BGSU Game

[MDZip]

We need to get a little buzz going for the BGSU game. This isn't just a continuation of the streak, but a game that the Zips could lose if they do not put a great effort into it (just ask potential 3 seed WMU if BGSU can beat you). Good thing for the Zips is that BGSU is not good on the road, their only conference road win is at NIU. But Crawford and Calhoun can certainly play and Orr can get hot as we saw in the last game. If those three guys are all on and they get any contribution from Cameron Black, the Zips could be in for a fight. I say our guys come out with fire and win this one by 14.

[johnnyzip84]

We need to get a little buzz going for the BGSU game. This isn't just a continuation of the streak, but a game that the Zips could lose if they do not put a great effort into it (just ask potential 3 seed WMU if BGSU can beat you). Good thing for the Zips is that BGSU is not good on the road, their only conference road win is at NIU. But Crawford and Calhoun can certainly play and Orr can get hot as we saw in the last game. If those three guys are all on and they get any contribution from Cameron Black, the Zips could be in for a fight. I say our guys come out with fire and win this one by 14.

I think we should pretty much assume that Crawford and Calhoun (sounds a little like a law firm) will NOT shoot the ball as horribly as they did in the 1st game. They'll be as dangerous as the Zips allow them to be. Of course the 'Cuse 2-3 zone is their bread and butter, but I expect them to pack it inside even a little more taking a cue from the most recent UA opponents.

I expect Alex to bounce back.

[Dave in Green]

Cameron Black has been sharing the center position with JC transfer Richaun Holmes, who led the JC ranks in blocked shots last season. Holmes actually has a better block percentage than Zeke this season. He's not only more athletic than Black, he's also a better shooter, hitting 62% of his field goal attempts. Since the Zips played BG at the Stroh Center, Holmes has been playing more minutes than Black on a regular basis. He adds a new dimension to both the BG offense and defense, so keep an eye on him in this game.

[akronzips71]

Keep the A Team in when we are up 13-3 and put the game away.

[Zipmeister]

We need to get a little buzz going for the BGSU game. This isn't just a continuation of the streak, but a game that the Zips could lose if they do not put a great effort into it (just ask potential 3 seed WMU if BGSU can beat you). Good thing for the Zips is that BGSU is not good on the road, their only conference road win is at NIU. But Crawford and Calhoun can certainly play and Orr can get hot as we saw in the last game. If those three guys are all on and they get any contribution from Cameron Black, the Zips could be in for a fight. I say our guys come out with fire and win this one by 14.

+1

[Dr Z]

Keep the A Team in when we are up 13-3 and put the game away.

The rotation the staff used in the OU game would be the one I would want to see play the majority of time throughout the rest of the season....and hopefully postseason. That team needs to be on the floor together as much as possible so they have a chance to cohere. Then we may start blowing out these MAC cupcakes like Ken+ did to Miami the other night in the first half.

[Zips Win!]

If Deji can continue to find lost contacts, we win going away!

[skip-zip]

We beat them by 13 on the road. We better beat them by more at home. We're WAY overdue for a blowout.

I'm done having to visit the doctor to see if my heart is still working after every damn game.

And something that hasn't been mentioned enough: Thank God that Walsh has been starting to step forward as a scorer.

[Captain Kangaroo]

5 years ago I won a seat behind the bench for the Zips/K.e.n.t game (Golf Outing Auction). My son and I also got to sit in the locker room for the post-game and halftime. Cameron Black was being recruited by UA, and stood next to us in the Zips locker room.

Word on the street was - Cam didn't want to play 2nd fiddle to Zeke, so he ultimately chose BG.

If true, I wonder if he regrets it?

[Dr Z]

We beat them by 13 on the road. We better beat them by more at home. We're WAY overdue for a blowout.

Only a 12 point favorite at home.

[Quickzips]

More worried about the Zips performance in this one than I am anything the Falcons might throw at us. The Zips need to get healthy tonight heading into 3 pretty tough games in a row (Bracketbuster, @OU, @Buffalo). I am particularly interested in Abreu's performance as he's turned in two of his worst games ever as a Zip @Miami and @EMU. Not sure what is going on with him, but we need him to get out of this recent funk.

For BG everyone pretty well knows the story. Shut down Crawford and/or Calhoun and it is pretty much all she wrote. We found out the last time against these guys that noone else on their team has the ability to beat you. I really wouldn't want to be a BG fan right now, because both those guys are seniors and they don't look like they will be returning anyone who is a legit D-I player. 2013-14 could be an epic bad year for the Falcons. I'm talking sub-300 RPI bad.

Bold prediction, Zips 77 Falcons 61 in front of a nearly packed house of 5,050.

[Dave in Green]

..... they don't look like they will be returning anyone who is a legit D-I player. .....

As I said earlier, take a closer look at sophomore Richaun Holmes, who is only 7 blocks away from the BGSU all-time single-season block record. He blocks shots at a higher percentage rate than Zeke, shoots better than 60% from the field and is their second leading rebounder despite averaging only 18 minutes per game.

[roopride]

Any news on the student tirnout?

[Quickzips]

As I said earlier, take a closer look at sophomore Richaun Holmes, who is only 7 blocks away from the BGSU all-time single-season block record. He blocks shots at a higher percentage rate than Zeke, shoots better than 60% from the field and is their second leading rebounder despite averaging only 18 minutes per game.

One shot blocker isn't going to carry a team. The cupboard is pretty bare at Bowling Green. There is a reason that most of their fanbase is calling for Louis Orr's head.

[Dave in Green]

@Quickzips, I agree with all of your points about BGSU except you not considering Holmes a legit D-I player returning next season. He's not only a high level shot blocker, he's a decent rebounder and scorer in his first season at the D-I level. I plan to keep an eye on him tonight as I believe he has the potential to become BGSU's leading rebounder and one of their leading scorers next season. Everything I can find on the guy tells me he's a legit D-I player.

[akzipper]

The past few games have all had the same trend.

-small lead at the begging

-lose lead quickly

-tied/close/losing at half

-need to make a comeback

Should be another close game...

[ZachTheZip]

@Quickzips, I agree with all of your points about BGSU except you not considering Holmes a legit D-I player returning next season. He's not only a high level shot blocker, he's a decent rebounder and scorer in his first season at the D-I level. I plan to keep an eye on him tonight as I believe he has the potential to become BGSU's leading rebounder and one of their leading scorers next season. Everything I can find on the guy tells me he's a legit D-I player.

A legit D-I player has enough endurance to play more than 15 minutes before he starts sucking wind. Holmes has a long way to go before he gets to that point.

[Dave in Green]

@ZachThe Zip, Holmes is averaging 18.8 minutes per game in his first season of D-I basketball. Zeke averaged 18.6 19.6 minutes per game over his first two seasons of D-I basketball.

[Quickzips]

@Quickzips, I agree with all of your points about BGSU except you not considering Holmes a legit D-I player returning next season. He's not only a high level shot blocker, he's a decent rebounder and scorer in his first season at the D-I level. I plan to keep an eye on him tonight as I believe he has the potential to become BGSU's leading rebounder and one of their leading scorers next season. Everything I can find on the guy tells me he's a legit D-I player.

Holmes has two games in double digit scoring this year (11 @NIU and 10 @NDSU). He has more games scoring 1 or less times from the field (7) than he does double digit scoring performances. You'll excuse me if I have a difficult time seeing him becoming a leading scorer.

From where I sit he has "role player" written all over him. He could be a nice third or forth option on a decent team, but if BG is going to be counting on him to be their go to guy they have trouble. Maybe he flourishes next year without Calhoun, maybe not.

Beyond that you look at the rest of their roster and it is really scary. Chauncey Orr averages 7.5 per game, but if his Dad gets canned (as is suspected) do you really think he will stick around? Anthony Henderson averages 4 per game and is shooting a blazing 32% from the field. He looks like a knock down shooter compared to Jehvon Clarke (27% from the field). Cameron Black in his third year is playing almost 20 minutes a night and averaging 3 points per game. Heck, these guys are going to return 4 players that all shoot below 30% from the three line. The future is most definitely not bright for the Falcons.

[akronzips71]

@ZachThe Zip, Holmes is averaging 18.8 minutes per game in his first season of D-I basketball. Zeke averaged 18.6 19.6 minutes per game over his first two seasons of D-I basketball.

That is mainly because Zeke was often (always) in foul trouble, not because of conditioning.

[Dave in Green]

@akronzips71, maybe it didn't show up on the webcasts you were watching. But I can assure you from my seat in the JAR that Zeke could be seen sucking air big time in short minutes in his first season with the Zips. He would not have played a lot more minutes even without foul trouble. He's come a long way from where he started.

@Quickzips, as a freshman JC player, Holmes led his team in scoring (18.4 ppg), rebounding (9.2 rpg) and blocks (5.6 bpg with a total of 169 to lead the country). He shot 62% from the floor and 78% from the free throw line (really good for a big). He even hit 6-15 3-pointers (40%). I wouldn't underestimate his shooting/scoring potential. He was a 1st team JC All-American from among more than 200 colleges. He was a complete player at the JC level as a freshman. That doesn't always translate to D-I. But he might surprise some people next season with his level of play in all aspects of the game, especially if BGSU is otherwise short on talent and they need to find a go-to player. Anyway, I prefer to overestimate opponents rather than underestimate them.

[zippy5]

So we're comparing Zeke's freshman year to Holmes' 2nd year of college ball? Not to mention that it's borderline ludicrous to compare these two at all.

[akronzips71]

@akronzips71, maybe it didn't show up on the webcasts you were watching. But I can assure you from my seat in the JAR that Zeke could be seen sucking air big time in short minutes in his first season with the Zips. He would not have played a lot more minutes even without foul trouble. He's come a long way from where he started.

@Quickzips, as a freshman JC player, Holmes led his team in scoring (18.4 ppg), rebounding (9.2 rpg) and blocks (5.6 bpg with a total of 169 to lead the country). He shot 62% from the floor and 78% from the free throw line (really good for a big). He even hit 6-15 3-pointers (40%). I wouldn't underestimate his shooting/scoring potential. He was a 1st team JC All-American from among more than 200 colleges. He was a complete player at the JC level as a freshman. That doesn't always translate to D-I. But he might surprise some people next season with his level of play in all aspects of the game, especially if BGSU is otherwise short on talent and they need to find a go-to player. Anyway, I prefer to overestimate opponents rather than underestimate them.

@DIG

You are correct. That can not be seen on TV or webcast.

[akronzips71]

I have been watching the Lady Zips game against BSU. There are a couple of them I would not mind seeing on the men's team.

[Dave in Green]

@zippy5, I think if you go back and look at the context of the discussion, you'll see that it's entirely appropriate to compare the playing time of the two best shot blockers currently in the MAC after ZachTheZip made his comment about Holmes' PT. Of course it can't be an absolutely direct comparison as Holmes played long minutes as a freshman star player on his JC team while Zeke spent a lot of time on the bench as a freshman with the D-I Zips, and Holmes is playing shorter minutes in his second college season but first at the D-I level, while Zeke didn't average that many more minutes in his second college season at the D-I level.

But enough of this hair splitting. I'm off to see with my own eyes how much air Holmes sucks tonight.