Up/Down Nicholls State @ Pitt

[lilspainishflea]

Up
- Ryan Murphy. Again. I just love his game. Obviously we need his scoring from deep but he's much better overall than advertised. Has nice handles. Grabs rebounds. Very smart player - found Drumgoole wide open under the basket when Nicholls was looking to double-team Murphy. I love his work ethic - seeing clips of him shooting hundreds of shots late at night got me fired up. Thank god we have him for 2 years.
- Toney and Brown. Good hustle by both of them. Didn't see a lot of bad decisions by either. Toney should be shooting foul shots until his fingers bleed or work on some baby-hook type post moves. He needs something on offense that will get him to 5ppg. Love his work on the boards but he really offers nothing at the other end. We need just a little bit from him there.
- the Zoo. Came to support the team and looked great on tv.

Down
- Trey. Decisionmaking was very poor with the ball. Had it stripped in double teams. Traveling violations. Jacking up 3s early in the shot clock. Out of control takes to the basket with no chance of it going in. The works. I was shocked at how badly he looked. Just seemed entitled with the ball...like Nicholls didn't deserve to be on the court with him...and they made him pay. Hopefully this is his worst game of the year. I would sit him next time and start Murphy at the 2.
- XJ. Like Trey, also doing too much on offense. Dribbling into double teams with Murphy coming wide open for 3, then turns the ball over and lays on the ground which allows a 5 on 4 for an open three at the other end. Dumb fouls. Did not help on defense - I noticed at least 3 possessions where he was just standing around and his assignment buried a wide open 3. He needs to close the book on the NBA stuff right now because it's not happening. Work hard and that window will open again.
- Communication. We're not talking on defense. Dudes were setting screens and then literally walking into the paint without anyone picking them up. Our help defense wasn't paying attention and was leaving their guys wide open for corner 3s. Guys were screaming at X to slide out and take their man on a switch and he didn't - leaving them open for a 3. Our help defense looked like we were 5 guys at LA Fitness who didn't know each other. Just awful at this level.
- Boxing out. I don't see enough of it. I'm a good rebounder at 6'2" 180lbs because I get my hip on you at the earliest possible moment. I'm always at a size disadvantage but a position advantage. I have no idea why we have guys that are 6'6" or 6'8" and super athletic that are just going straight up for the ball and ignoring their man like it's a competition to see who can get those most hangtime. Results matter more than looks. Focus on the basics - get your butt in front of someone.
- Coaching. Capel needs to get these guys on a tighter leash. I thought Jamie Dixon over-coached and made players afraid to make plays. Capel is at the other end of that spectrum, sometimes to his detriment. When anyone other than Ryan Murphy jacks up anything except a layup with 20 or more seconds on the clock, they should immediately be pulled. When one of our guards dribbles into a double team in the low post instead of passing it, they should be pulled. We have 1 shooter right now. That means we need to work hard for better shots, keep moving and passing until you find the open man. When you're double teamed inside half court, someone needs to come help. Then that person needs to find the uncovered man in the wing or under the basket. In the half court, X breaks it down then back to the wing, then either shoot or start getting the extra passes. Against a team like this, we should have been working it inside to Brown as much as possible. Yet we had no interior game at all because our guards are determined to go 1 on 2 every possession.
- the Freshmen. Champagnie had a nice game against FSU but he was bad against Nicholls. Let dudes blow by him for easy buckets. Drumgoole is lost right now. AKC too. I'm hopeful for all of them but they need to do the little stuff right now (defense and rebounding) and not worry about being all conference. Contribute in little ways and grow from there. Right now they're not offering anything.

 

[Pete108K11]

Up
- Ryan Murphy. Again. I just love his game. Obviously we need his scoring from deep but he's much better overall than advertised. Has nice handles. Grabs rebounds. Very smart player - found Drumgoole wide open under the basket when Nicholls was looking to double-team Murphy. I love his work ethic - seeing clips of him shooting hundreds of shots late at night got me fired up. Thank god we have him for 2 years.
- Toney and Brown. Good hustle by both of them. Didn't see a lot of bad decisions by either. Toney should be shooting foul shots until his fingers bleed or work on some baby-hook type post moves. He needs something on offense that will get him to 5ppg. Love his work on the boards but he really offers nothing at the other end. We need just a little bit from him there.
- the Zoo. Came to support the team and looked great on tv.

Down
- Trey. Decisionmaking was very poor with the ball. Had it stripped in double teams. Traveling violations. Jacking up 3s early in the shot clock. Out of control takes to the basket with no chance of it going in. The works. I was shocked at how badly he looked. Just seemed entitled with the ball...like Nicholls didn't deserve to be on the court with him...and they made him pay. Hopefully this is his worst game of the year. I would sit him next time and start Murphy at the 2.
- XJ. Like Trey, also doing too much on offense. Dribbling into double teams with Murphy coming wide open for 3, then turns the ball over and lays on the ground which allows a 5 on 4 for an open three at the other end. Dumb fouls. Did not help on defense - I noticed at least 3 possessions where he was just standing around and his assignment buried a wide open 3. He needs to close the book on the NBA stuff right now because it's not happening. Work hard and that window will open again.
- Communication. We're not talking on defense. Dudes were setting screens and then literally walking into the paint without anyone picking them up. Our help defense wasn't paying attention and was leaving their guys wide open for corner 3s. Guys were screaming at X to slide out and take their man on a switch and he didn't - leaving them open for a 3. Our help defense looked like we were 5 guys at LA Fitness who didn't know each other. Just awful at this level.
- Boxing out. I don't see enough of it. I'm a good rebounder at 6'2" 180lbs because I get my hip on you at the earliest possible moment. I'm always at a size disadvantage but a position advantage. I have no idea why we have guys that are 6'6" or 6'8" and super athletic that are just going straight up for the ball and ignoring their man like it's a competition to see who can get those most hangtime. Results matter more than looks. Focus on the basics - get your butt in front of someone.
- Coaching. Capel needs to get these guys on a tighter leash. I thought Jamie Dixon over-coached and made players afraid to make plays. Capel is at the other end of that spectrum, sometimes to his detriment. When anyone other than Ryan Murphy jacks up anything except a layup with 20 or more seconds on the clock, they should immediately be pulled. When one of our guards dribbles into a double team in the low post instead of passing it, they should be pulled. We have 1 shooter right now. That means we need to work hard for better shots, keep moving and passing until you find the open man. When you're double teamed inside half court, someone needs to come help. Then that person needs to find the uncovered man in the wing or under the basket. In the half court, X breaks it down then back to the wing, then either shoot or start getting the extra passes. Against a team like this, we should have been working it inside to Brown as much as possible. Yet we had no interior game at all because our guards are determined to go 1 on 2 every possession.
- the Freshmen. Champagnie had a nice game against FSU but he was bad against Nicholls. Let dudes blow by him for easy buckets. Drumgoole is lost right now. AKC too. I'm hopeful for all of them but they need to do the little stuff right now (defense and rebounding) and not worry about being all conference. Contribute in little ways and grow from there. Right now they're not offering anything.

Ryan is playing well on offense, but I would not say he has a good handle at all. On defense he is ok in getting in position but opponents have easily been able to shoot over him. He gets into the passing lanes and hustles. Overall I'd say he has earned his minutes

Brown has been overused, he would play better if given like six minute stints. I do not know enough about Pitt's scheme to tell whether his job is rebound or to block shots and block out. I am not ready to criticize him about the boards because maybe him doing his job allowed X for example to pull down so many.

Toney will be fine, I hope, he just needs to see a couple go down. I've seen many a guy hit a slump like this.

X and Trey for better or worse are the same as last year. I had more of an issue with Murphy pulling up for a three on a 2 on 1 than I did with Trey twice pulling up for an open three early in the shot clock

The defense was terrific against FSU and I thought good against Nichols for the first ten minutes. As happened last year a few times when the ball won't go through the hoop, the Panthers lose focus on defense (on both ends really). A simple matter of gaining their confidence, we just need somebody to hit four in a row like both Nichols and FSU had.

 

[lilspainishflea]

Ryan is playing well on offense, but I would not say he has a good handle at all. On defense he is ok in getting in position but opponents have easily been able to shoot over him. He gets into the passing lanes and hustles. Overall I'd say he has earned his minutes

I'm saying that he's more well-rounded than we were told to expect. I think we all expected some spot up shooting. But he's been better than that and has shown a few good takes to the basket and some rebounding. We don't compete in either of these last two games if all he does is shoot.

Toney will be fine, I hope, he just needs to see a couple go down. I've seen many a guy hit a slump like this.

Disagree that he's fine. He's averaging 5ppg since January 2019 and that includes 17 against NCSU. It's ugly on offense.

X and Trey for better or worse are the same as last year. I had more of an issue with Murphy pulling up for a three on a 2 on 1 than I did with Trey twice pulling up for an open three early in the shot clock

Eh. Murphy pulled up because he didn't have an open path to the basket. He still had an open look and didn't have a passing option since he was the only on there. I won't say he made the right move but it wasn't clearly boneheaded either. Trey giving up an empty possession - where we're trailing in a close game - rather than going into our offense was definitely worse.

The defense was terrific against FSU and I thought good against Nichols for the first ten minutes. As happened last year a few times when the ball won't go through the hoop, the Panthers lose focus on defense (on both ends really). A simple matter of gaining their confidence, we just need somebody to hit four in a row like both Nichols and FSU had.

It was good in the first 10 mins? How do you figure? I went back and watched the condensed games and Nicholls hit a few contested shots. But they also got to the basket easily on rolls and had some wide open 3s because our help defense didn't bother to show up. Sure, Nicholls hitting baskets drains the confidence but it would have been way closer if people were picking up the right man on switches.

 

[DT_PITT]

Up
- Ryan Murphy. Again. I just love his game. Obviously we need his scoring from deep but he's much better overall than advertised. Has nice handles. Grabs rebounds. Very smart player - found Drumgoole wide open under the basket when Nicholls was looking to double-team Murphy. I love his work ethic - seeing clips of him shooting hundreds of shots late at night got me fired up. Thank god we have him for 2 years.
- Toney and Brown. Good hustle by both of them. Didn't see a lot of bad decisions by either. Toney should be shooting foul shots until his fingers bleed or work on some baby-hook type post moves. He needs something on offense that will get him to 5ppg. Love his work on the boards but he really offers nothing at the other end. We need just a little bit from him there.
- the Zoo. Came to support the team and looked great on tv.

Down
- Trey. Decisionmaking was very poor with the ball. Had it stripped in double teams. Traveling violations. Jacking up 3s early in the shot clock. Out of control takes to the basket with no chance of it going in. The works. I was shocked at how badly he looked. Just seemed entitled with the ball...like Nicholls didn't deserve to be on the court with him...and they made him pay. Hopefully this is his worst game of the year. I would sit him next time and start Murphy at the 2.
- XJ. Like Trey, also doing too much on offense. Dribbling into double teams with Murphy coming wide open for 3, then turns the ball over and lays on the ground which allows a 5 on 4 for an open three at the other end. Dumb fouls. Did not help on defense - I noticed at least 3 possessions where he was just standing around and his assignment buried a wide open 3. He needs to close the book on the NBA stuff right now because it's not happening. Work hard and that window will open again.
- Communication. We're not talking on defense. Dudes were setting screens and then literally walking into the paint without anyone picking them up. Our help defense wasn't paying attention and was leaving their guys wide open for corner 3s. Guys were screaming at X to slide out and take their man on a switch and he didn't - leaving them open for a 3. Our help defense looked like we were 5 guys at LA Fitness who didn't know each other. Just awful at this level.
- Boxing out. I don't see enough of it. I'm a good rebounder at 6'2" 180lbs because I get my hip on you at the earliest possible moment. I'm always at a size disadvantage but a position advantage. I have no idea why we have guys that are 6'6" or 6'8" and super athletic that are just going straight up for the ball and ignoring their man like it's a competition to see who can get those most hangtime. Results matter more than looks. Focus on the basics - get your butt in front of someone.
- Coaching. Capel needs to get these guys on a tighter leash. I thought Jamie Dixon over-coached and made players afraid to make plays. Capel is at the other end of that spectrum, sometimes to his detriment. When anyone other than Ryan Murphy jacks up anything except a layup with 20 or more seconds on the clock, they should immediately be pulled. When one of our guards dribbles into a double team in the low post instead of passing it, they should be pulled. We have 1 shooter right now. That means we need to work hard for better shots, keep moving and passing until you find the open man. When you're double teamed inside half court, someone needs to come help. Then that person needs to find the uncovered man in the wing or under the basket. In the half court, X breaks it down then back to the wing, then either shoot or start getting the extra passes. Against a team like this, we should have been working it inside to Brown as much as possible. Yet we had no interior game at all because our guards are determined to go 1 on 2 every possession.
- the Freshmen. Champagnie had a nice game against FSU but he was bad against Nicholls. Let dudes blow by him for easy buckets. Drumgoole is lost right now. AKC too. I'm hopeful for all of them but they need to do the little stuff right now (defense and rebounding) and not worry about being all conference. Contribute in little ways and grow from there. Right now they're not offering anything.

Appreciate your thoughts.

Hopefully you will make this regular thing?

Or least for a game with more ups than downs.

 

[lilspainishflea]

Appreciate your thoughts.

Hopefully you will make this regular thing?

Or least for a game with more ups than downs.

Thank you! I'll definitely try. Should be shorter after the Ws that's for sure.

 

[Chescat]

Up
- Ryan Murphy. Again. I just love his game. Obviously we need his scoring from deep but he's much better overall than advertised. Has nice handles. Grabs rebounds. Very smart player - found Drumgoole wide open under the basket when Nicholls was looking to double-team Murphy. I love his work ethic - seeing clips of him shooting hundreds of shots late at night got me fired up. Thank god we have him for 2 years.
- Toney and Brown. Good hustle by both of them. Didn't see a lot of bad decisions by either. Toney should be shooting foul shots until his fingers bleed or work on some baby-hook type post moves. He needs something on offense that will get him to 5ppg. Love his work on the boards but he really offers nothing at the other end. We need just a little bit from him there.
- the Zoo. Came to support the team and looked great on tv.

Down
- Trey. Decisionmaking was very poor with the ball. Had it stripped in double teams. Traveling violations. Jacking up 3s early in the shot clock. Out of control takes to the basket with no chance of it going in. The works. I was shocked at how badly he looked. Just seemed entitled with the ball...like Nicholls didn't deserve to be on the court with him...and they made him pay. Hopefully this is his worst game of the year. I would sit him next time and start Murphy at the 2.
- XJ. Like Trey, also doing too much on offense. Dribbling into double teams with Murphy coming wide open for 3, then turns the ball over and lays on the ground which allows a 5 on 4 for an open three at the other end. Dumb fouls. Did not help on defense - I noticed at least 3 possessions where he was just standing around and his assignment buried a wide open 3. He needs to close the book on the NBA stuff right now because it's not happening. Work hard and that window will open again.
- Communication. We're not talking on defense. Dudes were setting screens and then literally walking into the paint without anyone picking them up. Our help defense wasn't paying attention and was leaving their guys wide open for corner 3s. Guys were screaming at X to slide out and take their man on a switch and he didn't - leaving them open for a 3. Our help defense looked like we were 5 guys at LA Fitness who didn't know each other. Just awful at this level.
- Boxing out. I don't see enough of it. I'm a good rebounder at 6'2" 180lbs because I get my hip on you at the earliest possible moment. I'm always at a size disadvantage but a position advantage. I have no idea why we have guys that are 6'6" or 6'8" and super athletic that are just going straight up for the ball and ignoring their man like it's a competition to see who can get those most hangtime. Results matter more than looks. Focus on the basics - get your butt in front of someone.
- Coaching. Capel needs to get these guys on a tighter leash. I thought Jamie Dixon over-coached and made players afraid to make plays. Capel is at the other end of that spectrum, sometimes to his detriment. When anyone other than Ryan Murphy jacks up anything except a layup with 20 or more seconds on the clock, they should immediately be pulled. When one of our guards dribbles into a double team in the low post instead of passing it, they should be pulled. We have 1 shooter right now. That means we need to work hard for better shots, keep moving and passing until you find the open man. When you're double teamed inside half court, someone needs to come help. Then that person needs to find the uncovered man in the wing or under the basket. In the half court, X breaks it down then back to the wing, then either shoot or start getting the extra passes. Against a team like this, we should have been working it inside to Brown as much as possible. Yet we had no interior game at all because our guards are determined to go 1 on 2 every possession.
- the Freshmen. Champagnie had a nice game against FSU but he was bad against Nicholls. Let dudes blow by him for easy buckets. Drumgoole is lost right now. AKC too. I'm hopeful for all of them but they need to do the little stuff right now (defense and rebounding) and not worry about being all conference. Contribute in little ways and grow from there. Right now they're not offering anything.

Damn that was long! Seriously though, pretty good synopsis on your part
(I thought I was reading one of my long discourses) LOL.
Two things I'll comment on...your observations and explanation of Toney
was right on IMO. Those "5ppg" that you're asking for?...He could get them
if he concentrated on drives and put backs. For now...NO outside jumpers
until he can hit em. Another poster suggested he might be able to shoot
his way out of this slump....To me it's no slump, he simply can't shoot.
Maybe he ought to join Murphy in those late night shooting practices.

Secondly. You said "Capel needs to get these guys on a tighter leash."
My sense is they're already on a pretty tight leash, but some of
them, Trey and X, in my opinion went too far with their own ideas on
what to do in that game. I'm pretty sure Capel has taken care of this
after the game with his public comments, his locker room comments,
and the last few practices. As I've already posted we're probably
going to see a whole difference performance and demeanor from
these players starting with tomorrow night.

 

[JRPITT]

Up
- Ryan Murphy. Again. I just love his game. Obviously we need his scoring from deep but he's much better overall than advertised. Has nice handles. Grabs rebounds. Very smart player - found Drumgoole wide open under the basket when Nicholls was looking to double-team Murphy. I love his work ethic - seeing clips of him shooting hundreds of shots late at night got me fired up. Thank god we have him for 2 years.
- Toney and Brown. Good hustle by both of them. Didn't see a lot of bad decisions by either. Toney should be shooting foul shots until his fingers bleed or work on some baby-hook type post moves. He needs something on offense that will get him to 5ppg. Love his work on the boards but he really offers nothing at the other end. We need just a little bit from him there.
- the Zoo. Came to support the team and looked great on tv.

Down
- Trey. Decisionmaking was very poor with the ball. Had it stripped in double teams. Traveling violations. Jacking up 3s early in the shot clock. Out of control takes to the basket with no chance of it going in. The works. I was shocked at how badly he looked. Just seemed entitled with the ball...like Nicholls didn't deserve to be on the court with him...and they made him pay. Hopefully this is his worst game of the year. I would sit him next time and start Murphy at the 2.
- XJ. Like Trey, also doing too much on offense. Dribbling into double teams with Murphy coming wide open for 3, then turns the ball over and lays on the ground which allows a 5 on 4 for an open three at the other end. Dumb fouls. Did not help on defense - I noticed at least 3 possessions where he was just standing around and his assignment buried a wide open 3. He needs to close the book on the NBA stuff right now because it's not happening. Work hard and that window will open again.
- Communication. We're not talking on defense. Dudes were setting screens and then literally walking into the paint without anyone picking them up. Our help defense wasn't paying attention and was leaving their guys wide open for corner 3s. Guys were screaming at X to slide out and take their man on a switch and he didn't - leaving them open for a 3. Our help defense looked like we were 5 guys at LA Fitness who didn't know each other. Just awful at this level.
- Boxing out. I don't see enough of it. I'm a good rebounder at 6'2" 180lbs because I get my hip on you at the earliest possible moment. I'm always at a size disadvantage but a position advantage. I have no idea why we have guys that are 6'6" or 6'8" and super athletic that are just going straight up for the ball and ignoring their man like it's a competition to see who can get those most hangtime. Results matter more than looks. Focus on the basics - get your butt in front of someone.
- Coaching. Capel needs to get these guys on a tighter leash. I thought Jamie Dixon over-coached and made players afraid to make plays. Capel is at the other end of that spectrum, sometimes to his detriment. When anyone other than Ryan Murphy jacks up anything except a layup with 20 or more seconds on the clock, they should immediately be pulled. When one of our guards dribbles into a double team in the low post instead of passing it, they should be pulled. We have 1 shooter right now. That means we need to work hard for better shots, keep moving and passing until you find the open man. When you're double teamed inside half court, someone needs to come help. Then that person needs to find the uncovered man in the wing or under the basket. In the half court, X breaks it down then back to the wing, then either shoot or start getting the extra passes. Against a team like this, we should have been working it inside to Brown as much as possible. Yet we had no interior game at all because our guards are determined to go 1 on 2 every possession.
- the Freshmen. Champagnie had a nice game against FSU but he was bad against Nicholls. Let dudes blow by him for easy buckets. Drumgoole is lost right now. AKC too. I'm hopeful for all of them but they need to do the little stuff right now (defense and rebounding) and not worry about being all conference. Contribute in little ways and grow from there. Right now they're not offering anything.

Agree with your analysis. Especially blocking out. Also, more patience on offense which will move the defense, and this will also open up lanes for offensive rebounds and more scoring.

 

[CapelsCranberryz]

Man please make this a regular thing! This was spot on and a great read!