Zeke

[zippy5]

and TONIGHT is ALL THAT MATTERS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let's get to the 2nd round!!!! DANG!!!

That's the attitude

[RootforRoo44]

Zeke is fine. 15 points 7 rebounds with 12:00 to play. Zeke needs touches. When his teammates get him the ball, he can be dominant. He cannot dominate without the ball.

That's as much of an issue as Zeke's lack of fire. Dambrot under utilizes the big guy and his teammates do not do a good job of getting him the ball. That being said, he needs to be a little better at setting up closer to the hoop.

[UAZip0510]

That's as much of an issue as Zeke's lack of fire. Dambrot under utilizes the big guy and his teammates do not do a good job of getting him the ball. That being said, he needs to be a little better at setting up closer to the hoop.

They get him the ball plenty. The problem is when opposing bigs are physical with Zeke.

[RootforRoo44]

Fantastic game by Zeke. That is what most of us expect from the big guy.

If he can play around 75% of that on average, we will be unstoppable in the future.

[UAZip0510]

Fantastic game by Zeke. That is what most of us expect from the big guy.

If he can play around 75% of that on average, we will be unstoppable in the future.

I remember saying that on March 12th, 2011 too.

[FromdaBurgh]

They get him the ball plenty. The problem is when opposing bigs are physical with Zeke.

Are u serious???!!! Dude..what games do you watch? He LOVES playing against other bigs..thats when he really plays...it's easier to play against another big than a 6'something player and they DO NOT get him the ball PLENTY....ssshhheeessshhh....

[akronzips71]

Are u serious???!!! Dude..what games do you watch? He LOVES playing against other bigs..thats when he really plays...it's easier to play against another big than a 6'something player and they DO NOT get him the ball PLENTY....ssshhheeessshhh....

He played his heart out, and the last play should have gotten the ball to Zeke under the basket and let him throw it down.

They made a mistake playing for the win instead of OT.

[RootforRoo44]

Are u serious???!!! Dude..what games do you watch? He LOVES playing against other bigs..thats when he really plays...it's easier to play against another big than a 6'something player and they DO NOT get him the ball PLENTY....ssshhheeessshhh....

Apparently 8-10 touches a night is considered "plenty".

[UAZip0510]

Are u serious???!!! Dude..what games do you watch? He LOVES playing against other bigs..thats when he really plays...it's easier to play against another big than a 6'something player and they DO NOT get him the ball PLENTY....ssshhheeessshhh....

All of them...for the past 12 years. They do get him the ball plenty, in fact, sometimes they force feed him the ball too much. They did against OU and their defense started picking off his passes out of the double team so they had to go away from it.

[RootforRoo44]

I remember saying that on March 12th, 2011 too.

True, but a year older and a year more mature can do wonders. I too have questioned his drive at times on here, but I think the last few games have shown that he wants to be the team leader and he wants the damn ball...SO GIVE HIM THE DAMN BALL !!!

[UAZip0510]

True, but a year older and a year more mature can do wonders. I too have questioned his drive at times on here, but I think the last few games have shown that he wants to be the team leader and he wants the damn ball...SO GIVE HIM THE DAMN BALL !!!

As I said, they did, against OU. OU doubled him and started picking off his passes out of the double team.

[FromdaBurgh]

He played his heart out, and the last play should have gotten the ball to Zeke under the basket and let him throw it down.

They made a mistake playing for the win instead of OT.

I AGREE!! He was WIDE open..and would have certainly gotten fouled!!!! OH well..job well done Zips! You still brought the school their FIRST EVER REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP!!!! The DPOY and the 6TH MOY...another 20+ win season...and though I'm sure this loss hurts AGAIN...I'm just glad we aren't Syracuse with ACADEMICALLY INELIGIBLE PLAYERS!

Pick your head up and finish out your ACADEMIC year with PRIDE! Fab Melo...we have none!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[UAZip0510]

I AGREE!! He was WIDE open..and would have certainly gotten fouled!!!! OH well..job well done Zips! You still brought the school their FIRST EVER REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP!!!! The DPOY and the 6TH MOY...another 20+ win season...and though I'm sure this loss hurts AGAIN...I'm just glad we aren't Syracuse with ACADEMICALLY INELIGIBLE PLAYERS!

Pick your head up and finish out your ACADEMIC year with PRIDE! Fab Melo...we have none!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Zeke? He had two guys on him. They tried going to him and it wasn't there.

Agree on everything else.

[RootforRoo44]

Zeke? He had two guys on him. They tried going to him and it wasn't there.

Agree on everything else.

Two guys that he had 6 inches of height and a foot of total reach on. The play should have been ran around him...period.

[FromdaBurgh]

Two guys that he had 6 inches of height and a foot of total reach on. The play should have been ran around him...period.

Enuf said...I'm done...GOOD NIGHT!!!

[UAZip0510]

Two guys that he had 6 inches of height and a foot of total reach on. The play should have been ran around him...period.

Lobbing a ball to him while double-teamed was a better plan than Abreu shooting an open three?

[skip-zip]

Lobbing a ball to him while double-teamed was a better plan than Abreu shooting an open three?

Exactly. Someone please tell me how reliable it's been for us to try to get Zeke to gather a pass while double teamed, or shoot and score while double teamed.

[Dave in Green]

If KD had told his players that the only option was to get it to Zeke down low, and Zeke was smothered by defenders and the pass was knocked away, what would the level of criticism be on that?

A good coach will draw up more than one option. If the primary option is well covered, there has to be a backup. At some point you have to rely on the players to make the right decision depending on how the defense is aligned.

[BirdZip]

If you had Zeke down low being double teamed, that may have opened up a look for someone else. Instead we had three guys standing all together.

And to claim Alex's 3 was wide open is a little inaccurate. He had 2 guys on him and was fading left when he took it (IIRC). It was not a good play. No reason to defend it--it just wasn't a good play.

Zeke was awesome last night. His fast break dunk should be Top 10 on ESPN.

[t900442]

So lets see, since he has been here:

Three straight championship appearances

One conference championship

One NCAA

One NIT

20+ games each year

And you don't think he is a dominant player?

That's correct, he is NOT a dominant player. He is an inconsistent "contributor", with some flashes of dominating defensively. All of the achievements that you have listed are TEAM accomplishments, which are attributable to the talent and coaching of the overall TEAM. You like many others make the mistake of attributing team achievements to individual players. Kyle Peterson also "achieved" all of your listed accomplishments, so is he a "dominent player"?

[Captain Kangaroo]

Kyle Peterson also "achieved" all of your listed accomplishments, so is he a "dominent player"?

Xerox wishes they could copy so good.

[GP1]

That's correct, he is NOT a dominant player. He is an inconsistent "contributor", with some flashes of dominating defensively. All of the achievements that you have listed are TEAM accomplishments, which are attributable to the talent and coaching of the overall TEAM. You like many others make the mistake of attributing team achievements to individual players. Kyle Peterson also "achieved" all of your listed accomplishments, so is he a "dominent player"?

The debate as to the importance of Zeke to this basketball program reminds me of the old 1980s hair band song, "You Don't Know What You Got Til It's Gone". The presence of Zeke makes everyone else around him better, including the coaching staff. In my opinion, he'll go down in history as one of the most, if not the most important player during the KD era. 50 years from now, he might even go down as one of the top five basketball Zips of all time. Right now, there is nobody on this roster who can take his place. He is going to be extremely difficult to replace.

[dboze]

The debate as to the importance of Zeke to this basketball program reminds me of the old 1980s hair band song, "You Don't Know What You Got Til It's Gone". The presence of Zeke makes everyone else around him better, including the coaching staff. In my opinion, he'll go down in history as one of the most, if not the most important player during the KD era. 50 years from now, he might even go down as one of the top five basketball Zips of all time. Right now, there is nobody on this roster who can take his place. He is going to be extremely difficult to replace.

+5 - I totally agreed. Zeke is on pace to score 1200 points (has now has 840 and if he duplicates this year - 1200 +), Block 300 + shots, grab 650 + rebounds, shoot over 50% for his career from the field, and moved from a 46% free throw shooter as a freshman to 70% as junior.

There are very few zips that have accomplished these numbers.

We need to appreciate who we have. I for one am glad that he chose Akron and love what he has accomplished both on and off the court.

[GP1]

+5 - I totally agreed. Zeke is on pace to score 1200 points (has now has 840 and if he duplicates this year - 1200 +), Block 300 + shots, grab 650 + rebounds, shoot over 50% for his career from the field, and moved from a 46% free throw shooter as a freshman to 70% as junior.

There are very few zips that have accomplished these numbers.

Thanks. It's not just these numbers though. A lot of what he does can't be measured. Specifically, his betterment of those around him is hard to quantify. It's there and visible. Hard to measure though.

[Captain Kangaroo]

Thanks. It's not just these numbers though. A lot of what he does can't be measured. Specifically, his betterment of those around him is hard to quantify. It's there and visible. Hard to measure though.

I will play devil's advocate. And please, I would appreciate it if no one freaks out and twists my words here (a plea that I am certain will fall on deaf ears):

Compare what we won in the three seasons prior to Zeke, with the three seasons w/Zeke.

BCS wins. Tourney wins. Overall record. Throw in team graduation rates if you so choose.

Where's the difference?

"A lot of what he does can't be measured?" - Yes it can: wins.

We're winning at the same level today as we were 3 seasons ago. Differently style, but the end result is essentially identical.

We did win "The Little Prize" for the first time this year (as described by KD and Nik after we beat K.e..n.t.). But the group from 4-6 years ago won post-season games.

Points for discussion. Feel free to discuss.