The Hip Zip Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 Western is down, way down. Hawkins knew he would miss Joe Reitz this year but I don't think he thought they would fall so hard as they have.With big Joe gone the Broncs have been reduced to a perimeter shooting team and they are not shooting it well at all. Last time I looked they were down near the bottom of the mac in shooting. Without a strong low post presence and our ability to defend the three ball very well it looks like Western could be in for a long day.Zips 66Broncs 51 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 Akron 67, WMU 35. Seriously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootforRoo44 Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 Akron 67, WMU 35. Seriously.Ill best you.... Akron 77, WMU 38 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zipmeister Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 A closer game than most expect. Zips by 14. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RowdyZip Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 72-55, Zips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valpo Zip Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 73-48 Akron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 The referees today are supposed to be top notch. They've done quite a few final fours between them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zipsrifle Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 87-63 Zips win easy. I only caught the last 3 minutes of the game, but hey, at least I got to see some of it. What's that 6 in a row now? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 Complete disaster averted. Two cupcakes to go. 4-0 against the West.I really like our remaining schedule. The only game that will likely cause trouble is at Buffalo and they've looked beatable lately. Miami, OU, Ball State and BG are at the JAR, Can't isn't all that good, and Valpo doesn't look too tough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zipsrifle Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 Listening the post game show, KD said that he thinks overall, our underneath presence is as good as it has ever been. I don't know if this is just a pep talk or what, but that kind of amazed me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 Is it possible that by the end of the season this team will be even better than last year? The progress this year has been amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave in Green Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 The refs were good, probably the best I've seen at the JAR in a long time. They had the game under control from beginning to end, and were making calls evenly and fairly. That made it a lot easier to focus on what the players were doing, and also saved me from losing my voice from yelling at them!Western came out with intensity and played the Zips even for awhile. But, unlike earlier in the season, once the Zips took control and started pulling away, they remained consistent and left no doubt that a Western comeback was unlikely. As with the Zips game against CMU, this was Western's worst loss of the season, the previous worst being 18-point losses to Southern Illinois and Can't. So while these wins against the West cupcakes may be expected, the way the Zips are consistently winning big is good reason for optimism. This is a much more enjoyable and entertaining Zips team to watch now than it was at the beginning of the season. They are showing a lot more poise, confidence and maturity. The inside game has really made a difference. The McKnights and Cventinovich are all quick and strong, and put a good deal of pressure on the defense when they get the ball down low. B. McKnight especially has improved on his decisions of when to pass and when to shoot, and it's paying off in a lot of high percentage shots. The inside game has also opened up the outside game, with more high percentage shots available from long range. McClanahan is going to cause a lot of pain for MAC East teams in the stretch run, as he is a superb 3-point threat. And Hitchens is playing more under control, putting himself in fewer difficult situations. I think he only had one turnover today, and McNees had none.As I said in another thread, the Zips current 10-player rotation is at least as good as any Zips team I've ever seen, and the potential is there to keep growing this year and in the future. There's just no noticeable fall-off in team performance as players are shuttled in and out. It has to be really disheartening to other teams to know they have to fight off waves of fresh Zips players throughout the game. But it's great for Zips fans! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyzip84 Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 The refs were good, probably the best I've seen at the JAR in a long time. They had the game under control from beginning to end, and were making calls evenly and fairly. That made it a lot easier to focus on what the players were doing, and also saved me from losing my voice from yelling at them!Western came out with intensity and played the Zips even for awhile. But, unlike earlier in the season, once the Zips took control and started pulling away, they remained consistent and left no doubt that a Western comeback was unlikely. As with the Zips game against CMU, this was Western's worst loss of the season, the previous worst being 18-point losses to Southern Illinois and Can't. So while these wins against the West cupcakes may be expected, the way the Zips are consistently winning big is good reason for optimism. This is a much more enjoyable and entertaining Zips team to watch now than it was at the beginning of the season. They are showing a lot more poise, confidence and maturity. The inside game has really made a difference. The McKnights and Cventinovich are all quick and strong, and put a good deal of pressure on the defense when they get the ball down low. B. McKnight especially has improved on his decisions of when to pass and when to shoot, and it's paying off in a lot of high percentage shots. The inside game has also opened up the outside game, with more high percentage shots available from long range. McClanahan is going to cause a lot of pain for MAC East teams in the stretch run, as he is a superb 3-point threat. And Hitchens is playing more under control, putting himself in fewer difficult situations. I think he only had one turnover today, and McNees had none.As I said in another thread, the Zips current 10-player rotation is at least as good as any Zips team I've ever seen, and the potential is there to keep growing this year and in the future. There's just no noticeable fall-off in team performance as players are shuttled in and out. It has to be really disheartening to other teams to know they have to fight off waves of fresh Zips players throughout the game. But it's great for Zips fans!I think this was Humpty's best game of the year, including the Dayton scoring explosion. I say this, because he had very good control of the team when he was on the floor today. Will he still make some "freshmen" turnovers down the stretch? Sure. But I think we saw a BIG step in his maturation process today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ziptrumpet87 Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 not to steal Zip Watcher's tagline, but the future really is so bright I gotta wear one of these Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quickzips Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 The plate of cupcakes keeps getting bigger.Crazy as it might have seemed earlier in the season, this Zips team could very well go into the MAC tournament on something like a 12-2, 13-1, 14-0 type of run. This team is as dangerous as any group in the MAC right now. With three freshman stepping up and playing a significant role, the emergence of Chris McKnight as a consistent inside scoring threat, the deep 10 man rotation and the lock down defense that this team has played all season. I think we could easily make a run at the postseason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Kangaroo Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 The refs were good, probably the best I've seen at the JAR in a long time.If playing Sunday games is what it takes to watch a quality-ref'd game, count me in for changing all our games to Sundays. It was great to watch a basketball game and not a free throw shooting contest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skip-zip Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 I agree with those who feel that this was the best game Humpty played this year. For the most part, he was only taking what was there, and was efficient with the basketball. Very simply, his ability to help us is best when he is dribbling into that 12-15' area, and taking the jumper or dishing. He has seemed to have his biggest struggles scoring by either taking challenged 3-pointers, or trying to take the ball all the way to the basket and trying to launch wild shots over guys that are a foot taller. If he can continue to work on playing under control, and further realizes that he needs to adjust his style of play at this level, I think he has the potential to have a solid career here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave in Green Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 I think KD said on the post-game broadcast that Humpty had been trying too hard to do too many things, and that he was now accomplishing more by not trying so hard all the time. That's a great lesson for a freshman starting point guard to learn before the end of his first season.The challenge is going to come once the Zips are back playing the tougher East teams and into the MAC tournament and potentially beyond. There are likely to be more close games ahead where everyone on the team is going to have to dig down and play even better than they are now. There will be a fine balance for Humpty between playing within his comfort zone and pushing hard to make a few special plays that could make the difference between winning and losing a close game. Part of the maturation process is to know when to be steady and when to turn on the afterburner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hilltopper Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 The refs were good, probably the best I've seen at the JAR in a long time.If playing Sunday games is what it takes to watch a quality-ref'd game, count me in for changing all our games to Sundays. It was great to watch a basketball game and not a free throw shooting contest.It looks like Dave knows good officiating when he sees it.http://www.mlive.com/broncos/index.ssf/200..._87_wmu_63.htmlCan't blame the refsOne of the reasons the Mid-American Conference plays so many Tuesday and Sunday games is because it's easier to land better officiating crews on days that are slower for the rest of college basketball.Even by Sunday standards, this Sunday was a doozy. Ed Hightower, Mike Kitts and J.D. Collins have officiated in 16 Final Fours combined. Hightower, the most well-known of the trio, refereed the Michigan State-Indiana game Saturday in East Lansing."I didn't know Akron had a landing strip big enough for Hightower's private jet," one media member on press row joked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZippyTuba11 Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 We really had Ed Hightower? As far as refs go, he's a celebrity anymore... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Kangaroo Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 It looks like Dave knows good officiating when he sees it.Ray Charles could tell the difference between this Sunday's crew and the CMU crew. The game was a pleasure to watch. And it wasn't just because the Zips won...we won more handily vs. CMU and I wanted to punch a brick wall at the end of that game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zip Watcher Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 The refs were good, probably the best I've seen at the JAR in a long time.If playing Sunday games is what it takes to watch a quality-ref'd game, count me in for changing all our games to Sundays. It was great to watch a basketball game and not a free throw shooting contest.I second that! I couldn't believe it when I got to my seats to see Ed Hightower reffing a game at the JAR.A treat to have refs out there who didn't feel the need to be the center of attention and / or take over the game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skip-zip Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 Hightower's name does indeed show up in the box score. Dave, I'm not sure exactly what your point is about playing under control and within your comfort zone at times, and trying to make a special play at other times. First of all, I don't think a player like Humpty is ever really in his comfort zone when he's playing under control. Without the coaches pulling in the reigns on him, I'm sure he'd be pushing the issue much more often, if it was up to him. And secondly, this team is scoring more points because they are turning the ball over less often, maximizing their possessions, and improving their shot selection. This is Keith's team....and not mine....but personally, I don't want to see anymore "I am going to try to make a spectacular play myself" mentality. Not at the beginning of the game, or the end of the game. It hasn't worked for this team. This leads me to comment about what Keith has said about our great depth compared to past years. I see his point. Even the good Romeo/Dru/Dials/Wood/Middleton teams didn't go 10 or so players deep...if my memory is correct. At least not with the same level of talent that we have that far down the bench today. A few less stars....but more of a contribution from everyone. And that helps this team a lot, because we don't win games because we have stars who play 35 minutes, and score 15-20 p/game. We win when we play great defense....and play total team basketball on the offensive end. Let's hope that the boys keep taking this one game at a time...keep improving...and can stay in the race for a first round bye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Kangaroo Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 And secondly, this team is scoring more points because they are turning the ball over less often, maximizing their possessions, and improving their shot selection.I think reducing Conyers/Bardo's minutes while increasing the McKnight's and Cventinovic's minutes...+ adding McClanahan to the active roster = the most significant reasons we're scoring more points. Overall, everyone is playing well. Humpty gets a little crazy with his early-in-the-shot-clock 3's...but you'd really need to work reach to find anything negative to say about how the Zips are playing right now. Cupcakes or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zip Watcher Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 Is my recollection that he only took 1 such ill-advised 3 accurate? I feel like even that has gotten curtailed a bit lately.Haven't seen him swing for as many "bases empty grand slams" lately.Hard to be anything but pumped after a game like yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.