crowds may be few and far between.

DanInAZ · Unread post by **DanInAZ** » 8 years ago

Changing the culture...

AD. Check.
Coach. Check.
Staff. Check.
Trainers. Check.
Players. Check.

Student body. Marketing. Not so much.

If I am wrong please back it up. Our students have basketball way down on their list of things they care about. It is as simple as that. They may come out when it becomes fashionable and because 'all their friends are there' but until then it just the core group like us on this board that care about URI basketball. I saw it when I went to URI from 84 to 89. I see it now. Fair weathered fans.

The University doesn't deserve this team. Errrr scratch that... this team doesn't deserve the University and its students.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 8 years ago

I agree with DiSano about recruiting good FT shooters.

That should be part of what the staff is looking for.

I realize Dan and co. look for guys who can defend, but they have got to produce on the other end and that includes making FT's consistently.

Hopefully the 3 big men who are coming in next year are at least decent from the line. Obviously the new PG needs to be good there too.

They need to be good, because once they are here it doesn't seem like they get any better at it. Worse maybe....

Almost every team has a couple of guys who can't shoot FT's. We have an abundance of them.

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 8 years ago

ace wrote:I think I expected worse today, and I'm not the only one.

No, you were not. I was actually encouraged, even though the game was not pretty. Considering the opponent and the circumstances, this could have been a disaster this morning. I know this team has a ton of fight it in, but that alone wouldn't necessarily be enough. I thought they showed enough basketball stuff today - again, considering the circumstances - to make me think we should still be thinking about competing for the league and/or an at-large.

There is going to be a pall over this season now, that's just the way it is. For all the hype and expectations, the high lasted all of nine minutes. But there is still a season to play. It will never be as joyous as we hoped it would be, and unless we win the whole damn thing we will always wonder what more we could have done had we had our best player. But that's sports. They don't cancel the games. You have to play them, so you might as well try to win them. I know they will fight like hell to that end, and as a fan I'd rather appreciate that and hope for the best than worry about whatever shortcomings they may have.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 8 years ago

Students nowadays are more concerned with their I phones, tablets, and laptops than going to a game where they can't use them, other than texting nonstop.

Any one of us who have kids or grandkids old enough to know how to use them [which is about 8 years old now] are quite aware of this.....

And URI keeps losing to the good teams they play, so why go? That's the attitude that they have, and the only thing that will change it, is winning those games.

And you wonder how much it will change, even if we do start winning them.....

ramster · Unread post by **ramster** » 8 years ago

DanInAZ wrote:Changing the culture...

AD. Check.
Coach. Check.
Staff. Check.
Trainers. Check.
Players. Check.

Student body. Marketing. Not so much.

If I am wrong please back it up. Our students have basketball way down on their list of things they care about. It is as simple as that. They may come out when it becomes fashionable and because 'all their friends are there' but until then it just the core group like us on this board that care about URI basketball. I saw it when I went to URI from 84 to 89. I see it now. Fair weathered fans.

The University doesn't deserve this team. Errrr scratch that... this team doesn't deserve the University and its students.

Changed the President too. Good to see him at games and shaking hands with the players and coaches. He was there today of course.

ace · Unread post by **ace** » 8 years ago

Chris's point wasn't to recruit good free throw shooters. His point is that good shooters tend to make their free throws. Matthews, Terrell, McGlynn, Thompson were/are the good ones on this team, Berry too, weirdly. Iverson hit 9-12 last year, in the smallest of sample sizes.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 8 years ago

How noble of you, TP.

Some of us would rather see us win and make the Dance for the first time in a million years.

Some of us aren't exactly spring chickens either.

Some of us remember the good times. Many here are used to losing also.

Some of us are selfish. I'd like to see us make the tourney before hell freezes over, or drown due to global warming, or some nutcase drops a bomb and starts WW3. Actually we're at war right now, except our President isn't aware of it.

But that's another topic, depressing just like another game thrown away because URI shoots FT's worse than a junior high school team.

Ace, I understand that....that's part of the package they need to focus on...of course it's easier said than done, but it's got to be done, or the horror show will continue....

ElmCityRhody · Unread post by **ElmCityRhody** » 8 years ago

13-24 is simply unacceptable

Anyone who excuses around that stat is wrong

These are FTs

Practice them and then practice them again

And don't tell me they can't shoot for a higher percentage

As for Iverson, I thought he played soft and has to loose of a handle

Only 1 game I've seen him, so I hope I am wrong about him

Completely frustrated

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 8 years ago

ECR, the beat goes on...

Game after game, the FT shooting sucks....

Then we have a game where we shoot 20-22. Everybody then goes, whoa we're getting better...

Then whoops, back to reality and 50% land....or worse, and another one bites the dust, another Davidson bomb....or even Fordham for Christ's sake.....

Always against good teams, we do just enough to lose....

I realize that things are WAY different than when the previous coach was here, but that part never changes.

We lose. Again. That's the bottom line.....take it to the bank....

ace · Unread post by **ace** » 8 years ago

Anyway...

I think this is pretty much a perfect approach-

Hurley saluted his team for playing very hard and for getting through the emotion of the last few days, but added, “We still should have won that game today. We made mistakes that allowed them to win and credit to them, because they're a really good team. There's no excuses. We're going to have three days to reinvent ourselves a little bit and play the way this team – the way we're constructed – needs to play. Our goals are still going to be what our goals were, and we're going to attack the rest of our schedule. We've got a chance to be really good, but I don't know how many guys played well today."

http://www.independentri.com/rhody_over ... 0e8d3.html

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 8 years ago

rambone 78 wrote:How noble of you, TP.

I don't even know what to make of this diatribe. I think you misunderstood what I was saying. I'm not going to spend a lot of time trying to explain it to you, other than to say that I remember "the good times" and nobody wants to get back there more than I do. I'm just not ready to give up on that for this season at this point, based on today's game. Every team is flawed, even the ones that will compete for a national championship. This one may not shoot free throws well, or maybe the first two games were a fluke. Time will tell, but either way I still think this team can be good and I'm not going to run around here like my hair is on fire because we didn't play a prefect game TODAY, of all days. Going forward, we will have to be better. Everyone understands that.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 8 years ago

All well and good, Ace. Let's see what happens...

Hurley gets it. He knows what's going on. It must frustrate him a ton when this shit keeps happening over and over again. Not just FT's either...

If I'm an opposing coach, I would tell my team just get to where we've even with URI with 2 minutes to go, and we'll win the game. Even at URI.

And that pisses me off big time, because it's true most of the time.....until that changes, this team will not Dance, EC or no EC.....

Unread post by **SGreenwell** » 8 years ago

rambone 78 wrote:If I'm an opposing coach, I would tell my team just get to where we've even with URI with 2 minutes to go, and we'll win the game. Even at URI.

And that pisses me off big time, because it's true most of the time.....until that changes, this team will not Dance, EC or no EC.....

If only Hurley told his team to be up by 10! That would solve the problem. Then the other team wouldn't be even with two minutes to go. Maybe we should move back to Keaney, while we're at it, since we need to change.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 8 years ago

Greenwell, we can't be up by 10, because we miss so many from the line, we keep the other team in the game to the end, where they beat us like a drum....

And that's a fact, like it or not. It's been that way for many years now......

And I know the circumstances are difficult right now, and the team is going thru an adjustment period....but some things don't change when it comes to URI BB.

A lot of you guys are hoping things will change, but until they do, that's what we've got.....these guys aren't going to become good FT shooters any time soon, if ever.

Anyway, time to call it a night.....

Rhody83 · Unread post by **Rhody83** » 8 years ago

ace wrote:I don't know about all that. It's frustrating, but I'm still optimistic. They've only played 80 minutes so far.

Rhody has played two games losing one by 3 points to a good, experienced Valpo team and some fans on this board are giving up on them??? Comments like we probably will not make even the NIT and we will probably finish a few games above 500. I realize this is fueled by losing EC. I am hoping it is just your venting today and you will be back to normal tomorrow. I don't understand any other scenario. ONE LOSS BY 3 POINTS. You would give up on Dan Hurley, Jared Terrell, Hassan Martin, Jarvis Garrett and Four McGlynn. I would go to battle with any of them. It is early in the year and a lot can change throughout the year. GTown lost to Radford and are ahead of Maryland right now. Support the team. Stay positive.

ace · Unread post by **ace** » 8 years ago

Rhody83 wrote:
ace wrote:I don't know about all that. It's frustrating, but I'm still optimistic. They've only played 80 minutes so far.
Rhody has played two games losing one by 3 points to a good, experienced Valpo team and some fans on this board are giving up on them??? Comments like we probably will not make even the NIT and we will probably finish a few games above 500. I realize this is fueled by losing EC. I am hoping it is just your venting today and you will be back to normal tomorrow. I don't understand any other scenario. ONE LOSS BY 3 POINTS. You would give up on Dan Hurley, Jared Terrell, Hassan Martin, Jarvis Garrett and Four McGlynn. I would go to battle with any of them. It is early in the year and a lot can change throughout the year. GTown lost to Radford and are ahead of Maryland right now. Support the team. Stay positive.

Is that a general you or do you mean me?

Stop! Rammer Time · Unread post by **Stop! Rammer Time** » 8 years ago

From 11:19 until 1:28 in the first half, Valpo didn't get a field goal. I think that's quite impressive from our guys. How did this not get more discussion?

Valpo is a good team; long, experienced and talented. I'm trying to avoid making too many snap judgments before enough games play out to see what our team is really all about.

Thoughts:
Thompson never even looked at the basket when he was out there, I thought it was odd that he never seemed to consider shooting it.
JT is certainly not afraid of the big shot, the three to close out the first half and the block and layup at the end were huge. I was thinking he'd get the final shot just because he seems to embrace the moment.
A few particularly bad calls by the refs today: the offensive goaltending is one and the other was Four's steal on their fastbreak that he got called for.

Putting aside my depression of this weekend about the loss of EC and my disappointment of today's loss. Can I just say that I love this team and I love Rhody Basketball? Glad that basketball season is back and I already can't wait for Saturday's game.

Rhody15 · Unread post by **Rhody15** » 8 years ago

Besides PC and Dayton, I honestly think we might not hit 6000 in attendance. If VCU, Davidson, Dayton played Cleveland State on Saturday, each arena would be close to a sell out. When Hurley leaves, whenever that is, attendance will be at the forefront. Sickens me to see the whole upper level basically empty game after the game. We have front-runners for fans, except for our diehards.

And yes, EC not playing 100% will affect attendance.

Billyboy78 · Unread post by **Billyboy78** » 8 years ago

I think a lot of people are going through the 5 stages of grief. Obviously there is no death involved, but it knd of felt like that regarding the basketball program last Friday night. The last stage, stage 5, is acceptance. I don't think we as fans, are there yet. I'm not sure the team is there yet either. It will eventually happen for all of us.

URIFIJI · Unread post by **URIFIJI** » 8 years ago

The sky is not falling. I believe this team will win 20+ games this year. If JT steps us with confidence like he did when EC went down last year. Watch out. THe FT's is crazy frustrating......seems like Valpo didn't miss them in the 2nd half. At least they didn't miss in last 5 mins in game.

I am headed to Cancun Saturday and rooting my ass off for this team. We will meet Maryland on Wednesday.

No where near ready to give up on the NCAA's

ElmCityRhody · Unread post by **ElmCityRhody** » 8 years ago

i am not giving up on ncaa's..

i am not giving up on this team

it's just frustrating cas we need these rpi games to win

and the FT's is the elephant in the room

EZBuckets · Unread post by **EZBuckets** » 8 years ago

The overreaction in this thread about student attendance is a little ridiculous.

We had over 2500 students at the American game + I saw nothing but praise in the game thread about those numbers. Overall, last year's student attendance was a big improvement as well.

A lot was done to entice students to come yesterday and they just didn't show in the numbers we would have liked. No matter which way you slice it; the 10am start on a class day was a tough sell. When speaking to students yesterday I was told Tuesday/Thursday classes are usually lab & exam days which just cannot be missed; especially in demanding majors. Big difference for M/W/F classes.

I'm not trying to make excuses here...I was just as disappointed in the turnout as you all...especially since I had to blow out my voice to get any kind of crowd noise throughout the game. All I'm saying is that I wouldn't use this game as a baseline to criticize the students. We get similar paltry numbers for standard start times & I will be the first to agree with the assessment.

As far as the team is concerned. The sky is not falling. That's one of the best defenses we will see all year + it's going to take time to adjust and right the ship in EC's absence.

Rhody74 · Unread post by **Rhody74** » 8 years ago

The weeping and gnashing of teeth in this thread is incredible. I was afraid we'd lose this game even before EC got injured, and I was one of the more optimistic predictors in Obie's contest. URI played terrific defense against an experienced team who, after a trip to Canada, is far closer to mid-season form than we are. Yeah, the FTs suck, so I imagine Dan needs to get a new magic wand to make that problem disappear. Let's get a few more games in before we completely abandon all hope.

SmartyBarrett · Unread post by **SmartyBarrett** » 8 years ago

Rhody74 wrote:The weeping and gnashing of teeth in this thread is incredible. I was afraid we'd lose this game even before EC got injured, and I was one of the more optimistic predictors in Obie's contest. URI played terrific defense against an experienced team who, after a trip to Canada, is far closer to mid-season form than we are. Yeah, the FTs suck, so I imagine Dan needs to get a new magic wand to make that problem disappear. Let's get a few more games in before we completely abandon all hope.

1000% agree with all of this.

Iggy1979 · Unread post by **Iggy1979** » 8 years ago

eli#10 wrote:I just watched the replay and the offensive goaltending was blatant. Not only was the ball tipped while on the rim but Peters also grabbed the rim. Of course after this not being called Valpo retained possession and made a 3. The call on Four's steal and almost breakaway could have gone either way. Of course it went the other way.
I must say that Bryce Drew showed some class when after shaking hands with Dan before the game started he went over to EC to shake his hand and they had a brief conversation.

The goaltending was a badly missed call but I thought this was a good crew overall. The non-call on Terrell's block was a great call that you hardly ever see.

steveystuds06 · Unread post by **steveystuds06** » 8 years ago

That block by Terrell was awesome he is a game changer on defense.

hrstrat57 · Unread post by **hrstrat57** » 8 years ago

EZBuckets wrote:The overreaction in this thread about student attendance is a little ridiculous.

We had over 2500 students at the American game + I saw nothing but praise in the game thread about those numbers. Overall, last year's student attendance was a big improvement as well.

A lot was done to entice students to come yesterday and they just didn't show in the numbers we would have liked. No matter which way you slice it; the 10am start on a class day was a tough sell. When speaking to students yesterday I was told Tuesday/Thursday classes are usually lab & exam days which just cannot be missed; especially in demanding majors. Big difference for M/W/F classes.

I'm not trying to make excuses here...I was just as disappointed in the turnout as you all...especially since I had to blow out my voice to get any kind of crowd noise throughout the game. All I'm saying is that I wouldn't use this game as a baseline to criticize the students. We get similar paltry numbers for standard start times & I will be the first to agree with the assessment.

As far as the team is concerned. The sky is not falling. That's one of the best defenses we will see all year + it's going to take time to adjust and right the ship in EC's absence.

Shout out to you EZBuckets for a job well done yesterday.....I heard many comments in the crowd about how hard you were working and the overall quality of your work yesterday morning in a tough spot.

Please talk to Yorke about costing us a point as I mentioned earlier in this thread. Then he yelled after the missed foul shot he had been talking over " 4 shooting three " (foul shots) He didn't even realize a shot had already been taken? Extremely bad form, worst I can recall witnessing from a PA announcer. Had he done with the opposition at the line would have been a near certain tech on the home team or at minimum a do over. Bad bad bad!

See what you can do about freezing the display on the LED banner when the toes are on the line as well, certainly a huge distraction.

Again, well done, thanks! I say your efforts were worth at least a couple of hoops, sounded at times like 6K in the bldg....especially nice job firing up the private school kids....they were loud at times.

Sweep The Leg · Unread post by **Sweep The Leg** » 8 years ago

SmartyBarrett wrote:
Rhody74 wrote:The weeping and gnashing of teeth in this thread is incredible. I was afraid we'd lose this game even before EC got injured, and I was one of the more optimistic predictors in Obie's contest. URI played terrific defense against an experienced team who, after a trip to Canada, is far closer to mid-season form than we are. Yeah, the FTs suck, so I imagine Dan needs to get a new magic wand to make that problem disappear. Let's get a few more games in before we completely abandon all hope.
1000% agree with all of this.

On board with this as well. The team we played was 28-6, a NCAA tourney team, well-coached, had 8 games under their belt and returned all 5 starters and we still gave them everything they could handle. They were averaging 81 PPG (small sample including Iona, I know), and we held them to 58. That defense is still there and will keep us in most games.

If they can alter their offensive game plan and slightly move away from the 3 guard offense which was their plan, they can be effective on offense. I know we expected to be more dynamic and exciting, but that isn't their reality now. They need to place Hassan and Earl on the block, have KI be the floater on the high post and let JG run the show. You can still have 3 guard offenses, don't get me wrong, because there will be foul trouble and breathers, but with Garrett as the only true ball handler, that may get us in trouble.

Micheal_Phelps_22 · Unread post by **Micheal_Phelps_22** » 8 years ago

hrstrat57 wrote:Couple foul shooting whines from an ex hoops coach.

1. Freeze the LED banner when we are shooting

2. Take the microphone away from Yorke when we step to the line, he talks his drama right up to the stroke - actually talking today on the PA while Four was shooting resulting in a miss. That point would have been nice on the board for the last play call.

3. All you 70% ft shooters crack me up - go run for 40 minutes turn on your car flashers and see how many you make in the driveway then = you'll turn into world class bricklayers. Shooting foul shots with a crowd behind the basket in a big arena is also just a bit different than your friendly driveway folks.

Except for HM most of the misses are on line but long, it should get better as the season goes on.

Oh and....

The negativity in this town sucks....

Thank you for posting this. I'm with everyone else that the FT % needs to change but the "I can shoot 70% in my driveway" argument by some is laughable.

There is something wrong though because 46% as a team from the line doesn't even happen in rec basketball games. I've noticed that alot of rhody players will walk up to the line and TAKE FOREVER to go through some ridiculous ritual before shooting. They will take a couple huge breaths, pause, dribble a bit, and then shoot. It almost seems like they're psyching themselves out. They know the foul shooting is an issue. Watch other teams shoot ft's. Players step up to the line, take maybe 3 seconds to prepare, and then they shoot the damn ball. ft's are all about repetition.

We are all die hard fans of this team and know enough about coach Hurley now. Does anybody truly believe that this team doesn't practice foul shots over and over again? The results absolutley need to change but I'm not pointing fingers at the coaching staff for lack of preperation on this one.

EZBuckets · Unread post by **EZBuckets** » 8 years ago

hrstrat57 wrote:
Shout out to you EZBuckets for a job well done yesterday.....I heard many comments in the crowd about how hard you were working and the overall quality of your work yesterday morning in a tough spot.

Please talk to Yorke about costing us a point as I mentioned earlier in this thread. Then he yelled after the missed foul shot he had been talking over " 4 shooting three " (foul shots) He didn't even realize a shot had already been taken? Extremely bad form, worst I can recall witnessing from a PA announcer. Had he done with the opposition at the line would have been a near certain tech on the home team or at minimum a do over. Bad bad bad!

See what you can do about freezing the display on the LED banner when the toes are on the line as well, certainly a huge distraction.

Again, well done, thanks! I say your efforts were worth at least a couple of hoops, sounded at times like 6K in the bldg....especially nice job firing up the private school kids....they were loud at times.

Thanks for the kind words, hrstrat.

I actually spoke with Dan after the game about that call and he was upset about the situation. Apparently just before the foul a player fell into the scoring table which knocked equipment and Dan's paperwork all over the floor. There was a scramble to grab it all + announce the appropriate foul info and in the chaos Dan announced it way later than he would have under normal circumstances.

RF1 · Unread post by **RF1** » 8 years ago

EZBuckets wrote:The overreaction in this thread about student attendance is a little ridiculous.

We had over 2500 students at the American game + I saw nothing but praise in the game thread about those numbers. Overall, last year's student attendance was a big improvement as well.

A lot was done to entice students to come yesterday and they just didn't show in the numbers we would have liked. No matter which way you slice it; the 10am start on a class day was a tough sell. When speaking to students yesterday I was told Tuesday/Thursday classes are usually lab & exam days which just cannot be missed; especially in demanding majors. Big difference for M/W/F classes.

I'm not trying to make excuses here...I was just as disappointed in the turnout as you all...especially since I had to blow out my voice to get any kind of crowd noise throughout the game. All I'm saying is that I wouldn't use this game as a baseline to criticize the students. We get similar paltry numbers for standard start times & I will be the first to agree with the assessment.

As far as the team is concerned. The sky is not falling. That's one of the best defenses we will see all year + it's going to take time to adjust and right the ship in EC's absence.

Student attendance was great Friday. My only complaint is that many left well before the game ended to get a start on their night out.

URI's undergraduate enrollment is near 13,500. We had a few hundred students at the game yesterday. There is no way that 13,000 students had class Tuesday morning during game time. There is not enough class and lab space in Kingston to make that even possible. My group was afterward asked by some commuting students about the game in the North/Plain Road lots. They hadn't even been aware there was a game going on. Whatever marketing and outreach that was done, it would seem it was not effective nor anywhere near enough. Were the students taken for granted because it was an ESPN game and they usually show up for these? Did URI not want to advertise too much since it was during class time and it did not want to send out a mixed message with regard to academics? In any respect, the turnout was disappointing.

Sweep The Leg · Unread post by **Sweep The Leg** » 8 years ago

RF1 wrote:
EZBuckets wrote:The overreaction in this thread about student attendance is a little ridiculous.

We had over 2500 students at the American game + I saw nothing but praise in the game thread about those numbers. Overall, last year's student attendance was a big improvement as well.

A lot was done to entice students to come yesterday and they just didn't show in the numbers we would have liked. No matter which way you slice it; the 10am start on a class day was a tough sell. When speaking to students yesterday I was told Tuesday/Thursday classes are usually lab & exam days which just cannot be missed; especially in demanding majors. Big difference for M/W/F classes.

I'm not trying to make excuses here...I was just as disappointed in the turnout as you all...especially since I had to blow out my voice to get any kind of crowd noise throughout the game. All I'm saying is that I wouldn't use this game as a baseline to criticize the students. We get similar paltry numbers for standard start times & I will be the first to agree with the assessment.

As far as the team is concerned. The sky is not falling. That's one of the best defenses we will see all year + it's going to take time to adjust and right the ship in EC's absence.

Student attendance was great Friday. My only complaint is that many left well before the game ended to get a start on their night out.

URI's undergraduate enrollment is near 13,500. We had a few hundred students at the game yesterday. There is no way that 13,000 students had class Tuesday morning during game time. There is not enough class and lab space in Kingston to make that even possible. My group was afterward asked by some commuting students about the game in the North/Plain Road lots. They hadn't even been aware there was a game going on. Whatever marketing and outreach that was done, it would seem it was not effective nor anywhere near enough. Were the students taken for granted because it was an ESPN game and they usually show up for these? Did URI not want to advertise too much since it was during class time and it did not want to send out a mixed message with regard to academics?

Maybe the students were protesting ESPN's handling of Deflategate by not attending an ESPN event.

steviep123 · Unread post by **steviep123** » 8 years ago

Okay, it's a day later and here are a few thoughts on the game from me in no particular order:

1. Props to Blue Man, his fiancee and his friends for putting together an excellent tailgate. It was great to meet and reconnect with many members of this board. Someone (sorry, I remember his real name, but not his board name) had an awesome URI corn hole set that I need to get for myself. ATP and I teamed up to win a couple of games! And Blue Man's homemade Egg McMuffin's were delicious. If only we had more donuts...

(to those not there, almost everyone brought donuts or munchkins, so there was quite an overabundance, but a nice problem to have).

I posted a pic on another thread, but Thorr stopped by to say hello as well. Here's the pic from twitter again:

https://twitter.com/thorrbjorn/status/6 ... 8732379137

2. While I was hoping for a better attendence, in watching Baylor at Oregon Monday night, which was prime time on the West Coast, I did not see a full house, so I wasn't as concerned about it going in. While it would be great to have a near sellout for the ESPN audience, if a Pac-12 school can't bang out an ESPN game in prime time, then it might not be as big of a deal for Rhody to sell out for a 10am game. If the tv numbers are justified, ESPN will televise games at URI and Oregon again regardless of the crowd. Sure it looks better on tv, but money talks.

3. What a rough and ugly start to the game. Actually, scoring was at a minimum for most of the game and was pretty ugly to watch.

4. Both Garrett and Iverson showed some nice moves at time (Garrett more so). If Iverson can show those moves more often he'll be a tremendous asset.

5. While not the biggest problem and we should have easily overcome this. I wasn't too thrilled with the officiating. There were a few missed travel calls and that foul on McGlynn should have absolutely been intentional. Two shots and the ball. Could have made a difference.

6. FREE THROWS FREE THROWS FREE THROWS. I looked up at the video ribbon near the end of the game to notice we were shooting 54 % from the foul line. This was right before Valpo hit the last two foul shots to increase the lead by 3. Someone else said above, (paraphrasing) "How many games are we going to lose to poor free throw shooting?" Well, even if we shoot 60% (still bad), we win this game. This team needs to understand how important free throws are. I can't necessarily blame the coaching staff - they aren't allowed to get to the foul line and shoot during games. The players need to practice and practice more if need be. I don't have the answers, I'm not an insider and do not know how important free throws are to this staff and team, but I've been closely following URI and college basketball for over 25 years and I can tell you what you all already know. Free throws help you win games. Missing them can absolutely cost them. Like yesterday.

7. I recorded the game and watched it again yesterday afternoon (I'm a glutton for punishment). First, someone tell ESPN that URI is not in Providence. While they did show some beautiful scenery of the city, URI is not in Providence. If you are going to highlight the area around URI, then highlight Narragansett, or even Newport.

7a. The Ryan Center looks great on tv (but better in person!).
7b. EC Matthews was at the ESPN broadcast booth being interviewed by Sean McDonough and Tim Welsh during the game for a few minutes starting with the under 16 minute timeout in the 2nd half. I couldn't find a youtube link, but maybe someone posted above. EC mentioned it being difficult having to watch the team without being able to contribute on the court, but will be there to support in whatever way he can (nothing we didn't already know). He also mentioned surgery won't happen until the swelling goes down enough for surgery to occur. Probably in a few weeks.

8. That near steal that was coughed back up leading to a Valpo 3 with a few minutes left was a dagger.

9. Loved Terrell's block with a couple minutes left lead to a 3 and got us back into the game.

10. Not sure if anyone noticed, but it took a couple of players a bit to get up. They definitely gave it their all at the end. McGlynn seemed very down after missing the last two. According to this:

https://twitter.com/RhodyMBB/status/666675789975261184

McGlynn was out on the court shooting after the game was over.

11. I was sitting in the 2nd row of 207, the corner above where the Rams leave the court after the game. I went to the edge, clapped and yelled something like "heads up boys". Not sure why I did it, but hope it helps.

12. All in all, I thought the effort was there and I'm a little more optimistic than I was 24 hours ago. While we certainly can't afford another injury or anything like that, I do think that if we can get some ball movement then we have plenty of weapons even without EC to score. We need to get people open.

Micheal_Phelps_22 · Unread post by **Micheal_Phelps_22** » 8 years ago

That is an awesome picture! I was running late and couldn't make it over there to say hello to everyone. This website is amazing for a URI hoops junkie like myself.

I have seen alot of comparisons of fours last shot rimming out but one I haven't seen mentioned was Steve Mello's 3 at the end of regulation vs #2 St Joes. He was more in the corner but he took that shot right in front of me and I'll never forget how close it was to dropping.

I also sit in 207 steviep and I saw you and a few others cheering every time a player was in or out of that tunnel. Very cool to see and EC definitely noticed. He smiled and acknowledged you guys at one point when he was walking across the baseline towards the bench.

Stop! Rammer Time · Unread post by **Stop! Rammer Time** » 8 years ago

steviep123 wrote:
7a. The Ryan Center looks great on tv (but better in person!).
7b. EC Matthews was at the ESPN broadcast booth being interviewed by Sean McDonough and Tim Welsh during the game for a few minutes starting with the under 16 minute timeout in the 2nd half. I couldn't find a youtube link, but maybe someone posted above. EC mentioned it being difficult having to watch the team without being able to contribute on the court, but will be there to support in whatever way he can (nothing we didn't already know). He also mentioned surgery won't happen until the swelling goes down enough for surgery to occur. Probably in a few weeks.

Has anyone seen any video or have any quotes from when EC was on the broadcast?

wgracie99 · Unread post by **wgracie99** » 8 years ago

Just want to get my 2 cents in after going to both games. After the 1st game I thought we would be ok without EC and still have a chance to make the dance because I saw a pretty good Iverson and a not bad Thompson. After Tuesday's game I thought Iverson was not only a non factor but a liability on the court. my guess his +/- was not good, plus Thompson could not play D well and is afraid to shoot on O. I went from 25 wins to 21, only down 4, so I still think those 2 can and will improve....and they really need to otherwise the starting 4 will be really drained by years end (especially Garrett).

I heard at the game that you could get a 4 pack of tickets/4 hot dogs for Saturday's game for $60 but went on line to get them and didn't see anything about it. Does anyone know anything?

sf2010 · Unread post by **sf2010** » 8 years ago

wgracie99 wrote: I heard at the game that you could get a 4 pack of tickets/4 hot dogs for Saturday's game for $60 but went on line to get them and didn't see anything about it. Does anyone know anything?

http://ev8.evenue.net/cgi-bin/ncommerce ... =&appCode=

a3uge · Unread post by **a3uge** » 8 years ago

Valpo fan here - wanted to wish you guys luck on the rest of the season. I really hope URI makes the tournament and wins the A10. We will all be cheering for the Rams this year.

This actually looked like a pretty typical game for Valpo: great defense, lots of turnovers on offense. In the Horizon League Championship game last year, Green Bay (an NIT team) made only 1 FG in the last 12:00, scoring 6 points. Valpo lead the Horizon in most defensive categories and were about average on offense. They were 6th in the country in opponents FG%, and 14th in opponent's PPG. I thought URI did a great job on defense and frustrated Valpo the whole game. Valpo was a top 50 team in 3PT% last year and only went 3-11 (and 0-7 in the first half). I thought URI did a good job of knocking down shots (42.9% from 3) when they were open (other than the end). I understand the free throw frustrations, but from my biased opinion, I kept thinking Valpo should be up double digits in the first half from all the good short looks they had. Valpo also finished the game pretty poorly by fouling on a rebound up 7, running clock with too much time left, going for a contested dunk instead of winding the clock down, not playing defense or rebounding on the last possession. Had Four knocked down the three at the end, I would have left feeling like Valpo gave that game away. But coulda-woulda-shoulda's aside, it was a great defensive battle with both teams playing hard and intense at 10am.

As for your attendance Tuesday Morning: Valpo played a tipoff marathon game a couple years back vs Ball State during the 7am timeslot and it was one of the lowest attended home games that year. Every year attendance for the early games are low. I was glad Valpo didn't have to play in as hostile of an environment, but at 10am, I don't think anyone should expect too much.

Anyways, go out and beat Maryland for us and with the A10.

BleedBlue87 · Unread post by **BleedBlue87** » 8 years ago

a3uge, you sir are a class act. Thank you for the well wishes, the same goes for Valpo!

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