Ready or not, the Aggies are coming to Ogden on Friday. As always, this is a huge game. Perfect way to start the basketball season.
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Utah State
- Thread starter n.ogdencat
- Start date
Weber vs. Aggie analysis:
PG: Trevon Ary-Turner vs. Koby McEwen: ADVANTAGE USU...McEwen is the Aggie heart and soul. He is their everything guy and can score in a variety of ways. He has a nice jump shot and can really get to the rim. I've heard that Ary-Turner is a proficient ball-handler and excellent outside shooter. He took some shots against Western, where he shouldn't have and missed badly. Regardless, He is young and will only get better. One thing I really like about Ary-Turner is his confidence and drive. He will take on the challenge as best as he can. I love the grit the kid plays with. No matter, McEwen is damn good.
SG: Jerrick Harding vs. Sam Merrill: ADVANTAGE WSU. Both can shoot for range, both can get to the rack, but like McEwen, Harding is one of Rahe's top weapons. Merrill's strengths are his calm demeanor and consistency. He is solid. Yet, so is Harding. Harding is quicker and has more moves. He can break down defenses by creating his own shot, driving to the hoop, shooting off the curl, and passing. He is a major offensive weapon.
SF: Ryan Richardson vs. DeAngelo Isby: ADVANTAGE WSU. Isby was a highly recruited JC player and in his Aggie debut scored 8 points, but had 3 TOs. He has bounce and can spread a defense with his shooting. His defense is fine. Whereas, Richardson can be downright nasty with his shooting; if he's on. If he wants, Richardson's defense can be shut down, but at times he tends to take plays off. I was hoping to see Ryan take that next step on defense and play tough for every min he is on the floor. Against Western, in the second half, it seemed he lost interest in the opponent. He's got to stay focused and play tough. He is a Jekyll and Hyde type player. First game of his senior year, at home against an instate opponent? I'm guessing Ryan will show up.
PF: Brekkot Chapman vs. Dwayne Brown: ADVANTAGE WSU. Chapman is a nightmare to prepare for. He is a hard to guard. It is equally as difficult to score against him. Last week he was plagued by cramping issues, and just seemed a bit spent at the end. It was; however, the first time he had played against an opponent in over a year. The issue for USU is their front court. How will they guard against the Weber bigs? In the past, USU beat teams in the post. Things now seem a bit reversed in Logan. USU has a really good and deep back court, but the Aggie front court is a major question mark. To be honest, I don't know what to make of Brown, Quinn, Hansen or Bean. I'm sure TD will use each in an attempt to limit Chapman. Chapman just needs to stay out of foul trouble and be on the floor as much as possible.
C: Zach Braxton vs. Alex Dargenton: ADVANTAGE WSU. Dargenton's biggest strength against Braxton would be getting Zach to over-commit on plays and possibly getting him into foul trouble. Braxton is a bit too zealous on defense and ends up committing a lot of fouls. He is a big kid who has some nice moves in the middle (I wish Tresnak would come back to Ogden and give him some guidance). He is an above-average rebounder and a tough kid. Dargenton has abilities, but like Braxton, tends to get into foul trouble. Both could be on the bench after 10 mins with 2 fouls.
Bench: ADVANTAGE USU...Dusty Baker could, in all likelihood, end up the 6th man of the year in the Sky, but after him, there are a lot of unanswered questions. Whereas, I feel USU has some more options and experience off the bench. Both, have a young guys who are unproven and lacking experience. Yet, USU has more available talent than Weber.
Both teams seem a bit obsessed with shooting the 3. I think the winner ends up being the better rebounder and the team who gets more 2nd chance options. Both teams, in their respective exhibitions, were involved in a foul fest (there were 53 whistles in Ogden and 50 in Logan), so it was really tough to get an idea how good either are defensively. Weber played extremely well for about 23 mins last Thursday night. The first half the Cats were lock-down on defense and moved the ball extremely well on offense. There was great movement without the ball and the kids ran their plays well. However, in the second half, the Cats started standing around and watching. Everyone wanted to only shoot 3s. There was limited movement on offense and a lot of really bad shots. On defense, the Cats go complacement and looked tired and slow (which they aren't). Gotta play a full 40. Should be a fun one in Ogden on Friday.
PG: Trevon Ary-Turner vs. Koby McEwen: ADVANTAGE USU...McEwen is the Aggie heart and soul. He is their everything guy and can score in a variety of ways. He has a nice jump shot and can really get to the rim. I've heard that Ary-Turner is a proficient ball-handler and excellent outside shooter. He took some shots against Western, where he shouldn't have and missed badly. Regardless, He is young and will only get better. One thing I really like about Ary-Turner is his confidence and drive. He will take on the challenge as best as he can. I love the grit the kid plays with. No matter, McEwen is damn good.
SG: Jerrick Harding vs. Sam Merrill: ADVANTAGE WSU. Both can shoot for range, both can get to the rack, but like McEwen, Harding is one of Rahe's top weapons. Merrill's strengths are his calm demeanor and consistency. He is solid. Yet, so is Harding. Harding is quicker and has more moves. He can break down defenses by creating his own shot, driving to the hoop, shooting off the curl, and passing. He is a major offensive weapon.
SF: Ryan Richardson vs. DeAngelo Isby: ADVANTAGE WSU. Isby was a highly recruited JC player and in his Aggie debut scored 8 points, but had 3 TOs. He has bounce and can spread a defense with his shooting. His defense is fine. Whereas, Richardson can be downright nasty with his shooting; if he's on. If he wants, Richardson's defense can be shut down, but at times he tends to take plays off. I was hoping to see Ryan take that next step on defense and play tough for every min he is on the floor. Against Western, in the second half, it seemed he lost interest in the opponent. He's got to stay focused and play tough. He is a Jekyll and Hyde type player. First game of his senior year, at home against an instate opponent? I'm guessing Ryan will show up.
PF: Brekkot Chapman vs. Dwayne Brown: ADVANTAGE WSU. Chapman is a nightmare to prepare for. He is a hard to guard. It is equally as difficult to score against him. Last week he was plagued by cramping issues, and just seemed a bit spent at the end. It was; however, the first time he had played against an opponent in over a year. The issue for USU is their front court. How will they guard against the Weber bigs? In the past, USU beat teams in the post. Things now seem a bit reversed in Logan. USU has a really good and deep back court, but the Aggie front court is a major question mark. To be honest, I don't know what to make of Brown, Quinn, Hansen or Bean. I'm sure TD will use each in an attempt to limit Chapman. Chapman just needs to stay out of foul trouble and be on the floor as much as possible.
C: Zach Braxton vs. Alex Dargenton: ADVANTAGE WSU. Dargenton's biggest strength against Braxton would be getting Zach to over-commit on plays and possibly getting him into foul trouble. Braxton is a bit too zealous on defense and ends up committing a lot of fouls. He is a big kid who has some nice moves in the middle (I wish Tresnak would come back to Ogden and give him some guidance). He is an above-average rebounder and a tough kid. Dargenton has abilities, but like Braxton, tends to get into foul trouble. Both could be on the bench after 10 mins with 2 fouls.
Bench: ADVANTAGE USU...Dusty Baker could, in all likelihood, end up the 6th man of the year in the Sky, but after him, there are a lot of unanswered questions. Whereas, I feel USU has some more options and experience off the bench. Both, have a young guys who are unproven and lacking experience. Yet, USU has more available talent than Weber.
Both teams seem a bit obsessed with shooting the 3. I think the winner ends up being the better rebounder and the team who gets more 2nd chance options. Both teams, in their respective exhibitions, were involved in a foul fest (there were 53 whistles in Ogden and 50 in Logan), so it was really tough to get an idea how good either are defensively. Weber played extremely well for about 23 mins last Thursday night. The first half the Cats were lock-down on defense and moved the ball extremely well on offense. There was great movement without the ball and the kids ran their plays well. However, in the second half, the Cats started standing around and watching. Everyone wanted to only shoot 3s. There was limited movement on offense and a lot of really bad shots. On defense, the Cats go complacement and looked tired and slow (which they aren't). Gotta play a full 40. Should be a fun one in Ogden on Friday.
WILDCAT said:
I am right there with you and obviously a lot of other members of this forum are. Isn´t crazy that Weber is playing Utah State tomorrow and we are hardly talking about it? Normally we would be all over this type of game. It guess actual excitement over the football team does crazy things.
oldrunner
Active member
Both teams seemed to have the jitters. Weber played a bit better and won the game. The refs kept USU in the game late with some very interesting calls. The crowd was great, the student sections were great, and the Dee was rocking. I loved almost everything about that game, with the exception of the inconsistencies in officiating. Oh well, teams need to learn how to work through poor officiating. This game was a step in the right direction.
I think that it will be the last time this season we see Jerrick held to that few points. He also seemed to work his way through that.
I think that it will be the last time this season we see Jerrick held to that few points. He also seemed to work his way through that.
Webergrad02
Active member
Utah State may not win too many games this uear. I thought they looked undiscplined and the refs kept them in it late. I dont think Harding and Chapman will have worse nights this year. Brekott got a little sloppy but you can tell he is gifted. USU is lucky they didnt walk away with a 20 point wooping. Gotta love 2 Ws in a row against the Aggies.
The Big Sky better watch out for the 3 headed monster of Chapman, Kozak and Braxton. We had stellar defense and rebounding in the first half. Too bad we wont get to see them match up against any P5 competition. This is the best post line up we have seen in years.
Huge props to ths students. I loved having the 2 sections. It looks like AJ's 15 students multiplied by the supposed 40 years he has been attending games.
The Big Sky better watch out for the 3 headed monster of Chapman, Kozak and Braxton. We had stellar defense and rebounding in the first half. Too bad we wont get to see them match up against any P5 competition. This is the best post line up we have seen in years.
Huge props to ths students. I loved having the 2 sections. It looks like AJ's 15 students multiplied by the supposed 40 years he has been attending games.
oldrunner
Active member
It really was electric inside the Dee Friday night. The place was rocking, the student sections were great and well attended. If you are a student or a fan, and could have come to the game, but chose to stay home, you truly missed out on a great game experience. Don't miss another one. This has all the markings to be a fantastic year of basketball at WSU. :clap: :clap: :clap:
PurpleBlood
Active member
I love the students behind the basket! I'm sure they had a part in the aggies shooting woes. Hopefully we can keep a good section all season! Go Cats!!!
UtahPirate
Active member
The season started and it's time for some discussion. For sharing some observations. A rant or two would be nice. Perhaps it's the great success of the football team, but things are a bit dry on the basketball board.
Which freshman would start? Anyone surprised it was Kozak and not Ary-Turner. He was solid on defense but not as comfortable on offense. Glad they subbed in Baker to finish the game as Kozak didn't look ready to finish a tight game.
Brekkot at the 3. Kozak at 4 means Chapman can play where he wants to be. He hit a couple of threes but didn't look great getting to the basket (of course not being able to draw a shooting foul played into that. Had he gone to the line 3 or 4 times like it seemed like he should have, it would be easier to say he played well there). I also felt like we should have just posted him a few times as well.
Are you kidding me? Braxton was a beast but most impressive were two 18 foot jumpers(? -- actually he didn't really jump on either). Huge improvement to his offensive game if he can continue to hit those. And it puts a lot of pressure on his defenders.
Baker plays a new game. Didn't take a three last night that I remember. Did drive a lot in an effort to get to the line. Seems more comfortable this year and is an important piece as 6th man. Both seniors looked ready to lead.
Richardson plays a new game. He has always hesitated going hard to the basket. Looks like he is ready to finally mix up his offense a bit. This is his team. I loved how he played both ends last night. It's clear to see he has more confidence this year.
Achilles heel. We need three freshman to grow up fast. Our first half rotation put three of them on the court for several minutes at the same time. Had to hold my breath. I do think Avy-Turner is going to get his D1 legs before Doc. He dug in defensively and got two strange offensive fouls that seemed to take him out of the game a bit. But I liked what I saw.
Utah State. I think I agree with Webergrad02. It is going to be a long season. They have a lot of new parts, but didn't seem to have much quickness or height. We'll see how it goes. I hate losing to the Aggies so I was much more vocal about the horrid reffing than a man my age should be. I'm still aghast at the non-traveling call at the end of the first half. It didn't end up costing us anything, but it was mind-boggling that all three could stand there like dummies and miss something so blatantly obvious. Of course not much they did all night proved they actually should be paid for being in striped shirts.
Which freshman would start? Anyone surprised it was Kozak and not Ary-Turner. He was solid on defense but not as comfortable on offense. Glad they subbed in Baker to finish the game as Kozak didn't look ready to finish a tight game.
Brekkot at the 3. Kozak at 4 means Chapman can play where he wants to be. He hit a couple of threes but didn't look great getting to the basket (of course not being able to draw a shooting foul played into that. Had he gone to the line 3 or 4 times like it seemed like he should have, it would be easier to say he played well there). I also felt like we should have just posted him a few times as well.
Are you kidding me? Braxton was a beast but most impressive were two 18 foot jumpers(? -- actually he didn't really jump on either). Huge improvement to his offensive game if he can continue to hit those. And it puts a lot of pressure on his defenders.
Baker plays a new game. Didn't take a three last night that I remember. Did drive a lot in an effort to get to the line. Seems more comfortable this year and is an important piece as 6th man. Both seniors looked ready to lead.
Richardson plays a new game. He has always hesitated going hard to the basket. Looks like he is ready to finally mix up his offense a bit. This is his team. I loved how he played both ends last night. It's clear to see he has more confidence this year.
Achilles heel. We need three freshman to grow up fast. Our first half rotation put three of them on the court for several minutes at the same time. Had to hold my breath. I do think Avy-Turner is going to get his D1 legs before Doc. He dug in defensively and got two strange offensive fouls that seemed to take him out of the game a bit. But I liked what I saw.
Utah State. I think I agree with Webergrad02. It is going to be a long season. They have a lot of new parts, but didn't seem to have much quickness or height. We'll see how it goes. I hate losing to the Aggies so I was much more vocal about the horrid reffing than a man my age should be. I'm still aghast at the non-traveling call at the end of the first half. It didn't end up costing us anything, but it was mind-boggling that all three could stand there like dummies and miss something so blatantly obvious. Of course not much they did all night proved they actually should be paid for being in striped shirts.
SWeberCat02
Active member
Conference goes 7-2 against the spread on opening night. Most impressive was UND beating Troy on a neutral court. Were 7 pt dogs and win by 3, with Crandall scoring 41. Least impressive was conference favorite UI getting beat down by Nevada by 24. UI was a 10.5 pt dog.
Hate to be the debbie downer here, but Weber's offense was atrocious. We looked totally out-of-sync. Thankfully, the Cats did enough to get the win. In all actuality, that game shouldn't have been close. Weber is the far more talented team. We are quicker, taller, stronger, and better ball handlers. Yet it was close with 2 mins to go (the refs helped keep it close). The Aggies should be ecstatic that their defense was able to limit Weber's output last night. There was no reason why that game should have been close.
Example 1: Weber has "The Hydra" on the court, yet gets outscored 26-24 in the paint?
Example 2: Guys standing around and very limited ball movement. Waaaay too much ISO!! We looked great when we were moving and passing. But, when our guys played selfish...Ugh!
Example 3: Harding is not a PG. He did well and could play into that position. However, he is far more dangerous playing the off guard position.
Example 4: sloppy passing and selfish play. Making the extra pass has been the Randy Rahe mantra. If guys made that extra pass, the team would have better and far more open shots.
Example 5: sloooooow developing offense and movement. I thought this new offense was supposed to be more run and gun style?
On defense, I was happy with our effort. Gotta do a better job of helping each other and switching but it was a good first night out with soooo many new parts.
No matter, always love beating the Aggies. Having a 2 game winning streak against them is extremely nice as well. This hasn't happened since the mid 90s I think. I do have a funny story. I have a dear friend who is a giant Aggie homer (much like me being the Wildcat homer) and he said there shouldn't be too much glory in beating a terrible USU team. I replied, "well, during the Craven's years, you guys made sure we knew we A. lost and B. were terrible. Aggies could have cared less if we were good or not. Just loved beating us." Kinda nice turning the tables on them now.
Example 1: Weber has "The Hydra" on the court, yet gets outscored 26-24 in the paint?
Example 2: Guys standing around and very limited ball movement. Waaaay too much ISO!! We looked great when we were moving and passing. But, when our guys played selfish...Ugh!
Example 3: Harding is not a PG. He did well and could play into that position. However, he is far more dangerous playing the off guard position.
Example 4: sloppy passing and selfish play. Making the extra pass has been the Randy Rahe mantra. If guys made that extra pass, the team would have better and far more open shots.
Example 5: sloooooow developing offense and movement. I thought this new offense was supposed to be more run and gun style?
On defense, I was happy with our effort. Gotta do a better job of helping each other and switching but it was a good first night out with soooo many new parts.
No matter, always love beating the Aggies. Having a 2 game winning streak against them is extremely nice as well. This hasn't happened since the mid 90s I think. I do have a funny story. I have a dear friend who is a giant Aggie homer (much like me being the Wildcat homer) and he said there shouldn't be too much glory in beating a terrible USU team. I replied, "well, during the Craven's years, you guys made sure we knew we A. lost and B. were terrible. Aggies could have cared less if we were good or not. Just loved beating us." Kinda nice turning the tables on them now.
UtahPirate
Active member
talhadfoursteals said:
Just a couple of comments to your notes above Debbiehadfoursteals:
I thought we were the far superior team as well and kept expecting a run that would knock the Aggies out of the game. While the offense was a bit stale, you still could sure see the potential -- we have four big time scorers on this team.
I was surprised at the end that we only had 13 official turnovers. That seemed light from what I actually watched. We were sloppy a lot of the game. I will say that Chapman made that extra pass several times that led to baskets which impressed me. I think there were a lot of jitters, as well as different rotations getting the feel for each other (including 3 Freshies in their first D1 game) -- and I won't complain that we have a gimme game on Tuesday (I'm hoping there is a Riley Court sighting). I think we'll need it before heading off for the tourney.
oldrunner
Active member
I was loving the D being played by both teams. There were darn few easy baskets last night. The Jittery play that we are all talking about may have more to do with the D being played. It was an intense game. With that said, USU doubled up on us a lot and I think we handled it better than any time over the past 15 years. Yes, we can get better, and yes, our freshmen need to settle down a little bit, but I am very encouraged by what I saw. We will just get better from here on out.
Take that, DebbieDowners. :lol: :lol:
Take that, DebbieDowners. :lol: :lol:
