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Hilltopper....my wife thinks I am starting to get Alzheimer's, but I am well aware of who hit the winning shot against us in 2007. The discussion was about their star player, Politz.

I wanted to mention something that Keith said last night: He thinks Antino can get 15 each night? Wow. That's really notable since I don't think we've had a guy average 15 per game since maybe Romeo? What's even more surprising is that Antino has probably passed Noah in terms of being more effective at scoring and creating plays. I didn't see that coming. Of course, part of it may be Noah not yet being at full strength, physically. But, I really believe that Antino's opportunity to run the show at the close of last season really allowed him to blossom at that position. We didn't know how that would translate into the next season, but I think we're seeing it now.

It's for the entire season so far, collectively. Not just one game. I would completely disregard it as an anomaly too, if it wasn't happening through half of a season. Read what I said above about Keith mentioning that we become accustomed to coming out on 3-point shooters because we have to guard our own long range shooters so much in practice.

I think that's the decision these kids have to make, in a nutshell. Do you go with a team that looks to be competitive in a "low level" conference? Or, do you go with a bad P5 team, be on TV, get more publicity, and be in a better position for a possible NFL career? Also, coaches can be very convincing about where they think their crappy program is heading under their leadership. This is the primary reason that these kids filter back down again after a couple of years. You're still dreaming at 18 years old. At 20 years old, reality starts to seep in a bit more.

It is very well written, indeed. And scary. Where she thinks this is all headed, and the deficiencies it could create, has been my fear all along. I either need to join the crusade to stop it, or possibly live with the idea that I hold Liberal Arts degrees from a Tech School. And I'm certainly not alone. I'm thoroughly convinced that they are taking actions to attempt to survive financially, while shortcutting some of the things that make a higher education so valuable, which could destroy the status of this University that has been earned over decades of growth.

wadszip....did you just say that our perimeter defense is "easily our biggest weakness"? Are you aware that we are something like 3rd in the nation in guarding the 3-point line? Keith actually addressed this last night. He said our success in this area might be because we have so many good 3-point shooters on this team, and we spend so much time in practice guarding each other on the 3 line. He might be right.

I mentioned it earlier before the game. We somehow are having trouble pulling away from anyone. That trend needs to change. Although, Keith really gave Western credit for defending us well. But beyond that, giving up 24 ORBs is unfathomable, and completely ridiculous. You can't do that and win. We're very fortunate. We ended up having to grind out a win in a game where it appeared that we were clearly the superior team.

I was talking exclusively about the 3 point shooting. 1) If Kwan is only taking 2.6 attempts per game, I can live with that. I'm not going to buy into the idea that he should be a "green light" 3-point shooter just because he shot well in a particular period of time. He can help us more in other areas. But, if he's open 2-3 times a game, I'm fine with that. 2) I'm fine with turning Antino loose. I just think we're better served if he's doing that moving towards the basket, instead of stepping back from it.

Ada Zip... I'll go with the 22 if it's Reggie and Jake shooting the majority of the 3s and not Antino or Kwan.

LOL...Sorry, 2007 MAC tournament.

feetg...you're right. Geez....3 tournament wins, they weren't even the best team in the conference, and both times they beat us in the title game to get there. Now I remember why it was sooooo sweet to blow them out in Cleveland the following year.

Just the mention of the name POLITZ instantly takes me back to the 1997 MAC tournament. I refuse to relive that any longer. Please Stop

MD Zip...nice catch. Central...Western...Eastern...very confusing sometimes . And I believe I read that Tava has taken a redshirt for the entire year now. Kangaroo: If we knew that beating tougher MAC competition was the great preparation that equals more tournament wins, I'd agree with you. But, that's not the case. O-H-I-O made their Sweet 16 run as the 9th best team in the MAC. Long term, I want the accolades that come with winning a tough conference race. But right now, the most important thing for us....by far...is just GETTING THERE. The conference might end up being a little better this year, but likely not enough to hold us in higher esteem with the selection committee if we have more losses. So YES, right now, I think that the win total increases our chances more than having a slightly higher conference SOS.

I said this in another thread. I thought this game would be on the "easier" side a week or so ago. But, now I don't know after the way they played a few nights ago. Come to think of it, we've had difficulty pulling away from several "easier" opponents recently. I hope this game starts a trend in another direction. Decisive wins at home help us in a lot of ways, with player rest/development, and with the national pollsters.

With all of the preseason hype about CMU, I had pretty much counted them out already without Tava. But it looks like others have surprisingly improved. It's interesting because on one hand, it's good for the conference to become stronger. But on the other hand, I think this is a season when Akron needs to come close to "winning out" from this point forward to get an At-Large and/or good seeding in the NCAA tournament. With that in mind, some easy games would really be helpful to us.

As the "target team" this year, we are going to have to be ready to play every night. With their record, I even though that the Western game tomorrow might be a cakewalk, but I'm not so sure after the way they played earlier this week.

I was also impressed with these announcers. They were very educated about the teams and coaches. They even went as far as mentioning that they saw Akron run certain offense set plays in practice on Monday. Really? They studied the teams and observed a practice, and made note of several things to bring to the broadcast? It sure beats the days when they threw a couple of guys in on our broadcasts that spent an entire game saying DAM-BRO.

1) Keith compared Antino to a Home Run hitter. I think that's right on the money. I guess we have to live with the strikeouts. I don't think that means he's going to accept his faults and leave him along, but the kid sure has a desire to win. And I like those kinds of players on my team. 2) Kretzer contributes to this team is SO MANY ways that never show up on a box score. 3) That Buffalo team has ATHLETES. If they ever learn how to play Team Basketball to any high level this year, they will be just as competitive in the conference race as they've been for years. 4) I'll take a win in Buffalo any way I can get it. And this was far from our best basketball. We still made plays in the last few minutes when it mattered most. 5) Am I the only one who got the feeling that we were trying to wear them down? Maybe playing at a faster pace than usual? I wonder if this will continue to be our strategy most of the rest of the year, with our depth. 6) Looking forward, this was one of only a few games that I think will be tough to win. If we are healthy from here on out, I would consider it a disappointment if we lose more than 3 conference games. Therefore, closing this thing out under 6 losses seems like a very fair expectation.

Anyone who thinks Buffalo was depleted with the exit of Hurley is dreaming. They have some athletes out there.

Balsy, their quickness is just cutting off some of the passing lanes that have been open for most games so far.

My gosh, it never ends. We can't stop guards who can dribble to the basket. Buffalo has no other offense. It's all one-on-one basketball. I watch the game convinced that we're the better team, but it doesn't look that way on the scoreboard.

I think you're right, if I remember the story correctly. It used to be a Tech School that was notorious for people wanting to study Forestry. Now, with it's first football team, it got some publicity for having a QB who was part of that trouble at Steubenville a few years ago.

That "report" is an absolute joke. Really? The 11-2 HOME TEAM, starting conference play, going on the road to a tough venue, and approaching being ranked in the Top 25 ? A game time, TV, and a few player stats? Maybe the person who posted it is a little bitter that his "team down south" isn't even on the college basketball radar this year, and little ole Akron is climbing.

It's nice to see us show up in the AP Poll. Can anyone ever remember us showing up as receiving a vote this early in the season? It may not seem as if it means much right now, but think of the number of people who see this every week, and see our name. And I'm sure it gives an idea to the other writers who have a vote to start looking at Akron. And maybe the tough opening MAC schedule is a blessing. It'll count as something more significant to the pollsters, especially if they still remember how Buffalo was their little "darling" at the end of last season.

Are you seriously trying to make a point by selectively looking at a couple of games? Or, have you been Remember, In 2014 Akron beat Pitt in football, who beat Virginia Tech, who beat OSWho. I'm wondering why we don't have a National Championship trophy. We know that logic makes no sense. I don't think anyone here would define YSU or Oakland as a Cupcake. But, there's darn near 400 teams playing D-1 basketball. There's plenty of Cupcakes, and always will be.