DePaul, Mon. Jan. 16, 4:30pm, FS1/970AM
- Thread starter Knight
- Start date
Last year 90% of this board was ready to run Malik out of town. Kid worked hard for 6 months as Happy told us and greatly improved. The majority of it was mental. Both Ahmed and Yakwe have big time skills. Hopefully the staff can get through to those 2 the way they did with Malik. Once that happens we will have 5 potential good scorers on the team.
Day can't come soon enough for me.
Still like the dive from Yakwe. He fumbled it today but I think he has nailed it the last 3 times they've run it to him. I thought his demeanor looked more positive today. I don't think he's won a tip all season though.
It was a mixed bag and he drew fouls and got rebounds. The forcing when it results in a foul is helpful in part even though it overall helps kill the offensive rhythm. At times he was part of the good ball movement including 3 assists which may well be a career high and when he is part of that, he is a + for us.
His FT has devolved into a line drive which is unfortunate because at times he has a nice stroke. Mental.
stjohnschris
Active member
Last year 90% of this board was ready to run Malik out of town. Kid worked hard for 6 months as Happy told us and greatly improved. The majority of it was mental. Both Ahmed and Yakwe have big time skills. Hopefully the staff can get through to those 2 the way they did with Malik. Once that happens we will have 5 potential good scorers on the team.
Day can't come soon enough for me.
I'll certainly admit that I didn't think Malik would fast track to where he is today. I still think limiting his minutes is a good idea. He seems to play best when he's not out there for 10 - 12 game minutes without a break. That seems to be when his unforced errors occur.
We've had good CA crowds this year. Good job by the school with regards to generating better crowds and the Felipe bobble head is a good one.
The best post game player is Marcus. He's got a lot of Harrison in him. As the game ended he shook hands with the AD, worked the crowd and gave away another pair of sneakers as well as other stuff he was wearing. I'm not sure what some six year old is going to do with one used sneaker, but I like his style. I hope he's here when this team wins on a regular basis.
The best post game player is Marcus. He's got a lot of Harrison in him. As the game ended he shook hands with the AD, worked the crowd and gave away another pair of sneakers as well as other stuff he was wearing. I'm not sure what some six year old is going to do with one used sneaker, but I like his style. I hope he's here when this team wins on a regular basis.
Returned from the Arena about an hour ago. Here are some observations.
First of all it is always great to see Coach Carnesecca in the arena. He has not been coming much, if at all, this season and was glad to see that he was there. He left after halftime and did not stay for the end of the game but his presence creates positive vibes in the arena.
It was also wonderful to see Felipe Lopez there. They gave away Felipe Bobble heads and he is a big supporter of St. John's and a great ambassador for the University. He was acknowledged at Center Court and got a big ovation from the Crowd. After the game he jumped around and hugged the team during a very cool victory celebration.
Also the 1959 and 1965 NIT teams were acknowledged at center court. St. John's has a rich basketball tradition and it was good to see players from those championship Lapchick teams in the arena.
While he did not have a great game statistically, Marcus Lovett brings a high level of positive energy to the Arena. He is always encouraging teammates, revving up the crowd and being positive when he is not in the game. After the game was over he acknowledged numerous people in the crowd, talked to fans, signed autographs, gave away a pair of sneakers and was thoroughly engaged with fans in the Arena. As a fan who goes to the game regularly it really enhances the experience when a player creates a partnership with the crowd and acknowledges their value. Kudos to Lovett for being front and center in reaching out to fans at the game.
As for the game itself we played well for the most part. Ellison shot the lights out and when he is open and can set himself, then he generally shoots well. Owens had a very good game on the boards, brought great energy to the court and blocked four shots. Ponds heated up late and made some really big threes in the second half. Lovett was not at his best offensively but recognized that his shot was off early and adjusted his game accordingly. He played great defense on Garrett, did not force the action, did not turn the ball over and moved the ball effectively to get others involved. Mussini was solid, played very hard, made good decisions and hit a couple of big shots. Ahmed was out of control at times, but rebounded well, did a good job of getting to the line (although he missed 7 free throws) and wound up scoring 14 points. Yakwe and Williams both contributed positively in limited roles.
It is always great to see us play conference games at Carnesecca. There is a great energy there and the smaller arena lends itself to a better home court advantage for us.
Two other final points. First it was very upsetting that DePaul was allowed to shoot the one and one on the sixth foul of the second half. Everybody was yelling it out but somehow the Refs didn't pick up on it.
Secondly, I am sure it is a scheduling quirk but I wish that the Carnesecca Arena games were not done by January 16th. Hopefully in future seasons they will hold back a game or two for the latter part of the schedule.
First of all it is always great to see Coach Carnesecca in the arena. He has not been coming much, if at all, this season and was glad to see that he was there. He left after halftime and did not stay for the end of the game but his presence creates positive vibes in the arena.
It was also wonderful to see Felipe Lopez there. They gave away Felipe Bobble heads and he is a big supporter of St. John's and a great ambassador for the University. He was acknowledged at Center Court and got a big ovation from the Crowd. After the game he jumped around and hugged the team during a very cool victory celebration.
Also the 1959 and 1965 NIT teams were acknowledged at center court. St. John's has a rich basketball tradition and it was good to see players from those championship Lapchick teams in the arena.
While he did not have a great game statistically, Marcus Lovett brings a high level of positive energy to the Arena. He is always encouraging teammates, revving up the crowd and being positive when he is not in the game. After the game was over he acknowledged numerous people in the crowd, talked to fans, signed autographs, gave away a pair of sneakers and was thoroughly engaged with fans in the Arena. As a fan who goes to the game regularly it really enhances the experience when a player creates a partnership with the crowd and acknowledges their value. Kudos to Lovett for being front and center in reaching out to fans at the game.
As for the game itself we played well for the most part. Ellison shot the lights out and when he is open and can set himself, then he generally shoots well. Owens had a very good game on the boards, brought great energy to the court and blocked four shots. Ponds heated up late and made some really big threes in the second half. Lovett was not at his best offensively but recognized that his shot was off early and adjusted his game accordingly. He played great defense on Garrett, did not force the action, did not turn the ball over and moved the ball effectively to get others involved. Mussini was solid, played very hard, made good decisions and hit a couple of big shots. Ahmed was out of control at times, but rebounded well, did a good job of getting to the line (although he missed 7 free throws) and wound up scoring 14 points. Yakwe and Williams both contributed positively in limited roles.
It is always great to see us play conference games at Carnesecca. There is a great energy there and the smaller arena lends itself to a better home court advantage for us.
Two other final points. First it was very upsetting that DePaul was allowed to shoot the one and one on the sixth foul of the second half. Everybody was yelling it out but somehow the Refs didn't pick up on it.
Secondly, I am sure it is a scheduling quirk but I wish that the Carnesecca Arena games were not done by January 16th. Hopefully in future seasons they will hold back a game or two for the latter part of the schedule.
stjohnschris
Active member
I'm well aware that DePaul is a very good matchup for us, but even with that, I thought our backcourt defense was solid today...and although he had 2 or 3 poor attempts at stopping a fast break, Mussini was playing agressive D, and NOT getting beat off the dribble. Same with Ponds and Lovett, who have the natural foot speed to play man to man against most Big East guards, but often lose focus and tenacity.
I always knew Malik could do this! Uh, actually.....I was one of the knee jerks wanting to run him out of town. Now, he is one of our best players.....period.
Regarding Yakwe, I did see something I liked today. He looked a tad more aggressive and was more willing to look for his shot. It wasn't pretty (at all), but we might be moving in the right direction. Kid could be a strong senior.
Regarding Yakwe, I did see something I liked today. He looked a tad more aggressive and was more willing to look for his shot. It wasn't pretty (at all), but we might be moving in the right direction. Kid could be a strong senior.
Someone needs to explain to me how Ellison is a 42% 3pt shooter and only 55% from the foul line. That doesn't make a ton of sense. Unguarded and 10ft closer you should be almost automatic if you shoot that we'll from 3.
I'm not ready to anoint him our next star just yet. But he had a very nice game today. Kudos to Malik E.
I'm not ready to anoint him our next star just yet. But he had a very nice game today. Kudos to Malik E.
I like your admission Johnny Fan on knee jerk reactions - not just for Ellison but all of our players and coaches need time for our program to evolve.
After all we came out of the depths.
Let's recall in April 2015 Chris Mullin promised the hardest working best shaped team - which more or less we have become - he did not promise a quick fix and a lot of Ws.
I like what we are doing and the direction we are headed
(Too bad we can't get the Delaware state & LIU gsmes back)
But very sweet team win tonight!