Valpo at ETSU 12/29 final tune up

[EddieCabot]

We now look like a very young, inexperienced team!  Shocking, I know.

I agree with this.  What's sad is that Valpo opened the year by starting 4 seniors, two of them 5th year seniors.  After several games, Bryce abandoned that approach and started playing the freshmen more.  In hindsight, had he taken that approach initially, those guys would be much better prepared for Horizon League play.  As they say, hindsight is 20/20

[StlVUFan]

We now look like a very young, inexperienced team!  Shocking, I know.

I agree with this.  What's sad is that Valpo opened the year by starting 4 seniors, two of them 5th year seniors.  After several games, Bryce abandoned that approach and started playing the freshmen more.  In hindsight, had he taken that approach initially, those guys would be much better prepared for Horizon League play.  As they say, hindsight is 20/20

Those 4 seniors have not actually logged a whole lot of minutes in a Valpo uniform.

In the Valpo system, *every* player is relatively inexperienced.

I'm not good enough to diagnose the cause of all their problems, but I guess I'm surprised at how shocking this year so far seems to be to folks around here.  Don't get me wrong, my hopes were up after several of our home games, so I've ridden the roller-coaster too.

Thing is: ya gotta stay in your seat until the ride ends.  That's why I got on the ride in the first place -- I wanna see how it ends up.

[justducky]

The reality is our opponents now have film and are pressuring our kids where they are weakest.

As good as Peters and Adekoya will be in the near future for the last two games having a pair like Broekoff and Kenny would have been much more productive.  Athleticism and raw talent will only go so far in an exchange for experience. Jubril has a good 3 dribble runner but lacks the confidence to go strong to the hole from beyond the arc and he has not demonstrated that he can shoot from outside either. Alec has shown that he can shoot from anywhere (when open) but against a good defender or quick zone his judgement and execution have left much to be desired both off the pass and off the dribble. The opening would seem to be there for Coleman to log additional minutes at the 3 although till now he hasn't played it all that well either.

With Chadwick playing well, Vashil making big progress, and much of the rest of the team sprinting downhill I think I would have a better chance of winning the lottery than of picking the starting lineup against UIC.

[LaPorteAveApostle]

In hindsight, had he taken that approach initially, those guys would be much better prepared for Horizon League play.

Aha!  So you DIDN'T agree with me at all.  You were simply being...I don't know, yourself?

To wit:

Quote from: LaPorteAveApostle on December 27, 2013, 09:09:27 AM
(ME:) I would agree with the premise in general.  I would think the biggest improvements happen between years 1 & 2, not during year 1.


(YOU:)This makes a lot of sense. 

I knew it.

[LaPorteAveApostle]

I think I would have a better chance of winning the lottery than of picking the starting lineup against UIC.

LOL.  We should have a pool, every game.

I'm frustrated too, although me being me, I can't say too much because I can never watch the Sunday games, nor Saturday afternoon.  Certainly it doesn't look good, but I think we all need to keep in mind that winning on the road is HARD.

Why did Napoleon fail?  Why did Hitler fall?  They couldn't win on the road consistently.

[valpo64]

As I have said before, BE PATIENT!  With all of the frosh, and K C who is just like a frosh, in fact our freshmen have more game time experience than Keith, This year will be up and down.  Hopefully by the end of the year things will start to settle down.  As my Mother used to say, and now my wife says the same thing,  "Patience is a virtue."  That goes for the players AND the fans.

[sliman]

I was a little surprised to see that Yeo didn't make an appearance in this game.  Typically he gets at least a first half look when we're struggling.  Did he make the trip?