Still better off without Spencer & Mulcahy
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Paul was hurt and if in full health would have played far better maybe even helped RU get an invite to the NCAAs
Cam was good and helped the team, but he wasn't hood enough to make RU Dance worthy. RU's record would be much worse if he wasn't on the team in 2022-23.
This year is still young and how the team looks might be the new faces getting to know how Pike plays the game and the the returning players and the new learning each others game.
Once that happens, this years squad might just prove better than last years team and make the NCAAs
Paul’s experience on the road really paid off last season when he unraveled in the closing minutes of the Minnesota must win game. Would have rather had Simpson in that spot and Paul on the bench. That implosion probably cost us the NCAA’s. This team has a higher ceiling than last years team … and is more fun to watch. Doubt you’ll see the same painful 43 and 45 point efforts we saw at home vs SH and Michigan. Last years team with Cam and Paul was offensively challenged.
So Paul lost that game all on his own? Love how some of you cherry pick stuff and forget how a healthy Paul literally carried RU on his back for a number of games.
The case was made that we needed their veteran leadership, especially on the road. Yes, it just wasn’t Paul but if your cool vet has costly turnovers at the end of a must win game what special sauce does he bring to the table? Let’s not build Paul into this mythical can’t replace player. He’s a nice compliment on a good team.
Simpson wasn’t ready then. Like I said, get old and stay old. Many fans like to say the young guys are better but guess what, no coach just hands them the ball because it’s not easy. Unfortunately there are too many fans that think this is easy. 🤷♂️
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We went up by 10 with 4:01 left.
From that point on:
Mulcahy: 0-2 FG (both threes), 1 ORb, 1 tov
Spencer: 0-0 FG, 5-6 FT, 1 ast, 1ORb, 2 tov
Omoruyi: 1-1 FG
Hyatt: 0-1 FG (three), 1 ORb, 2 stl
McConnell: 0-0 FG, 1-2 FT
Team: 1 tov (shot clock violation, Mulcahy three did not draw iron)
Our failures at the end of that game were defensive. We scored 8 points over those 4 minutes (which is more than our average), but we gave up an astounding 19 points during that same stretch - with our most veteran lineup on the floor.
Again you're cherry picking one game and ignoring the body of work to push an agenda. Who the fck ever said he was a can't replace player? You're trying real hard to jump the shark.
And you’re not cherry picking the few games Paul “carried the team on his back”? Cmon man.
That was just a reminder that it wasn't all negative as you are trying to portray him. I keep talking about looking at the whole body of work by not cherry picking but that is lost on you.
I am looking at the whole body of work. What it says is we thank Paul for his service but, for a variety of reasons, it was best that he moved on. This team has a higher ceiling thank last years. Looking forward to a fun season.
I started it so I just want to clarify .
I was never trying to imply that the this years team could not be improved with some combination of all the players discussed .
The only hypothetical I was concerned with was whether a back court of PM, Cam and Simpson sharing 80 minutes was better then a backcourt of Noah, Derrick and JMike doing the same .
I would love to have Cam on this team but that's not going to happen
I still believe that this years back court will be more productive then last years .
That was my point
Based on the way we play offense ,our current guards are more suited to the way we choose to play. It seems that the players in this system need to be able to create on their own
I'm encouraged by our backcourt play but
DS is the key.
Noah will get his 10 plus a night im pretty sure .
If DS is consistent and plays more to his potential, we are better off with the current guards.
Davis has to get minutes too and would not have if PM and Cam were here.
Davis is way too talented to sit.
I was never trying to imply that the this years team could not be improved with some combination of all the players discussed .
The only hypothetical I was concerned with was whether a back court of PM, Cam and Simpson sharing 80 minutes was better then a backcourt of Noah, Derrick and JMike doing the same .
I would love to have Cam on this team but that's not going to happen
I still believe that this years back court will be more productive then last years .
That was my point
Based on the way we play offense ,our current guards are more suited to the way we choose to play. It seems that the players in this system need to be able to create on their own
I'm encouraged by our backcourt play but
DS is the key.
Noah will get his 10 plus a night im pretty sure .
If DS is consistent and plays more to his potential, we are better off with the current guards.
Davis has to get minutes too and would not have if PM and Cam were here.
Davis is way too talented to sit.
Paul did not have the ability to push the ball up the floor like we have this year. I like this years team much better. We just need time for them to gel
Paul peaked in January of 2022 and we unfortunately never saw the same guy again. I expected big things from him especially in leadership department but the team never seemed to embrace him. He was definitely no Geo
Didn't we also have one of our most experienced players fail to cross midcourt when within two steps and not covered by a defender? And instead pass the ball all the way back near the baseline to cause a turnover? Basketball IQ fail.
Went back and rewatched the highlights of YouTube.
We were up 70-60 with 1:15 left.
1:04 - Garcia goes right through Hyatt and Spencer for a floater to cut it to 70-62
1:03 - Ball inbounded to Mulcahy along the baseline who immediately looks up court to pass to Simpson, who was at midcourt and had not returned for the ball, and then looks back toward McConnell who was covered. When Simpson saw Mulcahy trapped, he cut back toward him, but the ball was knocked out of Mulcahy's hands and out of bounds - but it hit his arm on the way out. Mulcahy turnover - though the ESPN play-by-play has that credited to Spencer.
0:56 - Garcia beats Omoruyi 1v1 to cut it to 70-64
0:55 - Mulcahy inbounds to Spencer who is trapped, but gets fouled splitting the double. Makes both FTs. 72-64.
0:45 - Battle hits a contested three over Hyatt, who switched on to him. Cuts lead to 72-67.
0:36 - Spencer is fouled as he crosses midcourt. Rutgers plan at this point looks to be getting the ball to the best FT shooter. Mulcahy makes 1/2. 73-67
0:22 - Battle loses Spencer and gets an open look for three, and hits it. Lead cut to 73-70
0:22 - Inbound to McConnell who hits Hyatt in space just beyond the three point arc. At this moment, Mulcahy/Spencer/McConnell are all on the baseline with 4 MN defenders, and only Omoruyi is up-court of Hyatt with one defender. Instead of immediately turning up court and capitalizing on the 2-on-1, he holds the ball over his head and looks back for a guard. Mulcahy gets open and gets the ball, but McConnell and Spencer don't move up court at all, both still standing 5 feet from the baseline. MN sets the trap on Mulcahy, and Hyatt jogs behind his defender up court which prevents a pass back to him. McConnell then cuts up court on the far sideline and is the only open player for Mulcahy to pass to, and Mulcahy looks his way. Spencer tries to call for our last time out, but Mulcahy tries to get the ball to McConnell. As soon as Mulcahy looked away from Hyatt, Hyatt's defender doubled back to cover the open McConnell and picks it off. Total breakdown here, but mostly on Hyatt.
0:10.5 - McConnell can't secure the rebound and there's contact with the MN player while battling for it. No call. MN ball.
0:10.5 - MN runs a really effective screen for Garcia. Garcia sets a screen that Battle runs around with McConnell in tow, but they both run into Omoruyi and screen him from following Garcia out to the arc. He gets an open look but misses. Mulcahy doesn't block out Henley for the rebound, and he puts it back to cut the lead to 73-72.
0:05.8 - Inbound to McConnell who is fouled and makes 1/2. 74-72.
0:05.8 - Frustratingly no pressure in the backcourt at all, and MN rolls the ball up more than halfway to midcourt before picking it up to preserve clock. Spencer bites on Cooper penetration and leaves Battle wide open, who knocks down the winning three at the buzzer, completing a 15-4 run over the final 75 seconds
Breakdowns that I saw:
1. Defensive lapse on Hyatt/Spencer at the top of the zone to let a drive into the paint for a floater
2. Simpson out of position on the inbound to Mulcahy
3. Defensive lapse on Spencer to allow Battle the open look for three.
4. Hyatt doesn't turn up court on the inbound to go 2-on-1 with Omoruyi.
5. Hyatt cuts behind his defender and takes himself out of the play while Mulcahy gets trapped.
6. Mulcahy attempts a cross-court pass while trapped instead of calling our last timeout.
7. Mulcahy doesn't box out on rebound, allowing putback.
8. No backcourt defensive presence with <6 seconds left on a baseline inbound.
9. Defensive lapse on Spencer to allow Battle to get a wide open look for three.
Most of the lapses issues were on the defensive end.
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The burden of leading this team clearly wore Paul down the second half of last year. Did it ever look like he was having fun? There are hundreds of schools and Paul chose the school just about as far away from NJ as possible. I guess it could be a coincidence.
Cam Spencer leads UConn again in scoring, putting up 18 against Manhattan after going 4-4 from 3 point land. UConn wins by 30.
I don't know exactly what happened at the end, but for several years Pike raved about Paul's contributions to the team beyond scoring. Pike thought he was an important part of winning. If you respect Pike as a coach then you should feel the same I would think.
I could maybe buy into the Mulcahy part of this, but no chance on Spencer. When is any team better off when removing a high level shooter such as Spencer?
It’s simple. Spencer is better than Austin Williams and this team would be better with Spencer. It’s irrelevant whether this team is better or worse than last year. I think hawk can make some good general points, but he gets lost in the specifics. Good P5 players don’t fall off trees and you can’t just replace them with anyone.
True. But we are only 5 games in so hopefully the new guards get better at playing with Cliff.
Watched the first half last night. He hardly touched the ball. Spent most of the time on O standing in a corner.
Final result
0 points/1 assist in 16 minutes
We miss Cam for sure. But he's also playing with better players
There's an nj.com article this morning about how all the transfers are doing. Cam Spencer is the leading scorer for the current National Champs and UConn is rolling. But Mulcahy, Rieber, and Jalen Miller aren't doing anything that seems like a big loss to us. Still, I think Mulcahy would have elevated Cliff's game and brought some leadership to the team if nothing else.
The most interesting part of the article mentions Baye Ndongo, the player that was an RU lean but then went to G-Tech with Karl Hobbs. He is killing it and would have been a nice piece this year and next year. Somebody on the board was speculating that Hobbs could be one of the reasons why we're not as good this year. The fact that we may have had Ndongo on the roster with Hobbs seems to be proof of that.
The most interesting part of the article mentions Baye Ndongo, the player that was an RU lean but then went to G-Tech with Karl Hobbs. He is killing it and would have been a nice piece this year and next year. Somebody on the board was speculating that Hobbs could be one of the reasons why we're not as good this year. The fact that we may have had Ndongo on the roster with Hobbs seems to be proof of that.
Cam was a really good player for us and he’s playing with some other excellent offensive players this year. The take that we were better off without cam was always ludicrous. With Cam and Paul and Caleb gone we are smaller, younger and softer. I like jmikes potential longer term. Gavin will get better. That’s all I got. Crazy thread.
Watched the ASU-Washington game last night. I’ve seen Washington play probably 3 or 4 times this season and it looks like they are getting the same Mulcahy that we got from the 2nd half of last season. I was wondering whether a change of scenery would get him back to the way he used to play but I don’t see it.
He started, played only 16 minutes, took one shot and missed it. They just have him go from baseline to baseline and literally stand there. I think the idea is just pull his man out somewhat while the other 4 try to break down the defense. They very rarely even pass to him at all.
They seem to play a lot of zone defense and he’s at the foul line a lot directing and yelling as he usually did.
We really would not miss him at all except for the fact that Fernandes has been a bust in his place and that Paul was able to set Cliff up.
I really thought he would do better out there.
He started, played only 16 minutes, took one shot and missed it. They just have him go from baseline to baseline and literally stand there. I think the idea is just pull his man out somewhat while the other 4 try to break down the defense. They very rarely even pass to him at all.
They seem to play a lot of zone defense and he’s at the foul line a lot directing and yelling as he usually did.
We really would not miss him at all except for the fact that Fernandes has been a bust in his place and that Paul was able to set Cliff up.
I really thought he would do better out there.
Good point about Ndongo. Would have been awesome to have him here for a couple of seasons.
Washington has a point guard and we dont. Pauls role would be different here vs washington. Cant compare
That’s actually a good point. Regardless, even though he’s starting out there (at least right now), he looks lost.
sad watching him ride the bench in a sterile half empty environment at Washington.
his story is likely repeated across the country by kids that overplayed their hand in the portal. For every winner there is a loser
bad take, there is no evidence to suggest this years team has a higher ceiling. RUs ceiling last year got cut short by the Mag injury which would have been the ncaa tourney so what are you even talking about
Washington doesn't have anything different than what most schools have, which are guards who drive, penetrate and try to score. Once Mike Hopkins realizes what those guards present in terms of tempo and role in the offense, Mulcahy is not playing PG at Washington and would not be playing exclusively at PG at RU.
His role is best suited off the ball and to be a corner 3 point shooter and to play a couple of possessions on the ball.
Once you also factor in the financial aspect of NIL and what that is, Washington paid the most and that's where he went. Just because they paid the most, doesn't mean they're going to get the most production out of the player.
It comes down to roles and responsibilities and his minutes, points and production are down across the board, which is expected when the minutes are cut from the 32 range last year, to where its been recently at Washington, which is in the 20 to 22 minute range. NIL comes into play, based on need and production and who are the alternatives that can produce in the same amount of minutes the player would be expected to play.
Can RU get similar or better production without a large amount of NIL money being spent?? The answer so far for this year and beyond this year into 2024-25, is yes.
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