Purple and White Game

[SWeberCat02]

Tonight. Although the real season doesn't start for another 16 days, it will be nice to watch some basketball and forget about football for at least an evening.

 

[heyoh22]

Those lucky enough to attend, please post your comments/review of the action. Interested to hear what happens

 

[n.ogdencat]

I definitely will be putting in my two cents on the scrimmage. I did hear that a closed scrimmage might be happening sometime in the next few days too. I'll be the first to say this, I HATE the closed scrimmage arrangement. I'd rather have games where you can watch the team. Of course, my hate is founded in a selfish desire to watch Weber State hoops. I do recognize and know that the team probably improves more through the closed scrimmage than playing a patsy.

 

[ogdengodfather]

betting lines for this game have the white +8 over the purple. :twocents:

 

[hawkssb04]

Funny how athletics has always scheduled the women's team before the men. I guess they figure we won't stick around after if the men's team is first.

 

[Webergrad02]

My thoughts from tonight

When Tres, Bolomboy & Hill are all in the line up together, its going to be a block party. We will be a force on the boards. They need to strengthen the rims at the DEE because these boys are going to get some dunks.

Bolomboy looks stronger, but still needs some offensive work. I thought his effort slowed a little in the second game on defense. Hill is going to be good. He came out and drained a three to start the game. I think he plays long for his size. I liked his athleticism and I think he crashed the boards fairly hard. I think we may see him play alot of 4.

I liked Gittens explosiveness. He got to the rim a few times. He is going to be fun to watch.

Tres battled Bolomboy hard. Tres and J Rich played well. Rich drained a nice three. I think he is going to be our deep threat. This is an athletic team. They showed some good pressure and trapping. I wonder if we are going to see more press this year.

Fulton still seems a step behind everyone. He also forced a couple of quick shots. Fuller didn't do too much for me. Leeks looks a little like Harold the show and I thought he played okay. McDonald looks like 6' 4 8th grader.

We may still play 10 guys this year. I hope we don't redshirt Gittens or Senglin. I think both will earn some playing time. Hill is going to be a match up problem with his ability to play inside or out. The game got a little sloppy at times but I am excited.

 

[oldrunner]

Fulton's knee is not 100% yet and he completely dislocated his ankle last summer. His ankle may never be 100%. He was the slowest on the team anyway, but these injuries are slowing him even more. He will be able to contribute here and there. He is still very good offensively, his mobility keeps him from playing more.

I thought Bolomboy looked much more confident than last year. Tres is an absolute beast.

Our guards all looked good. They are so athletic and fun to watch. It's hard to look good in these kinds of events. However, this was the best we have looked in a purple/white game for a while.

 

[Wildcat_Fan]

We have a very athletic team and when we are clicking on all cylinders it will be fun to watch.
Few concerns that i saw, Berry still taking some questionable shots. He looked good getting to the basket and making tough plays there. Agreed that Bolomboy still needs offensive work. His post moves looked better but still gets caught in the air a few times. And Senglin, I really wasnt too high on him. Only saw him score on foul shots and one put back layup. Other than that he took some really bad shots. I dont think coach Rahe drew up for him to dribble around and shoot a fade away three just before halftime. He seems to handle the ball well and play good D, but his offense was lacking to say the least. Hope it was just nerves.
The rest of the team just looked like another weber state product. Heres to a good year!

 

[oldrunner]

Bolomboy had 20 points and shot 69% from the field. Berry had 18 points. The teams combined shooting percentage was 66%.

 

[WSUProf]

in case anyone is interested, the line-ups for the first session was
Bolomboy, Fulton, Hill, Berry and Richardson vs. Tresnak, Fuller, Williams, Gittens, and Senglin.

Then they switched things up for the switched things up a bit for the second:
Bolomboy, Fuller, Gittens, Berry, and Senglin vs. Tresnak, Hill, Williams, McDonald, and Richardson

What's clear right now is we have 3 solid seniors in Tresnak, Berry, and Richardson. I thought Tresnak really dominated Bolomboy in the low post last night. Hajek was screaming at Joel from the bench, "work, Joel, work." But I'm not too worried about Bolomboy being a solid contributor at the 4 spot. The question is who is the 5th starter. Can they start Hill at the 3? Is it Williams? Yes, Hill hit a 3, but his stroke doesn't give me lots of confidence.
I think that we may see the Cats struggle a bit early in the season with their depth, what with Hajek out and the freshman needing to develop. Gittens and Senglin demonstrated some athletic talent but watching them shoot in the pre-game warm-ups, neither looked like a strong outside threat.
I worry that teams may just look to pack it in on Tresnak and take away Berry's penetration. Richardson can hit the 3. So can Berry. Anyone else?
To be honest, I'm not as impressed with the Cats after this scrimmage as I was last year. Tough to replace Bamforth, obviously.

 

[ajwildcat]

in case anyone is interested, the line-ups for the first session was
Bolomboy, Fulton, Hill, Berry and Richardson vs. Tresnak, Fuller, Williams, Gittens, and Senglin.

Then they switched things up for the switched things up a bit for the second:
Bolomboy, Fuller, Gittens, Berry, and Senglin vs. Tresnak, Hill, Williams, McDonald, and Richardson

What's clear right now is we have 3 solid seniors in Tresnak, Berry, and Richardson. I thought Tresnak really dominated Bolomboy in the low post last night. Hajek was screaming at Joel from the bench, "work, Joel, work." But I'm not too worried about Bolomboy being a solid contributor at the 4 spot. The question is who is the 5th starter. Can they start Hill at the 3? Is it Williams? Yes, Hill hit a 3, but his stroke doesn't give me lots of confidence.
I think that we may see the Cats struggle a bit early in the season with their depth, what with Hajek out and the freshman needing to develop. Gittens and Senglin demonstrated some athletic talent but watching them shoot in the pre-game warm-ups, neither looked like a strong outside threat.
I worry that teams may just look to pack it in on Tresnak and take away Berry's penetration. Richardson can hit the 3. So can Berry. Anyone else?
To be honest, I'm not as impressed with the Cats after this scrimmage as I was last year. Tough to replace Bamforth, obviously.

You must be one of those glass half full type of guys I see. :rofl:
WSU will be DAMN good and the Freshman are going to be outstanding, they will have their growing pains sure but in the end they are ballers.
Before you get to down on this group after watching 1 scrimmage :roll: , just remember, The Wizard of Ogden knows what the hell he is doing. :thumb:

 

[hawkssb04]

I suppose I'll chip in with a few of my observations from the game, too. I'll do this Peter King style. But just like AJ said, it's worth noting that this after just ONE scrimmage and a couple of weeks of practice.

WHAT I LIKED:

Joel Bolomboy: I don't entirely agree with some of the other comments regarding his offensive skillset. I think it was fairly obvious that he worked on it a lot this offseason. His confidence was clearly there last night, and his shooting touch looked vastly improved from last season, although we did start to see signs of it as the CIT wound down. Defensively, as always, he was a beast. No complaints there, except for maybe fouls, but whoever has to guard Tresnak is going to tally a few of those.

Jeremy Senglin: Although he looks like Prince and Scottie Pippen had a baby, I'm already confident this kid is going to be an immediate upgrade from Gelaun Wheelwright. He doesn't have Gelaun's speed, but he was still pretty dang quick and already seemed comfortable running the point and distributing the ball in Randy's system. Also, 6-for-6 from the free-throw line is encouraging. We sorely need that kind of dependability from the line, especially now that Scotty is gone.

Richaud Gittens: I love this kid's athleticism. Although he didn't take a ton of shots, the play where he contested (and in my mind cleanly blocked) Berry at the rim stuck out for me. I'm interested to see what role Randy puts him in this season. He appears to be very versatile and can play the 1 or the 2.

Davion Berry: Pretty much everything he does. He's the first WSU star who aggressively attacks the basket (consistently) since Jermaine Boyette. Sorry Damian, you were just too unselfish.

Byron Fulton: His shot. He did show signs of speed, and even had a few nice moves against Kyndahl Hill, but his shot selection was efficient.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:

KYNDAHL HILL: Although I was pleased to see him sink a three-pointer, I was hoping to see a little more out of him in this scrimmage. He is obviously hugely talented and has the potential to be our next full-time Frank Otis with a little more range, but he didn't seem too comfortable and confident on the floor.

JOSH FULLER: He's a big body, which we will need while Big Jim is out, but his game isn't all that polished and he really had a hard time posting up against WSU's more seasoned bigs. I guess anybody would look bad against them, though.

JAMES HAJEK: He didn't play, but his behavior while sitting on the bench annoyed the crap out of me all night long. Even last year, his childish antics from the bench reminded me a lot of Robert Sacre or those Griz bench warmers during every Big Sky Tournament. Here's an example from Sacre to help describe what I mean. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxVuySQT-eY" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[ajwildcat]

I suppose I'll chip in with a few of my observations from the game, too. I'll do this Peter King style. But just like AJ said, it's worth noting that this after just ONE scrimmage and a couple of weeks of practice.

WHAT I LIKED:

Joel Bolomboy: I don't entirely agree with some of the other comments regarding his offensive skillset. I think it was fairly obvious that he worked on it a lot this offseason. His confidence was clearly there last night, and his shooting touch looked vastly improved from last season, although we did start to see signs of it as the CIT wound down. Defensively, as always, he was a beast. No complaints there, except for maybe fouls, but whoever has to guard Tresnak is going to tally a few of those.

Jeremy Senglin: Although he looks like Prince and Scottie Pippen had a baby, I'm already confident this kid is going to be an immediate upgrade from Gelaun Wheelwright. He doesn't have Gelaun's speed, but he was still pretty dang quick and already seemed comfortable running the point and distributing the ball in Randy's system. Also, 6-for-6 from the free-throw line is encouraging. We sorely need that kind of dependability from the line, especially now that Scotty is gone.

Richaud Gittens: I love this kid's athleticism. Although he didn't take a ton of shots, the play where he contested (and in my mind cleanly blocked) Berry at the rim stuck out for me. I'm interested to see what role Randy puts him in this season. He appears to be very versatile and can play the 1 or the 2.

Davion Berry: Pretty much everything he does. He's the first WSU star who aggressively attacks the basket (consistently) since Jermaine Boyette. Sorry Damian, you were just too unselfish.

Byron Fulton: His shot. He did show signs of speed, and even had a few nice moves against Kyndahl Hill, but his shot selection was efficient.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:

KYNDAHL HILL: Although I was pleased to see him sink a three-pointer, I was hoping to see a little more out of him in this scrimmage. He is obviously hugely talented and has the potential to be our next full-time Frank Otis with a little more range, but he didn't seem too comfortable and confident on the floor. He is still just a freshman and will get much more comfortable

JOSH FULLER: He's a big body, which we will need while Big Jim is out, but his game isn't all that polished and he really had a hard time posting up against WSU's more seasoned bigs. I guess anybody would look bad against them, though. He is a Darin Mahoney type player, works his tail off. Every successful team needs a guy like this.

JAMES HAJEK: He didn't play, but his behavior while sitting on the bench annoyed the crap out of me all night long. Even last year, his childish antics from the bench reminded me a lot of Robert Sacre or those Griz bench warmers during every Big Sky Tournament. Here's an example from Sacre to help describe what I mean. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxVuySQT-eY" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

So having energy, enthusiasm, and being a great teammate is annoying? Yeah I guess he should just sit on the end of the bench feeling sorry for himsefl. :roll:

 

[Webergrad02]

Hawks,

I thought James was just trying help guys out. In no way was it as bad as Sacre. He wants to be on the court, you can tell.

Bolomboy still got caught in the air a few times, you can't deny that.

I think Hill played much better than Fulton. I felt like he forced lots of baskets and lets face it, he is slow. Sure Hill didn't look real comfortable offensively, but he is going to be a defensive beast!

Fuller was my biggest disappointment. But it was on scrimmage and he is a freshman.

It was a good scrimmage. There will be growing pains.

 

[Midmajor??]

Wow!

Hard to believe you guys went to the same game! :wtf:
Going to be an interesting year!

 

[hawkssb04]

I suppose I'll chip in with a few of my observations from the game, too. I'll do this Peter King style. But just like AJ said, it's worth noting that this after just ONE scrimmage and a couple of weeks of practice.

WHAT I LIKED:

Joel Bolomboy: I don't entirely agree with some of the other comments regarding his offensive skillset. I think it was fairly obvious that he worked on it a lot this offseason. His confidence was clearly there last night, and his shooting touch looked vastly improved from last season, although we did start to see signs of it as the CIT wound down. Defensively, as always, he was a beast. No complaints there, except for maybe fouls, but whoever has to guard Tresnak is going to tally a few of those.

Jeremy Senglin: Although he looks like Prince and Scottie Pippen had a baby, I'm already confident this kid is going to be an immediate upgrade from Gelaun Wheelwright. He doesn't have Gelaun's speed, but he was still pretty dang quick and already seemed comfortable running the point and distributing the ball in Randy's system. Also, 6-for-6 from the free-throw line is encouraging. We sorely need that kind of dependability from the line, especially now that Scotty is gone.

Richaud Gittens: I love this kid's athleticism. Although he didn't take a ton of shots, the play where he contested (and in my mind cleanly blocked) Berry at the rim stuck out for me. I'm interested to see what role Randy puts him in this season. He appears to be very versatile and can play the 1 or the 2.

Davion Berry: Pretty much everything he does. He's the first WSU star who aggressively attacks the basket (consistently) since Jermaine Boyette. Sorry Damian, you were just too unselfish.

Byron Fulton: His shot. He did show signs of speed, and even had a few nice moves against Kyndahl Hill, but his shot selection was efficient.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:

KYNDAHL HILL: Although I was pleased to see him sink a three-pointer, I was hoping to see a little more out of him in this scrimmage. He is obviously hugely talented and has the potential to be our next full-time Frank Otis with a little more range, but he didn't seem too comfortable and confident on the floor. He is still just a freshman and will get much more comfortable

JOSH FULLER: He's a big body, which we will need while Big Jim is out, but his game isn't all that polished and he really had a hard time posting up against WSU's more seasoned bigs. I guess anybody would look bad against them, though. He is a Darin Mahoney type player, works his tail off. Every successful team needs a guy like this.

JAMES HAJEK: He didn't play, but his behavior while sitting on the bench annoyed the crap out of me all night long. Even last year, his childish antics from the bench reminded me a lot of Robert Sacre or those Griz bench warmers during every Big Sky Tournament. Here's an example from Sacre to help describe what I mean. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxVuySQT-eY" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

So having energy, enthusiasm, and being a great teammate is annoying? Yeah I guess he should just sit on the end of the bench feeling sorry for himsefl. :roll:

True, it's ridiculous for any of us to expect a ton out of any freshman, no matter how hyped or talented.

 

[wazzuwildcat03]

My only complaints about the scrimmage was the stupid shooting contest. They used to do a 3 point contest with the fans and the winner got a gift card. I know, because I won it one year with JP Silveria. ha ha. The Q and A was ok, but kind of dumb. Nothing against the Lady Cats, but I wish they went second. I just don't enjoy women's basketball at all. I cant even name 2 WNBA plays. Now on the main event.
Its easy to see that 4 of our starters are Richardson, Berry, Bolomboy and Tres. The thought of Tres and Bolomboy on the floor together should scare the living poop out of all the teams in the conference. We should absolutely dominate the boards. Add in Hill and Gittens and I bet we see a ton of blocks this year. I can't wait. Out of everyone besides the obvious 4 above I was most impressed with Gittens. Im not sure about his shooting, but he was impressive to me. Based on what I saw he would be the 5th starter, but its just one scrimmage so who knows. No way he redshirts. Senglin will be a good back up PG. He has all the tools just needs some experience. Hill will be fun to watch too. I think he will mostly play the 4. Fuller was ok, but seemed a little off. Im not worried. Williams was solid. Fulton had some nice moves, but is the slowest on the team. I wish he was 100%, because he has some nice offensive tools It was fun to watch. We are 10 deep and 11 when we get James back.

 

[oldrunner]

I don't know who the 5th starter might be, but I suspect that it may be Williams, with Senglin coming in at point and Gittins on the wing. There will be no red shirts this year, with the exception of the walkons. There may be one or two of them play, if needed.

 

[Webergrad02]

I say use Royce as a foundation of the second unit and give the spot to Gittens. I am not sure that it is smart to have all the rookies on your second unit.

 

[WeberSki]

It's really impossible to make too much out of 20 minutes of play against each other last night. A few years ago BJ Porter looked All-Conference in the purple & white and barely sniffed the floor even after Lillard went down. Last night was a short snapshot, a drop in the bucket of what we'll see.

I was happy with Bolomboy's development, some low post moves we didn't see last season. Hill looked good to me. My biggest worry is 3 point shooting. Bamforth leaves a gaping hole. Hopefully somebody emerges. Somebody mentioned Richardson, but he can only hit them if he's open. The second he tries to create or shoot off balance hes lucky if he hits the backboard..