LoyalZIP

Just awful…….wow

3 awful calls on one possession!!!!

Horrid foul call, bailed them out!!!!!

That Tribble shot made me nauseous. Then Freeman with a beautiful block and nobody in position to grab the loose ball. Metheny wide open, you know the drill. Not looking good.

Never forget the 2017 team, all tights (sans Big Dog)

Zips finally take the lead, get a stop. Then X of all guys goes out of control and misses a layup, Freeman and Hankerson give no effort on defense and let a bottom 20 player in the league go coast to coast. To be a fly on the wall when Groce talks about the one during the film session…

Pace is just out of control. The Zips aren’t built to play in games like this, they simply go through too many cold spells.

Back to losing it on the defensive end. Credit to them for making them. But damn, this isn’t looking good.

Right back where we started, just like that. How does Greg miss an uncontested 8 footer in his 4th season of college basketball? I just don’t get it man. Making these dudes look like the best team in the league.

Metheny could win it single handedly. I believe he did that when they won at the JAR in ‘21. So quick and has a beautiful shot. Can’t fault the way the Zips have defended him too much, though it could be better. Hank is trying his all to be “they guy” but is starting to press. Zips need to get the pace under control here.

Bingo. A couple redshirt Fr., a guy who spent his entire career at NIU, a P5 transfer down, and a kid that was going to the prom just a few months ago. I miss Clarke, no matter how upsetting he can be at times, he’s been in this program for a lot of winning and a lot of success.

This isn’t the Sammy Hunter Game* right?? Lot of stuff to work on. But they kept themselves alive for another half. It starts on defense. Go Zips.

Kobe Mitchell more aggressive on offense. Would have been nice on Friday but we’ll take it. Zips allowing BG room on jumpers and they’re not missing. Wow, I’m stunned by how poorly this team is currently playing. Very stunned. If you had told me back in October, even with the loss of Dawson, that we would be 9-6, 1-1 in the league and down 9 to BG in the first half, I would have laughed you out of the room.

BG is a bad defensive team and I find myself pining for Friday’s first half offense…

The Zips just do so many stupid things on offense. Stupid shots. Stupid passes. Stupid stupid stupid. Enrique is forcing every shot, and you can imagine what that looks like. Giving up lots of open 3s on the other end. Just look slow. Not looking like a Groce team this year, at all.

“Oh no! We suck again!”

Zips are not a fun team to watch.

Hankerson is an excellent complimentary player, specifically a compliment to X. When he was the best or 2nd best player at NIU, they were NIU. That’s no shot at him. I wouldn’t want the offense to run through Channel Banks if LCJ was out back in those days. I’d be far more concerned about what we’ve seen if this team wasn’t so much different from the team that won the tournament last year. In March, we thought we had a dynasty. Then a couple of important pieces left, a couple have been battling injuries, and the newcomers are either very young and inexperienced or haven’t lived up to expectations. Groce’s coaching performance last year down the stretch was masterful and difficult. It will be just as difficult if not more difficult for these last 16 MAC games.

The Zips are 8-3 all-time in the Stroh Center. Even some of the worst Zip teams over the last 12 seasons have come out of there alive. Of course, the biggest of the three losses was by arguably the best Akron team, 2019-2020. The dreadful 17-18 Zips picked up their only regular season road win there. And last year, Trimble had his single annual unconscious shooting game. If X isn't back, I think Akron would have a really hard time tonight. BG will try to run and gun, and without depth and the shooting and defense X brings, it would be an uphill battle against a very confident team. Freeman did really well against Sparks on Friday, and BG's Rashaun Agee really impressed me with his finishing abilities and athleticism against OU on Saturday. Another tough matchup for Enrique, hopefully he keeps playing at a high level. At this point, the MAC season is quickly becoming a developmental season for this team. That's not to say they won't win a lot of games or win anything in Cleveland, but these next 16 games are extremely valuable in getting ready for Cleveland. The pieces are there, they just haven't fit together quite right.

Zips -3.5

He is far and away his own worst enemy. He’s made enough open 3s and 10 foot floaters to show us 9-10 from the field against a top 80 team is no fluke. He seems like the kind of guy that could shine in Cleveland. Wait to see…

Indeed they are. I like WMU to the Sweet 16 and Miami to the Elite 8 as well.

Probably won't do this every week after the games, but after getting to see a decent amount of each team in week 1, here's how I would rank them currently: 1. Kent--They didn't look as unbeatable as everyone in the country perceives, but they went 2-0 and won at Millett. Not an easy task. Carry won single-handedly yesterday 2. Ball State--I don't think this will wind up being the 2nd place finisher when it's all said and done, but this program seems to be coming back to life. Decent guards, a great big, decent experience, and a great hire. They play real hard, and could make some noise. 3. Toledo--Despite the loss to Ball State, the way they dominated WMU for 40 minutes spoke volumes. I don't see this as a Toledo team that will win 15-17 league games, but they're still really good and will be a contender. They're in Kent on Tuesday. 4. Bowling Green--I'll show the Falcons some love, though I expect them to really struggle in the grand scheme of things. They were dominant in Ypsi, and put together a hell of a performance to beat Ohio yesterday. It's funny, everyone expected both BG football and BG men's basketball to be horrible, finish at the bottom of the league. And while I still believe they're not any good, they somehow win games. Huger is coaching for his job. He's got Metheny back, and he's not one to mess around with. The whole team has never met a shot they don't like, and they've got an athletic big guy who can finish. My surprise of the year so far. 5. Buffalo--Opened league play with a pair of home games against a similar OU team and dreadful NIU. The Bulls put together a decent nonconference season, and have gotten off to a nice start. Beating OU at home is always good. This team is pretty unrecognizable from a roster standpoint, and I don't trust Whitesell. I'd expect a regression to the mean in the next few weeks. 6. Akron--It's okay, I promise! It's funny, going into last year with the additions of X, KJ Walton, an offseason for Bandaogo, Freeman, Clarke, Dawson, etc. we were expecting massive things, to be massive favorites. Then reality set in and it was unrecognizable from October to March. Fast forward to this past March, once again on cloud nine, getting every important piece back, then the portal + injuries begin to pile up. Groce re-tools, puts together a roster to get excited about, then a huge win over SDSU! WOW! Then a couple nice wins and let downs. MAC play arrives, this team has been without X for a couple games, Clarke for a couple weeks, Aziz, Ali transferred out, Dawson out for the year, another P5 transfer has come in and been a disappointment. All of a sudden we're relying on Kobe Mitchell, Nate Johnson, Tavari Johnson, and an NIU transfer. Not a great feeling. But considering the circumstances, I've seen far better (to this point) Akron teams play far worse against much worse teams. Tuesday at BG is not a must-win, but it sure does feel like it. TTP. 7. Ohio--After losing their two best players to the portal, Boals has put together another decent team. Roderick is still there, and Miles Brown is a stud. This is a team to keep an eye on. 8. CMU--Tony Barbee can coach! Going into last season, they seemed like a team that would be a distant last place. But they won at Kent, gave Toledo and Akron fits, and found themselves in Cleveland. They had the ball on the last possession with a chance to win. All with a thrown together mish-mash roster. Not many guys returned from that group, but he re-tooled and has another pesky team. Freshman Reggie Bass is fun to watch. 9. EMU--It pains me to put them this high after losing a home game to BG by 25, but they actually looked okay in the 2nd half against CMU. They were down big early, but rallied and won. One of their other wins this year was at FIU, who just beat a great UAB team. Stan Heath is not a good coach, but they have Emoni Bates and nobody else does. He's got a Nick Harney attitude with modern day NBA talent. They could beat anyone but also lose to anyone by 30. 10. WMU--Lamar Norman seems to be a shell of his former self after a pair of MAC games. I'm on the fence about this new coach, who seems to prefer to play inside-out, despite having Norman. He doesn't let him run wild. Toledo put up 100 on them. Still dangerous, but I'm disappointed. 11. Miami--Groce's step-brother is going to have a long year. They put up a good fight against Kent, but had no answer for Carry. They had a 6-point lead deep into the 2nd half, but you knew there was no hope. I do think there's potential, as Lairy is still there, and he's got a big-dog style guy who can pass as well as any big. 12. NIU--Poor Rashon Burno. Wow, they're bad. Bad bad bad. Keshawn WIlliams is the single bright spot on this team. A mid-major program in the Chicago area should never be this bad, but here we are again. There will be a fight for the last spot in Cleveland, and I would put NIU's chances at 0.0%. If Kent runs Toledo off the floor by 15+, I'll be a bit more convinced that they're as ahead of the pack as the metrics suggest. But all I see on the horizon is another grind of a MAC season for the Zips. Few of these games will be easy, and it all boils down to Cleveland. Seeding doesn't matter, matchups don't matter. You gotta bring it every night. 2022 taught us that. Go Zips!

Zips win yet another game they were supposed to win. Layne Ferrell has emerged as an All-MAC candidate. She’s got great basketball IQ, can shoot it, pass it, and play solid defense. Far from the most athletic player you’ll ever see, but she may be the straw that stirs the drink for this team. They’re back on the road with a trip to Ypsi on Wednesday before hosting first place Bowling Green.

After taking a bit of a step back from the edge overnight, I’d say I’m willing to call this one of the more promising losses of the season. With X out, all of the foul trouble, all of the missed shots, all of the bad offense, this was a one possession game with about 2 minutes to go, on the road against a damn good team. If they had come out like they did against Marshall and been behind by 10+ all night, I would feel differently. But I think last night, while disappointing, gave me more of an indication that this team may be further along than I had thought going into this week. They took the punch in the mouth early and kept their composure all night. Now, while Kobe has come a long way on the defensive end, he’s become so passive on offense. Same with Tavari, though he does shoot it more. If you watch his play vs. Nevada compared to anyone since, he looks so hesitant and small. He rose up with confidence in the Caymans, but has shrunk with the grown expectations. Hankerson showed this week that on the offensive end, he needs X running the show in order to make a difference. He can’t create, and the only guards that have done any creating are X and Tribble—one of which who can shoot. Unfortunately, while I think there’s a lot of talent on this roster, they play making is only coming from X and Freeman. There are no other playmakers, guys that make everyone else on the floor better. The feeling of Mike Dawson’s absence grows.