Zippy87

I think it's important to for us all to remember with a lot of these guys that they are coming from different teams/systems (Ev. Mahaffey, Barre) or are just starting their careers (Er. Mahaffey, Stankovic). For example, I thought Eric and Evan both looked much more comfortable today than they did in the opener. I have a hard time believing that a player who started 1/3 of the games last year at a solid A10 school isn't good enough to even see the floor for us. It was good to see Barre out there and would assume he will play a lot Wednesday. I think we certainly need his size off the bench if we want to reach the goals we all have for this team.

Nate was fantastic in his K State debut https://x.com/lockedonKState/status/1985908752688861571?t=n6yosIV1zuU3LUMxPD1-_w&s=19

Interesting...I wonder if there just weren't many minutes there for him with Tavari, Sharron, Shammah, and Bowen all playing ahead of him. 3 of the 4 will be gone next year, though.

I certainly hope they analyze things deeper than MAC POY.

Some quick thoughts: - Lyles was our best and most important player tonight, and may be the entire season. We were a different team when he was on/off the floor. - I am surprised Barre only played 2 minutes against YSU and didn't play tonight. I expected him to be an important contributor behind Lyles. I hope he just needs more time to feel comfortable, because I think we will need him against teams with size. - Young is the heart of this team. He plays with such intensity...I absolutely love it. If he stays here his entire career, I think he's a MAC POY candidate by the time he's a senior. - Eric Mahaffey looked tentative in the first half and seemed to relax in the 2nd. You can tell the athleticism is off the charts. - Evan Mahaffey is an elite defender and excellent rebounder. Not much offensive game, though. At least I didn't see much tonight. - MMK played really well. He's undersized as a big, but makes up for it with his motor. - I think Stankovic becomes an important part of this offense by conference play.

Just having a discussion on a discussion forum. Never said Big Dog didn't deserve it.

It looks like Kaleb Thornton

Interesting choice. I wonder what made them go with Isaiah Johnson over Zeke Marshall or LCJ.

Isaiah Johnson Night on 2/14 - assuming we are putting his number up?

It will be interesting to watch this team grow over the course of the year and see the rotations develop. You're replacing about 37 PPG from last year's rotation (Nate, Gray, Seth, Okonkwo) that is going to have to come from some internal growth from returning players and/or the combo of the Mahaffeys, Head, Stankovic, and Barre. Eric Mahaffey was apparently going to start as a true freshman last year, so that certainly suggests Groce viewing him very highly. I think Evan probably gives you modest offensive production along with elite defense. I know very little of Cody, but @clarkwgriswold mentioned the coaches really like him. He may be an important scorer off the bench. I've heard enough good things about Barre to believe he can be an energy big who chips in a few points around the rim. Stankovic is kind of the wild card to me. His size and skill suggests he could be an offensive mismatch against many teams. I'm excited to see it all unfold. The journey of the season is the most enjoyable part of being a fan, seeing where we start vs where we finish.

I was telling my son on the way home from the Tipoff event how lucky we have been as Zips fans. Most MAC schools would love to have had just one of KD or Groce, and we have been fortunate to have had both. Probably two of best coaches in MAC history.

Damn, Akron better not lose this. I think a lot of people cared less once they were declared ineligible for the MAC Championship and any postseason play. I know I did. The MAC scheduling the Kent game on a Tuesday in November with a 7:30 PM kickoff won't help, either.

Good call. Definitely could be a factor.