Dave in Green Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 I believe that there's only one person who has said the Zips have no chance to win, and no one pays much attention to him. Others have pointed out in various ways the difficulty of beating VCU. I think it's reasonable to acknowledge when your team is an underdog to a higher-ranked team. But after that acknowledgement I think it makes sense to focus on what it will take to win the game. Isn't that what fans are supposed to do? I've never seen a definition of "fan" that includes a description of "someone who spends all their time wringing their hands while imagining how many different ways their team can lose." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zipgrad01 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 VCU is a small team and they struggle in half court defense. They struggle with big, athletic teams. That is exactly what we are. It all comes down to their press against our bigs. I like our chances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyzip84 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 I'm sure glad games aren't won on paper. It's true that dealing with"havoc" will be a challenge, but it's not like the Zips don't present some matchup difficulties as well. I like the idea of using Zeke on the inbounds and having him make diagonal outlet passes off of it. I also believe we can win the rebounding by a nice margin if the effort is the same as we've seen lately. Tree is a tough opponent for anyone. I think it'll come down to 3-point shooting and FT shooting. We're showing signs of turning it around with the former (have a feeling that both Chauncey and Walsh will be effective) and hopefully things will improve with the latter. Also it's not hard to imagine the Michigan crowd pulling for the Zips in this one. Keep it close and the several thousand Zip fans will be joined by 2 or 3 times as many Maize and Blue. This could get REALLY loud. I can't wait to be there. Go Zips!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akzipper Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 VCU is a small team and they struggle in half court defense. They struggle with big, athletic teams. That is exactly what we are. It all comes down to their press against our bigs. I like our chances. They crushed Butler and I'd say they are a big team, size wise. We will have to shoot lights out from 3pt land to have a shot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave in Green Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 One problem with getting Michigan fans on our side: Akron is in Ohio. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 One problem with getting Michigan fans on our side: Akron is in Ohio. So show them a map that proves that we're closer to Pittsburgh than to Columbus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyzip84 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 One problem with getting Michigan fans on our side: Akron is in Ohio. Most of us know you lived there previously Dave, but I don't believe most UM fans care one way or another about the Ohio MAC schools. The majority will simply look at an upset as a way to avoid a perceived bigger hurdle in VCU. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CincyZip Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Man this is incredible. God wants VCU and Akron to keep playing I guess. Without Abreu, you'd think this is a great matchup for VCU, but the Zips will be very game. You guys are talented from top to bottom and are very familiar with our system. You're very capable of winning if Betancourt can play well. Hate that we have to play you guys again since I was hoping we could both make a big run this year. Districtballer, you are one of the most classiest posters this board has. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
odhgibo Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 I think it's reasonable to acknowledge when your team is an underdog to a higher-ranked team. But after that acknowledgement I think it makes sense to focus on what it will take to win the game. What it will take to win: keep TO margin to no more than -7, rebounding margin of at least +8, and FT at least 65%. More than anything, a decent start. Confidence is critical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UAZip0510 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 They crushed Butler and I'd say they are a big team, size wise. We will have to shoot lights out from 3pt land to have a shot. Akron has more size and athleticism than Butler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zippy_ua_00 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 One problem with getting Michigan fans on our side: Akron is in Ohio. Although we are in Ohio we are not tOSU. At least they will know who we are from playing them in futbol and that may be to our advantage. Plus they may think they will have an easier shot at beating us over vcu so they will, by default root us on. We Break the press we win going away. Not many teams can handle zeke and tree when they are on the court alone let alone together. They will dominate their smaller players and will show the country who we are. We just stymied one of the best PG in the nation (statistically), who's to say we can't do it again. I have all the confidence in the world in them and they will be ready to flex their muscles. Zips win by 12. WE ARE AKRON!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksu sucks Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Hey, things are going exactly as planned in Zipsnation. We draw a beatable opponent, our good luck charm(akzipper) predicted a loss, and Zeke&Co are getting ready to shock the world. Let's do this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoZips88 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Would pull the Ticketmaster trigger tonight for 3 if I knew which session we'll be in. As others have probably said, please post/PM session and time ASAP - thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave in Green Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Havoc causes panic, panic leads to errors, and the more panic the more errors. So one thing Coach Dambrot will be telling the Zips this week is that they all have to go into the game mentally prepared and with a solid plan never to panic. They need a fairly simple set of options that are triggered quickly by specific circumstances. No matter how well they execute, mistakes will be made. But they can't get down on themselves when things go wrong, as things surely will at times. They have to brush it off and know that they will make it up somewhere else when VCU makes mistakes, as they surely will. The Zips have to focus on their own game plan and not let VCU disrupt it or totally dictate the pace of the game. This is exactly what the Zips did to OU in the second half. VCU is a bigger challenge, but VCU is not invincible. The Zips will enter the game believing that they can win and knowing what they have to do to achieve it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigzipguy Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Since both Michigan State and Michigan are playing games in Auburn Hills, my guess , for financial reasons(MONEY), both of those teams will play the two night sessions, therefore Zips will probably play one of the 2 afternoon sessions Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zen Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Havoc causes panic, panic leads to errors, and the more panic the more errors. I've seen our guys panic and give up turnovers as soon as a second defender closes in and causes the appearence of a trap. ... And they aren't supposed to panic when a team that has taken pressure to a new level comes at them? I think the best defense is a good offense. I think angled passing patterns should be drilled until they become second nature, and VCU starts to panic themselves when they begin to fear the ball getting past them into the hands of our big guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buckzip Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 I'd be much more nervous if the game was tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Michigan State is playing at 12:15, Michigan at 7:15. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave in Green Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 I've seen our guys panic and give up turnovers as soon as a second defender closes in and causes the appearence of a trap. ... And they aren't supposed to panic when a team that has taken pressure to a new level comes at them? That was mostly earlier in the season when four freshmen were being worked into the lineup. The Zips will know exactly what's going to be thrown at them by VCU, and they're better prepared to deal with it than earlier in the season. They have more confidence in playing together as a team now. They will need to play with a sense of urgency. That's different from a sense of panic. Will the Zips make mistakes? Of course. Can they offset the mistakes with enough offensive and defensive pressure on VCU to put themselves in a position to win? Certainly. Both teams have great coaches. Both teams will come in prepared to win. In the end it will come down to which team executes their game plan best I think the best defense is a good offense. I think angled passing patterns should be drilled until they become second nature, and VCU starts to panic themselves when they begin to fear the ball getting past them into the hands of our big guys. Good thinking to fight an aggressive defense with an aggressive and creative offense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Let'sGoZips94 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 At first, I was just pumped to see Akron as a 12 seed playing against VCU. Then the quick thoughts of our guards vs. Havoc popped into my mind; I hated the match-up. After digesting all aspects of this game, I love it. We are a 12 seed which means no matter who we play, statistically, they will be better than us. If you only take what you hear about their Havoc defense, then compare it to our guard situation, you would think we have no chance. However, I have watched several VCU games this season. During the most recent Butler/VCU game, in which VCU blew out Butler by 32 points, the commentators said that the Havoc defense is most effective when VCU makes their shots. If they don't, they are 168th in rebounds, they don't get second chance opportunities, and they can't get in the Havoc press formation. Offensively, of the teams we are familiar with and have played, I compare the Rams to OU. According to ESPN.com, the VCU/OU comparison looks like this: PPG - 78 (11th in nation)/72.9 (53rd in nation) RPG - 34.8 (168th in nation)/31.1 (310th in nation) APG - 15 (33rd in nation)/17.7 (1st in nation) FG% - .452 (79th in nation)/.467 (32nd in nation) 3P% - .356/.348 The other similarity between the two is their roster. OU fields a team full of 6'+ guards (minus Taylor), some 6'5"-6'7" forwards, and two 6'9" "centers." VCU has some tall guards with 6'2" being their shortest guard who plays and 6'5" being their tallest (Treveon Graham is 6'5" and averages 15.4 PPG, their leading scorer), and a 6'8" forward (Jarred Guest, who averages 10.3 minutes per game, 2.2 PPG, and 2.4 RPG) and a 6'9" forward (Juvonte Reddic, their tallest player, averaging 28.1 minutes per game, 14.4 PPG, and 8.3 RPG; seems to me like he is our Tree). Both VCU and OU are guard-ran teams, the only difference being Reddic over Keely (stats wise) and VCU's Havoc-press defense. Akron just took care of OU, beating them by 19 points, without Abreu. A little more food for thought: - VCU beat Akron last season, in Akron, by 1, in OT, with Akron committing 20 turnovers. Akron, in my opinion, is much improved from last season and MUCH bigger. From what I remember, VCU won that game in the paint, not from beyond the arc. Zeke and Tree are completely different players from that game, with Zeke's offensive game much improved and Tree's overall ability and affect on the game much improved. - Shaka's Rams have beaten the Zips in the last two meetings. I believe Dambrot and Akron will be VERY hungry to beat VCU. All of this considered, I like this match-up. I have faith in Dambrot to put together a solid gameplan and have his team ready for whatever Shaka will throw at them. IF the Zips can win the battle in the paint, limit the turnovers and get the ball up the court, and guard the perimeter well, I have no doubts they can win (unless of course we shoot 1-20 from 3-point-range; WHERE WAS COOPER?! WHERE WAS COOPER?!). Go Zips, Can't State sucks, OU sucks, and let's go beat Ram Nation in the first round of the NCAA TOURNAMENT! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 We're the night game! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Let'sGoZips94 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 We're the night game! What session number? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave in Green Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Michigan State is playing at 12:15, Michigan at 7:15. Uh oh. If that's true, I think they play the games in pairs and clear the arena out between the two pairs. Since the Zips are on the Michigan side of the bracket, it could mean something like a 9:30 pm start for the Zips game, and a very late drive back to Akron. Sure hope I'm wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Uh oh. If that's true, I think they play the games in pairs and clear the arena out between the two pairs. Since the Zips are on the Michigan side of the bracket, it could mean something like a 9:30 pm start for the Zips game, and a very late drive back to Akron. Sure hope I'm wrong. Yep, we're the late game. The real problem is that Michigan fans will gobble up all the tickets for the late session. That's the reason they split MSU and UM. It ensures strong ticket sales for both sessions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staton14 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Yep, we're the late game. The real problem is that Michigan fans will gobble up all the tickets for the late session. That's the reason they split MSU and UM. It ensures strong ticket sales for both sessions. 9:45 or 30 minutes after the Michigan game, according to ESPN.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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