Blue & Gold

Can't wait for the EMU game. Bring it on!

Good Groce teams are never big dominant. They have 6-8 bigs who can run... and ideally even the "bigs" spread the floor with their shooting ability. (Getting Sammy untracked will be absolutely vital going forward.) Groce ideally needs 3 guards who can be consistent threats to shoot (and make) from distance (why losing Mikal Dawson is such a huge blow. I spoke to Dawson at the last soccer match & told him that losing his defense and 3-point shooting from the wing were going to be awfully tough to overcome.) 3 point shooting is the key for a Groce offense. "Two for you but three for me." Especially if we have a big who demands a double-team (a luxury which Groce never enjoyed at OU), we need our guards to be 3-point assassins. If this doesn't materialize we're going to be rather easy to defend. We saw that against SDSU. If X wasn't simply unconscious from behind the arc we lose that game as well. If Sammy & Hankerson get untracked we'll be okay, though still lack depth. Fortunately playing tough D is our #1 priority so we can always do that, regardless of whether our shots are falling on any given night. Sorry to hear Nate Johnson was only 0-2. He seems to be who Groce is trying to plug into Dawson's role. Nate is supremely athletic, but young, and is still hesitant to shoot the 3 (during the SDSU game I saw Dawson talking to him saying "Those shots are there all night!"). Hopefully he finds his stride in the Cayman Islands & gains the confidence to just let it fly.

No. We've probably known about him for a month or two now, maybe longer. I lose track of time.

I wasn't able to watch last night's game, but following the SDSU game I noted that, with Freeman getting consistently doubled, we need another real 3-point shooter. Apparently Groce is seeing if Tavari can be that man. It's certainly not Tribble or Clarke - both of which I'm luke warm about... at best. People keep saying "Boy, once Tribble practices his 3-point shot he's going to be tough to defend." Well, I'm sorry to keep saying it but Tribble's never going to have a solid 3-point shot; it's simply not in his genes. NEVER going to happen. And Clarke is not a natural-born finisher; he misses all kinds of layups. I love both b/c they're Zips... They'd better play absolutely stellar defense and leave absolutely everything on the court to help this team beat good D-1 opponents. How did Nate Johnson shoot last night? And I'll mention it again, with our lack of real 3-point threats, I can't believe Kobe Mitchell can't find his way into the lineup. He must be too slow on defense, or something. Idk.

Regular updates would be much appreciated, fellas 💪

I'm pulling for the Big East; a conference where we can hope to join in other sports. All sports sans football? I think that'd be pretty great. BUT... football is the driving factor in all college athletics. So, big decisions ahead. Exciting time!

UConn is a member of the Big East, which does not sponsor football. Is UConn an independent in football?

Exactly. There are always unintended consequences.

Well, we know it won't be The Missouri Valley Conference 😂 I'd love to see us in the Big East. Men & Women's Track & Field to follow. This would help us with top-level OOC scheduling & probably get a Big East school to visit the JAR once a year.

While I'm working I've had the game on in the background a few times now and it still gets me pumped up the way the entire team immediately rallied around Greg Tribble after he missed the layup. Almost gives me chills. You couldn't ask for a better reaction... from the ENTIRE team!

I was gauging by how full the end zone sections were because until MAC play starts you can usually count the number of spectators in those respective sections on one hand.

Indeed. If that was anyone's first exposure to a Zips game they'll certainly be back!

Btw, great crowd for the home opener. Do you think the opponent was the reason or are our fans still excited with the way last season ended? Given those two options, which way would you lean? Would we have drawn that well if the game were against a Baldwin-Wallace-type opponent. KSUcks opened with Baldwin-Wallace and their crowd was P.A.T.H.E.T.I.C. 🤣🤣

Why, O why didn't he dunk it? That would have been SportCenter's #1 Top Ten and one of the greatest endings to a basketball game ever 😭

33 years old, 5-9 record, and turned down a $19-million option? 😨😬 He's got true balls of steel. 😂

Can anyone tell if this game will be available for replay for after I get home tonight?

I have the apple-tv thingy & when I try to broadcast to my tv from my laptop it's awfully sketchy. I'd expect more from an apple product.

Especially considering I think we need another consistent threat from 3-point range this year. Clarke & Tribble definitely aren't, and Nate Johnson looked hesitant to hoist 'em up Monday night. If other teams double-team Freeman like SDSU did we've got to be able to make them pay.

Im not certain, but I guess it probably should be? Soccer was announced right away. In years past, IIRC, they waited a couple days to announce the soccer class. Maybe they’re doing that with basketball. Idk.

Idk if Tavari was in sweats but I do know he never took off his warmup shooting shirt. Neither did Prather.

Valpo. But man, he's 6-2, 225 & can run and looks tough.

So, to those with more analytical skill than me, why were we able to run the ball so effectively tonight?