Minnesota, Fri. Nov. 18, 9pm, BTN/570AM

Most everything;s been said already

Lack of defense - especially leaving wide open 3s
No easy baskets inside - garbage buckets are a must have to win consistently
Loss of focus for too long during that Minnesota run resulting in helter skelter, out of control drives to the basket.

And, the game seem to speed up for some of the guys. You could see Mussini, Ellison and Alibegovic rushing shots.
 
For those thinking that somehow a win was possible, forget about it. The only reason it was close is that Minny used up a ton of energy erasing a 13 point deficit and turning it into a 15 point lead over a 15 minute span. They did want they wanted, when they wanted. Coffey goes off, and the answer is have Mussini guard him. If not for Lovett and Ponds going insane in the second half, it's a 20 point loss.

Defense, at this level, has to be taught, and then pounded into the heads of young athletes that spent their first 18 years trying to make offensive highlight reels instead of learning about footwork and positioning on defense. The team, so far, plays defense like their coach did. A defensive minded assistant with a history of teaching defense should be on this staff. I not upset about one road loss to a talented but not great opponent. I am thinking long term.

One other thing. When Alibegovic comes in, where did he get the idea that he is inserted to be a 3 point shooter. He has a big body, so bang people around. He is of limited to no value 26 feet from the basket.
 
At least wasju will have adequate material for Freudenberg, Mussini
jokes for a week or so. :)
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Did not see the game so only commenting from box score - Freudenberg played 4 minutes and took no shots, Mussini was 0-3 in 19 minutes. Usually not a good situation when your point guard takes a third of your shots. Have to watch tomorrow to get a real opinion of the game, especially the D.
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If Lovett and Ponds did not take all those shots we would have lost by 25 or 30. Mussini can't guard anyone or get his shot off and Freudenberg is a project. No one trusts Sima, Yakwe or Owens down low. Ellison probably should never shoot again, ditto Amar. That leaves it to Ahmed to play better.
 
Yesterday was a weird game in terms of how you felt when its over. Most were not expecting St Johns to win this game, so to lose by 6 is certainly not a disaster. Of course the fact that their defense was so bad was disappointing, because they scored plenty down the stretch of this game to win, but couldn't get stops to save their life. Give Minnesota credit too...Coffey is clearly a pro, and at 6'8 with NBA skills, we certainly won't be the only team to get chewed up by him. Minnesota also couldn't miss a free throw down the stretch so give them credit there too.

Ellison could of helped us tremendously by missing the plane to Minnesota. Couldn't believe how bad he played after looking solid in the first two.

Lets's not kill this team. I feel like some people who were negative going into the season are killing them for their play last night which makes no sense. If you weren't high on them entering the season then why would you expect them to be victorious in this spot last night on the road? This appears to be one of the better offensive teams St Johns has rolled out in recent memory. The defense is clearly our weakness, and I expect it will improve as the season moves along.
 
Bottom line is we are better than last year and will be fun to watch. That is really just based on the two guards however , which was why I was excited about this season to begin with. To be better than most reasonable people think, Ahmad and Yakwe need to step it up. I think they can.
 
I read in the Post yesterday that, for our first real game versus Vandy, we got destroyed. In our first real game this year, we did OK. If we did not go cold for the last 5/first 5, we could have won. I'm loving the back court, but concerned they won't be around very long.
 
Just watched the game. My very simplistic analysis is that we were doing great until Mullin inexplicably started messing with the rotation--which was working beautifully. Very Lavin-esque of him. The starters are 18, 19, 20 year old kids, they don't need a rest, they can handle the minutes. Swapping in Ellison was toxic. SO we basically spotted them a 10-point lead going into the second half. Yes, our defense is bad, but we could have won this were it not for the lineup changes.
 
Just watched the game. My very simplistic analysis is that we were doing great until Mullin inexplicably started messing with the rotation--which was working beautifully. Very Lavin-esque of him. The starters are 18, 19, 20 year old kids, they don't need a rest, they can handle the minutes. Swapping in Ellison was toxic. SO we basically spotted them a 10-point lead going into the second half. Yes, our defense is bad, but we could have won this were it not for the lineup changes.
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I have to disagree about the rotation. Young players, especially those with slighter builds, need not be over used. Ponds is thin enough. No need to burn guys out. Also, you have to expose your bench players to stressful real game situations, especially on the road. Things happen. Your starters need rest. They get sick or injured or homesick or who knows what. This wasn't a make or break game. There will be games where you need Ellison or Mussini or Freudenberg to step up. They won't be in position to do it rotting on the bench.
 
For those thinking that somehow a win was possible, forget about it. The only reason it was close is that Minny used up a ton of energy erasing a 13 point deficit and turning it into a 15 point lead over a 15 minute span. They did want they wanted, when they wanted. Coffey goes off, and the answer is have Mussini guard him. If not for Lovett and Ponds going insane in the second half, it's a 20 point loss.

Defense, at this level, has to be taught, and then pounded into the heads of young athletes that spent their first 18 years trying to make offensive highlight reels instead of learning about footwork and positioning on defense. The team, so far, plays defense like their coach did. A defensive minded assistant with a history of teaching defense should be on this staff. I not upset about one road loss to a talented but not great opponent. I am thinking long term.

One other thing. When Alibegovic comes in, where did he get the idea that he is inserted to be a 3 point shooter. He has a big body, so bang people around. He is of limited to no value 26 feet from the basket.
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Ray, did Lovett and Ponds go insane in the second half or are these guys good and played up to their level?

I'm going with good.

And I prefer Ali taking threes over fouling people.
 
ok make take is LoVett and Ponds is obvious. Played great! Yakwe was himself and Owens also was a force. Sima disappointed me, seemed timid. Bashir played much better, Moose was not involved, they need to set him up and find him. Ali....Ive been saying this all along and wanted to go through the TV last night....GET UNDERNEATH!!!! STOP launching 3s, you are NOT an outside threat! Use your big body and aggressiveness inside! Ellison had a poor game. Don't want to be too critical but killed our mojo. Lastly we missed some crucial free throws that could of helped us. Some positives is that Minn is much improved and actually looks like a good team, which will only make us more prepared. Need a big win or two down in the Bahamas. Go Johnnies!!!!
 
Coach Mullin and staff are building a program which in certain respects has been quicker than we thought but not as quick as we would all like. Had we won last night even by 1 point we would all be dancing with joy today, but we lost in a game of highs and lows.
Talent wins and last night clearly showed we have 2 exceptional talents on the team , 4 ( Owens, Bashir, Sima and Yakwe ) who have work to do to be good on a consistent basis and the remaining 5 who have a ton of work to do in order to contribute consistently.
This is a work in progress. Accept the good , don't get too down and enjoy the ride. Barring injury and defections next year will be another year of improvement.
 
Just watched the game. My very simplistic analysis is that we were doing great until Mullin inexplicably started messing with the rotation--which was working beautifully. Very Lavin-esque of him. The starters are 18, 19, 20 year old kids, they don't need a rest, they can handle the minutes. Swapping in Ellison was toxic. SO we basically spotted them a 10-point lead going into the second half. Yes, our defense is bad, but we could have won this were it not for the lineup changes.
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I have to disagree about the rotation. Young players, especially those with slighter builds, need not be over used. Ponds is thin enough. No need to burn guys out. Also, you have to expose your bench players to stressful real game situations, especially on the road. Things happen. Your starters need rest. They get sick or injured or homesick or who knows what. This wasn't a make or break game. There will be games where you need Ellison or Mussini or Freudenberg to step up. They won't be in position to do it rotting on the bench.
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I get what you're saying, I just don't think the time to swap out your best players is 10 minutes into the first half of your first road game in a hostle environment against your first real team.
 
After watching three games I'm wondering why, in the halfcourt defensive end, we don't try a zone? Our rotation is slow and we do a horrible job of preventing dribble penetration either to the hoop or drive and kick.

For all their offensive abilities and potential, right now our three best players are not very good at guarding on the perimeter.
 
Who on the staff can help Yawkee n Sima with their offensive games? Who coaches the bigs.... anyone know?
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No one. It is what is and will be from what I have seen with these two kids. To compete at the elite level you recruit talent........not develop it. They have already been recruited over as it should be at the top 20 schools. You develop 6th men or 7th or 8th men for senior year depth. You win national championships with God given talent on the level of Shamorie Ponds and Marcus Lovett. The rest of the guys we have will be integral in getting us there if they accept their roles and don't transfer. That's the harsh reality if you want to fill Madison Square.
 
Just watched the game. My very simplistic analysis is that we were doing great until Mullin inexplicably started messing with the rotation--which was working beautifully. Very Lavin-esque of him. The starters are 18, 19, 20 year old kids, they don't need a rest, they can handle the minutes. Swapping in Ellison was toxic. SO we basically spotted them a 10-point lead going into the second half. Yes, our defense is bad, but we could have won this were it not for the lineup changes.
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I have to disagree about the rotation. Young players, especially those with slighter builds, need not be over used. Ponds is thin enough. No need to burn guys out. Also, you have to expose your bench players to stressful real game situations, especially on the road. Things happen. Your starters need rest. They get sick or injured or homesick or who knows what. This wasn't a make or break game. There will be games where you need Ellison or Mussini or Freudenberg to step up. They won't be in position to do it rotting on the bench.
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Agree. We can't give up on these kids.

However, I do believe that the universal "green light" to shoot needs to be reined in. I understand that Mullin wants guys to be confident, but just seems that there are times when they seem to feel like it's their turn to hoist a long distance 3 at the most inopportune time (Amar is repeat offender). I know we will have to live and die with the performance of our guards. But, I wouuld like to see more aggression on the part of our big guys. Too tentative. The kid Lynch on Minnesota is an example - not very agile or extremely talented but super aggressive on offense and defense.

That said, I was happy that we fought back and had an opportunity to steal the game. And, think we have promise.
 
After watching three games I'm wondering why, in the halfcourt defensive end, we don't try a zone? Our rotation is slow and we do a horrible job of preventing dribble penetration either to the hoop or drive and kick.

For all their offensive abilities and potential, right now our three best players are not very good at guarding on the perimeter.
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Mullin wouldn't know how to coach a zone if it was drawn out for him by the John Chaney himself.
 
Who on the staff can help Yawkee n Sima with their offensive games? Who coaches the bigs.... anyone know?
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No one. It is what is and will be from what I have seen with these two kids. To compete at the elite level you recruit talent........not develop it. They have already been recruited over as it should be at the top 20 schools. You develop 6th men or 7th or 8th men for senior year depth. You win national championships with God given talent on the level of Shamorie Ponds and Marcus Lovett. The rest of the guys we have will be integral in getting us there if they accept their roles and don't transfer. That's the harsh reality if you want to fill Madison Square.
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Butler teams of a few years back were exception to this rule. Went to two NCAA finals with rosters of almost no HS stars.
 
For those thinking that somehow a win was possible, forget about it. The only reason it was close is that Minny used up a ton of energy erasing a 13 point deficit and turning it into a 15 point lead over a 15 minute span. They did want they wanted, when they wanted. Coffey goes off, and the answer is have Mussini guard him. If not for Lovett and Ponds going insane in the second half, it's a 20 point loss.

Defense, at this level, has to be taught, and then pounded into the heads of young athletes that spent their first 18 years trying to make offensive highlight reels instead of learning about footwork and positioning on defense. The team, so far, plays defense like their coach did. A defensive minded assistant with a history of teaching defense should be on this staff. I not upset about one road loss to a talented but not great opponent. I am thinking long term.

One other thing. When Alibegovic comes in, where did he get the idea that he is inserted to be a 3 point shooter. He has a big body, so bang people around. He is of limited to no value 26 feet from the basket.
Click to expand...

Ray, did Lovett and Ponds go insane in the second half or are these guys good and played up to their level?

I'm going with good.

And I prefer Ali taking threes over fouling people.
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Lovett had around 30 in the second half. Ponds hit some really tough 3's. As good as they are, which is very good, their offensive show in the final 15 minutes was something special. Can't expect that every game. As for Ali, I would rather have him play tough D and hit the boards than shoot 3's or foul people. Since I expect he will be fouling bigs, who often aren't great ft shooters, maybe fouling is preferable.
 
Can we bring in a specialist to teach D? Limited role. Not on the bench at game time. What are the restrictions?
 
After watching three games I'm wondering why, in the halfcourt defensive end, we don't try a zone? Our rotation is slow and we do a horrible job of preventing dribble penetration either to the hoop or drive and kick.

For all their offensive abilities and potential, right now our three best players are not very good at guarding on the perimeter.
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Mullin wouldn't know how to coach a zone if it was drawn out for him by the John Chaney himself.
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So, neither Mullin nor anybody on the staff can coach a zone defense? What do you base your statement on?
 
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