BASKETBALL Middle Tennessee @ St. Bonaventure (ESPN+), 6PM, Wednesday, November 30, 2022
- Thread starter SpaceRaider
- Start date
I wonder where kingaling is. He poopood on my idea of this team not having any guards. He was sure I was wrong that we would miss sims and Jefferson.
Guess I wasn’t wrong. This team has nobody that can be depended on to score on a nightly basis. Especially on the road.
Get ready for another CBI/CIT year. Except we won’t even win the East this year. This team is going to lose a bunch of road games. They just cannot put the ball in the basket in these road contests. The 3pt and FT percentages are unspeakably bad, but to be expected. These players were known commodities when they inked with us and they were never elite or even serviceable scorers. We are taller and can jump higher than them though.
Now 0-3 on the road. We are going to lose every road OOC game before entering conference play. 5th year head coach one of the highest paid G5 coaches in basketball and his teams fold like a cheap tent on the road.
Guess I wasn’t wrong. This team has nobody that can be depended on to score on a nightly basis. Especially on the road.
Get ready for another CBI/CIT year. Except we won’t even win the East this year. This team is going to lose a bunch of road games. They just cannot put the ball in the basket in these road contests. The 3pt and FT percentages are unspeakably bad, but to be expected. These players were known commodities when they inked with us and they were never elite or even serviceable scorers. We are taller and can jump higher than them though.
Now 0-3 on the road. We are going to lose every road OOC game before entering conference play. 5th year head coach one of the highest paid G5 coaches in basketball and his teams fold like a cheap tent on the road.
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We are a terrible free throw shooting team and the fowls down the stretch were costly. It’s funny that they have more fans than MT.
I’m just done with this school. There are zero expectations for both mens basketball and football as evidenced by the extensions both Stockstill and mcdevitt received for mediocre results.
It’s pathetic. Football is obviously Fing terrible but now we have one of the highest paid coaches in the G5 who literally can’t win a road game in year 5 against a rebuilding A10 squad.
Just not gonna do it anymore. I am done with MT. It’s sickening what’s been allowed to transpire and the environment that’s been fostered at MT. Total Fing trash.
Y’all have a nice life.
It’s pathetic. Football is obviously Fing terrible but now we have one of the highest paid coaches in the G5 who literally can’t win a road game in year 5 against a rebuilding A10 squad.
Just not gonna do it anymore. I am done with MT. It’s sickening what’s been allowed to transpire and the environment that’s been fostered at MT. Total Fing trash.
Y’all have a nice life.
Exactly! Free throws are mostly mental and disciplined habit. Give a number of those away, and tonight's results will likely cost us 2-3 more games this season. It's the little things that get games like this into the win column. This is the type of loss that hurts us in resume building for a possible NIT bid if we have end up having a very good season in conference play. Of course, the team has to be nearly perfect in OOC to get NCAA at large consideration.
SBU had a loud & rowdy fan base. Old school gym right on top of players. Kind of anticipated a higher anxiety level would kick in more & more as game went along. Played a nice 1st half with confidence, 2nd half was all mental anxiety on the road against hostile crowd. Free throws had improved at a neutral site, now need to concentrate on tough road games. It's all mental. Remember SBU led Notre Dame start to finish for a victory by double digits. If the guys hang in there & can get that one road victory before conference play to build that confidence level I think they can still be a decent 35-40 minute team.
This was still considerably better than the Mo St & Winthrop games where we were down by 20 or more points. We went from playing terrible road ball to a pretty solid 25 minutes or so against a much better overall team. Hopefully in a couple games we can get over that mental hump. Will still give the team benefit of a doubt before conference kicks in to get mental psyche in place.
This was still considerably better than the Mo St & Winthrop games where we were down by 20 or more points. We went from playing terrible road ball to a pretty solid 25 minutes or so against a much better overall team. Hopefully in a couple games we can get over that mental hump. Will still give the team benefit of a doubt before conference kicks in to get mental psyche in place.
Lead the whole game then blow it at the end. Still not a mentally tough team. Hit a decent amount of free throws or threes and we win this game.
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Going to be a looong season if we can’t get tre’s and FT to fall.
Feeling a bit like Randy Weil days.
Feeling a bit like Randy Weil days.
I think we will be tough to beat at home, because we usually make our threes and free throws there. We have to get more comfortable on the road. Free throws are all mental.
I feel a lot better about this loss than most after reading this thread.
Think the ESPN Index has them a little low. KenPom has St. Bonaventure at 108. Barttorvik ranks them 133. Both have Bonnies as the toughest-ranked team on Middle's non-conference schedule. It was an away game and I assume the team hasn't been in Murfreesboro since leaving for Montreal last week. Tough conditions all things considered.
Also reminder A10 is very good. Them, Mountain West, and WCC are tier 1 of mid-majors (AAC isn't a mid-major IMO). Bonnies were fresh off a 12-point win against an ACC team on a neutral floor. I was somewhat expecting a similar result to Winthrop and Missouri St since this was another true road game and the Bonnies were a lot better.
Thought Middle played a perfect 1st half. ORebs galore. Great pressure and forcing turnovers. Great effort and grit. 3-point shooting wasn't good but it happens. The important thing was despite the poor perimeter shooting, they were finding other ways to score (unlike the prior two true road games). And its not like the Bonnies were struggling, they hit several shots at the end of the shot clock with the defense right in their face.
2nd half was a different story. Ball security got worse, OReb edge started to slip, and I think refs destroyed the rhythm of the game getting whistle happy. But there were four or five instances where the Bonnies tied or took the lead and Middle retook the lead less than a minute later. Thought they showed plenty counter punch.
Thought Lenard looked incredible. 16-7-2-3-4 on 70% shooting is a pretty amazing stat line. Nick played him 39 mins, i imagine that shatters whatever his career high was before. Very encouraging showing from him, hopefully indicating he is about to erupt. Thought Dish played pretty well too personally. Liked what I saw from Porter again. Think Weston is the main player Id like to see improvement from. Hes had a tough road trip.
Now to the bad part that we all are well aware of: this game was lost going 8-18 from the line. I thought they turned the corner going 78% on free throws cumulatively the prior four games. I was wrong. I wasn't that mad after the free throw struggles vs Winthrop, figured they could get a pass. But now it is a trend and its concerning...
Small caveat: i do think people expect every player to go 90% from the stripe because its an uncontested look from the same distance every time. Just dont think that it is fair. Obviously there needs to be a higher standard on an FTA than an FGA, but its still a shot and off-shooting nights happen. HOWEVER, off nights cannot go this far off this often. It absolutely needs to be addressed or it will be the end of them.
BOTTOM LINE:
Middle went toe to toe against a good team in very good form on the road, possibly at the tail end of a week-plus long road trip. While the free throw shooting is pretty concerning there were a lot of encouraging signs last night that this team can be very good. You mirror that performance and improve the FT shooting to a respectable level, i think they could hang with anyone in CUSA.
Think the ESPN Index has them a little low. KenPom has St. Bonaventure at 108. Barttorvik ranks them 133. Both have Bonnies as the toughest-ranked team on Middle's non-conference schedule. It was an away game and I assume the team hasn't been in Murfreesboro since leaving for Montreal last week. Tough conditions all things considered.
Also reminder A10 is very good. Them, Mountain West, and WCC are tier 1 of mid-majors (AAC isn't a mid-major IMO). Bonnies were fresh off a 12-point win against an ACC team on a neutral floor. I was somewhat expecting a similar result to Winthrop and Missouri St since this was another true road game and the Bonnies were a lot better.
Thought Middle played a perfect 1st half. ORebs galore. Great pressure and forcing turnovers. Great effort and grit. 3-point shooting wasn't good but it happens. The important thing was despite the poor perimeter shooting, they were finding other ways to score (unlike the prior two true road games). And its not like the Bonnies were struggling, they hit several shots at the end of the shot clock with the defense right in their face.
2nd half was a different story. Ball security got worse, OReb edge started to slip, and I think refs destroyed the rhythm of the game getting whistle happy. But there were four or five instances where the Bonnies tied or took the lead and Middle retook the lead less than a minute later. Thought they showed plenty counter punch.
Thought Lenard looked incredible. 16-7-2-3-4 on 70% shooting is a pretty amazing stat line. Nick played him 39 mins, i imagine that shatters whatever his career high was before. Very encouraging showing from him, hopefully indicating he is about to erupt. Thought Dish played pretty well too personally. Liked what I saw from Porter again. Think Weston is the main player Id like to see improvement from. Hes had a tough road trip.
Now to the bad part that we all are well aware of: this game was lost going 8-18 from the line. I thought they turned the corner going 78% on free throws cumulatively the prior four games. I was wrong. I wasn't that mad after the free throw struggles vs Winthrop, figured they could get a pass. But now it is a trend and its concerning...
Small caveat: i do think people expect every player to go 90% from the stripe because its an uncontested look from the same distance every time. Just dont think that it is fair. Obviously there needs to be a higher standard on an FTA than an FGA, but its still a shot and off-shooting nights happen. HOWEVER, off nights cannot go this far off this often. It absolutely needs to be addressed or it will be the end of them.
BOTTOM LINE:
Middle went toe to toe against a good team in very good form on the road, possibly at the tail end of a week-plus long road trip. While the free throw shooting is pretty concerning there were a lot of encouraging signs last night that this team can be very good. You mirror that performance and improve the FT shooting to a respectable level, i think they could hang with anyone in CUSA.
I think coach should set up a practice scenario like many football coaches have done prepping for a hostile environment away game. Pipe in loud crowd noise at practice. Split the team in two at the free throw line & try to simulate high pressure situations at the line. Keep doing this over & over. Even have other players, coaches, & assistants try to distract individual players at the line. Can't hurt, even seen pro football teams doing similar things to get snap count down before big time road games.
I'm always still here Wiley.. I pointed out you are quick to have the sky falling after 1 game and your early guard assessment was dead wrong last year so I wasn't gonna put much weight into your 1st game op-ed post this year vs Breschia. I never said the team wouldn't miss Sims or Jefferson- so if you're gonna call me out specifically get your feckin facts right about what I said or keep my name out of your posts.. I'm more concerned about how clearly jealous you are of CNM's paycheck- I mean every post? We know you lost $600 bucks or whatever in the WU game- I would personally ram 6 bills down your throat today if it'd make ya any happier- but it won't.. So give it a break the whole world of this message board knows already how much more money he makes than you...
Aside from that the FT shooting clearly is a concern.. and you won't win many games shooting like that from outside and the stripe.. team put themselves in position to win the game but didn't.. I like teams that continue to show growth and fight.. eventually the perimeter shots (which were mostly good looks) and the mental blocks will dissipate from the line.. Dish I expect to be in that 55-65% range but not sure what's up with the others..
As a follow up, I had a old high school coach who at the end of practice (for the worst free throw shooters) would set up a
round robin contest. 4 or 5 of us would have to take a series of 10 sets of 1 & 1's. An assistant would keep track with a clip board. Anyone under 60 percent at t the end would do either 50 push ups or run a mile. 2 weeks later he pushed it to 70 percent. It really sucked, but after a short period there was definite improvement. Bad thing was we were bad players, always road the bench anyway. But got so we could at least shoot a free throw. Haha
round robin contest. 4 or 5 of us would have to take a series of 10 sets of 1 & 1's. An assistant would keep track with a clip board. Anyone under 60 percent at t the end would do either 50 push ups or run a mile. 2 weeks later he pushed it to 70 percent. It really sucked, but after a short period there was definite improvement. Bad thing was we were bad players, always road the bench anyway. But got so we could at least shoot a free throw. Haha
I agree with you on Weston. I've been disappointed with his play so far. He has a huge upside, but still has a lot of juco in him. Careless turnovers, poor decisions, and giving up on a play when he thinks he was fouled are the main ones. I think he should shoot the three and look to score more in general. He has had open threes that he has passed on. He is a good three point shooter and needs to take advantage. He can also beat his defender most of the time. He needs to take advantage and use that to get to the basket. His defense and effort has been good which is always a good sign. I do really like him and think he will get there eventually.
Weston is the key between a good year and a potentially great year.. when you have NBA scouts in the building evaluating others and asking about Cam it's telling.. but he has to want it as well, so far it's hard to know if he'll reach his potential that you see in glimpses/small stretches. I hope we get to see it consistently, but I just don't know if he wants it bad enough yet.
Alright. Finally getting around to my lousy two cents. I always hate losing, but I was actually fairly optimistic after the game last night. I thought the effort was great with good energy pretty much across the board. Sure I could nitpick the effort a minute or two here and there, but even the best disciplined and tough teams slack for a minute or two here and there. For the 4th road game in, what, 6 days, I was actually impressed with the overall energy and effort. If the team keeps up that effort and energy, they could have a really good season.
The Boonies looked a like a really good team that was exceptionally well coached. Again, I hate that they let a really good win slip away, but that was still a really good effort in light of the Mo State debacle. In my opinion, The Boonies were a decidedly better team than Mo St.
I thought both coaching staffs did a good job. Unfortunately for us, the Boonies coaching staff seemed to edge out MT's coaching staff. This is not an observation I make about many MT basketball games, but I saw the coaching adjustments as responsible for the swings, ebbs, ups, and downs for each team. I saw move and countermove. Usually, I'm noticing a lack of effort or some such thing after a game like this. Not this time. This time, I saw dueling coaching staffs. A really good game to watch except for, ugh, FT shooting and 3pt shooting.
Ok, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that MT was playing with fire at the FT line. Two steps forward, and one step back in this case. I think pretty much everyone was concerned that FT shooting would cost MT in a close game. Hopefully, the team learns from and improves from this hard lesson.
I did think in the end, the Boonies also pulled out the win as the tougher more disciplined team. Discipline and toughness continues to be an area of concern. The Boonies may have struggled at the line, but they hit their FT shots when they mattered. That is what disciplined tough-minded teams do. And argh! Those late shot clock hits just sucked. The D was good. What can you say? Good tough teams find ways to make stuff happen to get the win even though they may be up against the ropes. Hopefully, MT will learn that.
I saw signs of a team that has the potential to be a really good team. They appear to be improving. If the team keeps working on it with great effort and energy, I like their chances to have a really good season.
The Boonies looked a like a really good team that was exceptionally well coached. Again, I hate that they let a really good win slip away, but that was still a really good effort in light of the Mo State debacle. In my opinion, The Boonies were a decidedly better team than Mo St.
I thought both coaching staffs did a good job. Unfortunately for us, the Boonies coaching staff seemed to edge out MT's coaching staff. This is not an observation I make about many MT basketball games, but I saw the coaching adjustments as responsible for the swings, ebbs, ups, and downs for each team. I saw move and countermove. Usually, I'm noticing a lack of effort or some such thing after a game like this. Not this time. This time, I saw dueling coaching staffs. A really good game to watch except for, ugh, FT shooting and 3pt shooting.
Ok, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that MT was playing with fire at the FT line. Two steps forward, and one step back in this case. I think pretty much everyone was concerned that FT shooting would cost MT in a close game. Hopefully, the team learns from and improves from this hard lesson.
I did think in the end, the Boonies also pulled out the win as the tougher more disciplined team. Discipline and toughness continues to be an area of concern. The Boonies may have struggled at the line, but they hit their FT shots when they mattered. That is what disciplined tough-minded teams do. And argh! Those late shot clock hits just sucked. The D was good. What can you say? Good tough teams find ways to make stuff happen to get the win even though they may be up against the ropes. Hopefully, MT will learn that.
I saw signs of a team that has the potential to be a really good team. They appear to be improving. If the team keeps working on it with great effort and energy, I like their chances to have a really good season.
