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Post by ruxchighlander11 on Dec 21, 2016 11:21:22 GMT -5
It's hard for me to assess how good or how bad we actually are right now. I think the most simple answer is that we are young. It's safe to say we'll beat Grace college and get out of our out of conference schedule with a 5-7 record. But let's break that down a step further. We went 0-3 against the Power 3 so, if you take that away we are 5-4 against non-power 5 schools, and 3-4 against mid major D1 programs. According to ESPN, we've actually played the 3rd toughest schedule in the conference and we've gone 3-1 against teams in the RPI sub 150. So, at least we are beating the bad teams. Heading into conference won't be easy.....We'll play Asheville and Winthrop who are both 66 and 76 in the RPI. But then, we'll play a very winnable 7 game stretch. Safe to say, at the end of this year, this team could be above .500 and be making some noise before next year's campaign.
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Post by dedmondeviant on Dec 25, 2016 11:55:14 GMT -5
It is hard to say just what we have this year. I dont think we have a championship team, but I do believe we are in the top half, maybe top 1/3, of the conference. We have some good pieces, and this is such a young team there is still a lot to be excited for. I think we will fare pretty well against the Big South this year. I havent followed the conference as closely as I normally do, I know Winthrop is probably the best team, and Im sure Asheville is still tough, but we play good defense most of the time. The lack of depth at PG is going to bite us in conference play as will the inability to shoot a respectable free throw percentage. That has cost us a lot of games over the last few years and doesnt seem to be getting much better. We will find out after Asheville and Winthrop where we stand, hopefully we will be pleasantly surprised.
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Post by rusharp on Dec 29, 2016 21:22:53 GMT -5
Well, hopefully our win over UNC Asheville tonight (80-77) tells us that our team has the talent, potential, and coaching to win the big south. I watched the game; they exhibited the skill and potential to go far this year. Our game Saturday vs Winthrop will tell us a lot. Are we putting it together, or are we going to suffer the ups and downs of a young team? I'm going to be glued to the internet to find out. You should be, too
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Post by dedmondeviant on Dec 29, 2016 22:11:18 GMT -5
This was a very good win tonight and we had more control of the game than the score indicated. I hate beating a dead horse, but free throw shooting almost cost us this one again. 55% from the line will not get it done. This is a huge win, I think, to start off conference play. At Winthrop wont be easy, as I have said all along I think we give the Big South hell this year. What a boost Bolstad has been. We blocked 7 shots tonight, protecting the rim at key moments. Tanner had 24 pts I believe. He is becoming more than just a shooter, and he is the best shooter in the league. It has been an up and down road for us in the conference under Coach Jones, and it wouldn't be the end of the world if we lose to Winthrop on the road but, we shouldn't be losing to CSU, Presby, Longwood etc this year.
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Post by rusharp on Dec 31, 2016 15:10:10 GMT -5
Ok, statement made. 82-80 vs big south favorites Winthrop, at Rock Hill. The potential is there. We gotta keep up the focus, energy, and attitude for two and a half more months. Happy New Year.
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Post by dedmondeviant on Jan 1, 2017 1:36:36 GMT -5
This is not the same team that started the season for several reasons. One of the biggest is we are getting everyone healthy. Having Bolstad back has been a huge boost, and he has improved a lot from last year. I remember the staff being very excited about him and I see why. Christy also seems to be back close to 100%. He is a solid player, maybe one of our best five. He was playing extremely well last year when he got hurt and we missed him big time after the injury. Even Polite missed a game early on and he was a little dinged up during some of our early season struggles. He is our best player, and an absolute stud. He may not always be our top scorer, and we are better off when he isnt probably, but his rebounding, steals, blocks and just presence on the court make him one of the best players we have had in a while. Similar in a lot of ways to Javonte Green, and may be a tad better. Our shooters and scorers are maturing and knocking down shots that they need to. Finally, we can out shoot a lot of teams in the Big South. Thats goes a long way in this conference. Lutete and Tanner are becoming complete players. It is easy to forget we are depending on a lot of first and second year players. It was going to take a bit for things to fall into place. Bradford also deserves a mention here. He is staying out of foul trouble, not turning the ball over, and is a legit scoring threat.
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Post by 01Highlander on Jan 9, 2017 16:25:52 GMT -5
3-1 To start conference play with Wins over UNCA and Winthrop? Thats pretty good. LETS GO RU!!!
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Post by rusharp on Jan 14, 2017 19:25:27 GMT -5
Wow, we are super volitile. The liberty game showed our Jekyll and Hyde tendencies. We're great one minute, play like a D3 team the next. Hope the coaches can help this young team put it together soon. Lots of potential, and still early.
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Post by ruxchighlander11 on Jan 15, 2017 16:55:59 GMT -5
Wow, we are super volitile. The liberty game showed our Jekyll and Hyde tendencies. We're great one minute, play like a D3 team the next. Hope the coaches can help this young team put it together soon. Lots of potential, and still early. Yeah, I think when I said we were "young", that was the best way to describe us. Incredibly talented and capable of beating the best in our conference, but also incredibly young and inexperienced. We are very much a live by the 3 and die by the 3 team. In the second half of the Liberty game, we stopped settling for contested 3s and pounded the ball inside and got to the free throw line. I think we can take a lot from this game. We learned that we aren't a one dimensional team and when the three wasn't falling, we found other ways to score until Cousin and Tanner caught some fire from the outside later in the second half. Honestly, I think .500 in conference play is a fair projection. But I would like us to be the team that puts it together in the Big South Tournament and makes a run at the semi final. Also, I think it's important that this team understands that Coach Jones has built a culture of winning....3 winning seasons in a row.....And anything less than a winning season is unacceptable.
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Post by rusharp on Jan 16, 2017 22:11:17 GMT -5
Wow, we are super volitile. The liberty game showed our Jekyll and Hyde tendencies. We're great one minute, play like a D3 team the next. Hope the coaches can help this young team put it together soon. Lots of potential, and still early. Yeah, I think when I said we were "young", that was the best way to describe us. Incredibly talented and capable of beating the best in our conference, but also incredibly young and inexperienced. We are very much a live by the 3 and die by the 3 team. In the second half of the Liberty game, we stopped settling for contested 3s and pounded the ball inside and got to the free throw line. I think we can take a lot from this game. We learned that we aren't a one dimensional team and when the three wasn't falling, we found other ways to score until Cousin and Tanner caught some fire from the outside later in the second half. Honestly, I think .500 in conference play is a fair projection. But I would like us to be the team that puts it together in the Big South Tournament and makes a run at the semi final. Also, I think it's important that this team understands that Coach Jones has built a culture of winning....3 winning seasons in a row.....And anything less than a winning season is unacceptable. Very good insight. Hoping for it all to come together by tourney. On another note, what is up with Bolstad? He didn't dress for Liberty. I didn't listen to pregame or coaches show last Thursday so I don't know if his situation was covered. There were about 4-5 players who didn't dress for liberty but sat on the bench. I recognized copper and Bolstaf, but didn't know the others. I guess they are our red Shirts?
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Post by ruxchighlander11 on Jan 17, 2017 11:25:46 GMT -5
Yeah, I think when I said we were "young", that was the best way to describe us. Incredibly talented and capable of beating the best in our conference, but also incredibly young and inexperienced. We are very much a live by the 3 and die by the 3 team. In the second half of the Liberty game, we stopped settling for contested 3s and pounded the ball inside and got to the free throw line. I think we can take a lot from this game. We learned that we aren't a one dimensional team and when the three wasn't falling, we found other ways to score until Cousin and Tanner caught some fire from the outside later in the second half. Honestly, I think .500 in conference play is a fair projection. But I would like us to be the team that puts it together in the Big South Tournament and makes a run at the semi final. Also, I think it's important that this team understands that Coach Jones has built a culture of winning....3 winning seasons in a row.....And anything less than a winning season is unacceptable. Very good insight. Hoping for it all to come together by tourney. On another note, what is up with Bolstad? He didn't dress for Liberty. I didn't listen to pregame or coaches show last Thursday so I don't know if his situation was covered. There were about 4-5 players who didn't dress for liberty but sat on the bench. I recognized copper and Bolstaf, but didn't know the others. I guess they are our red Shirts? They did mention Bolstad in the second half. He had a minor injury in practice and shouldn't be out long. The big story in that game was that Randy Phillips got the start and when the 3 wasn't falling, they went to him and he delivered. 5-7 from the field. 11 points for the game. Would like to see him do a little better from FT...1-3. But he showed something in this game. He also had 7 boards. He stepped up. I think he's starting to adjust to the speed of the D1 game. I see him the same way I saw Cam Jones. He took a while to adjust as a junior, but at the end of the year, he came on strong and turned into a key player for us as a senior. Also, since we won't lose anyone to graduation, I do think that we are building towards a big year next year.
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Post by rusharp on Jan 22, 2017 10:52:46 GMT -5
Disappointed at our performance vs High Point we are better than that. Still striving for consistency game to game. We need to head into the tourney in the top half of the conference for an easier path to the championship game. Our rebounding performance vs High Point, as Coach Jones pointed out, was the difference. Hope thant and our overall offense improves before Campbell game which, by the way, I may drive in from Ohio to watch live Thursday night. .
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Post by rusharp on Feb 26, 2017 9:14:45 GMT -5
I guess we have the answer: how good are we? A little less than a .500 conference team; however, I still maintain we have significant potential. We can win this tourney but we have to put things together much like Liberty did a few seasons ago when they won the Big South 'play in game,' then the quarters, semis then final. We have the luxury of a bye, well earned, and so our chances are better than Liberty's a few seasons ago.
We return everyone next year. This tourney may set the stage for how good we can expect to be next year. Let's buckle down and enjoy the potential this tourney offers us. This is what we play for all season, now it's time to go get it.
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Post by rubballfan09 on Feb 26, 2017 13:09:11 GMT -5
Man I honestly feel like this program is going no where with Mike Jones. I feel that RU should've made a tourney with Price and Green. Heres to hoping for a run starting this week
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Post by rusharp on Mar 1, 2017 20:09:54 GMT -5
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