Drake Bulldogs

[Webergrad02]

We opened as a 4 point favorite tonight, the line has since moved to 5. At least the gamblers believe in us.

Drake has a couple of big men that change the game. Kale Abrhamson a 6'8 forward went off for 41 points yesterday. He is a dual threat big man that made 4 three pointers and pulled down 7 boards. We will need to keep someone athletic on him. They also have a big Danish 7 footer that was presence inside.

Drake is coached by our old friend Ray Giacoletti and the phantom penny. They played mostly man to man yesterday. I think we have a really good chance in this one. But we need offensive production from Baker, Gittens or John. I really like when Cannon and Senglin play together. Jeremy seems not to force it as much when someone else is facilitating.

All of the teams were making comments yesterday about how cold it is court level. They put the court on top of the ice. If you notice, many of the fans are wearing jackets.

Here is the link for the live feed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWlgG_bS_Zc" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[SWWeatherCat]

I hate the Drake!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTkkklmeFOU

:lol: Sorry.

 

[n.ogdencat]

Well...bring on Drake! Lets get this shiz on! Drake is one of the teams too good to play Weber home and home. Time to punish them! LOL.

This should be a great game. I can't believe one of their guys went off for 41 last night. I checked his past stats and he has a great average, but nothing would indicate that the guy could go off for 41 at anytime. What a game he had last night. I hope our bigs are up to the challenge.

 

[Webergrad02]

I hope we come out with energy tonight. Central Michigan looks super tired against Western Kentucky. Their shots aren't falling and they are getting their arses served up on a platter. They are down b y 36 as I type this.

I think the fact that we have 11 or 12 guys all competing for playing time may work to our advantage right now. Playing 3 games in 3 days is difficult and the depth is needed. As I have watched these games the last 2 days, these teams are all pretty close skill wise. We really haven't seen a blow out until WKU over Central Michigan and you can tell the lack of depth really hurt CMU, plus you don't fair well when you take over 40 three's and make only 20%.

I also want to publicly say that I may have over reacted after the SDSU loss. They are making absolute mince meat out of every team that they have played. Illinois State, TCU and Houston Baptist have all received similar or worse beatings than we took. I really look forward to seeing them before Christmas at the DEE. They may be the best team not named BYU that we have seen at the purple palace.

 

[WILDCAT]

Watching Pepperdine vs Murray State now, I guess we play either the winner or loser of this game depending on how we do tonight?

Pepperdine leads by two at half 28-26

 

[STGWildcat]

They may be the best team not named BYU that we have seen at the purple palace.

The best opponent in the Purple Palace I've ever seen was Purdue in 1993. Purdue was ranked 10th in the nation at the time. Glenn Robinson scored 31 points and was drafted with the first pick in the NBA the following year. I was fairly young, but the only highlight of the game I remember (other than actually getting a ranked opponent to Ogden) was seeing Glenn Robinson miss a dunk. The place went crazy. Purdue had the last laugh with a 108-73 victory.

 

[STGWildcat]

I also want to publicly say that I may have over reacted after the SDSU loss. They are making absolute mince meat out of every team that they have played. Illinois State, TCU and Houston Baptist have all received similar or worse beatings than we took. I really look forward to seeing them before Christmas at the DEE.

I'm not an RPI expert, and I don't know how inaccurate it is this early in the year, but as of right now, South Dakota State is ranked 12th in RPI. So yes, not an embarrassing loss. Here's hoping Weber State gets a quality win against them in December.

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/rpi/_/teamId/2571" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[WILDCAT]

Murray State beat Pepperdine 60-55. So if we are able to get past Drake, we will take on the Racers of Murray State

 

[STGWildcat]

Even though Weber has the lead, the biggest disappointment to me so far in this game is Hill. I expected him to be a monster when he was a freshman. Now he's a junior, and I can't trust him to do anything productive.

 

[Webergrad02]

Hill is doing okay. He is having to defend their most lethal player. We need Williams to play smarter on offense. Overall it has been a good effort by the cats. You can tell that we are gelling as a team. I think we need to see more of Gittens. The attack of Senglin, Gittens, and Cannon is too much for them as they are so worried about Joel getting free. We have too many weapons. We need to keep it up.

 

[STGWildcat]

I'm fine with HIll on defense and I suppose on the glass, but when he puts up a shot, no matter where he's at on the floor, I don't have much faith.

But yes, I don't have much to complain about in this game in general. Weber is playing their best they've played all year so far.

 

[WILDCAT]

Whoo hoo, nice 16 point win over a quality Mid Major opponent. Game tomorrow should be a dandy, especially if Weber plays tomorrow like they did tonight.

 

[STGWildcat]

As others have said before, Bolomboy shouldn't be shooting jumpers. He's a beast inside. Thankfully it didn't matter since Senglin went off. Nice shooting from Cannon as well.

 

[wildkyle]

Wow what a game. This has been fun tourney to watch.

 

[baller]

My take:
1. Hill is what he is... He was a project with lots of athleticism when he came here and he has not developed to the point that anyone expected he would. So quit criticizing and see him for what he is. An athletic big who can be counted on for a few points and rebounds. A good backup...

2. Gittens should be starting over Baker. Forget the idea that he and Cannon and Hill would offer a lot of firepower for the second unit. Randy has forgotten it already. He did so the moment he began to start Cannon and it was a good decision. Now he needs to start Gittens also and put the best 5 on the floor.

3. I don't know what Jefferson did to get so deep into Randy's doghouse. Nor do I know what he didn't do to get there. But it is obvious that Randy has no intention of playing him at all in any meaningful game or in any meaningful way. I think that is a mistake. He is a major talent that needs to work thru a few "freshman" problems. He is the "smoothest" player on the team with the "sweetest" jump shot. If given some playing time to learn to play at this level he would be a major contributor.

4. Randy has now settled on his usual 8-man rotation... Bolomoboy, Braxton, Cannon, Senglin, Baker, Hill, Gittens and John. That leaves Richardson, Jefferson, Stavrev and Williams on the bench for all but a spot moment here and there and clean up time in games out of contention. We will probably lose either Richardson or Jefferson (or both) at the end of the season... get used to it.

5. Both Senglin and Bolomboy are even better than I expected them to be this year. They are difference makers. Hope they keep it up. If so, it will be a great year for WSU bball.

6. Someone else said it, and I agree. Randy has made some subtle changes in his coaching and it shows in the form of a much improved team. The zone is now being used properly. The approach against the backcourt press has not changed and it needs to... He even tried, albeit briefly, to move beyond his 8-man rotation but has now gone back to his usual. I think if he could get over this idea and develop a 9 or 10 man rotation the team would be much better than it will be with an 8-man rotation.

HOORAY FOR WEBER!!! Go cats... :rockon:

 

[Webergrad02]

I think we may see some games where we go to 9 or 10 man rotations. Cannon is playing a key role in the success we have had this week. Senglin is lethal when he is able to set and square up his shoulders. Cannon is facilitating some great shots. We bitch and moan that our chemistry sucks, then we find some really good chemistry with the 8 players you mention and now we are going to complain that we are not playing more players? I agree that it would be good to see what Jefferson has to offer. But I am very impressed with how quickly our ball movement has improved.

In our wins we have cut down on our turnovers and have went to the foul line far more than our opponents. Braxton has done a great job of staying out of foul trouble. Yes Senglin and Bolomboy have been off the charts the last few games, but Cannon, Braxton and Gittens have done enough to put them in positions to shine. Against Drake, we punished them for taking away our post game. When we are on, we are on!

 

[WSUProf]

As others have said before, Bolomboy shouldn't be shooting jumpers. He's a beast inside. Thankfully it didn't matter since Senglin went off. Nice shooting from Cannon as well.

I disagree about Bolomboy. He needs to take (and make) some 10-15 footers and even a 3 every now and then to force defenders to come out on him. He has developed a somewhat decent move to the basket that gets him past many of the defenders he'll face this year.
Loved the fact that Senglin also grabbed 6 boards.

 

[UtahPirate]

My take:
3. I don't know what Jefferson did to get so deep into Randy's doghouse. Nor do I know what he didn't do to get there. But it is obvious that Randy has no intention of playing him at all in any meaningful game or in any meaningful way. I think that is a mistake. He is a major talent that needs to work thru a few "freshman" problems. He is the "smoothest" player on the team with the "sweetest" jump shot. If given some playing time to learn to play at this level he would be a major contributor.

4. Randy has now settled on his usual 8-man rotation... Bolomoboy, Braxton, Cannon, Senglin, Baker, Hill, Gittens and John. That leaves Richardson, Jefferson, Stavrev and Williams on the bench for all but a spot moment here and there and clean up time in games out of contention. We will probably lose either Richardson or Jefferson (or both) at the end of the season... get used to it.

6. Someone else said it, and I agree. Randy has made some subtle changes in his coaching and it shows in the form of a much improved team. The zone is now being used properly. The approach against the backcourt press has not changed and it needs to... He even tried, albeit briefly, to move beyond his 8-man rotation but has now gone back to his usual. I think if he could get over this idea and develop a 9 or 10 man rotation the team would be much better than it will be with an 8-man rotation.

Really fun win last night, but... I sure thought we went short on the bench for a 3-day tournament. Bolomboy and Senglin have played significant minutes two nights in a row. If they don't get a lot of bench time in the first half tonight, there will be nothing left for the second half. I would love to see both Richardson and Jefferson on the court more. Either one can give you a spurt on offense and I think you need to see in the first half if either one of them is "on" for the night. They can bring too much to be parked on the bench for entire games.

My guess is that Rahe loves the man-to-man defense those first 8 bring. They work together well rotating and switching. Drake had many drives that were cut short by good switches. Baker is a good part of that. I think he'll find his shot and like the energy that Gittens brings off the bench.

At the end Cannon had a huge grin on his face. That kid brings a lot of moxie to this team. Ball movement is so much better than last year and Cannon and Baker have a lot to do with that. We've won these two games with solid defense and low turnovers. Now if we could just shoot free throws...

I'm still mad we lost to the Aggies...

 

[WeberSki]

My take:
3. I don't know what Jefferson did to get so deep into Randy's doghouse. Nor do I know what he didn't do to get there. But it is obvious that Randy has no intention of playing him at all in any meaningful game or in any meaningful way. I think that is a mistake. He is a major talent that needs to work thru a few "freshman" problems. He is the "smoothest" player on the team with the "sweetest" jump shot. If given some playing time to learn to play at this level he would be a major contributor.

4. Randy has now settled on his usual 8-man rotation... Bolomoboy, Braxton, Cannon, Senglin, Baker, Hill, Gittens and John. That leaves Richardson, Jefferson, Stavrev and Williams on the bench for all but a spot moment here and there and clean up time in games out of contention. We will probably lose either Richardson or Jefferson (or both) at the end of the season... get used to it.

6. Someone else said it, and I agree. Randy has made some subtle changes in his coaching and it shows in the form of a much improved team. The zone is now being used properly. The approach against the backcourt press has not changed and it needs to... He even tried, albeit briefly, to move beyond his 8-man rotation but has now gone back to his usual. I think if he could get over this idea and develop a 9 or 10 man rotation the team would be much better than it will be with an 8-man rotation.

Really fun win last night, but... I sure thought we went short on the bench for a 3-day tournament. Bolomboy and Senglin have played significant minutes two nights in a row. If they don't get a lot of bench time in the first half tonight, there will be nothing left for the second half. I would love to see both Richardson and Jefferson on the court more. Either one can give you a spurt on offense and I think you need to see in the first half if either one of them is "on" for the night. They can bring too much to be parked on the bench for entire games.

My guess is that Rahe loves the man-to-man defense those first 8 bring. They work together well rotating and switching. Drake had many drives that were cut short by good switches. Baker is a good part of that. I think he'll find his shot and like the energy that Gittens brings off the bench.

At the end Cannon had a huge grin on his face. That kid brings a lot of moxie to this team. Ball movement is so much better than last year and Cannon and Baker have a lot to do with that. We've won these two games with solid defense and low turnovers. Now if we could just shoot free throws...

I'm still mad we lost to the Aggies...

I agree. Under control was the theme last night. I like Gittens game, but he's not always under control like Baker. Baker's shot will start to fall just like Cannon's last night. Williams, John, Richardson will be well rested for tonight if called. I would like to see a larger rotation, but trying to test, and implement is easier said than done when you're in the middle of trying to win a a game.

 

[STGWildcat]

My take:
1. Hill is what he is... He was a project with lots of athleticism when he came here and he has not developed to the point that anyone expected he would. So quit criticizing and see him for what he is. An athletic big who can be counted on for a few points and rebounds. A good backup...

It's not just that his talent hasn't blossomed. He's usually plays very timidly. The lack of developed talent would be more forgivable if he played more aggressively and with a purpose. Nothing wrong with criticizing that. Some of us realize his potential, which is far higher than his current level. He has the potential to be my favorite player on the team. In the Utah State game where he threw down a monstrous dunk (his only points of the game in 28 minutes of play), it made me wish so badly that he played with that kind of fire more often.