UNI vs Indiana St game thread

[Khan4Cats]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

I'll never make another pregame prediction again.

Well, we did outscore them by 16 in the second half and overtimes.

[TommyT]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

We are going to stink this year if we can't get an inside game going. And let's be frank, O'Rear is not an offensive post player. Not his fault, but when we give him the majority of minutes at the post, we are giving up on the inside game and will be watching a ridiculous number of 3's being launched every game. I guess that is what our team will be for the future - just another below .500 team that throws up 3's en mass hoping to get something to go down. I love the Panthers, I just don't love this style of play.

[Khan4Cats]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

We are going to stink this year if we can't get an inside game going. And let's be frank, O'Rear is not an offensive post player. Not his fault, but when we give him the majority of minutes at the post, we are giving up on the inside game and will be watching a ridiculous number of 3's being launched every game. I guess that is what our team will be for the future - just another below .500 team that throws up 3's en mass hoping to get something to go down. I love the Panthers, I just don't love this style of play.

We weren't able to establish an inside game in the first half and Indiana State lit us up from outside. Doesn't do us much good to try and play catch up by trading 3 points by the other team for heavily contested 2 point shots by us. The switch in the second half put O'Rear in because he was more physical with Tunnell. Neither Koch or Jordan showed any willingness to muscle up with him. We went to the four guards to try and spread out the ISU zone and it worked to get us back in the game, O'Rear was the one post who was getting much of anything done on defense.

As for chucking up threes en masse, please watch the game and tell me where we did that. Even as we whittled away at the lead in the second half, all of the shots came within offense, which was often Kwadzo penetrating and attacking the rim or kicking it out for an open look. We were like 9 of 16 from deep in the second half and OT's.

[Marc Wigim]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

Look this team will come together.

I'm waiting... we're 12 games into the season...

[morrism0]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

It's a long season yet, one game does not make or break a season.

We apprearently are the only ones thinking this.

[TommyT]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

As for chucking up threes en masse, please watch the game and tell me where we did that. Even as we whittled away at the lead in the second half, all of the shots came within offense, which was often Kwadzo penetrating and attacking the rim or kicking it out for an open look. We were like 9 of 16 from deep in the second half and OT's.

1st half 1-6
2nd half 7-10
OT 2-8

Do we believe we will consistently shoot 40+ percent in games? The only way we got this game to OT is because we shot out-of-our minds from 3 in the 2nd half. Even in your statement, you add to my case when you say Kwadzo penetrating and kicking it out opened up our shooting. We need more balance.

[Newshound]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

This team is Jekyll and Hyde. You don't know what you're going to get from possession to possession, let alone game to game. You saw it today. They played awful in the first half, much better in the second. They go up four in the second overtime, but give it away less than 20 seconds later. You can't be that skittish and win consistently.

To get outrebounded on your home court by a team that hadn't outrebounded a Division I opponent all season boils down to toughness, or lackof. To allow 64 percent shooting in the first half to a team that shot 40 percent for the season is crummy defense.

And the number of fouls late in the shot clock and fouling on 3-point shots is not using your head.

This team has capability, but it can't seem to put all the parts together for an extended period of time. And with trips looming to Southern and Creighton -- two venues they haven't won at this decade -- it could be a rough two weeks. The question is, does two rough weeks turn into a rough 18 games? This team's leadership will be tested.

I'm not ready to say the season is over by any means, but this team needs to grow up in a hurry. Eglseder and Koch are juniors. They need to start playing like it on a CONSISTENT BASIS, not when the moment is right.

[Newshound]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

On a positive, Kwadzo has really elevated his game to new heights. I think we're seeing an athlete who really benefitted from a year off and having a chance to watch and learn.

[BMPanther]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

WHy only 18 minutes for Jordan tonight?

[Back2BackCats]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

[QUOTE=Khan4Cats;152213]We weren't able to establish an inside game in the first half and Indiana State lit us up from outside.

We have one of the best, if not the best, big man combos in the MVC. How do we not establish an inside game against the team that is picked to finish last?

[TravelingPanther]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

WHy only 18 minutes for Jordan tonight?

he couldn't keep up with #44. also wasn't effective on offense.

[TravelingPanther]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

[QUOTE=Back2BackCats;152221]

We weren't able to establish an inside game in the first half and Indiana State lit us up from outside.

We have one of the best, if not the best, big man combos in the MVC. How do we not establish an inside game against the team that is picked to finish last?

they packed the lane with a zone.

[Khan4Cats]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

WHy only 18 minutes for Jordan tonight?

[QUOTE=Back2BackCats;152221
We have one of the best, if not the best, big man combos in the MVC. How do we not establish an inside game against the team that is picked to finish last?[/QUOTE]

they packed the lane with a zone.

Not only on offense, where he made several bad passes out of double teams and took a couple of ugly shots (he also had a couple of nice kick outs), but on defense, once their center got in foul trouble, there was no one to match up with for him. He had a 6'5" guard take it right at him and rather than step out and challenge the shot he dropped back, allowing an easy short jumper. With a lead, Jordan is a great weapon because he can eat space down low and is a great FT shooter, but when we were behind and trying to rally, particularly using the press, he wasn't an effective option. We should see much more of him against Southern, especially if Evans is back.

For what it's worth, Koch wasn't all that effective either, especially toughness against Tunnell. That's why O'Rear played most of the minutes down the stretch.

The problem with having great big men, which we do have, is that if the guards can't get them the ball, there's not much they can do on their own. Koch has the ability to put it on the floor, but Jordan, and even O'Rear, are more of receive and make a move down low-type players. The first half, our guards were not doing much to get the ball inside. (Or helping loosen things by driving, either).

[TravelingPanther]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

For the first half O'Rear looked like the only guy who wanted to play. He was on fire all day. Didn't score a lot, but did a lot for the team all day.

[UNIFanSince1983]

Re: UNI vs Indiana St game thread

The reason we have a little trouble protecting the home court is we do not have a decided home court advantage. A lot of teams in this league have a decided home court advantage. I know the arena helps with a lot of different things, but when we played in the dome the advantage was HUGE. The dome just had background with lots of space that made it tough for opponents to shoot.

I hate people that blame refs, but there is something when we are driving to the hole so much and in the 2nd overtime we are still shooting 1 and 1 while they had been shooting two since regulation. On another note all of college basketball needs to institute a no charge circle like the NBA. I mean how many times was their guy standing under the basket and just flopping when we drove in?

Overall, it is going to be a long season. I don't know how we can look so good against SDSU who turns out to be a pretty decent team. And then just look so terrible for the first 20 minutes of this one? I am not blaming our coach or trying to get him out of there, but if next season this same kind of crap happens we need to do something.