Hartford Postgame

[McFan]

Without looking, I'm sure Brent's shooting percentage is down. That said, Jamar hid or covered for some weaknesses. Listen when Brent had an off game before (last couple of years) you could count on Jamar to elevate his game (and Siggers too). Brent can and will continue to contribute. His shooting has to pick up though. He will never be a force inside.

 

My issue w/ Saturday was with the Iati point play and the press break. If Hartford pressed the whole game we would have lost by 30 unless some serios adjustments were made. Not sure where Martin was, why Ambrose and Turley were bolted to the bench.

 

Coach is loyal to a fault to Brent and Iati. I'm not saying bolt them to the bench either. But Iati turned the ball two (and almost three) times in a row, missed a three and had a shot blocked and stayed in the game. Sequence might not have been that bad, but close.

 

I refuse to believe Martin or Ambrose would have remained w/ half of those mistakes.

[Dane96]

Martin injured, Ambrose is not capable of breaking a press. Ambrose is not ready to dribble through guys and coordinate a press break. That is a fact. Martin...would have been in.

[Clickclack]

Does anyone know what injury Josh sustained and if he'll be able to go tomorrow?

 

I think we are all a bit surprised at the apparent lack of progress from this team but consider this. We are now starting 2 freshman and expect them to play well in critical roles. One of those freshman has been dealing with injuries on and off. I think it's fair to admit that we are a middle of the pack team in the AE and are in the midst of a rebuilding process.

 

Brent is what he is....an outside shooter who has NOT adjusted well to his new role. It's time we stopped expecting him to be Jamar and carry this team. This late in his career, he isn't going to break out and be an offensive force like some thought he would be. Both him and Jon are the definition of role players....capable of doing a couple of things well but not someone who carries a team. The one major thing they have done well in the past (outside shooting), they are struggling with this season.

 

The gap between the experienced players and the inexperienced players on this team is huge. The experienced players have the experience but not the talent. The young players for the most part are yet to reach their potential but I think we would all agree the ceiling is much higher then that of Jon and Brent. Guys like Josh and Timmy should be playing supporting roles while learning the game. Unfortunately they don't have that luxury. This experience will pay off down the road...next season and beyond. Watching Josh yesterday I was very impressed with his vision and potential. In particular the assist he had were something I haven't seen since probably Jamar. It's obvious Josh is improving and getting more comfortable on the court. His slashing and ball handling abilities are also fun to watch (really needs to work on the TO's)....his one drive through like 3 UHA guys was beautiful when he shot sideways and hit...plus the foul. Look at the inside moves by Al yesterday.....by far the most talented player down low, can't wait to see what the coaching staff does with him. Some things you simply can't teach...him demanding the ball yesterday and more importantly having great success with his moves was great to see.

 

I guess what I'm trying to say is that we do have talent here, some of it is very very young but the potential is there. I know speaking of myself.....The expectations I set were a bit unrealistic in hind sight thus I've been frustrated and let some of that frustration show here. From here on out....I'm gonna "TRY" to enjoy the end of this run and look forward to a new season with new players who we've all heard so much about. I have all the faith in Coach Brown and have no doubt he is the man for the job....even though at times it appears he could use some work in the public relations dept. The man knows what he's doing on the court, and has build this program from NOTHING. I'm sure this season has been tough for him also. I'm looking forward to seeing Raffa, Aronhalt and Jake...but even more so I'm looking forward to seeing Josh, Timmy, Al and Bret with an additional year under their belt.

[UA'08]

The new blog does not say anything about an injury to Martin.

 

“(Martin) turned the ball over four times in (20) minutes,” Brown said. “And the other thing is, he broke down a couple of times defensively. The thing with Jon is, Jon’s not a great one-on-one defender, but Jon’s a good team defender and Jon understands their tendencies. Watching that (Hartford) film, Jon didn’t break down at all defensively. Jon’s toughest thing is when he has to guard guys who drive and attack one-on-one.”

[Dane96]

Fair enough. I saw him limping pretty good...so I figured injury.

[McFan]

Fair enough. I saw him limping pretty good...so I figured injury.

 

He was limping right after his driving baseline layup. I forgot that too.

[haggyland]

Fair enough. I saw him limping pretty good...so I figured injury.

 

He was limping right after his driving baseline layup. I forgot that too.

He definintely signalled himself out of the game at one point in the second half.

Either that, or I suppose he could have been ordering a hot dog.

[JustDrastik]

For those who are defending Brent or those who are not producing very well etc :

 

1) He is not playing like he used to.

2) He may score/rebound the same, but he is on a downward spiral in terms of production

3) In reference to #2, this was on less opportunities. I highly doubt he had 11 shots a game last year etc, or he'd have scored way more than 10ppg (just based on his previous percentages)

 

 

We need to remember that this league is WIDE OPEN. WIDE OPEN. WIDE OPEN. Losing this season, in my opinion, will be a disappointment - because we've seen HOW good (we've also seen how bad) we can be and what we are capable of.

 

Anyone can win it, and it is important to put the team in a position (which is why people will question whether or not Brown is loyal to a fault to some older players or if there is anything which can be done differently) where they can do the best in the tournament. If we can win the AE, and make 3 straight NCAA's, we are positions ourself for a dynasty in this league, especially given the talent that is coming next year and how much our current guys can develop.