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Game 2: The Needed Tonic

bac2therac

bac2therac

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As much as the opening game vs Bryant was just painful to watch, the Niagara game was the complete opposite, a total pleasure to watch as RU seemed to run on all cylinders right from the get go. I think its was pretty clear that Pike and his players came away disappointed in what happened in that win over Bryant. It was also pretty clear that today they were going to work hard to make sure there wasn't another repeat performance. As others have commented, this was exactly the type of game RU needed. First of all, yes Niagara is bad, they are probably a notch or two below Bryant in that they do not have the three point threat to keep them within striking distance nor do they have the speed to keep up with RU in transition. That aside everything good you saw today was RU exerting its strengths.

Its amazing what a team can do when shots fall early. RU hit a bunch of shots from outside early and them brimmed with confidence the rest of the way. Today was about building confidence and building trust in teamwork. Whether it was the extra pass or seeing the court better in transition, Rutgers seemingly did everything right. Mulcahy with 6 assists, Baker and Young with 4 each. 22 assists to just 9 turnovers, what a different offense this can be when the shot selection comes within the flow of the offense where the extra pass makes a difference. RU may had open shots vs Bryant but I did not feel that those shots were in the flow of the offense and there was too much chucking.

It was really good to see Geo get untracked with 8-11 shooting, 22 pts, 3-5 from 3, after such a subpar shooting night vs Bryant. Geo was smooth today and looked more like the leader that RU needs him to be. How about that dunk he had, good to see that aggressiveness. I thought in the last game, Harper may have tried to do too much as the primary offense. I liked Harper's game today within himself, less shots, more court awareness and geez thost back to back alley oops were things of beauty. Today, I liked that some others became more of an option especially Yeboah who had a really solid game.....5-7 shooting, 14 points, in just 17 minutes hitting a couple of threes. It was also great to see Caleb look much more comfortable tonight with his shot and Young improving greatly since his shaky peformance in game 1. Mulcahy continues to impress with his court vision with 6 assists and zero turnovers in just 18 minutes. Huge building blocks for him and very excited to see where he is headed. I thought overall RU had anything they wanted tonight on offense and had Niagara chasing them. While some of this is indictive of Niagara's level, it was important to see RU execute their offense almost perfectly after such a rusty performance in game 1. Defensively Niagara just was bullied when they tried to run their offense. RU as a team just made it difficult for them to get into any flow or anything really open. Top to bottom the defensive effort was loads better than vs Bryant and RU absolutely crushed the Eagles on the boards 38-22

Another thing about tonight is that RU never let up on its effort after getting up 24 at halftime. When you get up to big lead, its often hard to sustain that throughout. I did not think that RU let up at all in the 2nd half..very very impressive to see that hunger still there by games end. Its very apparent that this team learned its lesson from the Bryant game and had their focus and heads screwed on straight. I also thought Pike did a better job with substitutions and didnt seem to be the constant jiggling of lineups. RU isnt as bad as they looked in game 1, they also are not as good as they looked in game 2, They fit somewhere between the two but where they fit probably will not be answered til they get to face St Bonnies and Pitt. I said after the first game more questions than answers, we got some answers tonight and did well on this particular quiz.
 
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bac2therac said:
As much as the opening game vs Bryant was just painful to watch, the Niagara game was the complete opposite, a total pleasure to watch as RU seemed to run on all cylinders right from the get go. I think its was pretty clear that Pike and his players came away disappointed in what happened in that win over Bryant. It was also pretty clear that today they were going to work hard to make sure there wasn't another repeat performance. As others have commented, this was exactly the type of game RU needed. First of all, yes Niagara is bad, they are probably a notch or two below Bryant in that they do not have the three point threat to keep them within striking distance nor do they have the speed to keep up with RU in transition. That aside everything good you saw today was RU exerting its strengths.

Its amazing what a team can do when shots fall early. RU hit a bunch of shots from outside early and them brimmed with confidence the rest of the way. Today was about building confidence and building trust in teamwork. Whether it was the extra pass or seeing the court better in transition, Rutgers seemingly did everything right. Mulcahy with 6 assists, Baker and Young with 4 each. 22 assists to just 9 turnovers, what a different offense this can be when the shot selection comes within the flow of the offense where the extra pass makes a difference. RU may had open shots vs Bryant but I did not feel that those shots were in the flow of the offense and there was too much chucking.

It was really good to see Geo get untracked with 8-11 shooting, 22 pts, 3-5 from 3, after such a subpar shooting night vs Bryant. Geo was smooth today and looked more like the leader that RU needs him to be. How about that dunk he had, good to see that aggressiveness. I thought in the last game, Harper may have tried to do too much as the primary offense. I liked Harper's game today within himself, less shots, more court awareness and geez thost back to back alley oops were things of beauty. Today, I liked that some others became more of an option especially Yeboah who had a really solid game.....5-7 shooting, 14 points, in just 17 minutes hitting a couple of threes. It was also great to see Caleb look much more comfortable tonight with his shot and Young improving greatly since his shaky peformance in game 1. Mulcahy continues to impress with his court vision with 6 assists and zero turnovers in just 18 minutes. Huge building blocks for him and very excited to see where he is headed. I thought overall RU had anything they wanted tonight on offense and had Niagara chasing them. While some of this is indictive of Niagara's level, it was important to see RU execute their offense almost perfectly after such a rusty performance in game 1. Defensively Niagara just was bullied when they tried to run their offense. RU as a team just made it difficult for them to get into any flow or anything really open. Top to bottom the defensive effort was loads better than vs Bryant and RU absolutely crushed the Eagles on the boards 38-22

Another thing about tonight is that RU never let up on its effort after getting up 24 at halftime. When you get up to big lead, its often hard to sustain that throughout. I did not think that RU let up at all in the 2nd half..very very impressive to see that hunger still there by games end. Its very apparent that this team learned its lesson from the Bryant game and had their focus and heads screwed on straight. I also thought Pike did a better job with substitutions and didnt seem to be the constant jiggling of lineups. RU isnt as bad as they looked in game 1, they also are not as good as they looked in game 2, They fit somewhere between the two but where they fit probably will not be answered til they get to face St Bonnies and Pitt. I said after the first game more questions than answers, we got some answers tonight and did well on this particular quiz.
Click to expand...
Good recap one thing even though we dominated the rebounding numbers we have to do a better job boxing out in Bug Ten play
 
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The newer posters that complained about everything after the Bryant game--the coaching, Geo, Young being selfish--that takes me back to when the basketball board was full to the brim with guys who had never posted on the hoops board before. All were clamoring for us to fire Gary Waters yesterday and replace him with the most amazing recruiter in the history of basketball, Fred Hill Jr, who was going to be offered the SHU job Any Minute. Unfortunately, as a coach and as a human being, Fred Hill jr may have been the worst coach in our history. What are you gonna do? Be interesting to see what happens in a week when Bryant plays Niagara.
 
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Agree with thedentist—concerned with our interior d and rebounding when we look ahead to stronger competition.
 
The loss of Eugene leaves a huge void in this teams rebounding abilities. The team will struggle to fill that void until someone is confident enough to step into that role. Unfortunately Yeboah may be a little too small and Doucoure just may not be the answer. Its a tough spot and thats why in the offseason it will not be easy just to move on from Gene's departure
 
Very Good game

On to Drexel ...to make it two very good games in a row

Oh...Mulchay is the type of kid that has a special...we actually have a couple of kids that have a chance at that. That’s when you know times are changing ....
 
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bac2therac said:
The loss of Eugene leaves a huge void in this teams rebounding abilities. The team will struggle to fill that void until someone is confident enough to step into that role. Unfortunately Yeboah may be a little too small and Doucoure just may not be the answer. Its a tough spot and thats why in the offseason it will not be easy just to move on from Gene's departure
Click to expand...
Yeboah is just as tall and heavier than eugene
 
Great positive recap BAC as there as there was about 99 % positive things today from the shooting, 59% for the game(35-59); 47% from three (9-19); 88% foul shooting (7-8); 22 assists with most of them being a correct pass setting up our shooters high and in rhythm, including some spectacular ones with the alley oops to Ron; only 9 turnovers as most of the passing was crisp; only 39 points given up on defense in 40 minutes, holding Niagara to 30% from the field and 26 % from three (5-19), 7 steals and 6 blocks, including 2 great ones by Geo. A very nice 47 point win , beating a team that we are much better than the way you are supposed to beat them.

I commented after the Bryant game that there were too many alarmists posts about our shooting, both from the field, from 3, and from the foul line as well as the the 3 point defense. I thought we got up 61-48 and then played 10-11 minutes of terrible basketball. By the way Bryant beat Cornell 82-81 today and hit 47% from three, (15-32) Most of the lousy shooting and missed layups, I attributed to opening night jitters which seems to be true. I thought the close call actually might be something that helps us, as Pike can get their attention and they can stop reading their press clippings because they haven’t done anything yet. Pike got their attention and their defense was outstanding especially when you are so much more athletic than the opposition.
My 2 areas of concern were defensive rebounding and Geo. I am still concerned with defensive rebounding but with Myles outdo the game , Ron and Akwasi stepped up. Duke will not be the answer. We have to team rebound with our big guards helping on the boards .
Today was Geo’s most complete game since his run in the Big 10 tourney with Corey . The only night he had 3 points with 4 minutes in the game . That can never happen. He has to be assertive early like he was, first basket of the game, and then shot his threes in rhythm without hesitation. That is such a huge need as he has to score at least 15 a night, 20 some nights, but few 10 or less games . His defense was outstanding with those blocks that were part of his highlight reel sequence as he hit 3 threes , the monster drive and dunk, had blocks and an assist , that got the bench riled up when there was a timeout. That is our leader that has to bring it every night. He has to do it against better teams like he did it against Purdue and Indiana in the Big 10 tourney when he was a freshman, not just against lousy teams. If we get that leader and confident shooter we will go a long way this year.
 
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A few thoughts:
—I like Myles Johnson. Big and strong , has some touch offensively, and controls the paint.
—Starting five are all returning players from last season. I could see Mulcahy taking over for Mathis at some point later in the year.
—Baker and McConnell are a nice G combo. Both know how to find their own offense, can shoot from 3, and play under control.
—Wish we had more depth. Would be a completely different feel if Gene was still here.
 
bac2therac said:
The loss of Eugene leaves a huge void in this teams rebounding abilities. The team will struggle to fill that void until someone is confident enough to step into that role. Unfortunately Yeboah may be a little too small and Doucoure just may not be the answer. Its a tough spot and thats why in the offseason it will not be easy just to move on from Gene's departure
Click to expand...

Not willing to write off Doucoure just yet. Kid hasn’t played in a year. He put on a lot of muscle and should be a contributor.
 
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RU-ROCS said:
Not willing to write off Doucoure just yet. Kid hasn’t played in a year. He put on a lot of muscle and should be a contributor.
Click to expand...
I want to believe in douc. He still has 3 years to play. Can’t write him off. He needs to give us minutes and show growth. Learn to defend better and box out and rebound
 
I’d like to see Douc keep the ball above his head in the paint, especially on offensive rebounds, and avoid putting it on the floor. Get it and go up strong with no hesitation.
 
More random thoughts,
  • I can't recall Geo playing a better game. Excellent D and despite being leading scorer thought he showed incredible patience on offense.
  • This is the deepest team in years.
  • With our new depth, Kiss is now basically relegated to garbage time.
  • Yeboah brings a dimension we haven't had in a while. Still need to see how well he plays the post against bigger bigs.
  • Would still like to see Young a little less selfish running the break.
 
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kyk1827 said:
Yeboah is just as tall and heavier than eugene
Click to expand...

Agree, he's bigger than I thought he would be. He likes to play a finesse game on offense, and think he's a good player (good shooter) but we will need his help on boards when we get into league play. He's tough and smart and can help out with the rebounding if he sets his mind to it.
 
Great team effort and comeback after the Bryant debacle. Everyone played terrific. Nothing critical to say. Lol

- Geo regained his shooting touch as well as his alpha status on the team.

- Caleb player very smart and showed great touch. He was hot during warmups.

- Jacob Young played under control and was distributing. Good to see

- Kwasi, Montez,Harper, Mulcahy were all solid

As someone else may have posted, I’d like to see some lineups with 2 big guys playing together such as with Myles and Shaq

As bad as the Bryant game was, it may have been the best thing for this team in the long run.
 
Great game. We played within ourselves. Mulcahy is not going to be brought along as slowly as some thought. He appears to be the kind of player who learns from his mistakes. He will be invaluable when he is distributing the ball while the other team is playing zone.
 
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All the comments here are good summaries and teams that have scouted RU last year, have to be thinking to play zone....zone worked last year, because Baker was at point, Harper, Mathis, Kiss or Thiam were the other primary players and you had Eugene AND either Myles or Doorson on the court at the other positions.

When the ball rotates, that foul line player can step to the top of the key, where the point guard is.....Mulcahy is doing that which places pressure on the defense. It brings Baker to the right wing and Yeboah or McConnell or Young to the corners, depending on who is in the game. That lineup is night and day vs.what we tried last year.

I think fans are just thinking this is a bad Niagara team, which it is....but bad teams have played zone against RU in the past and we either turned down the open shot (because the player wasn't a complete offensive player (Thiam or Kiss) as a dribbler passer or shooter, or forced the ball to Eugene......who wasn't a complete offensive player as well.

Last year, Eugene Omoyuri did well in the zone by being a threat in the low post vs a zone...teams stayed with our players on the perimeter and gave RU the 15 footer from the baseline, which Eugene either took and made or generated offense by driving and trying to score or draw defenders to make a pass....or up and under move to draw fouls....which is OK, but is a "Win", for the opponent playing defense vs RU.

Vs Niagara when the ball.rotated to Yeboah vs zone on the baseline, Yeboah did what Eugene did, manuever along the baseline, took his time and scored a simple banker and got.fouled.....then made the FT.....BUT vs Bryant, late 1st half, Yeboah flairs to the corner and knocks down a 3....that's what HAS to be a factor vs. Zone defenses.

Teams will play zone and Caleb, Harper, Mulcahy all have played in the foul line area, with shooters at 3 other positions. It is very difficult for a player to make good decisions in traffic at that position, but Mulcahy, Caleb and Harper all can....they're all players with forward size and guard skills...

The next step for Mulcahy that will ultimately determine if his minutes will be 15 to 20 the rest of the season per game, is his driving ability and can he make quick decisions against Man to Man defense.

My "guess" is teams with switch defenses from man to zone and back to man against RU and we may see more zone, until we consistently prove.we can score or shoot 3s.....if we get good 3 point looks (which in this years lineup, will be the case) and make them, we will look very much like the NCAA bubble team many are hoping for......when we miss, fans will say we lost focus or didn't play hard.

This game 2, looked like last years game 2....RU had Eugene shooting in the 1st 2 games last year, 6 for 7 from 3.....it was eye popping numbers and then the rest of the season happened and the 3s went away vs zone.

This year, you have Yeboah, Young, a more confident McConnell, Baker and players like Harper and Mathis that can or are willing to shoot 3s OR, can make a play off the dribble around a zone defender....and added a Mulcahy, whose passing vs a zone is more lethal.

Last year's zone offense in OOC games was.

A) Peter Kiss on a wing looking to find space to shoot, but limited passers on the court to find him.

B) Issa Thiam chewing up 20 to 22 minutes a game, trying to find shots as a stationary shooter, but not capable of putting the ball on the floor and generating his own offense

C) Eugene (not a shooter) and relegated to being a baseline player, which is dangerous but not enough of a complete threat, since he's not a shooter.

Last year's version just wound up with Geo having to take a tough 3.....or Harper and Mathis taking a three with the ball moving around the perimeter.

As long as the entire team on the floor, makes a concerted effort to rebound like Niagara ( I counted at least 4 to 5 times where 3 RU players battled each other for the missed shot), there will be virtually no impact on losing Eugene.

The zone offense is miles better with this year's lineup. I think Mulcahy even can be Eugene like as a defensive rebounder, because he's used to doing that.

The last step is Mulcahy being a complete threat vs man to man defensive pressure....but he's used to that and making passes vs good defense and finding players....

I know it's Niagara and Bryant, but this roster offers much more offensively vs last years first 15 to 16 games. It doesn't mean RU is a lock to get through the 1st 7 games undefeated, but I'm gaining confidence that what I am seeing, translates or transfers regardless of the opponent.
 
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Another interesting....pure #s observation.

Game 1 82 possessions and 73 points
Game 2 64 possessions and 86 points

I am guessing we saw a bit of zone in game 2.
 
Greene Rice FIG said:
Another interesting....pure #s observation.

Game 1 82 possessions and 73 points
Game 2 64 possessions and 86 points

I am guessing we saw a bit of zone in game 2.
Click to expand...
Where are you finding # of possessions data?
 
Anyone know where the replay is available online? I looked on BTN and Fox and can't find it.
 
We saw how important it is for Baker to be off the ball.

Still, couple thoughts.

Can RHJ play more 4? Willing rebounder, still has 10-15 pounds of baby fat, lol.

It doesn't have to be either Mulcahy or Young at pg. It can be Caleb. The ball won't move with Young. And with Mulcahy, we lack a shooter on the court and defense is sacrificed a little.

Feel good about team. 3 out, 2 in offense was okay, and dribble hand out worked at times. Still thought the offense lacked identity, but it is only the second game.
 
read option said:
A few thoughts:
—I like Myles Johnson. Big and strong , has some touch offensively, and controls the paint.
—Starting five are all returning players from last season. I could see Mulcahy taking over for Mathis at some point later in the year.
—Baker and McConnell are a nice G combo. Both know how to find their own offense, can shoot from 3, and play under control.
—Wish we had more depth. Would be a completely different feel if Gene was still here.
Click to expand...
The team has plenty of depth with 11 players which limits playing time.Post players getting in foul trouble or injured is the only depth issue.
 
RUJMM78 said:
The team has plenty of depth with 11 players which limits playing time.Post players getting in foul trouble or injured is the only depth issue.
Click to expand...

The post depth is the question mark, but other than Michigan the conference slate doesn't look like it has a lot of teams loaded up on big bodies in the paint. There aren't a lot of threats like the 2016-17 Purdue team with Swanigan/Haas leading the team from the paint that would necessitate a lot of big bodies to absorb fouls (we committed 10 fouls that game across Gettys/Doorson/Diallo/Sa).
 
RUChoppin said:
The post depth is the question mark, but other than Michigan the conference slate doesn't look like it has a lot of teams loaded up on big bodies in the paint. There aren't a lot of threats like the 2016-17 Purdue team with Swanigan/Haas leading the team from the paint that would necessitate a lot of big bodies to absorb fouls (we committed 10 fouls that game across Gettys/Doorson/Diallo/Sa).
Click to expand...
Purdue--Haarms and Williams
OSU-Wesson and Young
Illinois-Cock :Fire and Giorgi
 
Greene Rice FIG said:
Purdue--Haarms and Williams
OSU-Wesson and Young
Illinois-Cock :Fire and Giorgi
Click to expand...

Haarms/Williams (<40 combined minutes, <20 combined points) is not Swanigan/Haas (60+ min, 40+ points). That's 20 fewer min we need to play defense on a top scoring big. Haarms is a poor-man's Haas, and Williams is no Swanigan.

Biggest concern for me with regard to post depth is Michigan's size, who we play twice.
Illinois, we'll see how good Cockburn is as the season progresses (and how he'll deal with his own foul trouble as a freshman), and also play them twice.
Wesson worries me without Doorson to frustrate him, especially in Ohio, but we get them just once.
 
RUChoppin said:
Haarms/Williams (<40 combined minutes, <20 combined points) is not Swanigan/Haas (60+ min, 40+ points). That's 20 fewer min we need to play defense on a top scoring big. Haarms is a poor-man's Haas, and Williams is no Swanigan.

Biggest concern for me with regard to post depth is Michigan's size, who we play twice.
Illinois, we'll see how good Cockburn is as the season progresses (and how he'll deal with his own foul trouble as a freshman), and also play them twice.
Wesson worries me without Doorson to frustrate him, especially in Ohio, but we get them just once.
Click to expand...

It only matters what they are in the games vs. us. Painter is not a fool. The gameplan could be Haarms at the 5 and Williams at the 4 and a steady dose of both. Not sure what T Williams is going to do on the defensive end vs. RHJ or Yeboah.

As for Illinois you know Giorgi probably gets a big Bezhanishvili just thinking about playing Rutgers.
 
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Greene Rice FIG said:
It only matters what they are in the games vs. us. Painter is not a fool. The gameplan could be Haarms at the 5 and Williams at the 4 and a steady dose of both. Not sure what T Williams is going to do on the defensive end vs. RHJ or Yeboah.

As for Illinois you know Giorgi probably gets a big Bezhanishvili just thinking about playing Rutgers.
Click to expand...

Haarms at the 5 and Williams at the 4... and then what big bodies back them up? The only other guy on their team >220 lbs is a RS Fr center who spent last year in a boot and didn't see the floor in their first two games. Both Haarms/Williams have also been foul prone in their own right (especially Williams) - so a tightly called game likely benefits us more than them.
 
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