UA @ Iona

[Clickclack]

A couple more observations....I sat about 10' behind the bench and could hear everything.

 

- Brown yelled hands up CONSTANTLY....either they aren't listening or to lazy to do it....but coach yelled it all game long.

- Our two best offensive players Ambrose and Harris are our WORST defensive players....watching Ambrose last night half ass it...and he did 90% of the game was disturbing. I probably would have benched him for the rest of the game. He totally wasn't into it...very passive.

- This isn't Will Browns defense....when have we ever had concerns about defense on Brown coaches teams? In the past they might not have been the most fluid offensive teams but they buckled down on D and rebounded the crap out of the ball. This team is ATROCIOUS on the defensive end...the rotations are shockingly poor. It's not all that complicated, you either get it how to rotate after 3 season or you never will....Ambrose never will. Harris is very poor moving laterally and can't stay in front of his man. I might get crucified for this but this team will be a better defensive team with the graduation of Harris.

- Our starting guards flat out SUCK protecting the ball....Ambrose stands there cradling the ball near the ground thinking about what to do and the defender just takes the ball away....how does that happen? He wasn't even dribbling it.....

[Classof72/74]

will brown said they played well in the first half????? you kidding me... more like iona was playing with their heads between their legs

 

there does not seem to be much chemistry on this team - if you watch the team during timeouts,etc, they hardly even speak to one another, there is very little encouraging going on and no one gets in anyone's face to push; that said, I see no leadership on this team; the coaching staff either seems completely perplexed at this point

 

Forgive me for going back in time, but I was at every game the year we had 8 players and went 5-23. Even in that discouraging struggle I sensed something, call it passion or the warrior mentality, in guys like Levi Levine, Jon Iati, later saw it flash in Zollner, and Jamar, Lu Jordan, Brent Wilson. I have a harder time seeing it in the current crop of players.

 

Unfortunately I don't think you can coach passion into players, they've got to bring it themselves. Maybe in the scouting/recruiting reports these guys are more gifted athletically, but that's only part of the recipe for success.

 

I fear what I'm seeing is the slow demise of a UA basketball tradition (and that goes back before the Brown era to the days when Doc stalked up and down the sideline).

 

What will it take to re-light the spark?

[Dane Pound]

 

Unfortunately I don't think you can coach passion into players, they've got to bring it themselves. Maybe in the scouting/recruiting reports these guys are more gifted athletically, but that's only part of the recipe for success.

 

 

 

I'm sorry to say but I've noticed that this year also. The teams you mentioned were pretty much always outclassed but always competed and I haven't always seen that this year.

 

I don't know if it's the road games, a steady string of losses or a combination of both. I hope it's reversable. One of the positive signs earlier this year was after the loss to Detroit we seemed to bounce back the next night against RMU. That's seeming like quite a while ago.

[Clickclack]

Gonna throw something else out there...tell me if I'm way off base here.

 

- Our two more talented players Ambrose and Harris are also two guys who pick and chose which game to show up in.....Harris takes 6 shots one game, comes out on fire at Iona...Ambrose decided he'd like a day off. It really chaps my arse....I'm no coach but I'd give both of them an ultimatum...either you show up and play like man, put the effort in and put this team on your backs or ride the pine. We can lose just as well with Ambrose on the bench as we can playing 4 on 5 when he decides he'll take a day off. CB should ask them before the game...Timmy/Will...you gonna play today or do you want a day off?

 

If it's not one guy taking the game off it's the other one. Both were rolling in the UCF game and no surprise it was the best game of the season even though it was a loss. Your leaders should lead the role players should follow and fill holes/needs.

 

This team is flawed at it's core...Jamar never took a game off...Lillis busted his a$$ every second he was out there.....Same with Wilson and Iati.

[Clickclack]

This team is in SERIOUS need of a couple of tough sons of b%$^hes!

[Classof72/74]

...Jamar never took a game off...Lillis busted his a$$ every second he was out there.....Same with Wilson and Iati.

 

You should have seen Will Brand play :-0 Talk about a warrior.......

[Clickclack]

...Jamar never took a game off...Lillis busted his a$$ every second he was out there.....Same with Wilson and Iati.

 

You should have seen Will Brand play :-0 Talk about a warrior.......

 

I started following 04/05.....so my sample size is small..

[purplehaze]

...Jamar never took a game off...Lillis busted his a$$ every second he was out there.....Same with Wilson and Iati.

 

You should have seen Will Brand play :-0 Talk about a warrior.......

got nobody who fits that on this team. Will Brand was surely one. Jamar. Levi. Lillis. Iati. Brian Connelly. They are ones to remember for leaving it on the floor. This years team needssomeone to be challenged to step up and take charge.

[McFan]

Not sure I can agree Ambrose took the Iona game off.

 

14 points, 6 RB's, 4 assist, 6 steals, and 15 shots. He had an off shooting night, and like the rest of the team played some poor defense.

 

I could easily be confinced that Harris was nowhere to be found after the first 8-10 minutes. I don't recall exactly but think he had 16 points in the first 10 minutes. He ended w/ 20 points, 1 Rebound, , 2 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks in 33 minutes of play. 6'5", 240lb, strong leaper, 1RB, 0 blocks, 0 steals. Almost seems impossible.

[Clickclack]

Not sure I can agree Ambrose took the Iona game off.

 

14 points, 6 RB's, 4 assist, 6 steals, and 15 shots. He had an off shooting night, and like the rest of the team played some poor defense.

 

I could easily be confinced that Harris was nowhere to be found after the first 8-10 minutes. I don't recall exactly but think he had 16 points in the first 10 minutes. He ended w/ 20 points, 1 Rebound, , 2 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks in 33 minutes of play. 6'5", 240lb, strong leaper, 1RB, 0 blocks, 0 steals. Almost seems impossible.

 

I was there....it's just an impression I had watching him out there. He was very passive, a number of truly idiotic to's....just gave the ball away. He wasn't aggressive driving...just kind of blahhh.

[DanesRGood]

Not sure I can agree Ambrose took the Iona game off.

 

14 points, 6 RB's, 4 assist, 6 steals, and 15 shots. He had an off shooting night, and like the rest of the team played some poor defense.

 

I could easily be confinced that Harris was nowhere to be found after the first 8-10 minutes. I don't recall exactly but think he had 16 points in the first 10 minutes. He ended w/ 20 points, 1 Rebound, , 2 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks in 33 minutes of play. 6'5", 240lb, strong leaper, 1RB, 0 blocks, 0 steals. Almost seems impossible.

 

I was there....it's just an impression I had watching him out there. He was very passive, a number of truly idiotic to's....just gave the ball away. He wasn't aggressive driving...just kind of blahhh.

 

I was at the game as well and agree. Timmy did not look good or really "into" the game. Having that stat line just shows how good he can be when he is on. He has been fairly inconsistent his whole career here when he could be a 18-20 PPG scorer. I hope they turn this around.

[McFan]

I couldn't see "energy" or "attitude" on the webcast so I'll certainly defer to those that were there.

 

I did see an Eric Dickerson interview the other day and he mentioned how during his playing days it was questioned if he was going 100%. He made a very valid point - great athletes many times don't look like they are trying hard, and shouldn't. If you watch some of the best runners in the world training by themselves it doesn't look like they are going that fast. When you check the watch - wow.

 

Not comparing Tim to Dickerson, but just a thought. It's tough to get 6 RB's and 6 steals in particular w/o some sort of effort.

 

Also find it a bit unfair to point fingers at the player that is second in scoring, first in RB's, first in assist, first in steals, first in FT% (>10 attempts), and first in FT attempts.

 

Could he average 18-20, sure. He's at 15.7.

[B9j2j6s]

Wow the sky is falling the sky is falling. Some of you were spoiled during our run in the mid 00's. My goodness I was at this game and what I saw was completely different then those of you who are posting. The team did a much better job in the first half dealing with the press of Iona, in the second half they were tired. Our team isn't designed to handle the press for 40 minutes. Iona was a team that beat Providence (I've seen PC play, really athletic team btw). OOC get you ready for conference play, get it through your heads. Who in the America East is like Iona or Siena? WHO? That's right nobody. The real season starts January 7 against Bing.

This OOC stretch on the road will only make this team stronger.