How sweet it is

[Patch]

We are for real!!!!!!!!

 

Solid players willing to share the ball and solid coaching, with limited talent the last 2 years they kept us competitive and now with talent we are dishing out some serious punishment.

 

5 in double figures!!!

 

Welcome back Jamar!

[Dane Pound]

A couple of $iena fans I know stopped us in the hall before the game. They told us the time before tipoff would be the only time we were happy all night. Boy were they ever wrong.

 

All five starters played fantastic. I was surprised when Siena kept pressing because Jamar was killing them in the open floor. He had 20 points but accounted for 20 more on his 10 assists. It was probably more than 20 points because he found Levi and Iati open for some wide-open 3s.

[reeder]

Thought I would give a recap of my perspective of the game.

 

Coaching - Brown did a great job at adjusting both midway through the first half and again at halftime. Albany had a tough time with the press to start the game. I think Iati made some hurried passes with the pressure. They brought Lillis in and he proceeded to have two turnovers with the pressure. They then brought in St. Hillaire who had a quick turnover. I think at that point the strategy was just let Jamar bring it up - he did an excellent job breaking the press. Levi also got involved and did a lot of ball handling, Iati did a great job when Jamar became the point person for the press and Iati became an outlet.

 

At halftime, I think Brown must have said two things - get the ball to Zoellner more and more dribble penetration. Zoellner had a couple of very good post moves early in the second half that resulted in dunks. Also, Jamar would drive the lane and kickout to Iati or another shooter usually for an open three.

 

Jamar - Did an amazing job with the ball. Initially, I think he tried to do too much - he was dribbling and driving to the basket unnecessarily. Once he relaxed, he started making great passes - usually off of the penetration. I don't think he attempted one perimeter shot - all layups. I would have guessed that he had more than 10 assists. I am worried about his knee. Twice he went down hard, grimaced and limped a bit. Two words describe why he is a great player - Dribble Penetration. sienafan Vitale used to talk about 3 D players - Drive, Draw and Dish the ball. That's what Jamar was last night. The other benefit to the dribble penetration is that he gets fouled a lot - so he will continue to get to the line a lot

 

Iati - He had so many open 3's and he was making them. I think he was a bit overwhelmed with the pressure to start the game but relaxed when he became the outlet for Jamar. His ball has amazing rotation. I think he'll have a great year as the pressure on him is so much reduced.

 

Jordan - I didn't realize he had such a good perimeter game. Also, clearly the emotional leader of the team. Had a great pass to Iati (where he dribble penetrated and kicked it out for a 3) after Fisher missed a three that would have put Siena up midway through the second half.

 

Levine - Made a couple of key 3's and played great on the boards. Like Iati, it's amazing how much better his shot is now that he doesn't have to shoot all the time.

 

Zoellner - Was worried a bit in the first half - he didn't seem very aggressive and there were a few rebounds that he should have had that Siena got instead. Not sure what happened at halftime but he was getting the ball on the low post and making very good moves to the basket. Also on defense he was very under control. I think he had 3 or 4 fouls but they were not silly fouls. He clearly understands that at 7'1" he can just extend his arms in the air and play defense without trying to block every shot and getting into foul trouble (see Billings). He did miss several free throws; he'll need to improve there for Albany to continue winning

 

Brent Wilson / Brian Lillis - Lillis was a bit overwhelmed by the pressure and had a couple of quick turnovers; he did look good when he was out there. He'll need to take some more shots otherwise teams will not play him. Brent Wilson had a couple of good looks and missed them both - he also missed both free throws. He looked confident. I think they will both be good players

 

Courtney Johnson - As I left the garage (it took about 30 minutes to get out with the traffic), I saw Courtney a couple of streets from the arena with his earphones on in black traveling outfit (the all weather outfits that all the UA athletes wear). He was just walking by himself. I looked around and there wasn't a bus or any other players around. It was pretty weird - Not sure if he was just getting some fresh air or blowing off steam because he didn't get any minutes against his HS backcourt teammate (Kojo).

 

Siena was not a bad team; they just didn't have anybody besides Fischer that was willing to shoot the ball on the perimeter. I think UA recognized that and just played a sagging defense. When Haddix had 4 fouls, the UA D just sagged and no one on Siena stepped up to make a shot.

 

Albany is very good. They will play well against any team in the America East. Let's just hope Jamar's knee is OK.

 

Lastly, for those of you flying today - get to the airport early. I arrived at Albany airport at 5:30 for a 6:30 flight and the security line was pretty bad (you had to wait at the escalator to get up to security, once you got up their, the line was out towards the garage walkway . The security monitor allowed me to go to the front because I am a Delta elite traveler - otherwise I would have missed my flight.

[Dane Pound]

I agree with your points Reeder.

 

I was kind of curious about Perry. I thought he would contribute more than he has. 7 minutes against Sacred Heart and none last night.

 

B. Wilson did a pretty good job underneath of defense. Lillis did look a little overwhelmed in the beginning. He seems real reluctant to take a shot. No shots in his first two games. He was open for 3 point attempts a couple of of times and passed them up. Hopefully somewhere along the way he'll score a little and get some confidence on the offensive end. He is supposed to be a pretty skilled player I think.

[Patch]

B. Wilson did a pretty good job underneath of defense. Lillis did look a little overwhelmed in the beginning. He seems real reluctant to take a shot. -DP

 

Isn't great to allow freshman to be freshmen!!!!!

 

In the past Lillis and Wilson would have been forced to log 30 minutes and struggle through frustrating experiences.

 

Now they get opportunities and the better the result the more time they get.

 

Evidently Coach Brown loves these kids, he started Lillis when Jamar was out vs Sacred Heart and didn't hesitate to get them both in the fray against Siena in a game that the Coach wanted to win badly.

 

B. Wilson will have much better games this year as will Lillis and believe me Lillis will shoot and be effective shooting in time. Right now he knows, and rightfully so, that Jamar, Lucious and Iati should get looks before him. But as he gets comfortable his shot will come.

 

I just think that by the end of this season B. Wilson and Lillis will be very solid players for UA.

 

Finally freshmen can be freshmen at UA. The program is truly maturing.

[Indian91]

Congrats again to the Danes. I am a Siena alum and fan, however I'm really looking forward to watching UA make some noise this year. Coach Brown has put together a nice team and he's an excellent coach. Hope your squad stays healthy and kicks some ass this year!

 

Best,

Indian91