(POST-GAME) Providence (MSG), Sat. Feb. 9, Noon, CBS SN, 570AM

[quote="Marillac" post=321916][quote="Mike Zaun" post=321902][quote="Marillac" post=321895]Every time we lose Mullin is a bad choice? The responses are just childish.

This is a flawed tournament team. Get over it. There is no size, there is no depth, there is no second ball-handler, and Simon kills spacing more than any player in college basketball.

Dixon was supposed to be the insurance policy but he didn’t have what it took between the ears and, unfortunately, that is something you can only realiably assess after coaching someone.

We have the most delusionally entitled fans in all of sports. Grow up.[/quote]

Marillac, I respect you and I really do consider you guys my brothers since we ride and die with the same program, but calling the fanbase "delusional" and "entitled" is ludicrous and that's the mindset I'm talking about. If demanding more than being under .500 and nearly 30 games under .500 in Big East play is considered "delusional" and "entitled", then you must not have any expectations. If expecting to beat the worst Big East team at home in front of 17,000+ after being billed as a legit tournament team and Big East Champ contender is asking too much, then I'm not sure what to tell you. I never expected to be undefeated at home, but losing to the worst teams in our conference at home 3x already is ridiculous. I don't think it's being "entitled" to have expectations. You shouldn't settle for being the bridesmaid...you should want to be the bride, or what's the point? Our fanbase has been among the best in the country this year showing up. Unfortunately it has had no impact.[/quote]

I don’t ride and die with any sports team, DMX. I cheer for St. John’s and the Mets and I know full well they will disappoint me 9/10 seasons. I’ve made my peace with that. What I can’t get over is the constant negativity from fans.

The only joy this program offers is hope, but you and your posse are the the sworn enemies of it. You guys make these forums unenjoyable and unreadable after any loss or hint bad news.

Go skiing. Take up scuba diving. Travel. Get laid. It’s just sports man.[/quote]

If you watch this team and you are satisfied with this, then maybe you just aren't as big a fan as others. That would explain the indifference. There are lots of St. John's diehards out there who spend thousands and thousands on the program. Try telling that demographic they are entitled. Of course it's not life and death...it's sports. But sports are huge in our country and go try telling SEC schools that their football programs are just a sport. Try telling diehard baseball card collectors they just have a stupid piece of cardboard. You can rationalize anything...some are more rabid fans than others. Doesn't mean they don't get laid or do anything else. You're big enough a fan to post constantly on a SJ forum, but then when things are down you rationalize e.g. well, at least they _________ or it's just sports, etc. Hell, you can say a Ferrari and a 1992 Camry do the same thing technically in terms of point A to point B. Gucci is just cloth after all and gold is just a rock.
 
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weathermannyc wrote:
"There was a defensive strategy used years ago that has fallen out of favor for some reason. The big, in this case Keita plays on the high side of the pick to force the dribbler to go around on the high side. This theoretically allows the guard enough time to go underneath to emerge on the other side in good position. The weakness is if the player setting the pick rolls while Keita is out high. In that case, you would try to pinch help from the corners to help cover the paint. Yes, you leave the corner three open, but then you are forcing them to execute a big catching the ball on the move, not travelling and delivering an accurate pass. Better that than a blind switch where you wind up with Keita on a guard'

Or...... you work through the screen and stay with the man you are supposed to be guarding. It is simple defensive basketball. Switching should be the last resort, not the first option.
 
A major reason for the dissatisfaction of the fan base is that many of us feel that this season and future seasons could have been much better if Mullin simply hired an ass't to help with the X's and O's and high school recruiting. Interviews with the AD indicate he would not object to it so we wonder why someone was not brought in and Mullin will never reveal why it wasn't done.
For the past month we have also found out that there is no player or coach on staff who is capable of getting the team to play with a little fire. As the season looks like it is not going to end on a high note I can't help think how the hiring of some ass't could have made a major difference in these three areas.
I recall reading that Lapchick hired Looie to help devise strategy vs zone defenses and Looie brought in Al LoBalbo to help with defensive strategies. It is a mystery why Mullin is so stubborn.
 
[quote="Ken Shark" post=322013]weathermannyc wrote:
"There was a defensive strategy used years ago that has fallen out of favor for some reason. The big, in this case Keita plays on the high side of the pick to force the dribbler to go around on the high side. This theoretically allows the guard enough time to go underneath to emerge on the other side in good position. The weakness is if the player setting the pick rolls while Keita is out high. In that case, you would try to pinch help from the corners to help cover the paint. Yes, you leave the corner three open, but then you are forcing them to execute a big catching the ball on the move, not travelling and delivering an accurate pass. Better that than a blind switch where you wind up with Keita on a guard'

Or...... you work through the screen and stay with the man you are supposed to be guarding. It is simple defensive basketball. Switching should be the last resort, not the first option.[/quote]

The 3 point shot has totally changed this defensive strategy. Can not leave kids open at the 3 point line that shoot 45-50% when left open.
 
[quote="Enright" post=322025]A major reason for the dissatisfaction of the fan base is that many of us feel that this season and future seasons could have been much better if Mullin simply hired an ass't to help with the X's and O's and high school recruiting. Interviews with the AD indicate he would not object to it so we wonder why someone was not brought in and Mullin will never reveal why it wasn't done.
For the past month we have also found out that there is no player or coach on staff who is capable of getting the team to play with a little fire. As the season looks like it is not going to end on a high note I can't help think how the hiring of some ass't could have made a major difference in these three areas.
I recall reading that Lapchick hired Looie to help devise strategy vs zone defenses and Looie brought in Al LoBalbo to help with defensive strategies. It is a mystery why Mullin is so stubborn.[/quote]

The AD probably would not allow Mullin to hire yet another friend with no experience.
 
It's as simple as it could be. This team has a very decent starting five and are very good when that group works well together. Since they are essentially bi-polar, that isn't an experience we get all the time. I've said it before, that the drop off, the second that you hit the bench, is huge. The offensive balance and defensive awareness
goes bye bye when our reserves enter the game. Keita has no finesse. Trimble hits a three, but kills you defensively. Williams still isn't there, and can't stay with his man. He has to learn that part of playing good defense is anticipation...not just reaction. Also, When Ponds was out, DePaul took us to the cleaners. This time, the same thing
happened with Heron against Providence. We lose our chemistry, because inferior personnel have to pick up the slack...Ponds becomes easier to double team, and our scoring options become way too limited. This is obviously inflated when two starters hit the bench. Add to this, the team frequently fails play smart. They are quick and the steal the ball a lot, but they also foul way too much. They foul three point shooters way too much. It's tough to win with your opponent on a constant stream to the free throw line. Mullin is simply poor at teaching how to defend using your feet, legs and pelvis. It's how Jay Wright teaches the game. We play way too much of our defense from the waist up, with arms and hands trying to block and strip everything. It's not good defensive strategy. Then there is Justin Simon, who has become Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in 2018-19....And you never know which one is going to show up. But the elephant in the room in this game against Providence was how high they were defending over the top of the key, and how poorly we handled it. They suffocated our three point game and practically begged for penetration. Heron would have been important against defense like that. Perhaps using Ponds in a high post far more often would have been a viable solution. But even he seems to be having more shots blocked this year. In any event, Providence over-played and we never responded with a viable strategy. Instead they wore us down and our guards started losing the ball....embarrassing! It didn't help that no one could hit from the corner,,,another bad shooting game from Clark, which is something we can hardly afford. Just the same, when we put our starters on the floor, and keep them there as long as possible (please Chris...aggression is important, but we're defending by reaching!!!!), we can hang with almost anyone, and we become are a tough team to beat.
 
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