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I’m here. The zone lasted about 8 minutes and we were down ten. They have scored since we went man.
Update 23-21 cats up 6 minute mark.
Update 23-21 cats up 6 minute mark.
Norfolk is fouling a lot underneath and Cats are making free throws pretty well. 16/18
Norfolk has made 9/21 3s so far.
NU is 3/11
And I’ve realized I don’t like how the ads overwrite all the board info whenever the game is stopped or they’re at the line.
Norfolk has made 9/21 3s so far.
NU is 3/11
And I’ve realized I don’t like how the ads overwrite all the board info whenever the game is stopped or they’re at the line.
Cats are playing well. Jones just picked up his first foul. Nance and Kopp are getting some points. 45-28 cats at the 16 minute mark.
"Wildcats have stretched the lead to 41-25” were the first words when I tuned back in. I think we were down by a generous handful when I was connected earlier. Just made a giant commitment to the B-Ball Gods: no more beer for me until the game is over with the Cats on top. (Note: Said nothing about gin or cigars, though.)
Norfolk moves into a zone defense and drive the length of the court into traffic to draw a foul offense. Working for them so far.
Taphorn on the mic is the key difference. Joey tends to go all “well, if they have 8 straight stops and toss in a few 3’s the Cats will be right back in this game. But it IS about time they get into a rhythm on offense…” At which time I tend to become terminally gloomy and grumpy.
19 point lead WELL past the three-quarters mark. Hang on guys for 8 strong closing minutes. Winning the turnovers stat by 15-5 is big.
66-49 at 3:13 Boo gave a little taste of that back to them. Cats went to a 3-2 zone with players in foul trouble. An easy score for NS under the net.
NS’s press giving the cats some good practice.
NS’s press giving the cats some good practice.
Victory 70-59. Young’s stats look like what we’d want from a center. Cats showed moments of how good they can be and moments of a young team in a game a bit too fast for them.
Cats hits 28-30 free throw tonight I think.
Cats hits 28-30 free throw tonight I think.
The free throws translate into conference play. Not sure about the rest. Wonder if nance will be at NU a year from now.
Hey sunshine, that would probably make you happy. Never seen someone root so much against his own alma mater.
Got a call from Titanium. Nance will probably be playing in the NBA with his brother for the Cavs next season, so you're right (again!).
Dang!!
Positives:
-All 3 of our freshmen has impressive skills in different aspects of the game
-Nance is confident
-Kopp is creating looks
-Young is a fighter
-Spencer is better than even the more optimistic folks could expect
-Our man to man is competent
-if chicken sandwiches become free after 4 free throws we might get to 2,000 people to n the arena
Negatives
-Game for freshmen is still clearly too fast
-Nance does not get touches regularly, unless he comes outside. His game is not off the drible at the 3 point line. His points pretty much came within a 5-8 minute period. Before and after, not nearly enough touches for his skill set. Zone did not help that in 2nd half
-Kopp needs confidence. What numbers can he get to if he has it? Encouraging
-Young will struggle against B1G bigs. Want to see a mid range jumper
-Spencer is one skill away from an elite player. A consistent 3 pointer and a solid off the dribble jumper. Without those he will be limited
-Our zone is an abomination and no one knows what they are supposed to do.
-Heart breaking coolest little arena around is an empty cold building. Only motivated by chicken sandwiches
I’m not naturally a Debbie Downer, but it feels realistic to not bet overly ecstatic about beating Norfolk State.
On the other hand, the talent is there. Barring injuries, transfers, etc, a competent coach should turn this group into a team that competes to make the tournament
-All 3 of our freshmen has impressive skills in different aspects of the game
-Nance is confident
-Kopp is creating looks
-Young is a fighter
-Spencer is better than even the more optimistic folks could expect
-Our man to man is competent
-if chicken sandwiches become free after 4 free throws we might get to 2,000 people to n the arena
Negatives
-Game for freshmen is still clearly too fast
-Nance does not get touches regularly, unless he comes outside. His game is not off the drible at the 3 point line. His points pretty much came within a 5-8 minute period. Before and after, not nearly enough touches for his skill set. Zone did not help that in 2nd half
-Kopp needs confidence. What numbers can he get to if he has it? Encouraging
-Young will struggle against B1G bigs. Want to see a mid range jumper
-Spencer is one skill away from an elite player. A consistent 3 pointer and a solid off the dribble jumper. Without those he will be limited
-Our zone is an abomination and no one knows what they are supposed to do.
-Heart breaking coolest little arena around is an empty cold building. Only motivated by chicken sandwiches
I’m not naturally a Debbie Downer, but it feels realistic to not bet overly ecstatic about beating Norfolk State.
On the other hand, the talent is there. Barring injuries, transfers, etc, a competent coach should turn this group into a team that competes to make the tournament
good observations. i think expectations for this year are to look back in a month and feel we have gotten better. and do that each month. that is what this year has always been about. are nance and young being consistent against better comp? can miller get to the 12-14 pt range consistenly. can the freshmen be solid contributors as the year goes on. this year is about the future plain and simple.
It was fun to watch the game last night. Having survived being an NU hoops fan for nearly 35 years, I'm encouraged about the 4 freshman, plus Nance and Kopp. It's easy to realistically imagine all of them improving considerably. Young appears to have the lowest ceiling of the 6 but I would not be surprised if he had a career like Shon Morris. One reason why he might not is he's surrounded by a lot more talent than Shon had. We would all be delighted by that.
We have all seen Young, Buie and Beran begin to blossom already this year. Yes, they've been up and down but the trend is definitely positive. Looking forward to seeing what unfolds this year.
We have all seen Young, Buie and Beran begin to blossom already this year. Yes, they've been up and down but the trend is definitely positive. Looking forward to seeing what unfolds this year.
I think this is all great.
I really like how active Young is...I think with his attitude and ability he'll soon be a fan favorite. Against Big 10 opponents he needs to be effective...he doesn't need to be dominant his first year. Effective to me means defending the paint well and taking away easy bunnies from quality bigs. If can accumulate some garbage points and convert free throws, all the better.
The not so great is the shooting. These were four homes games against lower level competition. Presumably better competition will be quicker to defend the perimeter. As a team, NU is shooting 31 percent from three. Maybe that works if the defense is exceptional, but in 2019 that doesn't work. I think by New Year's a couple guys underwater like AJ and Spencer will start to knock them down.
And the driving, Boo Boo was better last night but this is not a roster that can put it on the floor, break down a defender and get to the rim. Is that needed? I think in the Big Ten you need some of that.