Secret (?) Scrimmage vs Maryland

[Chescat]

I saw it reported that we
scrimmaged Maryland and
lost 72 - 56. Maryland is a
ranked team on a number
of pre season polls.
They have a talented team
and brought in some very
good transfers. Qudos Waha
6'11" and 240 was one of the
top BE players last season.
Hugley scored 14 for us, so
that's a good sign.

Of course info on this
scrimmage is scarce. 56
pt's is not great, but I feel
Maryland is as good or
better than the ACC's best
teams this year. Do any
posters on here have more
info?

 

[UPitthoops]

I heard Drumgoole was our leading scorer

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

 

[Zeldas Open Roof]

I heard Drumgoole was our leading scorer

Best post of the week.

 

[TWPitt]

View embedded media

Interesting that Horton isn’t starting.

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

Interesting that Horton isn’t starting.

He's hearing from the Whos

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

He's hearing from the Whos

I heard he had to take some time off to hatch an egg.

 

[pittchagg]

Horton’s best games seemed to be when he was coming off the bench as a shooter. I’m not surprised that they like Jeffress’ defense on the court as a starter over Horton’s offense.

 

[JD1976]

I heard Drumgoole was our leading scorer

Malik Ellison also put up a quadruple double

 

[412boyz81]

If you watch the scrimmage or know what we’re trying to do this was all about mixing and matching to see what we have but at the end of the day Santos will be out there hugley will be out there that means we have a three point shooter and the guy in the paint they can score and push people around and not get pushed around the other three guys there OK femi gonna be a star. We’re good this was all about to see what we had.

 

[Chescat]

If you watch the scrimmage or know what we’re trying to do this was all about mixing and matching to see what we have but at the end of the day Santos will be out there hugley will be out there that means we have a three point shooter and the guy in the paint they can score and push people around and not get pushed around the other three guys there OK femi gonna be a star. We’re good this was all about to see what we had.

And what makes that different
from what Maryland might
have been doing? They also
were trying out three transfers,

Santos? You see him playing
ahead of Horton?

 

[Vader_Storm]

And what makes that different
from what Maryland might
have been doing? They also
were trying out three transfers,

Santos? You see him playing
ahead of Horton?

I wouldn't draw any conclusions off of this except the potential starting 5 unit and maybe what Hugley did against Wahab. I think the only real question is Jeffress starting although I will be surprised if Burton doesn't slide in there when he comes back over him.


Georgie Tech just scrimmaged Alabama for example. Michael Devoe played 12 minutes. Had this been a real game, Devoe would of played close to 40 minutes as he is one of the best players in the ACC. Tech lost the game and wasn't trying to win.

 

[Chescat]

I wouldn't draw any conclusions off of this except the potential starting 5 unit and maybe what Hugley did against Wahab. I think the only real question is Jeffress starting although I will be surprised if Burton doesn't slide in there when he comes back over him.


Georgie Tech just scrimmaged Alabama for example. Michael Devoe played 12 minutes. Had this been a real game, Devoe would of played close to 40 minutes as he is one of the best players in the ACC. Tech lost the game and wasn't trying to win.

Exactly! That was my point. We
not only can't draw any
conclusions off of a scrimmage
like this either way.... Pitt or
Maryland. I agree about Hugley.
However we can only guess if
he were matched up against
Wahab (I assume he was.)

Unless the coaches come out
and tell us what they had planned
and what they actually did, we
have very little to go on.

 

[Fsgolfdr]

Exactly! That was my point. We
not only can't draw any
conclusions off of a scrimmage
like this either way.... Pitt or
Maryland. I agree about Hugley.
However we can only guess if
he were matched up against
Wahab (I assume he was.)

Unless the coaches come out
and tell us what they had planned
and what they actually did, we
have very little to go on.

Just like drawing conclusions from the scrimmage, let’s just see how they play once the season starts .

I expecting to be pleasantly surprised this season . Why be a Debbie downer before we’ve seen a game ?

 

[VincePITT]

Just like drawing conclusions from the scrimmage, let’s just see how they play once the season starts .

I expecting to be pleasantly surprised this season . Why be a Debbie downer before we’ve seen a game ?

In the Preseason AP poll Maryland is No. 21! No. 9 Duke No. 19 UNC No. 20 FSU No. 25 Va!

 

[Drew1208]

In the Preseason AP poll Maryland is No. 21! No. 9 Duke No. 19 UNC No. 20 FSU No. 25 Va!

Vtech is probably better than no.25 and 20.

 

[DC_Area_Panther]

Last year Pitt was 10-12 In a Covid reduced schedule. The year before they were 14-19. I want to see an over 0.500 record this coming season. Anything less will be another disappointment. How many ACC wins will this require? Seven or 8 at a minimum?

 

[Fsgolfdr]

Last year Pitt was 10-12 In a Covid reduced schedule. The year before they were 14-19. I want to see an over 0.500 record this coming season. Anything less will be another disappointment. How many ACC wins will this require? Seven or 8 at a minimum?

I want to see a core of players emerge this yr that can elevate the program and with one or two key additions next yr turn them into a contender . Mintz is one now JC needs another .

I think that Femi , Hugley , Jeffress and hopefully Santos and Collier could be that core .

So why care what their record is if they’re improving ?

 

[Chescat]

I want to see a core of players emerge this yr that can elevate the program and with one or two key additions next yr turn them into a contender . Mintz is one now JC needs another .

I think that Femi , Hugley , Jeffress and hopefully Santos and Collier could be that core .

So why care what their record is if they’re improving ?

I would like to see the same,
and I agree about Femi, Jeffress,
and Hugley. The others?......I
have big concerns. Collier is
going to have to make a major
leap forward and I'm not so
certain he's capable.. Santos
is not a known quantity yet
and neither is Payton (except
for Vader).

On the other hand, these early
predictions, including mine, are
mere guesses. Drumgoole was
supposedly our best recruit a
few years ago, while Champ at
the same time was not considered
anything special.

We'll see soon enough. I've posted
before....the OOC schedule with
WVU, St. John's, Vanderbuilt, and
Minnesota will give us a good read
IMO. Those teams are at least as
good as the bottom third to middle
of the ACC.

 

[DC_Area_Panther]

The W-L record is the only true measure of improvement. They have been just below 0.500 overall over each of the last three seasons. If they only duplicate the same again it will not indicate that any improvement has been made. At least a 16-15 regular season this time or they won't have shown any improvement, IMHO.

A 15-16 regular season followed by a 2-1 ACCT would also indicate slight improvement --to be fair.

 

[Chescat]

A 15-16 regular season followed by a 2-1 ACCT would also indicate slight improvement --to be fair.

Sorry to disagree, but given
our schedule, that is asking
a lot out of this bunch IMO.
If they win eight games in
OOC, that means they'd
have to at least win one of the
four I mentioned above,
and avoid any upsets from
the rest. That would mean
7 wins in the ACC. Do you
feel they can do that? You
may be right. 2-1 in the
ACCT? I'd accept that ,and
I hope you're right and that
I'm wrong, but.....

 

[VincePITT]

I want to see a core of players emerge this yr that can elevate the program and with one or two key additions next yr turn them into a contender . Mintz is one now JC needs another .

I think that Femi , Hugley , Jeffress and hopefully Santos and Collier could be that core .

So why care what their record is if they’re improving ?

In the scrimmage the Starters: PG: Odukale, SG: Nike Sibande, SF: Will Jeffress, PF: Gueye & PF: Hugley. That looks good to me with PG: Burton, SG: Horton, SG/SF: Santos, PF: Oladapo, PF: Collier & PF Payton coming off the bench!

 

[Chescat]

I like the group of substitutes
you listed. I've been pointing
out what I see as weaknesses.
However your sub list shows
that we have depth and that
depth IMO is better than
last year.

What I feel we lack is a go
to player. Anyway, a lot of
good thoughts in this thread.

 

[DC_Area_Panther]

Sorry to disagree, but given
our schedule, that is asking
a lot out of this bunch IMO.
If they win eight games in
OOC, that means they'd
have to at least win one of the
four I mentioned above,
and avoid any upsets from
the rest. That would mean
7 wins in the ACC. Do you
feel they can do that? You
may be right. 2-1 in the
ACCT? I'd accept that ,and
I hope you're right and that
I'm wrong, but.....

I don’t know what this group is/is not capable of—I just take the position that another losing season cannot be somehow be construed as the team showing improvement because the schedule is perceived as more difficult than last year’s schedule. It needs an overall winning season to demonstrate it is improved over the last several versions we saw fall just short of having even a barely winning season. Doing that may be beyond the capability of this group this season as you suggest.

 

[H2PisIT]

I like the group of substitutes
you listed. I've been pointing
out what I see as weaknesses.
However your sub list shows
that we have depth and that
depth IMO is better than
last year.

What I feel we lack is a go
to player. Anyway, a lot of
good thoughts in this thread.

I can see Nike Sibande being the "go to" player.

 

[Chescat]

I can see Nike Sibande being the "go to" player.

You might be right in
that Sibande might be
designated as one....but
the point is we don't
have a "true" go to player.

We do have depth.... a lot
of average to good players.
But a "true" go to player?
If Champ were still here,
yes. This group?...IMO,
I don't see one.

 

[VincePITT]

You might be right in
that Sibande might be
designated as one....but
the point is we don't
have a "true" go to player.

We do have depth.... a lot
of average to good players.
But a "true" go to player?
If Champ were still here,
yes. This group?...IMO,
I don't see one.

You might be right, but don't be surprised if they use players light Horton as the 3 point shooter or Hugley as the post scorer and Nike or Femi as the slashers/playmakers! So Pitt could use each player for their skill sets!

 

[Chescat]

You might be right, but don't be surprised if they use players light Horton as the 3 point shooter or Hugley as the post scorer and Nike or Femi as the slashers/playmakers! So Pitt could use each player for their skill sets!

That's a good explanation for
what we might go to since we
have no obvious "go to player."
Match ups in certain situations
would help determine a three
attempt by Horton, or a post
play by Horton, or slash by
Nike or Femi.

 

[Fsgolfdr]

I don’t know what this group is/is not capable of—I just take the position that another losing season cannot be somehow be construed as the team showing improvement because the schedule is perceived as more difficult than last year’s schedule. It needs an overall winning season to demonstrate it is improved over the last several versions we saw fall just short of having even a barely winning season. Doing that may be beyond the capability of this group this season as you suggest.

This isn’t last yrs team and can not be compared to it . This is a new group with a young core of players that should be here for a few yrs . Team play and individual improvement is key for this program moving forward , not the total number of wins .

 

[DC_Area_Panther]

You won’t have seen better team play and individual improvement as a hope for the future if this group wins fewer than 16/17 games, IMHO.

 

[Fsgolfdr]

You won’t have seen better team play and individual improvement as a hope for the future if this group wins fewer than 16/17 games, IMHO.

Your confusing winning with improvement.

 

[412boyz81]

Interesting that Horton isn’t starting.

No he isn’t he should be coming off the bench he’s a shooter that’s a good rotational player. That’s about all he is nothing special. Good bench player

 

[412boyz81]

this team is going to surprise people the leagues weak and I think the guys we have and the new ones will make this team a above average team. Some I’m saying will be over 500 this year and one player away from making this team a legit top 5 team in the Acc.

 

[whirlybird optio]

Your confusing winning with improvement.

When can we start demanding winning? I guess “youth” is going to be the excuse this year so there are no expectations, only BS words like “improvement”, which mean nothing. Each year is its own year, it’s not like there’s some magical carry over to next year. Also, 1-2 players from the young core will leave, it happens every year with Capel with every group he’s had going back to Oklahoma.

At some point, we should expect wins. And it’s not like a 4-16 or 5-15 ACC team (if that’s where we finish at) is all of a sudden gonna be some world beater next year when we replace Nike with a freshman Mintz (we have no other recruits as of now). Other ACC teams (most actually) are bringing in much better classes. If this group can’t win 7-8 ACC games in a 20 game schedule, measured by wins (and esp considering we have two games vs BC) we got real problems

 

[DC_Area_Panther]

IMO, you measure improvement by seeing a positive change from the previous year/Years.

There are only two ways to actually measure that "improvement" if it occurs:

(1) Actual improvement in W-L record.
(2) Winning your wins by a larger point margin (on average) coupled with losing your losses--especially vs the strongest opponents-- by a smaller (on average) point margin."

IMHO, non statistically measurable "improvement" is purely a subjective "eye test" that will reflect wishful thinking (i.e., putting on those blue and gold glasses).

 

[Drew1208]

My only expectation for this team this year is that they get better as the season goes along.
And not because of the team but the coaches. They can't have another year where they implode. Although that'd probably get the coach fired quicker for those who want that.

 

[Fsgolfdr]

When can we start demanding winning? I guess “youth” is going to be the excuse this year so there are no expectations, only BS words like “improvement”, which mean nothing. Each year is its own year, it’s not like there’s some magical carry over to next year. Also, 1-2 players from the young core will leave, it happens every year with Capel with every group he’s had going back to Oklahoma.

At some point, we should expect wins. And it’s not like a 4-16 or 5-15 ACC team (if that’s where we finish at) is all of a sudden gonna be some world beater next year when we replace Nike with a freshman Mintz (we have no other recruits as of now). Other ACC teams (most actually) are bringing in much better classes. If this group can’t win 7-8 ACC games in a 20 game schedule, measured by wins (and esp considering we have two games vs BC) we got real problems

I don’t think anyone could argue the point that Pitts team was highly dysfunctional the last few yrs . First Trey then X and Toney and now they’re gone . Like it or not this is a reboot .

I expect 1 or 2 players on this team will transfer out when they realize they’re not in the rotation and that should happen every yr and that’s not an indictment of JC that’s just the way it is in D1 ball .

I do expect wins and some good wins this season , but worrying whether they win 7 or 8 games or 10 wins (ACC ) and then declaring the season a success or failure based on 1 or 2 games is worthless IMO . I want to see players improve and the nucleus of good team evolve .

 

[pittchagg]

I don’t think anyone could argue the point that Pitts team was highly dysfunctional the last few yrs . First Trey then X and Toney and now they’re gone . Like it or not this is a reboot .

I expect 1 or 2 players on this team will transfer out when they realize they’re not in the rotation and that should happen every yr and that’s not an indictment of JC that’s just the way it is in D1 ball .

I do expect wins and some good wins this season , but worrying whether they win 7 or 8 games or 10 wins (ACC ) and then declaring the season a success or failure based on 1 or 2 games is worthless IMO . I want to see players improve and the nucleus of good team evolve .

I think this is the best way to approach it. Again, I'd rather go 6-14 and actually look consistent and with a (gasp!) upward trajectory as the season goes on than go 8-12 where we start the ACC schedule 7-1 and finish 1-11 with the team falling apart again.

 

[whirlybird optio]

I don’t think anyone could argue the point that Pitts team was highly dysfunctional the last few yrs . First Trey then X and Toney and now they’re gone . Like it or not this is a reboot .

I expect 1 or 2 players on this team will transfer out when they realize they’re not in the rotation and that should happen every yr and that’s not an indictment of JC that’s just the way it is in D1 ball .

I do expect wins and some good wins this season , but worrying whether they win 7 or 8 games or 10 wins (ACC ) and then declaring the season a success or failure based on 1 or 2 games is worthless IMO . I want to see players improve and the nucleus of good team evolve .

But, respectfully, these players can all "improve", and we can still suck. These aren't consensus 4 and 5 star kids. It's a middling roster of talent whereby improvement might mean going from a bottom 3 team, to a bottom 5 team. If that happens, and we go from a terrible record this year to a mediocre team next year is that acceptable? When do wins and losses matter? Is it next year, or will that be the "year after the young year, where we are building to 2023?"

I just want to know when there will be some accountability for this coach and program, cause apparently it isn't going to be this year, year 4...

 

[Chescat]

Accountability, when? Good
question. I also don't think
it'll be this year. He's basically
starting over. It appears that
he's trying to infuse a new
culture into this year's team.
Obviously it should have
been in place by now, but
given the internal problems
and departure of his initial
top three recruits (X, Trey and
Toney), it's back to square one.

IMO the powers at Pitt will
give him time to put it together.
They need to show teamwork,
togetherness ,chemistry, and
hustle. Personally I feel Capel
tried to do that, but unfortunately
failed. If they develop throughout
the season, they'll retain him. If
not, he'll be near the end.