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Post by acutrackfan on Mar 7, 2023 16:05:18 GMT -6
I only watched the 2nd half - we played pretty well in the 2nd half. So, ACU is out of the tourney in 2 days. Not the way the 'Cats hoped to finish the season.
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Post by bogeyman on Mar 7, 2023 16:07:22 GMT -6
Not to be. A good rally to get to 4 but too many missed opportunities. Can we recruit some players to turn this program around? Will Tanner improve as the head decision maker? Bettiol and Dibba are the two bright spots coming back. Kudos to our outgoing seniors who have been part of our recent glory days. Success is wished for each of them. Cameron, Allen, Pleasant, Daniels and Simmons. Good luck to each.
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Post by rc on Mar 7, 2023 20:03:34 GMT -6
Very hollow feeling for the seniors and grads in their last year. They gave their best but something was not going our way. I hope the departing players have great futures and I thank them for several seasons of exciting basketball. It will be a long trip home but I hope they hold their heads up high.
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Post by mavsman53 on Mar 8, 2023 10:35:31 GMT -6
Currently, there are 7 players returning for next year and 2 signees (McClain and Hill). It could be 11 total players if Simmons and Gai decide and are asked to return for an extra year. The transfer portal is already active and will become more so in the next few weeks. Look for additions to come from there
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Post by bogeyman on Mar 8, 2023 11:08:18 GMT -6
Looking at our stats for the final game we were 2-20 on 3 point attempts showing a glaring need for accurate 3 point shooters. Madden and Jackson return but were inconsistent at best (and that's a stretch) so it appears to me that along with height we need shooters (especially long range). I guess that's what everyone needs and will look for in the portal but our needs are critical. Tanner's defense puts quickness as the dominant factor and a player who has both quickness and length generally are scooped up by the bigger schools. An example to me would be Samuel Williamson whom we offered (his sister was on the women's team, Sara) but didn't even consider coming here. He went to Louisville and then transferred to SMU. We have to start getting those kinds of players or we will forever be mid to lower echelon in the WAC. McClain (incoming PG) is only 5'9". Hill at 6'8"-6'9" at wing is what we need but will we be forced to play him in the paint because of our lack of height. It will be interesting to see who else we recruit.
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Post by bogeyman on Mar 8, 2023 11:13:59 GMT -6
I see on Verbal Commits that we have offered a 6'5" JUCO shooting guard (Greg Gordon) and a 7' JUCO center (Jeriah Coleman) in addition to 6'11" center, Chris Loofe. A really good start if we can sign these guys.
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Post by mavsman53 on Mar 8, 2023 11:31:40 GMT -6
The biggest thing I see in the WAC is how teams have 2-3 guys that can score 20-25 on any given night. We are used to having 6-7 players that can score 10-15, but there typically isn't a go-to guy. IMO, that needs to change. I do think Dibba can be one of those players, but he needs help.
Obviously, finding a guy that is 6-10+ would be nice, but if they can't do much, then we can't just sign them because they are tall. They have to be able to rebound, block shots and score around the basket.
We also have to get bigger at the guard/wing position. Tanner and Golding always liked to have a 2 PG lineup. But look at the other teams in the WAC.
Utah Valley- all 3 starting guards are 6'4
Southern Utah- all 3 starters at guard are 6'4 to 6'5
Tarleton St- all 3 starters at guard are 6'4 to 6'6
Cal Baptist- all 3 starters at guard are 6'6 to 6'7
Have to get bigger at guard, even more than at F/C
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Post by bogeyman on Mar 8, 2023 11:55:00 GMT -6
I've been thinking that Ma'Shy Hill was a wing but watching his film, he is a center. So right now we have Bettiol and Hill who can work under the the basket for points and rebounds. I agree we need to get bigger at the guard position, so how does signing a 5'9" point work in that equation? As you said about recruiting centers and forwards, we can't recruit them just because they are tall--they have to have scoring and defensive talent too. Can Reese Miller become a contributor? What do we think about JV Seats future? Both are 6'3" shooting guards.
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Post by rc on Mar 8, 2023 13:48:44 GMT -6
I would have liked to see J.V. Seat on the floor a lot more. He is big and strong, and seems to be a pretty solid shooter. Not sure why he did not play more. Was it a defensive issue?
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Post by Outsider on Mar 8, 2023 16:45:02 GMT -6
I would have liked to see J.V. Seat on the floor a lot more. He is big and strong, and seems to be a pretty solid shooter. Not sure why he did not play more. Was it a defensive issue? I still think that Tanner felt the seniors had earned the right for the majority of the minutes, which isn't necessarily wrong but still would have liked to see Seat and Bettiol have more time.
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Post by dallasalum on Mar 11, 2023 13:41:05 GMT -6
I would have liked to see J.V. Seat on the floor a lot more. He is big and strong, and seems to be a pretty solid shooter. Not sure why he did not play more. Was it a defensive issue? I still think that Tanner felt the seniors had earned the right for the majority of the minutes, which isn't necessarily wrong but still would have liked to see Seat and Bettiol have more time.
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Post by dallasalum on Mar 11, 2023 13:48:14 GMT -6
I would prefer that minutes were earned by being the best player, not by time in the program. Very disappointing season for both teams, especially the men. Never consistent. Too many "dry spells" in games. Couldn't close out games. Did have some injuries but we need to do better than this. Did Gai just not improve/progress? Is the 6'10"/6'11" kid from the Austin area still coming?
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Post by rc on Mar 11, 2023 14:05:23 GMT -6
I would prefer that minutes were earned by being the best player, not by time in the program. Very disappointing season for both teams, especially the men. Never consistent. Too many "dry spells" in games. Couldn't close out games. Did have some injuries but we need to do better than this. Did Gai just not improve/progress? Is the 6'10"/6'11" kid from the Austin area still coming? I feel a bit the same way. The physical attributes we need must be groomed to fit the program we play and not giving them playing time won't get us over the hill. I think Dibba, Madden, Bettiol and Seat are potentially key players but we need to bring in strength and 3 point skill -- hopefully the recruits and transfers can answer the call. But we have to play them to find out. Watching GCU shoot the basketball was pretty impressive. We need some dead eye shooters from 3 point land who can shoot with 6'4" defenders in front of them. I never understood Gai. He seemed to have a shooter's touch, but I guess he was just too light to be a strong factor under the basket.
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Post by bogeyman on Mar 15, 2023 20:44:18 GMT -6
Watched Tanners final coaches show this afternoon. He said he was excited about who returns next year. I guess he sees things differently than this fan (and he should). I see 9.6 pts per game in Dibba. 4 pts per game in Bettiol. 6 points per game in Steele. 4 points per game in Jackson and 6 points per game in Madden. If Simmons returns that's another 9.6 points per game. None of those are dominant nor can they create, although Dibba has an uncanny ability to drive and score in the paint. Unless we bring in 4-6 difference makers, we will continue to tip the scales in the mediocre range. He also said we would continue to put our eggs in the turnover basket even as he admitted we didn't do that as well this year. We don't have any consistent 3 pt shooters coming back nor do we have any strong presence in the paint coming back. Bettiol can/will be our best scoring threat in the paint but at 6'8" can be overwhelmed with the bigger guys we'll be facing. I certainly hope that 7'1" Coleman is coming our way (or someone similar) and a crafty athletic wing to accompany Dibba. I don't know where Simmons would fit in if he were to come back. He's too short for in the paint, not long enough to be a wing and too slow to be a guard. We played him in all those roles previously and we need more than 10 pts per game. Seems he was too often in foul trouble too. Maybe Tanner sees more in him than has been seen in the previous 4 years. I'll hope. I want to be hopeful but our recruiting has to turn up some gems.
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Post by mavsman53 on Mar 16, 2023 10:30:55 GMT -6
I'll say it again, we have to be careful thinking that because a guy is tall that he will be an impact player. Coleman played 2 years at Saint Francis. Year 1, he averaged 0.5 points per game. His Sophomore year, he averaged 2.3 points per game. This year, he is averaging 9.1 points per game in JUCO. Is he a good defender; by all accounts yes. But offensively, he is putting up numbers that were similar to what Gai did when he played JUCO. If you have 4 other starters that can give you 12-15 points a game, then Coleman is a perfect addition. But if not, we might be asking him to do things offensively that isn't in his skill set.
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