Zips @ BGSU, Tuesday, 2/21

[clarkwgriswold]

Time to move on.  The Zips head to the Stroh Center Tuesday night to face an 11-16 BG team.  BG is coming off of a 3 game losing streak to Buffalo, WMU and OU.  Senior guard Zach Denny leads BGSU at 12.7 a game.  The Zips won the other season matchup at the JAR 89-84 in early January.

[skip-zip]

That's funny that you and Kreed started threads at the same time.  

 

I feel like Denny has been at BG for 10 years.  

 

I hope we play much better defense against these guys than we did at home.  I don't see a 90 point game this time.  

[kreed5120]

I expect us to come in and play pissed off. I wouldn't be surprised if we beat BG by 15 in their own house.

[skip-zip]

1 minute ago, kreed5120 said:

I expect us to come in and play pissed off. I wouldn't be surprised if we beat BG by 15 in their own house.

 

And I think you're going to see something much closer to a 70-55 game this time.  That's the only positive thing we can get out of the home loss.  I want to see a renewed commitment for 40 minutes of intense basketball.  

[clarkwgriswold]

Sorry Kreed, looks like we posted at about the same time.  I figured everyone else had given up!

[kreed5120]

2 minutes ago, clarkwgriswold said:

Sorry Kreed, looks like we posted at about the same time.  I figured everyone else had given up!

No worries, I typically hold off on creating game threads expecting (hoping) that someone else will. Its been very quiet around these parts for the past 2 days and I didn't see a thread up for the game so I went ahead and created it. Oddly enough I believe I've only created 1 other game thread all season and the same thing happened. I got a laugh out of it more than anything.

[tpsjugglerdude]

I don't think the Bowling Green Massacre happens on Tuesday. I think after being down most of the game Akron comes back and wins in the final minutes. BG hates that we've won, what is it now? 15 games in a row AT BG? 23 of last 25 or something like that? They'll be the ones playing pissed off trying to break their losing streak. 

[GoZips88]

IDK, it really doesn't matter if we lose this game. As long as we win when it really counts in a couple of weeks that's all that matters. /sarc

[skip-zip]

1 minute ago, GoZips88 said:

IDK, it really doesn't matter if we lose this game. As long as we win when it really counts in a couple of weeks that's all that matters. /sarc

 

I know you're joking, but you might actually see serious responses that are something close to that.  

[LZIp]

20 minutes ago, GoZips88 said:

IDK, it really doesn't matter if we lose this game. As long as we win when it really counts in a couple of weeks that's all that matters. /sarc

I know. We must win to keep our at large and high seeding hopes alive!

[1981 grad]

I see this as a must win.  Win this game and the home game against Miami secures the MAC championship, a number one seed and at the very least an Nit bid.  Lose this game and we possibly will have to win at Buffalo or at Kent to get the No. 1 seed.  More importantly, we want to finish strong at the end of the season. 

 

During the Eastern Michigan game, one of the analyst commented that he thought Akron was a good team but indicated that he wanted to see the team drive more to the basket because on some nights you will not be hitting the 3 ball at a high percentage.  I think those words ring true at the Kent game.  We have to have a more balanced attack when the 3 ball is not going in the basket. 

 

Does anyone know why we are starting at 9?  The game does not appear to be on national TV.  

[kreed5120]

I wouldn't say this is a must win, but I'm with @1981 grad in the fact that losing this game opens the door to us potentially not being outright regular season conference champs.

[clarkwgriswold]

I think it's an important game for the psyche of the team coming off of a painful loss.

[skip-zip]

3 hours ago, 1981 grad said:

I see this as a must win.  Win this game and the home game against Miami secures the MAC championship, a number one seed and at the very least an Nit bid.  Lose this game and we possibly will have to win at Buffalo or at Kent to get the No. 1 seed.  More importantly, we want to finish strong at the end of the season. 

 

You're right on.  IF we have to take care of business ourselves because OU and Buffalo keep winning, then the easiest path to 2 wins is BG and Miami at home.  With the lead that we had, I'd hate to see this come down to winning at Kent.  But, that would likely be the case if we don't win tomorrow.  

 

Even greater than all of that is the need to finally play like a team that can do more than the last 12 or so teams before them.  That could start with just winning the last 4 games and showing the league that we have no equal.  

[Blue & Gold]

Akron Beacon: Zips look to rebound on rod after record home winning streak snapped

 

This has been my take as well:

The Zips haven’t been winning in dominating fashion like a team looking to close out the season by sending a message to prospective opponents in the Mid-American Conference Tournament.

 

Bluntly, I don't think we're as good as our record would indicate.  We've played a fairly weak schedule and have a bunch of close wins over MAC opponents.  Better than a bunch of close losses, for sure.  But we're not blowing out anyone in the MAC & I don't think we strike much fear in the hearts of anyone.

 

“We’ve been playing like this all year,” Dambrot said. “We haven’t been kicking anybody’s ass. It’s unfortunate.”

 

Oh, and Breaking News: George Thomas has reported that this year the MAC Tournament is being held at Cleveland State.

"...in the Mid-American Conference Tournament, set for the first week of March at Cleveland State."

Edited February 21, 2017 by Blue & Gold

[skip-zip]

44 minutes ago, Blue & Gold said:

Oh, and Breaking News: George Thomas has reported that this year the MAC Tournament is being held at Cleveland State.

"...in the Mid-American Conference Tournament, set for the first week of March at Cleveland State."

 

Uh Oh.  Does our ticket office know this?  Does anyone know if we can get similar seating in the new location? 

 

Seriously now.  Have we finally had enough, and will finally show our outrage and demand more?  Is UA Athletics going to tolerate this anymore and start demanding more?  

 

This has gotten beyond intolerable.  And it just seems to get worse.  It's pure garbage.  It has to end.    

[Blue & Gold]

1 hour ago, skip-zip said:

 

Seriously now.  Have we finally had enough, and will finally show our outrage and demand more?  Is UA Athletics going to tolerate this anymore and start demanding more?  

 

This has gotten beyond intolerable.  And it just seems to get worse.  It's pure garbage.  It has to end.    

+1. The ABJ's coverage is simply not professional quality.  A 16 year-old with a blog, a conscience, and a little zest for the gig could easily trump the ABJ's Zips' coverage every time.

 

The ABJ obviously has no employee performance reviews or even an industry-standard concern for quality.

[Blue & Gold]

I'm still a bit confused by this new fangled ESPN arrangement.  Tonight's game is listed on ESPN3, but was picked up by Spectrum Sports (like, apparently every single Zips game).  Does this mean it will be blacked out on ESPN3 tonight?

 

Edited February 21, 2017 by Blue & Gold

[skip-zip]

I think you get blacked out if you are not a Time Warner customer and therefore have a Time Warner log-in as your provider when logging into ESPN3.  

 

But it might be different because it's a road game this time?

 

[kreed5120]

Use a VPN to mask your location.

[Captain Kangaroo]

2 hours ago, Blue & Gold said:

Oh, and Breaking News: George Thomas has reported that this year the MAC Tournament is being held at Cleveland State.

"...in the Mid-American Conference Tournament, set for the first week of March at Cleveland State."

I think George does a nice job 44% of the time, which is a HUGE improvement from last season...where he submitted a good effort 43% of the time.

[Blue & Gold]

8 minutes ago, kreed5120 said:

Use a VPN to mask your location.

 

[kreed5120]

7 minutes ago, Blue & Gold said:

 

Download betternet to your tablet or whatever device you watch ESPN3 on and you should be able to bypass a potential blackout.

 

https://www.betternet.co

[LZIp]

Another embarrassing error by GT? Color me shocked.

 

Speaking of the ABJ, Jason Lloyd is leaving them for some media start up called The Athletic, whose business model seems sketchy at best. The sole revenue source is dependent on paid subscriptions. Not a good sign when one of your top talents is taking such a risky move to get out.

[1981 grad]

We need Josh or Noah to have a big game in MAC play.   I remember in the beginning of the season, Josh was our top 3 point shooter and one of the top 3 point shooters in the country.  This year in MAC play, he is shooting 33.3% from the field and 28.8% from 3 point line averaging 5.9 points.  Last year in MAC play he shot 46.8% from the field and 47.4% from the 3 point line averaging 8 points per game.

 

Noah is also having a tough shooting year.  In MAC play he is shooting 32% from the field and 27.7% from the 3 point line averaging 5.9 points.  Last year in MAC play he shot 41.9% from the field and 39.1% from the 3 line averaging 9.4 points.   These guys are getting the same minutes as last year.  We need them to get hot to finish off the season.  Hopefully, tonight will be the night.  Go Zips!

Edited February 21, 2017 by 1981 grad