Game 1: Colgate University, Friday, Nov 13th, 7 PM, MASN

[gmujim92]

Drawing up one or two backcuts and exposing the backside when they triple team the post should be something we could have done in a timeout. I realize Shevon is not Jai passing out of the post, but when 3 men swarm you it should not be hard to find an open man weak side.

Maybe we didn't go against Rupp, but my point was simply that usually in non-conference matchups you don't see a team come in with such a specific plan of attack. Colgate did from the tip and we never really adjusted to it.

We had people wide open the few times we got the ball to Shevon in the post and he got triple-teamed, but a number of factors prevented us from capitalizing on that:

* Shevon is still timid and indecisive when pressured.

* Even if he made a good pass out of the double team, we don't have the personnel to simply keep swinging the ball until we get an open jump shot. Just not enough shooters.

* Our older players are not good passers. Even Marko, who is the best of the bunch, makes me cringe when he tries to feed the post.

We got a lot of really good looks and attempted more than 30 foul shots. So it's not like we were completely outclassed by a bad team, despite the final margin.

It's just a very limited roster that can't overcome shooting itself in the foot repeatedly. Gonna take time for DP and the staff to change that.

 

[99 Patriot]

Agreed on all fronts. Makes me fear what happens when we face teams that match or exceed us athletically.

 

[liem.le.3388]

If it gives anyone any comfort at all, we weren't the only school in the area with George in their name to lose their season opener at home.

 

[gmujim92]

If it gives anyone any comfort at all, we weren't the only school in the area with George in their name to lose their season opener at home.

Haven't you heard? We're just "Mason" now.

 

[Walter]

i think dropping the "George" from the jerseys is bad luck. need to add it back or we will lose every game this year.

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk

 

[gmubrian]

I won't complain about the game itself (can't say I am too surprised by the outcome). I will complain, though, about two things that really turned me off at the game.

1. That little chastising/grandstanding prior to the game. At a basketball game you are talking to a group of people supporting a team made mostly of minorities. You are preaching to the choir. And, coming from a man that has made a disgusting, borderline racist tweet himself, no thank you. Don't get me started on the BS that triggered it. I don't need that going to a basketball game. Let's leave our basketball games about the basketball/entertainment.

2. The side of scoreboard I could see from the seats I was in at the game (section 101), the Mason side of the player/points/fouls board, the bottom half of it wasn't working. Only 3 lines would display at a time. Come on, you have had about 8 months to get the arena ready for this game and the scoreboard isn't working. I have no problem not having a video scoreboard, but the basic one we have should work. Unless it failed that morning, there is no excuse for this.

 

[psyclone]

I won't complain about the game itself (can't say I am too surprised by the outcome). I will complain, though, about two things that really turned me off at the gam

1. That little chastising/grandstanding prior to the game. At a basketball game you are talking to a group of people supporting a team made mostly of minorities. You are preaching to the choir. And, coming from a man that has made a disgusting, borderline racist tweet himself, no thank you. Don't get me started on the BS that triggered it. I don't need that going to a basketball game. Let's leave our basketball games about the basketball/entertainment.

2. The side of scoreboard I could see from the seats I was in at the game (section 101), the Mason side of the player/points/fouls board, the bottom half of it wasn't working. Only 3 lines would display at a time. Come on, you have had about 8 months to get the arena ready for this game and the scoreboard isn't working. I have no problem not having a video scoreboard, but the basic one we have should work. Unless it failed that morning, there is no excuse for this.

While I agree with you wholeheartedly on #2 (I also mentioned in my "hate" post about the red and green lights being used for team stats comparisons on the corner video boards), I disagree on #1. Administrators at a number of colleges have been taking a lot of heat for not getting out in front on these sorts of issues. The game provided a good opportunity for Cabrera to take a public stand on an important issue, even if one would hope that it's preaching to the choir.

 

[gmubrian]

While I agree with you wholeheartedly on #2 (I also mentioned in my "hate" post about the red and green lights being used for team stats comparisons on the corner video boards), I disagree on #1. Administrators at a number of colleges have been taking a lot of heat for not getting out in front on these sorts of issues. The game provided a good opportunity for Cabrera to take a public stand on an important issue, even if one would hope that it's preaching to the choir.

Sorry, using a basketball game to proselytize was offensive to me (can't I have a safe space in the arena?). Just because you agree with him does not make it right. If we are going to do that, let's give equal time in that venue. Let's have someone proselytize the crowd about the compete absurdity of gun free school zones at the start of the next game. It is equally topical...

Let's agree to leave the political rhetoric out of the basketball game, or we are all going to be annoyed.

 

[Washingtonian]

Side note - Angie Goff from channel 4 was there last night with her family.

 

[GMUgemini]

Sorry, using a basketball game to proselytize was offensive to me (can't I have a safe space in the arena?). Just because you agree with him does not make it right. If we are going to do that, let's give equal time in that venue. Let's have someone proselytize the crowd about the compete absurdity of gun free school zones at the start of the next game. It is equally topical...

Let's agree to leave the political rhetoric out of the basketball game, or we are all going to be annoyed.

If the students felt they needed to protest to allow guns on campus, I'm sure they would have. I think being a little annoyed and inconvenienced isn't that big of a deal.

I mean, this stuff happens every day on campus, some random group or another proselytizing something (usually anti-Muslim or anti-gay activists where I teach) so it wouldn't bother me much just part of campus life.

 

[BandWagon18]

That "grandstanding" from Cabrera was due to a drawing of a black person depicted as a monkey hanging from a noose that was found in a residence hall. It was a legit thing for him to speak out about, and I'm sorry that it was an inconvenience to some of us here. But trust me, it meant a lot to the students.

 

[ArrozBlanco]

That "grandstanding" from Cabrera was due to a drawing of a black person depicted as a monkey hanging from a noose that was found in a residence hall. It was a legit thing for him to speak out about, and I'm sorry that it was an inconvenience to some of us here. But trust me, it meant a lot to the students.

+100

 

[GSII]

was Holloway on the bench? I didn't see him on TV. I understand why Royal wasn't.

 

[The Great PATSby]

was Holloway on the bench? I didn't see him on TV. I understand why Royal wasn't.

I think bright lights and loud noises are bad for a concussed person

 

[Irish44j]

I'll be honest. The loss was frustrating, but in a different way from the past few years. In the past few years wins and losses alike were frustrating as the team seemed to have no game plan at all, and no coaching at all, and simply counted on a few good players to keep the score close. This game was only frustrating looking at the terrible free-throw shooting (I played in high school as the reserve varsity/starting JV point guard at a small school and shot 85% from the charity stripe - and I'm a pretty mediocre player/shooter overall). FT shooting should be the easiest part of the game and it's all about repetition and the players wanting to practice. These guys should be shooting FT's morning, between class breaks, before dinner, and before bed. Get it in your head.

The outside shooting was as expected.....a lot of nerves and no real improvment from last year's fairly poor outside shooting. That said, I can't remember I saw a bunch of perimeter players with such a bunch of ugly shooting form. I winced when most of them lofted up a long shot.....they remind me of guys I played against in JV high school ball, not A-10 shooters, in their form alone. Now I know it doesn't matter the form if the ball goes in, but boy do some of these guys make Patrick Holloway look like Bobby Hurley.....

I did like the defense (though it's clearly a rough draft), the ball movement and spacing (would have looked better if people could finish layups and open threes though), and the team's overall attitude and effort.

Anyhow, I get as pissed as anyone when my teams lose (thank goodness Navy crushed SMU today), but I'm encouraged by the lack of panic on the sidelines, and no hand on his head by the coach, and the fact that we're playing a bunch of freshman - who, three years from now, will be making up a mostly-senior team of guys who have played together for several seasons and shoudl be a well-oiled machine.

 

[gmutom]

One thing that hasn't been discussed is the new shot clock, which is supposed to pick up the pace of play. What wasn't factored in was the Mickey Mouse officiating crew that called 47 combined fouls and completely ruined the flow of the game.

If the goal is to make the game more exciting, somebody might want to tell the refs not to blow their whistles on almost every other possession.

 

[Washingtonian]

One thing that hasn't been discussed is the new shot clock, which is supposed to pick up the pace of play. What wasn't factored in was the Mickey Mouse officiating crew that called 47 combined fouls and completely ruined the flow of the game.

If the goal is to make the game more exciting, somebody might want to tell the refs not to blow their whistles on almost every other possession.

Hand checks are supposed to be called more and more this season, it will take time for the players to adjust to this. Maybe an exhibition game would have helped curtail the amount of whistles.

 

[gmutom]

Maybe an exhibition game would have helped curtail the amount of whistles.

For the players or refs?

 

[psyclone]

I'm not ignoring or whitewashing the poor foul shooting or big man turnovers by our team but........I'm wondering, having seen Colgate play better than I thought a (preseason) weak Patriot League team would, if their overseas trip and the extra practice time plus the addition to the lineup of a redshirt JMU transfer may have had a role in how they played against us.

 

[Quentin Daniels]

Sorry, using a basketball game to proselytize was offensive to me (can't I have a safe space in the arena?). Just because you agree with him does not make it right. If we are going to do that, let's give equal time in that venue. Let's have someone proselytize the crowd about the compete absurdity of gun free school zones at the start of the next game. It is equally topical...

Let's agree to leave the political rhetoric out of the basketball game, or we are all going to be annoyed.

After seeing one of his peers forced out of his job over an incident that likely didn't even occur, I expect most university presidents will have knee jerk reactions.

I guess the question I would have is does every anonymous offensive isolated event like a cartoon drawing, and it was very offensive, deserve the attention of the university president?