UAZip0510 Posted March 12, 2017 Report Share Posted March 12, 2017 (edited) Updated 5/14/17 On Scholarship: 13 Open Scholarships: 0 Isaiah Williams / Jaden Sayles Daniel Utomi / Eric Parrish Emmanuel Olojakpoke / Mark Kostelac Jimond Ivey / Craig Eubanks / Malcolm Duvivier / Torrey Patton / Marquelle McIntyre Loren Jackson (transfer, must sit out 17-18) Deng Riak (transfer, must sit out 17-18) Eric Hester (transfer, must sit out 17-18) Edited May 14, 2017 by UAZip0510 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue & Gold Posted March 12, 2017 Report Share Posted March 12, 2017 (edited) I think Big Mike is a key to next year's success. It's a shame he was injured and basically totally wasted a year of eligibility & development. We'll be smaller, but more athletic next year with the additions of Eric Parrish (6'6" wing) & Isaiah Williams (6'7" wing/PF). PG: Noah / Antino / TDM 2G: Ivey / Josh W: Utomi / Parrish PF: Williams / Olojakpoke C: Hughes / Sayles I really hope we try to play a more up-tempo game next year. I thought we were a much better team this year when we'd push the ball up the court. IMHO it's always better to try to get a bucket before the defense is set. Gonna be a learning curve next season adapting the offense to the post-Big Dog era. Edited March 12, 2017 by Blue & Gold Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zippy5 Posted March 12, 2017 Report Share Posted March 12, 2017 Maybe the smallest front court as far as I can remember? However we'll have a stable of guards and wings. I'm assuming this is by design, so I'm guessing we'll be playing with a little more tempo next year. Which is fine with me because that's when we were at our best this year. We are losing two important pieces. Big Dog was such a luxury to have someone to get the ball to when in trouble and know you're getting a good look from close. Kwan made us unstoppable when he was hot. Unfortunately that wasn't as often down the stretch. Utomi should slot right in and hopefully not provide much of a drop off. Ivey really came into his own in my opinion. I'm looking for him to compete for MAC POTY next year. Between him, Josh, Antino, Noah, TDM we have some great options. I don't know anything about the newcomers. It's a bummer thinking that we need to get the whole way back to Saturday night at the Q. Go Zips Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue & Gold Posted March 12, 2017 Report Share Posted March 12, 2017 6 minutes ago, zippy5 said: Maybe the smallest front court as far as I can remember? Quite possibly. Big Mike: 6'9" Jayden Sayles: 6'9" (though I wouldn't be surprised if he comes in at 6'10" this summer) Olojakpoke: 6'8" Isaiah Williams: 6'7" 7 minutes ago, zippy5 said: It's a bummer thinking that we need to get the whole way back to Saturday night at the Q. Go Zips Crazy to think about. I really hope we kick our away non-conference schedule up a couple notches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UAZip0510 Posted March 26, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2017 Updated the original list to remove Josh. If Dalton is a scholarship player (VC lists him as one) and Eubanks gets one we're at 13. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skip-zip Posted March 26, 2017 Report Share Posted March 26, 2017 Here's how I choose to look at it: We all know what we have with experienced players. Our overall experience level is probably no different than it's been any other year. So, the x-factors will be the following: 1) Forget about Utomi. He's going to be a big contributor. But, who's going to have (hopefully) a Conyers or Deji-type rise during the off season between Michael, Poke, or Aaron? 2) Are we going to have any Newcomer who makes a significant contributor right away to help us win a few more games? We usually always have one of those guys. From B. McKnight all the way to Noah, Antino and Utomi. And next year, I think we'll need that guy more than most years. If those 2 thing happen, we're one of the Top few teams in our league once again. If not, we're looking for a late season rise and a MAC tournament run from one of those less-than-usual positions. But I think the crap about having a "non-winning" season is ridiculous. We still have way too much experience than that. We're still a competitive MAC team next year, regardless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 Roo Posted March 26, 2017 Report Share Posted March 26, 2017 Skip, I love your posts. You have more than enough sanity to balance out the rest of us. Next year may not be great for us, but it also won't be horrible. We do need someone to step it up next season. For my money that is big Mike, but only towards the end of the season. The loss of Josh will not affect us. He could only shoot the 3. His D was nonexistent. He could not dribble and his decision-making was flawed. With quickness being an issue he needs to be at a lower profile program. I wish him well and will always consider him a Zip. I am impressed with all the posts praising his character. Keith needs to go back to fundamentals and instill discipline in his teams. That will gain us more wins than any new player we could recruit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkwgriswold Posted March 26, 2017 Report Share Posted March 26, 2017 Big Mike is the key to the Zips season. Poke can be a contributor, but he doesn't have the body to bang for extended periods. Even if Big Mike comes through, they still don't have a strong 4. I guess it's Utomi's job, but he's really more of a 3 and will never carry much of the rebounding load you hope for from a 4. A resurgence from Aron Jackson would be nice, but I don't think we can count on it after he regressed this season. I hope we see a more up tempo offense and some pressure defense, maybe even an occasional zone (gasp!) to mix things up. As a part of pushing the ball more, I'd love to see the ball in Antino's hands more. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue & Gold Posted March 26, 2017 Report Share Posted March 26, 2017 (edited) I typed and deleted, typed and deleted, typed and deleted... so many interchangeable parts next year. Like others have said, Big Mike is the key. If he steps up we're fine, if not, we're in trouble. I think incoming freshman post Jordan Sayles has the potential to be a really good one. He's 6'9", long and explosive. He was just so-so in high school & sometimes put up anemic numbers that made you scratch your head... but his team was bloody awful, so I'm guessing other teams just focussed 100% on Sayles & made other people beat them, which they almost never did. But we're going to have a lot of long athletes on the wings, all between 6'4" - 6'7". Ivey (6-4) Utomi (6-6) Williams (6-7) Parrish (6-6) Eubanks (6-5) That's quite an arsenal of pure athleticism that I'm excited to see run the floor. I hope KD turns them loose & we play much more uptempo than we did this year. Much more uptempo. Much more uptempo. MUCH more uptempo. Put any THREE of those guys on the court along with ONE point guard and ONE post player and LET THEM RUN AND PRESSURE THE BALL. Bench crew: Aaron Jackson & Ty Dalton. Edited March 26, 2017 by Blue & Gold Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UAZip0510 Posted March 26, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2017 I'm not going to spend a ton of time analyzing this team yet because there's a chance Josh isn't the only transfer and other players could enter the picture. Here's who our top competitors are losing: Kent: Jimmy Hall, Deon Edwin, Jon Fleming Ohio: Antonio Campbell, Kenny Kaminski, Drew Crabtree Buffalo: Raheem Johnson, Blake Hamilton, Willie Conner, David Kadiri Central Michigan also loses Marcus Keene, who declared for the NBA Draft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zippy5 Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 Keene and Wilder declared but both can come back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Let'sGoZips94 Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 13 hours ago, UAZip0510 said: I'm not going to spend a ton of time analyzing this team yet because there's a chance Josh isn't the only transfer and other players could enter the picture. Here's who our top competitors are losing: Kent: Jimmy Hall, Deon Edwin, Jon Fleming Ohio: Antonio Campbell, Kenny Kaminski, Drew Crabtree Central Michigan also loses Marcus Keene, who declared for the NBA Draft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gozips19 Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 3 backups also transferring out of OU per hustlebelt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LZIp Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 27 minutes ago, gozips19 said: 3 backups also transferring out of OU per hustlebelt. Link? Can't find anything about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UAZippers Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 5 minutes ago, LZIp said: Link? Can't find anything about that. Hustlebelt article is here. Two out of the three were known by OU fans months ago. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zipinnc Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 via twitter OU'S Jaaron Simmons declares for NBA draft, but will not hire an agent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkwgriswold Posted March 28, 2017 Report Share Posted March 28, 2017 Well, all of these well intentioned plans just went in the old $h!++er. We'll lose at least 2 or 3 kids with KD leaving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kreed5120 Posted March 28, 2017 Report Share Posted March 28, 2017 7 minutes ago, clarkwgriswold said: Well, all of these well intentioned plans just went in the old $h!++er. We'll lose at least 2 or 3 kids with KD leaving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkwgriswold Posted March 28, 2017 Report Share Posted March 28, 2017 6 minutes ago, kreed5120 said: Pretty well sums it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UAZip0510 Posted March 28, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2017 Updated what is left Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtyolcrowe Posted March 28, 2017 Report Share Posted March 28, 2017 wonder if we'll keep our 20+ win streak intact Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZippyRulz Posted March 28, 2017 Report Share Posted March 28, 2017 13 minutes ago, dirtyolcrowe said: wonder if we'll keep our 20+ win streak intact what matters is whether we can get hot in the MAC tourney as the 6 seed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zippy5 Posted March 28, 2017 Report Share Posted March 28, 2017 If we can keep Antono, Utomi, Olajapoke I think we won't be too shabby. Seems like Ivey, Eubanks and Aaron are staying. Not sure on Noah, he doesn't seem like the kind of kid to bail. Heck, maybe Josh stays? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtyolcrowe Posted March 28, 2017 Report Share Posted March 28, 2017 duquense won't play us, we'll play coppin st & umbc, and maybe lips comb, or western st. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zippy5 Posted March 28, 2017 Report Share Posted March 28, 2017 3 minutes ago, dirtyolcrowe said: duquense won't play us, we'll play coppin st & umbc, and maybe lips comb, or western st. Those teams might be better than Duquesne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.