Let'sGoZips94

It's important to me because he left Akron similarly to how Ken Lolla did, spewing excuses left and right about the MAC and the JAR. I would love nothing more than to schedule Duquesne each and every year Dambrot is there, and beat him each and every year Dambrot is there. But I don't see them appearing on our schedule.

Welcome to being a fan of a G5 school. Although I will say what Clark said isn't entirely true. The MAC could definitely be a 2 bid league, but it would take an unworldly successful season with only a couple losses, and some nice wins OOC. That team would then have to lose in the MAC Championship Game. We've had seasons with as many as 26/27 wins, and haven't gotten in, but that's largely due to those wins being hollow in competition - i.e. last year. Yes, I'm saying there's a chance, but the odds are most definitely against us.

Get off this board.

USC is the replacement for Creighton/Gonzaga, and not having 2 of Creighton/Gonzaga is just fine for this team. MTSU/Princeton will be a nice challenge, as well as one of Davidson/NMSU/Miami/Hawaii. The fundamentals I'm seeing this year that I haven't in the past... - Ball movement - Off-the-ball movement - Emphasis on rebounding at both ends, not just falling back onto defense as soon as our shot goes up - Different defensive schemes (zones) - Going up strong around the basket and either dunking the ball or absorbing contact and still getting the shot up and in

Some might call it... Balsy. I actually kind of like it. I don't think anything that's been said has been out of line, and I like learning more about FAU. Now if only they would bring their weather with them when they come on this board...

Not in my opinion. Most of the teams we've faced this year have shot in the mid-high 40% range overall, some of them even reaching the 50% mark, and many of them also shooting in the low-mid 40% range from beyond the arc. Teams may change, but the basket, ball, and court measurements/dimensions don't. They are also more athletic than "creampuff" OOC opponents from the past. At least two of the teams we've played thus far have had powerhouse transfers (UTC had a Xavier transfer I believe, and IPFW had a Purdue transfer if I remember correctly); I know that doesn't always mean much, but they were recruited by their original schools for a reason. Time will tell how good we actually are, as well as our early season opponents, but I don't remember 1) the statistical output by past years' opponents and 2) the athleticism by past years' opponents. There are simply fundamentals that I'm seeing this year - both from us and our opponents - that I haven't seen in the past that lead me to believe we're going to be just fine.

Declaring that his departure from Akron was due to his feelings that he couldn't win a championship here, might be considered disparaging and lead fans to have negative feelings towards him. It's similar, on a much smaller scale, to LeBron leaving back in 2010. Leaving and how he did it left a bad taste in LOTS of fans' mouths.

Not that this is the thread to discuss the schedule topic, but this schedule is getting praise for 3 reasons... 1) The same old crap teams aren't on it. I don't see any North Carolina Alphabet Soup teams, no Coppin States, nobody like that. 2a) The teams that are on this schedule, while their records may not reflect it, are competitive. They are athletic and for the most part can shoot the ball well. The lesser schools we've played in the past have lacked the athleticism and skills to truly challenge us. 2b) The level of competitiveness we've seen is perfect for the youth and inexperience of this Zips squad. Groce has mentioned in post game interviews that we're getting the right level of competition, really testing all aspects of our game. With all of this being said (and to turn this discussion back on the game), I think we should more easily take care of MVS - similar to the second half of CSU and the entire UT Martin game.

By referring to Kent as Can't, you're doing more than just pandering; you're helping all of humanity. Excellent insight on Groce's use of the zone. I've never understood using just one type of defensive scheme, as most teams don't just use one offensive play or scheme. As previously mentioned, the 1-3-1 is particularly interesting as it's not used as often by teams, and when you set up in a 1-3-1, everyone from above can see you're in a 1-3-1; it's a very definitive formation. Does Groce prefer the 1-3-1 to the 2-3, 3-2, or other zone formations?

After watching the FG at the 2:12 mark in the video, I no longer like our chances. Clearly you guys use witchcraft, at least in your kicking game. I also haven't heard whether or not our delayed draw play has been removed from the playbook yet.

At the beginning of the year: no. But after seeing Groce's offense and how the big men are coached, this doesn't surprise me. There is a lot of off-the-ball movement, back cuts, and slip screens that lead to easy points in the paint. Additionally - as I've mentioned in other posts - the strength at which our forwards go up is terrific. EMan has really found himself in a good situation all of a sudden, seemingly always finding the space behind the defense to get open. As Clark stated, his effort is nothing short of awesome. I will NEVER get upset with Olojakpoke as long as he's pouring in the constant effort we've all seen thus far. Keep it up! On a side note, this is the second MAC East Division Player of the Week honor for a Zip in this young season. That's promising.

Referring to Kent as Can't is more than enough. It's the gift that will keep on giving as word spreads that KSUcks is failure.

You're officially one of us!

Please tell me our marketing department has reached out to the Football HoF to try and get Jerry Rice to make an appearance, maybe even with Jason Taylor.

Stanford just 3peated. Embick needs to have the team watch tape on them. They ALWAYS look to score. I think there can be a nice balance between our style and their style.

67, 76, 75, 83, 94. Those are the point totals we've put up at home this year, with that first game including a measly 22 pt. first half. Additionally, we have three players averaging double digit PPG so far, with two more right on the cusp of double digits. Not sure how you've come to the conclusion we're not going to be able to score much this season, especially at home. Must have been old rubberbands that broke immediately, because I sure saw a lot of unfurling t-shirts. At least the ones that were rubberbanded didn't end up in the rafters. Three great and true statements here. The basketball has been very entertaining. In the past, I've watched these bigger schools (or even other mid majors ) do the simple things such as back cuts and zone defenses, and wonder why the heck we never did any of that. We are really covering all the bases early on this year. Lots of zone defenses, back cuts, offensive rebounds, jumping the passing lanes. It's a BLAST! This team is truly a TEAM, and they're only going to get better. I really commend Ivey for finding his role on this team as a leader and a do-everything-but-not-out-of-control-hero-ball player. His entry pass to Big Mark was a thing of beauty, and I don't know how many times he's kept a possession alive by tipping out an offensive rebound; it's intelligent ball. When was the last time we didn't bail out after shots and actually go for offensive rebounds? When was the last time we committed to playing a zone, and played the zone effectively? When was the last time we had a guard big enough, physical enough, and intelligent enough to drive to the basket for "easy" baskets? When was the last time we had players intelligently pull up for the mid-range jumper AND knock it down relatively consistently? When was the last time our big men actually looked to slam the ball home or at least go up strong?

Great win. That was fun. Best crowd interaction this season.

I wonder what the combined shooting percentage is of our opponents. I feel like we've mainly played teams that simply struggle to miss, especially from beyond the arc. If we win, it's a well-earned victory. If we lose, it's a well-earned victory by App State.

We have no idea (right now) how to attack space atop the box and rip shots. This is frustrating to watch.

DANGIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! RIP THOSE SHOTS!!!!!!!!

Tempering expectations, as someone previously did, I went with 16-19. I don't think the MAC is very good, and it will come down to the ability to steal some on the road, which we haven't done yet. I definitely think 20+ is possible though.

10 hours.

Well maybe some people should get off their phones an pay attention. @NWAkron I don't blame anyone for not really paying attention, however, to the t-shirt cannon. If the t-shirt doesn't unfurl, it's launched into the rafters, never to be seen again.

In response... 1. I think the "strength" of our OOC schedule is the competitive nature of the opponents. The teams we scheduled this year have had success in recent years, but are going through a transition phase, whether it be because they graduated players or they have a new coach. Regardless, I think they are all talented enough to challenge us the way we need to be challenged, but not overly talented to where we get stomped. One of the biggest keys for young teams is learning how to win. That's the "strength" of our schedule thus far. 2. Agreed. High energy. Two reasons why are is always action: rebounding and defense. We actually crash the boards this year, on both sides of the ball. We also look to jump the passing lanes more. 3. I like that he rips Parrish for that. Act like you've been there before, and get back on D. 4. We are a defensively sound team. We execute the fundamentals very well, in my opinion. It's refreshing. We also don't seem to foul near as much, as we go straight up more often on contested shot attempts. When we do foul, we foul hard as to not let the opponent get a shot off. 5. I don't think our FT shooting these past couple games is going to be the norm. The way the players react to miss free throws lends me to believe they work hard at them. Groce also indicated on the post-game show that the guys that missed, don't normally miss. I think it's a cold streak, they'll continue hit it hard in practice, and it will go back to a higher percentage. 6. The turnovers were a product of our youth and lack of chemistry. We aggressively put ourselves in situations where we got stuck and had to force the ball into passing lanes that weren't there. It didn't both me TOO much. 7. Ivey's effort, particularly on the defensive end, is going to win us some games come MAC play. It seemed like last night, he found his role on the team. WAY more under control on the offensive end, and his defense turned into offense. 8. Malcolm adds an incredibly different dynamic with his physicality. Taking the ball into the lane and drawing the foul at the end of close games... what a novel idea. Cotton's 3 pt. shooting would be huge. He's struggled from beyond the arc prior to last night. 9. IPFW can SHOOT. Utomi has the textbook jump shot. Excellent ball rotation and arc. Additional thoughts... - Poke is coming into his own. He seems to not be wetting his shorts when he gets the ball down low. His aggressive intuition to typically go for the dunk is awesome. A lot of our big men in the past - some taller and bulkier than Poke - have looked to lay it up and in first instead of slamming it down the opponents throats with authority. He also plays intelligent defense, going straight up most of the time to contest and put himself in good positions to block shots. - I still want to know more about this Smith kid. Very odd that he got into the game, and when he got in. He has good size for a guard, and everyone knows we could use that depth, not to mention the fact that you can't have too many 6'4"/6'5" guards. - This team is going to be just fine, and possibly better than fine. They play a fun style of basketball. They're as physical or more physical than most teams we'll face. They can definitely contend, from what I've seen, for a MAC title. - Excellent halftime show. I think that's the most watched show aside from the Panda Plate Lady. Well done by the University to give those kids their moment. - Barely a mention about our Championship-level soccer team being in the College Cup (Final Four) on Friday. Pathetic. The game is on ESPNU, and I don't even recall if that was mentioned.

Whoops. Had a yearbook, and he wasn't in there. Just ran down and grabbed a roster. So he's a JUCO?