Former class of 2009 Hoya commit DaShonte Riley has just committed to Syracuse. Congrats to the 6'11'' idiot. No better place to get attention as a big man than Syracuse.
Let's take a look at the most notable Hoya and Orange big men over the last thirty years. Here is a list of centers post-1980 that have played in the NBA.
Georgetown
Craig Shelton
Patrick Ewing
Dikembe Mutombo
Alonzo Morning
Othello Harrington
Jahidi White
Jerome Williams
Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje
Mike Sweetney
Roy Hibbert
Syracuse
Roosevelt Bouie
Danny Schayes
Rony Seikaly
Derrick Coleman
Well thought out DaShonte. Maybe 'Cuse was the right decision for you, academically speaking of course. Look forward to laughing at you for the next four years.
Good talk.
Showing posts with label Syracuse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Syracuse. Show all posts
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Game 23 - Syracuse: Part Deux
Well as promised here are my full thoughts. I'll try to keep it brief since I already wrote once.
But first I need to purge myself of the ridiculous thoughts that crept into my head during the game. Before the game I thought I would be disappointed with anything but a win. After the past four years of Hoya Basketball glory, I had rid myself of the bad Esherick-era habits of thinking moral victories equaled actual victories. But after seeing us down by 16 with 8 minutes left, and the announcers consistently telling a national audience that Georgetown has no true leader, I decided that I would be content with a respectable loss. And that seemed to be the fate of the young Hoyas, as Syracuse was always able maintain at least an 8 or 9 point lead. We would make small runs to cut into the lead and create a three possession game but could never get closer. And despite the fact that we almost miraculously won the game due to a historic collapse by the Orange, I still felt content with the outcome after the game. We played with heart, we played well in the end and despite the loss, we showed we had character for the first time since we last played Syracuse. Then I woke up today. And I am absolutely ashamed of myself for feeling that way after the game. There is only one outcome that should have been acceptable, and at the end of the day, a loss whether we were embarrassed by 20 points or took it to overtime is still a loss. "A loss by any other name would suck as much, especially to the dirty Orange," Big Bad Billy Shakespeare once said.
After JT3's first visit to the Carrier Dome, where we tied the game on a Bowman jump shot that was inches from being a game winning three but eventually lost in overtime, Boeheim had this to say:
That being said let's go over the game.
- In the Notre Dame post I talked about how the team played a faster-paced game which resulted in us attempting more shots than in most other games. Well we took 60 shots against Notre Dame. We took 73 shots against Cuse.
- Those 73 shots were the most shots we have ever attempted in a game during the JT3 era.
- And the 94 points are the most we have scored in a Big East game under JT3.
- After never giving up 90 or more points in the previous four seasons under JT3, we now have three games this season in which we have done so.
- This is the most points we have ever given up, tainted because of OT, obviously.
- First time under JT3 that we have been under .500 in OT games in a season
- In the ten Big East games not against Cuse, opponents have averaged 19 layup/dunk attempts per game, converting 12 of them.
- In the two games against Cuse, they have averaged 37 layup/dunk attempts, converting 20.
- The three point shooters of Cuse aren't beating us by shooting, they are destroying us by driving. Makes me wonder why we only attempted to play zone against them for a few minutes in the second half.
- The game was similar to Marquette loss in amount of fouls we committed, and free throw differential between the two teams.
- We had 12 turnovers in the first 30 minutes of the game and 3 in the last 15 (not counting the one team turnover not attributed to a player).
- We actually had the best assist to turnover ratio in this game since our slide began against WVU.
- Only the second time this Big East season we had a better assist to turnover ratio than our opponent and lost the game.
- Commentators kept making references to the great matches between the two teams in the 80's. Apparently Syracuse has kept the same cheerleaders since then:
- Either that or Cuse takes their cheerleaders from the local DMV. No wonder Donte Green left the school early...
Good talk.
But first I need to purge myself of the ridiculous thoughts that crept into my head during the game. Before the game I thought I would be disappointed with anything but a win. After the past four years of Hoya Basketball glory, I had rid myself of the bad Esherick-era habits of thinking moral victories equaled actual victories. But after seeing us down by 16 with 8 minutes left, and the announcers consistently telling a national audience that Georgetown has no true leader, I decided that I would be content with a respectable loss. And that seemed to be the fate of the young Hoyas, as Syracuse was always able maintain at least an 8 or 9 point lead. We would make small runs to cut into the lead and create a three possession game but could never get closer. And despite the fact that we almost miraculously won the game due to a historic collapse by the Orange, I still felt content with the outcome after the game. We played with heart, we played well in the end and despite the loss, we showed we had character for the first time since we last played Syracuse. Then I woke up today. And I am absolutely ashamed of myself for feeling that way after the game. There is only one outcome that should have been acceptable, and at the end of the day, a loss whether we were embarrassed by 20 points or took it to overtime is still a loss. "A loss by any other name would suck as much, especially to the dirty Orange," Big Bad Billy Shakespeare once said.
After JT3's first visit to the Carrier Dome, where we tied the game on a Bowman jump shot that was inches from being a game winning three but eventually lost in overtime, Boeheim had this to say:
"I'm kind of sorry a Coach Thompson's back at Georgetown,"Those words have stuck with me since. Sure he meant well but he said it in a condescending, holier than thou attitude, where he laughed at the valiant attempts of a rebuilding Hoya team and gave a sideways compliment while arrogantly thinking his program would always be superior. Well Jim, you were wrong, and if there was one takeaway from the loss on Saturday it is that you are not that great of a coach and you nearly blew a 16 point lead due to poor substitutions and lack of control over your players. And for the Georgetown team, fans, casual followers and me: It is not okay to lose to Cuse, and no loss will ever be a moral victory to our biggest rival. Not then, not now, not ever.
That being said let's go over the game.
- In the Notre Dame post I talked about how the team played a faster-paced game which resulted in us attempting more shots than in most other games. Well we took 60 shots against Notre Dame. We took 73 shots against Cuse.
- Those 73 shots were the most shots we have ever attempted in a game during the JT3 era.
- And the 94 points are the most we have scored in a Big East game under JT3.
- After never giving up 90 or more points in the previous four seasons under JT3, we now have three games this season in which we have done so.
- This is the most points we have ever given up, tainted because of OT, obviously.
- First time under JT3 that we have been under .500 in OT games in a season
- In the ten Big East games not against Cuse, opponents have averaged 19 layup/dunk attempts per game, converting 12 of them.
- In the two games against Cuse, they have averaged 37 layup/dunk attempts, converting 20.
- The three point shooters of Cuse aren't beating us by shooting, they are destroying us by driving. Makes me wonder why we only attempted to play zone against them for a few minutes in the second half.
- The game was similar to Marquette loss in amount of fouls we committed, and free throw differential between the two teams.
- We had 12 turnovers in the first 30 minutes of the game and 3 in the last 15 (not counting the one team turnover not attributed to a player).
- We actually had the best assist to turnover ratio in this game since our slide began against WVU.
- Only the second time this Big East season we had a better assist to turnover ratio than our opponent and lost the game.
- Commentators kept making references to the great matches between the two teams in the 80's. Apparently Syracuse has kept the same cheerleaders since then:
- Either that or Cuse takes their cheerleaders from the local DMV. No wonder Donte Green left the school early...Good talk.
Game 23 - Syracuse
That game was for anyone who doesn't think that Georgetown/Syracuse is and will always be the biggest rivalry in the Big East.
Long weekend so it will take me a long time to get over this one. Here are some quick thoughts. Will come back later with numbers, trends and pictures of the trolls on the Cuse sideline to whom they give pom-poms.
- We put on some Old Spice after the last TV timeout in the second half and got our swagger back
- Free throw shooting lost us the game. At the end of regulation and in overtime. Again.
- GREG MONROE IS SOFT. There is no reason why Onuaku should have had such a big second half in the paint.
- Bold move starting Nikita, too bad he sucked.
- I don't know why we played zone for 2 minutes in the second half and then went away from it, it was the only way we stopped them from scoring.
- Len Elmore is a horrible announcer.
- Turnovers kept this game close in the first half.
- Boeheim being an idiot sent this game to overtime.
- Thank you Chris Wright for making me believe again, too bad I will have to wait until next year to use the re-discovered faith.
- JT3 still hasn't won at the Dome, although two of the four losses went to overtime.
Good talk.
Long weekend so it will take me a long time to get over this one. Here are some quick thoughts. Will come back later with numbers, trends and pictures of the trolls on the Cuse sideline to whom they give pom-poms.
- We put on some Old Spice after the last TV timeout in the second half and got our swagger back
- Free throw shooting lost us the game. At the end of regulation and in overtime. Again.
- GREG MONROE IS SOFT. There is no reason why Onuaku should have had such a big second half in the paint.
- Bold move starting Nikita, too bad he sucked.
- I don't know why we played zone for 2 minutes in the second half and then went away from it, it was the only way we stopped them from scoring.
- Len Elmore is a horrible announcer.
- Turnovers kept this game close in the first half.
- Boeheim being an idiot sent this game to overtime.
- Thank you Chris Wright for making me believe again, too bad I will have to wait until next year to use the re-discovered faith.
- JT3 still hasn't won at the Dome, although two of the four losses went to overtime.
Good talk.
Game Day
New season starts today. Take it away Al (when he says football he really means basketball, he's just trying to see if you are paying attention):
Assuming the Orange in the Syracuse Orange represents the fruit and not the color, I recommend the following:
Rip em' apart Hoya gents. Fight for freedom, democracy and all that is Holy in this world.
Good talk.
Assuming the Orange in the Syracuse Orange represents the fruit and not the color, I recommend the following:
Rip em' apart Hoya gents. Fight for freedom, democracy and all that is Holy in this world.
Good talk.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Happy "Manley Fieldhouse Is Officially Closed" Day!
It is the 29th year anniversary of the great day on which Manley Fieldhouse was officially closed! Tomorrow, Georgetown will play its 81st game against Syracuse, below is an overview of the series:
- Syracuse leads the series 43-37.
- Since the inception of the Big East, Syracuse leads the series 32-31.
- Georgetown is 7-18 at the Carrier Dome.
- Georgetown has won twice at Syracuse in the past 15 years.
I recently reached out to a bunch of Syracuse players to ask how they prepare for facing their biggest rival. Below is a summary of the best responses:
- Eric Devendorf said he releases built up energy by punching girls.
- Devendorf followed up to say that before his new found interest in beating females, he used to hang out with his friends from 8 Mile before big games.
- Andy Rautins said he experiments with new metro-sexual hairstyles to ease the tension.
- Johnny Flynn walks on his tippy toes to see what it feels like to not be a midget.
- Arinze Onuaku closes his eyes and pretends that a 33% free throw percentage isn't embarrassing.
- Paul Harris likes to rap 50 Cent to himself in the mirror and sent the below video:
Stay classy Cuse.
Good talk.
- Syracuse leads the series 43-37.
- Since the inception of the Big East, Syracuse leads the series 32-31.
- Georgetown is 7-18 at the Carrier Dome.
- Georgetown has won twice at Syracuse in the past 15 years.
I recently reached out to a bunch of Syracuse players to ask how they prepare for facing their biggest rival. Below is a summary of the best responses:
- Eric Devendorf said he releases built up energy by punching girls.
- Devendorf followed up to say that before his new found interest in beating females, he used to hang out with his friends from 8 Mile before big games.
- Andy Rautins said he experiments with new metro-sexual hairstyles to ease the tension.
- Johnny Flynn walks on his tippy toes to see what it feels like to not be a midget.
- Arinze Onuaku closes his eyes and pretends that a 33% free throw percentage isn't embarrassing.
- Paul Harris likes to rap 50 Cent to himself in the mirror and sent the below video:
Stay classy Cuse.
Good talk.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
The Many Faces of Jim
Most people think Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim is two-dimensional. He is a coach and a whiner, and that's it. But this could not be further from the truth. Boeheim, or Versatile Jim as his acting classmates refer to him, is in fact a very talented and accomplished thespian. Through superb facial expressions and incredible body control, Versatile Jim is able to project a wide array of emotions and states of being. Presented below for your viewing pleasure: The Talented Mr. Boeheim.
Good talk.
Good talk.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Where It All Began
Date: February 13, 1980
Location: Syracuse, New York/Canada
Closest Landmark: Auburn Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison
Throngs of unattractive, uneducated and unbearably annoying Syracuse fans poured into Manley Field House on a cold winter night. It was a monumental occasion for the Cuse faithful; you see this was the very last home game ever to be played at this special arena. And it was on this court that their beloved Orangemen had defeated 57 consecutive opponents, which at the time represented the longest home winning streak in the nation. The team was scheduled to move to the newly constructed Carrier Dome the following season, and fans gathered at Manley Field House to remember the past, celebrate the present, and toast to the future.
And oh yeah, there was a game that night. The #3 ranked Syracuse Orangemen faced off against the visiting Georgetown Hoyas. This was the inaugural season of the Big East Conference, and the Orangemen sat atop the standings with a 20-1 record, 3-0 against conference opponents. Meanwhile Georgetown came into the game with a 17-5 record, 4-1 in conference play. Both teams were led by young coaches trying to establish themselves and their teams in the newly formed Big East.
The Hoyas were led by John Thompson Jr., a Washington D.C. native who took over the Georgetown program in 1972. Thompson was a former All-American center for Providence College and had a brief stint in the NBA where he was most known for being the backup to the legendary Bill Russell. After the NBA, Thompson returned to D.C. to coach St. Anthony's High School for seven years before being offered the Georgetown head spot. When Thompson took over, Georgetown was coming off of a 3-23 record and had only two NIT appearances and one NCAA Tournament berth in its history. He turned the program around and led the Hoyas to five winning seasons, two NIT appearances and three NCAA Tournament berths in seven short years. And he now faced one of his biggest challenges as a coach against an energized Syracuse team and crowd.
The Orangemen were led by Jim Boeheim, a former Syracuse player, graduate assistant and full-time assistant coach. Boeheim was a walk-on his freshman year and rose to team captain by his senior year. He played professionally with the Scranton Miners for two years and returned to Syracuse to serve as a graduate assistant. He was promoted to a full-time assistant a few years later and rather unglamorously took over the program in 1976 after head coach Roy Danforth departed for Tulane. Boeheim was not the leading candidate for the position but after a long search yielded nothing, he became the default choice. He took over a program that had made four straight NCAA Tournament appearances and was National Champion Runner Up in 1975.
Georgetown and Syracuse had met 17 times before, with Orangemen leading the series 11-6. Thompson was 2-0 against Syracuse in his short career, but both wins were at neutral sites. This was Thompson's first visit to the imposing Manley Field House. In the days leading up the game, local papers hypothesized on only the margin of victory for the heavily favored Orangemen, as the concept of anything but a win in the last game at the hallowed home arena was unfathomable. The halftime score validated this notion, as Thompson and his Georgetown team found themselves down by 14 points. Fans celebrated what seemed to be a certain victory. But Georgetown refused to give up and they cut into the Orangemen lead with a 15-5 run late in the second half. After a goaltending call on Syracuse, the score was left tied at 50 with seconds left on the clock. On the next play, Georgetown's Eric "Sleepy" Floyd was fouled after a poor pass by Syracuse. He was sent to the free throw line with 5 seconds left in the game. He sank both free throws and as time expired the stunned and silenced Syracuse crowd looked up to the scoreboard to see an unaccustomed sight. The scoreboard read Georgetown 52, Syracuse 50. Georgetown had done the unimaginable.
In the post game conference John Thompson Jr., fresh off the heels of the incredible victory on the closing night of an arena in which 57 consecutive visitors were defeated, proclaimed the famous statement that to this day still echos across the greater Northern New York region. He boldly declared, "Manley Field House is officially closed."
And with those words, one of the greatest rivalries in college basketball was born.
Cuse on Saturday. Get excited.
Good talk.
Location: Syracuse, New York/Canada
Closest Landmark: Auburn Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison
Throngs of unattractive, uneducated and unbearably annoying Syracuse fans poured into Manley Field House on a cold winter night. It was a monumental occasion for the Cuse faithful; you see this was the very last home game ever to be played at this special arena. And it was on this court that their beloved Orangemen had defeated 57 consecutive opponents, which at the time represented the longest home winning streak in the nation. The team was scheduled to move to the newly constructed Carrier Dome the following season, and fans gathered at Manley Field House to remember the past, celebrate the present, and toast to the future.
And oh yeah, there was a game that night. The #3 ranked Syracuse Orangemen faced off against the visiting Georgetown Hoyas. This was the inaugural season of the Big East Conference, and the Orangemen sat atop the standings with a 20-1 record, 3-0 against conference opponents. Meanwhile Georgetown came into the game with a 17-5 record, 4-1 in conference play. Both teams were led by young coaches trying to establish themselves and their teams in the newly formed Big East.
The Hoyas were led by John Thompson Jr., a Washington D.C. native who took over the Georgetown program in 1972. Thompson was a former All-American center for Providence College and had a brief stint in the NBA where he was most known for being the backup to the legendary Bill Russell. After the NBA, Thompson returned to D.C. to coach St. Anthony's High School for seven years before being offered the Georgetown head spot. When Thompson took over, Georgetown was coming off of a 3-23 record and had only two NIT appearances and one NCAA Tournament berth in its history. He turned the program around and led the Hoyas to five winning seasons, two NIT appearances and three NCAA Tournament berths in seven short years. And he now faced one of his biggest challenges as a coach against an energized Syracuse team and crowd.
The Orangemen were led by Jim Boeheim, a former Syracuse player, graduate assistant and full-time assistant coach. Boeheim was a walk-on his freshman year and rose to team captain by his senior year. He played professionally with the Scranton Miners for two years and returned to Syracuse to serve as a graduate assistant. He was promoted to a full-time assistant a few years later and rather unglamorously took over the program in 1976 after head coach Roy Danforth departed for Tulane. Boeheim was not the leading candidate for the position but after a long search yielded nothing, he became the default choice. He took over a program that had made four straight NCAA Tournament appearances and was National Champion Runner Up in 1975.
Georgetown and Syracuse had met 17 times before, with Orangemen leading the series 11-6. Thompson was 2-0 against Syracuse in his short career, but both wins were at neutral sites. This was Thompson's first visit to the imposing Manley Field House. In the days leading up the game, local papers hypothesized on only the margin of victory for the heavily favored Orangemen, as the concept of anything but a win in the last game at the hallowed home arena was unfathomable. The halftime score validated this notion, as Thompson and his Georgetown team found themselves down by 14 points. Fans celebrated what seemed to be a certain victory. But Georgetown refused to give up and they cut into the Orangemen lead with a 15-5 run late in the second half. After a goaltending call on Syracuse, the score was left tied at 50 with seconds left on the clock. On the next play, Georgetown's Eric "Sleepy" Floyd was fouled after a poor pass by Syracuse. He was sent to the free throw line with 5 seconds left in the game. He sank both free throws and as time expired the stunned and silenced Syracuse crowd looked up to the scoreboard to see an unaccustomed sight. The scoreboard read Georgetown 52, Syracuse 50. Georgetown had done the unimaginable.
In the post game conference John Thompson Jr., fresh off the heels of the incredible victory on the closing night of an arena in which 57 consecutive visitors were defeated, proclaimed the famous statement that to this day still echos across the greater Northern New York region. He boldly declared, "Manley Field House is officially closed."
And with those words, one of the greatest rivalries in college basketball was born.
Cuse on Saturday. Get excited.
Good talk.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Game 15 - Syracuse
I woke up this morning with the idea in my head. The tune was overwhelming, and words were flowing off my tongue. But after more thought, I decided it was a bad idea. I mean most folk already think I'm crazy, why add more fuel to the fire? But then on my way to work (yes, I actually have a job other than blogging) something happened that changed my mind. While doing my normal flip of the radio stations to avoid talk I stumbled across the song I had stuck in my head. I probably hadn't heard it in years but for some inexplicable reason 97.1 decided to play the tune. I took it as a sign from above, or possibly below, that the world needs to hear my message. So without further adieu, I present to you "How Deep is Your Bench" performed by Jim Boeheim and written by the Bee Gees.
I watched tapes of your games before
Knew how to guard against your starting five
And the moment that you decide to use your reserves
Is the moment that we win the game
Then you put in some tall Russian guy
Takes two shots, makes them both, gets a season high
And its me you need to show
Chorus:
How deep is your bench
I really need to know
Cause we're playing Georgetown again soon
They're hard to scout
With so many new players
Who never play the same way
I feel like a fool
I was too proud to scout Jason Clark
Put my hopes in Convict Cheddar Bob
Then was embarrassed on their floor
Vaughn, Wattad, Henry Sims
Who thought they would win
Can't believe I just lost
I had Johnny Flynn
And it's me you need to show
(repeat chorus)
Game observations:
- Third straight win at home against Syracuse. First time that has happened since 1989.
- Syracuse never had a lead in this game
- 29 points from our bench. Second game in a row we have had strong bench play, will need it against Duke
- We limited our turnovers, only two in the second half. We outscored them 29 to 13 on points off turnovers
- Onuaku had as many offensive rebounds at the whole Georgetown team but...
- We shot 59% from the field, highest since Savannah St. game
- And we shot 57% from beyond the arc, highest since first round of Big East Tourney last year
- So we didn't really have many opportunities for offensive rebounds
- Sapp continued his streak of sucking. Clark actually saw more playing time than him in this game
- Summers is scaring me. Can't afford to lose him at the end of this season. He is having phenomenal Big East season
- Monroe mania is getting a bit too much. Yes he led the team in assists and rebounds. But he was dominated on the defensive end
- We won this game because we were able to hit the mid-range elbow jumpers, which effectively took away the effectiveness of the zone. Good job on preparing the team, JT3
- We had 2 technical fouls called on us, hasn't happened since Radford game last year
- They shot 44% from FT line. Rick Jackson shot a Macklin-esque 1-8 from the line
- Two turning points in the game, both by bench players. (1) Nikita's second three, after Flynn answered his first. (2) Clark's three which halted an 8-0 Cuse run to start off the second half.
- Officiating was pretty terrible
- The most alarming missed call was committed by T^3 during the T-shirt toss. The foul was so egregious that it would qualify as a penalty in three different sports: Push in back in basketball, pass interference in football and catcher interference in baseball
- I am now 0-2 in T-shirt tosses, both times I was violently fouled. The first time was when follower Long Time/First Time callously tossed me aside when Gerald Riley threw a shirt into the stands during the '03-'04 season. Neither of us ended up with the baby blue #32 Riley shirt, something I still long for
- What T^3 didn't know was that I recently did an inventory of my wardrobe and noticed that I was lacking in gray, JT3 shirts. You broke my heart Fredo, you broke my heart.
- Special thanks for referee Ed Hightower for the second acknowledgment of existence this season
- Special thanks to Johnny Flynn for the acknowledgment of existence and subsequent offer of termination. I've never made a player actually come back out from the locker room tunnel to respond to one of my comments. I merely relayed to him my harmless observation that he was just embarrassed on national television. Guess that might have hurt his feelings or something
Good talk.
I watched tapes of your games before
Knew how to guard against your starting five
And the moment that you decide to use your reserves
Is the moment that we win the game
Then you put in some tall Russian guy
Takes two shots, makes them both, gets a season high
And its me you need to show
Chorus:
How deep is your bench
I really need to know
Cause we're playing Georgetown again soon
They're hard to scout
With so many new players
Who never play the same way
I feel like a fool
I was too proud to scout Jason Clark
Put my hopes in Convict Cheddar Bob
Then was embarrassed on their floor
Vaughn, Wattad, Henry Sims
Who thought they would win
Can't believe I just lost
I had Johnny Flynn
And it's me you need to show
(repeat chorus)
Game observations:
- Third straight win at home against Syracuse. First time that has happened since 1989.
- Syracuse never had a lead in this game
- 29 points from our bench. Second game in a row we have had strong bench play, will need it against Duke
- We limited our turnovers, only two in the second half. We outscored them 29 to 13 on points off turnovers
- Onuaku had as many offensive rebounds at the whole Georgetown team but...
- We shot 59% from the field, highest since Savannah St. game
- And we shot 57% from beyond the arc, highest since first round of Big East Tourney last year
- So we didn't really have many opportunities for offensive rebounds
- Sapp continued his streak of sucking. Clark actually saw more playing time than him in this game
- Summers is scaring me. Can't afford to lose him at the end of this season. He is having phenomenal Big East season
- Monroe mania is getting a bit too much. Yes he led the team in assists and rebounds. But he was dominated on the defensive end
- We won this game because we were able to hit the mid-range elbow jumpers, which effectively took away the effectiveness of the zone. Good job on preparing the team, JT3
- We had 2 technical fouls called on us, hasn't happened since Radford game last year
- They shot 44% from FT line. Rick Jackson shot a Macklin-esque 1-8 from the line
- Two turning points in the game, both by bench players. (1) Nikita's second three, after Flynn answered his first. (2) Clark's three which halted an 8-0 Cuse run to start off the second half.
- Officiating was pretty terrible
- The most alarming missed call was committed by T^3 during the T-shirt toss. The foul was so egregious that it would qualify as a penalty in three different sports: Push in back in basketball, pass interference in football and catcher interference in baseball
- I am now 0-2 in T-shirt tosses, both times I was violently fouled. The first time was when follower Long Time/First Time callously tossed me aside when Gerald Riley threw a shirt into the stands during the '03-'04 season. Neither of us ended up with the baby blue #32 Riley shirt, something I still long for
- What T^3 didn't know was that I recently did an inventory of my wardrobe and noticed that I was lacking in gray, JT3 shirts. You broke my heart Fredo, you broke my heart.
- Special thanks for referee Ed Hightower for the second acknowledgment of existence this season
- Special thanks to Johnny Flynn for the acknowledgment of existence and subsequent offer of termination. I've never made a player actually come back out from the locker room tunnel to respond to one of my comments. I merely relayed to him my harmless observation that he was just embarrassed on national television. Guess that might have hurt his feelings or something
Good talk.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Dad Stop, You're Embarrassing Me and Cuse Preview
Well apparently lack of boxing out has nothing to do with Georgetown's rebounding woes. According to Big John Thompson, the reason Georgetown cannot rebound is because they don't have enough thugs. I thought Summers was a thug, I mean he has illegible tattoos and facial hair designs that the majority of the male species will never be able to grow.
Notre Dame demonstrated yesterday why a deep bench is necessary in this league. Similar to G'town, they have only one bench player worthy of time on the court. Last night in a fast-paced game against Louisville, their legs gave out from under them, and they managed to convert only one field goal in the last twelve minutes of the game. And then they lost. And then I found five dollars.
Cuse tomorrow. Can't really ever say anything positive about them. They are all guard play with undersized, over-achieving forwards. Flynn is their only real threat to drive and they have a lot of "thugs" in the box that can rebound. They haven't been playing their 2-3 zone as much as they usually do but I expect they will play it a lot against us, considering our only consistent scoring threats so far in Big East play are Monroe and Summers. I have pretty much given up on Sapp so we need Wright to match Flynn and Monroe to dominate Onuaku. They are a very poor free throw shooting team (under 65%) which could give us an advantage later in the game. In the last three games we have consistently failed in one key fundamental. Rebounds against Pitt, free throws against ND and turnovers against Providence. Can't really afford to let any of those happen against Cuse. And since Boeheim really has no control over his players, expect a lot of trash talking with the fans. Don't get too involved with Cheddar Bob, he might punch the girls around you. Can't spell ASSAULT without SU.
Meanwhile, Mr. Magoo is already prepping for his annual Selection Sunday speech. The address, delivered in a nasal, whinny tone, contends that everyone hates his team and he gets no respect. He then claims that despite undeserving credentials, his team should be granted a free pass to the NCAA Tournament. Boeheim gave us a preview of this year's speech last month.
- Pittsburgh (avg. ranking #1)
Home Games: UConn, WVU, Cuse, Marquette, ND
Away Games: UConn, WVU, G'town, Louisville, Nova
- Connecticut (avg. ranking #4)
Home Games: Pitt, ND, G'town, Cuse, Nova
Away Games: Pitt, ND, Louisville, Marquette, WVU
- Syracuse (avg. ranking #8)
Home Games: G'town, Nova, WVU, ND, Louisville
Away Games: G'town, Nova, Pitt, UConn, Marquette
- Georgetown (avg. ranking #12.5)
Home Games: Cuse, Marquette, Pitt, WVU, Louisville
Away Games: Cuse, Marquette, UConn, ND, Nova
- Notre Dame (avg. ranking #12.5)
Home Games: UConn, Louisville, G'town, Marquette, Nova
Away Games: UConn, Louisville, Cuse, Pitt, WVU
- Marquette (avg. ranking #14)
Home Games: G'town, Nova, Cuse, UConn, WVU
Away Games: G'town, Nova, Pitt, Louisville, ND
- Louisville (avg. ranking #20)
Home Games: WVU, ND, Pitt, UConn, Marquette
Away Games:WVU, ND, G'town, Cuse, Nova
- Villanova (avg. ranking #22.5)
Home Games: Cuse, Marquette, G'town, Pitt, Louisville
Away Games:Cuse, Marquette, UConn, WVU, ND
- West Virginia (avg. ranking #37)
Home Games: Pitt, Louisville, UConn, Nova, ND
Away Games: Pitt, Louisville, G'town, Cuse, Marquette
I applied a simple formula:
Sum of opponents' rankings for home games x 1.5 + Sum of opponents' rankings for away games x 1.0.
The team with the lowest resulting figure has the hardest schedule, since they would play the most lower-seeded teams. Similar to RPI, I give more credit for a tougher road schedule than home schedule.
The results aren't very surprising given Boeheim's tendency to exaggerate, whine and complain without reason. Also, considering the fact that Boeheim himself is graduate of Syracuse, faulty and incorrect mental processing should be expected.
Toughest Big East Schedules as per January 12, 2009:
1 -West Virginia
2 - Villanova
3 - Connecticut
4 - Notre Dame
5 - Georgetown
6 - Marquette
7 - Louisville
8 - Pittsburgh
9 - Syracuse
Remarkable that Cuse comes out even below Pitt, which doesn't have the luxury of playing a #1 ranked team and lowering their schedule rating. You can't spell EXCUSE without CUSE.
Good talk.
Notre Dame demonstrated yesterday why a deep bench is necessary in this league. Similar to G'town, they have only one bench player worthy of time on the court. Last night in a fast-paced game against Louisville, their legs gave out from under them, and they managed to convert only one field goal in the last twelve minutes of the game. And then they lost. And then I found five dollars.
Cuse tomorrow. Can't really ever say anything positive about them. They are all guard play with undersized, over-achieving forwards. Flynn is their only real threat to drive and they have a lot of "thugs" in the box that can rebound. They haven't been playing their 2-3 zone as much as they usually do but I expect they will play it a lot against us, considering our only consistent scoring threats so far in Big East play are Monroe and Summers. I have pretty much given up on Sapp so we need Wright to match Flynn and Monroe to dominate Onuaku. They are a very poor free throw shooting team (under 65%) which could give us an advantage later in the game. In the last three games we have consistently failed in one key fundamental. Rebounds against Pitt, free throws against ND and turnovers against Providence. Can't really afford to let any of those happen against Cuse. And since Boeheim really has no control over his players, expect a lot of trash talking with the fans. Don't get too involved with Cheddar Bob, he might punch the girls around you. Can't spell ASSAULT without SU.
Meanwhile, Mr. Magoo is already prepping for his annual Selection Sunday speech. The address, delivered in a nasal, whinny tone, contends that everyone hates his team and he gets no respect. He then claims that despite undeserving credentials, his team should be granted a free pass to the NCAA Tournament. Boeheim gave us a preview of this year's speech last month.
Over 18 games, I’d say we play probably the toughest schedule in the Big East. We’ve got Georgetown twice, we’ve got Villanova twice, and last I looked they were both ranked in the top 15 in the country. Our double games are pretty hard. We have to go to Pittsburgh, Connecticut and Marquette, and last I looked they were 1, 5 and 15. So when you look at schedules, you look at the 18-game Big East schedule, I’d say we’ve got the toughest schedule.Well let's see about that Boeheim. Cause I'm a math nerd I built a little model to calculate the Big East Strength of Schedule for each of the top nine teams as per the average of the AP and Coaches' Polls. Listed below are the teams, rankings and opponents
- Pittsburgh (avg. ranking #1)
Home Games: UConn, WVU, Cuse, Marquette, ND
Away Games: UConn, WVU, G'town, Louisville, Nova
- Connecticut (avg. ranking #4)
Home Games: Pitt, ND, G'town, Cuse, Nova
Away Games: Pitt, ND, Louisville, Marquette, WVU
- Syracuse (avg. ranking #8)
Home Games: G'town, Nova, WVU, ND, Louisville
Away Games: G'town, Nova, Pitt, UConn, Marquette
- Georgetown (avg. ranking #12.5)
Home Games: Cuse, Marquette, Pitt, WVU, Louisville
Away Games: Cuse, Marquette, UConn, ND, Nova
- Notre Dame (avg. ranking #12.5)
Home Games: UConn, Louisville, G'town, Marquette, Nova
Away Games: UConn, Louisville, Cuse, Pitt, WVU
- Marquette (avg. ranking #14)
Home Games: G'town, Nova, Cuse, UConn, WVU
Away Games: G'town, Nova, Pitt, Louisville, ND
- Louisville (avg. ranking #20)
Home Games: WVU, ND, Pitt, UConn, Marquette
Away Games:WVU, ND, G'town, Cuse, Nova
- Villanova (avg. ranking #22.5)
Home Games: Cuse, Marquette, G'town, Pitt, Louisville
Away Games:Cuse, Marquette, UConn, WVU, ND
- West Virginia (avg. ranking #37)
Home Games: Pitt, Louisville, UConn, Nova, ND
Away Games: Pitt, Louisville, G'town, Cuse, Marquette
I applied a simple formula:
Sum of opponents' rankings for home games x 1.5 + Sum of opponents' rankings for away games x 1.0.
The team with the lowest resulting figure has the hardest schedule, since they would play the most lower-seeded teams. Similar to RPI, I give more credit for a tougher road schedule than home schedule.
The results aren't very surprising given Boeheim's tendency to exaggerate, whine and complain without reason. Also, considering the fact that Boeheim himself is graduate of Syracuse, faulty and incorrect mental processing should be expected.
Toughest Big East Schedules as per January 12, 2009:
1 -West Virginia
2 - Villanova
3 - Connecticut
4 - Notre Dame
5 - Georgetown
6 - Marquette
7 - Louisville
8 - Pittsburgh
9 - Syracuse
Remarkable that Cuse comes out even below Pitt, which doesn't have the luxury of playing a #1 ranked team and lowering their schedule rating. You can't spell EXCUSE without CUSE.
Good talk.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Cheddar Bob is Next OJ
Kudos to Syracuse Holding Cell/University for dishing out some much needed corporal punishment. I thought they would let their star player off scot-free after punching a female student in the face. But no, those mean Orange disciplinaries inflicted a much worse punishment. 40 whole hours of community service and missing three and a half weeks of the season! Good Golly Miss Molly! He will miss the four most crucial Big East games for Cuse, against Seton Hall, South Florida, Depaul and Rutgers, the creme de la creme of the conference. Hammurabi is smiling in his grave knowing that eye for an eye is still the prevalent format of punishment up in Syracuse, Canada.
I guess we will have to wait until Cheddar Bob tries to steal sports memorabilia from a Vegas hotel room to truly see justice.
Good talk.
I guess we will have to wait until Cheddar Bob tries to steal sports memorabilia from a Vegas hotel room to truly see justice.
Good talk.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Say It Loud Boeheim
When it rains, it pours. Just ask Jim Boeheim. First, one of his star players punches a women and now faces suspension for the remainder of the school year. Then Boeheim is outed at a press conference (see below). And then his team loses at home to Cleveland State of the Horizon Conference.
Two things to take away from this pathetic attempt at masculine aggression:
(1) We now know the origins of Cheddar Bob's affinity for punching.
(2) Boeheim attends the same Dojo as Arod, which specializes in open-palm, limp-wrist attacks.
Two things to take away from this pathetic attempt at masculine aggression:
(1) We now know the origins of Cheddar Bob's affinity for punching.
(2) Boeheim attends the same Dojo as Arod, which specializes in open-palm, limp-wrist attacks.
Special thanks to follower Long Time / First Time for sending over this gem.
Good talk.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Cheddar Bob Gets The Book Thrown At Him
It seems that our classy and admirable friend Mr. Boeheim over at Syracuse Holding Cell/University has decided to do the honorable thing and insist that Eric Devendorf play despite the recommendation that he be suspended for the remainder of the school year for assaulting a female student.
From a basketball perspective, I applaud Boeheim's decision. I believe he ascribes to the philosophy made famous by Confucius: Avoid preparation; always act as if all is normal and when the inevitable happens, just cry and whine. I guess that means we can expect a lot of high pitched, nasal sounds from Boeheim come conference time when Cuse is playing without their starting guard. The same starting guard who's departure they had a whole month to prepare for, against cupcake teams mind you. And in the meantime Confucius also recommended making insensitive and crass comments to the press while completely overlooking the severity of an athlete assaulting a student. Don't think B Rabbit is going to save Cheddar Bob from this one. A sweet bro high five to you Boeheim, you really thought this one through.
From a holistic perspective, I am not a fan of the innocent until proven guilty standard being applied to athletes. All athletes should be assumed guilty until proven otherwise. This assumed innocence nonsense makes my ability to ridicule athletes I despise a lot harder. And I am firm believer that all laws should be based on making my life as easy as possible.
Good talk.
From a basketball perspective, I applaud Boeheim's decision. I believe he ascribes to the philosophy made famous by Confucius: Avoid preparation; always act as if all is normal and when the inevitable happens, just cry and whine. I guess that means we can expect a lot of high pitched, nasal sounds from Boeheim come conference time when Cuse is playing without their starting guard. The same starting guard who's departure they had a whole month to prepare for, against cupcake teams mind you. And in the meantime Confucius also recommended making insensitive and crass comments to the press while completely overlooking the severity of an athlete assaulting a student. Don't think B Rabbit is going to save Cheddar Bob from this one. A sweet bro high five to you Boeheim, you really thought this one through.
From a holistic perspective, I am not a fan of the innocent until proven guilty standard being applied to athletes. All athletes should be assumed guilty until proven otherwise. This assumed innocence nonsense makes my ability to ridicule athletes I despise a lot harder. And I am firm believer that all laws should be based on making my life as easy as possible.
Good talk.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
