KeaneyBlue - The URI Basketball Forum

great come back win - build on it boys! Hope Jarvis is ok.

Missed everything today.....had to work, then went out afterward...but saw the score at the end......

Good win...sounds like a lot of good things happened....except FT's of course.......they had better get their "advisor" to work with them again....

Nice that they didn't quit......JG's illness obviously affecting his game....why wasn't he subbed out more before this?

ramster wrote: And there was this..............
In the last minute, with URI up by a few, Stanford Robinson received a pass on the right side at the 3 point line where he was open and could have taken a 3 pointer. Stan thought for a sec and declined the shot, instead passing back outside to run more clock and await a possible foul. Shortly thereafter, In a stop in the action, Jeff waved all URI players together at the top of the key to talk to them and I really thought Jeff mentioned something to Stan about what a smart play that was passing up the shot. I'm guessing, of course, that Jeff said this, but reading the body language I think he did. Regardless, I think that is the type of leadership Jeff brings to the court. Jeff was not intimidated today at all.

I noticed that ramster, it was also my impression that Dowtin mentioned that good decision to Stan, I liked that.

lossing 15 lbs in 3 weeks is very unusual and concerning, especially for a young person it doesn't sound good. Hope it's nothing serious.
Good health to Jarvis.

1) I am thankful for the TV mute button. Had the sound up for a little bit of NBCSN coverage. Those were some awful and annoying broadcasters.
2) I'm happy URI won, although not impressed. Which leads to...
3) That does not look like an NCAA team in the least bit. And I would have to think if selection committee members were also watching, they were thinking the same thing.

Committee will be interested in Dayton, URI and VCU head to head games and the A10 tournament. Those will likely be the games that separate the 1,2 and 3 seeds from the A10, IF there are more than 2 teams selected.

They will not be watching UMASS - URI in January

Agree on the announcers. From what little I heard from them they were terrible.
They were mispronouncing names, overflowing with cliches and they obviously didn't know their facts. The woman said that we won't the A-10 regular season two years ago...that's laaazy research.
I thought the color guys tone was really similar to Steve McDonald's though.

Nice comeback win

Great to see Dowtin play well and I hope JG gets healthy

Way to go EC clutch shots

Oh gotta mention how good christion was! He was makin some good aggressive plays out there! If he can continue to do that off the bench that'd be great!

PeterRamTime wrote:Oh gotta mention how good christion was! He was makin some good aggressive plays out there! If he can continue to do that off the bench that'd be great!

I second this... We forget that missing CT and Hass for multiple games take a lot away from this team. CT is such a solid defender and energy guy off the bench, I'm pumped he's back and looking like himself. The Hass injury overshadowed how important a heathy CT is to this team.

Feels 12X better waking up after the team wins.

Hope they really work Thompson and Martin back into shape this week.

Tough stretch ahead.

After yesterday and looking at the standings/schedule, this team could makes moves. Have to really stay focused on getting better and staying level headed.

I think the best Dowtin moment yesterday was when he decided to go off script when a play didn't work. The typical passing around was done and there was nothing open. The ball went out the Iverson on the wing and it looked like it would end with a bad shot, but Dowtin with the heady move snuck down to the dead spot on the baseline where Iverson spotted him late in the clock for an easy layup. Too many times our guys don't have the foresight to cut backdoor to the hoop when the play isn't working out. Its like they are afraid to go somewhere that wasn't drawn on the whiteboard. Dowtin easily has the highest IQ that I have seen on this team.

Thompson played with purpose yesterday. Curious what his +/- looked like, seemed like we were at our best when he was in the game. Besides his on ball defense, offensively he showed more confidence and made smart decisions.

Also, and it was said by Ramster, it seems Dowtin is already an on-court leader. Talking up his guys, instructing them where to go on the court and being the vocal leader any team needs. We sorely sorely lack leadership on the court at times, and when things go bad that issue is exacerbated.

In terms of that shot that Stan didn't take - if he did take that shot I would have thrown my laptop threw my TV, it would have been one of the dumbest shots of all time given the time & score.

Playing Dowtin at PG is insane,
He's slow, doesn't defend, has 10 assists in 14 games,
doesn't put the ball on the floor, at all.
We must be looking at a different player.
I hope Jarvis gets well soon.

I agree that Dowtin isn't the prototypical PG - he is more in the mold of say Parfait Bittee, a converted PG.
That said, in his first start yesterday he had 4 assists, and what immediately jumps out is his bball IQ and on-court presence. Something we lack at times. FWIW he has made a 3 pointer in 9 straight games, and in his last 4-5 games has produced when he has been on the court.
I too hope JG gets well soon, we are much better with him in there if he is playing at 100% but for whatever reason we have not seen that too often this year. Maybe this illness explains it.

Glad you are back and feeling well Rod. Go Rhody!

Thanks, BAR.
I'm not saying Dowtin is a non contributor.
I just see him as a SG, only.
The qualities that make a true PG aren't
present in his game.
Bitee was a far better athlete, also.

Bitee defense was like Jarvis defense was in his freshman year, only Bitee was much taller/longer.

Most criminal with Bitee for me was that he didn't get to play the 2. He was deadly off the ball catching the pass making a quick move and knocking down the shot.

rodfromcranston wrote:Playing Dowtin at PG is insane,
He's slow, doesn't defend, has 10 assists in 14 games,
doesn't put the ball on the floor, at all.
We must be looking at a different player.
I hope Jarvis gets well soon.

last year's Garrett, sure. but not this year's. Rather have Dowtin out there.

the only thing Garrett is averaging more of this year is fouls.

he is averaging, 7.9 pts, 2.2 reb, 3.9 ast and a 44/31/68 slash %

thats 5 pts, 1.5 reb and 1 ast lower than last year

rodfromcranston wrote:Thanks, BAR.
I'm not saying Dowtin is a non contributor.
I just see him as a SG, only.
The qualities that make a true PG aren't
present in his game.
Bitee was a far better athlete, also.

I would think that would be why we bring in Russell next year. Very guard heavy with EC, Jared, and Jarvis backed up by Christian, Dowtin and Russell. I would imagine two years from now Russell is at the 1 with Dowtin and Thompson at the two.

Rod I am not sure if you watched the game yesterday, but Dowtin looked great passing and facilitating; particularly in the pick and roll game with Martin. He also did a fantastic job guarding his man consistently. There was a sequence where he was able to deny Jarreau a drive forcing him to reset deep beyond the 3 point line. Rather than hunkering down and waiting for another attempt or letting him get comfortable Dowtin hounded him almost to half court forcing him to force the issue and not get into another play. I agree with you he did look slow earlier in the year, but as he has matured and gotten more comfortable I feel like he has gotten much quicker, both on D and driving to the basket which he did well yesterday making nice passes and drawing fouls. I am not saying to pull the plug on Jarvis by any means, but Dowtin has definitely shown me that he has the raw skills to be a successful PG in the A10. It doesn't hurt that he is 6'3"-6'4" either. With that size he has a different perspective than Garrett and potentially more passing lanes because he can see over defenders.

I watched yesterday's game.
A bad heart doesn't mean I forgot basketball.
I stand by what I said.

Dan would love a roster of only guards.
It's ridiculous. Look at the offers on 2018.
Almost exclusively guards.

Jarvis Garret was last year's MVP.
Everyone here loves to rip him, and has
very short memories.
If his health has compromised him this season,
we'll know soon.
A healthy Garrett is miles ahead of Dowtin.

Was at game and was very depressed at how the team came out to begin game. Seemed like there was zero energy when they came out, definitely not what I expected after LaSalle debacle. But, they did eventually pull out of it and played well last 25 minutes or so. Nice to see EC have a good game and actually take over. I agree with BAR about Thompson and said so at the game. Even in the earlier part of first half, he seemed to play with a sense of purpose, unlike most of the others. But I liked his play. With confidence and playing time, I think he can definitely be a solid contributor. Still think he can not only be a good defender, help with ball handling, but can develop into a very consistent shooter, which we really don't have.

Agree to some points on Dowtin too. Dowtin is slow and as a freshman, not physically as strong as I would like, but that should come. But he also seems to play with a calm and make better decisions or have a better basketball IQ than much of the team. And even though he has a funky shot and kind of a slow release, his shot goes in. Thats the bottom line and at this point, he pretty much takes only good shots. And as was said, Garrett of last year was excellent, but this year something has been wrong. He is clearly not the player he was last year. I hope he is well and everything turns out ok, We could certainly use the JG we were used to and saw last year.

The FT shooting simply has to improve. Besides everything else that can be complained about, the Ft is flat out awful and has been for some time. It almost cost up a game we should have salted away with a little over a minute to go. It more than likely will cost us a game going forward.

All in all, not real pretty or 40 minutes of pretty, but as is said, a win is a win and it sure feels better to win than to lose. One game at a time.

Dowtin was hurt for the first month and a half of the season, twisted ankle in 2nd game. Didnt play for a few games and then was working his way back into shape as well as adjusting to life as a Freshman. This year's version of JG is not miles ahead of anyone, sorry I disagree. It could be the illness, but he has yet to play a solid 40 minute game. Also fwiw, our biggest win (cincy) came with him sidelined for 75% of the game.

Bos8 wrote:

rodfromcranston wrote:Thanks, BAR.
I'm not saying Dowtin is a non contributor.
I just see him as a SG, only.
The qualities that make a true PG aren't
present in his game.
Bitee was a far better athlete, also.

I would think that would be why we bring in Russell next year. Very guard heavy with EC, Jared, and Jarvis backed up by Christian, Dowtin and Russell. I would imagine two years from now Russell is at the 1 with Dowtin and Thompson at the two.

Have to agree with this comment. Hopefully Russell will be as good as he seems to be advertised .

rodfromcranston wrote:Playing Dowtin at PG is insane,
He's slow, doesn't defend, has 10 assists in 14 games,
doesn't put the ball on the floor, at all.
We must be looking at a different player.
I hope Jarvis gets well soon.

This was the first game he was really truly a point guard though. I think Dan saw a lot of what you saw and thinks he's better suited for the 2, which is why he was never really running the offense for more than a minute or so at a time.

4 assists, 1 TO, 11 points in 32 minutes, most importantly a win - not bad for his first game as a true-freshman starter.

Jarvis in his first game as a starter - 6 assists, 2 TO, 3 points in 27 minutes, and a loss to UMass. Keep in mind Jarvis had a lot more prep-time at the point by basically splitting minutes with Biggie Minnis leading up to that.

Certainly not saying that Jeff is better or that he's going to be better - but facts are facts and Jarvis has regressed this year from his stellar play of last season. Obviously it seems like something else is going on based on Dan's comments and some rumors that have been circulating, because guards typically don't have a regression year their 3rd season, especially one who's been starting for 2 full seasons worth of games.

It would certainly be nice to know just what is ailing JG physically.

Yeah this sickness thing with Jarvis sounds very odd and concerning...
I see Jeff as more of a game manager right now. He can handle the ball and call the play. He can't really force the issue yet. But he does play very smart. That guy is good. I don't feel worried when he's on the court either. And I'm always thinkin his shots gonna drop.

I don't know what Dan's gonna do next year with all those guards.
He'll have all the guards on this years team plus Fatts. If Fatts is as good as people think he probably should get playing time.

Given we return our entire back court, if Fatts is critical to our success next year it won't be good.
Rare for a FR to play major roles on a good Div 1 team, outside of the Top 50-75 types.

I think Thompson has always played with a sense of urgency. I remember some of his first minutes last year. He made an offensive rebound where he was standing at the 3point line and it looked like it dawned on him that he could do whatever he wanted because he was on the court. He sprinted, jumped, and grabbed the ball.

I really like how engaged Thompson has always been, among other things. Hope he continues to develop.

Rhody Jay - GREAT job getting into their heads!! I was in section 104 and the UAss fans all acted like 6 year old kids the entire game. One of their old fans (guy has to be in his late 60's) gets out of his seat in the 2nd half and walks to the floor behind the visitor bench to scream and wave his arms at Rhody Jay. I could NOT believe it! Security guard came over and told him to sit back down. At that point I'm thinking what must be going through this security guard's head that he just had to tell a late 60-year old man to sit down and shut up!

Those visiting team fans give me a terrible perception of human beings that live in Central/Western Massachusetts, or wherever UAss fans come from.

Gonzo...at least they go to games........had to say that.....

I don't initiate interactions with fans.

Most opposing fans just laugh at the signs, take pictures, etc

I know engaging with opposing fans is not tolerated. They initiated the hurling of insults and more than one guy came out of their seats like they were going to confront me or yelled at me as they left the arena. I kept looking at the Ryan Center security folks and kind of laughing. They kept looking at me saying "I know, I know". As to say, hey we know you're taking a lot of shit and you're not hurling the same insults back.

Derek Kellogg and their fans set the tone yesterday.

As for my interactions with the players... again let me say that Jarreau and Pipkins came over to me at the end of the game and we hugged like we were boys. In fact Pipkins had to fight through one security guy to get to me. It was pretty funny. Obviously, they didn't have any problem with our exchange.

I'm a Jarreau and Pipkins fan now. They are going to be great for a long time in this league.

RoadyJay wrote:As for my interactions with the players... again let me say that Jarreau and Pipkins came over to me at the end of the game and we hugged like we were boys. In fact Pipkins had to fight through one security guy to get to me. It was pretty funny. Obviously, they didn't have any problem with our exchange.

I'm a Jarreau and Pipkins fan now. They are going to be great for a long time in this league.

Haha my GF saw that and pointed it out to me, that's awesome! She loves your signs btw, always checks to see what they are.

I would like to see Dowtin get more time at PG. He is a much better defensive player (Jarvis is a liability on D), he turns it over less, shoots better from the outside and better from the line. Jarvis is better at penetrating.

I don't put Jarvis' poor performance over the entire season to date on his health the last three weeks.
He is making more bad decisions like driving the entire length of the floor against Dayton that had nothing to do with health.

Jarvis career stats - FG 39.0%; 3PFG 34.7%; FT 68.6%; Ast/TO 2.0
Jarvis this yr stats - FG 39.5%; 3PFG 31.9%; FT 68.8%; Ast/TO 1.7

I think Dowtin might look a little slow, especially when he has the ball. When he is dribbling, he is kind of hunched over. A little strange. But if you watch him run without the ball, he's moving pretty quickly.

Rhody83 wrote:I would like to see Dowtin get more time at PG. He is a much better defensive player (Jarvis is a liability on D), he turns it over less, shoots better from the outside and better from the line. Jarvis is better at penetrating.

I don't put Jarvis' poor performance over the entire season to date on his health the last three weeks.
He is making more bad decisions like driving the entire length of the floor against Dayton that had nothing to do with health.

Jarvis career stats - FG 39.0%; 3PFG 34.7%; FT 68.6%; Ast/TO 2.0
Jarvis this yr stats - FG 39.5%; 3PFG 31.9%; FT 68.8%; Ast/TO 1.7

If it's mental health, it could have. A lot of people lose a lot of weight in a short period of time if they're not eating.

Billyboy78 wrote:

Rhody83 wrote:I would like to see Dowtin get more time at PG. He is a much better defensive player (Jarvis is a liability on D), he turns it over less, shoots better from the outside and better from the line. Jarvis is better at penetrating.

I don't put Jarvis' poor performance over the entire season to date on his health the last three weeks.
He is making more bad decisions like driving the entire length of the floor against Dayton that had nothing to do with healt

If it's mental health, it could have. A lot of people lose a lot of weight in a short period of time if they're not eating.

I agree if it is mental health but I don't think it is. I don't think Dan would've talked about it at all if it was mental health related. He also referenced that it was like Hass' injury last year. I interpreted that to be something that built up (stomach virus) and got worse that the player kept from them because he wanted to play.

I also expect Daniel Marshall their Director of Basketball Performance to monitor their nutrition, weight and conditioning throughout the season.

Rhody Jay- I thought the signs started out funny but it got a little bit much. Reminded me a bit of PC's "Patrick can you read this?" Signs to support your team = fine. While the others might have started it, waving them to come at you? Really- Be classy. Just sayin'

The signs are great.
Making UMass fans pissed is a good thing.

Hard to feel sympathy for a fan base that, in terms of lacking in class, ranks right down there with that hideous disgusting institution whose very name sickens me.

They're why at least one legitimate dictionary recognizes "Masshole" as a real word.

While I agree completely with Rod on Jarvis and think our fans don't give him enough credit and are too quick to get on him, I disagree with him on Dowtin to the extent he is down on him (which is my impression from what he's said about him here). I don't know that he is a long term solution at PG, and thankfully he doesn't need to be. But I really like his game overall.

TruePoint wrote:While I agree completely with Rod on Jarvis and think our fans don't give him enough credit and are too quick to get on him, I disagree with him on Dowtin to the extent he is down on him (which is my impression from what he's said about him here). I don't know that he is a long term solution at PG, and thankfully he doesn't need to be. But I really like his game overall.

What has Jarvis done this year to warrant getting credit?

Well we at least now know what at least part of the reason why he hasn't played well.....he's sick....but even at the beginning of the season when he was healthy he didn't play up to last season's level.

So he gets a partial pass anyway. However I question why he was taking that shot against Dayton.....

Rhody15 wrote:

TruePoint wrote:While I agree completely with Rod on Jarvis and think our fans don't give him enough credit and are too quick to get on him, I disagree with him on Dowtin to the extent he is down on him (which is my impression from what he's said about him here). I don't know that he is a long term solution at PG, and thankfully he doesn't need to be. But I really like his game overall.

What has Jarvis done this year to warrant getting credit?

What are you looking for? Specific plays? I think overall he's been fine, could have been better in some games, and I think some of that is now more understandable. But his overall body of work at URI has been good and I think he deserved a longer leash than some fans have been willing to give him.

I'd much rather have Dowtin off the ball... He doesn't have a good enough handle to be a D1 point guard right now. He plays smart, especially for a freshman. I see guys like EC and Garrett hold the ball for so freaking long it's refreshing to see someone make that quick pass to put his teammates in a good position to score. He's getting better and better and I think you will start to see him drive more. I love his potential.

We have seen Garrett succeed in the A10 and he is STILL a very important piece to this team. I hope he gets well and we get him back to 100% soon!

Good post studs...I'm becoming a JD fan more and more......he's going to be good....you don't have to be lightning quick or jump high to be a star....

URI needs more high BB IQ guys like him......there's plenty of big time athletes playing this game...but not many that have "it" between the ears.

Hopefully Fatts has "it" just like Jeff.....could really help us win close games in the future...and make Dan look good in the process.

IMO Dowtin is best suited to play the two, but he played the point pretty darn good yesterday. I like his game; it's unorthodox but effective. He's really heady, very good court sense. That steal where he snuck up from behind showed his smarts, and he was pretty quick getting there too. Lots of solid passing too. Garrett was a warrior last year and I think most of us thought he would continue to get better. Maybe he hasn't been well all year. But I think also part of it has to do with him becoming less aggressive; trying to get EC back into the mix, and get Terell his looks too. IMO the team has really struggled with that chemistry amoung the starting guards. But I don't want to be negative! Yesterday was a solid win and let's take it from here.

The question at hand really is not whether Dowtin or Garrett should be the PG but who should be the PG with Garrett out. Options would be Dowtin, Robinson or Thompson. After Dowtin's performance vs UMASS it would appear Dowtin was a good choice for the starting opportunity.

Dowtin won against Jarreau so thats worth something. Jarreau is a coveted prospect, especially in the A10. I liked the game he had. I think he contributed to the loss at Houston and I think he contributed to the win against Umass.

Jarvis also smacked his head at Mohegan. Before he hit his head Jarvis was the first URI player that tried to fight back against Cincinnati. I think his game is fine. He just continues to have setbacks with his body.

Dowtin does have a very good court presence and hoop IQ He definetly needs his minutes