Districtballer

We just press. That's our identity. We still slowed down on offense and didn't take shots until 25 seconds had gone off the shot clock down the stretch. He played 11 deep and all played double-digit minutes. Only 3 players played over 20 minutes and no one over 26. We don't play half-court offense and defense. We suck at it and we lose big-time when we do it. We're at our best when we're aggressive. It's how we lost to Indiana in the round of 32 last year after having a comfortable 2nd half lead whittled away before giving away the lead in the final minute. You don't send the wrong message to your team by telling them to back off what we do. Whether we're up or down, you work on perfecting your system. This is March. Big boy basketball. How do you back them off and not lose the edge for the next game? I want my kids to play every possession as if it were the last they ever play. I want them to execute my system each and every possession and strive for the perfect game. Calling it off in this system sends a bad message to the team. You're a 26-win team. We weren't playing the sisters of the poor. You had Zeke guaranteeing victory before the game. They can handle it. I'd say the same if we got blown out. Shame on us for not being able to stop you in that case.

It was a pretty big game at your place with Terry Bowden being introduced in a pretty full house. VCU also had an extremely inexperienced team last year after graduating 4 of 5 starters from our Final Four team. Brad Burgess was our senior leader who had tons of experience, but everyone else coming in was either in high school or a bench player the year before. VCU won the previous matchup by 17 in 2010. The big thing is that these guys have matured a great deal. We are a much better team this year than we were last year. 9 of the guys on our team last year were underclassmen, and 2 upperclassmen were bench players the year before (15 and 5 minutes per game). We were a 12-seed last year. There's a reason we're a 5-seed this year. Akron also improved a great deal, but when you don't have the PG who really makes you guys go, it's just a match-up thing. Forsythe and Ibitayo weren't going to play much against us and don't in general, but Brian Walsh being under the weather was also a minus for you guys. This is just one of those games where the margin doesn't tell the whole story. Is VCU a better program? Probably. 5-0 (2-0 at home, 2-0 at the Jar, 1-0 in the NCAA's with Akron having a significant location advantage) against the Zips the last 6 seasons speaks for itself. Are we 46 points better? No way.

Wow. Ironic that I chimed in here talking about how VCU plays this style as well. Crazy coincidences. I will say as an outsider that Akron has gotten much bigger, longer, and athletic from 2008 to now. We've played 5 times in the last 6 seasons, and each year it's become more and more apparent that Dambrot is moving towards our style.

Hopefully the basketball gods will just leave Shaka and Keith alone now. Also, the black jerseys were super-slick! Good luck to the Zips, I think you have a nice heir apparent to Zeke in a certain Demetrius Treadwell. Kid can play!

Sorry to end your season guys. I was really hoping you guys would make a run with the fantastic way you pulled together at the Q before we got paired up. Zeke has had a great career and I'm sure he'll be successful in the NBA. You guys will rebound from this and continue to build the best program in the MAC.

Likewise. I'll tell you what, I hate that one of our seasons will end tomorrow, but if it has to be us, I know which mid-major I'll be rooting for to make a deep run.

Yea I'd think having most of the crowd rooting against VCU will work in our favor. Michigan wants no part of seeing VCU, so we'll use the things we can to build up an 'us against the world' mentality to our advantage much like Akron is using the national media disrespect card to their own. Good coaches seize on any and all opportunities. The opposing teams senior captain guaranteeing a win would qualify and everyone in Auburn Hill rooting for us to lose would as well. You guys have plenty to seize on from the national media, and I bet Coach D is doing just that. It's going to be a heckuva game. At the end of the day, it comes down to who the better team tomorrow will be. All the rest are distractors.

Shaka loves that stuff. He uses every and anything an opponent says. We're all competitors, but you will never hear a VCU player do that. Shaka banned twitter for all of our players after a George Mason player threw out some smack about our season being over prior to our matchup in the CAA tournament in 2011. They beat us by 20 at our house a week or so before, were riding a nation-leading 16-game winning streak, and had just cracked the Coaches top 25. VCU had lost 4 of its last 5 regular season games. He had that tweet printed out in large letters on the board when our players came in. We won by 16. It's something this group responds to. I agree, you don't expect any of your players to think differently, you'd just never hear our guys say something like that publicly before a game. Like I said before, it doesn't change the fact that you still have to execute and that Akron is a damn good opponent that will take away your strengths. Our staff will just use it because our guys respond to that kind of a challenge.

LOL our guys are on top of it. Shaka's heavy on motivation, I'm sure he'll use it. It's tough to find bulletin board material when you're a 5 seed but he does what he can to get our guys prepared to go to war. Either way, you still have to execute on the court, so it only helps so much. Akron will be a tough challenge regardless.

Zeke's guarantee: http://fox8.com/2013/03/19/zips-confident-...o-ncaa-tourney/ If you watch the video, Zeke gets asked to clarify if he is guaranteeing an Akron win, and he says 'Yes I am.' Just for those who were asking for a link.

http://www.timesdispatch.com/sports/colleg...d1c8dd33cb.html Watch the video. You can see how tough this is for Shaka to have to face Akron on a personal level. It's very clear.

That goes both ways. We didn't get a 5-seed for no reason. Briante Weber and Treveon Graham were both freshmen last year. One is the Atlantic 10 Defensive POY and the other is our leading scorer and a 2nd-teamer in a 5-bid conference. VCU leads the country in steals and forced turnovers. VCU fans like the matchup without Abreu in there too. It'll be an interesting game. I still hate it, but there are reasons to believe both teams could win.

Yea knew about that. I'm sure he's taking it back now too!

LOL just go back to any of the threads we've had from the last 4 times we've played. There hasn't been enough time for much of a change in personnel.

ESPN is stupid. They probably figure without Abreu it's a bad matchup. They don't realize Akron has more experience against VCU than anyone in the tournament and is stacked with great athletes who can play at our pace. This is the 5th time in the last 6 years that we've played, and none of them have been actually scheduled by us. Crazy.

Ok forget this matchup for a second. Whoever wins this game has to play Michigan in AUBURN HILLS? I hate the NCAA selection committee.

OU is not VCU. Not by a longshot. That said, I agree, you're going to give us all we can handle and can beat us. Few coaches know us as well as Keith Dambrot. We were lucky to win at your place last year. This sucks so much. If we lose, I'll hate it as a VCU fan, if we win, I'll still hate it as an Akron fan. Fully agree about matching up good mids in the first round. We were on the other end of this last year as a 12-seed playing 5-seed Wichita State in the first round. We can very easily lose this game with the athletes, talent, and experience against VCU that Akron already has. Dammit.

This sucks. I can't believe we have to play you guys. I wanted you to go to the Sweet 16. Zac Jackson ‏@FSOhioZJackson

Man this is incredible. God wants VCU and Akron to keep playing I guess. Without Abreu, you'd think this is a great matchup for VCU, but the Zips will be very game. You guys are talented from top to bottom and are very familiar with our system. You're very capable of winning if Betancourt can play well. Hate that we have to play you guys again since I was hoping we could both make a big run this year.

Uhhhh yeah.

Congrats to Momma Zeke, Coach D, and the Zips fan base! That you guys overcame so many obstacles this year to go to the NCAAs in such dominating fashion is an amazing testament to the willpower and talent Coach Dambrot put together. This Ram fan will be rooting for you guys to make a deep run in the tournament! Congratulations! ENJOY IT!

Yeah, I know, sorry. Genuinely did hear that though. This is a tough time and I wish Coach D and the program the best.

I've heard from pretty good sources that there is some interest in the ODU job. Not sure how this news affects that. It's a really good job and would have him playing Shaka every year as they're our big rival. Fully assuming this post gets deleted, but that is genuinely something I have heard from a source I trust.

Wow guys, I just heard. I've admired the Zips season from a far and Zeke's mom often tweets me during our games to let us know she's rooting us on. You guys looked really, really good so far this year, and then this. I'm so sorry guys, I can't imagine how this feels. I really hope your guys can pull through for Zeke in his senior year and get to the NCAAs. Alex is a big part of what makes you go, but you guys have a lot of talent. I'll be rooting for you! Condolences from VCU and the Ram Nation. I know Shaka has been really rooting and shouting out Coach Dambrot for awhile now. Hope Abreu can get things together and learn from what looks like a really awful decision.

Green didn't have a very good game, but Chaminade beat the Longhorns of the Big 12 in the Maui Invitational on national television tonight by double-digits! I thought you guys would like to hear that a former Zip is experiencing some amazing success out in Hawaii!