Villanova Game Thread
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STJ11Redmen
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When he first came in he had one play where he got the ball and was semi open but made the extra pass to find a wide open Harrison next to him which was refreshing to see. I thought Hooper played a solid game. Didn't kill us on defense. Missed 2 open shots but he will make more of those than he will miss.
MarkRedman
Well-known member
Hooper played a solid game?
He is a one trick pony and shot 1 for 5 from 3 point range for a total of 3 points in 18 minutes played
He's too slow to defend against a guard and too small and not strong enough to guard a forward
He's the college basketball equivalent of the wildcat in football - good to use once in awhile but a steady diet is not a good idea
He should not be playing 18 minutes unless he's really on fire from the field (and he wasn't today)
STJ11Redmen
Active member
People complain when he doesn't play and they complain when he does play. He didn't force his shots and didn't kill us on defense. Missed shots that he usually makes but that happens. I honestly didn't think he played a bad game. Fact of the matter is when he was in we played better than when he was not in. They had a guy in his jockstrap all day and that helped our other guys get decent looks.
beast of the east
Active member
If Hooper isn't helping us, he's hurting us. Trust me, they weren't overplaying him, just keeping an eye on him. Unless he has enough time to square and release, he can't get his shot off. That's why defenders didn't jump out at him until the ball was swinging his way. Max saw the defender coming before he caught the ball and got rid of it. Compare that to Ryan Arcidiacono and you will see what a big time college shooter should do.
Unless you are Hooper's dad, I'm surprised at your post. You couldn't be Hooper's mom, because I'm sure she'd mad that he left Harvard to come here.
STJ11Redmen
Active member
If Hooper isn't helping us, he's hurting us. Trust me, they weren't overplaying him, just keeping an eye on him. Unless he has enough time to square and release, he can't get his shot off. That's why defenders didn't jump out at him until the ball was swinging his way. Max saw the defender coming before he caught the ball and got rid of it. Compare that to Ryan Arcidiacono and you will see what a big time college shooter should do.
Unless you are Hooper's dad, I'm surprised at your post. You couldn't be Hooper's mom, because I'm sure she'd mad that he left Harvard to come here.
He was +8 in the first half and wasn't in the game when nova took control in the 2nd half. I could be way off and I didn't look at the box score before I posted my original post but my feel from watching was that when Hooper was in he played solidly. Might just be because Dom kept making crucial mistakes when he replaced Hooper.
beast of the east
Active member
If Hooper isn't helping us, he's hurting us. Trust me, they weren't overplaying him, just keeping an eye on him. Unless he has enough time to square and release, he can't get his shot off. That's why defenders didn't jump out at him until the ball was swinging his way. Max saw the defender coming before he caught the ball and got rid of it. Compare that to Ryan Arcidiacono and you will see what a big time college shooter should do.
Unless you are Hooper's dad, I'm surprised at your post. You couldn't be Hooper's mom, because I'm sure she'd mad that he left Harvard to come here.
He was +8 in the first half and wasn't in the game when nova took control in the 2nd half. I could be way off and I didn't look at the box score before I posted my original post but my feel from watching was that when Hooper was in he played solidly. Might just be because Dom kept making crucial mistakes when he replaced Hooper.
I've said this before. I don't dislike Max, who has far more basketball skills and court vision than he is given credit for. But still and all, since he doesn't rebound, doesn't drive, and appears to be more of a spare part than an integral piece of the offense, unless he is drilling baskets, he can't be on the court.
If Hooper isn't helping us, he's hurting us. Trust me, they weren't overplaying him, just keeping an eye on him. Unless he has enough time to square and release, he can't get his shot off. That's why defenders didn't jump out at him until the ball was swinging his way. Max saw the defender coming before he caught the ball and got rid of it. Compare that to Ryan Arcidiacono and you will see what a big time college shooter should do.
Unless you are Hooper's dad, I'm surprised at your post. You couldn't be Hooper's mom, because I'm sure she'd mad that he left Harvard to come here.
He was +8 in the first half and wasn't in the game when nova took control in the 2nd half. I could be way off and I didn't look at the box score before I posted my original post but my feel from watching was that when Hooper was in he played solidly. Might just be because Dom kept making crucial mistakes when he replaced Hooper.
I've said this before. I don't dislike Max, who has far more basketball skills and court vision than he is given credit for. But still and all, since he doesn't rebound, doesn't drive, and appears to be more of a spare part than an integral piece of the offense, unless he is drilling baskets, he can't be on the court.
The quickest way to ruin a shooter is to make his minutes contingent on making shots. If Max misses three shots in a row, there is still a 40+% chance he drills the next. I'm glad the kid got a chance to get some meaningful minutes today. He has a lot of adjustments left to make to his game to improve, but every game like this will only get him to where he needs to be and where we need him to be.
beast of the east
Active member
If Hooper isn't helping us, he's hurting us. Trust me, they weren't overplaying him, just keeping an eye on him. Unless he has enough time to square and release, he can't get his shot off. That's why defenders didn't jump out at him until the ball was swinging his way. Max saw the defender coming before he caught the ball and got rid of it. Compare that to Ryan Arcidiacono and you will see what a big time college shooter should do.
Unless you are Hooper's dad, I'm surprised at your post. You couldn't be Hooper's mom, because I'm sure she'd mad that he left Harvard to come here.
He was +8 in the first half and wasn't in the game when nova took control in the 2nd half. I could be way off and I didn't look at the box score before I posted my original post but my feel from watching was that when Hooper was in he played solidly. Might just be because Dom kept making crucial mistakes when he replaced Hooper.
I've said this before. I don't dislike Max, who has far more basketball skills and court vision than he is given credit for. But still and all, since he doesn't rebound, doesn't drive, and appears to be more of a spare part than an integral piece of the offense, unless he is drilling baskets, he can't be on the court.
The quickest way to ruin a shooter is to make his minutes contingent on making shots. If Max misses three shots in a row, there is still a 40+% chance he drills the next. I'm glad the kid got a chance to get some meaningful minutes today. He has a lot of adjustments left to make to his game to improve, but every game like this will only get him to where he needs to be and where we need him to be.
At every college at every level in America, guys are on the court because they are performing. Beneath them on the depth chart are guys who in limited minutes have to come in and perform well. At the bottom, are guys who haven't performed well on the court when given the chance. It's survival of the fittest. From what I've seen, he isn't the type of shooter who makes shots under pressure in game situations. It limits him, and is part of the reason, I believe, that he doesn't merit major minutes. Wide open, I expect him to make 60% of those shots in big game situations. Re-read that - WIDE OPEN. You can't expect to be a great outside shooter if all you can shoot is wide open. However to be a great college shooter from 20'6", you have to make more of them wide open than you miss. In every other facet of Hooper's game, there are more talented guys on this team.
Says it all; Team doesn't rebound well, fouls too much & makes bad choices. Not to mention the "school yard" brand of ball we play.
"With about five minutes left, Villanova guard Darrun Hilliard hit his sole bucket of the game, a dagger 3-pointer that put the Wildcats up seven. Much like they did against Syracuse, the Red Storm fell apart down the stretch. Instead of slowing the ball down and trying to work for good looks, the Red Storm continued to play at a frantic pace that led to turnovers and bad shots. A better coached Villanova team looked much more composed and instead of forcing things, let St. John's make mistakes. Nova was the better coached, more disciplined team and came away with a tough road win to drop St. John's to an 0-3 start in conference play."
"D'Angelo Harrison led all scorers with 22 points and Jakarr Sampson finished with 10 points and 9 boards to lead the Red Storm. St. John's got crushed on the boards 48-39 and sent Villanova to the line 40 times. St. John's has another crack at earning its first conference win on Tuesday night at DePaul."
http://www.bigeastcoastbias.com/2014/1/11/5299094/game-recap-villanova-74-st-johns-67
"With about five minutes left, Villanova guard Darrun Hilliard hit his sole bucket of the game, a dagger 3-pointer that put the Wildcats up seven. Much like they did against Syracuse, the Red Storm fell apart down the stretch. Instead of slowing the ball down and trying to work for good looks, the Red Storm continued to play at a frantic pace that led to turnovers and bad shots. A better coached Villanova team looked much more composed and instead of forcing things, let St. John's make mistakes. Nova was the better coached, more disciplined team and came away with a tough road win to drop St. John's to an 0-3 start in conference play."
"D'Angelo Harrison led all scorers with 22 points and Jakarr Sampson finished with 10 points and 9 boards to lead the Red Storm. St. John's got crushed on the boards 48-39 and sent Villanova to the line 40 times. St. John's has another crack at earning its first conference win on Tuesday night at DePaul."
http://www.bigeastcoastbias.com/2014/1/11/5299094/game-recap-villanova-74-st-johns-67
MarkRedman
Well-known member
In theory, we have the big man inside to take up space and score inside
May I introduce you to Orlando Sanchez
There are two problems with Orlando:
1. He played 12 minutes yesterday because he can't play defense without fouling
2. Somebody must have told him that he is supposed to point guard and lead the break whenever he gets the ball in the defensive end
Talking about busts, to me, he has been the biggest disappointment to date this season
NBA potential? Puh-lease!!!!!
He's not ready for the D-League
If Hooper isn't helping us, he's hurting us. Trust me, they weren't overplaying him, just keeping an eye on him. Unless he has enough time to square and release, he can't get his shot off. That's why defenders didn't jump out at him until the ball was swinging his way. Max saw the defender coming before he caught the ball and got rid of it. Compare that to Ryan Arcidiacono and you will see what a big time college shooter should do.
Unless you are Hooper's dad, I'm surprised at your post. You couldn't be Hooper's mom, because I'm sure she'd mad that he left Harvard to come here.
What an utterly nonsensical post. Hooper DID play a solid game including pretty solid D, he got beat twice to the basket but it's not like he is alone in that; he certainly didn't shoot well which he needs to do. My main concern with his shooting was he was not even in the cylinder on a couple which tells me he is rushing or is nervous. If he is rushing maybe, and I emphasize maybe, the game is too fast but maybe it is a symptom of his nerves which PT will either solve or reveal he is not a player. I am certainly not giving Hooper sole or even major credit for this but the + time for the team were the two stretches he was in the game. You want a better comparison to Ryan Arcidiacono? He came down one on one on a fast break and he held the ball off to drop it off for a wide open 3 pointer. Our "athletic" phenoms? They all put their heads down and go for theirs whether its 2 on 1, 3 on 1, whatever almost every single time. I will give you three seemingly innocent plays that symbolize this team (or lack of). With about 5 minutes to go Harrison got the ball extended at almost half court. he put his head down dribbled through several stops and starts and seemingly was going to shoot no matter what. He wound up getting to the basket and was fouled and Raf even made a comment about his determination or something to that effect. But from that point on it was SJU one on one offense as only they can do it; epitomized by the ridiculous turnover Harrison had at midcourt when instead of pitching to an open Jordan on the side he dribbled into 3 guys because he wasn't giving the ball up. It wound up as a scrum on the Nova side of mid-court and 2 or 3 Nova guys hit the floor, none for SJU. My final example, and again the play was meaningless except for what it meant, at least to me. Greene had committed his 4th foul trying to steal the ball in the corner while pressing the play before. Similar situation 30 seconds later and Greene DIDN'T foul and commit his 5th even though the clock HAD to be stopped ASAP. Instead, Sampson ran from the middle of the court and committed his 5th, wasting what could have been (but weren't) valuable seconds. This is a selfish, unintelligent (basketball intelligence) team and I don't believe anything is going to change that. It is leaderless on the court and from the coaching box. Yes, we hung with Nova but they certainly did not play their A game and we typically folded down the stretch again, which we do unless our one on one crap happens to go in. They could not stop Jordan going to the basket the whole second half, why not stay with that until they stopped it? I've read a lot of "IF we made shots posts" but the truth is winners find ways to win and teams that don't find ways to lose. As for Hooper, IMO, he earned nothing more than to be put back on the floor, I don't think he proved anything one way or the other.
A lot of pessimism . The way I see it ,compared to the way we played Georgetown ,we looked like world beaters against a much better Villinova team. I watched a good game were it was a dogfight until 5 minutes left. We have the soft part of the schedule coming up. We will see.Yes I am Dissapointed w the overall performance of the team. But not the Villanova game. We could have won that game and yes we have difficiancies. We could use a guy like Ryan A . He's a great shooter who is a smart player. He doesn't forse shots . He takes one when he is open and passes when he isn't. Even w our talent, Can you imagine where we would be at our players played w that kind of mindset.
beast of the east
Active member
Villanova sucked yesterday. We were worse.
I agree the refs were watching a different game. I sit closer enough to the floor to see some of the fouls called against us in the first half were no touch fouls. If this is the way they are going to call fouls, the new BE will no longer be a rough and tumble type of play but more like a bunch soft touch (shall I say sissy?) playing league. As for Branch I really dont see all the hoopla he gets on this site. I think the guy is awful. For every good play or made basket he makes, he makes 4 bad plays and misses 8 shots. I see Jordan as our only real point guard, Greene should be second although he needs to look to pass a bit more.
beast of the east
Active member
If Hooper isn't helping us, he's hurting us. Trust me, they weren't overplaying him, just keeping an eye on him. Unless he has enough time to square and release, he can't get his shot off. That's why defenders didn't jump out at him until the ball was swinging his way. Max saw the defender coming before he caught the ball and got rid of it. Compare that to Ryan Arcidiacono and you will see what a big time college shooter should do.
Unless you are Hooper's dad, I'm surprised at your post. You couldn't be Hooper's mom, because I'm sure she'd mad that he left Harvard to come here.
What an utterly nonsensical post. Hooper DID play a solid game including pretty solid D, he got beat twice to the basket but it's not like he is alone in that; he certainly didn't shoot well which he needs to do. My main concern with his shooting was he was not even in the cylinder on a couple which tells me he is rushing or is nervous. If he is rushing maybe, and I emphasize maybe, the game is too fast but maybe it is a symptom of his nerves which PT will either solve or reveal he is not a player. I am certainly not giving Hooper sole or even major credit for this but the + time for the team were the two stretches he was in the game. You want a better comparison to Ryan Arcidiacono? He came down one on one on a fast break and he held the ball off to drop it off for a wide open 3 pointer. Our "athletic" phenoms? They all put their heads down and go for theirs whether its 2 on 1, 3 on 1, whatever almost every single time. I will give you three seemingly innocent plays that symbolize this team (or lack of). With about 5 minutes to go Harrison got the ball extended at almost half court. he put his head down dribbled through several stops and starts and seemingly was going to shoot no matter what. He wound up getting to the basket and was fouled and Raf even made a comment about his determination or something to that effect. But from that point on it was SJU one on one offense as only they can do it; epitomized by the ridiculous turnover Harrison had at midcourt when instead of pitching to an open Jordan on the side he dribbled into 3 guys because he wasn't giving the ball up. It wound up as a scrum on the Nova side of mid-court and 2 or 3 Nova guys hit the floor, none for SJU. My final example, and again the play was meaningless except for what it meant, at least to me. Greene had committed his 4th foul trying to steal the ball in the corner while pressing the play before. Similar situation 30 seconds later and Greene DIDN'T foul and commit his 5th even though the clock HAD to be stopped ASAP. Instead, Sampson ran from the middle of the court and committed his 5th, wasting what could have been (but weren't) valuable seconds. This is a selfish, unintelligent (basketball intelligence) team and I don't believe anything is going to change that. It is leaderless on the court and from the coaching box. Yes, we hung with Nova but they certainly did not play their A game and we typically folded down the stretch again, which we do unless our one on one crap happens to go in. They could not stop Jordan going to the basket the whole second half, why not stay with that until they stopped it? I've read a lot of "IF we made shots posts" but the truth is winners find ways to win and teams that don't find ways to lose. As for Hooper, IMO, he earned nothing more than to be put back on the floor, I don't think he proved anything one way or the other.
Until Hooper makes open shots consistently he doesn't belong on the floor. You took about 15 sentences to write a pile of crap. As for Hooper, he goes to a corner and camps out - at that rate he could have played 500 minutes and not broken a sweat.
westchesterjoe
Active member
Hooper shots didn't go in yesterday but, he wasn't awful.. And, his defense is no worse than others on the team. They all get beat off the dribble, some more than others. DLO for one, Sampson for another. jordan, not so much.
As for Hooper stuck in the corner, here's my take. Lasr year , when Marco played, rare as it was, drifted to the same spot as HOOPER. When Greene was in there, Marco never sniffed the ball, even when open. Yesterday, same thing, Greene never threw Max the ball, ignoring him completely. Greene4 preferring to dribble incessantly for 15 seconds , prior to hoisting his own poorly aimed shot.
While neither Hooper or Marco are 5 star players, they could be effective occasionally, if they got the ball in a position to shoot, which the other guys make sure doesn't happen. Phil could make a move to basket, instead of his habitual side to side and draw Max's defender to him,leaving HOOPER A OPEN LOOK. he will drain them but, not if he gets 3 shots a game while DLO hoists 13 with 9 misses. Or, last week, his 1-12 outing. DLO is not a good % shooter, neither is Greene.
It's on Lavin why the shooters on this team are frozen out of play..
As for Hooper stuck in the corner, here's my take. Lasr year , when Marco played, rare as it was, drifted to the same spot as HOOPER. When Greene was in there, Marco never sniffed the ball, even when open. Yesterday, same thing, Greene never threw Max the ball, ignoring him completely. Greene4 preferring to dribble incessantly for 15 seconds , prior to hoisting his own poorly aimed shot.
While neither Hooper or Marco are 5 star players, they could be effective occasionally, if they got the ball in a position to shoot, which the other guys make sure doesn't happen. Phil could make a move to basket, instead of his habitual side to side and draw Max's defender to him,leaving HOOPER A OPEN LOOK. he will drain them but, not if he gets 3 shots a game while DLO hoists 13 with 9 misses. Or, last week, his 1-12 outing. DLO is not a good % shooter, neither is Greene.
It's on Lavin why the shooters on this team are frozen out of play..