Tiffin

[Gcc]

Is anyone able to get the live stream?

[RootforRoo44]

According to twitter, dozens of people can't get it to work.

[akzipper]

They said on the radio the scoreboard/monitors arent working...gotta love the JAR

Who says we don't need a new arena?

[Quickzips]

Radio broadcast says they don't have the scoreboards working and French and Dunn don't have their monitors working. No surprise that the live stream isn't working either. They better get it together for the real games.

[Redleg2Signal]

Video just came up for me. Anyone else getting it?

[GP1]

They said on the radio the scoreboard/monitors arent working...gotta love the JAR

Who says we don't need a new arena?

Wouldn't a new scoreboard cost less?

Better yet, wouldn't it cost less to, I don't know, test the system before the game?

[MDZip]

Video feed is working fine, Tiffin hanging a little closer than I'd like to see. Forsythe with a beautiful pass to Harney for a layup. The big man can pass and shoot. I'm excited about him. I also realized just how much I'll miss watching Zeke next season (oh well, its only the beginning of this one).

[Valpo Zip]

Holly Forsythe!

What a nice soft touch and amazing footwork! He just gave a Dragon deffender a serb-like: now you see me...now you don't spin move and scored on him.

We must defend better though.

[cms133@uakron.edu]

So hilarious listening to French when they think they're off the air.

[MDZip]

So hilarious listening to French when they think they're off the air.

Yep, someone forgot to mute the mic on the last break, badmouthing the hell out of OU.

[cms133@uakron.edu]

Now on-air badmouthing haha. Love it!

[ZippyRulz]

Zips All-Lefty team: Jakubick-Boyce-Travis-Kretzer...

[Quickzips]

I know it is an exhibition game against a crummy opponent, but the one thing I see already, when the Zips have Tree and Pat F. on the floor together it is going to be VERY difficult for our opponents to get any rebounds.

Ohh, and Pat F. has a VERY nice free throw stroke for a guy who is 6'11".

[Quickzips]

Zips All-Lefty team: Jakubick-Boyce-Travis-Kretzer...

Linhart, Gilliam, Forsythe...

[akronzips71]

OK, my power just came back on. I only saw the last 1 1/2 minute. Kretzer looked amazing, Justice too. So someone tell me, who looks like starters?

[Quickzips]

OK, my power just came back on. I only saw the last 1 1/2 minute. Kretzer looked amazing, Justice too. So someone tell me, who looks like starters?

Justice was terrible most of the game. Don't expect him to get many minutes.

Projected starters (my opinion only):

PG Abreu

SG Walsh

SF Gilliam

PF Treadwell

C Marshall

Projected rotation:

PG Betancourt

SG/SF McAdams

PF Harney

C Forsythe

I could also see Deji and/or Kretzer getting time. Deji looked a lot smoother and more comfortable out there and his length is a MAJOR benefit for the Zips. Kretzer looked very good as well. Tough kid. Not afraid to mix it up down low and can pull the trigger from 3.

Betancourt ran the show quite well and is already an above average defender.

Tree picked it right back up where he left off the last 1/3 of last season. Crashes the boards hard, runs the floor and scores at will.

Walsh, Gilliam, Marshall all looked solid. About what you would expect from your more veteran players in a meaningless exhibition game.

Harney has some serious offensive moves, but we already knew that. Still doesn't seem particularly interested in defense or rebounding which is why Tree is starting.

McAdams is going to be a good one. Didn't disappoint those who were talking him up pre-game. Leave him open in the corner at your own risk.

Forsythe is going to be a major weapon this year. Solid rebounder, strong, tought, can score and even comes with a pretty good looking free throw stroke.

If Egner played at all I didn't see it. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see him transfer out at some point. There just aren't minutes for him on the current Zips roster.

[Dave in Green]

Egner didn't play, and Justice saw only a little time. The Zips roster is loaded with talented players, and PT is going to be hard to earn. At one point there were four freshmen on the floor who weren't at UA last season (Melo, Kretzer, McAdams and Forsythe), and they looked strong with few freshman mistakes. I can't imagine any of them being redshirted. They all looked as good against Tiffin as they've looked in practice.

It turned out that Deji backed up Melo at the point, and did a decent job even though he's really more of a 2. McAdams did run the offense for awhile, and did a nice job of bringing the ball upcourt and dishing. I really expected Melo and Forsythe to fit right in from day one. But McAdams and Kretzer are exceeding my expectations. I didn't realize they would be so polished from day one. Add them in with the veterans, who all played well tonight, and this is one impressive team.

For those who doubted how talented Forsythe is, tonight was just the tip of the iceberg. Forsythe is a complete player -- a 6-11 guy who can do it all. He rebounds with a lot of the ferocity of Tree, blocks shots with a lot of the range of Zeke, takes the ball to the bucket with a lot of the confidence of Harney and shoots free throws with a lot of the form and smoothness of Walsh. KD said on the radio broadcast that Forsythe and Zeke could be on the floor together at times this season, and that will be a nightmare for Zips' opponents.

It's really a great time to be a Zips' basketball fan.

[johnnyzip84]

Here are my additions to what has already been said:

1. I really like Forsythe’s game. He provides so many options for the Zips this year. I really hope KD decides to play a little offensive/defensive substitution with him and Zeke in close games as this could definitely provide an advantage in crunch time.

2. I like the way we controlled the boards with Tree and Pat on the floor at the same time. Conversely, the rebounding suffered (especially on the defensive end) when both were on the bench. Consequently, I hope one of them is on the floor at all times this year, even though I like their chemistry together.

3. Deji hit a couple of those odd set-shot threes, but he doesn’t look very comfortable to me at the point whatsoever. I love his defense and hustle, but it’s hard for me to see exactly where he fits on offense. I’m not sure he has a “natural” position at this level.

4. Justice struggled by forcing things, but I don’t think I’d write him off just yet.

5. Melo, although not spectacular, was solid at the point. He looks to be a definite upgrade over past back-ups at the point. He seemed to play much more relaxed in the second half, although the Dragons were running low on flames by that time.

6. Kretzer looks like a force. It’s hard to imagine how powerful he could be by the time he’s a senior. He seems to understand the game well also.

7. As advertised, McAdams brings a whole bunch of goodness to the table. The thing that struck me most about him is his confidence. He’s been compared to several other Zips, but I think he’s sort of in another category. He’s much quicker and faster than Linhart, and he handles the ball far better as well. It’s unlikely he’ll finish or play shut-down defense like Q, but he sees the floor better and looks to have a more consistent touch from outside. He could conceivably wind up being one of the best all-around Zips of the KD era when his career is over.

[Dave in Green]

A few morning after thoughts: Tiffin is a decent DII team with more height than typical on the roster (6-11, 6-9, 6-8, 6-7, 6-7, 6-6, etc.). But Tiffin is still a guard-oriented team. Joe Graessle (6-3 guard #33) demonstrated why he led the GLIAC in 3-pointers last season and set a Tiffin school record. Tiffin is somewhat similar to OU, so it was a good first test to see how the bigger Zips could apply their new defense against a bunch of quick guards. It worked pretty well in the second half. But the way Tiffin's guards got open looks in the first half suggests that OU will once again be a big challenge for the Zips, who are bigger but a little slower than the Bobkitties.

Tree continues to demonstrate more of a leadership role for the Zips. His intensity is as great as last season, and his motor looks even stronger due to better conditioning. He sets a great example for the rest of the team, and I expect there will be times when he will take over games this season. With 12 rebounds in 23 minutes, 6 at the offensive end, he appears to be ready to once again challenge for national leadership in offensive rebounding percentage this season.

The biggest challenge to Tree in that category might come from his new teammate. Forsythe had a remarkable 12 rebounds in just 15 minutes, with 7 of those coming at the offensive end. Having 7 offensive rebounds in just 15 minutes is extraordinary, and reinforces that his high offensive rebounding percentage in the 7 games he played last year for WVU before his season-ending injury was no fluke. In Tree and Forsythe, the Zips have two of the best offensive rebounders in the country.

No surprise that the Zips demolished Tiffin, and will do the same to Malone. John Carroll and Coastal Carolina also do not produce significant challenges for this Zips team. But with all the new players the Zips have to sort out, it's good that they have a pair of exhibition games and a couple of weaker opponents in their first two games before facing off against Oklahoma State in PR. This season's Zips team has huge potential and will get great results if they apply themselves.

[taxpayer]

My take from the Tiffin exhibition:

Zero/Zip improvements to the JAR....very disappointing

The Zips pregame & intro's remain dismal at best

Missed the band.

Minimal endzone scoreboard performance - by design or is it simply not working?

Does this university realize they have a good thing in KD and this team? Apparently not. Students absent as well. Again

I was encouraged by the players performances offensively. Defensively, not so much.

Depth of talent is off the charts impressive. Big & long. Quick?

KD and staff are going to have a difficult time keeping all the players happy with an apparent 10 or 11 man rotation.

Tiffin has some decent guards but their "bigs" weren't.

This team has potential and with such a large rotation Chemistry is going to be huge in their climb towards success.

Overall grade: Team O: B

Team D: C -

Adminstration/Event effort: D - Yes, I know it was an exhibition but with so many places they could improve the JAR and

to have made none since last year.....really?

Looking forward to watching this team!

[Zip76]

My take from the Tiffin exhibition:

Zero/Zip improvements to the JAR....very disappointing

The Zips pregame & intro's remain dismal at best

Missed the band.

Minimal endzone scoreboard performance - by design or is it simply not working?

Does this university realize they have a good thing in KD and this team? Apparently not. Students absent as well. Again

I was encouraged by the players performances offensively. Defensively, not so much.

Depth of talent is off the charts impressive. Big & long. Quick?

KD and staff are going to have a difficult time keeping all the players happy with an apparent 10 or 11 man rotation.

Tiffin has some decent guards but their "bigs" weren't.

This team has potential and with such a large rotation Chemistry is going to be huge in their climb towards success.

Overall grade: Team O: B

Team D: C -

Adminstration/Event effort: D - Yes, I know it was an exhibition but with so many places they could improve the JAR and

to have made none since last year.....really?

Looking forward to watching this team!

You are awfully critical of the administration and the JAR. What improvements would you like to see that would make sense given the department's hopes to be moved out of the current facility in the next several years? Do you really expect them to make significant upgrades to a "lame duck" facility? If you are going to complain, at least provide some constructive ideas to fix the problems you reference.

[Quickzips]

Day after thoughts:

KD is going to have a tough decision to make with Kretzer. On one hand, the kid has shown enough skills to warrant some run, and he provides a dimension that the Zips are lacking to some extent (combo forward who can crash the boards, shoot from 3 and isn't afraid to do the dirty work). On the other hand, how are you going to find regular enough minutes for him to warrant burning his redshirt? You have six major contributors returning (Alex, Brian, Chauncey, Demetrius, Zeke and Nick). You also have a talented youngster who can give you valuable minutes as the backup PG (which we desperately need). You also have a transfer from a major program who you worked hard to get eligible this season and can gives you a true backup C that almost every team on the schedule can't compete with. Finally you have another talented wing who fills a significant hole vacated by the departed Quincy Diggs. That puts you up to a 9 man rotation. Can you really go to a 10 man rotation (11 if you add Deji)?

Others have already mentioned it. Either Tree, Pat F or both have to be on the floor at all times or we will get killed on the boards. Zeke's rebounding issues are well documented and don't really need to be re-hashed, but I am kind of disappointed that Harney still doesn't get it. He's more interested in getting down the floor and scoring than he is securing the ball and you just can't have that with your bigs.

Justice was REALLY forcing things last night. He had the look of a guy who knew he was on shaky ground when it comes to getting playing time this year and was desperate to prove he deserved it.

Just spit-balling here, but I would like to see us bring Walsh off the bench in the next exhibition on Saturday and let McAdams start. Here is why. As it is, we have 3 newcomers coming off of the bench along with Harney. Now Harney has his good attributes, but he isn't exactly a floor leader out there. Much like Q lead the bench brigade a year ago, I would like to see one of our veterans moved down to the 6th man role to help out the young bench brigade. You likely aren't going to move Alex or Zeke down, and moving Tree down would likely leave you starting Harney and Zeke (see my opinion of those two on the floor together above). Gilliam was not nearly as effective off the bench a year ago as he was as a starter. That leaves Walsh, who I think would be perfectly capable and willing to accept that kind of a role.

[Dave in Green]

Good thoughts, Quickzips. First, you ask if the Zips can have more than 9 players in the regular rotation. Last season 9 players averaged 15.3 to 30.5 minutes a game. Adding a 10th player to the rotation only reduces everyone else's PT by 11%, or, say down slightly to 14 to 27 minutes per game. If KD is going to demand that the players put out more effort with a pressing defense this season, it might make sense to reduce everyone's PT by about 11% and keep them all a little fresher. Of course, this is all dependent on the number of players who can be major contributors in the rotation. While it remains to be seen which of the newcomers is up to playing against top DI competition, there's a distinct possibility they all are. In that case, a 10-man rotation makes a lot of sense.

Coincidentally, 10 Zips players in the Tiffin game had 15 to 25 minutes of PT, and an 11th player had 7 minutes. I'm guessing that the 10 players who had double-digit minutes represent 9 of the 10-man rotation (minus Rico) that KD sees right now based on the season drills and practices leading up to the game. I'm guessing that KD was looking for signs that each of those 10 players either fit or didn't fit into a regular season rotation. If someone playing longer minutes shows signs that they can't deliver, they could be shuffled out and, in the case of true freshmen, redshirted. Based on everyone's initial impressions, it appears as if Kretzer may be the biggest question mark of the 10 double-digit-minute players even though he looked pretty darned good. Saturday's exhibition game will provide more clues. If anyone's going to redshirt, that will be their last appearance of the season barring injury.

It's important to have ball handlers/distributors, scorers, rebounders. defensive forces, experience and energy players on the court all the time to keep the pressure up on the opponent all the time. KD has a history of trying different lineups for much of the early part of the season to see which combinations produce the best results together. So it's entirely possible he might try something like you suggest with Walsh. We know that the Zips are now solid 2-deep at center (Zeke and Pat) and PG (Rico and Melo). I think it makes sense to be 2-deep at all the other positions, as well. I think the talent level of the Zips roster may be deep enough now for a 10-player rotation. But I reserve the right to change my mind at any time.

[GoZips]

Time to weigh in.

No one, at least at this time, is going to be red shirted.

The rotation is at least ten deep. Akron has a lot of talent that can and will contribute.

The picture becomes more clear come November 6th; the national Letter Of Intent early signing day.

If all four of the young talent verbal-ed to Akron do sign any red shirt this year cutters up future playing time.

The incoming class is estimated to be far and away the best talent load ever to come to Akron in a single signing class.

As fans we have a limited look into the coaching staff's thinking. They find talent that fits their plan. Recruiting services

are opinions. Our coaches make their livings building winners. Trust them.

I repeat: No current freshman (McAdams, Kretzer, Forsythe or Betancourt) will be deliberately "red Shirted". Only a

medical red shirt would sit anyone down.

The up tempo, full court, end-to-end game requires a lot of able bodies. As the season wears on this need will be clear.

Not sure if anyone watched Oklahoma State play an exhibition game Thursday evening. The O-state AD cautioned

their fans to not take Akron lightly. He stated that Akron is a top fifty program. Coach Travis Ford and his staff

know full well what they are going to face in Puerto Rico.

Speaking of Rico; Alex was seen shooting baskets during the Thursday morning practice. He is healing nicely.

[GoZips88]

Thanks for the update GoZips. Your 'hearsay' is some of the best out there! ;-)