1981 grad

Now that our season has officially come to an end, I am inviting any members to post any comments, the good, the bad, or the ugly about the past season. Here are my observations and comments: First, I would like to confess that I was wrong about how I thought our team would perform this season. When Tree left the team, I thought we were going to suck. I did not foresee how good Pat was going to be and that he would be our leading scorer. I never expected Deji to be a great 2 guard and be able to consistently get to the basket. I also never expected Kwan to be a great defender, especially when it came to the MAC tournament. I also did not expect Evans to improve his game, especially early in the season. Big Dog had some great games after Pat went down. These guys improved greatly from last season. I also did not expect Robotham to be a good floor general. We were a good MAC team without Tree. Second, I was really wrong about Antino. When I saw the 2 freshman guards, I thought we had a very good one, Robotham, and a very bad one, Antino. Early in the season he turned the ball over and had a tendency to shoot the 3 without attempting to run the offense. However, half way through the season he really picked up his defense and seemed to play more under control and had some nice penetrations and dump offs. When he took over the starting position, he really played outstanding especially after the Can't game. He had some great chemistry with Big Dog on the give and go. I thought as long as he kept playing good, we had a chance to win this thing and we came close. Third, I was one of the guys who did not like our offense that revolved around the 3 ball. Reggie and Kretzer were frustrating because we did not get consistent scoring from the wings. However, when we shoot the 3 ball at 45%, like we did starting with the game at Can't, our offense certainly looked good. The wings were just fine and they played great defense. If we could have kept that percentage or near to that percentage, we would be dancing right now. I think our 3 ball shooter benefitted by the short roster, knowing they would not be pulled if they missed their first few shots. Finally, I would like to thank everyone for posting this year. I knew I could always find up to date information on the Zips on this site. Each year I know that I will see posting about how the refs suck, the streaming sucks, and the out of conference schedule sucks. However, because we did have a down year on the win column I did miss our discussions about how we should receive an at large bid and how our RPI should be higher. Hopefully, we will continue these discussions next year.

In the postgame, KD indicated that there was nothing to gain from these tournaments and that our team was "too good" to play in these tournament. I do not agree with that since we have never won a game in these tournaments. I think we should consider going if the players want to play in the tournament, especially the seniors Are we healthy enough to play? Is BJ or Pat healthy enough to play? Would the experience help our program for next year? Either way, the Zips finished strong winning 3 of 4 in the MAC tournament.

KD indicated in the post game that playing 4 in 5 days was not only physically draining but also mentally draining. Look how many mistakes we made in the last 5 minutes when the game was winnable. Kretzer made a crossing pass that was easily intercepted and lead to fast break. Deji threw ball away when Kretzer was moving away from position. Antino threw bounce pass to Pat who could not control ball. Kwan shot a three 10 feet behind the 3 line. I also give credit to Hurley. I thought pressuring Antino bringing up the ball was a good coaching move to wear him out. He did not have a good game and I give Hurley credit. I would have liked to see somebody else bring up the ball to give Antino a break or have Big Dog throw some picks in the back court so their player would back off and keep his head up. Our team played with spirit and it was a winnable game. Hopefully will play dividends in the future.

This is a game that was winnable but we just did not execute our offense very well in the second half, especially in the last 5 minutes. Antino did not have a great game but it was good to see Evans step up and play the point. Akron never gave up and played good defense but gave up to many offensive boards. There were a lot of deep rebounds and they always seemed to be a Buffalo player hustling for the ball. It seems like there will not be a post season tournament. I understand KD's thinking but feel bad for the seniors. Maybe he will change his mind. Congratulations to our 2 seniors, Deji and Niles, who both played great tonight.

For those interested, gozips.com has the video of the last shot and KD post game comments.

Big Dog did not get hurt. KD indicated in postgame that he liked the lineup of going small with Kwan playing center. He also had Pat in there a few times towards the end of the game.

Talking about amazing stats, only 3 turnovers tonight. When is the last time we had that few turnovers in a game. Kwan had 1 and Antino had 2. No traveling violations and no offensive fouls. I did not think we could keep shooting the 3 ball at 45% but certainly did not expect 20%. We won the game when both Reggie and Kretzer did not score. The team is playing their best defense of the year. Go Zips!!

For all those that think the refs are out to get us. In the Can't game, Can't had 21 fouls to our 15, we shot 24 foul shots to their 17. Most importantly, after Can't took a double digit lead, KD called a time out and Kwan took the ball and bounced hard into the floor and it went up about 15 feet. Instead of calling a T, the ref went to talk to Kwan. He could have called a T but understood that the player was just upset. The refs let the teams play and it was a very well officiated game.

Key to the game: Keep shooting the 3 ball into the basket! Akron is now 2nd in the nation in 3 ball attempts. In the last 3 games we have shot the 3 ball at: 48.3% Can't 46.7 % Northern Illinois 41.4 % Western Michigan (should be higher since we had a 3 point heave at end of 1st half and 2nd half heave running out clock) To put that in perspective, the best 3 ball percentage team in NCAA (Cal Irvine) is shooting 45%. We have gone from being ranked 166th in 3 goal percentage to 106. I find it hard to believe we are favored since Can't is well rested. In my mind we are still the underdog but it makes no difference once the game starts. Go Zips!

Keith put some plays in for Reggie and he was working very hard on offense trying to get open. Good to see that happening. I really disliked the offense when Reggie and Jake just stood on the wings. Would still like to see more back door movement with Reggie and Jake for some easy inside baskets. Reggie has really benefitted from the short rotation knowing that he coach will let him keep shooting till he finds his touch.

Offensively, we did not look very smooth and our offense did not produce like it did at Can't and against Northern Illinois. Our defense was great. Kwan played an outstanding defensive game and had some key rebounds. He was holding the ball at the end of the game and the Western Michigan player kept reaching in attempting to get the ball. Clearly, a classless move. Kwan kept his cool until the guy would not stop. Bad ending to the game and the players did not shake hands. Weird stat of the night. We only scored 5 two point baskets. Those four 3 point baskets in a row won the game. Bad news is that KD did not use Arron Jackson and almost all of our guys played between 25 and 30 minutes. I hope they have something in the tank for Can't. Looking forward to Can't but will need to play better offensively than tonight. Go Zips!!

The MAC promotion is not valid on all tickets. It is only for the seats in the corners that I think were 24 so that would lower them to 12.

I think if any team had a chance to 4 games in 4 nights it would be the Zips. We all complain about how our favorite players do not get enough minutes (Diji) but that should work to our advantage in the tournament. The player who logged the most minutes during the course of the season, 30 minutes per game, Robotham, is not playing. All of the guys now playing are averaging around 20 minutes per game. Reggie and Antino had several games where they played 10 minutes. If the Zips keep playing good ball like the last 2 games they should be competitive and then anything can happen including a Zips win.

The Zips played an almost perfect first half. This is the second game in a row where they played at a very high level. The first 2 possessions Antino made 2 very difficult shots as the time clock was expiring. Each game he gets better. That seem to set the tone for the game. Diji was amazing. He was driving to the basket and was to strong for his defenders to handle and made numerous baskets going to the hoop. Big Dog and Kwan had very solid games. This is the second game in a row that Kwan was in double figures and he had 3 offensive rebounds. Playing down low is helping his rebounding. Less may be better. Each of these guys knows that they are going to be playing 20 or more minutes no matter what they do. They are relaxed and getting into the flow of the game. Antino looked a little tired at times but Kretzer and Reggie are in amazing shape. We shot over 50%. Although we had 16 turnovers, a lot of those came in the last 10 minutes when we went to 4 corners. Malcom had 3 turnovers. Looking forward to Wed. Zips catch a break and have the late game. More rest for the team.

It would be nice if anyone on this team would learn to take mid range jumpers. The mind set seems to be 3 or bust. I blame the coaches for that. Our forwards such as the Serb or Chauncy Gilliam did not rely on the 3 ball.

Kwan had a solid game at Can't and scored several inside baskets. The first half is the best I have seen him play all year. He did not score in the second half. I have said it numerous times that Kwan needs to learn to score inside the 3 line to be a consistent double digit scorer. Hopefully, he will come up big tonight.

I really like the way we played at Can't and I think if we carry that over to the game on Monday we should have a good chance at winning. I like how Antino was working the give and go with Big Dog. He fed Big Dog some great passes. Antino played a solid game and yes, he was the go to player a crunch time when we needed a basket. He seems to get better every game and that is encouraging. Here are my keys to the game. Reggie and Kretzer continue to shoot the ball well. We get some inside scoring from Kwan, especially when Big Dog is on the bench. Diji stays out of foul trouble. That T was just dumb. The offensive foul was a bad call since they were letting it go all night. Antino continues to get better. Go Zips!!

I just looked at Sunday's Beacon Journal and saw and ad for the Canton Charge Fridays game. They are having Mascot Mania and giving out 500 T shirts for Friday's game. What is our AD, Tom Wistercell doing to promote Monday's Game?

I also lump Reggie and Kretzer together because offensively their games are so similar. They do not have a post up game, do not have quick moves to the basket, almost never back door or make quick moves to the basket without the ball, never drive to the basket, and cannot create their own shot. Essentially, they are wing players who shoot the 3 ball. When you look at the season stats, Reggie has taken 151 shots, 131 have been the 3 ball. Kretzer has taken 129 shots, 104 have been the 3 ball. KD has always had wing players as part of his offense and that is their role Now the problem this year has been without Tree and Harney, we now have an overabundance of players who also like to shoot the 3. Kwan 127 of 242 have been 3 ball Arron Jackson 52 of 82 have been 3 ball Evans 88 of 145 have been the 3 ball. That is why we are ranked 3rd in the nation in shooting the 3. The good news is now that we are down to 8 players, Reggie and Kretzer now seem to have the confidence of knowing that if they miss their 3 ball they will not get yanked and it has improved their shooting. Those guys have been consistently scoring the last 3 games with the short roster. If their good shooting continues we may be winning some games in the tournament especially with Antino, Big Dog, Diji and Kwan getting some inside points.

I just saw the replay of the last shot on ESPN 3. I slowed it down and Brewer picks up his dribble 1 foot behind the 3 line, jumps into the lane and then take one step to the basket. I know that bad calls are part of the game but when you slow it down he actually takes 5 steps to the basket after he picks up his dribble. The refs swallowed their whistle. I wasn't sure if it was a travel because it was so fast but when you slow it down it is obvious. It still was a nice play by Can't and a mistake not to stop him before he got near the lane.

Went to the game and just like last year, great game, great atmosphere, bad result. KD indicated postgame that Reggie was suppose to double team the ball and it didn't happen on the last shot. Antino made a freshman result and kept backing up and gave him the lane. I thought we played great. Kwan played his best game of the season. I really believe these guys play better knowing that KD is not going to pull them if they make a mistake. Big Dog started weak but since he was the only true center he kept getting stronger as the game progressed. Antino is a gamer and made great pressure shots. Kretzer played great defense. We finally shot the ball well! It looked like the Can't player took an extra step on the last shot but I have not seen the replay. It sucks losing to Can't but if we play this well we may be able to win a couple of games and get to 20 wins.

I would rather him rest and play Monday or possibly Wed if he is close to coming back.

We may be shorthanded but each of the 8 scholarship players has scored in double figures. ( I remember Evans lighting it up at Cleveland State) The talent is there to win the game but the team needs to step up, including the coaching staff. The 2nd half in Miami they double teamed Big Dog as soon as he touched the ball and we had no answer. I am sure Can't will do the same and we need to respond with points. The good thing about this game is that all the scholarship players should get at least 20 minutes. Nobody should be afraid of getting pulled for making a mistake. I think Antino is a great competitor and have been very impressed with his play. I am hoping that we can have 8 players with 8 or more points. Looking forward to the game.

Is Pat done for the season or just the Can't game. The articles are not clear on that point. Is it possible that he would be available if Akron wins on Monday?

According to some posts, KD blames this loss on the refs. (I did not hear his post game comments) I have read several post where we blame our loss on who did not play, Harney and Tree (who haven't played all year) and no Robotham, Pat or BJ Gladden (who averages 3 points per game). But this team lost to a North Dakota State team that played 5 players almost 40 minutes the entire game. If any team had excuses to lose, it was North Dakota State. This team under KD has a winning tradition and has been fun to watch. What I saw at Miami was not fun to watch and we played ugly. One of the advantages of playing 11 guys all season is that guys should be able to step up and play when we have injuries. Aron Jackson had the opportunity to play big minutes. Went 0 for 5 and did not score. We won an away game when Pat was hurt and Big Dog won it at the foul line going 6 of 6. At Miami he had 6 turnovers. When they started double teaming him as soon as he touched the ball he stopped scoring. (He should be able to pass out of a double team) He had only one basket the entire 2nd half although he scored 4 free throws. Nyles Evans, senior starter, 2 points on 1 for 5 shooting. He was playing so much better at the start of the season. Why is he no longer penetrating and scoring? He went 0 for 3 from the 3 line. Kwan, 2 points in 18 minutes. Another player who is trailing off badly at the end of the season. This team has lost 5 of 6. I really think that this team relies when too much on the 3 ball but that is who we are. I have not given up on the season but win or lose would like to watch some good basketball. I am hoping that whoever is playing on Friday and Monday will play good sound basketball and play like a good KD coached team.