11/12 | Texas State | 4:00PM (YurView/ESPN+)

[JimSidd]

The year is 2022. URI has taken just 5 3pt attempts in a full basketball game and only made one.

Yep, I will go as far as shocking. We have no bomber, no designated three point threat to hang out on the perimeter, play enough defense to earn playing time. I guess the portal had none, or none that Archie’s saw as fits to the rebuild. This lack of three point threat will hurt us all season.

I’ve been thinking the same thing. At one point during yesterday’s game, I actually thought that maybe Archie could conduct an open try out for walk ons to try and find one that could hit an open corner three. I know it’s only been two games, but I don’t see any perimeter threats on this team. Shot fakes do no good if the opponent doesn’t respect an outside shot. There won’t be many back door cut opportunities either, if the defense knows it can back off and clog the lane.

[Blue Man]

I love this tough guy rhetoric BS being espoused here. I have a very good view of the bench, and let me tell you, two games in, it is not good on that bench with both Freeman and Weston. Yeah bench them and don't play them at all in the second half that will show them. I am not so sure that Bray will be an important piece going forward, if he was, I think he would be treated a little bit differently by the head coach. I mean if he is one of your better players you let him work through these problems he is having not just bench him for an entire half. This stuff in 2022 can and will have consequences. We lost the game and pissed him off and Weston as well, and we are celebrating it above like it is a good thing. Sorry it is not, we are 0-2 and already have what was thought to be two of our better players FOR THE FUTURE not play a minute in the second half. I mean Archie sold both of these guys on coming to URI, especially Freeman and for him to come and be benched for the entire second half is no way a good thing. Same for Weston. Only on this board would people be pointing to this like it is awesome. And it undercuts both of his new assistants as well who had personal relationships with each of these players that they used in getting them to come to URI.

I know here comes don't ever question Archie people, it is two games in. I hope he knows what he is doing with these two, I really do. I manage people, and have for a long time, and this approach no longer works in 2022 with your best employees. The ones you do not care about, fine. It is a different world and it is no different in college basketball. Unless this was effort related, which I see no indication it was, it is risky business to do this with a player you publicly said might be the most gifted offensive player you have seen. One and a half games in, and you bench him for an entire half? At least Bassy, Ish, and turnover machine Carey are happy. And then to add fuel to the fire in his press game conference by making that comment above?? Let's see where it goes from here. It may not be what you are all thinking it will be.

Thank you. I was starting to go crazy with people all rallying against Freeman 2 games in. I really don't get why this board is so happy that he's sitting because he's not playing well.

Freeman and Weston are supposedly two key pieces of our future. If they don't get to play through challenges in this meaningless year, when are they going to get better? For whatever reason it seems like Archie is prioritizing winning now over letting the young kids play

15 minutes against quinnipiac and 13 against Texas state for freeman. What is the point of that? How do you expect the kid to get into any rhythm.

So what you're both saying is you want David Cox again. I have no idea what you thought we were getting in Archie, but if you're pouting on the bench every time you go out. If you're not supporting your teammates, and If you have a negative attitude the first time you face adversity, then you're not going to play much under him... We played well in the second half, so he stuck with the shorter rotation. That's good coaching. David Cox would have removed the players that brought us back and put in the Twins.

Weston is clearly hurt.

Bray is 0-10 in 27 minutes and has been eaten alive on the defensive end.

Props to Archie for playing the guys that have earned it. Not the players that Jon Rothstein said were a big-time get in the offseason. It's a breath of fresh air to have a coach like this. Props to Frank Martin for doing the same thing against Towson

Now, if he benches Bray the next game and doesn't give him a shot, I'll question that. I think the kid still deserves some minutes to get out of this funk. Playing him in the second half was not the right time to do this.

One TRILLION percent this.

[RhowdyRam02]

I liked in the post game when Archie was asked about Brayon and he said “yeah, he didn’t get back in the game” and then when I asked if he was injured, Archie said “not that I’m aware of.” Gold, pure gold.

And to give a less game thready comment than my Belichick one, that's the kind of culture and team building that we so sorely lacked the last four years. Brayon is going to be an important piece going forward, but he hasn't been good to start. The last four years he would have been allowed to stay on the court and just do whatever he wanted, tonight he didn't play the second half

I love this tough guy rhetoric BS being espoused here. I have a very good view of the bench, and let me tell you, two games in, it is not good on that bench with both Freeman and Weston. Yeah bench them and don't play them at all in the second half that will show them. I am not so sure that Bray will be an important piece going forward, if he was, I think he would be treated a little bit differently by the head coach. I mean if he is one of your better players you let him work through these problems he is having not just bench him for an entire half. This stuff in 2022 can and will have consequences. We lost the game and pissed him off and Weston as well, and we are celebrating it above like it is a good thing. Sorry it is not, we are 0-2 and already have what was thought to be two of our better players FOR THE FUTURE not play a minute in the second half. I mean Archie sold both of these guys on coming to URI, especially Freeman and for him to come and be benched for the entire second half is no way a good thing. Same for Weston. Only on this board would people be pointing to this like it is awesome. And it undercuts both of his new assistants as well who had personal relationships with each of these players that they used in getting them to come to URI.

I know here comes don't ever question Archie people, it is two games in. I hope he knows what he is doing with these two, I really do. I manage people, and have for a long time, and this approach no longer works in 2022 with your best employees. The ones you do not care about, fine. It is a different world and it is no different in college basketball. Unless this was effort related, which I see no indication it was, it is risky business to do this with a player you publicly said might be the most gifted offensive player you have seen. One and a half games in, and you bench him for an entire half? At least Bassy, Ish, and turnover machine Carey are happy. And then to add fuel to the fire in his press game conference by making that comment above?? Let's see where it goes from here. It may not be what you are all thinking it will be.

Oh awesome, someone else with managerial experience and the need to tell everyone about it, that works out so well with Rhody72's opinions...

If you watch sports at all, you routinely see players being sat when they're struggling. The whole leave them alone and let them play through it is how players develop bad habits and get further down on themselves. A game isn't always the time to let them play, sometimes you have to sit a player during a game and work with them in practice and put them back in a game when they're ready. I guess that's considered tough guy rhetoric BS now.

Right now Freeman is 0-10 from the field, 0-2 from three, with 4 turnovers and 0 assists. In 12 first half minutes yesterday he was 0-5 from the field, 0-1 from 3, with two turnovers. All of the same issues he was having in game 1 were still present in the first half yesterday. Something is clearly off with Freeman, whether it's the pressure of being named third team all conference, the blowback he's received from transferring, or something else we don't even know about. Just letting him work through the problems in the second half wouldn't have been helpful to Freeman and it wouldn't have been helpful to the team. Also, by your own admission he was displaying poor body language on the bench and other people have said he wasn't supporting his teammates. What about that says he was mentally ready to get back in yesterday? It's great that Freeman wanted to get back in, that shows he's a competitor, but sometimes it's up to a coach to save a player from themselves and put them in the best position to succeed rather than the first possible action.

Weston hasn't gotten a lot of minutes yet, but he hasn't exactly shown in those minutes that he needs more. In 14 minutes he has 2 points, 1 rebound, and 3 turnovers. He's clearly trying to play through an injury, again great to see that competitive spirit, but his play will show when he's healthy enough and ready for more minutes. He was better yesterday than Quinnipiac, so hopefully we'll see more of him Tuesday.

It's funny that you listed three "happy" players and one of them was Ishmael Leggett, who was probably our best player yesterday. He had 5 turnovers, which was clearly too many, but he also had 21 points, 5, rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and 2 steals. You can deal with that many turnovers if you're being so productive elsewhere.

"Turnover machine" Carey, has less turnovers on a per minute basis in two games than Freeman and Weston. "Turnover machine" Carey has 1 every 8 minutes, Freeman has 1 every 6.75, Weston has 1 every 4.67. So maybe your moniker isn't making the point you think it is. Also Carey has been more productive than Freeman and Weston outside of the too many turnovers all three have.

Thomas also has two many turnovers at 1 every 7.5 minutes, but he's done more things better than Freeman and Weston.

You make it seem like we should just let Freeman and Weston play because we don't want to piss them off. We saw over the last four years that that is managerial malfeasance. Both players have a path to earn more minutes, and that path is playing better than options in front of them. The bad news for us, and the good news for them, is so far with this team that is an easy bar for them to clear, but it is up to them to clear it, it's not up to Archie to give it to them

[Rivverram]

Excellent post Rhowdy. A good leader sets the tone in the early stages of a relationship. Archie is sending a message that performance is rewarded and failing to perform has consequences. My guess is that each will get a personal chat with Archie to help them understand what he is doing and why. If these kids show the improvement we expect of them during the season, they will get the playing time they want and this early season stuff will be forgotten. If they don’t respond with good energy and attitude maybe they aren’t the type of player we want here. My bet is that these two will become important parts of this team. Only time will tell.

[CaptainRon]

The year is 2022. URI has taken just 5 3pt attempts in a full basketball game and only made one.

Yep, I will go as far as shocking. We have no bomber, no designated three point threat to hang out on the perimeter, play enough defense to earn playing time. I guess the portal had none, or none that Archie’s saw as fits to the rebuild. This lack of three point threat will hurt us all season.

I’ve been thinking the same thing. At one point during yesterday’s game, I actually thought that maybe Archie could conduct an open try out for walk ons to try and find one that could hit an open corner three. I know it’s only been two games, but I don’t see any perimeter threats on this team. Shot fakes do no good if the opponent doesn’t respect an outside shot. There won’t be many back door cut opportunities either, if the defense knows it can back off and clog the lane.

On the plus side, it is better to have guys who can’t make them, not shoot them. That hasn’t always been the case.

[kal-65]

player criticism is not the obvious reason we lost

texas st shot 51% overall; almost 60% if you discount the 3's

imq rhoe islan NO " D "

[SmartyBarrett]

Bray was a -15 in 12 minutes last night. That’s pretty hard to do.

[kal-65]

GRANTED BRAY PLAYED POORLY, BUT THE -15 STAT DOES NOT REFLECT THE DEFENSE OF THE OTHER 4 RAMS ON THE COURT
ITS A TEAM GAME

[steveystuds06]

GRANTED BRAY PLAYED POORLY, BUT THE -15 STAT DOES NOT REFLECT THE DEFENSE OF THE OTHER 4 RAMS ON THE COURT
ITS A TEAM GAME

He was the worst defender on the floor in both games.

[Jdrums#3]

Good defense takes effort. Outside of Grasso at Bryant, I can’t think of many Div 1 college coaches presently that tolerate a lack of effort on defense.

[kal-65]

STEVEY, AGAINST Q BRAY ONLY PLAYED 6 MIN. YET OUR 2PT FG DEFENSE ALLOWED ALMOST 50%

WE ARE LOSING CAUSE WE ARE NOT GOOD ON D

IMO WE SHOULD CONSTANTLY BE CHANGING DEFENSES; GIVING DIFFERENT LOOKS

[kal-65]

SORRY I MIXED HIM WITH WESTON--HE PLAYED 15 M1N

[PeteRI]

SORRY I MIXED HIM WITH WESTON--HE PLAYED 15 M1N

please stop shouting.

[steveystuds06]

STEVEY, AGAINST Q BRAY ONLY PLAYED 6 MIN. YET OUR 2PT FG DEFENSE ALLOWED ALMOST 50%

WE ARE LOSING CAUSE WE ARE NOT GOOD ON D

IMO WE SHOULD CONSTANTLY BE CHANGING DEFENSES; GIVING DIFFERENT LOOKS

I thought our defense was solid in the second half. It was one of those situations where we played someone that was too good on offense. That kid hit tough shot after tough shot. Bray has been a liability on D so far. He has to be better.

[steviep123]

Not sure what replay you watched especially since they didn’t show them at the rc but the ones shown on tv were clear. It was NOT offensive goaltending and the call should have been overturned.

If the refs had called it the other way, it would have withstood the re-play as well. There was not clear and convincing evidence that the call by the referee was wrong. It was close. Calls that close don't get overturned.

You clearly didn't not see a replay or at least the ones shown on ESPN+ during the game. It was clearly off the cylinder.

[bigappleram]

Brand new coach, brand new roster filled with inexperience but yeah let’s switch up defenses multiple times per game.

Did you think that through before you typed it? You want to devote every minute of practice to learning multiple defenses? That’s an awful take. Archie is known as a good defensive coach, his philosophy is the pack line D. Like everything with this team it will improve as the season goes on. I can assure you switching to another D or whatever the hell that means isn’t the answer.

[PlayMikeMotenMore]

I love this tough guy rhetoric BS being espoused here. I have a very good view of the bench, and let me tell you, two games in, it is not good on that bench with both Freeman and Weston. Yeah bench them and don't play them at all in the second half that will show them. I am not so sure that Bray will be an important piece going forward, if he was, I think he would be treated a little bit differently by the head coach. I mean if he is one of your better players you let him work through these problems he is having not just bench him for an entire half. This stuff in 2022 can and will have consequences. We lost the game and pissed him off and Weston as well, and we are celebrating it above like it is a good thing. Sorry it is not, we are 0-2 and already have what was thought to be two of our better players FOR THE FUTURE not play a minute in the second half. I mean Archie sold both of these guys on coming to URI, especially Freeman and for him to come and be benched for the entire second half is no way a good thing. Same for Weston. Only on this board would people be pointing to this like it is awesome. And it undercuts both of his new assistants as well who had personal relationships with each of these players that they used in getting them to come to URI.

I know here comes don't ever question Archie people, it is two games in. I hope he knows what he is doing with these two, I really do. I manage people, and have for a long time, and this approach no longer works in 2022 with your best employees. The ones you do not care about, fine. It is a different world and it is no different in college basketball. Unless this was effort related, which I see no indication it was, it is risky business to do this with a player you publicly said might be the most gifted offensive player you have seen. One and a half games in, and you bench him for an entire half? At least Bassy, Ish, and turnover machine Carey are happy. And then to add fuel to the fire in his press game conference by making that comment above?? Let's see where it goes from here. It may not be what you are all thinking it will be.

Thank you. I was starting to go crazy with people all rallying against Freeman 2 games in. I really don’t get why this board is so happy that he’s sitting because he’s not playing well.

Freeman and Weston are supposedly two key pieces of our future. If they don’t get to play through challenges in this meaningless year, when are they going to get better? For whatever reason it seems like Archie is prioritizing winning now over letting the young kids play

15 minutes against quinnipiac and 13 against Texas state for freeman. What is the point of that? How do you expect the kid to get into any rhythm.

I actually think it’s the opposite and Archie is sacrificing winning/short term gains to instill a culture and a way of playing that didn’t exist here. You saw Frank Martin do something very similar in their Towson game and bench guys/play weird combos of players to set a tone. Cooley used to use Drew Fonts a walk on clearly to prove a point; he benched his starters multiple times. It’s all coaching/leadership 101. People will do what you let them get away with doing.

Their (Freeman and Weston) body language has been bad and their on court play has been even worse. It’s not about missing shots or making a dumb pass they have both been almost unplayable which is saying a lot. Not sure what is gained by letting Bray keep forcing more shots and feigning interest on D; that isn’t doing squat for making us or him better. This player empowerment BS is how you end up with Kyrie and the inmates running the asylum which is what we had last season.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and trust Archie knows exactly what he is doing.

100% agree. These are non-conference games for a team that is clearly going nowhere. Sit kids, absolutely! Establish who you are and how you want kids to play in your program. Playing some talented kid now so that you may (and may not) win some meaningless non-conference game in a season that's about a program crawling before it walks would serve Archie and the team no purpose in the big picture. In fact, playing kids who are not "buying in" just because they're talented would set the program backwards, not forward.

[reef]

Face it this is the new era of college hoops , Arch knows what he’s doing , if Free doesn’t get his act together he will be gone at the end of the season and we will use the portal to replace him

[Blue Man]

I liked in the post game when Archie was asked about Brayon and he said “yeah, he didn’t get back in the game” and then when I asked if he was injured, Archie said “not that I’m aware of.” Gold, pure gold.

And to give a less game thready comment than my Belichick one, that's the kind of culture and team building that we so sorely lacked the last four years. Brayon is going to be an important piece going forward, but he hasn't been good to start. The last four years he would have been allowed to stay on the court and just do whatever he wanted, tonight he didn't play the second half

I love this tough guy rhetoric BS being espoused here. I have a very good view of the bench, and let me tell you, two games in, it is not good on that bench with both Freeman and Weston. Yeah bench them and don't play them at all in the second half that will show them. I am not so sure that Bray will be an important piece going forward, if he was, I think he would be treated a little bit differently by the head coach. I mean if he is one of your better players you let him work through these problems he is having not just bench him for an entire half. This stuff in 2022 can and will have consequences. We lost the game and pissed him off and Weston as well, and we are celebrating it above like it is a good thing. Sorry it is not, we are 0-2 and already have what was thought to be two of our better players FOR THE FUTURE not play a minute in the second half. I mean Archie sold both of these guys on coming to URI, especially Freeman and for him to come and be benched for the entire second half is no way a good thing. Same for Weston. Only on this board would people be pointing to this like it is awesome. And it undercuts both of his new assistants as well who had personal relationships with each of these players that they used in getting them to come to URI.

I know here comes don't ever question Archie people, it is two games in. I hope he knows what he is doing with these two, I really do. I manage people, and have for a long time, and this approach no longer works in 2022 with your best employees. The ones you do not care about, fine. It is a different world and it is no different in college basketball. Unless this was effort related, which I see no indication it was, it is risky business to do this with a player you publicly said might be the most gifted offensive player you have seen. One and a half games in, and you bench him for an entire half? At least Bassy, Ish, and turnover machine Carey are happy. And then to add fuel to the fire in his press game conference by making that comment above?? Let's see where it goes from here. It may not be what you are all thinking it will be.

You sold me. I was going to revert to my “the 2x A10 coach of the year who I watched beat the brakes off my team in conference for 6 years knows what he’s doing let’s enjoy the ride, trust his methods, and wait for the results to come.”

But the “I manage people in 2022” argument is far more compelling.

[section(105)]

I am in the stay the course mode for our Coach and his methodology for handling players.

[Jersey77]

There should be no debate.

Archie and Kenny made it very clear that any player that doesn't hustle, play smart, and make a strong effort on defense isn't going to see the floor.
With Bray it is not just a matter of him finding his rhythm and sinking his shot, it's about doing all the other things, especially on the other end of the court.

I feel with Weston he just needs time to get up to game speed and be 100%.

[Blue Man]

There should be no debate.

Archie and Kenny made it very clear that any player that doesn't hustle, play smart, and make a strong effort on defense isn't going to see the floor.
With Bray it is not just a matter of him finding his rhythm and sinking his shot, it's about doing all the other things, especially on the other end of the court.

I feel with Weston he just needs time to get up to game speed and be 100%.

Exactly.

Weston is different though, he’s clearly hurt. Back spasms, while sounding minor, are a huge problem. It affects everything. It takes a lot of PT to get over them. I was shocked he even played.

[ramster]

Bray was a -15 in 12 minutes last night. That’s pretty hard to do.

Quinnipiac
Best
Stewart +7
Leggett +0
Samb +0

Worst
Freeman -8
Weston -8

Texas State
Best
Thomas +9
Stewart +4
Martin +3

Worst
Freeman -15
Samb -10


Seems Stewart with +7 and +4 deserves more playing time. What's to lose?

[Rhody15]

Bray was a -15 in 12 minutes last night. That’s pretty hard to do.

Quinnipiac
Best
Stewart +7
Leggett +0
Samb +0

Worst
Freeman -8
Weston -8

Texas State
Best
Thomas +9
Stewart +4
Martin +3

Worst
Freeman -15
Samb -10


Seems Stewart with +7 and +4 deserves more playing time. What's to lose?

You should never justify playing time with +/- numbers.

[ramster]

Bray was a -15 in 12 minutes last night. That’s pretty hard to do.

Quinnipiac
Best
Stewart +7
Leggett +0
Samb +0

Worst
Freeman -8
Weston -8

Texas State
Best
Thomas +9
Stewart +4
Martin +3

Worst
Freeman -15
Samb -10


Seems Stewart with +7 and +4 deserves more playing time. What's to lose?

You should never justify playing time with +/- numbers.

Why is that?

[SmartyBarrett]

It's a small sample size so far, but if you want to do Net Rating instead of +/-, it looks like this:

Stewart +48.3
Thomas +36.2
Martin +26.2
Leggett +25.3
Tchikou +1.1
Carey -11.0
Samb -12.6
Hutchinson -13.1
Freeman -62.1

[Rhody15]

Quinnipiac
Best
Stewart +7
Leggett +0
Samb +0

Worst
Freeman -8
Weston -8

Texas State
Best
Thomas +9
Stewart +4
Martin +3

Worst
Freeman -15
Samb -10


Seems Stewart with +7 and +4 deserves more playing time. What's to lose?

You should never justify playing time with +/- numbers.

Why is that?

It does not take in effect time and score, other 9 players on the court.

Ask any coach and the majority will say +/- isn’t a big factor, if any at all, to playing time.

[bigappleram]

I mean just look at the data as to why....Samb has been 1 of the best performers and biggest surprises in 2 games and his +/- stinks.
Not a good metric to determine PT.

[ramster]

Surprised nobody has complained about +/- in the past, it’s frequently quoted by Bill Koch.
Wonder why it ever got invented and added to the URI Box Score anyway.
Wonder what Archie and staff view of +/- is but moving on.

[Jdrums#3]

The +\- is an interesting evaluation tool and may be useful in certain instances but I’ll take what Archie and the coaches are seeing in practice and games over it.

[Jdrums#3]

Surprised nobody has complained about +/- in the past, it’s frequently quoted by Bill Koch.
Wonder why it ever got invented and added to the URI Box Score anyway.
Wonder what Archie and staff view of +/- is but moving on.

It’s helpful, Ramster. But, as others stated, the sample size has to be kept in mind and the data going into the calculations need to be sliced and diced closely.

It can be a piece of the puzzle when kept in perspective. It’s not a complaint; I see the comments as a clarification.

[ramster]

Surprised nobody has complained about +/- in the past, it’s frequently quoted by Bill Koch.
Wonder why it ever got invented and added to the URI Box Score anyway.
Wonder what Archie and staff view of +/- is but moving on.

It’s helpful, Ramster. But, as others stated, the sample size has to be kept in mind and the data going into the calculations need to be sliced and diced closely.

It can be a piece of the puzzle when kept in perspective. It’s not a complaint; I see the comments as a clarification.

I’ve never like it myself, just seen it quoted quite often on this board. Moving on from it.

[KeaneyBluBallz]

this isn't hockey. +/- doesn't mean diddly poo

[Rhody15]

Surprised nobody has complained about +/- in the past, it’s frequently quoted by Bill Koch.
Wonder why it ever got invented and added to the URI Box Score anyway.
Wonder what Archie and staff view of +/- is but moving on.

It’s helpful, Ramster. But, as others stated, the sample size has to be kept in mind and the data going into the calculations need to be sliced and diced closely.

It can be a piece of the puzzle when kept in perspective. It’s not a complaint; I see the comments as a clarification.

I’ve never like it myself, just seen it quoted quite often on this board. Moving on from it.

You don't like it but used it as a point in posting about increased playing time? Then questioned why I said it doesn't mean anything?

[TruePoint]

this isn't hockey. +/- doesn't mean diddly poo

It definitely means something over the course of time. Like most statistics, it is a single data point and not the whole story but if you have a big enough sample it can reflect some things that a player does that dont show up in the box score (and therefore aren’t reflected in the rest of the data). Coaches know how to contextualize it for their own players, for example by knowing who else is typically on the floor with a given player, etc., which makes it one of many valuable pieces of information to consider.

Some places track + / - not just for an individual player but for entire units that are on the floor together, which again over a large enough sample actually can be super insightful.

[ramster]

this isn't hockey. +/- doesn't mean diddly poo

As I said, never thought posters here were so against +/- as a statistic. News to me. I will say -15 for Freeman doesn’t exactly invoke confidence in his defensive or offensive or “make his teammates” better ability but I digress.

[steveystuds06]

I agree, Ramster. I wouldn't mind seeing Rory get more minutes. What I like about Rory is he does all the little things well. He boxes out. He keeps the ball high. He makes the simple pass. He doesn't force things. If he has an open shot, he takes it. I think Rory will be a solid bench piece once the game slows down for him.

As I've said, our frontcourt has been much better than I expected. Samb and Tchikou could be one of the better frontcourts in the conference in two years. Foumena may be better than all of them.

The guard position scares me. If we want any shot against' Kansas St., we must see Bray get out of this slump and gain some confidence tomorrow.

[Billyboy78]

One example of why plus-minus is misleading. Whoever who had been on the floor as the same time as Bray when he's been playing his matador defense is also being penalized as far as this stat goes.

[SmartyBarrett]

The sample size for any meaningful statistic is wayyy too small right now. They can maybe tell a small story of what we've seen so far but that's about it.

[Jdrums#3]

Not being at the games makes it impossible to see what you and Ramster describe regarding Rory, Stevey. Excellent points and I appreciate the insights from all whom are able to attend. Keep ‘em coming…good stuff. Thanks.

[reef]

I’m pleasantly surprised by Samb so far , him and Alex make a solid big combo

[Rhody72]

There should be no debate.

Archie and Kenny made it very clear that any player that doesn't hustle, play smart, and make a strong effort on defense isn't going to see the floor.
With Bray it is not just a matter of him finding his rhythm and sinking his shot, it's about doing all the other things, especially on the other end of the court.

I feel with Weston he just needs time to get up to game speed and be 100%.

In general I agree with you. Offensively, Bray appears to me to be a poor mans Fatts Russell - a PG who shoots first and wants the ball in his hands. Whereas Bassy is a pass first PG who is always pushing the offense with quick accurate passes. This is what Archie wants from Bray and he won't settle for a Fatts-show from Bray.

[SGreenwell]

Plus-minus can be valuable over time, especially in pro basketball. The problem with using it in college basketball is that by the time you accrue a viable sample size, the season is pretty much over. Using it after two games is especially silly, and you can kind of see why, given the results. Our two highest players in it are non-scorers (Thomas + Stewart) who basically benefited from just being on the court during "bounce back" times in the second half.

[ramster]

It’s helpful, Ramster. But, as others stated, the sample size has to be kept in mind and the data going into the calculations need to be sliced and diced closely.

It can be a piece of the puzzle when kept in perspective. It’s not a complaint; I see the comments as a clarification.

I’ve never like it myself, just seen it quoted quite often on this board. Moving on from it.

You don't like it but used it as a point in posting about increased playing time? Then questioned why I said it doesn't mean anything?

Not anymore Mr Moderator

[ramster]

The sample size for any meaningful statistic is wayyy too small right now. They can maybe tell a small story of what we've seen so far but that's about it.

They don't even track it for the season, only game to game. If you want overall like some are talking about here then you need to add it up yourself.

There is no end of season, OOC only or A10 only + / - statistics that I have ever seen anywhere - only by individual game and even that is not so readily available

[ramster]

Plus-minus can be valuable over time, especially in pro basketball. The problem with using it in college basketball is that by the time you accrue a viable sample size, the season is pretty much over. Using it after two games is especially silly, and you can kind of see why, given the results. Our two highest players in it are non-scorers (Thomas + Stewart) who basically benefited from just being on the court during "bounce back" times in the second half.

As I stated, there is no cumulative + / - statistics that I know of, only individual games and I've been told + / - is meaningless for deterring who should play. Moving on.

[ramster]

I agree, Ramster. I wouldn't mind seeing Rory get more minutes. What I like about Rory is he does all the little things well. He boxes out. He keeps the ball high. He makes the simple pass. He doesn't force things. If he has an open shot, he takes it. I think Rory will be a solid bench piece once the game slows down for him.

As I've said, our frontcourt has been much better than I expected. Samb and Tchikou could be one of the better frontcourts in the conference in two years. Foumena may be better than all of them.

The guard position scares me. If we want any shot against' Kansas St., we must see Bray get out of this slump and gain some confidence tomorrow.

Stevey,

Forget + / - which Rory shows the best on the team after 2 games. In the 1st game I watched Rory in particular in warmups. Let me tell you he was burying 3 point shots non stop. I think he missed 1, maybe 2. He has a nice release, smooth stroke and he can bury the 3. In the game he missed - he is a freshman. I think Rory will earn more time, could become a starter. As many have stated, they don't think we have good 3 point shooters, well then that might open the door for Rory. Maybe Tchikou and Rory together, maybe Tchikou, Samb and Rory together.
In addition, Thomas was mentioned by Miller as one of his top 3 3FG Shooters. Miller obviously has confidence in Thomas right now having given him 2 consecutive starts - how many arm chair coaches on KB predicted that? or predicted Samb starting? Certainly not me on Samb.

How many predicted Leggett in the starting line up? A few, not many. And Leggett is showing up big time.
Have not seen anyone mention Leggett's unreal FT shooting last game - 14-15 FTs. When was the last time a URI Player shot FTs that efficiently?
Leggett is stepping up for the team, himself and for this Coaching Staff - leading by example.

I like that the HC is flexible with the Starting Line Up and with Playing time. This is great. The wins will come. I thought Foumena and Harris would have been starters - so in my mind we lost 40% of our starting line up. Lot of season left to go.

[Billyboy78]

I agree, Ramster. I wouldn't mind seeing Rory get more minutes. What I like about Rory is he does all the little things well. He boxes out. He keeps the ball high. He makes the simple pass. He doesn't force things. If he has an open shot, he takes it. I think Rory will be a solid bench piece once the game slows down for him.

As I've said, our frontcourt has been much better than I expected. Samb and Tchikou could be one of the better frontcourts in the conference in two years. Foumena may be better than all of them.

The guard position scares me. If we want any shot against' Kansas St., we must see Bray get out of this slump and gain some confidence tomorrow.

Stevey,

Forget + / - which Rory shows the best on the team after 2 games. In the 1st game I watched Rory in particular in warmups. Let me tell you he was burying 3 point shots non stop. I think he missed 1, maybe 2. He has a nice release, smooth stroke and he can bury the 3. In the game he missed - he is a freshman. I think Rory will earn more time, could become a starter. As many have stated, they don't think we have good 3 point shooters, well then that might open the door for Rory. Maybe Tchikou and Rory together, maybe Tchikou, Samb and Rory together.
In addition, Thomas was mentioned by Miller as one of his top 3 3FG Shooters. Miller obviously has confidence in Thomas right now having given him 2 consecutive starts - how many arm chair coaches on KB predicted that? or predicted Samb starting? Certainly not me on Samb.

How many predicted Leggett in the starting line up? A few, not many. And Leggett is showing up big time.
Have not seen anyone mention Leggett's unreal FT shooting last game - 14-15 FTs. When was the last time a URI Player shot FTs that efficiently?
Leggett is stepping up for the team, himself and for this Coaching Staff - leading by example.

I like that the HC is flexible with the Starting Line Up and with Playing time. This is great. The wins will come. I thought Foumena and Harris would have been starters - so in my mind we lost 40% of our starting line up. Lot of season left to go.

Archie was asked to list his top three 3 pt shooters. Besides Bassy, he also mentioned Carey. When asked to list three, what is he going to say? There aren't three of them on the roster. That's why both Bassy and Carey made Archie's top three.

[ramster]

I agree, Ramster. I wouldn't mind seeing Rory get more minutes. What I like about Rory is he does all the little things well. He boxes out. He keeps the ball high. He makes the simple pass. He doesn't force things. If he has an open shot, he takes it. I think Rory will be a solid bench piece once the game slows down for him.

As I've said, our frontcourt has been much better than I expected. Samb and Tchikou could be one of the better frontcourts in the conference in two years. Foumena may be better than all of them.

The guard position scares me. If we want any shot against' Kansas St., we must see Bray get out of this slump and gain some confidence tomorrow.

Stevey,

Forget + / - which Rory shows the best on the team after 2 games. In the 1st game I watched Rory in particular in warmups. Let me tell you he was burying 3 point shots non stop. I think he missed 1, maybe 2. He has a nice release, smooth stroke and he can bury the 3. In the game he missed - he is a freshman. I think Rory will earn more time, could become a starter. As many have stated, they don't think we have good 3 point shooters, well then that might open the door for Rory. Maybe Tchikou and Rory together, maybe Tchikou, Samb and Rory together.
In addition, Thomas was mentioned by Miller as one of his top 3 3FG Shooters. Miller obviously has confidence in Thomas right now having given him 2 consecutive starts - how many arm chair coaches on KB predicted that? or predicted Samb starting? Certainly not me on Samb.

How many predicted Leggett in the starting line up? A few, not many. And Leggett is showing up big time.
Have not seen anyone mention Leggett's unreal FT shooting last game - 14-15 FTs. When was the last time a URI Player shot FTs that efficiently?
Leggett is stepping up for the team, himself and for this Coaching Staff - leading by example.

I like that the HC is flexible with the Starting Line Up and with Playing time. This is great. The wins will come. I thought Foumena and Harris would have been starters - so in my mind we lost 40% of our starting line up. Lot of season left to go.

Archie was asked to list his top three 3 pt shooters. Besides Bassy, he also mentioned Carey. When asked to list three, what is he going to say? There aren't three of them on the roster. That's why both Bassy and Carey made Archie's top three.

What is your point? That Miller doesn't really believe the 3 players he named are good 3FG shooters? That it's bullshit he spewed?

[TruePoint]

Plus-minus can be valuable over time, especially in pro basketball. The problem with using it in college basketball is that by the time you accrue a viable sample size, the season is pretty much over. Using it after two games is especially silly, and you can kind of see why, given the results. Our two highest players in it are non-scorers (Thomas + Stewart) who basically benefited from just being on the court during "bounce back" times in the second half.

I agree with you that looking at +/- after two games is meaningless but I’m not so sure I agree with the bolded. In fact, I think this is part of the value of tracking this over time. If over time a guy like Rory is producing a consistently strong +/- even when he is not taking/making a lot of shots then that is an indication that something he is doing - in his case it would probably be creating spacing on the floor to make offense easier for the other players - that may not be otherwise showing up in a box score. It could also reflect an impact at the other end, if a player was playing excellent defense (limiting good shot opportunities, denying the ball, being in the right place to help and cut off penetration, etc) even if it is not resulting in countable stats like steals, deflections and blocks.

Obviously another limitation of +/- is that it is an incredibly crude stat compared to what else I’m sure the team is tracking in terms of offensive and defensive rating, usage, efficiency, etc., but since we don’t have access to all of that stuff to get a granular look I think tracking +/- over the course of a season would be a helpful component in terms of understanding what you just watched.