I like this team...

[RU848789]

This team may not win 20 (or even 15) games and may not make any tourneys, but I like the energy and this is the most athletic RU team I've seen in years, at least since the Waters years. People are going to love Corey Sanders - when was the last time we had a real pass-first PG, who can also drive the lane, run the break and throw down with a vengeance? Also impressed with Freeman, who is a real banger inside and gets lots of "garbage" points - yeah, he turns the ball over too much and will struggle against bigger guys, but he's athletic and a hard worker. Foreman also had some very nice moments including an awesome dunk from Sanders. These three guys had 15, 17, and 13 points, respectively, which is very nice.

Thought Daniels and Williams also played well and Goode is nice to have off the bench and can definitely hit FTs. If he can hit his threes a bit more (think he was 1-4 today), he'll get 10-15 minutes a game. Laurent is also athletic and had a few nice plays. Lewis had a quiet game, but did hit a nice 18-footer. Diallo needs work and didn't see enough of Grier. Howard was not a bad team and I like how we closed them out with good team defense and hitting most of our FTs down the stretch to win by 12 (after missing quite a few FTs earlier). Also, liked how we went 9 deep and liked the occasional press - this team is definitely athletic enough to execute the press well. Would've been nice to have more than 2000 there and would've been nice to have more than 1 concession stand open. Good game.

 

[Plum Street]

For the first time in years there is hope. Sanders is here for 4 years . Ej's got to build around him and we can make the tourney in 2-3 years

 

[MadRU]

Enjoyable, rare I can say that after a game. It was an enjoyable game to watch.

 

[RUPete]

Couldn't agree more. If I see this same effort and style of play all year, I will enjoy going to the RAC again. Sanders doesn't seem like a like a freshman at all. You have confidence when the ball is in his hands and he is definitely an unselfish player.

 

[ruman]

For the first time in years there is hope. Sanders is here for 4 years . Ej's got to build around him and we can make the tourney in 2-3 years

That's why this fall's recruiting 0-fer is so tough. A base of talent is here. Hope that Corey has a big year to attract talent in the spring. Damn shame on Kwe.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Couldn't agree more. If I see this same effort and style of play all year, I will enjoy going to the RAC again. Sanders doesn't seem like a like a freshman at all. You have confidence when the ball is in his hands and he is definitely an unselfish player.

A few passes he made today were deflected or stolen. This probably goes away by January. His pass 1st mentality was beautiful. If basketball was like hockey he would have a ton of 2nd assists.

 

[RutgHoops]

My take:

Kudos to Eddie for putting together a roster with 10 kids who can play in pretty short order. Our 5 on 5 practices must be fun as heck. And spirited. And competitive. This competition day after day will make us better. Our starters scored 41. Our bench scored 41.

Some player thoughts:

Freeman: I really like the way he plays. Low Box to high post to low box. Plays with a very nice blend of anger and confidence. Great feet. Seems to have a keen ability to finish. Very willing passer.

Sanders: Not since Farmer have we had a PG who's first order of business is to make sure we run our stuff. 15/5/3 as quietly and efficiently as you'll see. And when you play defense as hard as he does I have no issue if you want to hot dog a little

Foreman and Williams: Glad they stayed. They really fit nicely with what Eddie wants to do and both guys benefit from the freedom Eddie allows. When you have "flaws" it's nice when the HC lets you play thru mistakes/sub par play.

Laurent: Looks coachable. Had some frosh "drives to nowhere" early and then you never saw it again. Thats on the kid AND his HC. He does some nice things at both ends. Chance to develop into a fine CBB player.

Goode: No secret I am an Eddie fan and a kid like Goode is totally dependent on his HC. Eddie plays more zone and presses less with Goode in the game. Thats smart. And then he runs some stuff to get him looks or passes. His dish to freeman was wonderful.

Overall I think this RU team is pretty athletic, plays hard, willingly defends and will give some teams fits as they grow together. They play harder on defense and fight thru screens better than any RU teams since Gary had the reigns (Rice's defense switched a whole bunch more than Eddie's). A WTF loss wouldn't shock me in the least. Nor will it shock me when we beat some teams we shouldn't. And I expect more of the latter than the former.

 

[richthedentist]

Freeman to willing passer. He has got to shoot that little 12 footer. I have no idea if he can shoot

 

[BigEastPhil]

Most enjoyable team in past 10 years for sure.......Team is athletic; looks like they all get along and have bought into Coach's playbook.....Sanders; Freeman and Nigel Johnson are going to be fun to watch - as a rejuvenated Mike Williams; DJ Foreman etc....

 

[RU-Choppin-Ohio]

Freeman to willing passer. He has got to shoot that little 12 footer. I have no idea if he can shoot

I hear what you are saying, But, it's great to have guys actually willing to make that extra pass. Those passes put more pressure on the defense. It's very very early against lesser competition, but, assists per game are way up. That passing mindset must continue.....no more holding the ball and forcing shots.

 

[RU848789]

Despite the horrible meltdown at the end of the game last night, I still like this team. We played a great 30 minutes, which tells me this team is capable of playing some great entire games. We have two freshmen who are legit B1G players - when was the last time we could say that? And we have some complementary players who have some talent. Eddie just needs to keep recruiting well (which is why losing Parker hurts, although what we really need is a serious big man who can score) and coaching these kids up - we're still going to beat some teams that nobody expects us to beat.

 

[jonS]

I also share similar optimism as that expressed here. This team is far more talented than last year's team with more options on offense. I don't recall Rutgers ever losing last year to a major conference team with anyone observing that we had the better talent. But last night we did. Frankly how many wins did we have last year when our talent edge was noticeable. Not many.

 

[Unionst]

I also share similar optimism as that expressed here. This team is far more talented than last year's team with more options on offense. I don't recall Rutgers ever losing last year to a major conference team with anyone observing that we had the better talent. But last night we did. Frankly how many wins did we have last year when our talent edge was noticeable. Not many.

I'm just not seeing the "far more talented than last year" thing. This is going to be a very tough year. St. John's is very weak, they literally had no one who could stop Daniels on the drive, yet we lost. We have only one or two okay shooters and will be at the very bottom of the league if not the nation in free throw shooting. That is almost always the sign of a bad team. I like the effort, Sanders will be good, Freeman can do a few things, but we are very weak. Mack and Jack were much better than what we have now. Single digit wins this year - since I am going to many of the games I hope I catch one.

 

[ruready4somefootball]

I'm just not seeing the "far more talented than last year" thing. This is going to be a very tough year. St. John's is very weak, they literally had no one who could stop Daniels on the drive, yet we lost. We have only one or two okay shooters and will be at the very bottom of the league if not the nation in free throw shooting. That is almost always the sign of a bad team. I like the effort, Sanders will be good, Freeman can do a few things, but we are very weak. Mack and Jack were much better than what we have now. Single digit wins this year - since I am going to many of the games I hope I catch one.

Disagree. Bishop can be everything Mack was, and there was SO MANY games last season Jack was invisible it was unreal. This team,though young, will at least match last seasons win total.

 

[RU848789]

Disagree. Bishop can be everything Mack was, and there was SO MANY games last season Jack was invisible it was unreal. This team,though young, will at least match last seasons win total.

Agree that Bishop can be better than last year, but let's not go overboard - Mack was one of the best RU players in a long time. Agree on Jack - more talented than any big man we have now, but it didn't translate into performance and wins - guy didn't play team basketball.