Wednesday, December 28, 2005
GEORGE MASON: DECIDEDLY UNPATRIOTIC
Remember when I said there wasn't much to take away from GMU's 40 point drubbing of AU? The same is mostly true of their beating of Holy Cross last night in Fairfax.
HC seemed to do nothing well, whether it be passing the ball (16 turnovers), using full court pressure (14 fast break points allowed), defending the perimeter (62% shooting for GMU in the 2nd half), shooting free throws (38%, including an impressive 0-4 mark from freshman Lawrence Dixon during one 30 second span), setting screens (see: Hyland, Kevin), or using any kind of depth (2 bench points). It was that kind of night.
There were few highlights for HC. Kevin Hamilton, who was open maybe twice all night, hit a couple of nice buckets early, but was non-existant in the second half. Keith Simmons was terrible, dribbling into nowhere and causing turnovers as well as shooting and missing everything a few times.
GMU's team was simply quicker, stronger, and smarter. This was not all HC being awful, part of it was that GMU is simply a very, very good basketball team that would probably run over most anyone in the PL. Think Villanova Lite. They have a ton of depth, and Jai Lewis, their 450 or so pound center, compliments their guard based offense with a great passing touch.
GMU's excellence aside, HC sucked in this game, and it was hard to think that this team could actually compete for a league title at this point. That isn't to say they won't be competitive in league play-- it just means that they are still in the group of teams looking up at BU.
Their main problem seems to be a complete lack of depth, as beyond Simmons and Hamilton I'm not sure there is a real scoring option on the team (no, Torey Thomas and his 38% FG percentage from 2005 doesn't count). Kevin Hyland turned in maybe the worst game of basketball I have watched this year, as he couldn't score, couldn't pass, couldn't defend, and set paper-thin screens that rarely had any actual contact with a defender. He got muscled around for most of the night by the 400 pound monster Lewis, but even when he wasn't being pushed around, he looked clueless. For those of you HC fans who may take exception to such aspersions on Mr. Hyland, ask yourself this: how many minutes would he have played on the 2002-03 or 01-02 HC teams? Moreover, how could anyone be satisfied with a starting center that gets ONE lousy rebound in 28 minutes of action?
Tim Clifford was also a disapointment, as your PL blogger tapped him to represent the PL Blog Breakout Team, but he's not covering his side of the bargain, averaging 5 and 4 a night. Part of that is his lack of minutes, but like all players, you'd imagine if he was playing better, the coach might give him more minutes.
The HC freshmen were too overwhelmed by GMU's quickness to judge them by their performance here. Vander Baan didn't really do anything, but he was serviceable, at least more so than Hyland. Colin Cunningham looked good, especially on defense, but couldn't buy a bucket. Lawrence Dixon looked flat out lousy, with a couple of airballs and four straight clanks at the free throw line.
In short, HC fans shouldn't panic as GMU is a very good team that caught HC on an off night. I doubt Northeastern is going to wax them by 40. But there should be concerned about the lack of depth all around, and without Hamilton, Simmons, and Thomas playing 35+ minutes a night with whatever platoon of big guys they can put out there, I think HC struggles will continue in league play. @ 8:45 AM 2 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Remember when I said there wasn't much to take away from GMU's 40 point drubbing of AU? The same is mostly true of their beating of Holy Cross last night in Fairfax.
HC seemed to do nothing well, whether it be passing the ball (16 turnovers), using full court pressure (14 fast break points allowed), defending the perimeter (62% shooting for GMU in the 2nd half), shooting free throws (38%, including an impressive 0-4 mark from freshman Lawrence Dixon during one 30 second span), setting screens (see: Hyland, Kevin), or using any kind of depth (2 bench points). It was that kind of night.
There were few highlights for HC. Kevin Hamilton, who was open maybe twice all night, hit a couple of nice buckets early, but was non-existant in the second half. Keith Simmons was terrible, dribbling into nowhere and causing turnovers as well as shooting and missing everything a few times.
GMU's team was simply quicker, stronger, and smarter. This was not all HC being awful, part of it was that GMU is simply a very, very good basketball team that would probably run over most anyone in the PL. Think Villanova Lite. They have a ton of depth, and Jai Lewis, their 450 or so pound center, compliments their guard based offense with a great passing touch.
GMU's excellence aside, HC sucked in this game, and it was hard to think that this team could actually compete for a league title at this point. That isn't to say they won't be competitive in league play-- it just means that they are still in the group of teams looking up at BU.
Their main problem seems to be a complete lack of depth, as beyond Simmons and Hamilton I'm not sure there is a real scoring option on the team (no, Torey Thomas and his 38% FG percentage from 2005 doesn't count). Kevin Hyland turned in maybe the worst game of basketball I have watched this year, as he couldn't score, couldn't pass, couldn't defend, and set paper-thin screens that rarely had any actual contact with a defender. He got muscled around for most of the night by the 400 pound monster Lewis, but even when he wasn't being pushed around, he looked clueless. For those of you HC fans who may take exception to such aspersions on Mr. Hyland, ask yourself this: how many minutes would he have played on the 2002-03 or 01-02 HC teams? Moreover, how could anyone be satisfied with a starting center that gets ONE lousy rebound in 28 minutes of action?
Tim Clifford was also a disapointment, as your PL blogger tapped him to represent the PL Blog Breakout Team, but he's not covering his side of the bargain, averaging 5 and 4 a night. Part of that is his lack of minutes, but like all players, you'd imagine if he was playing better, the coach might give him more minutes.
The HC freshmen were too overwhelmed by GMU's quickness to judge them by their performance here. Vander Baan didn't really do anything, but he was serviceable, at least more so than Hyland. Colin Cunningham looked good, especially on defense, but couldn't buy a bucket. Lawrence Dixon looked flat out lousy, with a couple of airballs and four straight clanks at the free throw line.
In short, HC fans shouldn't panic as GMU is a very good team that caught HC on an off night. I doubt Northeastern is going to wax them by 40. But there should be concerned about the lack of depth all around, and without Hamilton, Simmons, and Thomas playing 35+ minutes a night with whatever platoon of big guys they can put out there, I think HC struggles will continue in league play. @ 8:45 AM 2 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
BACK IN THE SADDLE
Your PL blogger will shake off the rust and gear up for PL play by taking in George Mason/Holy Cross this evening. Should be fun to see the HC guys somewhere other than the Splaver Center. Check back tonight or tomorrow morning for a full recap and game report.
Happy Hanukah/Kwannza/Festivus! @ 11:39 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Your PL blogger will shake off the rust and gear up for PL play by taking in George Mason/Holy Cross this evening. Should be fun to see the HC guys somewhere other than the Splaver Center. Check back tonight or tomorrow morning for a full recap and game report.
Happy Hanukah/Kwannza/Festivus! @ 11:39 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
DEAR ESPN, I HATE YOU, SINCERELY, MATT B or I AIN'T GONNA WORK ON EISNER'S FARM NO MORE
A quick warning: This has nothing to do with the Patriot League and is a little whiny.
Let me tell you a story.
Back in the early days of the web (95-96ish), everything was free.
Then came the late 90s boom, and all of a sudden there were more impressive websites with things to sell. Slate Magazine started, as one of, if not the first pay-for-content websites out there. All of a sudden, the internet was a mechanism for commerce. Pop-up ads got invented. Spam started. People made and lost lots of money. It was awful.
That whole evolution has led us to today, where ESPN wants to make money off of the web, and has their "insider" content. For 40 bucks a year, you can see what important insights must surely lie behind their firewall. And now they've taken Kyle Whelliston and Ken Pomeroy, the two best hoops bloggers out there, with them. Which is good news for them but bad news for us.
A quick aside about ESPN, by the way. They are probably enemy #1 in the sports world to your PL blogger. Here is a list of why:
- Shitty timeslot for PL championship
- Complete lack of coverage of any mid-major hoops
- Moronic setup of supposed "bracket buster" tournament, which includes a number of teams who have absolutely no shot at the NCAA tourney, thus lowering the RPIs of the good Mid Majors that participate, thus making more excuses for higher conference schools to continue avoid playing good mid majors
- SportsCenter no longer about "sports", but about gossip and idle chatter (think Entertainment Tonight for sports)
- ESPN Hollywood
- Stuart Scott
- Dick Vitale, dippy do, diaper dandy, and all that other annoying catchphrase BS
- The "Budweiser Hot Seat"
- The Ultimate Highlight
- The World Series of Poker
- Yankee/Red Sox crap nonstop
- Complete lack of coverage of anything west of Boston
- The awful original movies (remember A Season on the Brink)?
- Around the Horn
- Rome is Burning
- Stephen A. Smith
- Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith
- Getting rid of David Aldrige in favor of Stephen A. Smith
I don't bemoan anyone for "selling out". That kind of stuff is just ignorant. If someone told me they'd pay me for blogging, I would laugh at them and then say yes. We live in a capitalist society where money talks. No problem.
But that doesn't stop me from getting mad when those corporate bastards go and steal my two favorite basketball bloggers. And I'm certainly not going to sign up for Insider, as spending money to read articles about sports makes about as much sense as paying for bottled water. There's plenty of other sportswriters (and water sources) that are completely free. They might not be as good, but they'll do.
So farewell, Kyle and Ken. Best of luck and congratulations on your ESPN gigs. I hate the jerks and think they're all that's wrong with sports, but my opinion would probably change if they started writing me checks. @ 2:19 PM 5 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
A quick warning: This has nothing to do with the Patriot League and is a little whiny.
Let me tell you a story.
Back in the early days of the web (95-96ish), everything was free.
Then came the late 90s boom, and all of a sudden there were more impressive websites with things to sell. Slate Magazine started, as one of, if not the first pay-for-content websites out there. All of a sudden, the internet was a mechanism for commerce. Pop-up ads got invented. Spam started. People made and lost lots of money. It was awful.
That whole evolution has led us to today, where ESPN wants to make money off of the web, and has their "insider" content. For 40 bucks a year, you can see what important insights must surely lie behind their firewall. And now they've taken Kyle Whelliston and Ken Pomeroy, the two best hoops bloggers out there, with them. Which is good news for them but bad news for us.
A quick aside about ESPN, by the way. They are probably enemy #1 in the sports world to your PL blogger. Here is a list of why:
- Shitty timeslot for PL championship
- Complete lack of coverage of any mid-major hoops
- Moronic setup of supposed "bracket buster" tournament, which includes a number of teams who have absolutely no shot at the NCAA tourney, thus lowering the RPIs of the good Mid Majors that participate, thus making more excuses for higher conference schools to continue avoid playing good mid majors
- SportsCenter no longer about "sports", but about gossip and idle chatter (think Entertainment Tonight for sports)
- ESPN Hollywood
- Stuart Scott
- Dick Vitale, dippy do, diaper dandy, and all that other annoying catchphrase BS
- The "Budweiser Hot Seat"
- The Ultimate Highlight
- The World Series of Poker
- Yankee/Red Sox crap nonstop
- Complete lack of coverage of anything west of Boston
- The awful original movies (remember A Season on the Brink)?
- Around the Horn
- Rome is Burning
- Stephen A. Smith
- Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith
- Getting rid of David Aldrige in favor of Stephen A. Smith
I don't bemoan anyone for "selling out". That kind of stuff is just ignorant. If someone told me they'd pay me for blogging, I would laugh at them and then say yes. We live in a capitalist society where money talks. No problem.
But that doesn't stop me from getting mad when those corporate bastards go and steal my two favorite basketball bloggers. And I'm certainly not going to sign up for Insider, as spending money to read articles about sports makes about as much sense as paying for bottled water. There's plenty of other sportswriters (and water sources) that are completely free. They might not be as good, but they'll do.
So farewell, Kyle and Ken. Best of luck and congratulations on your ESPN gigs. I hate the jerks and think they're all that's wrong with sports, but my opinion would probably change if they started writing me checks. @ 2:19 PM 5 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Monday, December 12, 2005
CATCHING UP: PART II
More recaps of what's going on in the PL so far.
HOLY CROSS
Record: 4-4
RPI: 141
What's Happened: Started the season off well, winning a tournament in Williamsburg, VA, but struggled with a four game losing streak before bouncing back last week with two wins.
Best win: A 2OT win over Fordham, since beating any A10 team is never bad.
Worst loss: A 15 point loss to Harvard
The good news: Torey Thomas has been doing his best Jave Meade impression, playing a lot of minutes and significantly upping his shooting percentage. While the threes still aren't falling for him (which doesn't make him unique among the HC players at the moment), he could emerge as a scoring option at the guard spot other than Simmons or Hamilton. Keith Simmons is now getting the ~35 minutes he should have been getting for some time now.
The bad news: Kevin Hamilton has been ill (not like he is laying down dope rhymes, but is feeling sick), and it has done nothing good for his game. Hamilton is shooting at a 29% tick, and is shooting an abysmal 8-42 from three point land. Tim Clifford, despite an offensive outbreak vs. Brown, is only playing 18 minutes a game, which is not a good sign.
Prediction: If Holy Cross can figure out their post game, and get healthy, they should contend down the stretch. This team has more shades of the 2002-2003 team than the 03-04 squad.
LAFAYETTE
Record: 3-5
RPI: 227
What's Happened: With a couple of good wins against Ivy league squads and a couple of close losses, the Leopards find themselves in familiar under .500 territory.
Best win: @ Princeton
Worst Loss: @ Columbia
The Good News: The win over Princeton makes it seem like LC might be able to play spoiler come February.
The Bad News: No one on the team can rebound, and only one player (Pat Betley) has started all of their contests.
Prediction: Same as before the year, there are no indications that Lafayette won't be battling Army for the #7 spot.
LEHIGH
Record: 3-6
RPI: 272
What's Happened: After putting a scare into Northwestern to start the season, Lehigh has been a ship without an anchor as Joe Knight was suspended for academic reasons. Lehigh's PR department tried to spin the whole thing as a casual mixup, but no one is buying it.
Best Win: Harvard
Worst Loss: @ Sacred Heart
The Good News: Jose Olivero is playing the best ball of his career, shooting 43% and leading the league with 16 points per game.
The Bad News: All things Joe Knight. Jason Mbegroff's 14 minutes and 3 rebounds a game are more than unimpressive, they're disappointing. There was a point at which folks around the league thought as well of Mbegroff as they did Bucknell's Chris McNaughton. They've gone in slightly different directions since.
Prediction: If Joe Knight comes back and plays to his full potential, the Mountain Engines can still win some games in PL play and finish as high as 2nd. At the same time, Knight could lead them into 5th if he struggles to fit back into basketball.
NAVY
Record: 2-4
RPI: 247
What's Happened: The Midshipmen struggled with a tough schedule of away games to start the season and lost 4 straight before bouncing back with consecutive Ws versus Howard and Morgan state.
Best win: at MCI center in front of dozens vs. Howard
Worst Loss: @ Arkansas-LR
The Good News: For the first time in a long time, Navy actually blew out a D-I opponent in Morgan State. They are also continuing to crash the boards well, and appear to have solid freshmen in Kaleo Kina and Clif(f) Colbert.
The Bad News: Injuries have struck Corey Johnson and Carlton Baldwin, who could contribute significantly if they were healthy.
Prediction: Navy could rail off 8 wins (okay, 6 D-I wins) before league play with a schedule that includes Brown, Yale, UMBC and the Citadel, all winnable games. I still think they're the most underrated team in the league, and ought to contend for one of the top 4 spots.
More later about AU and their freshman phenoms... @ 11:22 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
More recaps of what's going on in the PL so far.
HOLY CROSS
Record: 4-4
RPI: 141
What's Happened: Started the season off well, winning a tournament in Williamsburg, VA, but struggled with a four game losing streak before bouncing back last week with two wins.
Best win: A 2OT win over Fordham, since beating any A10 team is never bad.
Worst loss: A 15 point loss to Harvard
The good news: Torey Thomas has been doing his best Jave Meade impression, playing a lot of minutes and significantly upping his shooting percentage. While the threes still aren't falling for him (which doesn't make him unique among the HC players at the moment), he could emerge as a scoring option at the guard spot other than Simmons or Hamilton. Keith Simmons is now getting the ~35 minutes he should have been getting for some time now.
The bad news: Kevin Hamilton has been ill (not like he is laying down dope rhymes, but is feeling sick), and it has done nothing good for his game. Hamilton is shooting at a 29% tick, and is shooting an abysmal 8-42 from three point land. Tim Clifford, despite an offensive outbreak vs. Brown, is only playing 18 minutes a game, which is not a good sign.
Prediction: If Holy Cross can figure out their post game, and get healthy, they should contend down the stretch. This team has more shades of the 2002-2003 team than the 03-04 squad.
LAFAYETTE
Record: 3-5
RPI: 227
What's Happened: With a couple of good wins against Ivy league squads and a couple of close losses, the Leopards find themselves in familiar under .500 territory.
Best win: @ Princeton
Worst Loss: @ Columbia
The Good News: The win over Princeton makes it seem like LC might be able to play spoiler come February.
The Bad News: No one on the team can rebound, and only one player (Pat Betley) has started all of their contests.
Prediction: Same as before the year, there are no indications that Lafayette won't be battling Army for the #7 spot.
LEHIGH
Record: 3-6
RPI: 272
What's Happened: After putting a scare into Northwestern to start the season, Lehigh has been a ship without an anchor as Joe Knight was suspended for academic reasons. Lehigh's PR department tried to spin the whole thing as a casual mixup, but no one is buying it.
Best Win: Harvard
Worst Loss: @ Sacred Heart
The Good News: Jose Olivero is playing the best ball of his career, shooting 43% and leading the league with 16 points per game.
The Bad News: All things Joe Knight. Jason Mbegroff's 14 minutes and 3 rebounds a game are more than unimpressive, they're disappointing. There was a point at which folks around the league thought as well of Mbegroff as they did Bucknell's Chris McNaughton. They've gone in slightly different directions since.
Prediction: If Joe Knight comes back and plays to his full potential, the Mountain Engines can still win some games in PL play and finish as high as 2nd. At the same time, Knight could lead them into 5th if he struggles to fit back into basketball.
NAVY
Record: 2-4
RPI: 247
What's Happened: The Midshipmen struggled with a tough schedule of away games to start the season and lost 4 straight before bouncing back with consecutive Ws versus Howard and Morgan state.
Best win: at MCI center in front of dozens vs. Howard
Worst Loss: @ Arkansas-LR
The Good News: For the first time in a long time, Navy actually blew out a D-I opponent in Morgan State. They are also continuing to crash the boards well, and appear to have solid freshmen in Kaleo Kina and Clif(f) Colbert.
The Bad News: Injuries have struck Corey Johnson and Carlton Baldwin, who could contribute significantly if they were healthy.
Prediction: Navy could rail off 8 wins (okay, 6 D-I wins) before league play with a schedule that includes Brown, Yale, UMBC and the Citadel, all winnable games. I still think they're the most underrated team in the league, and ought to contend for one of the top 4 spots.
More later about AU and their freshman phenoms... @ 11:22 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Friday, December 09, 2005
I JUST STOPPED IN TO SEE WHAT CONDITION MY CONDITION WAS IN
Let's take a step back and take a look at the big picture as we're seven or eight games into the season for every team. It's hard to follow every PL team every day, so this is meant as a wrap up for those of you who have been too busy to pay attention. This is the first part of two.
For the record, the RPI is really only there because it will be interesting in 3 months to look back and see where teams stood. For the moment, though, it's pretty meaningless.
AMERICAN
Record: 1-6
RPI: 132
What's happened: AU started the season with 6 straight losses, but their strength of schedule is currently #8 in the RPI rankings, keeping their RPI afloat.
Best Win: 20 points over Mount St. Mary's, their only win
Worst Loss: Loyola Md., a team that has wins in the single digits for most of this decade.
What's gone right: Freshmen starting to develop, some sort of chemistry developing as well. Flashes of brilliance from Billbe and emergance of Nichols as a defensive stopper.
What's gone wrong: Andre Ingram seems to be rusty, and 40 point losses to anyone are a bad sign. Linas Lekavicius is either in the doghouse or has been forgotten by Jeff Jones.
Prediction: Should turn things around with easy games at home vs. Howard and Towson in the next week. From there, who knows. Away games at Vermont and St. Francis PA should give some indication as to whether AU can win at all on the road this year.
ARMY
Record: 2-5
RPI: 255
What's Happened: After starting the season off right with road wins at Columbia and VMI, staying close against UConn and taking the Citadel to OT, the Black Knights have dropped two straight to Sacred Heart and VMI (who they play twice this year in one of the dumber schedules of all time).
Best win: Columbia
Worst Loss: Fred Willard's alma mater, VMI
What's gone right: The Matt Bell show continues at West Point, with Bell dropping 15-20 points a night and providing the few assists Army has gotten. The Black Knights are also shooting the ball better, with a FG% around 42, much better than last year when they would shoot in the 20s or 30s consistently. Jarell Brown is also emerging as a threat to score, something Army has not had a lot of. Two DI wins means they will finish better than last year no matter what.
What's gone wrong: They're still Army. With Bell the only player averaging over 25 minutes a game, it's not that Army has a deep bench so much as no one has earned minutes (see: AU). Home losses to VMI and the Citadel, albeit close ones, are still embarassing.
Prediction: Might steal an upcoming OOC game against Cornell, Dartmouth, or Brown, but still haven't shown that they can have more than 2 or 3 PL wins.
BUCKNELL
Record: 5-1
RPI: 9
Best win: Syracuse
Worst Loss: Villanova
What's Happened: Two Big East wins and a win streak at home that has gone on since last November.
What's gone right: Pretty much everything. Loss to Villanova means they won't make the top 25 without beating Duke, but when you're flirting with the Top 25 in the Patriot League, you're doing pretty well.
What's gone wrong: Injury to John Clark hurts depth somewhat, but nothing too drastic.
Prediction: Still no indication that Bucknell is anything short of a giant primed to win 12-14 PL contests.
COLGATE
Record: 4-4
RPI: 215
Whats Happened: Colgate has been inconsistent, beating up on Princeton one day and then getting twacked by Quinnipiac, a school that I am skeptical even exists.
What's gone right: Chones brothers seem to have boosted them, with Kyle hitting the glass and Kendall scoring. Kyle Roemer continues to live up to my hype (please ignore said hype for AU's Lekavicius). He leads the team in minutes and points. They also actually drew 1000+ people to a game vs. FAU.
What's gone wrong: Turning the ball over a lot has cost them.
Prediction: Jury's still out. CU could compete for the #2 spot, or for the #5 spot.
Stay tuned next week for part II @ 2:18 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Let's take a step back and take a look at the big picture as we're seven or eight games into the season for every team. It's hard to follow every PL team every day, so this is meant as a wrap up for those of you who have been too busy to pay attention. This is the first part of two.
For the record, the RPI is really only there because it will be interesting in 3 months to look back and see where teams stood. For the moment, though, it's pretty meaningless.
AMERICAN
Record: 1-6
RPI: 132
What's happened: AU started the season with 6 straight losses, but their strength of schedule is currently #8 in the RPI rankings, keeping their RPI afloat.
Best Win: 20 points over Mount St. Mary's, their only win
Worst Loss: Loyola Md., a team that has wins in the single digits for most of this decade.
What's gone right: Freshmen starting to develop, some sort of chemistry developing as well. Flashes of brilliance from Billbe and emergance of Nichols as a defensive stopper.
What's gone wrong: Andre Ingram seems to be rusty, and 40 point losses to anyone are a bad sign. Linas Lekavicius is either in the doghouse or has been forgotten by Jeff Jones.
Prediction: Should turn things around with easy games at home vs. Howard and Towson in the next week. From there, who knows. Away games at Vermont and St. Francis PA should give some indication as to whether AU can win at all on the road this year.
ARMY
Record: 2-5
RPI: 255
What's Happened: After starting the season off right with road wins at Columbia and VMI, staying close against UConn and taking the Citadel to OT, the Black Knights have dropped two straight to Sacred Heart and VMI (who they play twice this year in one of the dumber schedules of all time).
Best win: Columbia
Worst Loss: Fred Willard's alma mater, VMI
What's gone right: The Matt Bell show continues at West Point, with Bell dropping 15-20 points a night and providing the few assists Army has gotten. The Black Knights are also shooting the ball better, with a FG% around 42, much better than last year when they would shoot in the 20s or 30s consistently. Jarell Brown is also emerging as a threat to score, something Army has not had a lot of. Two DI wins means they will finish better than last year no matter what.
What's gone wrong: They're still Army. With Bell the only player averaging over 25 minutes a game, it's not that Army has a deep bench so much as no one has earned minutes (see: AU). Home losses to VMI and the Citadel, albeit close ones, are still embarassing.
Prediction: Might steal an upcoming OOC game against Cornell, Dartmouth, or Brown, but still haven't shown that they can have more than 2 or 3 PL wins.
BUCKNELL
Record: 5-1
RPI: 9
Best win: Syracuse
Worst Loss: Villanova
What's Happened: Two Big East wins and a win streak at home that has gone on since last November.
What's gone right: Pretty much everything. Loss to Villanova means they won't make the top 25 without beating Duke, but when you're flirting with the Top 25 in the Patriot League, you're doing pretty well.
What's gone wrong: Injury to John Clark hurts depth somewhat, but nothing too drastic.
Prediction: Still no indication that Bucknell is anything short of a giant primed to win 12-14 PL contests.
COLGATE
Record: 4-4
RPI: 215
Whats Happened: Colgate has been inconsistent, beating up on Princeton one day and then getting twacked by Quinnipiac, a school that I am skeptical even exists.
What's gone right: Chones brothers seem to have boosted them, with Kyle hitting the glass and Kendall scoring. Kyle Roemer continues to live up to my hype (please ignore said hype for AU's Lekavicius). He leads the team in minutes and points. They also actually drew 1000+ people to a game vs. FAU.
What's gone wrong: Turning the ball over a lot has cost them.
Prediction: Jury's still out. CU could compete for the #2 spot, or for the #5 spot.
Stay tuned next week for part II @ 2:18 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
GUESS WHOS COMING TO DINNER
Bucknell hosts the Villanova Violins tonight, who are hoping to break the Buckies' stranglehold on the Big East. As has been noted amongst a number of people, if BU was in the Big East right now, they'd be in first place, 2-0.
I can't speak to how the game will go, other than to say I think VU wins, but I can tell you the consequences are of a BU win or loss today are extraordinary.
A Bucknell W means:
- A national ranking, probably around 20
- Lots more press coverage
- Lots more pressure
- Lots more expectations
- An 8 or higher seed come tourney time, even if they stumble a bit in league play
- The possibility of an at-large bid should BU falter in the PL tournament
- More Bucknell fans coming out of the woodwork (longtime PL messageboard posters KenZ and Dan get props for being there in the Bokai Lalugba days)
- No one in the major conferences, and I mean no one, will schedule BU for the next five years, and they certainly won't be dumb enough to schedule them at BU.
- Pat Flannery flips out and disappears for two weeks, living on the lam with Joe Knight.
A loss means:
- If they don't beat Duke, no at large NCAA bid
- An NIT bid is all but assured just in case
- Bucknell makes lots of money from sold out arena, Bucknell kids get to have time of their lives watching their team play the big boys in Lewisburg
- VU gets to improve their RPI with a win on the road against a quality team
So all in all, the Bison have little or nothing to lose tonight. For 40 minutes they get the chance to move to the next level. But even if they don't, they're still the best team that ever existed at their school and in their league, and that ought to be enough.
0 FOR 6 WITH THREE STRIKEOUTS: AU IS THE CRISTIAN GUZMAN OF THE PL
Your PL Blogger's home team AU Eagles seem unable to get a win, or really do anything right at all lately. To see how bad things have gotten, take a look at 2004 preseason POY Andre Ingram's line last night:
Also of note, Linas Lekavicius played only 8 minutes last night, meaning that last season's starting five played 27 of the 200 minutes in last night's game. Does that tell you anything?
But AU can still turn the ship around, with three cupcakes upcoming in their first three home games. Any other year, wins against Howard, Mount St. Mary's (formerly Mary's School For the Blind and Developmentally Disabled), and Towson were all but assured. Right now it looks like five blind autistic kids could actually take AU.
MATT B'S BAD INTERNET JOURNALISM 101: MAKE EXCUSES
The teams AU has played are a combined 24-3 this year, with Ohio, Loyola, Washington, and La Salle all undefeated.
Looking at the schedule, AU probably ought to have lost 5 of its 6 games. Washington is a top 25 squad, Wagner inexsplicably kicks AU's ass every year, LaSalle has Steven Smith and AU has no answer for him, Ohio might make the sweet 16, and GMU is a legit squad as well. Only the Loyola loss really sticks out. So no panicking yet, AU fans. The previous credentials of Jeff Jones (and Andre Ingram for that matter) entitle them to at least one down year anyway. @ 2:26 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Bucknell hosts the Villanova Violins tonight, who are hoping to break the Buckies' stranglehold on the Big East. As has been noted amongst a number of people, if BU was in the Big East right now, they'd be in first place, 2-0. I can't speak to how the game will go, other than to say I think VU wins, but I can tell you the consequences are of a BU win or loss today are extraordinary.
A Bucknell W means:
- A national ranking, probably around 20
- Lots more press coverage
- Lots more pressure
- Lots more expectations
- An 8 or higher seed come tourney time, even if they stumble a bit in league play
- The possibility of an at-large bid should BU falter in the PL tournament
- More Bucknell fans coming out of the woodwork (longtime PL messageboard posters KenZ and Dan get props for being there in the Bokai Lalugba days)
- No one in the major conferences, and I mean no one, will schedule BU for the next five years, and they certainly won't be dumb enough to schedule them at BU.
- Pat Flannery flips out and disappears for two weeks, living on the lam with Joe Knight.
A loss means:
- If they don't beat Duke, no at large NCAA bid
- An NIT bid is all but assured just in case
- Bucknell makes lots of money from sold out arena, Bucknell kids get to have time of their lives watching their team play the big boys in Lewisburg
- VU gets to improve their RPI with a win on the road against a quality team
So all in all, the Bison have little or nothing to lose tonight. For 40 minutes they get the chance to move to the next level. But even if they don't, they're still the best team that ever existed at their school and in their league, and that ought to be enough.
0 FOR 6 WITH THREE STRIKEOUTS: AU IS THE CRISTIAN GUZMAN OF THE PL
Your PL Blogger's home team AU Eagles seem unable to get a win, or really do anything right at all lately. To see how bad things have gotten, take a look at 2004 preseason POY Andre Ingram's line last night:
1-8, 3 RB, 3 Pts, 19 minutes
Also of note, Linas Lekavicius played only 8 minutes last night, meaning that last season's starting five played 27 of the 200 minutes in last night's game. Does that tell you anything?
But AU can still turn the ship around, with three cupcakes upcoming in their first three home games. Any other year, wins against Howard, Mount St. Mary's (formerly Mary's School For the Blind and Developmentally Disabled), and Towson were all but assured. Right now it looks like five blind autistic kids could actually take AU.
MATT B'S BAD INTERNET JOURNALISM 101: MAKE EXCUSES
The teams AU has played are a combined 24-3 this year, with Ohio, Loyola, Washington, and La Salle all undefeated.
Looking at the schedule, AU probably ought to have lost 5 of its 6 games. Washington is a top 25 squad, Wagner inexsplicably kicks AU's ass every year, LaSalle has Steven Smith and AU has no answer for him, Ohio might make the sweet 16, and GMU is a legit squad as well. Only the Loyola loss really sticks out. So no panicking yet, AU fans. The previous credentials of Jeff Jones (and Andre Ingram for that matter) entitle them to at least one down year anyway. @ 2:26 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Monday, December 05, 2005
VOTE OR DIE
Bucknell is now #3 in the Mid Major Poll and #27 in the ESPN.com poll. @ 3:04 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Bucknell is now #3 in the Mid Major Poll and #27 in the ESPN.com poll. @ 3:04 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Thursday, December 01, 2005
ETERNAL SUNSHINE
Your faithful PL blogger caught the AU/Loyola game on Monday night, using Flexcar to borrow a ride up to Charm City. Some thoughts from the action:
- Jeff Jones is still tinkering with the AU starting lineup, as well as how many minutes each guy gets, something we AU fans haven't seen in a while. The rotation goes a legitimate 10 deep, with only one guy playing less than 10 minutes last night. This can mean two things: 1) AU is deeper than in past years or 2) AU has nobody who has earned any playing time yet.
- Linas Lekavicius..what is there to say about this guy? It's like Jekyll and Hyde out there sometimes, but you certainly can't question his effort or desire to win. I like him coming off the bench, I don't like sitting him at the end of the game when he was the only consistent scoring threat AU had all game. At one point, he took the game over completely for 5 or 6 minutes, scoring literally at will, until a BS offensive foul call and a cheap reach in sent him to the bench. If he plays this well in every game, AU will win the PL championship. But that's saying a whole hell of a lot.
- The AU young guys continue to develop. Travis Lay and Jordan Nichols had the best games of their AU career, with Lay doing particularly well defending in the 2nd half and moving the ball. Mercer also looked great in penetration.
- Nothing good came out of the first half. It was maybe the worst I've seen AU look since the CAA days. There's no point in even talking about it. It was that bad.
- Despite the 0-4 record, I'm still optimistic about this team and nowhere near giving up. There are a lot of newcomers here, and a lot of changed roles from last year that take adjusting to.
SPORTSWRITING 101: SAY THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER AGAIN
Speaking of which, there's another team with a losing streak that has a lot of changed roles from last year that take adjusting to, the Holy Cross Moor-Killers (we try to remain PC here at the PL blog).
While I think everyone in HC la-la-land is overreacting about their recent skid, they may be in some legitimate trouble without the legitimate frontline they've been able to put out there in the past.
Two years ago I attributed some HC's previous success in the league to:
I think they have #2 and #3 now, but they come from #1. If I was Ralph Willard (HC fans are thanking God that I'm not right now), I'd give out gold stars (or beers) to my frontline guys every time they committed a good hard foul. That is, when a young guy is beat, sometimes the best thing he can do is get a body on the guy. When they get more comfortable being physical, then they can get more comfortable moving their feet. But, luckily for everyone at HC they have a much better coach than me, who I suspect will figure things out.
BOY I AM SMART
Here's a timely link to give me an ego boost and you a little background. First, LC plays St. Peters tonight for the third year in a row. St. Peters has the national scoring leader for the last two years, Keydren Clark, who you could have read about here back when he was a Frosh. I think LC finally stops surprising people tonight and lose to the peacocks while Clark drops 28.
@ 12:17 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
Your faithful PL blogger caught the AU/Loyola game on Monday night, using Flexcar to borrow a ride up to Charm City. Some thoughts from the action:
- Jeff Jones is still tinkering with the AU starting lineup, as well as how many minutes each guy gets, something we AU fans haven't seen in a while. The rotation goes a legitimate 10 deep, with only one guy playing less than 10 minutes last night. This can mean two things: 1) AU is deeper than in past years or 2) AU has nobody who has earned any playing time yet.
- Linas Lekavicius..what is there to say about this guy? It's like Jekyll and Hyde out there sometimes, but you certainly can't question his effort or desire to win. I like him coming off the bench, I don't like sitting him at the end of the game when he was the only consistent scoring threat AU had all game. At one point, he took the game over completely for 5 or 6 minutes, scoring literally at will, until a BS offensive foul call and a cheap reach in sent him to the bench. If he plays this well in every game, AU will win the PL championship. But that's saying a whole hell of a lot.
- The AU young guys continue to develop. Travis Lay and Jordan Nichols had the best games of their AU career, with Lay doing particularly well defending in the 2nd half and moving the ball. Mercer also looked great in penetration.
- Nothing good came out of the first half. It was maybe the worst I've seen AU look since the CAA days. There's no point in even talking about it. It was that bad.
- Despite the 0-4 record, I'm still optimistic about this team and nowhere near giving up. There are a lot of newcomers here, and a lot of changed roles from last year that take adjusting to.
SPORTSWRITING 101: SAY THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER AGAIN
Speaking of which, there's another team with a losing streak that has a lot of changed roles from last year that take adjusting to, the Holy Cross Moor-Killers (we try to remain PC here at the PL blog).
While I think everyone in HC la-la-land is overreacting about their recent skid, they may be in some legitimate trouble without the legitimate frontline they've been able to put out there in the past.
Two years ago I attributed some HC's previous success in the league to:
1) Owning the low block on offense with bigger and stronger players, rebound and deny easy looks down low on defense
2) Playing good half-court D
3) Having the experience to hit clutch shots and know how to take a game away
I think they have #2 and #3 now, but they come from #1. If I was Ralph Willard (HC fans are thanking God that I'm not right now), I'd give out gold stars (or beers) to my frontline guys every time they committed a good hard foul. That is, when a young guy is beat, sometimes the best thing he can do is get a body on the guy. When they get more comfortable being physical, then they can get more comfortable moving their feet. But, luckily for everyone at HC they have a much better coach than me, who I suspect will figure things out.
BOY I AM SMART
Here's a timely link to give me an ego boost and you a little background. First, LC plays St. Peters tonight for the third year in a row. St. Peters has the national scoring leader for the last two years, Keydren Clark, who you could have read about here back when he was a Frosh. I think LC finally stops surprising people tonight and lose to the peacocks while Clark drops 28.
@ 12:17 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard
