Western Michigan discussion

[zippyfan34]

It has to be a little intimidating for other MAC teams to know they're going to be facing a quality 7-foot center every minute of every game against the Zips.

Technically with the blowouts there will be a couple games where there isn't a 7 footer in there for about 2-4 minutes. But then they have to deal with the Lithuanian scoring machine.

[phil]

He was hammering the ref named Ferrari pretty good. Not a great game but the Zips blew them out in the second half. Maybe some of that depth paying off. Hope Zeke is OK, he was limping pretty noticably.

I believe Ferrari called 3 of the 4 fouls against Zeke. One was a push in the back that I did not see althought it allegedly occurred right in front of me. Another was an offensive foul when Zeke set a pick and the player tripped getting around the screen. The guy in front of me stated that Zeke stuck his butt out. I did not see it. Does anyone know how badly Zeke is hurt?

[johnnyzip84]

I'm convinced this team does not practice the layup...awful shooting yet again

I'm convinced you should predict 5 point losses more often.

[K92]

Jonas got a haircut.

[Hilltopper]

I sure wish KD would quit scheduling these cupcakes for home games.

[zipdiehard]

This kinda got buried in another post:

Does anyone know how Zeke is?

He was limping after the game and was on the bench holding his knee. It looked pretty akward when the other player fell on his legs under the hoop.

[Captain Kangaroo]

I sure wish KD would quit scheduling these cupcakes for home games.

I agree with you, but it is a league game, so there isn't anything he can do about it.

I am as big a fan of Jonas and The Human Victory Cigars as anyone...but if KD wants to start filling up the JAR while playing these schlep teams he needs to ratchet it up a couple notches and laying some 40+ point beat downs on them. Get some WWE swagger going on.

Loser Schlep Opposing Coach: "Akron ran the score up on us. It wasn't sportsman-like. Dambrot is a Jerk."

KD: "If the guy doesn't want to lose by 40+, he needs to get better. Next cupcake, please."

Count Von Count: "ONE MAC cupcake...ha ha haaaaa."

[Dr Z]

I read the Western coach said that was the worst game they have played. For Bronco fans, I hope that statement is true.

That Bronco team I watched last night was AWFUL. The Zips were sleep walking the first half. They looked uninterested.

Walsh energized them the second half. He played like his hair was on fire for 2 minutes straight, then KD substituted.

I sure would like to see more ball screen plays set up for BW. Pat played a nice offensive game. He mentioned after the game he worked

very hard on his offensive footwork with his high school coach. He makes a quick decision, and then has a quick release.

If he progresses, he will learn better position under the hoop defensively. He missed three potential blocks last night that I think he will eventually start getting.

Tree looks in shape to me. When he wants to, he can dominate. He has to stay focused for all his minutes. I'll hold the rest of my comments until a later date.

[FromdaBurgh]

This kinda got buried in another post:

Does anyone know how Zeke is?

He was limping after the game and was on the bench holding his knee. It looked pretty akward when the other player fell on his legs under the hoop.

He is battling tendonitis and last night he fell on the same knee. It's VERY, VERY sore...but he is getting treatments and the coaches and trainer are on top of it. I personally, would like to see him sit out NIU and rest his knee...BUT...THAT won't happen! Hoping he has a "light" practice today and just rest, rest, rest it! All is well...keep him in your prayers and LETS GO ZIPS! #TeamZeke (twitter: @mommazeke)

[Dr Z]

Thank you for the update GC44.

[akronzips71]

He is battling tendonitis and last night he fell on the same knee. It's VERY, VERY sore...but he is getting treatments and the coaches and trainer are on top of it. I personally, would like to see him sit out NIU and rest his knee...BUT...THAT won't happen! Hoping he has a "light" practice today and just rest, rest, rest it! All is well...keep him in your prayers and LETS GO ZIPS! #TeamZeke (twitter: @mommazeke)

Usually a few days after the injury they recommend heat. But I found that even months later I got more relief from ice, and my ortho confirmed that everyone is different and if ice is better use it.

Just a thought.

[FromdaBurgh]

He has been doing both...heat/ice treatment combo. He certainly was iced up after the game last night and I'm sure they are taking care of it today as well. I'm just thankful that he has a little more time to rest up before classes start and he's sitting for a long period of time in a classroom..(which could also stiffen him up). Like I said before...the coaches and trainers are on top of it and doing what they feel is necessary to help him out! Big things ahead! #TeamZeke /Twitter: @mommazeke

[lumberjack]

He has been doing both...heat/ice treatment combo. He certainly was iced up after the game last night and I'm sure they are taking care of it today as well. I'm just thankful that he has a little more time to rest up before classes start and he's sitting for a long period of time in a classroom..(which could also stiffen him up). Like I said before...the coaches and trainers are on top of it and doing what they feel is necessary to help him out! Big things ahead! #TeamZeke /Twitter: @mommazeke

I suggest looking into taping and deep heating ultra sound.. I suffered for years post playing and the taping thing have given me hew knees...I was not sold at first but now I'm a believer...I will talk to you more about this at my next time out....

[akronzips71]

I suggest looking into taping and deep heating ultra sound.. I suffered for years post playing and the taping thing have given me hew knees...I was not sold at first but now I'm a believer...I will talk to you more about this at my next time out....

My physical therapist used the heat/ultra sound thing after my knee surgery. Personally I found the ice to be more of a pain killer and anti inflammatory, but you don't get quite as loose. Like I said, everyone is different. Use what works for you.

[BirdZip]

If we're as good as we think we are and truly want to talk about making a run in the NCAA tournament, this game shouldn't be close. WMU is a pretender. Zips by 20.

Stupid WMU bench warmer ruined my prediction with what may be the worst lay-up attempt ever in a college game there at the end.

I'm with CK. I want to see a Kentucky-vs-EMU style beatdown. Sad part is, if the Zips played like Zips in the first half, the margin could have been 40+. If you want national notice, don't just win, destroy. Show that you are better than your conference.

[Dave in Green]

@johnnyzip84, are you talking to yourself or did a moderator accidentally edit your post instead of replying to it?

The one comment I'd make about the trapping defense is that the Zips are obviously not yet proficient at executing it. The key question is whether it's worth pursuing or not. That is, if the Zips keep working at it, can it become effective by the end of the season where it might really make a difference in how far the Zips go in the tournaments? I think the Zips have enough athletic players now that they are individually physically capable of executing an effective trapping defense. But to make it really work well requires lots of timing, coordination and teamwork that can only come through experience.

[Captain Kangaroo]

@johnnyzip84, are you talking to yourself or did a moderator accidentally edit your post instead of replying to it?

God f-ing dammit. My sincere apologies Johnny. I accidentally do that about once per year. Figures I do it on a great post...

I owe you a really good beer sometime soon.

[Captain Kangaroo]

Dammit.

Three of JZ84's 9 game overview points (CK accidentally erased the others):

3. I’m not a big fan of the trapping defense, or at least the execution I saw last night. The help defender is SO SLOW to react that all it seems to do is set the other team up for a 4 on 3. If the goal is to speed the tempo, then I can see using in SOME. But if you can’t cause many turnovers using it against a guard-challenged team like WMU I’m not sure I see the point.

7. + 8. Backup PG continues to be the concern for this team. There was no better evidence to how tentative Melo is playing right now than his decision to kick the ball out to the corner when he was driving in for an uncontested layup late in the 1st half. Although I still believe Deji could be a player without a true position at this level, I really like the way he battles on defense. He looks like he’s one of the stronger players on the team when he’s fighting for space on the floor. I suspect his defense is why KD plays him as much as he does.

I liked all your comments, JZ. Regarding the ones I highlighted:

Deadnutz on regarding the trap. Great trapping teams flow like a really fast amoeba. We were slow...late...mechanical...whatever you want to call it... it wasn't a cohesive, disruptive force whatsoever.

Back up PG is scary at the moment. The big selling point on Carmelo was his high level prep career. I envisioned him as a plug-in-and-go guy from the start...and I think KD did too... but he will need the summer to get stronger and more confident. Either that, or the new JUCO PG will get his PT in 2013-14. Deji is a turnover machine at the point. And despite his confidence in shooting the three... he's not exactly Kyle Korver yet either. He does play good D, and he hustles. But offensively he had too many negative plays.

Do I pine for Diggs at the point? Not really. He was really out of place there. Much more effective on the wing. And if I did pine for him, he ain't coming back this year anyhow.

[johnnyzip84]

God f-ing dammit. My sincere apologies Johnny. I accidentally do that about once per year. Figures I do it on a great post...

I owe you a really good beer sometime soon.

No problem, Cap'n

Actually, I usually work with a safety net when posting something that is relatively long:

Here are some of my thoughts on the game:

1. I was concerned heading into this game over WMU’s ability to get 2nd chances on the offensive boards, so it was awesome seeing the Zips with a 41-30 rebounding advantage.

2. It’s obvious, of course, but WMU’s huge hole is at point guard. I really think Hawkins is making a mistake by giving Richey so many minutes there. He’s just not that sound on the ball, isn’t really an effective distributor and by having him handle it so much it largely takes away the one thing he does very well: shoot the three.

3. I’m not a big fan of the trapping defense, or at least the execution I saw last night. The help defender is SO SLOW to react that all it seems to do is set the other team up for a 4 on 3. If the goal is to speed the tempo, then I can see using in SOME. But if you can’t cause many turnovers using it against a guard-challenged team like WMU I’m not sure I see the point.

4. French and Dunn have noticed it early on, but Nick Harney really does bring much higher energy when he’s in the starting line-up. His rebounding is MUCH better and his defense has also improved (still a work in progress there).

5. Tree was doing a little too much planning instead of using his instincts last night. Part of that was some pretty good interior defense from WMU. It’s great that no matter how his offense is fairing, he still pounds the glass with such ferocity.

6. Walsh was moving like he hasn’t just about all season. I assume his back is fine at this point, and that’s good timing for the Zips.

7. Backup PG continues to be the concern for this team. There was no better evidence to how tentative Melo is playing right now than his decision to kick the ball out to the corner when he was driving in for an uncontested layup late in the 1st half.

8. Although I still believe Deji could be a player without a true position at this level, I really like the way he battles on defense. He looks like he’s one of the stronger players on the team when he’s fighting for space on the floor. I suspect his defense is why KD plays him as much as he does.

9. In summary, the quality depth on this team gives it a ridiculous edge over the other teams in the conference. I’m really looking forward to each and every game from here on out. Go Zips!!

[Dave in Green]

..... I accidentally do that about once per year. .....

In that case, better to be a moderator on an internet forum than a weapons instructor at a firing range.

[MDZip]

No problem, Cap'n

Actually, I usually work with a safety net when posting something that is relatively long:

So the Captain tries to quietly excise your extensive, banal post and you have a backup copy. Great.

I wonder what happened to the Melo from the Penn State game in Puerto Rico? That Melo cut, dished, and scored almost at will. Maybe we need to fly some family members up for each game.

[Dr Z]

I’m not a big fan of the trapping defense, or at least the execution I saw last night. The help defender is SO SLOW to react that all it seems to do is set the other team up for a 4 on 3. If the goal is to speed the tempo, then I can see using in SOME. But if you can’t cause many turnovers using it against a guard-challenged team like WMU I’m not sure I see the point.

I was going to mention this but decided against it. But since you did...I tried looking up that thread you started before the season entitled something like "Are we going to run this year," but couldn't find it. There was some trap discussion in there. Anyway, I would say the percentage that the Broncos scored off the trap was greater than the percentage they scored when we didn't run the trap last night. Disappointing. I've seen lower seeds in the tourney have success against higher seeds running the trap. I don't see us doing that.

[MDZip]

I was going to mention this but decided against it. But since you did...I tried looking up that thread you started before the season entitled something like "Are we going to run this year," but couldn't find it. There was some trap discussion in there. Anyway, I would say the percentage that the Broncos scored off the trap was greater than the percentage they scored when we didn't run the trap last night. Disappointing. I've seen lower seeds in the tourney have success against higher seeds running the trap. I don't see us doing that.

Think this might be the one you are looking for. By the way, Deji's defense has been mentioned, but he doesn't rebound much for a guy who can jump out of the building. There was one play last night where he was behind Tree and leapt above him to try to get a rebound but he backed off seeing that Tree had it. Don't think we've had a leaper like him since Quade Milum.

http://zipsnation.org/forums//index.php?showtopic=27696

[Dave in Green]

@MDZip, my initial impression was like yours that Deji doesn't snag that many rebounds, even for a 6-3 guard. On the other hand, I've thought that Brian Walsh at 6-5 is one of the better rebounding Zips guards I've seen. So I ran the comparison on statsheet.com to see their actual numbers. Since Deji has played only about half as many minutes as Walsh, the raw numbers need to be interpolated. What you have to look at is rebound percentage, which measures the percentage of missed shots each player rebounds while he's in the game. The big surprise is that Deji beats Walsh on both offensive rebound percentage (4.8% to 4.3%) and defensive rebound percentage (16.1% to 12.3%). I would have never guessed that without looking at the comparative numbers here.

[zippy5]

I think Alex looked about 100% last night. Very quick, and looked great on D. Good to see him and Walsh back to their old selves.