The Bonnies, 5 Thoughts

[anon_0k9zlfz6lz9oy]

1) Pikiell’s coaching was extremely suspect. Clock management at the end of the game had me thinking I was watching a chris ash coached team. Just brutal. How do you call your last timeout with 1 minute left and 4 total team fouls and then let 25 seconds tick off the clock before you foul to get them to the line? Just brutal. Peter kiss for about an 6-8 minute stretch too? Whats the thought process here?

2) Caleb mcconnell needs more minutes. He played alot today but hes getting boards at the same clip as a forward, doing all the little things right, getting to the line at an insane clip and simply just playing winning basketball. He and Geo should be playing the most minutes night in and night out.

3) Start running a god damn organized half court offense to exploit mismatches. Myles shouldve EATEN down low all night with those midgets on him. But pike cant draw up sets to get him the ball? Instead we rely on no look passes and pick and rolls when hes wide open? Come on.

4) Jacob Young the assist man. Still tried to do a little too much at times tonight however overall he was pretty smart with the ball and made a lot of good passes to set up teammates. More games like this are needed. Still think he should only be a 15-20 min guy a night though.

5) the bonnies played what will go down as the best game of their season tonight. They were just drilling their shots, shooting at an extremely high clip and every time we pulled close they just seemed to have an answer with hitting a dagger. We had an 8-0 run to make it 65-61 i believe but then the bonnies just come back with a 3. They played a heckuva game. We had some opportunities to exploit some matchups but pike just didnt have a clue. I hope he and the team learns from this. If not this could be a long year

 

[Barnaby&Neill]

I thought Young was reckless with the ball, and disappointing at the line. Made a couple of nice plays, but also gave away a few more.

 

[anon_0k9zlfz6lz9oy]

I thought Young was reckless with the ball, and disappointing at the line. Made a couple of nice plays, but also gave away a few more.

1-5 from the line was pathetic, you are correct

 

[sct1111]

St. Bonneventure was hitting 3s but they were wide open. They were running offensive sets and we had no idea what we were doing on defense.

 

[anon_0k9zlfz6lz9oy]

St. Bonneventure was hitting 3s but they were wide open. They were running offensive sets and we had no idea what we were doing on defense.

Agreed, they did run a legitimate half court offense, something we have no clue how to do

 

[RU848789]

I thought Young was reckless with the ball, and disappointing at the line. Made a couple of nice plays, but also gave away a few more.

5 boards, 8 assists and 1 TO - I'll take that kind of recklessness every night. His shooting sucked, though, especially from the line. I think he'll keep improving though.

 

[sct1111]

Agreed, they did run a legitimate half court offense, something we have no clue how to do

Which is pretty inexcusable. I mean Pikiel recruited these players. He is in charge of their development and is in charge of the game plan. The only thing he's shown is that he's better than Eddie Jordan.

 

[Shell21]

Right now we have a lot of flexibility with position less basketball bit is that always a good thing ? Seems to me that the kids don’t know their roles early in this year . The only thing they know is that they will subbed in and out a lot during the game .

I think the kids and Pike are struggling right now to find their roles . I still would love to see Ron post up more . Defensively we are horrible at closing out and let guys get way too comfortable from 3.

 

[bac2therac]

1. agree, worst game since he has been here, could have cost them the game there and yes Kiss in that long just wtf

2. Caleb was drawing fouls right and left, He should have been a focal point of the offense in the 2nd half along with Myles

3. Myles was great when he got the ball..unfortunately he and Shaq arent getting it enough and RU failed to use size advantages in any game, instead i heard excuses that the other team was too quick because they were small.

4. not impressed with Young and I think he gets too many minutes

5. The Bonnies were 0-3 against middling competition. Their freshmen beat RU..the contrast to their young guys vs our sophs concerns me. Schmidt is a great coach and its clear that the Bonnies were motivated against Big 10 competition and RU seemingly took them lightly. I think St B will end up 4 or 5 in the A10 but still this is a game that a program building toward post season has to win, no excuse

 

[MCKnight2004]

Yes it’s just 4 games.....but Young and Harper are disappointing, two most hyped in pre season, and two most disappointing. They’re just not consistent shooters, and that’s not something that will change. Harper has a large sample size now thru a year plus...

 

[RUDead]

1. agree, worst game since he has been here, could have cost them the game there and yes Kiss in that long just wtf

2. Caleb was drawing fouls right and left, He should have been a focal point of the offense in the 2nd half along with Myles

3. Myles was great when he got the ball..unfortunately he and Shaq arent getting it enough and RU failed to use size advantages in any game, instead i heard excuses that the other team was too quick because they were small.

4. not impressed with Young and I think he gets too many minutes

5. The Bonnies were 0-3 against middling competition. Their freshmen beat RU..the contrast to their young guys vs our sophs concerns me. Schmidt is a great coach and its clear that the Bonnies were motivated against Big 10 competition and RU seemingly took them lightly. I think St B will end up 4 or 5 in the A10 but still this is a game that a program building toward post season has to win, no excuse

5. Bonnies are 1-3 against middling competition.

 

[KnightTerrors]

He tried to catch lightning in a bottle with Kiss and it backfired in a big way. Offense was stagnant and he was desperate for a spark.

 

[BigEastPhil]

Where are thou Ron Harper? So much hype coming into the season. Has not lived up to expectations in first 4 games. Same could be said for others as well.

I trust Pike but I don’t think he’s had his A game this season to date. I think the void of Jay Young is huge.

 

[bac2therac]

Where are thou Ron Harper? So much hype coming into the season. Has not lived up to expectations in first 4 games. Same could be said for others as well.

I trust Pike but I don’t think he’s had his A game this season to date. I think the void of Jay Young is huge.

Harper was awful in the first half picking up 3 fouls, he came out in the 2nd half with a quick 5 points or so but then went MIA

 

[rucoe89]

1) Pikiell’s coaching was extremely suspect. Clock management at the end of the game had me thinking I was watching a chris ash coached team. Just brutal. How do you call your last timeout with 1 minute left and 4 total team fouls and then let 25 seconds tick off the clock before you foul to get them to the line? Just brutal. Peter kiss for about an 6-8 minute stretch too? Whats the thought process here?

2) Caleb mcconnell needs more minutes. He played alot today but hes getting boards at the same clip as a forward, doing all the little things right, getting to the line at an insane clip and simply just playing winning basketball. He and Geo should be playing the most minutes night in and night out.

3) Start running a god damn organized half court offense to exploit mismatches. Myles shouldve EATEN down low all night with those midgets on him. But pike cant draw up sets to get him the ball? Instead we rely on no look passes and pick and rolls when hes wide open? Come on.

4) Jacob Young the assist man. Still tried to do a little too much at times tonight however overall he was pretty smart with the ball and made a lot of good passes to set up teammates. More games like this are needed. Still think he should only be a 15-20 min guy a night though.

5) the bonnies played what will go down as the best game of their season tonight. They were just drilling their shots, shooting at an extremely high clip and every time we pulled close they just seemed to have an answer with hitting a dagger. We had an 8-0 run to make it 65-61 i believe but then the bonnies just come back with a 3. They played a heckuva game. We had some opportunities to exploit some matchups but pike just didnt have a clue. I hope he and the team learns from this. If not this could be a long year

Maybe this is why Pikiell was stuck in America East so long. Others saw coaching flaws that would be abused at higher levels.

 

[AshCatchEm]

5 thoughts

G
R
O
S
S

 

[willisneverrana43]

. . . The only thing he's shown is that he's better than Eddie Jordan.

Yeah, Pike better be careful or people will start focusing on the fact that he’s in year 4 and has been at or near the bottom of the big ten every year and continues to struggle to win recruiting battles.

 

[BillyC80]

Good points. Regarding Kiss, I thought Pike made a mistake in not playing him at all in game one against Bryant, even for a few minutes when we had a 16 point lead, and I said so at the time. Unless it was for disciplinary reasons. He also didn’t play Kiss at all against Drexel in game 3.

So now Pike sends him into a competitive game on the road looking for a spark and the kid didn’t deliver. His confidence may be shot.

 

[Joey Bacala]

2) Caleb mcconnell needs more minutes. He played alot today but hes getting boards at the same clip as a forward, doing all the little things right, getting to the line at an insane clip and simply just playing winning basketball. He and Geo should be playing the most minutes night in and night out.

This X100

 

[AreYouNUTS]

5) the entire nation makes wide-open 3’s OTHER THAN us

 

[soundcrib]

Maybe this is why Pikiell was stuck in America East so long. Others saw coaching flaws that would be abused at higher levels.

Good friend is a UConn/BC New England hoops aficionado. Said we were getting a good coach. But can't recruit. He's right.

 

[RUSK97]

Good friend is a UConn/BC New England hoops aficionado. Said we were getting a good coach. But can't recruit. He's right.

That he can’t identify good players or he can’t land the good players? Two different things (with the same outcome I suppose).

 

[MCKnight2004]

He identifies the talent, just can’t win the recruit. Which isn’t easy, given our history. In the last two recruiting classes he’s gotten Mulcahy who I think will be very good, and two under the radar 2/3 star players.....simply not enough talent to move up the ranks

 

[czxqa]

The Bonnies' Justin Winston is a kid we could have signed. He would love to play in a power conference, and playing with his AAU teammate Mulcahy would definitely be a big plus. Frankly if Pike really wanted, he could still get him.

 

[willisneverrana43]

Good points. Regarding Kiss, I thought Pike made a mistake in not playing him at all in game one against Bryant, even for a few minutes when we had a 16 point lead, and I said so at the time. Unless it was for disciplinary reasons. He also didn’t play Kiss at all against Drexel in game 3.

So now Pike sends him into a competitive game on the road looking for a spark and the kid didn’t deliver. His confidence may be shot.

One thing I know: Kiss isn’t the answer.

 

[BillyC80]

One thing I know: Kiss isn’t the answer.

Not saying he is. Just saying that if Pike had plans to use him he should have gotten more floor time before last night. If not then just let him ride the pine for good, which I would be fine with.

 

[biazza38]

He identifies the talent, just can’t win the recruit. Which isn’t easy, given our history. In the last two recruiting classes he’s gotten Mulcahy who I think will be very good, and two under the radar 2/3 star players.....simply not enough talent to move up the ranks

This is false. I think he’s done a fine job the last two seasons. Probably should have landed one more guy with Mulcahy. Unfortunately, I think this year’s class will make or break him.

 

[G- RUnit]

5 boards, 8 assists and 1 TO - I'll take that kind of recklessness every night. His shooting sucked, though, especially from the line. I think he'll keep improving though.

Mind boggling everyone ripping Young and Harper and Mathis get free passes who have done nothing all year.

Young hits free throws we win? Sitting out for a year, he should have been practicing. That criticism is warranted. Besides that he had a nice game though.

 

[RUsince52]

5) the entire nation makes wide-open 3’s OTHER THAN us

Continues to be a major problem for us. Most other good teams have an occasional off shooting night and sometimes they still manage to win. We go the other way and are more susceptible to those games on any given night. Hard to understand unless the team can't shoot as a whole.

 

[willisneverrana43]

It is a bad shooting team. Is this really up for debate? On 3s, last year: 312th in the nation. The year before: 347th. The year before: 336th. If that's not bad, it's only because it's terrible.

To counteract this, they need great D, great rebounding and the ability to at least score a little inside. Pike needs to get those things going and show that it was him, not his assistant, who generated all these traits.

The other fix, as we've mentioned, is to improve the roster, get really good shooters. But he hasn't been doing that in recruiting. He'll have to at some point. In the meantime, he better get the D going and figure out ways to score enough.

 

[soundcrib]

This is false. I think he’s done a fine job the last two seasons. Probably should have landed one more guy with Mulcahy. Unfortunately, I think this year’s class will make or break him.

Then he’s already broken.

 

[biazza38]

Then he’s already broken.

We still have a shot at Cliff O

 

[soundcrib]

We still have a shot at Cliff O

I forgot we’re in his top 14.

 

[RU MAN]

1) Pikiell’s coaching was extremely suspect. Clock management at the end of the game had me thinking I was watching a chris ash coached team. Just brutal. How do you call your last timeout with 1 minute left and 4 total team fouls and then let 25 seconds tick off the clock before you foul to get them to the line? Just brutal. Peter kiss for about an 6-8 minute stretch too? Whats the thought process here?

2) Caleb mcconnell needs more minutes. He played alot today but hes getting boards at the same clip as a forward, doing all the little things right, getting to the line at an insane clip and simply just playing winning basketball. He and Geo should be playing the most minutes night in and night out.

3) Start running a god damn organized half court offense to exploit mismatches. Myles shouldve EATEN down low all night with those midgets on him. But pike cant draw up sets to get him the ball? Instead we rely on no look passes and pick and rolls when hes wide open? Come on.

4) Jacob Young the assist man. Still tried to do a little too much at times tonight however overall he was pretty smart with the ball and made a lot of good passes to set up teammates. More games like this are needed. Still think he should only be a 15-20 min guy a night though.

5) the bonnies played what will go down as the best game of their season tonight. They were just drilling their shots, shooting at an extremely high clip and every time we pulled close they just seemed to have an answer with hitting a dagger. We had an 8-0 run to make it 65-61 i believe but then the bonnies just come back with a 3. They played a heckuva game. We had some opportunities to exploit some matchups but pike just didn't have a clue. I hope he and the team learns from this. If not this could be a long year

The key to all of your points for me, questions Pike' s inability to exploit mismatches like Myles underneath. The other thing is, I don't see Pike switching defenses enough. Why didn't we go to more of a zone or even a matchup zone when the Bonnies were on fire from beyond the three-point line? Some simple adjustments with our superior athletes over theirs easily could have changed this game around in the first half before we got down by 19. Head scratching for sure.

 

[rudad02]

Shooting!!!

 

[RUJMM78]

There is a consensus among fans that shooting /scoring is a problem which puts added pressure on the defense .The fact the Bonnies scored 80 points against Rutgers is a sign that the defense allowed far too many open shots .Rutgers needs to trap the player with the ball with the objective of causing turnovers and easy baskets .It would make players like Mathis and Young more useful at both ends of the court.

 

[kcg88]

There is a consensus among fans that shooting /scoring is a problem which puts added pressure on the defense .The fact the Bonnies scored 80 points against Rutgers is a sign that the defense allowed far too many open shots .Rutgers needs to trap the player with the ball with the objective of causing turnovers and easy baskets .It would make players like Mathis and Young more useful at both ends of the court.

Playing this style at the high-major level is very hard to do. You need to recruit specifically for it. Even Bob Huggins and Brad Underwood are getting away from that style this year.

 

[ScarletR30]

Maybe if Myles Johnson wants the ball he can stay on the court. When hes not in foul trouble hes struggling with conditioning it seems

 

[Plum Street]

One thought:

1. We stink ....again.

 

[anon_0k9zlfz6lz9oy]

The bonnies might not be that bad. They lost a heartbreaker to vermont who just took uva wire to wire