Post Fairfield Scrimmage expectations
- Thread starter Scangg
- Start date
Three reasons why I’m more bullish after the exhibition game: 1) we performed fairly well as a team without Caleb; 2) hearing from Pike that he purposely held back some looks/plays that he did not want known at this time; 3) Our press looked pretty good, again without Caleb, which was a testament to our depth.
4) cam's defense and all around game
5) Simpson is the real deal and perfect sparkplug energy guy off the bench. This is massive
6) Woolfolk ready now. His athleticism and ability to move and switch. Really strong defender when Cliff is out if needed
7) Mag breakout is here
8) Hyatt will contribute
5) Simpson is the real deal and perfect sparkplug energy guy off the bench. This is massive
6) Woolfolk ready now. His athleticism and ability to move and switch. Really strong defender when Cliff is out if needed
7) Mag breakout is here
8) Hyatt will contribute
No change, but that might be due to me being biased by all the positive reports (I read this board before going back and watching).
Cliff will be dominant as expected. Mag and Hyatt look really improved.
I think Simpson’s performance was a bit overhyped - yes he shot well but turned it over a lot. I’m not sure he will contribute all that much in Big Ten play, but hope I’m wrong.
If we struggle this season, I think it’ll be due to poor 3 point shooting. Was hoping to see Chol shoot, but he’s probably not ready either with the other aspects of the game.
Cliff will be dominant as expected. Mag and Hyatt look really improved.
I think Simpson’s performance was a bit overhyped - yes he shot well but turned it over a lot. I’m not sure he will contribute all that much in Big Ten play, but hope I’m wrong.
If we struggle this season, I think it’ll be due to poor 3 point shooting. Was hoping to see Chol shoot, but he’s probably not ready either with the other aspects of the game.
Rebounding and 3 point shooting will determine success /failure for this seasons team .I fully expect opponents will play more zone against Rutgers to stop drives to the basket and force 3 point shots.The health of McConnell is also important because of his expected contributions on offense and defense.
Good call on rebounding, that will be key. Ron was an underrated rebounder for us averaging 6 per night.
We should be a better rebounding team this year. Harper 6 boards but also played 30+ minutes a night at 6'4 at the 4.
I would expect Mag Hyatt Dean Woolfolk to all be better rebounders than they were last year and all rebound at a higher rate with their minutes at the 4 than Harper did
We really weren't a good rebounding team last year
This is a very athletic team. I think Mag, Hyatt and Spencer can really push the pace and when Simpson get's going, that's speed we have not had. Ok, maybe we did with JY, but this kid has a higher ceiling as a PG. I also think defenses are going to really need to be on their toes when we switch from Paul running the point, to Derek running it. Paul can lull your to sleep and post up because he's so big and strong. Derek can take you off the dribble and shoot it in your face. He needs to put on some muscle.
The addition of Wolf is really going to help with defense and rebounding. He is very athletic and smooth.
The addition of Wolf is really going to help with defense and rebounding. He is very athletic and smooth.
More bullish for me because:
1. Simpson looks ready to contribute IMMEDIATELY, and provides a quick offensive spark that we don’t have otherwise.
2. Mag and Hyatt both look improved, especially Mag.
3. Cliff really DID expand his offensive arsenal.
4. Spencer has an all around game, including on defense, and scored 10 points despite going 0-3 on threes.
5. Proof that Woolfolk is ready to contribute as a backup 5.
1. Simpson looks ready to contribute IMMEDIATELY, and provides a quick offensive spark that we don’t have otherwise.
2. Mag and Hyatt both look improved, especially Mag.
3. Cliff really DID expand his offensive arsenal.
4. Spencer has an all around game, including on defense, and scored 10 points despite going 0-3 on threes.
5. Proof that Woolfolk is ready to contribute as a backup 5.
1 can make the arguement that Caleb not being healthy enough to play is enough to being bearish. One would think the odds of him not being completely healthy this year is slightly elevated.
Same for Dean playing only 2 minutes
Also would have like to see in a scrimmage or exhibition minutes being allocated to Chol Woolfolk Miller and Oskar. Why wouldn't he play them more to get experience? Only explanation is they arent ready.
Why would Paul and Cliff play any more than 20 minutes?
Pike said he was treating this as a dress rehearsal and real game. This is likely due to our poor start last season and struggles with the early OOC schedule.
He realized the Lafayette loss almost kept us out of the tournament and he wants the starters ready to rock and a fast start to the season
I would imagine the end of the bench played more in the closed door secret scrimmage
I think losing this game wasn't an option. I'd bet Pike would prefer to play game like this in secret.
The bottom line is every player who got minutes impressed. Everyone looked improved from last year. The new comers all look ready to contribute this season
The only true stock down is Chol who joined the team late and looked like he needed to adjust to this level and the speed of the game still
Dean could be a stock down too depending on how you look at it
I guess Oskar stock down bc of DNP but I don't think anyone thought he would be in the rotation much if at all anyway
Every main piece of the rotation looked good. It's encouraging.
The only true stock down is Chol who joined the team late and looked like he needed to adjust to this level and the speed of the game still
Dean could be a stock down too depending on how you look at it
I guess Oskar stock down bc of DNP but I don't think anyone thought he would be in the rotation much if at all anyway
Every main piece of the rotation looked good. It's encouraging.
Yes, but I would have treated this game differently. I'm not the coach.
Pike said he treated it as a dress rehearsal and a real game. In a real game, Paul is going to play huge minutes
NCAA bound, and that would be a great accomplishment, 3 years in a row right?
i have a lot of optimism for the year …but I am still concerned about rebounding . Especially when cliff is NOT on the floor
We should be better rebounding without Cliff on the floor this year than last year at least
Caleb will be a big help when he's back in terms of rebounding
I hear what your saying but I’m guessing neither of those guys will be running the show much in the pre-season without the support of either Paul or Caleb on the court. Cam seems like he can help more with the ball handling than I was expecting, but that’s not the role Pike is going to look for from him. We want Cam moving without the ball to get open for clean outside looks.
As for Caleb’s injury, it’s been announced that it’s his knee which is always a tricky one in terms of being careful not to return too soon because there’s a high reinjury risk. That’s probably the hold up as opposed to lingering pain keeping him out (like a back or finger injury).
No change. We're in the 40-60 range, right near the bubble, and it depends what breaks go our way this season.
We won by 13 over Torvik's #154 team. He has us favored by 12 over Rider who is #178. Assuming the scrimmage was a 50th percentile outcome, which I think is fair, then he's got us rated fairly accurately at #56. Possibly a bit low if you think we win by 18 if Caleb plays.
We won by 13 over Torvik's #154 team. He has us favored by 12 over Rider who is #178. Assuming the scrimmage was a 50th percentile outcome, which I think is fair, then he's got us rated fairly accurately at #56. Possibly a bit low if you think we win by 18 if Caleb plays.
No. I think the new pieces have to learn how to play with the established pieces as that's how it's going to be in games. We aren't relying on the chemistry that Simpson and Miller develop together. We won't be relying on them playing together to win games. We care that Mulcahy learns what they can do so he can set them up etc. when they do play.
In the words of the immortal Allen Iverson - "practice, we talking about practice?!" Don't get too worked up about what happened or didn't happen in the exhibition game. There will be bumps in the road, but it should be another fun year. Enjoy the ride!
Derek does remind you of Geo. Think he will be a star for us. We are a deep team which should serve us well. Think it’s going to be a very entertaining and happy season.
Caleb will be a crucial piece in B1G play. I don’t know if he has quite the value in a OOC game. Hyatt and Mag playing together we’re tough to defend for Fairfield. In the flip side Fairfield doesn’t score 65 if he plays 31 minutes.
Pike looked at this game as a regular OOC game as far as playing time. He didn’t look at it as a scrimmage. Each player had to earn more time within the game. With the first game 8 days away, I really like that approach.
And Woolfolk played a lot.
Agree on the defense though I think your biasing the offense based on his poor preseason last year. If anything close to the ND version of Caleb shows up, the score would’ve been something like 78-53 RU in a laugher. Fairfield doesn’t get those open looks from 3 if Caleb absorbs Hyatt’s minutes defending the perimeter.
Also - you should watch the scrimmage to see Simpson’s speed if nothing else. He’s a frosh - def turnover prone alla JY style at this point but having an explosive kid like that who can run the floor to play along side Caleb has really good potential. Last year’s team was missing that piece who could convert elite defensive play into fast break offense. Miller may be fast, but he didn’t provide this. Nobody on the team did. For me - that was the biggest positive take away from the game.
Seemed like Fairfield didn't penetrate much. One fear going into this year was that Spencer and Mulcahy would be weak with on-ball man D and easy to blow by. Simpson wasn't challenged in that way in the game either. So the perimeter D of the guards (outside Caleb) is still a question mark.
PSAL,
I watched the 1st half and it was obvious watching 1 defensive possession that Simpson is a willing defender.
imagine a lineup of (on 1/2 of the court)
Miller Simpson Caleb Mag Cliff
I think we will actually see it at times if Pike gets pissed
I watched the 1st half and it was obvious watching 1 defensive possession that Simpson is a willing defender.
imagine a lineup of (on 1/2 of the court)
Miller Simpson Caleb Mag Cliff
I think we will actually see it at times if Pike gets pissed
Yes - but his defense was just an added bonus since Cam looks to be servicable. Once Caleb returns, we’re not going to be stuck with Hyatt defending in the backcourt for major minutes unless he’s really killing it on offense.
The transition element of Simpson’s game is something last year’s team really lacked. To me - that’s a big reason to be cautiously bullish. Again - it’s only one game.
Yup. Simpson brings an element this team desperately needed. Seeing him live up to my expectations and more was huge for my expectations of what this team can do.
Simpson is the perfect spark plug energy guy off the bench and can bring some scoring. He's even faster and more explosive than he looked in his HS tape IMO
Simpson may have the ability to play defense better than Geo at some point in his career. It is going to be very difficult for Simpson in Year 1 to defend anywhere near as efficiently as Geo did in Year 5.
To your point......Simpson did jump out at me as a piece to be VERY excited about.
My bullish case for this team will have Simpson and Mag as major contributors.
To your point......Simpson did jump out at me as a piece to be VERY excited about.
My bullish case for this team will have Simpson and Mag as major contributors.