Impressions so far

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Boo Buie - not good last night. Tried to do too much one on one. 6 turnovers is awful.
Chase Audige - Is Lowery or McIntosh getting thru to him? 9 assists is off the charts. Only 3 turnovers. Active on defense. Only 2 of 7 shooting, but 2 of 4 from 3.
Ty Berry - hot shooting in first half, cooled off. 5 of 14 overall, but 4 of 10 on 3 pointers. 7 rebounds.
Robbie Beran - very nice game. Active on boards and was looking to score. 20 pts, 7 rebounds in 32 minutes.
Matt Nicholson - 4 dunks in 13 minutes. 9 pts, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block. No turnovers, 1 foul. Ran the floor, defended well. Good effort.
Ty Verhoeven - 21 minutes. Only took 1 shot, made it. 3 defensive rebounds, 5 fouls. Somewhat rough night overall.
Brooks Barnhizer - Played 27 minutes but only scored 5 points on 2 of 5 shooting. 5 rebounds. So-so performance
Luke Hunger - Played 6 minutes and looked more comfortable. Is going to play as needed.
Nick Martinelli - Played 3 minutes late in the game. Moves fluidly, but probably won't play much unless Beran gets hurt.

The Cats have played two inferior teams, so can't get too excited. When Roper gets back, Barnhizer and Berry will play less, but I'm expecting Roper to be pretty good.
My hope is that Hunger makes rapid progress and becomes a productive backup to Matt Nicholson. If that happens, this team might save Collins' job.

 

[TheC]

I want to be excited about the numbers some of the guys put up last night, but then I remember we beat this Chicago State program 111-66 two years ago. Not sure if we can learn anything from last night.

 

[clarificationcat]

I want to be excited about the numbers some of the guys put up last night, but then I remember we beat this Chicago State program 111-66 two years ago. Not sure if we can learn anything from last night.

We did not look good in person. Offense struggled to find any kind of rhythm. Low energy. We really miss Nance, obviously. He stretched the defense, made good passes and could drive pass some centers. Not to mention rebound and block shots. And no low-post presence at all without Young. Audige played under control and played great defense. Buie struggled but we know what he can do at this point (for good and bad). He took good shots but missed easy ones around the basket. Turned the ball over a lot but not too concerned about that. I hope that Roper is our best player (I think he can be) because otherwise I suspect that folks are right about how much we will struggle. Roper was energetic on the bench and did not appear to be injured (reported to be an illness).

Barnhizer is a nice guy to have on the team. Won't be a star but will contribute in a lot of ways and his 3-point shot looks good.

Verhoeven is a body. We couldn't get it to him in the post and he is not a particularly dynamic athlete.

Will be curious to see how Nicholson does against better opponents. He is still very raw offensively but he ran the court well for his size and got a couple of easy baskets (which we need).

Hunger looks like a rotation guy down the road. Solid frame with limited athleticism. Not sure what Martinelli brings to the table. Looks like a tweener. Not big enough to be a force down low and not quick or athletic enough to get around people. Seems like a poor man's Barnhizer and we didn't need two of them. I think this recruiting class (or lack thereof) is going to set the program further back. I hope I am wrong.

As much as folks complained about last year, we were in almost every game until the end even against very good teams. Not good enough but exciting games. When we shoot well from 3, games will be competitive but otherwise I don't see how we are going to consistently put the ball in the basket. Fast breaks were as awful as ever. I don't know if I have ever seen a team struggle as much as we do to finish on fast breaks. Often turns into a fast break for the other team after we get our shot blocked or pass stolen.

I don't think Collins is a bad coach (unlike pretty much everyone else on this board) but not being able to make it happen last year (together with the vote of no confidence) doomed the program under him.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

We did not look good in person. Offense struggled to find any kind of rhythm. Low energy. We really miss Nance, obviously. He stretched the defense, made good passes and could drive pass some centers. Not to mention rebound and block shots. And no low-post presence at all without Young. Audige played under control and played great defense. Buie struggled but we know what he can do at this point (for good and bad). He took good shots but missed easy ones around the basket. Turned the ball over a lot but not too concerned about that. I hope that Roper is our best player (I think he can be) because otherwise I suspect that folks are right about how much we will struggle. Roper was energetic on the bench and did not appear to be injured (reported to be an illness).

Barnhizer is a nice guy to have on the team. Won't be a star but will contribute in a lot of ways and his 3-point shot looks good.

Verhoeven is a body. We couldn't get it to him in the post and he is not a particularly dynamic athlete.

Will be curious to see how Nicholson does against better opponents. He is still very raw offensively but he ran the court well for his size and got a couple of easy baskets (which we need).

Hunger looks like a rotation guy down the road. Solid frame with limited athleticism. Not sure what Martinelli brings to the table. Looks like a tweener. Not big enough to be a force down low and not quick or athletic enough to get around people. Seems like a poor man's Barnhizer and we didn't need two of them. I think this recruiting class (or lack thereof) is going to set the program further back. I hope I am wrong.

As much as folks complained about last year, we were in almost every game until the end even against very good teams. Not good enough but exciting games. When we shoot well from 3, games will be competitive but otherwise I don't see how we are going to consistently put the ball in the basket. Fast breaks were as awful as ever. I don't know if I have ever seen a team struggle as much as we do to finish on fast breaks. Often turns into a fast break for the other team after we get our shot blocked or pass stolen.

I don't think Collins is a bad coach (unlike pretty much everyone else on this board) but not being able to make it happen last year (together with the vote of no confidence) doomed the program under him.

Yep Roper is the key. Boo and Chase get smacked around on here for bad shots, but who would you want shooting on this team? Berry, Barny, and Robbie just aren’t great at creating their own shot, so they will rely on the 3 best players on the team to get good shots. Big Matt better be Barkley with rebounding or more trouble on the glass. If anyone gets hurt, it curtains.

At least we’ll get prompt updates on Nance and Young’s stats each game.

 

[vee4three]

My biggest positive takeaway: after 32 minutes, Beran is already almost halfway to his made free throw total for all of last season! Quality of competition, I know, but they played plenty of crummy teams last year, too.

If this team is going to be sneaky competitive, they need Robbie to double his scoring output -- so he's gotta find ways to put the ball in the basket even if his first couple of 3-balls don't fall. We'll see if he can bring that mentality night in and night out, but it's a promising start. With Nance gone, the opportunity is there for him.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

My biggest positive takeaway: after 32 minutes, Beran is already almost halfway to his made free throw total for all of last season! Quality of competition, I know, but they played plenty of crummy teams last year, too.

If this team is going to be sneaky competitive, they need Robbie to double his scoring output -- so he's gotta find ways to put the ball in the basket even if his first couple of 3-balls don't fall. We'll see if he can bring that mentality night in and night out, but it's a promising start. With Nance gone, the opportunity is there for him.

That is an astute observation. As someone who has called Beran "soft" in the past, I had no idea he shot less than 1 free throw per game last year. Thats mind-boggling. That and his assist total. The sad thing is that he actually does have a nice shot and he does sometimes make plays as a help defender. He has made a tiny improvement each of his 3 seasons at NU.

I think you are correct that its a good sign that Beran is getting to the line. Maybe things are (finally) starting to click....

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

We did not look good in person. Offense struggled to find any kind of rhythm. Low energy. We really miss Nance, obviously. He stretched the defense, made good passes and could drive pass some centers. Not to mention rebound and block shots. And no low-post presence at all without Young. Audige played under control and played great defense. Buie struggled but we know what he can do at this point (for good and bad). He took good shots but missed easy ones around the basket. Turned the ball over a lot but not too concerned about that. I hope that Roper is our best player (I think he can be) because otherwise I suspect that folks are right about how much we will struggle. Roper was energetic on the bench and did not appear to be injured (reported to be an illness).

Barnhizer is a nice guy to have on the team. Won't be a star but will contribute in a lot of ways and his 3-point shot looks good.

Verhoeven is a body. We couldn't get it to him in the post and he is not a particularly dynamic athlete.

Will be curious to see how Nicholson does against better opponents. He is still very raw offensively but he ran the court well for his size and got a couple of easy baskets (which we need).

Hunger looks like a rotation guy down the road. Solid frame with limited athleticism. Not sure what Martinelli brings to the table. Looks like a tweener. Not big enough to be a force down low and not quick or athletic enough to get around people. Seems like a poor man's Barnhizer and we didn't need two of them. I think this recruiting class (or lack thereof) is going to set the program further back. I hope I am wrong.

As much as folks complained about last year, we were in almost every game until the end even against very good teams. Not good enough but exciting games. When we shoot well from 3, games will be competitive but otherwise I don't see how we are going to consistently put the ball in the basket. Fast breaks were as awful as ever. I don't know if I have ever seen a team struggle as much as we do to finish on fast breaks. Often turns into a fast break for the other team after we get our shot blocked or pass stolen.

I don't think Collins is a bad coach (unlike pretty much everyone else on this board) but not being able to make it happen last year (together with the vote of no confidence) doomed the program under him.

I agree with your player evaluations. One thing I noticed about Martinelli is that he isn't afraid to take the ball into the paint. I think he might be decent. Hunger hasn't had much of an opportunity, but Collins seems to favor Verhoeven, which is fine for the first bunch of games, but in the long run, the sooner Hunger gets experience, the better.

Our guards really need to learn how to pass the ball into the low post. And Nicholson, in particular, could use some instruction on posting up. If we can get that going, the offense becomes much less stagnant.

 

[clarificationcat]

I agree with your player evaluations. One thing I noticed about Martinelli is that he isn't afraid to take the ball into the paint. I think he might be decent. Hunger hasn't had much of an opportunity, but Collins seems to favor Verhoeven, which is fine for the first bunch of games, but in the long run, the sooner Hunger gets experience, the better.

Our guards really need to learn how to pass the ball into the low post. And Nicholson, in particular, could use some instruction on posting up. If we can get that going, the offense becomes much less stagnant.

Hope you are right about Martinelli. He may be a guy that needs to play more minutes to be effective. In warmups he kept shooting 6-foot runners, which I though was kind of odd.

And agreed that we will need some kind of low-post presence to make the offense flow.

 

[NUCat320]

Hope you are right about Martinelli. He may be a guy that needs to play more minutes to be effective. In warmups he kept shooting 6-foot runners, which I though was kind of odd.

And agreed that we will need some kind of low-post presence to make the offense flow.

6-foot runner was the key offensive play when NU made The Dance. That’s just McIntosh’s coaching having an immediate effect.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

6-foot runner was the key offensive play when NU made The Dance. That’s just McIntosh’s coaching having an immediate effect.

thats interesting - it was the only shot berry made in the exhibition game.

 

[clarificationcat]

6-foot runner was the key offensive play when NU made The Dance. That’s just McIntosh’s coaching having an immediate effect.

McIntosh was a point guard. Martinelli is supposed to be at least 6 foot 7. He needs to get stronger and figure out how to use his length to his advantage. Runners should not be what he is working on right now. It was just a few shots so I don’t want to make something of it. I would just rather see our 3’s and 4’s dunking with their head at the rim in warmups, if possible.

 

[NUCat320]

McIntosh was a point guard. Martinelli is supposed to be at least 6 foot 7. He needs to get stronger and figure out how to use his length to his advantage. Runners should not be what he is working on right now. It was just a few shots so I don’t want to make something of it. I would just rather see our 3’s and 4’s dunking with their head at the rim in warmups, if possible.

I was just hoping for giggle reactions.

 

[clarificationcat]

I was just hoping for giggle reactions.

Got it. Sorry. It's funny once you understand it.

 

[phatcat]

We did not look good in person. Offense struggled to find any kind of rhythm. Low energy. We really miss Nance, obviously. He stretched the defense, made good passes and could drive pass some centers. Not to mention rebound and block shots. And no low-post presence at all without Young. Audige played under control and played great defense. Buie struggled but we know what he can do at this point (for good and bad). He took good shots but missed easy ones around the basket. Turned the ball over a lot but not too concerned about that. I hope that Roper is our best player (I think he can be) because otherwise I suspect that folks are right about how much we will struggle. Roper was energetic on the bench and did not appear to be injured (reported to be an illness).

Barnhizer is a nice guy to have on the team. Won't be a star but will contribute in a lot of ways and his 3-point shot looks good.

Verhoeven is a body. We couldn't get it to him in the post and he is not a particularly dynamic athlete.

Will be curious to see how Nicholson does against better opponents. He is still very raw offensively but he ran the court well for his size and got a couple of easy baskets (which we need).

Hunger looks like a rotation guy down the road. Solid frame with limited athleticism. Not sure what Martinelli brings to the table. Looks like a tweener. Not big enough to be a force down low and not quick or athletic enough to get around people. Seems like a poor man's Barnhizer and we didn't need two of them. I think this recruiting class (or lack thereof) is going to set the program further back. I hope I am wrong.

As much as folks complained about last year, we were in almost every game until the end even against very good teams. Not good enough but exciting games. When we shoot well from 3, games will be competitive but otherwise I don't see how we are going to consistently put the ball in the basket. Fast breaks were as awful as ever. I don't know if I have ever seen a team struggle as much as we do to finish on fast breaks. Often turns into a fast break for the other team after we get our shot blocked or pass stolen.

I don't think Collins is a bad coach (unlike pretty much everyone else on this board) but not being able to make it happen last year (together with the vote of no confidence) doomed the program under him.

People complained about last year's team because we all think it was a near-term peak, which resulted in next to nothing

 

[clarificationcat]

People complained about last year's team because we all think it was a near-term peak, which resulted in next to nothing

Understood. We lost a bunch of close games. It was frustrating. But the games were exciting. I don’t think that will be the case this year.

 

[BarefootCat]

6-foot runner was the key offensive play when NU made The Dance. That’s just McIntosh’s coaching having an immediate effect.

I have always thought the CCC teams have horrible shot selection with way too many inefficient midrange jumpers/floaters. Even during The Dance run, this was true…but McIntosh was good at making many of those inefficient shots, so he repeatedly bailed the team out (kind of like how Carmelo Anthony takes lots of bad midrange jumpers, but because he is so good, it’s ok for him to take those shots).

The coaching problem occurs when CCC or McIntosh green lights or even encourages less talented players to take inefficient shots. This will depress our team scoring to be less than the talent on the floor, and makes our team easier to defend.

I’m sad to hear that our coaches may be encouraging our players to practice taking bad shots.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Understood. We lost a bunch of close games. It was frustrating. But the games were exciting. I don’t think that will be the case this year.

I think we are going to be much better than people think, but perhaps not the most optimistic fans...
Tre Demps said "I expect this team to be in the upper half of the Big Ten."

 

[catcrazy]

If we are in the upper half of the big ten then I'm nominating Collins for president. I'm not nearly as optimistic as Purplewhiteboy

 

[GatoLouco]

I think we are going to be much better than people think, but perhaps not the most optimistic fans...
Tre Demps said "I expect this team to be in the upper half of the Big Ten."

Love Tre, but he's a fanboy

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

If we are in the upper half of the big ten then I'm nominating Collins for president. I'm not nearly as optimistic as Purplewhiteboy

It was Tre Demps who said that, not me!
However I am definitely optimistic.
Maybe people haven't been able to watch the games because they're only on BTN+, but there are many things to be encouraged about...

 

[Catreporter]

Interesting challenge for Nicholson next week against Georgetown with two seven footers.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

I think we are going to be much better than people think, but perhaps not the most optimistic fans...
Tre Demps said "I expect this team to be in the upper half of the Big Ten."

No chance.

 

[CappyNU]

Interesting challenge for Nicholson next week against Georgetown with two seven footers.

Mutombo only got 2 minutes in a double OT game, so I don't think he's ready for prime-time. It's Qudus Wahab, who we faced last year when he was at Maryland who will be the C if he can stay out of foul trouble, otherwise it'll be the Pete Nance-esque UConn transfer Akok Akok, at C for them.

 

[ballerog711]

Akok had 18 points 12 reb 5 blocks and 2 assist. If Nance did that NU is a tournet team.

 

[CappyNU]

Akok had 18 points 12 reb 5 blocks and 2 assist. If Nance did that NU is a tournet team.

Ok, Nance had 19 points, 13 rebounds, 3 blocks and 3 assists against Minnesota last year. He also had 28 points, 14 boards, and 4 assists in the 2OT game against MD (with one very unfortunate missed FT).

 

[GatoLouco]

Kind of a flawed argument to suggest Akok is a18/12/5/2 guy and superior to Nance:

1) It was against Coppin State
2) It was in 42 minutes of playing time
3) It is a one game sample
4) He averaged 3.4/3.2 in 14 minutes of play last year

Actually it is not a flawed argument, it makes zero sense

 

[ballerog711]

God bless you guys.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

Nance is a very good player, NU’s best player last year. He made the correct move, how is that debatable? RY fills a need a Duke, not a hard decision? Both spent 4 years at NU. Why can’t we just wish then luck instead of always bringing it back to “would if, could of, should of”?

 

[EagerFan]

That's not going to happen. We'll see threads for *at least* the rest of this season about Nance and Young mixed in along with the threads about the current team.

It works for me. I'm always interested in how our graduates are doing in the european and semi-pro leagues after they leave NU, and I wish them well.

 

[clarificationcat]

Nance is a very good player, NU’s best player last year. He made the correct move, how is that debatable? RY fills a need a Duke, not a hard decision? Both spent 4 years at NU. Why can’t we just wish then luck instead of always bringing it back to “would if, could of, should of”?

Agreed. 4 years is all you can ask when you don’t break through.

 

[PurpleFaze]

Nance and Young would both look great on this year’s team, but can anyone actually blame them for wanting to play their final year at Duke and NC?

 

[Rebel II]

Boo Buie - not good last night. Tried to do too much one on one. 6 turnovers is awful.
Chase Audige - Is Lowery or McIntosh getting thru to him? 9 assists is off the charts. Only 3 turnovers. Active on defense. Only 2 of 7 shooting, but 2 of 4 from 3.
Ty Berry - hot shooting in first half, cooled off. 5 of 14 overall, but 4 of 10 on 3 pointers. 7 rebounds.
Robbie Beran - very nice game. Active on boards and was looking to score. 20 pts, 7 rebounds in 32 minutes.
Matt Nicholson - 4 dunks in 13 minutes. 9 pts, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block. No turnovers, 1 foul. Ran the floor, defended well. Good effort.
Ty Verhoeven - 21 minutes. Only took 1 shot, made it. 3 defensive rebounds, 5 fouls. Somewhat rough night overall.
Brooks Barnhizer - Played 27 minutes but only scored 5 points on 2 of 5 shooting. 5 rebounds. So-so performance
Luke Hunger - Played 6 minutes and looked more comfortable. Is going to play as needed.
Nick Martinelli - Played 3 minutes late in the game. Moves fluidly, but probably won't play much unless Beran gets hurt.

The Cats have played two inferior teams, so can't get too excited. When Roper gets back, Barnhizer and Berry will play less, but I'm expecting Roper to be pretty good.
My hope is that Hunger makes rapid progress and becomes a productive backup to Matt Nicholson. If that happens, this team might save Collins' job.

Certainly hope you are correct!