It's Official: Egner's The Man

[Dave in Green]

I know there were a few posts in the old Egner thread from people watching tonight's Jackson game on TV. But I wanted to start a new thread, because I finally got to see in person the real Josh Egner play at his peak tonight, and it was just over-the-top impressive. The first two games I saw him play he had a supporting role to Mark Henniger. But tonight showed me the real potential of this future Zips player with star potential.

First of all, Toledo St. John's Jesuit was much tougher competition than Jackson has faced all year. They had lightning quick guards and a couple of talented big men, and they played Jackson tough. They have a really talented 6-7 freshman forward who can do it all -- dribble drive, shoot from outside, rebound, defend, etc. Their 6-4 center quickly took away Jackson's Option A of lobbing the ball into Henniger for easy buckets. Though 3 or 4 inches shorter than Henniger, he blocked 3 or 4 Henniger shots early in the game, and made it difficult to get the ball to Henniger.

Then the St. John's guards started picking the pockets of the slower Jackson guards, and Jackson started falling further behind. If it were happening to the Cavs, they'd just turn the ball over to LeBron and let him take over. And that's what Egner did.

Problem bringing the ball upcourt? Why not let Egner dribble it all the way, into the paint, through the other players and, bam!, 2 points.

Problem getting the ball inside to Henniger? Why not let Egner shoot a couple of 3s and nail them both.

Problem with the 6-7 St. John's player making plays? Why not let Egner shut him down with a couple of blocks and steals.

Problem shooting free throws? Why not send Egner to the line and let him make every one he shoots, including 4-4 in the final 15 seconds.

Problem getting rebounds at the end when St. John's is crashing the boards with all their players? Why not let Egner outjump them all and come down with key rebound after key rebound.

Problem with St. John's thinking they still have a chance to pull it out? How about a back door high pass to Egner swooping in from the corner and slamming hard from Quade Milum altitude.

So Jackson wins, 54-52, Egner ends up with 24 points and Henniger 17. But it wasn't that close in who dominated this game. Not just parts of the game, but every single aspect.

OK, it was only a HS game. But it was a big game against a tough opponent. And Egner was at his very best.

I absolutely love the guy's attitude and the way he plays the game.

The JAR was rocking tonight like I've never seen it rock. UA would be crazy not to have a Jackson High School night at one of next season's games to come see Josh play and quadruple the noise level in the JAR. Zips fans need a Jackson HS fan enthusiasm transfusion.

Or maybe just watching Josh Egner performing in a Zips uniform will do the job.

[Blue & Gold]

Most excellent! 24 against Toledo St. John's? I love what that says about the potential for his game to translate to the next level!

With Humpty, Zeke & Egner running the floor next year, I really hope we look to push the ball AMAP, get out on the fast break and get easy scores in transition before pulling it back out (if necessary) and running our half-court set.

[Dave in Green]

Photos of tonight's game here:

Ohio.com Link

[Hilltopper]

It was quite a night for Egner. Everything Dave says is true. St Johns was determined to take Henniger out of the game, so it was up to Egner to keep Jackson in the game. He did a spectacular job. He was the emotional leader of his team tonight and they fed off his energy. He hit mid-range jumpers, twisting drives thru the paint for layups, 3-pt shots and all his free throws. He had two monster throw downs. He dove for every loose ball, acted like every rebound was his and generally swatted away everything he could reach. Very impressive.

[Let'sGoZips94]

I saw him at the CBI game and thought he was Nik's brother.

[Dave in Green]

So what did Toledo St. John's Jesuit coach Ed Heintchel think about Egner's game?

Heintchel said Egner's all-around play took him by surprise.

“(Egner) showed some versatility... more than I knew he had,” he said. “He showed versatility away form the basket, putting the ball on the floor. And he's a force inside being so long.”

Suburbanite story here:

Suburbanite Link

[Dave in Green]

Side note: We were talking on the way home that it would be interesting to see how Egner might play against the best HS big in the country, Jared Sullinger. But, incredibly, Sullinger's Northland team, the #1 ranked high school in the country according to the USA Today poll, was destroyed tonight by Gahana Lincoln, 71-45.

[ZachTheZip]

Side note: We were talking on the way home that it would be interesting to see how Egner might play against the best HS big in the country, Jared Sullinger. But, incredibly, Sullinger's Northland team, the #1 ranked high school in the country according to the USA Today poll, was destroyed tonight by Gahana Lincoln, 71-45.

This kind of makes it more interesting. Their PG Stevie Taylor is a main target for the Zips class of 2011.

[Blue & Gold]

<br />Side note: We were talking on the way home that it would be interesting to see how Egner might play against the best HS big in the country, Jared Sullinger. But, incredibly, Sullinger's Northland team, the #1 ranked high school in the country according to the USA Today poll, was destroyed tonight by Gahana Lincoln, 71-45.

Jeez. Way to go Gahana-Lincoln & PG Stevie Taylor! Sign him up, Coach!

(Edit) btw, I looked it up & Stevie had 17 points against Northland. Should be an interesting game. I may just make the drive to Columbus to watch Egner & Stevie.

[vmd9]

Photos of tonight's game here:

Ohio.com Link

this pic was my favorite!

love to see a Can't recruit fail! haha

[Blue & Gold]

Good grief, talk about carrying your team, only 4 players scored for Jackson last night!

Egner led the way with 24.

Henniger added 17.

The next was a player nemed DuPont with 7.

And the only other player to put the rock in the hole was a player named Shull with 4 points.

Way to go Josh!

[GoZips88]

EXCELLENT recap DiG - thank you.

I was at the JAR last night as well and everything Dave and others have said is true - Egner has game all over the floor. Love the controlled attitude (Nik 2.0?). Definitely has the potential to be that team leader we seemed to be lacking this year. I thought to myself at least a 100 times last night there is N-O W-A-Y Dambrot can even THINK about redshirting this guy. Great game Josh - good luck next week! Can't wait to see you in Akron Blue and Gold ... and bring the mohawk with you!

Henninger, the Can't recruit, is going to be a good one too. Had trouble finishing around the basket last night a few times ... I hope that's not the last time we see that happen

[Dave in Green]

Jackson's success is built on Egner and Henniger being two big men with very different styles who work very well together. They complement each other well, and as a package offer the full range of options. I have to say that in the 3 Jackson games I've attended and reported on here, I've focused more on Egner's positives and Henniger's negatives. I don't mean to downplay Henniger's potential. But I just think that some of the things that make Henniger so dominant in HS will not translate as well to D1 as what Egner does, especially when the Zips' specific needs are taken into consideration.

Some of the things that impress me about Henniger are his ability to finish shots at the rim when not closely guarded by a quality player. He has a really nice touch, and the ball rarely bounces off the rim. I know that's something that Zips fans would like to see from more Zips players. But watching the 6-4 center block him several times tells me that Henniger is going to have to improve a lot around the rim against any decent defensive pressure. Zeke would have Henniger eating basketballs all night. Egner has more of a power approach. If he gets as close to the rim as Henniger, he slams it down with authority.

I'm also impressed with the way Henniger runs the floor. He usually beats the other team's bigs downcourt and gets open shots at the rim against the other team's faster but smaller players who can't block his shots. He even has decent ball-handling capabilities, though not to the point that he can create his own open shots like Egner can. Egner showed that he can bring the ball upcourt, similar to Nik but a little smoother. He can also blow by people through the lane and score over a tight defender.

I'm also impressed with Henniger's free throw shooting, which is pretty accurate for a big man. He shoots free throws from his chest instead of from over his head, which is OK for free throws. But he shoots short jumpers the same way, from his chest area, which makes them more blockable. Egner also hits free throws well for a big man, but he uses a more classic approach of shooting from high over his head. He does the same with his jump shots, and when you factor in his high leaping ability, his jump shots will be hard to block. Egner is an accurate jump shooter from medium range to beyond the arc.

Both Henniger and Egner play good D. Henniger is at his best close to the basket dominating the shorter players he's usually up against. He has reasonably quick feet and quick hands for a big man. Egner can play D anywhere on the court, whether chasing a guard and poking the ball away outside the arc or swatting shots by bigger players near the rim, thanks to his great leaping ability. Egner has great deceptiveness. He appears to move slowly at times and almost lulls the defense. But part of it is an illusion due to taking long strides. Then he strikes like a cobra with really quick hands and feet for a big man.

The scenario I can imagine for Henniger at Can't is that their players slash to the basket, draw in the defenders and pass to Henniger in the paint for an easy bucket, as long as Henninger is not closely guarded.

For the Zips, I see Egner being the one to slash to the basket and either take it all the way in or pass to Zeke in the paint for an easy bucket.

This is really the first time in all my years of following basketball that I've tried to assess a HS player who was coming into a college program I closely follow. Knowing that many players with great HS stats ride the bench when they reach the next level, I understand that Egner may not impress me as much against D1 college competition. Then again, his abilities and performance impressed me much more against a really tough HS opponent than against the two weaker opponents I saw him play against.

From what I've seen, Egner will make mistakes and remind us a little of Nik when he demonstrates his anger at himself for messing up. But he will refocus almost immediately and channel his emotion into a brilliant play within the next minute or two. In this area I see him a little more like Humpty than Nik. But despite his great intensity, in some ways he already comes across as more mature and controlled than some of the other Zips players. I really don't think he will be perceived as a freshman even from the minute he first enters a Zips game.

I really believe that Egner's combination of physical abilities (energy, speed, coordination, leaping ability, etc.), fundamentals (shooting form, ball control, timing, positioning, etc.) and mental attitude (competitiveness, focus, toughness, etc.) is not common at lower levels and is more indicative of a quality high-level player. This all leads me to be optimistic that he will earn PT from KD early next season, that his game performances will earn him more PT as the season goes on, and that he will be a major contributor to the Zips for 4 full seasons.

[xu9697]

Egner, based on what I read from DIG and others. sounds a lot like this guy:

http://www.nba.com/dleague/players/kevin_frey.html

This kid came to X with an energy I had not seen before. He was more athletic than some thought, and he brought a TON of energy. X was really just starting to hit another level when he arrived, and yet he still started 30 games his freshman year. Frey was more of a 4 and probably not the shooter that Egner seems to be, but some of the comparisons I read are uncannny. And, believe me..Frey was a guy that everyone that followed Xavier basketball enjoyed watching.

Guys, I watched X's program develop in the last 10-15 years to a new level. It really did not happen overnight. I see some of the same type things happening at Akron. I'm really hoping that adding Enger to an improved Humpty and Zeke will start moving Akron towards become a special program.

[GoZips88]

Egner, based on what I read from DIG and others. sounds a lot like this guy:

http://www.nba.com/dleague/players/kevin_frey.html

This kid came to X with an energy I had not seen before. He was more athletic than some thought, and he brought a TON of energy. X was really just starting to hit another level when he arrived, and yet he still started 30 games his freshman year. Frey was more of a 4 and probably not the shooter that Egner seems to be, but some of the comparisons I read are uncannny. And, believe me..Frey was a guy that everyone that followed Xavier basketball enjoyed watching.

Guys, I watched X's program develop in the last 10-15 years to a new level. It really did not happen overnight. I see some of the same type things happening at Akron. I'm really hoping that adding Enger to an improved Humpty and Zeke will start moving Akron towards become a special program.

I hadn't been to a high school basketball game for years before watching Jackson's last two games at the JAR. I, for one, can't wait to watch Egner play at the college level. Loved the thunder dunks and when he "ssshh'd" the St. John's student section after making both of his free throws.

There is no question in my simple mind that he can play and even start as a freshman. Looks to be farther along already than other true freshmen we've not redshirted and played in the past.

[Dave in Green]

OK, I've been one of Egner's biggest cheerleaders here. So I feel obligated to sound a note of caution. I just discovered the following bits of information. Prior to his brilliant 2 for 2 3-point and 6 for 6 free throw performances, Egner was:

2 of 15 from the 3-point line for the season.

55.9% from the free throw line for the season.

The fact that he had his best performance of the season when anything less would have ended Jackson's season is good. But Egner will not necessarily shoot the lights out every night.

I still think his attitude and overall game will be good for the Zips. But we shouldn't expect him to be dominant every game any more than we should have expected Zeke to dominate in his freshman season. The Zips will still need to win as a team and not expect to ride on the shoulders of Superman.

Canton Rep Link

[RootforRoo44]

OK, I've been one of Egner's biggest cheerleaders here. So I feel obligated to sound a note of caution. I just discovered the following bits of information. Prior to his brilliant 2 for 2 3-point and 6 for 6 free throw performances, Egner was:

2 of 15 from the 3-point line for the season.

55.9% from the free throw line for the season.

The fact that he had his best performance of the season when anything less would have ended Jackson's season is good. But Egner will not necessarily shoot the lights out every night.

I still think his attitude and overall game will be good for the Zips. But we shouldn't expect him to be dominant every game any more than we should have expected Zeke to dominate in his freshman season. The Zips will still need to win as a team and not expect to ride on the shoulders of Superman.

Canton Rep Link

Well can we find a "superman" at some Junior College somewhere then?