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GT on Zips' Lack of a Go-To Scorer


Blue & Gold

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I do agree that this is probably one of Keith's best coaching jobs, based on the circumstances.

I also agree that maybe the biggest deficiency has been the lack of leadership, as I have pointed out in other posts. It's actually pretty surprising, because there are some very experienced players on this team. And I've said this before, but both Reggie and Jake's inability to elevate their games and increase their role has been particularly frustrating.

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... So someone on the roster needs to step up to ensure what many UA hoops observers know about this season — given the team’s youth and inexperience, it’s one of Dambrot’s best coaching jobs yet.

Everyone thought Bowden had a great season...until he lost 5 of his last 6.

The verdict on Dambrot's 2014-15 season will not be rendered until it is over. An 8-game losing streak to end the season would not draw many hosannas from the Zips faithful.

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And I don't actually mean that as a critique of KD ^. Maybe his system forces the team to play as more of a team and that is why we've had all the success we've had. I just don't think the way we play is conducive to any one player being able to be "the man."

I contend just because you have a "system" doesn't mean you can't have a PTP'er that can create his own shot when you need a bucket at the end of a tight game. "The Man" is an alpha dog that commands the ball with 8 seconds left and drains the tear-drop jumper...drives the lane and gets the foul...has the knee-buckling cross-over dribble that gets him some space...

The Zips haven't had that type of player since Jamie Bosley. Juice Brown is that type of player.

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I contend just because you have a "system" doesn't mean you can't have a PTP'er that can create his own shot when you need a bucket at the end of a tight game. "The Man" is an alpha dog that commands the ball with 8 seconds left and drains the tear-drop jumper...drives the lane and gets the foul...has the knee-buckling cross-over dribble that gets him some space...

The Zips haven't had that type of player since Jamie Bosley. Juice Brown is that type of player.

Fair enough. I was speaking more of a 15-20 ppg player, which I don't think can happen in a KD system. But yeah as far as a go-to guy with ice in his veins, he's not on this roster. I'll give Antino credit, it seems like he's trying to be that guy.

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Fair enough. I was speaking more of a 15-20 ppg player, which I don't think can happen in a KD system.

I remember looking this up recently. Romeo was right around that 15 point mark his Senior year when he was MAC MVP, and that makes him the highest per game average scorer in the KD era.

I'd say that's pretty low when you look at all of the players over 10 years. But Captain is right. You can still have a guy who can create a shot when the game is on the line, even if he's not a monster scorer by the numbers. For example, the guy that Miami used down the stretch to seal the game against us on Saturday is only a 14 ppg guy.

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we had go to guys this year

tree/noah who are no longer playing now.

noah comes back healthy.the kid from st.v's, tino, and I.V.

should give us good backcourt play.

i have no idea where reggie,and jake fit on next year's team?

we also have the from kid from n.c. coming in next year.he should give us help at the four spot.

hopefully im wrong ,but i just see jake/reggie more than role players next year.

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The player that has a chance to be our "go to scorer" sits on the bench more than half of the game. How can you ever mold/coach/teach someone to even have a chance at that, when he is handicapped by lack of experience? I don't have to read a newspaper article to figure that one out.

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Of course the Zips are missing both Tree and Noah. What team wouldn't miss both their best forward and their best guard? There's nothing that can be done about it except try to adjust as much as possible with the remaining players.

The Zips currently have only three healthy scholarship guards with Antino, Nyles and Deji sharing minutes. Deji's PT has been slowly ramping up to the point that he's now averaging more than Nyles. I'd expect that trend to continue through the tournament. I'm a little concerned that Deji missed the EMU game with back spasms after playing short minutes in a few games before that. Remember that Deji missed the 2013 NCAA tournament game against VCU with back spasms, which have been a recurring problem with him. That may be the reason why he hasn't been played longer minutes this season. The Zips absolutely need as many minutes as they can get from Deji, but they can't afford to risk overplaying him to the point of missing games with back spasms.

The one area where the Zips still have an edge over other MAC teams is at center. It's pretty clear that Coach Dambrot is trying to rebuild the team on the fly to take advantage of the Zips' remaining assets. Starting both Pat and Big Dog in the past two games and playing twin towers at various times throughout those games is a sign of what to expect in the MAC tournament. Against Miami they played a combined 57 minutes and against Buffalo 55 minutes. They're getting better with experience at working together. Last night they combined for 26 points and 13 rebounds. It's still a work in progress, and there are only three regular season games left to polish it up. But it's likely the best opportunity the Zips have to make any noise in the MAC tournament. Other teams may have better guards or better forwards, but none have two better centers.

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You don't suddenly miss someone who's been out since mid-November. You miss someone who's been here since mid-November, contributing mightily, and who's suddenly gone. Our recent slide has as much to do with Tree as it does Harney.

Of course we're not suddenly missing Tree. We knew we'd miss him from the minute he was gone and we have all season, not just the last four games. The thing is that you don't really miss a player so much as long as the team is still winning, and losing four in a row is a painful reminder of the double loss of Tree at the beginning of the season and Noah near the end.

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No doubt about it, we have to play differently in order to win. I think he's doing a hell of a job with the youth he has to work with. We can win, we can beat anybody in this conference on a given night. No matter what we try though, if we can not get any offense at all out of the 3 spot our destiny is pretty much sealed.

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