uneblinstu's Post Game Chatter: ed 7, vol 1 - Northern Kentucky

-rebound better

-tai, benny, pitchford need to shoot better.

everything else went well.

Rivers is going to give us solid numbers this year

OK, my take.

I hate to be the grammar cop, buuuuut ...

It's not Taylor Persons.  It's Taylor PEOPLE.

I mean, c'mon.

Not acceptable to get outrebounded by NKU

Overall decent start to the season. Are there things we could do better? Yes... But I will take complaining over a 19 point win rather than being joyous we just came out with a W. This game was never really in doubt once we went on that run to end the first half.

I think Terran will realize what kind of support he has around him as we get further along. Guys it's not just Terran this year. We have a pretty good lineup that goes 7 or 8 deep. These guys have a chance to be a great TEAM.

Overall we are a 1-0... Not to much to complain about though there is always room from improvement.

Not acceptable to get outrebounded by NKU

Yeah, that.

And Pitchford needs to learn another offensive skill.  I don't care whether it's playing with his back to the basket or taking his defender off the dribble.  But when the shots aren't falling from deep, he needs a way to draw fouls and get to the line.  He cannot rely totally and getting all of his points from deep.  You'd think with his leaping ability, he'd like dunking it.  You don't get dunks unless you're close to the basket.  Typically, that's also where you get fouled.

We only played eight guys until the near the end, if I'm not mistaken. Not sure that will be able to hold up over the course of a season.

We only played eight guys until the near the end, if I'm not mistaken. Not sure that will be able to hold up over the course of a season.

Yeah I noticed this too, and I'd like to see more time for the other guys as well. But I have a suspicion that it's just a system Tim is using where you have to ACTUALLY PLAY WELL in practice to get minutes. From what I saw from Hammond and clean up co, they don't deserve it YET. But i fully expect to see fuller, smith and others develop into roles as we build chemistry. I like the effect I see from the physical hard practices the guys have been through with Tim, and they all look like they are/want to work hard.

I really liked Tarin Smith. I think he'll develop into a very effective point guard in the Big Ten.

Shields & Petteway both did some good things.

Most teams get down to an 8 or 9 man rotation by the time conference play starts. I think that's where it'll be. We've got the top 8 figured out. Just need to see if Hammond or Fuller can contribute at that level.

Decent first game.  We certainly have a lot of room to improve, but we played sound basketball.  We may struggle with rebounding at times this year, but we have a guard court who can bang with most any team.  Walt is not the strongest rebounder, but we tended to lose contact with who we were covering, that is something that must and can be fixed.

* Petteway - he had an off day, yet still put up 25.  Man this young man can ball.  He took some ill-advised shots, but he is tenacious.  Good all around game, but certainly not a great game.

* Webster - his shot looks so much better.  He has certainly improved his all around game.  He is stronger, and looks so much more confident.  He had an okay game...but I expect him to continue his improvement.

- Shields - Smooth as silk.  The dude keeps getting better and better.  I was as impressed with his defense as his offense.  He is another kid that had an okay game, but certainly nowhere close to a great game.

- Parker - Defensive stud...offensively still challenged.  His shot looked better, now he just has to have more confidence when he releases the ball.

- Pitch - I kind of struggled with Walter's game.  He cannot create on his own, yet he seemed to not position himself very well when others attempted to get him the ball.  He seemed to struggle with his shot PLUS he really struggled rebounding.  He simply is not a quick jumper.  He switches on defense fine, he will have much better days ahead of him.

- Rivers - he has really shown up as a senior.  He has improved every part of his game.  I am so proud of his work ethic and improvement.  I look forward to seeing him blossom as his senior year passes.  His nickname should be GLUE...as he may be the player that holds this team together.

- Moses - he is what he is...we should not expect him to be more than a big man that can occupy space, rebound a little, set hard picks, and get some garbage points.

- Smith - this kid is going to be a good one.  He is going to get better, and better, and better as this year progresses.

- Abraham is solid on the defensive end. He'll contribute there. Seems like he might be a little foul prone

I already had my expectations set for Moses on the offensive end, but I was very unimpressed with his defensive play. He seemed a step and a half slow on the help. I thought this could be the case in conference games but didn't think it would surface against Northern Kentucky.

- Parker - Defensive stud...offensively still challenged.  His shot looked better, now he just has to have more confidence when he releases the ball.

Benny's size really got exposed today. Northern Kentucky took him inside effectively all day long. There has to be something he can do to counter this. Otherwise loved his game.

What did everyone think of the lineup that included Tai, Tarin, Benny, and Terran on the floor at the same time. Not sure that one was ever discussed as a possibility heading into the year. 3 PGs on the floor at the same time. Miles joked in the postgame that Benny was actually playing the 4 spot when that lineup was in.

I liked Walt's drive to the hole later in the game. He was called for the charge but I can live with that because he tried to change his game at that time.

It was a first game against a not very good team. I also thought that a lot of their offensive rebounds came off their horrible shots. Hard shots off the rim go way out, and some of those shots we had good position and the ball flew off the rim and they got the ball.

All in all good effort and am looking forward to Tuesday.

 

- Abraham is solid on the defensive end. He'll contribute there. Seems like he might be a little foul prone

I already had my expectations set for Moses on the offensive end, but I was very unimpressed with his defensive play. He seemed a step and a half slow on the help. I thought this could be the case in conference games but didn't think it would surface against Northern Kentucky.

 

I'd need to see it again. I noticed when people tried to drive on him, they had trouble. But the foul prone-ness might be a result of him being a step slow. 

What did everyone think of the lineup that included Tai, Tarin, Benny, and Terran on the floor at the same time. Not sure that one was ever discussed as a possibility heading into the year. 3 PGs on the floor at the same time. Miles joked in the postgame that Benny was actually playing the 4 spot when that lineup was in.

I liked it. Forces other coaches to have to figure out how to defend it, even if we don't use it everytime.

What did everyone think of the lineup that included Tai, Tarin, Benny, and Terran on the floor at the same time. Not sure that one was ever discussed as a possibility heading into the year. 3 PGs on the floor at the same time. Miles joked in the postgame that Benny was actually playing the 4 spot when that lineup was in.

I believe that we are going to see eclectic line ups like this one throughout the year.  But in certain instances, that line up could cause a lot of damage...that is meant to be both positive and negative.

What did everyone think of the lineup that included Tai, Tarin, Benny, and Terran on the floor at the same time. Not sure that one was ever discussed as a possibility heading into the year. 3 PGs on the floor at the same time. Miles joked in the postgame that Benny was actually playing the 4 spot when that lineup was in.

I believe that we are going to see eclectic line ups like this one throughout the year. But in certain instances, that line up could cause a lot of damage...that is meant to be both positive and negative.

I believe you're right in that we'll see it but only in certain instances, obviously. Just another wrinkle that can make an opponent think.

 

 

What did everyone think of the lineup that included Tai, Tarin, Benny, and Terran on the floor at the same time. Not sure that one was ever discussed as a possibility heading into the year. 3 PGs on the floor at the same time. Miles joked in the postgame that Benny was actually playing the 4 spot when that lineup was in.

I believe that we are going to see eclectic line ups like this one throughout the year. But in certain instances, that line up could cause a lot of damage...that is meant to be both positive and negative.

I believe you're right in that we'll see it but only in certain instances, obviously. Just another wrinkle that can make an opponent think.

 

http://board.huskerhoopscentral.com/topic/6076-the-point-guard-depth/?p=90106

Only took one game....

 

We only played eight guys until the near the end, if I'm not mistaken. Not sure that will be able to hold up over the course of a season.

Yeah I noticed this too, and I'd like to see more time for the other guys as well. But I have a suspicion that it's just a system Tim is using where you have to ACTUALLY PLAY WELL in practice to get minutes. From what I saw from Hammond and clean up co, they don't deserve it YET. But i fully expect to see fuller, smith and others develop into roles as we build chemistry. I like the effect I see from the physical hard practices the guys have been through with Tim, and they all look like they are/want to work hard.

 

Yup.  Miles doesn't really like playing more than 8 guys.  Hopefully Fuller and Hammond will earn PT and not receive it due to injury.  

OK, my take.

 

I hate to be the grammar cop, buuuuut ...

 

It's not Taylor Persons.  It's Taylor PEOPLE.

 

I mean, c'mon.

I don't be that guy, but persons is also grammatically correct, although it is rarely used outside of legal and law enforcement context.

It felt to me like Terran had a very average day offensively, yet he still averaged 1.67 points per FG attempt. Crazy. And then there was Shavon, with an off-the-charts 4.5 points per FG attempt!

Really impressed with Tai's aggressiveness.  Looks to have fully regained his confidence.  Hopefully he can build on that.  You can see that coach has given him the green light in the early going - let him shoot his way into the game.  If he can get those shots to fall (and he's not far off from doing that) early on, he could be deadly as the season progresses with the ability to score from just about anywhere.

Tarin is one smart, smooth kid.  He's gonna be a good one by the time it's all said and done.  Really like his game.  It wouldn't surprise me at all to see him starting at PG by the end of the season, which in turn is going to help Tai out.  I like the potential of this combo.

Benny's gonna Benny.  And that's exactly what we need him to do all year.  Oh, and that lob!

As for ajb's question about the three guards.  I like all three, but not necessarily all at once unless matchups allow that to work in our favor.

Terran acted like he wanted to play today, good to see too.  I don't mean that in a harsh way at all either, God knows he's got the drive and want to and brings it every night, he's every bit an All-American. He could have put up 40 without too much effort if he really wanted to, but he's showing that he is working on getting everyone else involved.  I like to see that, he's working on the "playing smart" part of his game.  He needs that to get to the next level.

Walt seems to be a little frustrated with getting the 5 part of his "stretch 5" game down.  I think he'll get there but the transition is going to be rocky.

Shavon.  What can I say.  I like the kid.

David.  What an amazing player he's become, from where he started to now.  Wow!  So great to see.  Hard work and a good attitude has gotten him there.  And we're going to need him this year.

Hammond/Fuller.  Gonna take a while for them to get up to speed, but thankfully they have the luxury of taking their time getting integrated into the rotation.

Moses brings what we expect him to, 5 fouls and a big wide body to clog the lane for 10-15 minutes.  Obviously footwork is going to be a major point of emphasis with him going forward.

Overall, while it may not have been as pretty as it could have been, I really like to see that this team seems to be picking up where it left off last March.  We played like a top 25 team today.  Also, 86% FT shooting today was great.  That's going to win us a lot of games right there.  I can't tell you how many games we would have converted from L's to W's during the Doc years if we had just shot like 70%, but I know it was a lot.

Okay, maybe I'm writing with a bit of a rose-tinted view, but watching these guys today answered a lot of questions for me.  We good.  Real good!