Middle Tennessee State

[akronzips71]

According to teamrankings.com we were #148, and we beat #17

This should have a positive effect.

[Hilltopper]

Big win by the Zips today. I don't know if the video showed it, but this was a really physical game. Lots of hanging and bumping away from the ball and all ignored by the refs. The only negative I came away with today was the lousy free throw shooting. If the Zips had made their Ft's, we win by 7 in regulation. Kretzer was really clutch in OT.

[akronzips71]

If they didn't call that lane violation we win by 1 in regulation.

[akronzips71]

BTW that foul on the three point shot at the end might not have been a bad call....

In the sense that if the foul prevented the shot from having a chance to go in, the shooter than needs to make three out of three. Now I know that guy is a really good foul shooter, but no one shoots 100%.

In a way it could be playing the odds.

If the shot drops, then it is deadly.

[LZIp]

BTW that foul on the three point shot at the end might not have been a bad call....

In the sense that if the foul prevented the shot from having a chance to go in, the shooter than needs to make three out of three. Now I know that guy is a really good foul shooter, but no one shoots 100%.

In a way it could be playing the odds.

If the shot drops, then it is deadly.

meh. It was a dumb play, no strategy involved. If KD was worried about playing chances by fouling, they would have fouled before the shot and it be 1-1 or 2 shots (whatever it was), instead of fouling and giving them the chance to tie it.

[Zip_ME87]

How about Kretzer! Fresh stepped up big in OT.

+1

[skip-zip]

meh. It was a dumb play, no strategy involved. If KD was worried about playing chances by fouling, they would have fouled before the shot and it be 1-1 or 2 shots (whatever it was), instead of fouling and giving them the chance to tie it.

Exactly. That was a dumb decision by one individual.

And as far as I am concerned, Treadwell and Harney both showed a real lack of focus today.

I also HOPED that we MIGHT get 3,000 for a game like this. That should have been a high enough quality opponent to get some attention. Disappointing.

[zippy5]

Exactly. That was a dumb decision by one individual.

And as far as I am concerned, Treadwell and Harney both showed a real lack of focus today.

I also HOPED that we MIGHT get 3,000 for a game like this. That should have been a high enough quality opponent to get some attention. Disappointing.

The average fan probably thinks MTSU is some scrub low major. On an NFL Sunday, a big crowd just wasn't happening.

[Dave in Green]

It was not a pretty game, but it was intense. MTSU plays hard and physical (especially #14), and the refs let them get away with a lot early. After several hard falls and escalating tempers with the players, the refs then started over-calling to regain control of the game. The refs were as entertaining to watch as an old Keystone Cops movie at both ends of the court.

MTSU has a bunch of athletic players who play hard and fast. They remind me a little of the Bobkitties, as they quickly pass the ball around a lot to get open shots, and their guards are fearless at driving the basket. This was a good test for the Zips. On the good side they hit better than 50% of their field goals. On the bad side, their 3-point and free throw shooting were below average. Worst of all, they let a smaller team outrebound them 30-22. Seriously, 22 rebounds in 45 minutes? You don't win many games going more than 2 minutes between rebounds!

These are the kind of games the Zips need to win more regularly in order to gain respect. It's obvious they still have problems with teams that come at them non-stop with a swarm of speedy, physical athletes. But I think KD's decision to have the Zips practice executing a swarming defense has helped them handle swarming defenses from their opponents better than in the past. I don't think last season's Zips would have handled the pressure as well, and would have probably lost this home game as they lost at MTSU last season.

It was especially good to see a healthy Rico leading the Zips today. Watching him making slicing drives to the bucket, stealing the ball away and generally playing a nice all-around game reminded me of how much the Zips struggle when he's slowed with an injury.

[K92]

The drive home is much more enjoyable after watching the Zips win. Been a while.

[johnnyzip84]

The drive home is much more enjoyable after watching the Zips win. Been a while.

No doubt! We can't call you a jinx anymore

Listening to KD describe MTSU after the game, I agreed with everything he said. Paraphrasing, he called the Raiders physical, athletic, deep and disciplined. Harney is going to have to become a better defensive rebounder if he wants more minutes. While Tree made some mistakes down the stretch, he also caused foul trouble for several MTSU players. I really like the isolations with him, but he needs to be a little more patient at times and kick it out when it's not there. Overall, I'll take it. This is a nice win.

Go Zips!!

[akzipper]

BTW that foul on the three point shot at the end might not have been a bad call....

In the sense that if the foul prevented the shot from having a chance to go in, the shooter than needs to make three out of three. Now I know that guy is a really good foul shooter, but no one shoots 100%.

In a way it could be playing the odds.

If the shot drops, then it is deadly.

I agree. The way I see it he most likely would have made the 3 anyway, at least fouling made him earn it. MTSU may not be the best 3 point shooting team, but against the Zips in that scenario luck has never been on our side.

[skip-zip]

I agree. The way I see it he most likely would have made the 3 anyway, at least fouling made him earn it. MTSU may not be the best 3 point shooting team, but against the Zips in that scenario luck has never been on our side.

Again, there is no basketball strategy that calls for making an opponent "EARN" 3 points by fouling him IN THE ACT of shooting a 3-point jumper when you have a 3 point lead late in the game.

[akzipper]

Again, there is no basketball strategy that calls for making an opponent "EARN" 3 points by fouling him IN THE ACT of shooting a 3-point jumper when you have a 3 point lead late in the game.

Think back to all the times that Akron has lost on late 3 point shot against Miami, Can't, etc. Looking back would you rather had the Zips foul and at least have the chance of them missing one? History has shown our opponents will make that shot every time. If the Zips are up 4 or more points I say let them shoot. But at 3 points, foul. Of course ideally it would have been better to foul earlier to force 2 shots instead. To me the biggest concern is MAKE SURE they miss the shot. Nothing would have been worse than a 4 point play.

[zippy5]

Is this really an argument? Did someone say he most likely would have made that three? oh boy.

[akronzips71]

As I recall, there was never any opportunity to foul in two point territory on that play. It would have been in the backcourt, and runs the risk of an intentional foul or flagrant, which gives them the ball after the shots.

[Dave in Green]

It all depends on whether you believe in the statistical odds of a specific player making a disputed 3-pointer versus making 3 consecutive free throws or whether you believe in the voodoo magic of the NEO curse that whatever happens, regardless of circumstances, always produces the worst possible outcome for any NEO team.

But, seriously, folks, Tree did not commit a foul on that disputed 3-pointer. Tree timed his leap just right to try to disrupt the shot without contacting the MTSU player. Immediately after releasing the ball, the MTSU player cleverly extended his arm so that it contacted Tree as he went flying past and flopped to fool the ref and draw the foul. Since the refs today were not drawn from the same pool as those who are selected to officiate the NCAA Final Four, the ref bit on the flop and called a phantom foul on what would have otherwise likely been a game-ending missed shot. Stuff like that happens all the time in sports throughout the country and around the world.

[LZIp]

Is this really an argument? Did someone say he most likely would have made that three? oh boy.

yeah, this cant be serious lol

[zippyfan34]

Middle Tennessee fans love how Frenchy and Dunn call the games Link

Speaking of which, did anyone hear or see anything on how Frenchy did for the championship game of the Puerto Rico tournament for Oklahoma State?

[akronzips71]

It all depends on whether you believe in the statistical odds of a specific player making a disputed 3-pointer versus making 3 consecutive free throws or whether you believe in the voodoo magic of the NEO curse that whatever happens, regardless of circumstances, always produces the worst possible outcome for any NEO team.

But, seriously, folks, Tree did not commit a foul on that disputed 3-pointer. Tree timed his leap just right to try to disrupt the shot without contacting the MTSU player. Immediately after releasing the ball, the MTSU player cleverly extended his arm so that it contacted Tree as he went flying past and flopped to fool the ref and draw the foul. Since the refs today were not drawn from the same pool as those who are selected to officiate the NCAA Final Four, the ref bit on the flop and called a phantom foul on what would have otherwise likely been a game-ending missed shot. Stuff like that happens all the time in sports throughout the country and around the world.

Just like that guy in the bar last week who crashed his face right into my fist!

[Valpo Zip]

This win is huge. I watched Ok State and Penn State, I feel that MTSU was a better team than both.

We have great talent on the team but watching them still make you wanna pull your hair some times. Free throws seem to be a continuous issue year after year. game ending plays are always terrible but a win erases all mistakes.

[bUAkronG]

Is this really an argument? Did someone say he most likely would have made that three? oh boy.

consider the source.

[Dave in Green]

The Zips have been up, down and all around in team free throw shooting percentage over the past 5 seasons.

In 2008-2009 they shot 70.8% and were ranked #106 -- in the top third of all D1 teams.

In 2009-2010 they fell off dramatically to a terrible 65.7% and were ranked way down at #272 -- in the bottom 20%.

In 2010-2011 they bounced back to 70.4% and #132 -- just under the top third.

Last season they dropped off to 69.2% and #167 -- square in the middle of all D1 teams.

This season they're back up so far to 70.1% and #131 -- again just under the top third.

To put that in perspective, the top 10 free throw shooting teams in the country typically average about 78%. If the Zips had shot 78% instead of 69.2% last season, they would have averaged scoring about 2 points more per game. As much as we'd like to see the Zips be a consistently excellent free throw shooting team, the reality of college basketball is that most of the top 10 free throw shooting teams each season are not powerhouses who do well in the NCAA tournament, or even qualify for the tournament.

So while high percentage free throw shooting is a nice little bonus, it's not what separates the top college basketball teams from the rest of the field.

[BirdZip]

They're doing a terrible job of making the best of the situation, then.

If they want the sections to be unified, then they need to switch to the opposite side of the arena. If they want to keep the students out of GA (and sitting down there if they don't feel like walking all the way to the opposite end of the arena from their ghetto entrance) and out of walking through the reserved seats then they also need to switch to the other side of the arena.

Section off the upper north side with rope, so the only seating option for students coming in is to sit there. It's not a difficult thing to figure out. I have no idea why they insist on doing everything backwards. The design of the JAR is bad enough without them screwing up the logistics further.

I think they should have people meet the students at the door and carry them to their seats, seeing how far they would have to walk to reach the seating area. A student could pull a hammy walking that extra 120 feet.

(<-- Sarcasm Indicator)

[Zips Win!]

The Zips have been up, down and all around in team free throw shooting percentage over the past 5 seasons.

In 2008-2009 they shot 70.8% and were ranked #106 -- in the top third of all D1 teams.

In 2009-2010 they fell off dramatically to a terrible 65.7% and were ranked way down at #272 -- in the bottom 20%.

In 2010-2011 they bounced back to 70.4% and #132 -- just under the top third.

Last season they dropped off to 69.2% and #167 -- square in the middle of all D1 teams.

This season they're back up so far to 70.1% and #131 -- again just under the top third.

To put that in perspective, the top 10 free throw shooting teams in the country typically average about 78%. If the Zips had shot 78% instead of 69.2% last season, they would have averaged scoring about 2 points more per game. As much as we'd like to see the Zips be a consistently excellent free throw shooting team, the reality of college basketball is that most of the top 10 free throw shooting teams each season are not powerhouses who do well in the NCAA tournament, or even qualify for the tournament.

So while high percentage free throw shooting is a nice little bonus, it's not what separates the top college basketball teams from the rest of the field.

+1