uneblinstu's Post Game Chatter: ed 7, vol 2 - Central Arkansas

[uneblinstu]

That wasn't pretty. Also, I missed the first half of the first half. From what I understand, it wasn't pretty.

 

• UCA has to be kicking themselves for their missed layups. Could have made things very interesting in the first half and then who knows what happens if it's a 3 point game at half instead of 9.

• Credit the Bears for playing scrappy. But this is a team NU should have had on blast from the get go. NU’s lacked that killer mentality to put teams away from the opening tip that they should. This should have been a 40+ point win.

• Defense and intensity was much better in the second half. Gotta find a way, though to bring it like that to start games.

• We’re starting to see a trend develop that this team gets off to a slow start.

• Jordan Howard is a solid little player. How does the best player in Arizona end up at Central Arkansas?

• Thatch Unruh (gotta love the name Thatch) can't be older than 13, right? Not sure why Coach Miles didn't recruit him. He can't have any hair on his legs. He certainly hadn't ever shaved.

• NU’s aggressiveness got them to the line early and often. I’ll be curious to see how they fare in this department when they face more comparable talent.

• Hammond is getting lost all over the place. Hopefully these minutes will pay dividends later in the year.

• Thought Moses looked better today.

• Guess what, defense finally allowed the Huskers to get some separation.

• What’s Walt’s deal?
• We're not loving the rim nearly as much as we should. And that's even after getting to the FT line 25 times in the first half. But they're settling for too many jumpers.
• Terran's getting into a little bit of hero ball mode at times. I think he'll settle down, but there was more of that again.
• Rebounding, this has got to improve.
• Assists need to go up, too.
• Would like to seen Fuller get some more minutes in games like this.

 

That's all I've got for now. Maybe more later.

[ajb5856]

We saw the lineup again with Benny, Tarin, and Tai all at once. We seem to be making some silly errors that are preventing us from jumping out earlier on these weak teams. We'll clean it up but start like this against a good team and we are playing from behind. Still not a lot to complain about. Last year, in the non-conference, simply winning was good enough and we had a couple close calls at home. Now this season we kinda know what we have and need to annihilate these bad teams from the get go. You're right about liking the 3 too much and not loving the rim. Although, I'm not sure I'd want to watch too many more freethrows. Not shooting a great percentage on the 3 ball. Once those start falling in the early part of the game, we create greater separation sooner. Can't let these teams hang around.

[Huskerpapa]

Central Arkansas plays an ugly style of foot errrrr basketball.  As a result this was an ugly game.  It ended up with a blow out, which was expected, but it took awhile to get there.  We have a very good team, that is led by two very, very fine players.  Our role players will get better...some will get better than others.  Some very ugly turnovers...second half rebounding was much better than the first half.

* Our fans are like Laker or Dodger fans...arrive late, leave early and in between must be entertained or they are going to complain

* Shavon is getting better and better each time out.  He had a couple ugly turnovers, but the kid can ball.

* Petteway is a flat out stud.  When he actually plays a great game he is going to be deadly...a pedestrian 23 tonight, with some hiccups along the way.

* Webster had a tough night...until the last few sequences...I am hoping that spurt will result in him getting his mojo going.

* Walter looked a bit better tonight, but we need to join Shavon and Terran to become the big three.

* Rivers is like a silent fart...you can't necessarily see or hear what he is doing, but all of a sudden you realize what he has done.  GLUE.

* Benny played very well.  The kid is now actually taking his shot (and hitting them) instead of passing them up.  Nice to see.

* Moses played better.  He is still not where we need him, but he did improve and was a bit more aggressive.

* Smith looked fine.  He looks like he is still a bit apprehensive, but once he becomes comfortable, I can see him providing us a lot of valuable minutes.

* Fuller...looks lost.  Hopefully time will allow him to become a valuable member of this team

* Jake got some good minutes...his shot looked good at the end.  He is lacking about 25 lbs of muscle.  He is what he is and hopefully can provide minutes.

[Huskerpapa]

oops

[Norm Peterson]

Actually, I thought it looked like they were coming together a bit.  I thought Terran was playing within himself most of the night.

 

Second, I was GLAD to see Walt working on shooting himself out of a slump.  I think he was showing a bit of determination there and his teammates certainly applauded him hitting that long 2 as well as the ones Tai and Benny drained.

 

David Rivers must have gotten a talking-to at half.  He came out like a different player in the second half, rebounding with a purpose.  And finding a couple of shots.  He's perfect on the season from the field and maybe from the line too?

 

We have to nail down the post defense.  It's troubling seeing a team like this push us around in the low blocks and back us in for some high-percentage shots.  That and rebounding are our two most pressing concerns right now.  Missing Leslee.

 

Offensively, I actually think they're coming together.  Finding their roles and getting comfortable with them.  Defense is a little rough yet.  But that'll come.

 

Second half looked much more like a top 25 team.

[Silverbacked1]

I don't like to knock on kids but Central Arkansas was terrible. They had some kids who might not be even good DII players. I think that our guys might have been scared to drive and love the rim much as they might have gotten killed if they went inside too much.

This team tends to play to the level of who they are playing. Also CA really muddy up the game and made it hard to even get going.

We are better than last year and I think we will be heads and shoulders better on Saturday in RI.

I do believe that young Hammonds got some early time because Tim might have been sending a message to our two other bigs. Maybe not.

is Walt sick? Or has he been sick? He looks like he is struggling with more than just his shot.

Does Fuller have other physical problems besides getting his nose broken? Looks like his feet are hurting or bothering him.

As always a win is a win. And what kind of money would the U make if we charged people for leaving early. You know like a buck for every minute that is left on the clock. Just something to think about.

[HB]

2 very good wings.  2 good role players in Dave and Benny.  But to be good (as Norm says, a top 25 team), we need Tai and Walt to be very good.  They were not tonight.  

[doc1394]

Man I can't wait until PBA starts rocking again. Been pretty quiet the last few games

[hhcmatt]

 

"Ace Boogie" Rivers hasn't missed yet this season.

[hal9000]

It was a quiet night at the Vault in terms of the fans, and I think just the overall mood I felt at the game was kind of lackadaisical.  I saw good effort from the players tonight, but at the same time it just didn't compare to a Big 10 game atmosphere.  I think that will come with better competition,and so while I don't think the guys were slacking or didn't care, I think maybe subconsciously they were not playing as focused and determined as they would if it were, say, Michigan State.

 

That said, I'm happy with the win.  They can't all be Van Goghs. 

[HuskerActuary]

To me, both games have felt like Terran is chucking up too many shots. Then after the game, I look at the boxscore and it's not as bad as it seemed. Last night he had 23 points on 8-17 shooting.

[jimmykc]

Missed all of the game and only read the morning LJS account. I also turned down free tickets because of the cold. Therefore I applaud anyone who did show up for the game on a frigid weeknight no matter how tepidly they behaved. For those who did go and did not tape the big game, I'll let you know that the Kansas-Kentucky game featured the number one and two teams in the NCAA this year. Unfortunately, both teams were dressed as Wildcats. No matter what one thinks of Calipari's style, he has cornered the market in recruiting talent.

[MidwestDrummer]

Missed all of the game and only read the morning LJS account. I also turned down free tickets because of the cold. Therefore I applaud anyone who did show up for the game on a frigid weeknight no matter how tepidly they behaved. For those who did go and did not tape the big game, I'll let you know that the Kansas-Kentucky game featured the number one and two teams in the NCAA this year. Unfortunately, both teams were dressed as Wildcats. No matter what one thinks of Calipari's style, he has cornered the market in recruiting talent.

 

Turned down tickets because of the cold? Also, you thought KU was the number 2 team before last night? Lol...

[atskooc]

 

Missed all of the game and only read the morning LJS account. I also turned down free tickets because of the cold. Therefore I applaud anyone who did show up for the game on a frigid weeknight no matter how tepidly they behaved. For those who did go and did not tape the big game, I'll let you know that the Kansas-Kentucky game featured the number one and two teams in the NCAA this year. Unfortunately, both teams were dressed as Wildcats. No matter what one thinks of Calipari's style, he has cornered the market in recruiting talent.

 

Turned down tickets because of the cold? Also, you thought KU was the number 2 team before last night? Lol...

 

Umm...no.  He thought (and still thinks) the number 2 team in the country is Kentucky's second five.

[bball23]

 

Missed all of the game and only read the morning LJS account. I also turned down free tickets because of the cold. Therefore I applaud anyone who did show up for the game on a frigid weeknight no matter how tepidly they behaved. For those who did go and did not tape the big game, I'll let you know that the Kansas-Kentucky game featured the number one and two teams in the NCAA this year. Unfortunately, both teams were dressed as Wildcats. No matter what one thinks of Calipari's style, he has cornered the market in recruiting talent.

 

Turned down tickets because of the cold? Also, you thought KU was the number 2 team before last night? Lol...

 

Re-read his post.  I believe he is implying that the #1 and #2 teams in America play on Kentucky's team (they go with the "platoon" subbing).  So basically UK's starters are the #1 team in America and the 2nd 5 are the #2 team in America.

[bball23]

 

 

Missed all of the game and only read the morning LJS account. I also turned down free tickets because of the cold. Therefore I applaud anyone who did show up for the game on a frigid weeknight no matter how tepidly they behaved. For those who did go and did not tape the big game, I'll let you know that the Kansas-Kentucky game featured the number one and two teams in the NCAA this year. Unfortunately, both teams were dressed as Wildcats. No matter what one thinks of Calipari's style, he has cornered the market in recruiting talent.

 

Turned down tickets because of the cold? Also, you thought KU was the number 2 team before last night? Lol...

 

Umm...no.  He thought (and still thinks) the number 2 team in the country is Kentucky's second five.

 

Oops, you beat me to the punch. 

[Huskerpapa]

Missed all of the game and only read the morning LJS account. I also turned down free tickets because of the cold. Therefore I applaud anyone who did show up for the game on a frigid weeknight no matter how tepidly they behaved. For those who did go and did not tape the big game, I'll let you know that the Kansas-Kentucky game featured the number one and two teams in the NCAA this year. Unfortunately, both teams were dressed as Wildcats. No matter what one thinks of Calipari's style, he has cornered the market in recruiting talent.

Actually, I thought it was colder Sunday then last evening.  In fact, when we walked out after the game (note I stated AFTER the game) we commented that it was a fairly mild night, no wind and the temp was about 30 degrees.

[Norm Peterson]

Don't sell Central Arkansas short.  I think they're better than some are giving them credit for.  They can score and they've proved that by going for 75 or more in both of their first two games.  They get up and down the floor and they have some kids who can do some things.  I think they're a reasonably solid team and I don't think they're anywhere near as bad as where Kenporn has them.

 

They are not Big Ten material, obviously.  But they'd be a decent mid-major.  Their center was a solid player as was their point guard and they had a good scheme.  Had some excellent ball movement at various times and I can see why they can really challenge a defense.  We started disrupting their passing lanes in the 2nd half but I tip my hat to those guys.  They came in here and took it right to us.

[49r]

Our defense looked pretty lazy early on, I was a little disappointed in that.  We'll need to see the guys put forth a much better effort on defense from the start on Saturday if they want to beat URI.

[hhcmatt]

Yeah, we had an ugly start to the game. 

However, we throttled this team.  We held them to .77 points per posession.  That's the second lowest of the Tim Miles era.

 

Our best lineup is probably with Benny Parker in the game.  Does that work better with him coming off the bench or will we see him crack the starting lineup?  Miles talks often talks in implications and implying Benny could start was one of them. 

 

Rhode Island is going to be a good test.  Let's see if we can pass it.

[Marv]

It's obvious Miles hasn't settled into any particular lineups.  At times it feels like a pickup game, watching the players trying to feel each other out and figure out who they are on the floor with.  It's perplexing because we aren't going that deep in our rotations.  I'm guessing we'll start to see some trends in rotations and which players are on the floor together at the same time.  Right now it seems like the staff is still trying to work that out.  

[Huskerpapa]

I have no issues experimenting with line ups at this time of the year.  In fact, I somewhat expect it.  Now, if we are still experimenting a month or so into the season...then there may be cause for concern. 

 

I personally like Benny coming off the bench.  He is a spark of energy that is even more exagerated if he is playing against a player who may be a tad tired. 

[Tallbaby21]

Can someone explain how two teams can combine for about 25 fouls in the first half and around 12 in the second half? The calls on screens and handchecks slowed the game down, killed the flow and made it an ugly game. 

[Timmy]

By my count, Miles played 19 different sets of players on the floor last night.  Surprisingly, the group that did the worst from a +/- perspective was the starting unit.  It appears we are strongest when we go a big lineup with Parker at point of Parker/Petteway/Shields/Rivers and either Abraham or Pitchford.  Both of those groups were each +7 when on the floor.  I'll have to take a look at the N. Kentucky game to see how that stacked up.  

 

Webster/Petteway/Shields/Rivers/Pitchford:

20:00 to 16:27 - -4 (trail 11-7)

20:00 to 16:32 - -4 (led 47-42)

6:25 to 5:29 - -1 (led 71-49)

Total : -9 +/-

 

Parker/Petteway/Shields/Rivers/Abraham:

16:27 to 14:03 - +7 (led 14-11)

 

Parker/Smith/Webster/Rivers/Abraham:

14:03 to 13:50 - -1 (led 14-12)

 

Parker/Smith/Webster/Shields/Abraham:

13:50 to 12:57 - 0 (led 16-14)

 

Parker/Smith/Webster/Shields/Pitchford:

12:57 to 10:37 - +3 (led 21-16)

 

Parker/Smith/Petteway/Shields/Pitchford:

10:37 to 9:54 - -2 (led 21-18)

 

Parker/Smith/Petteway/Shields/Abraham:

9:54 to 8:56 - 0 (led 21-18)

 

Parker/Smith/Petteway/Shields/Hammond:

8:56 to 8:51 - +2 (led 23-18)

 

Parker/Webster/Petteway/Shields/Hammond:

8:51 to 5:11 - -1 (led 30-26)

 

Parker/Webster/Petteway/Shields/Abraham:

5:11 to :23 - +5 (led 43 - 34)

 

Parker/Webster/Petteway/Shields/Pitchford:

:23 to :00 - 0 (led 43-34)

 

Parker/Webster/Petteway/Shields/Rivers:

16:32 to 15:26 - +4 (led 51-42)

 

Parker/Smith/Petteway/Rivers/Pitchford

15:26 to 14:16 - +2 (led 53-42)

 

Parker/Smith/Shields/Rivers/Pitchford

14:16 to 9:43 - +4 (led 61-46)

 

Parker/Petteway/Shields/Rivers/Pitchford

9:43 to 7:51 - +7 (led 68-46)

 

Webster/Petteway/Shields/Rivers/Abraham

7:51 to 6:25 - +1 (led 71-48)

 

Smith/Webster/Fuller/Rivers/Pitchford

5:29 to 3:59 - +1 (led 73-50)

 

Smith/Webster/Fuller/Rivers/Hammond

3:59 to 2:57 - +6 (led 79-50)

 

Smith/Menke/Fuller/Kurkowski/Hammond

2:57 to :00 - -3 (led 82-56)

[big red22]

By my count, Miles played 19 different sets of players on the floor last night.  Surprisingly, the group that did the worst from a +/- perspective was the starting unit.  It appears we are strongest when we go a big lineup with Parker at point of Parker/Petteway/Shields/Rivers and either Abraham or Pitchford.  Both of those groups were each +7 when on the floor.  I'll have to take a look at the N. Kentucky game to see how that stacked up.  

 

Webster/Petteway/Shields/Rivers/Pitchford:

20:00 to 16:27 - -4 (trail 11-7)

20:00 to 16:32 - -4 (led 47-42)

6:25 to 5:29 - -1 (led 71-49)

Total : -9 +/-

 

Parker/Petteway/Shields/Rivers/Abraham:

16:27 to 14:03 - +7 (led 14-11)

 

Parker/Smith/Webster/Rivers/Abraham:

14:03 to 13:50 - -1 (led 14-12)

 

Parker/Smith/Webster/Shields/Abraham:

13:50 to 12:57 - 0 (led 16-14)

 

Parker/Smith/Webster/Shields/Pitchford:

12:57 to 10:37 - +3 (led 21-16)

 

Parker/Smith/Petteway/Shields/Pitchford:

10:37 to 9:54 - -2 (led 21-18)

 

Parker/Smith/Petteway/Shields/Abraham:

9:54 to 8:56 - 0 (led 21-18)

 

Parker/Smith/Petteway/Shields/Hammond:

8:56 to 8:51 - +2 (led 23-18)

 

Parker/Webster/Petteway/Shields/Hammond:

8:51 to 5:11 - -1 (led 30-26)

 

Parker/Webster/Petteway/Shields/Abraham:

5:11 to :23 - +5 (led 43 - 34)

 

Parker/Webster/Petteway/Shields/Pitchford:

:23 to :00 - 0 (led 43-34)

 

Parker/Webster/Petteway/Shields/Rivers:

16:32 to 15:26 - +4 (led 51-42)

 

Parker/Smith/Petteway/Rivers/Pitchford

15:26 to 14:16 - +2 (led 53-42)

 

Parker/Smith/Shields/Rivers/Pitchford

14:16 to 9:43 - +4 (led 61-46)

 

Parker/Petteway/Shields/Rivers/Pitchford

9:43 to 7:51 - +7 (led 68-46)

 

Webster/Petteway/Shields/Rivers/Abraham

7:51 to 6:25 - +1 (led 71-48)

 

Smith/Webster/Fuller/Rivers/Pitchford

5:29 to 3:59 - +1 (led 73-50)

 

Smith/Webster/Fuller/Rivers/Hammond

3:59 to 2:57 - +6 (led 79-50)

 

Smith/Menke/Fuller/Kurkowski/Hammond

2:57 to :00 - -3 (led 82-56)

I'm leaning toward always having Smith and Parker as the PG.  Webster seems better fit at the 2, and your post proves that.  We are the worst with Webster at the 1