Game #12: New Hampshire - Sunday Dec 22 @ 2pm

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

rodfromcranston wrote:We need a jolt of offense, that can only come from two places.
An impact freshman, or a juco stud scorer at the 2,3 or 4.

The other option is that guys get better. If Hassan develops into an all-league type player, and EC also makes a big jump next year, and Iffy turns into ARD, and Gil's defense and all-around game improve as he continues to get his legs back, that will make this team go from decent to potentially very good. Granted that is a big "if" and maybe you do also need to add another player to get over the hump (Murphy would have been nice), but you can improve dramatically by players improving dramatically. That happens often in college, and part of what made Dan an exciting hire was his presumed ability to teach the game and developed players.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 10 years ago

agree, TP, but don't forget Biggie. His continued development will be critical to future success.

rodfromcranston · Unread post by **rodfromcranston** » 10 years ago

There's no maybe in it. This team needs more talent,
more size and more shooting.

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

Always could use more talent, Rod. And eventually it will get here. But in the meantime there is room for growth with what we have on hand.

Obie, agree. I should have mentioned Biggie in that group.

RIFan · Unread post by **RIFan** » 10 years ago

This team has equal to or less talent than last years at this point. In an earlier thread I went player by player comparing the two teams. We were sold a bunch of BS.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 10 years ago

This team, as it's presently constituted, will be no threat to Dance next year. Improved yes, but nowhere near good enough.

Anybody who can't see that by now, really has drunk way too much kool aid. RIFan, right again to a point.

It's really all about recruiting going forward. Some of these players just don't fit. Which is somewhat surprising, given that Dan told us we'd be getting players that compliment each other.

Maybe WILL be getting is what he really meant.

I've come to the conclusion by now, that I need to be more patient, given some of the wacky things that have happened, and are still happening.

So I will be, other than the occasional rant following bad games. How long my "patience quotient" lasts, well we'll see.

If we flop on the recruiting front for next season, then all bets are off. The honeymoon will be officially over.

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

RIFan wrote:This team has equal to or less talent than last years at this point. In earlier threads I went player by player comparing the two teams. We were sold a bunch of BS.

That is just clearly incorrect.

RIFan · Unread post by **RIFan** » 10 years ago

TruePoint wrote:
RIFan wrote:This team has equal to or less talent than last years at this point. In earlier threads I went player by player comparing the two teams. We were sold a bunch of BS.
That is just clearly incorrect.

I am open to being convinced otherwise, but the my eyes tell me this team stinks just like last years.

Biggie is starting to be better than last years MP, but against worst competition.
X is not doing as well as last year...but the last few games he has been more efficient
EC is not yet as good as Malone was last year, night in and night out.
Nik was good for 10-5 about the same a Gil
Hare was much better than the Big O.

theblueram · Unread post by **theblueram** » 10 years ago

RIFan wrote:
TruePoint wrote:
RIFan wrote:This team has equal to or less talent than last years at this point. In earlier threads I went player by player comparing the two teams. We were sold a bunch of BS.
That is just clearly incorrect.
I am open to being convinced otherwise, but the my eyes tell me this team stinks just like last years.

Biggie is starting to be better than last years MP, but against worst competition.
X is not doing as well as last year...but the last few games he has been more efficient
EC is not as good as Malone was last year
Nik was good for 10-5 about the same a Gil
Hare was much better than the Big O.

Wow, EC is not as good as Malone? Ha. Good one

EC is a freshman. Sheesh. And he is so much better.

Keaney.Blue · Unread post by **Keaney.Blue** » 10 years ago

Agreed that this team is nowhere near where we thought it would be. I'll admit that by now. Our '08-'11 teams would beat the tar off this squad, regardless of who's coaching.

RIFan · Unread post by **RIFan** » 10 years ago

I said EC is not yet as good as Malone. We are talking in the present. EC is up and down...and recently, he as only been in double figures once in the last 6 games. Yes, he has a ton of upside.
Hassan also has a ton of upside, but beside blocks isn't making much of a consistent impact. And JR has become the invisible man.

theblueram · Unread post by **theblueram** » 10 years ago

RIFan wrote:I said EC is not yet as good as Malone. We are talking in the present. EC is up and down...and recently, he as only been in double figures once in the last 6 games. Yes, he has a ton of upside.
Hassan also has a ton of upside, but beside blocks isn't making much of a consistent impact. And JR has become the invisible man.

You said EC is not as good as Malone last year. I still would say bs to that. And to keaney blue who said the 08-11 team would kick the tar out of this team, I would say I hope so. I also thought they had the team to go to the NCAA. But they choked in a way that had me shaking my head. Was it coaching or was it a team thing?

rodfromcranston · Unread post by **rodfromcranston** » 10 years ago

More depth at guard than last year. More size up front than last year .Biruta is better than Hare, Malone or Nik combined,
as scoring threat.
Nik was a head case, who got suspended twice.
No comparison. We only need one win to equal all of last year and we'll get that done
pre conference.
Who gives a fat rat's ass about what Baron's teams would have done against this team?
What the hell does that have to do with anything?
Besides, if anything important was on the line, they'd gag like they always did.

Rhody74 · Unread post by **Rhody74** » 10 years ago

Rod, +1. This discussion is pointless

Sweep The Leg · Unread post by **Sweep The Leg** » 10 years ago

At least Malone and Nik were threats from beyond the arc.

This team does not have one legitimate outside shooter which makes it easier for defenses to pack it on us. X's shot has significantly regressed from last year. EC seems to have a good release, but they don't fall.

Hell, we cannot even hit free throws. They need a full practice of shooting foul shots.

section(105) · Unread post by **section(105)** » 10 years ago

Rhody74, well said.

Unread post by **SGreenwell** » 10 years ago

Sweep The Leg wrote:At least Malone and Nik were threats from beyond the arc.

I don't think this is true. I think both were willing to shoot 3s, especially Malosevic, but I don't think opponents particularly feared if they got open looks. Malone shot 44 percent from 3 his one year at Auburn, and 33 and 27 percent at URI. Malesevic shot 45 percent as a freshman, then 30 and 32 percent his last two years.

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

Nobody said this team was perfect, or even particularly good. But last year's team was an all-time bad team, and a collection of misfit toys. This team has a way to go, but there are at least guys on this roster with promise. Last year had one, and he is here again this year.

bressler3south · Unread post by **bressler3south** » 10 years ago

"Biruta is better than Hare, Malone or Nik combined,
as scoring threat."

I dunno about that. The stats just don't prove that at all, and in fact, it's pointless as they all played different positions -- combined.
In this case, 1 does not equal 3.

BUT Dr. Frankenstein, the possibilities are intriguing!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMmAJ57-bBo
Aside from that, the past is the past, and wins this year are wins that URI needs to get the Hurley Era moving in the right direction.
During the previous Coaching Error, the late-season collapses was like a constant reminder of the Heimlich Maneuver at its best.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 10 years ago

In 2 years, EC and Hassan will be A10 all stars. Biggie will be very good.

Other than them, nobody stands out.

Like Rod and others have said, including myself, we'll need more talent at every position by then.

section(105) · Unread post by **section(105)** » 10 years ago

The UNH game for me felt like a loss. With Hare and Aaman situations coupled with the new players playing far below expectations; we are gonna struggle mightily in the A-10 schedule.

Sweep The Leg · Unread post by **Sweep The Leg** » 10 years ago

SGreenwell wrote:
Sweep The Leg wrote:At least Malone and Nik were threats from beyond the arc.
I don't think this is true. I think both were willing to shoot 3s, especially Malosevic, but I don't think opponents particularly feared if they got open looks. Malone shot 44 percent from 3 his one year at Auburn, and 33 and 27 percent at URI. Malesevic shot 45 percent as a freshman, then 30 and 32 percent his last two years.

Their percentage went down because the open looks went away without a good passing PG. They saw a lot of man to man as well and Nik was forced to play down low much more.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 10 years ago

At least they were streaky, they could catch fire on occasion.

What has anybody on this year's team done so far?

As for the A10 schedule? I'll give us 6-10. We'll improve enough to beat a few mid level teams, along with maybe a split with the other bottom feeders.

There's going to be more scores like the PC game, and we'll be on the short end of most of those.

Who here would have thought, before this season started, that we would STILL be one of the bottom feeders this year?

Dan told us, without a doubt, that 8-21 would NEVER happen again on his watch. Well, it won't, but how much better will it end up being?

brady1 · Unread post by **brady1** » 10 years ago

Bone,

you are saying the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. Dude we get it you think we're doomed.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!

GO RHODY!

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

rambone 78 wrote:In 2 years, EC and Hassan will be A10 all stars. Biggie will be very good.

Other than them, nobody stands out.

Like Rod and others have said, including myself, we'll need more talent at every position by then.

This is college basketball. You need more talent at just about every position in just about every recruiting cycle. Geez dude. Settle down.

Rhody72 · Unread post by **Rhody72** » 10 years ago

To say that this team is worse than the team last season is transparently invalid. The record says otherwise and so does the eye test. This team is well below my expectations of a solid NIT team.

I think back to the posts here when Gil was made a captain weeks after X. How stunned we were. I think I now understand DH's reservations. X's problems are related to our lack of other outside scoring threats. I was led to believe JR was as good of a shooter as X. MikeP self-destructed instead of becoming a more steady PG.

ramster · Unread post by **ramster** » 10 years ago

rambone 78 wrote:At least they were streaky, they could catch fire on occasion.
What has anybody on this year's team done so far?
As for the A10 schedule? I'll give us 6-10. We'll improve enough to beat a few mid level teams, along with maybe a split with the other bottom feeders.
There's going to be more scores like the PC game, and we'll be on the short end of most of those.
Who here would have thought, before this season started, that we would STILL be one of the bottom feeders this year?
Dan told us, without a doubt, that 8-21 would NEVER happen again on his watch. Well, it won't, but how much better will it end up being?

Rambone, You predicted 22 wins so I can imagine your disappointment with the team to date.
You mention
frequently "who here would have thought....." well there were 3 of us who predicted 15-16 records before the first game was played. I have been wrong on only one game so far out of 12, the Detroit game, in which I predicted a URI win. Never would I have expected a win against SMU or Arizona on the road. Road Games are tough wins so the losses to George Mason and Detroit would have been difficult wins.
I picked my record AFTER the announcement of Jordan Hare and I know some had already submitted before the Hare announcement so some may have over rated the record. How many more games would I have predicted to win had Hare not left the team? Honestly I don't like to say because it is after the fact - but I would honestly guess I would have predicted 19-12 instead of my 15-16 so Hare would have made the difference of 4 wins over the course of the entire season
Maine W
@ SMU L
North Carolina A&T W
Metro St W
@ Arizona L
UMASS Lowell W
NIT Team Consolation W
NIT Team Consolation W
@ George Mason L
PC L
@ Detroit W - Turned out to be a loss. I had expected the return to Detroit would have made some of our guys play standout, career type games but we lost a close battle, but the loss did not surprise me since Detroit was favored by 4 points and wins on the road are always tough
New Hampshire W
Southern Mississippi L
@ Brown W
@ LSU L
then I predicted 7-9 in A10 League Play.
An improvement from 8 wins to 15 wins is significant especially when the expected starting center departs from the team before the first game is played. Double the wins with 2 freshmen and 4 transfers playing very significant minutes is not a bad improvement.
Team looked improved yesterday versus New Hampshire - especially the defense.

rhodylaw · Unread post by **rhodylaw** » 10 years ago

We are three close losses away from being a 2 loss team and this board is blowing up with pessimism. We have better guard play than last year and those close losses will turn to wins eventually. X will get hot again and we will cruise to a .500 record or better in the A10. Mark it down.

Stop! Rammer Time · Unread post by **Stop! Rammer Time** » 10 years ago

A lot of revisionist history here. I cringed every time Nik put up the ball from 3 last year, it's a joke to look back fondly and say he was a threat. Last year's team was a mess.

One positive that I'll take from so far this year is that even though the bus may be not quite full, at least everyone on it is pulling the same direction. I predicted 21 wins, so I'll admit that I've spent a lot of time looking through rose colored glasses, but lets not go crazy here about where they are. Gil is coming around, Biggie is looking better and better, and boy is Hassan long and active. Things aren't where we hoped they'd be yet, but the sky hasn't fallen quite yet.

ramfan85 · Unread post by **ramfan85** » 10 years ago

JR's lack of production doesn't surprise me. Look at his stats before he got here.
As for captains, I would have liked to see TJ selected as one of them.
And, I also don't think EC is as good as Karl Malone.

rodfromcranston · Unread post by **rodfromcranston** » 10 years ago

He's nowhere near as good as Moses Malone, either. Or Nomi Malone, (lets see who gets that one)
who had way better moves.

ramfan85 · Unread post by **ramfan85** » 10 years ago

Bugsy shot better..

Unread post by **SGreenwell** » 10 years ago

ramfan85 wrote:JR's lack of production doesn't surprise me. Look at his stats before he got here.
As for captains, I would have liked to see TJ selected as one of them.
And, I also don't think EC is as good as Karl Malone.

He's not as good as Michael Jordan either.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 10 years ago

Jarrelle's disappearance of late has been a big surprise and a major disappointment. Where is the player we saw in the first 4-5 games of season. Is this a result of his losing the starting assignment? His game against a weak UNH team was really bad. What's with all the fouling, but his miss on some easy lay-ups was startling. Is he in the weight room working out because his shot attempts seem feeble?

sf2010 · Unread post by **sf2010** » 10 years ago

Agree that JR's play has tailed off severely. Early on, he rivaled TJ for the energy/hustle award, making something out of nothing on broken plays and forcing turnovers. Hopefully he can turn it around soon.

Running Ram · Unread post by **Running Ram** » 10 years ago

uncontested lay-ups are missed when a player is tired, rushed or just sucks. JR doesn't suck and he's not tired out there, so I'm thinking he's feeling pressure to preform, to make an immediate impact since he's been coming off the bench. I wouldn't worry too much about him going forward, I feel like we've seen some of the things he's capable of and that his nerves will settle down, also see him as a potential key match-up kind of guy from time to time, maybe he has the right body type and athleticism for certain match-ups in certain games.

rhodylaw · Unread post by **rhodylaw** » 10 years ago

We have a total of four guys over 6'5" on the roster right now and one in Aaman is out due to his incident. JR should feel no pressure for minutes even if he is coming off the bench.

Essam · Unread post by **Essam** » 10 years ago

I feel that DH job has been made more difficult by two unexpected development that he could not expecr to happen.
1. The idiotic rule changes that prohibts touching a defensive player and allowing the offensive player to elbow the defensive player and calling a foul on the offensive player for running into the elbow. This makes playing defensive basketball for coaches like DH extremely difficult.
2. The shortening of his roster by the deletetion of several key player due to various reasons that I don't feel necessary to go into as the board has this well documented.
The rule changes make college basketball games boring and unwatchable. Change is needed to save the game of college basketball in MHO.

Seawrightspostgame · Unread post by **Seawrightspostgame** » 10 years ago

I totally agree with the people that say last years team was at least equal to this team man for man(without looking ahead and expecting these freshman to improve).

I think the most glaring fault that has been lingering is a lack of an identity since the Ulmer/Cothran/Martell/Delroy's of the world moved on. We don't have things that you can absolutely know the team will get going into any game. I mean you knew Jimmy would hit 3's against any team we played. You know delroy could get you 15. I actually was tempted to tell Will Martell when I ran into him recently that nobody did 12 and 8 like him, which would have been messed up but I liked him a lot, great person to have go through the program.

You just knew these guys were going to give you something and I don't think in the past 3 years we can be sure that any of the guys were absolutely even going to deliver average ANYTHING(rebounding, defense, offense (inside or out), leadership?) Only things we can be certain of past few years is disappointment. For instance Mike A???Mike P??? Who could have predicted those 2 and Hare would basically be gone or in the dog house? Tough to say, but I think anyone with a realist approach to the recent program would know It is all drama and disappointment.

Hope that changes. Something has to give. Go Hurley GO RHody!

Rhodymob05 · Unread post by **Rhodymob05** » 10 years ago

If I was Hurley , am Im not. My number one recruiting target would be a center over 6'9.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 10 years ago

Ah, I think someone just said the magic word.

Leadership. Or lack of it.

There's no direction or purpose to what's happening out there on the court. It seems at times they play together, and other times they seem totally lost.

Does EC potentially have that leadership ability? Does Biggie?

They are the only two currently on the roster, that possibly have that potential. At least being first and second year players, gives them time to develop.

Dan can teach all he wants, but it has to transfer to the guys on the court. He can't do it for them.

rodfromcranston · Unread post by **rodfromcranston** » 10 years ago

The day I start yearning for Jim Baron's former players is the day I become a PC fan.
As BAR said so well, if you're going to wish for players, wish for the great ones we had on
winning teams that accomplished something, besides an annual collapse.
The leadership issue on this team is a legitimate one.
I haven't seen any signs of it, so far. Maybe soon, Biggie or TJ might emerge, as they're pretty vocal,
and can lead by example.

Seawrightspostgame · Unread post by **Seawrightspostgame** » 10 years ago

I am not looking for any of those guys, just want to know what we are going to get out of guys going into a game. I don't think Dan even has a good idea game to game.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 10 years ago

Our best players have to stay on the floor, for us to have any chance of winning any game from here on out.

All the cupcakes have been eaten. The opponents will be consistently better the rest of the season. [Not counting SMU or Arizona of course]

hrstrat57 · Unread post by **hrstrat57** » 10 years ago

All the cup cakes eaten.... Great line

Tho I consider Duquesne and maybe Fordham snack time.....

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 10 years ago

I dunno about Fordham. Severe can light it up at times....

Think we could have used him?

rhodylaw · Unread post by **rhodylaw** » 10 years ago

Severe would have been huge on this team - I guess he couldn't wait the year of playing behind X

Rhody Guy · Unread post by **Rhody Guy** » 10 years ago

The way he has played this year I would almost rather have him shooting than X although I haven't seen him play and don't know how the rest of his game is.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 10 years ago

Not only that, Severe is a FRESHMAN. X is a senior.

By the time Severe is a junior or senior, he'll be all-A10.

Rhody72 · Unread post by **Rhody72** » 10 years ago

Baron's players were more consistent on offense because they didn't play much defense, they weren't in foul trouble, they weren't tired, they got their minutes, they got off more shots by shooting quickly, they had more offensive opportunities, they got their stats, they got no better over the season, and they usually achieved mediocrity as a team. DH expects two way players - they commit more fouls, playing defense is tiring, they sit more with early fouls and refereeing that calls more fouls, their stats are lower, the teams need better depth to maintain their team quality of play throughout the game, and they have greater upside.