tonight's game

[pdxmuskie]

I'm not sure most thought everything was fine but X obviously played dramatically better the 2nd half showing there is reason to believe X will have a good year. I'd also suggest there is a good chance we just beat a tournament team or at least a team near the top of their conference. Not saying we should be impressed with the win but that the first half struggles was probably against a solid team.

X must have more depth than what was shown in game 1. I suspect the bench will prove more productive but not yet sure it will be as potent as we initially hoped for.

[Kevin Reilly]

I didn't see much but I do have a couple concerns. We look very small and light in the Front Court. Freemantle had a good game but to my eyes he looks to have lost 10 to 15 lbs. I heard he is down to 4% body fat and he looked it to me. He was on the lean side to begin with. Maybe he took off weight because of his foot problems. He needs to head to White Castle a couple times a week and put some weight back on. Hunter seems a little lighter too. We will struggle holding our own on the boards this year. How did Texas Southern commit 29 fouls? That's crazy. How many fouled out? Was the game called fairly? I have total faith in Miller and his staff to get the most out of this team but I am worried about rebounding and The Big's getting in foul trouble.

[pdxmuskie]

Excess weight is not a benefit. In basketball, it is not legal to bull through people. Does it happen periodically, of course but it is also called a foul quite often. Being quick is far more advantageous than having extra weight to anchor into a spot.

Leverage also works well to prevent a bigger, stronger player from pushing deeper. Length is huge.

This doesn't mean X won't struggle to rebound or to defend the post but it doesn't have to be a huge issue. Players have to decide how much effort they will put into rebounding and defending. I cannot recall ever being pushed from a spot on the court. That includes boxing out players with a 50 to 70 pound advantage. I have had people rebound over me because they were a foot taller with long arms but that shouldn't be the case for any of the X bigs. Smaller sure but the inches isn't significant.

Swain is all over the court but his rebound numbers were not great last game. I would expect his rebounding to be better most games but if this becomes a trend, rebounding is far more likely to become an issue. Someone else will need to step up on the glass if that is the case. Swain may be out of position to rebound because he is hounding the other team's scorer or for some other reason. It will not be because he is not putting in the effort.

[muskieman]

I'm not sure most thought everything was fine but X obviously played dramatically better the 2nd half showing there is reason to believe X will have a good year. I'd also suggest there is a good chance we just beat a tournament team or at least a team near the top of their conference. Not saying we should be impressed with the win but that the first half struggles was probably against a solid team.

X must have more depth than what was shown in game 1. I suspect the bench will prove more productive but not yet sure it will be as potent as we initially hoped for.

Most definitely, pdx. There are numerous things that need to be addressed and it starts with the bench production. However, as Sean said, he could not remember when the bench produced no points, and he thought this was a one-off. I think TS will be a decent team but how far they go in their conference I don't know. Analysis say they might be middle of the pack

[futurmagnussen]

man i got to stick with you guys or i miss it all

[Kevin Reilly]

Pdxmuskie. You made a lot of good points. I just can't remember a X team so light in the pants. We seem to always have had physical front court players. I see a lot of improve with the guards and wings and a know the college game is a guard - wing game now but I worry about the big teams in the Big East.

[skyhops]

Rebounding and interior defense is going to be an issue this year. I can't believe Hugley lost almost 50 lbs and still looks out of shape and slow. Foster and Swain will have to play defense on taller opponents and rebound better. I was behind bench on Monday and Fletcher doesn't seem to have the size to compete down low in BE.

[Anti-Homer]

I don't have any concerns after this game than I did before. I think this team has a chance to get to the SW 16, but without Traore, will hurt with their post-D and rebounding. Conwell did what I thought he'd do. 3 level scorer and good defender. Reminds me of a better shooting JCraw. I thought Swain was the only NBA prospect, but think Conwell is as well.

1st 8 minutes of the game reminded me of Travis Steele's "Shoot em if you got it" offense. Very poor shot selection. When Hunter and Hughley take treys, and Swain and Foster (2) take 3's to start, that's a problem. Freeman is probably a decent three-point shooter, and one was in rhythm, but he ain't Trey Bluiett. Hopefully, Miller makes the film session painful.

I think Green and Maddox will be fine. Maddox will be more than fine. BTW, TS is expected to compete for their league title. I'm not saying that's great, but they have 2 or 3 really nice players.

[skyhops]

I hear the NBA comments about Swain, but until he can hit a three-point shot consistently and play lock defense he isn't a real prospect, look at Colby Jones who can't get off the bench with the Kings. Green will have games where he will provide a spark with his shooting, but his size and inability to get around screens are an issue. I'm sure Maddox will be fine as long as he is hitting threes because he is an undersized two guard as well.

Tough loss for Nova, who made a poor hire similar to us hiring Steele instead of a seasoned coach. Hopefully, Neptune stays for a few more years.

[muskieman]

Pdxmuskie. You made a lot of good points. I just can't remember a X team so light in the pants. We seem to always have had physical front court players. I see a lot of improve with the guards and wings and a know the college game is a guard - wing game now but I worry about the big teams in the Big East.

It might be a guard-wing game, but the big guys can give you tourney wins (for example, UConn). Look at Creighton's game last night. Ryan Kalkbrenner’s stats in the win were crazy: 49 points on 20-for-22 shooting, 2-for-2 from three-point range, and 7-for-8 from the foul line. He also had 11 rebounds and three blocks.