(PRE-GAME) @Villanova, Tues., Jan. 8, 7p, FS-1 / 970 AM

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[quote="Beast of the East" post=313373]To lower your blood pressure, think of this game as a freebie. You should lose away to Villanova, but if we win its a great chip in our pocket that could lead to a BE reg season title, and ward off a potential home loss to them in Feb.[/quote]
Exactly
 
[quote="Beast of the East" post=313373]To lower your blood pressure, think of this game as a freebie. You should lose away to Villanova, but if we win its a great chip in our pocket that could lead to a BE reg season title, and ward off a potential home loss to them in Feb.[/quote]

I'd feel this way if we weren't robbed at SH. I'll be disappointed with a loss today and a 2-2 start. You never want to go into the second game down 0-1 to Nova even in a down year.

This is the first team in a long time that we've faced with similar attributes in terms of size and depth. We also have more talent. A lot of things had to align for us to have a better roster than Villanova.

This won't be a sky is falling loss if we e me up losing and it's certainly not a must win, but 3-1 with a road win at Nova v. 2-2 is a very big difference.

Heron Has his best game of the season tonight and goes wild. You know what Ponds does against Nova too.

Lopsided win coming up.
 
Beast of the East wrote: To lower your blood pressure, think of this game as a freebie. You should lose away to Villanova, but if we win its a great chip in our pocket that could lead to a BE reg season title, and ward off a potential home loss to them in Feb.

Agree 100% although I doubt it will lower my blood pressure while watching the game...
 
Frankly , surprised that Nova is 6 point favorite. Seems heavy , even factoring Home Court Advantage . However, in Seton Hall game in last 9 minutes and GTown game in OT , we had Game seemingly in hand but, had trouble putting the nail in the coffin . Close games are the norm in many BE contests , so putting a opponent away in Crunch time is critical ... free throw shooting down the stretch is crucial and we haven’t been sterling in that aspect yet . Having Ponds or Clark on the line is the better choice , if Marvin is still in the game, followed by Heron , Figueroa and then, Simon. It can be the difference between teams evenly matched . And , Road wins are needed if winning the BE Conference is our Goal . So, while not a must Win , tonight tells us a lot about what our Conference Record can be in March . Go Redmen . JSJ will be in the House .
 
Disciplined team that pump fakes on almost every perimeter catch. Very adept at drawing fouls and imagine that has been a focus for them in game prep for SJU. They'll look to have as many with 2 and some with 3 in the 1st half as they can.

Have to stay down defensively and let them be a jump shooting team. When they breakdown defenses and draw extra help they are devastating in getting wide open looks. For a team that has been so good, their offense is predicated upon commitment to very basic fundamentals and individuals making smart play after smart play.

Have to stay engaged mentally for 40 and don't let them wear you down running the same action over and over.
 
[quote="Marillac" post=313380][quote="Beast of the East" post=313373]To lower your blood pressure, think of this game as a freebie. You should lose away to Villanova, but if we win its a great chip in our pocket that could lead to a BE reg season title, and ward off a potential home loss to them in Feb.[/quote]

I'd feel this way if we weren't robbed at SH. I'll be disappointed with a loss today and a 2-2 start. You never want to go into the second game down 0-1 to Nova even in a down year.

This is the first team in a long time that we've faced with similar attributes in terms of size and depth. We also have more talent. A lot of things had to align for us to have a better roster than Villanova.

This won't be a sky is falling loss if we e me up losing and it's certainly not a must win, but 3-1 with a road win at Nova v. 2-2 is a very big difference.

Heron Has his best game of the season tonight and goes wild. You know what Ponds does against Nova too.

Lopsided win coming up.[/quote]

I agree with Marillac, if we hadn't been screwed against Satan Hall I would feel like this a freebie. But, some pollsters were still mentioning that they weren't sold on us because we lost on the road to Satan Hall and barely beat a #90 RPI Georgetown team and that while the win over Marquette was impressive it was at home. Some of the powers that be in this whole ranking system are still looking at this game as our chance to prove ourselves. While losing this game is not back breaker , we will not be ranked again unless we win like four in row after this game if we lose.
 
Win or lose, must say how lucky we are to have five core guys, who at at critical times, can make plays at both ends of court. On D all are blessed with unbelievably quick hands that rattles opponents & often leads to easy buckets (difference makers) via steals & deflections.
 
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[quote="SJU1512" post=313388]Disciplined team that pump fakes on almost every perimeter catch. Very adept at drawing fouls and imagine that has been a focus for them in game prep for SJU. They'll look to have as many with 2 and some with 3 in the 1st half as they can.

Have to stay down defensively and let them be a jump shooting team. When they breakdown defenses and draw extra help they are devastating in getting wide open looks. For a team that has been so good, their offense is predicated upon commitment to very basic fundamentals and individuals making smart play after smart play.

Have to stay engaged mentally for 40 and don't let them wear you down running the same action over and over.[/quote]

This is why it is so important that we show up defensively. We must prevent the guy with the ball from dibble penetration. By preventing dribble penetration we should be in better position to rebound, stay out of foul trouble and prevent open 3 pointers. This will be our toughest test year to date on how well we play perimeter defense. They have very little low post offense. Whatever they have, Keita and Clarke should be able to handle. We will get the shots we want, we need to make them. But most importantly we must DEFEND, DEFEND and DEFEND for the entire game. Keep them at 35% or below from the 3 and we will be ok.
 
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[quote="Beast of the East" post=313373]To lower your blood pressure, think of this game as a freebie. You should lose away to Villanova, but if we win its a great chip in our pocket that could lead to a BE reg season title, and ward off a potential home loss to them in Feb.[/quote]I think most posters would have been happy w 2-2 after our first 4 games.
 
If we were told 4 months ago that we'd go 12-0 OOC and then 2-1 in conference (ranked #24!), but then would lose @ Nova... 100% of non-trolls on this site would've signed up for that.

Since we knew for months how tough this stretch would be, I said all along I wanted to go 2-2. At points I even said 1-3 would be acceptable. The team is healthy and already has 2 wins. What more could you ask for? If we win tonight it will just be a massive cherry on top.
 
Yes, many posters would have been happy with 2-2 before the Seton Hall game but, that was based on some skeptics questioning our early schedule at 12-0. After the robbery at SH , expectations rose and more so , after Marquette blow out . The GTown OT Win was great but, we could have easily lost that game in regulation as we were down 4 in last 18 seconds or so . The Nova game is our greatest opportunity to date to distinguish this team . Being 3-1 is a lot better than 2-2 since Nova would be 3-0 and have 2 games in hand in loss column . 2-2 is ok if we are content with less than a regular Season Title . Nova also has 2 Road Wins already , DePaul and Providence . It’s also a concern that the betting line is Nova -6? That’s a lot , even with 3 point Homecourt cushion . Vegas must still not be convinced . Why ? DePaul had the Cats on the ropes but, wilted down the stretch . PC rallied too late but,made Nova sweat in last minute or so . So , what’s it all mean ? Fasten your Seat Belts it’s going to be a bumpy night . Bette Davis said that, many years ago .
 
[quote="richard A Steinfeld" post=313400][quote="Beast of the East" post=313373]To lower your blood pressure, think of this game as a freebie. You should lose away to Villanova, but if we win its a great chip in our pocket that could lead to a BE reg season title, and ward off a potential home loss to them in Feb.[/quote]I think most posters would have been happy w 2-2 after our first 4 games.[/quote]

I feared 1-3, and Marillac rebuked me guaranteeing 3-1. It's a huge opportunity for us to put the league on notice with a win, but it isn't essential to win.
 
I think this game is essential in the sense that it would establish St. John’s as ‘real’. Most doubters would either be silenced or become believers.
Of course, beating Nova tonight away would raise the temperature and the ante on the season.
Just imagine the BPs on this Board all season?!?
It would be a bull market for defibrillators!
I think we’ll win tonight, with a bit of luck...and Ponds ‘in the mood’.
Let’s go Redmen.
 
Spacing and ball movement will be the key for our offense. Defensive intensity a must.
 
When Paultzman asked for thoughts on first four BE games, my reaction was hoping for 3-1 but ok with 2-2. Also said that Hall game was key and if we lost that likely be looking at 2-2 at best (how wrong I was there!).

No way I can consider tonight a must win; 3-1 would be nice as would wins over our top 2 BE foes in first 4 games. But as far as I am concerned a close loss tonight would disappoint but not surprise me. I look at this one as a tossup.
 
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[quote="Beast of the East" post=313373]To lower your blood pressure, think of this game as a freebie.

Ah, I wish it were that simple.
 
I thought we could very well go 4-0 but set my realistic expectation to 3-1. I feel pretty confident we walk away with a nice win today. I wont say if its close or not because I really dont care. We walk away with a win today is the goal and stay healthy. I will be taking the very nice money line tonight not hoping we win but expecting a win. Now if they happen to lose, then I wont second guess myself as I really think they will win tonight. Its when i hope a bet wins that I take and it loses where I second guess it. Now my keegan bradley bet the other day on the other hand even though i knew he wouldnt win pisses me off!!! What the heck was I thinking??? lol
 
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