Official Red Vs Blue Game Thread.

[UDF4N4LIF3]

I was planning on going to the game, but stayed up till about 4-5 AM. Then I just woke up about 20 Min ago, so I was hoping when people get back they can put their full reports on this thread. Thoughts, How the new team looks, PG battle between London and Lowery. Paul Williams how he looked. Did Wright or Marcus Johnson take any threes? If so how good did they look? Searcy and Hulesman is that a good combo for this year? How does Luke Fab shoot? Nice stroke? Thanks for everyone that wil reply and give me their full update.

[Mich Flyer]

Could also add who the recruits were who showed up for the Red and Blue game.

[ChiFlyer]

Isn't Paul Williams still hurt?

[Mich Flyer]

AP was in the house.

[lhsgolf19]

Isn't Paul Williams still hurt?

Yes he did not play today

[ChiFlyer]

Yeah, I'm dying to find out any recruits who are there. I wonder which current freshman were there last year? I know benson was

[lhsgolf19]

Yeah, I'm dying to find out any recruits who are there. I wonder which current freshman were there last year? I know benson was

My friend told me, Adreian Payne was definitely in the house.

[ClearTheRunwayForWLJ]

Paul Williams medical red-shirt this year? Or is he going to play?

We need him, badly.

[shapanud]

Paul Williams medical red-shirt this year? Or is he going to play?

We need him, badly.

Heard from a person from within the program said it was basically the same injury as Little had last year and though he'll miss a few weeks, it's not serious enough to warrant a red-shirt.

[Sea Bass]

of the newbies, Lowery and Johnson were very good. Lowery can see the floor and anticipates, the exact things that LW struggles with(and did again today). from my POV, Lowery is superior to LW in every phase of the game(ball handling, passing, shooting, finishing and defense). Lowery finished with a nice finger roll with both the left and right hand. LW still overpenetrated and either threw up a wild shot, charged or turned it over.

Honestly I was shocked with what I saw from Lowery because the quality of Juco players the Flyers have gotten has been poor. Lowery is the exception. I onestly think he is probably the third best player on the team behind CW and MJ.


Perry was on fire with his jumper, he must have been ~ 6 for 7 from the three, CJ drained a number of threes as well. CJ and hit shot and athleticism was exceptional. Reminded me of a young Michael Redd in a lot of ways. He is going to play a lot of minutes if he defends well.

Tough to finish around the basket today. Searcy and Benson are both very long and athletic.

This was the most talent and athleticism I've senn in 30+ years as a fan. Team was really looking to push the ball and get up and down the floor. The guards were picking up in the backcourt and Lowery forced a number of TOs in the backcourt with his pressure.

KH has lost weight but still struggled to finish. With the emphasis on pushing the ball I could see les minutes for Kurt as Searcy and benson can really run the floor.

Fabrizius could be a redshirt candidate.

[Fudd]

Here are my observations from the Red and Blue Game:

If the way we played today was any indication of how we intend to play this year, we are going to be more run and gun than any other UD team I have seen. The coaches kept urging the players to put pressure on the ball and get into the passing lanes. This seems a big departure from the very conservative defense of last year. It resulted in a lot of turnovers, fouls, and fast break ball.

Rob Lowery - I think he is our new starting point guard. He is a very good ball handler, made some nice passes, can shoot from deep, can penetrate off the dribble, and just looks like a very good point guard for us. He had a few turnovers that I recall, but it was a hectic pace compared to what we are used to seeing. He looked very good. I think lots of Flyer fans will be happy to see him this year. I am officially poo-pooing the lower division transfer thing on him right now. He is a good division 1 player. I forgot to mention that he is a good defender as well and uses his long arms to poke at the ball.

London Warren - He looks stronger than last year, but his game was much the same. Had some poor shots, but seems to fit this chaotic style well with his pressure defense.

Stephen Thomas - Suprised me a little bit. Hit some 3's, and played more aggressively than I have seen before. He is secure with the ball, but did nothing spectacular with the exception of a falling circus shot in the lane.

Mickey Perry - He was hitting everything from 3pt territory. He must have hit at least five 3 pointers. He put the ball on the floor a few times going to the basket as well. He looked good.

Paul Williams - Recovering from a hurt foot. He shot around in some of the warm-up drills. He looks like a very good jump shooter. Nothing else to report, due to his inactivity in the game.

Marcus Johnson - Looked like the Marcus of the 2nd half of the year. Hit jumps shots and at least one 3 pointer that I recall. He showed enough that I consider his improved shooting at the end of last year as a permanant change. He takes to this running style like a fish to water.

Chris Johnson - I expected good things from him due to what I had heard, and he delivered. I think he can do some of everything well. I was especially impressed with his 3pt shot. He is smooth from out there. Long legs and arms for his height. I think he will be a versatile contributor this year, and he runs like a deer.

Charles Little - Fouled a lot, and missed some close shots. It wasn't a good day for him, but he hit some nice looking foul shots to start things off. I think the longer players who have been added to the roster gave him problems inside.

Chris Wright - He played hard, but had little success shooting from any distance. He fumbled the ball a few times when he was trying to post inside. He even missed a good number of free throws. He did have some massive dunks on breaks that only he is capable of. He has put on some serious muscle this year, and I don't expect he will have many days as poor as this.

Devin Searcy - I don't recall a lot of specific plays from him today. He caused some defensive issues with his long arms, and he did have a huge alley-oop slam from Lowery, I think. He and Benson are going to be very valuable if we really run like this during the season.

Josh Benson - He was more athletic than I was expecting. Maybe more athletic than Searcy, but still thin. Both he and Searcy are super-rangy. If we run and attack all year, he will get plenty of minutes because he is so long that he can get into passing lanes, and he is built to run.

Luke Fabrizius - The scouting report was right on him. He is limited athletically, and almost fragile thin, but he has a beautiful 3pt shot.

Kurt Huelsman - He has seriously dropped weight. He is more mobile, but still not a leaper (even though he did block Wright 2-3 times). He is the biggest indication to me that BG fully intends to commit to running this year. We don't have a battleship sized guy inside anymore. They are all lean. Posted up with mixed results today.

This team is drastically changing identity with this attempted style-of-play change. I kept asking myself if this is a Dayton Flyer team. I think we pressed the ball handler the whole game. I think that is going to be the theme of this year. The ball handler is going to get a lot of direct pressure being guarded very close, and the other defenders are going to be anticipating the passes in the lanes. This is going to be an interesting year.

[Sea Bass]

Paul Williams medical red-shirt this year? Or is he going to play?

We need him, badly.looked close to playing ... he dressed and participated in the jump shooting drill, he just didn't do layups or play in the game. I would think he may be at full speed by the first exhibition game.

[UDF4N4LIF3]

Here are my observations from the Red and Blue Game:

If the way we played today was any indication of how we intend to play this year, we are going to be more run and gun than any other UD team I have seen. The coaches kept urging the players to put pressure on the ball and get into the passing lanes. This seems a big departure from the very conservative defense of last year. It resulted in a lot of turnovers, fouls, and fast break ball.

Rob Lowery - I think he is our new starting point guard. He is a very good ball handler, made some nice passes, can shoot from deep, can penetrate off the dribble, and just looks like a very good point guard for us. He had a few turnovers that I recall, but it was a hectic pace compared to what we are used to seeing. He looked very good. I think lots of Flyer fans will be happy to see him this year.

London Warren - He looks stronger than last year, but his game was much the same. Had some poor shots, but seems to fit this chaotic style well with his pressure defense.

Stephen Thomas - Suprised me a little bit. Hit some 3's, and played more aggressively than I have seen before. He is secure with the ball, but did nothing spectacular with the exception of a falling circus shot in the lane.

Mickey Perry - He was hitting everything from 3pt territory. He must have hit at least five 3 pointers. He put the ball on the floor a few times going to the basket as well. He looked good.

Paul Williams - Recovering from a hurt foot. He shot around in some of the warm-up drills. He looks like a very good jump shooter. Nothing else to report, due to his inactivity in the game.

Marcus Johnson - Looked like the Marcus of the 2nd half of the year. Hit jumps shots and at least one 3 pointer that I recall. He showed enough that I consider his improved shooting at the end of last year as a permanant change. He takes to this running style like a fish to water.

Chris Johnson - I expected good things from him due to what I had heard, and he delivered. I think he can do some of everything well. I was especially impressed with his 3pt shot. He is smooth from out there. Long legs and arms for his height. I think he will be a versatile contributor this year, and he runs like a deer.

Charles Little - Fouled a lot, and missed some close shots. It wasn't a good day for him, but he hit some nice looking foul shots to start things off. I think the longer players who have been added to the roster gave him problems inside.

Chris Wright - He played hard, but had little success shooting from any distance. He fumbled the ball a few times when he was trying to post inside. He even missed a good number of free throws. He did have some massive dunks on breaks that only he is capable of. He has put on some serious muscle this year, and I don't expect he will have many days as poor as this.

Devin Searcy - I don't recall a lot of specific plays from him today. He caused some defensive issues with his long arms, and he did have a huge alley-oop slam from Lowery, I think. He and Benson are going to be very valuable if we really run like this during the season.

Josh Benson - He was more athletic than I was expecting. Maybe more athletic than Searcy, but still thin. If we run and attack all year, he will get plenty of minutes because he is so long that he can get into passing lanes, and he is built to run.

Luke Fabrizius - The scouting report was right on him. He is limited athletically, and almost fragile thin, but he has a beautiful 3pt shot.

Kurt Huelsman - He has seriously dropped weight. He is more mobile, but still not a leaper (even though he did block Wright 2-3 times). He is the biggest indication to me that BG fully intends to commit to running this year. We don't have a battleship sized guy inside anymore. They are all lean. Posted up with mixed results today.

This team is drastically changing identity with this attempted style-of-play change. I kept asking myself if this is a Dayton Flyer team.


Thanks that pretty much sums it all up. You did say Wright had a bad game, but if you think 15 points and 10 rebounds is a bad game then I'll take it;)

Mickey Perry and Chris Johnson led all scorers with 22 points apiece. Sounds like to me that our offense will be just fine. And how about Lowery, he played very good according to some post. Hopefully he will be the Starter day one. Does anyone know if we will get some video footage like last year? I think Chris R did it last year and posted it on youtube.com. Hopefully we get some more action this year.

Anybody feel this team can win 25 games? I sure think so, specially if our offense plays like it did with unexpected big amount of points from Perry and Chris Johnson. Perry should be a big contributer this year. Along with Chris Johnson.

Overall I think we will have a vary good chance of making it to the Big Dance.

[ChiFlyer]

Thanks for the insight. Really sounds like Lowery could be a huge pick up for BG. LW could be a nice spark off the bench if Lowery gets the starting nod.

[Sea Bass]

The talent level was something and that was with no PW who was said to be the best of the newbies. He has a noce looking shot and a very powerful body(no fat on him). If he is as a good of a defender as advertised it will be a dogfight for minutes on the perimeter.

[shapanud]

recap from daytonflyers.com:

http://daytonflyers.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/102508aab.html

[Bill McPeek]

Sea Bass and Fudd,
Thanks for your insight into the inter squad game today. Very interested in your point guard assessment. Competition brings out the best in everyone.

[Flyer2]

Here are my observations from the Red and Blue Game:

If the way we played today was any indication of how we intend to play this year, we are going to be more run and gun than any other UD team I have seen. The coaches kept urging the players to put pressure on the ball and get into the passing lanes. This seems a big departure from the very conservative defense of last year. It resulted in a lot of turnovers, fouls, and fast break ball.

Rob Lowery - I think he is our new starting point guard. He is a very good ball handler, made some nice passes, can shoot from deep, can penetrate off the dribble, and just looks like a very good point guard for us. He had a few turnovers that I recall, but it was a hectic pace compared to what we are used to seeing. He looked very good. I think lots of Flyer fans will be happy to see him this year. I am officially poo-pooing the lower division transfer thing on him right now. He is a good division 1 player. I forgot to mention that he is a good defender as well and uses his long arms to poke at the ball.

London Warren - He looks stronger than last year, but his game was much the same. Had some poor shots, but seems to fit this chaotic style well with his pressure defense.

Stephen Thomas - Surprised me a little bit. Hit some 3's, and played more aggressively than I have seen before. He is secure with the ball, but did nothing spectacular with the exception of a falling circus shot in the lane.

Mickey Perry - He was hitting everything from 3pt territory. He must have hit at least five 3 pointers. He put the ball on the floor a few times going to the basket as well. He looked good.

Paul Williams - Recovering from a hurt foot. He shot around in some of the warm-up drills. He looks like a very good jump shooter. Nothing else to report, due to his inactivity in the game.

Marcus Johnson - Looked like the Marcus of the 2nd half of the year. Hit jumps shots and at least one 3 pointer that I recall. He showed enough that I consider his improved shooting at the end of last year as a permanent change. He takes to this running style like a fish to water.

Chris Johnson - I expected good things from him due to what I had heard, and he delivered. I think he can do some of everything well. I was especially impressed with his 3pt shot. He is smooth from out there. Long legs and arms for his height. I think he will be a versatile contributor this year, and he runs like a deer.

Charles Little - Fouled a lot, and missed some close shots. It wasn't a good day for him, but he hit some nice looking foul shots to start things off. I think the longer players who have been added to the roster gave him problems inside.

Chris Wright - He played hard, but had little success shooting from any distance. He fumbled the ball a few times when he was trying to post inside. He even missed a good number of free throws. He did have some massive dunks on breaks that only he is capable of. He has put on some serious muscle this year, and I don't expect he will have many days as poor as this.

Devin Searcy - I don't recall a lot of specific plays from him today. He caused some defensive issues with his long arms, and he did have a huge alley-oop slam from Lowery, I think. He and Benson are going to be very valuable if we really run like this during the season.

Josh Benson - He was more athletic than I was expecting. Maybe more athletic than Searcy, but still thin. Both he and Searcy are super-rangy. If we run and attack all year, he will get plenty of minutes because he is so long that he can get into passing lanes, and he is built to run.

Luke Fabrizius - The scouting report was right on him. He is limited athletically, and almost fragile thin, but he has a beautiful 3pt shot.

Kurt Huelsman - He has seriously dropped weight. He is more mobile, but still not a leaper (even though he did block Wright 2-3 times). He is the biggest indication to me that BG fully intends to commit to running this year. We don't have a battleship sized guy inside anymore. They are all lean. Posted up with mixed results today.

This team is drastically changing identity with this attempted style-of-play change. I kept asking myself if this is a Dayton Flyer team. I think we pressed the ball handler the whole game. I think that is going to be the theme of this year. The ball handler is going to get a lot of direct pressure being guarded very close, and the other defenders are going to be anticipating the passes in the lanes. This is going to be an interesting year.

Complete and honest assessment.
I agree with your assessment there was not a lot of standing around and good penetration.

I thought London played better that he did last year and had some good steals. Rob impressed me with his assists- great passes and his shot not too bad. Luke looks like he should be red shirted.There were a "lot" of great clean blocks and that may be due to penetrating too deep into the box and not having decided Werther to shoot or not.
Chris Johnson was a real surprise....smooth.

I'm very optimistic about the season.

[Furio]

What position was Chris Johnson playing in the scrimmage.

[AdamtheFlyer]

I can't say enough about how impressed I was with Rob Lowery. He made a couple of mistakes early, but really settled in and played very well. Any questions about him belonging on the floor have been answered. He passed well, ran the offense, took off on the break, and was a very confident shooter.

If I took one theme away from today, it was confidence. EVERYONE looked confident in what they were doing. The young kids never hesitated to shoot the ball. Thomas looked like a different player than the little we saw last year.

It was only an intrasquad scrimmage, so grab the salt, but I was very satisfied with what I saw...including the mistakes. Many of the mistakes were forced by good defense. Let's face it, 20 or more teams we play this year won't be as athletic as those guys saw in the scrimmage today. I've been saying it all summer, and now I feel stronger about it...this team will run run run whenever possible.

It'll take time and there will be ups and downs, but after today I think we'll be alright. Give it time, this will be a very good basketball team.

[Fair34]

My friend told me, Adreian Payne was definitely in the house.

Hello everyone. First post. This looked like the most athletic group I've ever seen at UD. Matt Kavanaugh was there and it looked like Staten was there with Payne, who left before the last quarter.

[swish61]

I couldn't make the game today. What kind of crowd was there?

[AdamtheFlyer]

I couldn't make the game today. What kind of crowd was there?

Pretty good. I'm terrible at this...but maybe 3-4,000-ish. The side opposite the benches was nearly full, and the other side was a little more than half full. Couple hundred people behind the baskets. All lower arena.

[San Diego Flyer]

Thanks all for the objective reviews. Great reading, and the other eyewitness comments as well.

Some reflection on issues we debated all summer:

We have shooters.

We have choices at point guard.

We have defenders.

We have runners.

We have confidence.

Now, those attributes aren't all gift-wrapped in the same player, but BG has ligitimate options.

Cool. Go Flyers!!

[Whacker]

What position was Chris Johnson playing in the scrimmage.

He checked in at SG initally, but predominately QF.

[Fudd]

This could be way premature, but I stopped worrying about the lack of 3pt threats on this team today. I also feel good about our pg. I just wonder what is going to happen when we meet a half court team with power inside. Will we be able to dictate our tempo and style upon them? Funny how all of the summer talk just faded away in a few hours.

[Gazoo]

Not much disagreement from what I've read so far. I would add:

1. Everyone got better from last year. Everyone. Everyone also looked tired. Looks like they've been practicing hard and were pooped. Like a prize fighter, they're not peaked right now.

2. PG is still my biggest concern. Lowrey looked OK. LW looked like an improved LW, but still LW. ST looked steady. I don't see anything that screams "we've got this covered."

3. Team defense and team offense were predictably sloppy. Looked like the team was trying to run a new set and not everyone had it yet, particularly the freshmen.

4. Fab won't likely redshirt, but geeze, eat something kid. Not only has a high release, but it's quick and true. We'll love watching this kid someday.

5. Don't count on MP shooting like that every day. . . but ohhhhh if he did. . .

6. Searcy looked like he's really grown into his body. Less flopping around and more control.

7. Remember to cut all the stats in half, folks. CW with 15 / 10 would only have been 7/5 in a real game, actually less most likely.

8. LW looked -- dare I say it?? -- confident shooting a 10-15 footer. 3 pointer? Easy folks. . . let's not get crazy.

[Iguomaniac]

I posted some pictures I took at the game to Flickr if anyone wants to see them:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31817643@N08/sets/72157608365045785/show/with/2972598668/

[UDF4N4LIF3]

Not much disagreement from what I've read so far. I would add:

1. Everyone got better from last year. Everyone. Everyone also looked tired. Looks like they've been practicing hard and were pooped. Like a prize fighter, they're not peaked right now.

2. PG is still my biggest concern. Lowrey looked OK. LW looked like an improved LW, but still LW. ST looked steady. I don't see anything that screams "we've got this covered."

3. Team defense and team offense were predictably sloppy. Looked like the team was trying to run a new set and not everyone had it yet, particularly the freshmen.

4. Fab won't likely redshirt, but geeze, eat something kid. Not only has a high release, but it's quick and true. We'll love watching this kid someday.

5. Don't count on MP shooting like that every day. . . but ohhhhh if he did. . .

6. Searcy looked like he's really grown into his body. Less flopping around and more control.

7. Remember to cut all the stats in half, folks. CW with 15 / 10 would only have been 7/5 in a real game, actually less most likely.

8. LW looked -- dare I say it?? -- confident shooting a 10-15 footer. 3 pointer? Easy folks. . . let's not get crazy.

Why whould you cut all the stats in half? It sounds like to me all your doing is dissing the team in this post. You sound 0% correct in your whole post.

[AdamtheFlyer]

I posted some pictures I took at the game to Flickr if anyone wants to see them:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31817643@N08/sets/72157608365045785/show/with/2972598668/

Very nice. Saw myself twice.

Oh, and good shots of the game...

[shapanud]

Why whould you cut all the stats in half? It sounds like to me all your doing is dissing the team in this post. You sound 0% correct in your whole post.

Because I wasn't there I won't comment on whether the original post was overly negative, but the "cut the stats in half" comment was strange.

I guess you were arguing that each player would get only 1/2 as many minutes b/c there were twice as many minutes available (10 on the floor at a time instead of five) today. However, there are two counter-points to this theory.

First, the additional minutes from having 10 people playing probably benefitted the end of the bench the most. Starters (like CW) are still going to play starter minutes. Those players that aren't going to play a lot of minutes once the season starts are the ones that would have the inflated stat line today, not CW.

Second, don't forget they only played 32 minutes today, not 40.

[lilrudy4787]

8. LW looked -- dare I say it?? -- confident shooting a 10-15 footer. 3 pointer? Easy folks. . . let's not get crazy.

dont confuse confidence with skill...even the worst player in the world (NOT SAYING HE IS) can be confident about their shot

im confident (no pun intended) that Lowery will be our starting PG very soon

[Whacker]

Players were switching teams after every period. The coaching staff was able to see plenty of different combinations on the floor together.

FRESHMEN
Chris Johnson played some at the SG, but mostly at QF. He showed a nice stepback move once or twice and had no qualms about shooting from behind the arc. The kid's got moxie and likes mixing it up. Projects as back up to Chris Wright at QF.

Luke F. played only at PF. For now at least, it appears the staff wants him to be a shooting big man. If that's the case, he probably ends up as the last player in the rotation - only because of his size (or lack thereof). Reports were accurate on his shot. Good form, range and release. Unafraid to let it fly.

Josh B. looks a lot like Devin S. from last year. Thin and sometimes gangly, but just needs to grow into his frame. Projects as fourth big in the rotation.

Paul W - DNP

SOPHOMORES
Stephen Thomas looked about the same as last year. He hit a shot or two, but missed a few open looks. He was comfortable, if unspectacular, with the ball. He's competent at both guard positions, but doesn't do any one thing well enough to garner major minutes. Projects as last guard in the rotation.

Chris Wright didn't show much of his jumpshot, but still proved he can wreak havoc on the glass and within 10 feet. He did have one series where Kurt H. blocked his shot three (!) times in a row. He has certainly filled out and his time in the weight room has paid off. He looks like he has boulders for shoulders. Never seemed to get in the flow of the offense. Made a wicked move from the foul line going to his left and finishing with his left hand. Projects as starting QF.

Devin Searcy has retired his beard and added some much needed muscle. Should be an integral part of the rotation, and get important minutes as the first big man off the bench. It will be interesting to find out if he'll be playing both spots (C & PF) this year instead of only backing up Kurt H. at center.

JUNIORS
Marcus Johnson showed the same all around game with which he ended the season. New three-point distance didn't seem to bother him. He knocked down a few mid-range jumpers as well. He was really moving well without the ball on offense, but never seemed to get a good feed from his teammates. Projects as starting SG.

Kurt H looked lighter and a bit quicker. Probably did the best job of all the bigs establishing position in the post, but was not rewarded very much.

Mickey Perry showed a nifty stepback shot and a quick and deadly release from three-point land. Looked like the best shooter on the floor. Played with a lot of confidence. Projects as back-up to Marcus at SG.

Rob L. looked like he fit in and will be an excellent complement to London at the point. He appears to be a capable shooter and defender. He looked comfortable with the speed of the game. Projects as the back-up to London at PG. He'll play all the minutes London allows.

London wasn't as hesitant shooting jumpshots, but they were not pretty finding nothing but iron. Found it interesting he was running with the first teamers, notable Chris and Charles, on most pre-scrimmage drills. I think London's attitude and effort really starts to rub off on this team. Projects as starting PG.

SENIORS
Charles Little attempted to show off a new jumper, but with little success. Didn't have much success putting it on the floor or rebounding. Looked better on the two free throws he shot. He's going to have to embrace his role as a "glue" guy, providing intangibles and leadership.

[Whacker]

I just wonder what is going to happen when we meet a half court team with power inside. Will we be able to dictate our tempo and style upon them? Funny how all of the summer talk just faded away in a few hours.

Totally agree. We know Kurt can hold his own against anyone, but with Charles, Devin and Josh I'm not as confident. Charles gives up a lot of height and Josh gives up a lot of weight. Devin's contributions this year, may be the most important.

[UDBrian]

Fudd gave a nice breakdown of the day, here are things that made a very favorable impression on me. I honestly saw nothing that really concerned me
I agree with whoever said the players have improved, this was not a wasted off season by anyone

This could be the best team dayton has had in a few years or possibly many moons.

Charles' foul shot, although he still finishes straightening his legs before shooting the shot looks much more repeatable.

Rob looked like a great addition, he did make a couple of passes that weren't great but if he gets eight assists we can live with it. He is a good defensive player who can finish. My concerns about point guard being a possible gaping hole are gone. London has also improved as has Stephen Thomas. I think that playing against Rob has made London much more careful with the ball.

Chris Johnson has a silky smooth jumper which I knew from the tape but seemed to have a good basketball IQ with some good passes and drives.

Devin has become much stronger and has worked on his shooting.

Mickey Perry looked very confident, played a good all around game also.

Josh also played some good defense and displayed a high basketball IQ, got rid of the ball when it was the best play.

Luke has a beautiful shot, he just missed one from 25' range.

The basketball IQ on this team seems much improved, athleticism and potential to disrupt another team's offense seem much improved.

I now expect this team to be in the NCAA tournament.

[Sea Bass]

in the case of LW his lack of perimeter shot doesn't bother me nearly as much as his lack of vision and anticipation. If he is the primary PG this team will struggle in the half court.

[Whacker]

I think BG will use his point guards like some NFL teams use tandem running backs. As a change of pace and to control the tempo.

[DC Flyer]

http://blackburnreview.blogspot.com/

[Flyer 86]

I'm a happy man. nobody's really worried about mj and cw.

i've been saying if 3 of the newer additions can make some contributions, we're golden. two of those key people are Perry and Lowery.

now , if CJ contribs and devin and benson, Wow! perhaps we'll see the shotblocking that was projected from last year. and we could have the 3 shooters it sounds like.

we're gonna be tough to match up against.

[Dirty Sanchez]

I saw the majority of the game - I think Fudd and Sea Bass nailed the assessment.

From what I witnessed today, I don't think there should be any question that Lowery is our starting point guard. I know one practice game can't be an indication of the true competition for the spot, by my assessment is that Rob has a whole lot more to contribute than London.....I say that as a London fan, so I have nothing against Warren. Lowery was just that impressive. We need a point guard who can distribute the ball AND shoot AND play defense. Most importantly, he has to lead the team and from what I saw, Lowery is a floor leader.

CJ looked great. Exceeded my expectations - not afraid to shoot the ball, smooth shot. He will contribute this year most definitely.

Luke......punt. He looked a little scared and intimidated if you ask me. He'll probably get to know Dan Fox pretty well this year.

Benson looks very athletic - he will be a force in years to come. Just needs a little time to develop his game.

I really hope Paul Williams can get back to court soon. This isn't how you want your most highly-touted freshman to start the year. He looks solid, can't wait to see his game.

[IAFlyer]

Why whould you cut all the stats in half?

I'll certainly let Gazoo answer for himself, but my take on this would be two-fold - how many minutes were played may or may not be reflective of a real game as was pointed out earlier. Secondly, this was an intrasquad scrimmage which will never really be reflective of playing a real game.

I don't know if 1/2 is harsh, but one could see losign 25% due to scrimmage and at least 10-15% due to time on the floor.

[longtimefan]

Why whould you cut all the stats in half?

I was wondering that same thing.

[UDF4N4LIF3]

I posted some pictures I took at the game to Flickr if anyone wants to see them:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31817643@N08/sets/72157608365045785/show/with/2972598668/

You also got Pictures of Payne and Staten sitting side by side. Payne is wearing gray Jogging Pants. In the First Row behind the Press. At least thats who it looked like.

[shapanud]

Box Score:

http://daytonflyers.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/stats/2008-2009/red-blue.html

Without seeing any action in person, MP's line sure is impressive...22 pts on 8-10 shooting & 5-5 from 3 pt land.

[UDBrian]

Evidently the players were also impressed with Chris Johnson. Nice article and interviews from Doug


http://www.daytondailynews.com/s/content/oh/story/sports/college/ud/2008/10/26/ddn102608spudbb.html

[bobber]

The wife and I just rolled back into Chicago, but I am soooooo excited about the Flyers this year.

First, the Freshmen. All played except Williams, and they were surprisingly good. I think Chris Johnson may just be a special player. He has a very fast release and more than that, he can create his own shot off the dribble. Look out! We have not had a 6'5" kid as athletic and as gifted as this in a long time. Josh Benson looked good, too. Way ahead of where Devin Searcy was at this time last year. Luke Fabrezius showed he can shoot from way out, and if he hadn't had several long treys rim out people would be gushing about him right now.

Mickey Perry was smooth as peanut butter. He showed the touch and savvy we had hoped to see last year. Chris Wright had some monster throw downs. Marcus was Marcus. Charles was Charles. London was London. Devin looked bigger and more assertive, and Rob Lowery is going to get a lot of playing time if this game was any indicator. Think London, but the guy plays more under control and can hit the pull up and the trey. Kurt had a bad day with more fouls than points.

The teams ran and pressed and then ran some more. If this is any indication of the plan for this year, Look Out. Other teams are in for 40 minutes of HE-double-hockey-sticks. All this, and Paul Williams was sitting on the pines. Man, are these guys going to be exciting.

[sheg]

Thanks for all the thoughts from everyone who attended.

Last year, there were two sources of video:

1) some official UDPride video which was up a couple days after. I hope that happens, because:

2) I posted some poor quality (but better than nothing!) videos on youtube. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend this year.

[swish61]

The wife and I just rolled back into Chicago, but I am soooooo excited about the Flyers this year.

First, the Freshmen. All played except Williams, and they were surprisingly good. I think Chris Johnson may just be a special player. He has a very fast release and more than that, he can create his own shot off the dribble. Look out! We have not had a 6'5" kid as athletic and as gifted as this in a long time. Josh Benson looked good, too. Way ahead of where Devin Searcy was at this time last year. Luke Fabrezius showed he can shoot from way out, and if he hadn't had several long treys rim out people would be gushing about him right now.

Mickey Perry was smooth as peanut butter. He showed the touch and savvy we had hoped to see last year. Chris Wright had some monster throw downs. Marcus was Marcus. Charles was Charles. London was London. Devin looked bigger and more assertive, and Rob Lowery is going to get a lot of playing time if this game was any indicator. Think London, but the guy plays more under control and can hit the pull up and the trey. Kurt had a bad day with more fouls than points.

The teams ran and pressed and then ran some more. If this is any indication of the plan for this year, Look Out. Other teams are in for 40 minutes of HE-double-hockey-sticks. All this, and Paul Williams was sitting on the pines. Man, are these guys going to be exciting.

Wow! You came all the way from Chicago for the scrimmage? And I thought I was a fan..........

[bobber]

Hey, we got a peek at the new basketball Flyers and saw the football Flyers in a nice win over Valpo.

What's not to like?

[ClearTheRunwayForWLJ]

Even though I just joined, I have read posts since early 2003.


All of you will eat words that spoke about Lowery not starting by years end.

We cannot be an NCAA team if London Warren plays more than 18 minutes a game at PG, too many negatives. He is a 15 minute spurt player with great defense.

Lowery will do his **** thing and lead us this season.


Starter by Jan. 1

[NorthwestFlyer]

Judging by what I have read and looking at the box score, it is going to be a very exciting year. Two things I am surprised I haven't heard much discussion about because they will be a weakness this year.

We still did not shoot free throws well as a team, and both of our potential starting guards were prone to turnovers.

[shocka43]

Here are my observations from the Red and Blue Game:

If the way we played today was any indication of how we intend to play this year, we are going to be more run and gun than any other UD team I have seen. The coaches kept urging the players to put pressure on the ball and get into the passing lanes. This seems a big departure from the very conservative defense of last year. It resulted in a lot of turnovers, fouls, and fast break ball.

Rob Lowery - I think he is our new starting point guard. He is a very good ball handler, made some nice passes, can shoot from deep, can penetrate off the dribble, and just looks like a very good point guard for us. He had a few turnovers that I recall, but it was a hectic pace compared to what we are used to seeing. He looked very good. I think lots of Flyer fans will be happy to see him this year. I am officially poo-pooing the lower division transfer thing on him right now. He is a good division 1 player. I forgot to mention that he is a good defender as well and uses his long arms to poke at the ball.

London Warren - He looks stronger than last year, but his game was much the same. Had some poor shots, but seems to fit this chaotic style well with his pressure defense.

Stephen Thomas - Suprised me a little bit. Hit some 3's, and played more aggressively than I have seen before. He is secure with the ball, but did nothing spectacular with the exception of a falling circus shot in the lane.

Mickey Perry - He was hitting everything from 3pt territory. He must have hit at least five 3 pointers. He put the ball on the floor a few times going to the basket as well. He looked good.

Paul Williams - Recovering from a hurt foot. He shot around in some of the warm-up drills. He looks like a very good jump shooter. Nothing else to report, due to his inactivity in the game.

Marcus Johnson - Looked like the Marcus of the 2nd half of the year. Hit jumps shots and at least one 3 pointer that I recall. He showed enough that I consider his improved shooting at the end of last year as a permanant change. He takes to this running style like a fish to water.

Chris Johnson - I expected good things from him due to what I had heard, and he delivered. I think he can do some of everything well. I was especially impressed with his 3pt shot. He is smooth from out there. Long legs and arms for his height. I think he will be a versatile contributor this year, and he runs like a deer.

Charles Little - Fouled a lot, and missed some close shots. It wasn't a good day for him, but he hit some nice looking foul shots to start things off. I think the longer players who have been added to the roster gave him problems inside.

Chris Wright - He played hard, but had little success shooting from any distance. He fumbled the ball a few times when he was trying to post inside. He even missed a good number of free throws. He did have some massive dunks on breaks that only he is capable of. He has put on some serious muscle this year, and I don't expect he will have many days as poor as this.

Devin Searcy - I don't recall a lot of specific plays from him today. He caused some defensive issues with his long arms, and he did have a huge alley-oop slam from Lowery, I think. He and Benson are going to be very valuable if we really run like this during the season.

Josh Benson - He was more athletic than I was expecting. Maybe more athletic than Searcy, but still thin. Both he and Searcy are super-rangy. If we run and attack all year, he will get plenty of minutes because he is so long that he can get into passing lanes, and he is built to run.

Luke Fabrizius - The scouting report was right on him. He is limited athletically, and almost fragile thin, but he has a beautiful 3pt shot.

Kurt Huelsman - He has seriously dropped weight. He is more mobile, but still not a leaper (even though he did block Wright 2-3 times). He is the biggest indication to me that BG fully intends to commit to running this year. We don't have a battleship sized guy inside anymore. They are all lean. Posted up with mixed results today.

This team is drastically changing identity with this attempted style-of-play change. I kept asking myself if this is a Dayton Flyer team. I think we pressed the ball handler the whole game. I think that is going to be the theme of this year. The ball handler is going to get a lot of direct pressure being guarded very close, and the other defenders are going to be anticipating the passes in the lanes. This is going to be an interesting year.

You are on it here Fudd....Good assessment. A couple things to add.

It was nice to see confidence and results out of Perry.

Little has switched up the form on the Ft's which was good. We are going to need them to count due to his playing style and getting to the line.

Unfortunately....LW may have looked confident, but it is the same old story when it comes to shooting, etc. Was addressed elsewhere.

Lowery and Chris Johnson...impressive.

Kurt....4 off the ball fouls and two on the ball. This has to get corrected, as it was a problem last year as well. Shifting the hips into screens, etc. This got him into trouble last year and it HAS to change or we will be going to bench quite often for big man support.

With that said...Big man support off the bench shouldn't be a problem. Devin looks good physically. Benson plays harder and stronger than what he looks.

Conditioning....looked good overall, but legs obviously aren't in game shape quite yet, as it is early and it showed on late FT attempts.

The game definitely put some excitement in the minds of fans looking forward to a good season. Even got a picture of CW holding our little 6 month old at her first Flyer game. Good times.

[1in25]

I talked to Paul after the scrimmage and he said he would start practicing again next week.

Go Flyers!!!

[Iguomaniac]

You also got Pictures of Payne and Staten sitting side by side. Payne is wearing gray Jogging Pants. In the First Row behind the Press. At least thats who it looked like.

Yes, those are Payne and Staten. They were the only recruits there that I recognized. Staten was there with a little kid (maybe a younger brother?) and Payne was sitting one seat from Staten with an empty seat between them. They left around the end of the third quarter.

[bcross]

Yes, those are Payne and Staten. They were the only recruits there that I recognized. Staten was there with a little kid (maybe a younger brother?) and Payne was sitting one seat from Staten with an empty seat between them. They left around the end of the third quarter.

It wasn't Staten with Payne. Not sure who it was but it was an older man with his kid.

[UDBrian]

Judging by what I have read and looking at the box score, it is going to be a very exciting year. Two things I am surprised I haven't heard much discussion about because they will be a weakness this year.

We still did not shoot free throws well as a team, and both of our potential starting guards were prone to turnovers.

I remember Rob's turnovers more than London's. He had two times where he tried to throw alley oops, and I think they were to Marcus. The problem is that when Chris and Devin are the defenders in the paint you aren't going to have much luck with alley oops. He had one terrible pass to the corner that was just out of bounds breaking the press. I think he or London just missed on a fast break alley oop that was a certain jam but the ball was a little high or possibly thrown too hard.

With only a week's practice I think Rob and London can both improve on their turnovers. But, we will see more alley oop slams in the arena than we did last season.

[Iguomaniac]

I'm pretty sure that was Staten in the blue hooded sweatshirt. I got better look at him in person and it sure looked like him. I think you may be thinking of an older guy that was sitting in the same section.

Also, I noticed one of the test shots I took has a few other recruits in the picture: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31817643@N08/2974762699/ . I think that is Matt Kavanaugh just to the left of Dan Fox's head and that might be JD Weatherspoon sitting behind him wearing the hat.

[Swampy Meadows]

According to FlyerHoops.net, the young man with the hat is Jalen Steele from TN.

[Flyer 86]

Judging by what I have read and looking at the box score, it is going to be a very exciting year. Two things I am surprised I haven't heard much discussion about because they will be a weakness this year.

We still did not shoot free throws well as a team, and both of our potential starting guards were prone to turnovers.

good point.

to add, interesting quote by Perry -- the coaches wanna see me crouch and guard somebody. so while he's working on his drives, his shooting and offensive comfort level, Mickey is certainly aware PT on this squad also comes from defensive effort and prowess.

good going Mick. And CJ.

[jack72]

I was impressed with how much weight and muscle Chris Johnson has put on since I saw him play last spring. I said he would be great if he bulked up... he has... and will be. He is not afraid to take the shot. Remember last year when no one would shoot but Roberts. Yesterday there was CJ, Lowery and Perry stepping up to take the outside shot; and from what we hear Paul Williams will be the same.

Huelsman looked mediocre yesterday and will be pushed by Searcy and Benson and that is a good thing.

I have waited 40 years to see a UD team where all the scholly guys are athletic and can dunk...finally. This will be a better team than last year and next year will be awesome.

[Browns]

It wasn't Staten with Payne. Not sure who it was but it was an older man with his kid.

I agree, don't think it was staten.

[OPPFlyer]

I was able to chat with Paul Williams a little while I was taking my kid around to get autographs. I asked him how the foot was and he said he could have gone but it was a coaching decision to keep him out. Seemed like he was really anxious to get out there. Also keep in mind that this was a scrimmage and that all the players out there run these same sets day in and day out. That makes it very difficult to execute an offense set when the defense knows exactly what you are going to do. Just thought I would throw that in as a reason why we saw so many turnovers early and some sloppy play. All in all we look pretty good though.

[The Blur]

To clear the air Juwan Staten was not at the game saturday because he was taking his ACT test. He did however attend the reception after the game.

[Figgie123]

Okay, my impressions, hopefully I don't get banned for being a bit negative.

PG's - Lowery impressed me. I can see him taking the starting job from London if London doesn't stop making bad plays. Running into the lane and dishing outside got him a charge. But, London also tried to pass to Stephen Thomas once, and Stephen wasn't anticipating and kept running downcourt, so it was behind him. I liked Lowery's steal of London as LW tried to pass it upcourt through centercourt and Lowery leaped and grabbed it.

Mickey Perry - During the autograph session I told him he just needs to shoot the ball, and that last year when he had the ball, I was wanting him to just shoot it rather than hesitate. He chuckled and said he would be taking shots this year. Man, did he ever. 22 points 5-5 from 3. Sure, this was scrimmage, and noone was covering him, but his team must have realized that and passed him the ball. Good choice.

Charles Little - I've enjoyed watching Charles from his Freshman year. I was sad last year because of his foot injury, but he said it was better in the autograph session. But, he was taken out of the game the most out of all the returning players. Except for the first 2 free throws, he didn't impress me. I hope this changes.

Chris Wright - I told him in the autograph session not to hurt the leg, and he says he prays for it nightly. Good kid, I like him. It was hard to judge him, because he and Marcus were teamed against each other most of the time. I think that shows what the perception of those too are. But, I am curious to see if they may put London, Lowery, Wright and Marcus on the court at once, because LW, RL and CW came down on a fast break and that was great to have 2 PG's pass and go by, I think MP (or ST?) and give it up to CW for the finish. That could work well.

Kurt Huelsman/Devin Searcy - I think Kurt's starting days are numbered. He's started every game as a Flyer, but I don't think it's going to last. His 3 blocks of Chris were in a group of 18 feet tall men. I mean, You had 6 big men 1 foot in front of the basket. Chris had to grab the ball low, and try and jump up. With Devin on one side, Kurt on the other, Charles behind him and Josh off on a wing, CW couldn't get up, so Kurt puts his hand where the ball was, and it's blocked. With that crowd, he should have found a way to break it out to the 3pt line for a trey, or a regroup. Anyway, I still didn't see much in Kurt. But, Devin was impressive to me. At one point he palmed the ball, went up for the basket and passed it, still palmed, to the free throw line for someone else to shoot. Nice.

Chris Johnson - He looked good and had some nice 3 pointers. Thought he might get some playing time this year.

Marcus Johnson - Same story with CW. Hard to play well in a scrimmage, when the top 2 are going against each other. He had some good shots, but then also didn't get passed well in certain areas. But, I think he's the team leader, and not Charles. He was leading the warmup stretches yelling GO, to start the count of 10. I think he was also helping out Lowery a bit during some of the scrimmage.

Luke Fabrizus - Had a couple 3pt shots, but I didn't get to pay alot of attention to him.

Josh Benson - Looks nice, but seemed to be a freshman still trying to figure it all out. Not ina bad way, but rather than jumping right into the mix, he was hanging on the outside to see what CL, CW, KH and DS were going to do.

I've lowered my expectations of the season, unfortunately, but hope the first exhibition game will bring me some confidence back. (I know D2 schools won't put up any effort, and Mr. Walk On will get 10 minutes of playing time.) But, the free throws still need to be addressed. As do inbounding. Charles got called on a 5 second call once. Good for our defense, bad for our offense. Not much full court press in the scrimmage either, and I'm not sure if that's in BG's playbook or not. It seems it only gets used when we are getting close, but I would think sometimes you need to practice that more, and do it more often to throw off the rhythm of the other team. Turnovers, bad fouls and better free throw shooting. That's where we have to practice on.

Figgie

[Fudd]

I recall the whole scrimmage being a full court press. It wasn't a full court zone press, but man to man instead. I think our success will be predicated on how many turnovers we can force. BG said we should have pressured the ball more afterwards.

[UDBrian]

I also remember seeing a lot of full court man to man.

So Figgie can you share what disappointed you compared to expectations?

[BallgameJohnny]

Okay, my impressions, hopefully I don't get banned for being a bit negative.

PG's - Lowery impressed me. I can see him taking the starting job from London if London doesn't stop making bad plays. Running into the lane and dishing outside got him a charge. But, London also tried to pass to Stephen Thomas once, and Stephen wasn't anticipating and kept running downcourt, so it was behind him. I liked Lowery's steal of London as LW tried to pass it upcourt through centercourt and Lowery leaped and grabbed it.

Mickey Perry - During the autograph session I told him he just needs to shoot the ball, and that last year when he had the ball, I was wanting him to just shoot it rather than hesitate. He chuckled and said he would be taking shots this year. Man, did he ever. 22 points 5-5 from 3. Sure, this was scrimmage, and noone was covering him, but his team must have realized that and passed him the ball. Good choice.

Charles Little - I've enjoyed watching Charles from his Freshman year. I was sad last year because of his foot injury, but he said it was better in the autograph session. But, he was taken out of the game the most out of all the returning players. Except for the first 2 free throws, he didn't impress me. I hope this changes.

Chris Wright - I told him in the autograph session not to hurt the leg, and he says he prays for it nightly. Good kid, I like him. It was hard to judge him, because he and Marcus were teamed against each other most of the time. I think that shows what the perception of those too are. But, I am curious to see if they may put London, Lowery, Wright and Marcus on the court at once, because LW, RL and CW came down on a fast break and that was great to have 2 PG's pass and go by, I think MP (or ST?) and give it up to CW for the finish. That could work well.

Kurt Huelsman/Devin Searcy - I think Kurt's starting days are numbered. He's started every game as a Flyer, but I don't think it's going to last. His 3 blocks of Chris were in a group of 18 feet tall men. I mean, You had 6 big men 1 foot in front of the basket. Chris had to grab the ball low, and try and jump up. With Devin on one side, Kurt on the other, Charles behind him and Josh off on a wing, CW couldn't get up, so Kurt puts his hand where the ball was, and it's blocked. With that crowd, he should have found a way to break it out to the 3pt line for a trey, or a regroup. Anyway, I still didn't see much in Kurt. But, Devin was impressive to me. At one point he palmed the ball, went up for the basket and passed it, still palmed, to the free throw line for someone else to shoot. Nice.

Chris Johnson - He looked good and had some nice 3 pointers. Thought he might get some playing time this year.

Marcus Johnson - Same story with CW. Hard to play well in a scrimmage, when the top 2 are going against each other. He had some good shots, but then also didn't get passed well in certain areas. But, I think he's the team leader, and not Charles. He was leading the warmup stretches yelling GO, to start the count of 10. I think he was also helping out Lowery a bit during some of the scrimmage.

Luke Fabrizus - Had a couple 3pt shots, but I didn't get to pay alot of attention to him.

Josh Benson - Looks nice, but seemed to be a freshman still trying to figure it all out. Not ina bad way, but rather than jumping right into the mix, he was hanging on the outside to see what CL, CW, KH and DS were going to do.

I've lowered my expectations of the season, unfortunately, but hope the first exhibition game will bring me some confidence back. (I know D2 schools won't put up any effort, and Mr. Walk On will get 10 minutes of playing time.) But, the free throws still need to be addressed. As do inbounding. Charles got called on a 5 second call once. Good for our defense, bad for our offense. Not much full court press in the scrimmage either, and I'm not sure if that's in BG's playbook or not. It seems it only gets used when we are getting close, but I would think sometimes you need to practice that more, and do it more often to throw off the rhythm of the other team. Turnovers, bad fouls and better free throw shooting. That's where we have to practice on.

Figgie

I am sure the players were glad you tiold them what to do and took notes and will be practicing it all week.

[Medford]

Figgie, I won't pick on too much, heck I wasn't there, but you didn't sound negative until the very end, what exactly would make you temper your expectations?

One thing to pick on though, was your statement that the D2 squads in exhibition won't put up any effort. I seriously doubt this, especially when compared to the athletes in action types that used to come in here and every where else each preseason. Those AIC kids could have been playing their 7th game in 8 nights, combined w/ all that travel and life on the road, I can easily see how they'd mail in a game or 2. Meanwhile, the D2 kids come in and play 2 exhibition games in front of their largest crowds of the season with a chance to "stick" it to the big name schools that didn't recruit you out of high school. Those kids I assume are playing full out; it may well be the only 2 games of their season that gets any type of media coverage, possibly even local TV coverage or Big 10 channel coverage.

That's the reason why Findley knocked off OSU in recent seasons, and came close to knocking off UD. They've played together before, play w/ a purpose, and play hard. I much prefer the exhibition games vs the various D2 schools compared to the exhibition vs a ragamuffin band of players from all over the place put together on short notice with little practice, knowing they'll move on their seperate ways after 2 weeks.

[Sea Bass]

But, London also tried to pass to Stephen Thomas once, and Stephen wasn't anticipating and kept running downcourt, so it was behind him. ... and is a perfect reason what drives me nuts about LW, there was absolutely no reason to throw the ball to Thomas in that situation. LW was under no pressure and Thomas was not going to be able to do anything with 30+ feet from the basket. LW makes a lot of unforced TOs and the pass to Thomas was a perfect example.

[UDF4N4LIF3]

Yea how can your expectations move lower? My expectations have been high all summer and now that the Red vs Blue game went as good. My expectations are even higher.

[Gazoo]

Why whould you cut all the stats in half?


First, because it's unlikely we'll score 126 points in any game this year.

Second, it's unlikely that the following players will average this many minutes:

CW: 33
MJ: 32

KH: 27
DS: 25

Lowrey: 32
LW: 31

MP: 30
CJ: 27

Could CW average 33 MPG? Sure, but not playing the way he did Saturday.

Third, just look up the stats from last year's red/blue game. We were fawning over our scoring production from every member of the team. Turns out we only had 2 bona fide scorers, BR and CW. Excuse me while I DON'T get my hopes up just yet over a glorified game of street ball.

It sounds like to me all your doing is dissing the team in this post. You sound 0% correct in your whole post.

I apologize for the cut/paste of all the following disses in my post, which is all I was planning to do. No compliments here.

Everyone got better from last year. Everyone.

Looks like they've been practicing hard

Fab . . . Not only has a high release, but it's quick and true. We'll love watching this kid someday.

Don't count on MP shooting like that every day. . . but ohhhhh if he did. . . (apparently I SHOULD count on him never missing another 3-pointer in his college career according to fan4life)

Searcy looked like he's really grown into his body. Less flopping around and more control.

LW looked -- dare I say it?? -- confident shooting a 10-15 footer.

[longtimefan]

Figgie, I won't pick on too much, heck I wasn't there, but you didn't sound negative until the very end, what exactly would make you temper your expectations?

I was thinking the same thing. The comments were mostly positive, so I was surprised when he said he lowered his expectations. I was not able to attend the scrimmage, but based on the positive comments I have read, my expectations, which were fairly high to begin with, are a little higher. I especially liked what I heard about Lowery, C. Johnson, and Perry. I think these are all key players, so I was glad to hear all the positive comments. Obviously we need good point guard play, so the positive comments about Lowery were good to hear. We need a lift from some players other than our "core" players, and we need some help from a couple of freshmen. I thought Williams would be the best freshman, and he still could be, but it was great to read the positive comments about C Johnson. If Williams and Johnson can both contribute, that will be a bonus. Benson could help in spurts, and if Perry can knock down some threes, that will help a great deal. Can't wait until next Thursday!

[Sea Bass]

if BG really wants to play the pressure D and push the ball on offense I would expect no player to average more the 26-28 minutes a game. He has the depth to now do that and the style of play in the scrimmage was encouraging for a more uptempo style.

[LebronJames]

When A-10 play comes around, I would be disappointed if CW and MJ did not average 32+ mpg.

Unless others are seriously earning the minutes, how can you play these two guys less than 80% of the game? They are two of the most athletic basketball players UD has ever seen, and the Flyers will go as they go.

Being the capable athletes they are, I would imagine they could handle pressing on D most of the game, but if not, I would sacrifice the full court pressure to have these guys on the court.

[hessbz12]

Alot of good analysis on here thus far. I won't add too much. I was impressed with the whole entire team, minus Little and KH. But I'm sure they'll be fine. One thing is for certain, we are not lacking pure athletes! Those guys in warmups were unreal. Half the team's heads were at the rim when they were dunking. Even Thomas was throwing down.

I'm impressed with the guard play and happy with what I saw thus far. It was great to see MP on fire! I hope he can find some games like that in the season! Can't wait for the first exhibition!

Go Flyers!

[Figgie123]

I also remember seeing a lot of full court man to man.

So Figgie can you share what disappointed you compared to expectations?

I suppose it's my "view" of full court press, or full court man-to-man. Having one man on the ball from inbounds to free throw line with noone else involved doesn't count as a press to me. We've gotten pressed hard a lot in the last few years ... one man on the ball, one man on the received. Therefore, we bring a third man up, and so do they, then we make a bad play and turn it over. For us, when we've done that in the past, as soon as the ball is inbounded, the only player to stay press is the man on the ball. So, yes, I probably agree, they were playing full court man to man, but the same old stuff to me.

Figgie, I won't pick on too much, heck I wasn't there, but you didn't sound negative until the very end, what exactly would make you temper your expectations?

One thing to pick on though, was your statement that the D2 squads in exhibition won't put up any effort. I seriously doubt this, especially when compared to the athletes in action types that used to come in here and every where else each preseason. Those AIC kids could have been playing their 7th game in 8 nights, combined w/ all that travel and life on the road, I can easily see how they'd mail in a game or 2. Meanwhile, the D2 kids come in and play 2 exhibition games in front of their largest crowds of the season with a chance to "stick" it to the big name schools that didn't recruit you out of high school. Those kids I assume are playing full out; it may well be the only 2 games of their season that gets any type of media coverage, possibly even local TV coverage or Big 10 channel coverage.

That's the reason why Findley knocked off OSU in recent seasons, and came close to knocking off UD. They've played together before, play w/ a purpose, and play hard. I much prefer the exhibition games vs the various D2 schools compared to the exhibition vs a ragamuffin band of players from all over the place put together on short notice with little practice, knowing they'll move on their seperate ways after 2 weeks.

Okay, I probably posted that in haste, and it came out wrong. I shouldn't have said, 'put up any effort', but rather something along the lines of the D2 teams in exhibitions won't be as strong and capable as some of the non-con games. Now, looking at the play-by-play for last years 2 exhibition games, Findlay was actually ahead by 7 late in the 2nd half, and we only won it in the last minute. California (Pa.) though, was put away early in the 2nd half (10+ point lead) and we had some bench sitters playing with 2 minutes left. At least we can see how the offense and defense plays in a true team game, against opponents with "limited" knowledge of the team players and how they usually act.

... and is a perfect reason what drives me nuts about LW, there was absolutely no reason to throw the ball to Thomas in that situation. LW was under no pressure and Thomas was not going to be able to do anything with 30+ feet from the basket. LW makes a lot of unforced TOs and the pass to Thomas was a perfect example.

But, was that London's fault, or Stephen's fault? Is London trying to make a play while the other team isn't thinking, and Stephen isn't thinking team ball? Or is Stephen getting to his spot so London shouldn't throw yet? If London needs to constantly wait for people to get into position, the opponent will be in position too. I argued for London in these situations last year. The one I remember that connected very well, was the one to Devin down low. Devin was ready and was able to handle the ball. Other players must not be thinking London will pass it to them, and therefore can't handle the ball. Dual fault, maybe?

As for my lowered expectations; I was hoping Charles would be back to freshman/sophomore level and getting in hard. I know there were lots of bigs in the middle there, but still hoping his senior status would get him going hard, and I was disappointed there. I've always been down on Kurt, and that stayed the same for me there, but I believe he'd be the starter because of the work he puts in. Hard to make a determination on Wright and MJohnson since they didn't get their spots very well since they played against each other. Yes, Lowery and Searcy impressed me and they can help the team, but again, near the end I wrote that inbounds still have troubles as do free throws, and that has hurt us in close games in the past. So, unless we can blow out our opponents so we don't get close games, I'm a bit more afraid of what we may do to ourselves after seeing the scrimmage.

And as for the person who said that the players must have loved what I told them and would be listening, that was never the intent, and if that is what you got out of my message, well, thanks for listening, but ignore me in the future. I didn't add that the last thing I said to all the players I got autographs was "Have a Great Season!" And to some, "You guys can go all the way."

Figgie

[Sea Bass]

But, was that London's fault, or Stephen's fault? The PGs fault. Decisionmaking is the key factor in running the offense and LW makes a lot of poor decisions. His poor shooting doesn't bother me that much, it's his poor decisions that drive me nuts. Most of his TOs result from poor decisions, not poor execution ... and that is hard to fix.

Thomas is neither a scorer or a real playmaker. Giving him the ball and expecting him to "make a play" is a poor bet.

[Gazoo]

When A-10 play comes around, I would be disappointed if CW and MJ did not average 32+ mpg.

Unless others are seriously earning the minutes, how can you play these two guys less than 80% of the game? They are two of the most athletic basketball players UD has ever seen, and the Flyers will go as they go.

Being the capable athletes they are, I would imagine they could handle pressing on D most of the game, but if not, I would sacrifice the full court pressure to have these guys on the court.

Players averaging over 30 MPG:
2007: 1 (BR)
2006: 1 (BR)
2005: 1 (BR)
2004: 0

I'm not saying it WON'T happen, I'm just saying I wouldn't personally count on it. BG likes to run too many different bodies out there.

If you've got 2 guys averaging 32 MPG, that would mean we're not going 8 or 9 deep and all those other players we're oooh-ing and aahhh-ing about will be sitting on the bench for all but about 4-5 minutes a game.

Not that there's anything wrong with that, just don't count on MP to have the chance to score 20 points, Chris Johnson / Josh Benson / Luke F. will hardly see the court, and Thomas will transfer by year's end. There just aren't enough minutes to go around.

[Fudd]

The most impressive drill of the day before the scrimmage was the weave where they pass to each other all the way down the court without dribbling. We had some groups that absolutely flew down the floor and Searcy, Benson and Wright were putting down some nasty dunks going full speed.

I think we are going to see plenty of Searcy and Benson this year. They fit too well into the style that we want to run to sit on the bench too often.

[Gazoo]

First, because it's unlikely we'll score 126 points in any game this year.

Second, it's unlikely that the following players will average this many minutes:

CW: 33
MJ: 32

KH: 27
DS: 25

Lowrey: 32
LW: 31

MP: 30
CJ: 27

Could CW average 33 MPG? Sure, but not playing the way he did Saturday.

Third, just look up the stats from last year's red/blue game. We were fawning over our scoring production from every member of the team. Turns out we only had 2 bona fide scorers, BR and CW. Excuse me while I DON'T get my hopes up just yet over a glorified game of street ball.



I apologize for the cut/paste of all the following disses in my post, which is all I was planning to do. No compliments here.

Everyone got better from last year. Everyone.

Looks like they've been practicing hard

Fab . . . Not only has a high release, but it's quick and true. We'll love watching this kid someday.

Don't count on MP shooting like that every day. . . but ohhhhh if he did. . . (apparently I SHOULD count on him never missing another 3-pointer in his college career according to fan4life)

Searcy looked like he's really grown into his body. Less flopping around and more control.

LW looked -- dare I say it?? -- confident shooting a 10-15 footer.


Hey, how about last year's Red / Blue highlights. I couldn't find a box score but let's compare to season averages in red.

Corderio scored 8 points (2.4) that's 30%, less than half
MP had 9 points (2.8) that's 31%, less than half
JB had 14, leading all scorers (6.0) that's 43%, less than half
CL chipped in 12 (8.0) that's 66%, one guy was more than half

Those were the only players mentioned in the article. If someone can find the box score I can compare the rest. BR of course had a horrible red/blue game last year and had a much better season.

But on the whole these things lead to false hopes. I stand by my statement that you have to take 50% or less (with a large margin for error because it's only one game).

[oldfan]

Not having seen the game. My take of the assessments in this post is that KH and CL were subpar, that CW and MJ showed very little and Lowery outplayed LW. Using the assessment of the red and blue game as the standard for who starts I suspect it should be Lowery, Perry, CJ, Benson and Searcy.

While I do not doubt the posters of the impressions of the players, I really do not see any usable assessments of the players for in game performance until the season begins.

What the impressions from the red and blue game does tell me is that the new recruits that BG has brought in are as advertised and are hungry to play.

[shocka43]

I suppose it's my "view" of full court press, or full court man-to-man. Having one man on the ball from inbounds to free throw line with noone else involved doesn't count as a press to me. We've gotten pressed hard a lot in the last few years ... one man on the ball, one man on the received. Therefore, we bring a third man up, and so do they, then we make a bad play and turn it over. For us, when we've done that in the past, as soon as the ball is inbounded, the only player to stay press is the man on the ball. So, yes, I probably agree, they were playing full court man to man, but the same old stuff to me.

It is a press and always will be. Man-Man versus trap in the full court serve two totally different purposes.

Man-Man---try and make it hard for the offense to inbound the ball and slow the tempo. Other than that...Everyone on O except for the ball handler clears out and the press is beat.

The press we have seen in the last few years is a trap. Starts out as your man-man look and the first pass in is trapped hard. More aggressive teams trap the reversal as well. Unfortunately in the past we have sucked at ball reversals out of the trap and the backside big man fails to relocate to the middle as the relief. Thats why it appears to have drastic differences.

Man-man= easy to beat.

Trap against UD=we haven't been that successful against it.

IMHO, the full man press was for conditioning purposes during the scrimmage.

[ClearTheRunwayForWLJ]

If CW does not play over 30 minutes a game ... I will be shocked!! SHOCKED!

He is who we will revolve around. He will anchor our offense and our defense, the latter Roberts did not do.

He had a year off and conditioned his butt off, he is stronger, faster and more in shape ... he is playing 30 mpg this season.


I also find it hard not seeing Marcus play at 28 mpg ...


But CW will be over 30 minutes or right near it, no chance he doesnt.

[UDF4N4LIF3]

I think Johnson and Wright will get 30 min a game. Just not all at the same posistion. Wright will get time at SF,PF. Marcus Johnson will get time at the SG,SF posistions.

When M.J is playing SF, Williams and Perry will be playing the SG. And when Wright is playing the PF, Marcus Johnson and Chris Johnson will be play the SF.

[LebronJames]

If you've got 2 guys averaging 32 MPG, that would mean we're not going 8 or 9 deep and all those other players we're oooh-ing and aahhh-ing about will be sitting on the bench for all but about 4-5 minutes a game.

Not that there's anything wrong with that, just don't count on MP to have the chance to score 20 points, Chris Johnson / Josh Benson / Luke F. will hardly see the court, and Thomas will transfer by year's end. There just aren't enough minutes to go around.


That's exactly what I found myself thinking at the Red/Blue game....How in the world is BG going to sufficiently distribute the minutes to all of these very impressive players who seem like they warrant playing time.

--Marcus averaged 29.5 mpg last year. I don't really see these minutes declining due to the fact that it appears he is taking on a leadership role.

--Chris W. is one of the top 3 players in the A10. Assuming healthy, not playing him high minutes would be travesty IMO.

There are then approx. 136 minutes to go around.

I see:

PG
40 mpg between LW/RL/ST
SG
32 mpg MJ
8 mpg between RL/ST/MP/PW
SF
16 mpg CW
24 mpg MP/CJ/PW
PF
16 mpg CW
24 mpg CL/JB
C
40 mpg KH/DS

That is a rotation of 8-9 players with others getting around 6-8 mpg.
I feel this is a fairly realistic scenario of how things will pan out. I don't see LF getting significant minutes this season, and ST/JB will likely be limited as well, although probably not as much.
The only way I see either MJ or CW not averaging 32+ minutes is if PW or CJ turn out to be incredible from the gate and start pulling more minutes towards A10 play.
We may be ooohing and ahhhing about the future...but MJ and CW are now.

[Sea Bass]

I hope no one gets 30 minutes. To play the style I am hoping to see guys like MJ and CW shouldn't get more than 26-28 minutes a game.

[San Diego Flyer]

But, was that London's fault, or Stephen's fault? Is London trying to make a play while the other team isn't thinking, and Stephen isn't thinking team ball? Or is Stephen getting to his spot so London shouldn't throw yet? Figgie

This can be a tough call, but my coaches told me that if a pg hits another guard in the back of the head it's the other guards fault. He should be alert. Heck, Jason Kidd had that problem on the Mavs last year.

That said, I don't think it applies to all situations. If the other guard is in traffic with nowhere to go, don't throw it.

I think one has to look at the whole body of work. I would have to wonder why a guard is blending into traffic when his team is pushing the ball?

I would think this stuff will work itself out with more practice time.

[ClearTheRunwayForWLJ]

If CW plays 26 minutes a game this year I will flip out.

The best player in the A-10 arguably ... has to play a minimum of 30 min a game.

No questions, no worries, no matter what style we play, he will play 30 minutes a game.


Part of BG's job is to get CW to the next level as well, CW signed with UD not just to be at home but because he felt he could be "the man" at this school and if he wants to establish himself as a 1st round pick, the kid is going to play a minimum of 30 minutes a game.

25 or 26 minutes a game for CW is the funniest joke I have heard in a long time.

[GetFlyeredup]

If CW plays 26 minutes a game this year I will flip out.

The best player in the A-10 arguably ... has to play a minimum of 30 min a game.

No questions, no worries, no matter what style we play, he will play 30 minutes a game.


Part of BG's job is to get CW to the next level as well, CW signed with UD not just to be at home but because he felt he could be "the man" at this school and if he wants to establish himself as a 1st round pick, the kid is going to play a minimum of 30 minutes a game.

25 or 26 minutes a game for CW is the funniest joke I have heard in a long time.

I completely agree. Every game he is healthy and out of foul trouble, CW should get 28-30 minutes a game.

[Browns]

I don't think CW playing thirty minutes a game has as much to do with BG as it does with CW. If he is in good enough condition to play at a high level for 30+ minutes a game BG will keep him on the floor as any coach would.

[Figgie123]

This can be a tough call, but my coaches told me that if a pg hits another guard in the back of the head it's the other guards fault. He should be alert. Heck, Jason Kidd had that problem on the Mavs last year.

That said, I don't think it applies to all situations. If the other guard is in traffic with nowhere to go, don't throw it.

I think one has to look at the whole body of work. I would have to wonder why a guard is blending into traffic when his team is pushing the ball?

I would think this stuff will work itself out with more practice time.

I'll explain a little bit about the play, as I was sitting behind the visitor's bench for the scrimmage. London had the ball coming up the middle, and Stephen was coming up on the left wing, possibly going to the corner 3 point spot. London was coming up on a defender (presumably Lowery), and Thomas wasn't covered closely, maybe Perry inside the arc. London and Stephen are about the same distance up court, London at the top of the arc, and he passes quickly to Thomas, but it goes behind him, because Thomas was going up court still.

You mention that this stuff should work itself out in practice, and I agree with you. And, as a scrimmage, it's hard to point out issues because you will have 5 guys playing together who most likely will not play together all year long in certain instances. (London AND Thomas on at the same time? Lowery and Thomas maybe, but probably not London, IMHO.) But, I've always wondered if a hockey type substitution and playing pattern would help in certain instances. That way you can get a set of 2 or 3 guys that would always be playing together in practices, and on court. That way you can learn what the other players instincts are and be ready for them. I always think of Magic Johnson, and the Lakers. He could no look pass to the left because he knew someone was (a) there based on peripheral vision, and (b) knew the person was expecting the ball.

Maybe that is why I like London, even with some of his shortcomings. (turnovers (his or other's faults), poor 3point or far shooting, bad fouls) Because he seems to have a bit of a vision of where a play may come from and he is able to rocket a ball somewhere without the opposition knowing it's happening.

Anyway, 9 days away to exhibition game #1.

Figgie

[UDF4N4LIF3]

I don't think CW playing thirty minutes a game has as much to do with BG as it does with CW. If he is in good enough condition to play at a high level for 30+ minutes a game BG will keep him on the floor as any coach would.

If he is in good enough condition? Have you seen Chris Wright? The dude looks like the HULK. I don't think running will be the issue here.

[Gazoo]

I don't remember seeing anyone suggesting 25 MPG for Wright, but maybe I missed it.

However, don't forget that CW will be playing under the basket where physical play and fighting guys for rebounds wears you out quicker. That's why only BR has played that many minutes for BG. He was standing outside waiting for the outlet most of the time. (Not disparaging BR at all)

Real or perception on BG's part, I just don't see BG playing a guy under / around the basket for OVER 32 MPG. Even superman might only play 28-29 just because of the physical demands.

We could be so lucky that CW can handle 35 MPG. I hope I hope I hope

[MrFlyerFanatic]

I saw a lot of potential interchangeable parts. I only saw potential because it's hard to tell anything concrete from an inter-squad scrimage. Complete interchangeability may be a year away. Josh needs a year to match Devin's physical maturity as does Chris Johnson to gain ground on Chris Wright. From Paul William’s appearance, I put him physically closer to Marcus Johnson than the others to their competition. Only a few players are locked into a position. Kurt is going to be in the middle. Charles is going to be the PF. London is going to be at PG. Everyone else looks like they will put in time at two or more positions (CW – 2,3,4).
I will be very surprised if anyone averages 30 min/game for the season. Maybe in conference play, but I think we will see a lot of combinations in the OOC games that will keep minutes down. I see CW and MJ getting as many minutes as they need to win. That may only be 20-25 in the OOC, but 30+ in A10. Roberts played a lot of minutes last year and it took its toll late in the season.

[UDBrian]

If I were BG I would talk to Marcus and Chris and tell them that when games appear to be in hand that I would like to spread some minutes to keep the younger players happy. this would also keep them fresher as the season wears on. I'm not talking about the last five minutes. But, if we are up 15 in the first half I would be trying to get them some extra minutes.

[San Diego Flyer]

I'll explain a little bit about the play, as I was sitting behind the visitor's bench for the scrimmage. London had the ball coming up the middle, and Stephen was coming up on the left wing, possibly going to the corner 3 point spot. London was coming up on a defender (presumably Lowery), and Thomas wasn't covered closely, maybe Perry inside the arc. London and Stephen are about the same distance up court, London at the top of the arc, and he passes quickly to Thomas, but it goes behind him, because Thomas was going up court still.

You mention that this stuff should work itself out in practice, and I agree with you. And, as a scrimmage, it's hard to point out issues because you will have 5 guys playing together who most likely will not play together all year long in certain instances. (London AND Thomas on at the same time? Lowery and Thomas maybe, but probably not London, IMHO.) But, I've always wondered if a hockey type substitution and playing pattern would help in certain instances. That way you can get a set of 2 or 3 guys that would always be playing together in practices, and on court. That way you can learn what the other players instincts are and be ready for them. I always think of Magic Johnson, and the Lakers. He could no look pass to the left because he knew someone was (a) there based on peripheral vision, and (b) knew the person was expecting the ball.

Maybe that is why I like London, even with some of his shortcomings. (turnovers (his or other's faults), poor 3point or far shooting, bad fouls) Because he seems to have a bit of a vision of where a play may come from and he is able to rocket a ball somewhere without the opposition knowing it's happening.

Anyway, 9 days away to exhibition game #1.

Figgie

As you described the turnover, that is a "pilot error". London has to know Thomas has spotted up and not still moving. Obviously he did not know. Again, practice.

Maybe London is getting the "no look" part of the play down!! :D

[shocka43]

Even as critical as we are we have to remember one thing....This is the first time these guys have played together, in front of any crowd, other than practice....And even in the practice, it has only been a week or so of STRUCTURED practice.

They will come together, and yes, they have work to do. These guys were playing hard and things happen.

Just remember back to the days of playing ball whether it be in HS or College for all of us. Think about how amped you were to get in front of an audience each and every season. Pre-season or not. These guys feel it just the same. It is early. Too early to tell much of anything for that matter, other than speculation. We can evaluate a scrimmage from our view, but many of our "suggestions" will take a turn here in a few weeks as the kinks get worked out, nerves level off, and these guys start to gel with the new faces.

[hessbz12]

Like I said, I was out at the scrimmage on Saturday. Here is my major question for everyone. Who do we go to when we need a bucket to win the game? For the last 2-3 years its been BRob and Lord knows he was pretty darn clutch. We have ALOT of excellent athletes with alot of skill, but do we have one player who can knock down that jumper when it is needed in an intense A-10 game?

[Flyergrad]

Like I said, I was out at the scrimmage on Saturday. Here is my major question for everyone. Who do we go to when we need a bucket to win the game? For the last 2-3 years its been BRob and Lord knows he was pretty darn clutch. We have ALOT of excellent athletes with alot of skill, but do we have one player who can knock down that jumper when it is needed in an intense A-10 game?

I think it would be MJ and CW at this point. The nature of college basketball is that you have to answer that question every year. If your lucky like we have been you can have a couple of years of not having to worry about this.

It is easy to look and say with the lose of Brob we have nobody that will fill this role. I'll bet we had a similar question a few years ago. Players emerge. Hopefully we see that again. I think we will.

[Gazoo]

We go to MJ and send CL and CW to the boards, in my opinion.

[San Diego Flyer]

I don't see anyone like Roberts who is a "clear out" lock to get the ball. Hopefully Mickey intills some confidence in the coach to where he will be an option spotting up. I like CW & MJ for their ft shooting if they get hammered. Don't like Little in the mix for the same reason.

I could see Chris Johnson in that scrum after only a few games due to his possibly having the whole package plus a history of being an offensive rebounder.

We should have some situational options in the form of plays as a "go-to" , and not always simply a player.

[UDBrian]

I'm hoping that the ball is in Rob's hands. Try to get Chris or Marcus in a switch mismatch and if that isn't possible then Rob can drive with a bunch of great rebounders crashing the glass. If Rob gets in trouble he can just throw it up in the general area of Chris. I know that Rob hasn't proven anything yet but that would be my ideal situation.

[UD Sam]

This is my first post and I just wanted to thank everyone who attended the Red vs Blue game and posted their observations. I am more excited than ever for the season to start after reading the positive comments on the freshmen. Although the new guys may not end up starting or getting major minutes, it looks like some will definitely contribute. I'm also looking forward to the battle between LW and RL. I'm rooting for Rob unless London has greatly improved his shooting (inc. free throws) and decision making skills. And many thanks to the courteous and reasonable posters who keep the threads interesting.

[Glen Clark]

This is my first post and I just wanted to thank everyone who attended the Red vs Blue game and posted their observations. I am more excited than ever for the season to start after reading the positive comments on the freshmen. Although the new guys may not end up starting or getting major minutes, it looks like some will definitely contribute. I'm also looking forward to the battle between LW and RL. I'm rooting for Rob unless London has greatly improved his shooting (inc. free throws) and decision making skills. And many thanks to the courteous and reasonable posters who keep the threads interesting.

. . . and welcome to the board.