Illini Zip

The name Caris Levert does sound familiar.

This is simply unacceptable NWAkron. Don't ever let it happen again.

The point guard position is what really did Groce in at Illinois. So important for this offense. I would actually support him going after a point guard in every class.

Too many missed assignments on defense. Parrish is shooting great. Patton showing some strong defense and rebounding. Ivey keeps getting himself stuck on drives and throwing up crazy shots. I'm liking what I see from the Gbadebo kid. Cotton has some competition there.

Yep, I'm feeling that excitement building over here. And I get to watch them from my comfy chair in front of the TV. Let's go Zips!!!!

I am safely in the "really believe" camp as someone who hasn't had a reason to even drive through the state of Ohio in years, but yet possesses his very own Zippy bobblehead.

For everyone not named Allen Iverson, teaching takes place at practice. Yes, we are talking about practice. In addition to their physical training, position drills and putting up thousands of shots these guys are competing in practice at full game speed. Diving on loose balls. Taking elbows to the face. It's live action. Practice is where they prove themselves. Groce's teams are merit based and practice is where most of the roster decisions are made. We have already seen the starting line up change and player minutes change. We have seen walk-on, Sina Gbadebo get some playing time. And when we do see more of Mark Kostelac, we will know that he has earned it. Also consider that every player's game performance is graded out. Modern coaches just love statistics. There is plenty that they can see with their own eyes, but they will also look at the box score and certain plus/minus metrics to determine if a player effected the game in a positive or negative manner. For example, against Western Michigan Kostelac played 4 1/2 minutes, 0/2 shooting, 0 turnovers, 1 personal foul, 0 blocked shots, 0 FTA, 0 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 steals. In that 4 1/2 minutes he was scored on twice personally and Akron as a team was out-scored by 5 points. I'm sure there is a whole bunch more criteria that I am missing, but that's the general idea. The end result is a numerical value +/- for time played. For the record, I recently posted that our lack of size at times has hurt us with rebounding, rim protection and the ability to break down opposing zone defenses. I do see the potential in Kostelac and hope he continues to grow throughout the season. Maybe by the time we reach the MAC tournament he will be an effective contributor, but maybe not. Everything others have said about freshmen big men is true. They are slow to anticipate and slow to react. Here is a potential small ball line-up for next year where the tallest guy at tip off for Akron is Utomi at 6'-6'. Some are rightly concerned about having enough options to match up with bigger teams, but speed kills. If Akron is able to dictate an up-tempo game onto the opponent this is some fun basketball right here. Loren Jackson / Vershon Cotton Eric Hester / Torrey Patton / Vershon Cotton Eric Parrish / Jimond Ivey / Torrey Patton / LePear Toles Jimond Ivey / Daniel Utomi / Emmanuel Olojakpoke Daniel Utomi / Emmanuel Olojakpoke / Jaden Sayles Go Zips!!!

Kostelac, is that you?

Hey, can someone save me those Cambell soup can labels? How is that for nostalgic?

I think you and 1981 Grad are both right. WMU had control for most of the game and seemed to be cruising to victory, but Akron stayed assertive even when they were down big. And as a result we had a short window of opportunity at the 2:55 mark in the second half. We went on a mini run and were down 9 points. Then Ivey went for a steal at half-court and got called for a foul. If that call goes the other way and Ivey takes that steal in for a dunk, we are now down 7 points with a huge momentum swing, Things could have gotten very interesting. The end result is still the same, but 1981 Grad is absolutely right that our guys were locked in all the way to the end.

I would imagine the coaching staff is telling Utomi, Ivey and Duvivier that they have green lights to shoot all day long. Parrish, Patton and Cotton, are free to shoot when wide open and can step into their shot. Kostelac, E-man and Sales, you guys only get to take one shot out past the restricted area per game...so make it count! Ha! I think they have the big men on very tight leashes right now. But they do need to learn to hit those 10 footers in this offense and in practice they are likely shooting them regularly. I agree that Kostelac's shot was pretty damn ugly. Maybe he just got all excited. : )

I haven't posted my thoughts since before the Hawaii trip. The fact that we have to ALWAYS play small is really hurting us. It's hurting us on the boards, rim protection and breaking down zone defenses. I think Groce said recently that E-man is actually 6-6, but plays 6-8. Well that's fine until you go up against legit talent with size. I wish Kostelac could have red-shirted, but unfortunately we needed what little he has to offer us this year. Usually I only know Kostelac is on the court when he fouls and is heading back to the bench. I agree with NWAkron, I look forward to to seeing what Kostelac and Riak can bring with a full year in the system and training regiment. Having the option to slip E-man and Sales to the 4 spot will be huge for us.

Come on guys, we have WMU right where we want 'em.

Let's get it done. Go Zips!!

I am late to comment, but I did watch the game. Everybody has already hit all the high points, so I will just add that for me the difference between the first half and second half was a lack of mental toughness. After that cheap play on Cotton the basketball game turned into a battle of wills and we simply didn't rise to the occasion. I'm not saying get into fights or get ejected, but Akron needed to make damn sure USC knew they were there to compete and wouldn't be pushed around. Zippy needs to develop his alter-ego "Chippy" and I am confident he will in time. Go Zips!!

You know your team is playing soft when the fans start throwing stuffed animals onto the court at half-time. I was glad to see Patton contribute some today. Besides that, everybody besides E-Man phoned it in. I think I already forgot this game even took place. Safe travels. Go Zips!!

I tried using a GIF, but it didn't work.

That's a great question. When Griswold mentioned the 1-3-1 zone it got my attention, because I always thought Groce ran a 2-3 at Illinois. So I am going to pay closer attention next game myself. It's possible the answer is both 1-3-1 and 2-3 depending on personnel strengths. Having a guard like Duvivier leading a 1-3-1 makes perfect sense to me. Note: It turns out that Parrish is actually the guy leading the 1-3-1 zone and does a great job of moving around up top. I am just correcting myself.

Looks like Jacki Windon has her own stalker.

Just a word about Groce's use of the zone defense. As Ham implies here, he loves using it on occasion to throw the opponents offense off balance. If you see a lot of zone defense in a game, be concerned. It means we do not match up well against our opponent. Illinois was without a solid point guard for much of Groce's time there (long story), and as a result we had to play a ton of zone defense just to keep the opposing point guard from driving the paint all day. This year the Zips have a mature, physical point guard in Malcolm Duvivier, so I'm confident he will be able to lock down the front porch. Next year with 2 young point guards you might see more zone.

Thanks! Nothing like a little shameless pandering to the base to bump up your profile, right?! Ha! I already bought in emotionally, Griswold will now have to tell me where I buy in literally. I expect the handshake will come sometime after I reach Zip Junkie status.

How about Pok-E-man? I did see that first 12 footer by Pok-E-man last game and got all excited. It's just the start of things to come from all of our bigs.

I went with 16-19 just because they are young and have yet to muster the intensity necessary to defend consistently and win on the road. That said, 20+ would not surprise me at all. The talent is there to win 20+. This will be my first trip around the MAC so let's go beat the kitties and can't state. : )