12/15 Valpo at Missouri State

valporun · December 15, 2012, 09:23:27 PM

truth, Kenney is usually our "energy" off the bench, but lately, I'm not sure if he's being messed around with in the rotations, it seems like he comes in just because Bryce is ready to put him in, and not because we're seeing a need to have Matt in to change the pace of our play to get some buckets or some kind of defensive something happening. I hope that changes when we get to HL play, and keep Matt in the "energy" spot, since Dority doesn't look like he's a bench guy, in terms of he can bring us energy off the bench.

atkins · December 15, 2012, 10:05:36 PM

Given the insertion of Dority into the equation, I'll cut Valpo some slack tonight. However, MSU is horrible this year and is a team that Valpo should have destroyed. I still have seen nothing out of this team that gives me any confidence that they can defeat a good major conference team. A fluke victory, yes, but not anything that is predictable.

On the other hand, I really like what I'm hearing about the incoming freshmen. I'm sure a couple of them will struggle in college, but if we hit on 3, we are going to be in good shape (provided that we bring in another big who is more athletic than Capo and more basketball-ready than Vashil).

valpo84 · December 15, 2012, 10:50:51 PM

Thanks vuweathernerd. That's why I have a BA. Knew there was a 2 in there....

milanmiracle · December 15, 2012, 10:56:52 PM

Quote from: truth219 on December 15, 2012, 09:14:57 PM
Bogan boggs and kenney are not good they can't shoot they have no confidence. They have no upside

I'll agree about two out of three on that list, however the person who need their minutes reduced is Buggs.

(iPhone posts not good for grammar)

valpopal · December 15, 2012, 11:50:51 PM

It was nice to see that the bigger lineup some of us have been waiting to have on the court—with Ryan, Bobby, and Kevin playing alongside one another—paid off tonight when it was used in the second half. I hope we see more of this in the future.

vubballfan10 · December 16, 2012, 07:20:22 AM

To be honest, the HL has so many fours and fives that can shoot the three, and I'm not sure Bryce Drew wants either KVW or Capo guarding out on the perimeter. Guys like Ben Averkamp, Cole Darlilng, Brennan Cougill, Hayden Humes, etc. spend a lot of time on the perimeter, and with Capo and KVW in the game, one of them would be guarding these guys.

So I don't think we will see too much of Valpo's big lineup.

vuweathernerd · December 16, 2012, 08:14:52 AM

quote from paul oren regarding matt kenney:

QuoteLots of people wondering about Matt Kenney. Has been sick all week and barely practiced. Explains a lot.

crusadermoe · December 16, 2012, 12:17:40 PM

Why are we afflicted with so many Buggs? Sharing water bottles? Guess it happens across all the teams we play too. Finals, too little sleep, living too close to other students is just part of college I guess.
Quarantine each in a Michael Jackson tent for the key games.

bbtds · December 16, 2012, 01:24:39 PM

Quote from: crusadermoe on December 16, 2012, 12:17:40 PMWhy are we afflicted with so many Buggs?

The FT shooting Buggs could have hurt Valpo bad if the Bears had stayed hot in the last 30 seconds.

justducky · December 16, 2012, 01:40:33 PM

Quote from: vubballfan10 on December 16, 2012, 07:20:22 AMTo be honest, the HL has so many fours and fives that can shoot the three, and I'm not sure Bryce Drew wants either KVW or Capo guarding out on the perimeter.

I am less concerned about Capo guarding out on the perimeter than I am with his not being guarded when he goes there on offense. For the go-big attack to work best Capo must be respected and covered at and close to the 3 point line. The more all of our outside play is covered the more our complete game will open up. If Capo is just a 20% 3 point shooter then our big lineup will eventually become a twin small-tower approach and will only be effective against our weaker opposition.

justducky · December 16, 2012, 09:00:10 PM

Quote from: milanmiracle on December 15, 2012, 10:56:52 PMQuote from: truth219 on December 15, 2012, 09:14:57 PM
Bogan boggs and kenney are not good they can't shoot they have no confidence. They have no upside

I'll agree about two out of three on that list, however the person who need their minutes reduced is Buggs.

I know that VU has never been a good pressing team but if Erik, Matt, Jordan and maybe Vashil were all to come off the bench together would we have the necessary speed and athleticism to temporarily turn the game into a track meet which might exploit Eriks strength and avoid his half court weakness? Maybe his playing 20 all out non-starter minutes unconcerned with fouls would be better for the team than our current approach. He would also spend more time being matched up against their second string point, which could also generate more turnovers.

bbtds · December 17, 2012, 04:21:15 AM

Quote from: justducky on December 16, 2012, 01:40:33 PMIf Capo is just a 20% 3 point shooter then our big lineup will eventually become a twin small-tower approach and will only be effective against our weaker opposition.

Capo is currently 0 for 5 from three. At least Bobby is aware he's not a great three point shooter and has stopped shooting them. On the other hand Boggs is 9 of 27 for .333, Kenney is 11 of 28 for .393 and Bogan is 12 of 34 for .353. The best 3-point field goal shooter on the team is Alex Rossi, 4 for 6 for .666. But he doesn't play that much at all for some reason. Hmmmmm?

oklahomamick · December 17, 2012, 10:59:34 AM

The officiating was terrible in Springfield. Can the bloggers who were at the game or watched it explain the flagrant foul on LaVonte? The officials called a personal foul on the Missouri State players but then called a flagrant on LaVonte. I also thought the flagrant foul on Kevin was suspect.

atkins · December 17, 2012, 12:38:47 PM

I hope we aren't relying on Capo to be a force inside. I think we are anticipating much more than we will receive. Perhaps he will go on a tear in Horizon League play. I sure hope so.

wh · December 17, 2012, 02:15:48 PM

Quote from: atkins on December 17, 2012, 12:38:47 PM
I hope we aren't relying on Capo to be a force inside. I think we are anticipating much more than we will receive. Perhaps he will go on a tear in Horizon League play. I sure hope so.

As someone already mentioned, we have several guys who are 3-pt. jump shooters. We have Kevin who is strictly a low post player with extremely limited range - nothing outside of 5 feet. Until now, Ryan has been the only player capable of scoring from anywhere. What he have been missing IMO are two things that hopefully Capo and Lavonte will add to the mix: (1) a 4 tall enough and skilled enough to hit a 10-15 foot baseline jump shot (hopefully this is where Capo comes in), and (2) a point guard that can drive all the way to the hoop, or pull up for a mid-range jump shot, or hit the 3 when left open (hopefully Lavonte). Without a mid-range game, we have become pretty easy to defend - over play the perimeter to disrupt our around-the-horn passing, get out on our 3 pt. shooters, and deny Kevin the ball by using Erik's man to double down. Hopefully, Capo's and Lavonte's mid-range game and other offensive skills will make us much harder to defend going forward.

StlVUFan · December 18, 2012, 09:08:53 PM

Quote from: oklahomamick on December 17, 2012, 10:59:34 AM
The officiating was terrible in Springfield. Can the bloggers who were at the game or watched it explain the flagrant foul on LaVonte? The officials called a personal foul on the Missouri State players but then called a flagrant on LaVonte. I also thought the flagrant foul on Kevin was suspect.

We got more home-cooking than the home team, in my estimation. Unfortunately, last night's taunting Tech has erased my memory from Friday night. I think it was an elbow.