Upcoming schedule (1/6-1/16)

Bonafanatic

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Looking ahead I really like where this team stands right now. Obviously easy to say after a huge win, but even easier to say when you look at our next four games...

SJU (home)
GW (home)
Fordham (away)
Duquesne (home)

I still think this team just needs some court time and of course nothing is guaranteed, but I think we go 4-0 in this stretch (assuming covid keeps the fuck away) before we get another shot at Richmond on our home court. This gets the team some great opportunities to get in game shape for our toughest stretch of the year (Rich, STL, Davidson) with minimal risk of an L.
 
Or we'll all be on a ledge after one of the games goes awry. We still have some glaring faults, rely too much on starters, and are shooting poorly. Spider victory was a good start but as you say time on the court is most important right now. There's a lot to like, and also concerns. Coaching cliche du jour, but this season really needs to be one game at a time.
 
What we saw last night is probably a good clue as to what we will see the rest of the year. Shaw will come in and spell Shoon (I think Shaw actually gives us decent minutes off the bench), Roberts will play a lot of minutes filling in for Holmes, Welch or Lofton, Vasquez will be a spark plug. He has a really good stroke when he catches and shoots. Anything else makes me hold my breath. Creal here and there when needed. He isnt much of a scoring threat but has a nose for the ball. That is a good 9 man rotation. We are prone to give up too many offensive rebounds if Shoon gets out of position or tries to block a shot but that is what we have to live with. That is where losing Winston probably hurts the most. I wish he or Carpenter would have stuck it out but oh well....fuck them.

Lofton 1000 point watch: 990 so look for him to go over next game.
 
I hate to say this out conference games, but those 1st 3 should act like non conference games where Schmidt fine tunes the rotation a bit.
 
Amazed not more concern for lack of any kind of 3rd big man. You know inevitably, and more than once, we are going to have game where Osun gets hurt or early foul trouble, and Shaw has to play 20 minutes--or also gets in foul trouble or banged up and then....which 6'5' player has to play center for half a game? Is there any other team with only 2 players over 6'5"? Why I mentioned grabbing someone off the transfer wire to be 10th man...
 
Amazed not more concern for lack of any kind of 3rd big man. You know inevitably, and more than once, we are going to have game where Osun gets hurt or early foul trouble, and Shaw has to play 20 minutes--or also gets in foul trouble or banged up and then....which 6'5' player has to play center for half a game? Is there any other team with only 2 players over 6'5"? Why I mentioned grabbing someone off the transfer wire to be 10th man...
Definitely a concern of mine. Although, outside of SLU, not sure a small lineup kills us in conference.
 
It is a concern, same as it was 3 years ago when a suspended Ayeni rendered Amadi our only big man, and Griffin played stretch 5 most of the time. Story was similar two years ago, with a frosh/often in foul trouble Shoon being spelled by stretch 5 minutes from a 6'6" guy. It wasn't ideal then, and isn't ideal now- so I'd say it's a concern, but not a panic.

I'd also add that Winstons departure doesn't affect that concern for me all that much. I have a lot of reasons why I am disappointed with Winston leaving, but his ability to step into the role as a 5 in a pinch is not one of them. Aside from being 6'8", nothing else that we saw about his game thus far implied he would have been realistically any more effective at being plugged into the 5 in a pinch. Put it another way- the nightmare scenario of Shaw being banged up, and Osun being in early foul trouble, resulting in someone else needing to step into the 5- Winston being on the roster wouldn't make that scenario any less scary.
 
Serious question, when was the last time this team had 3 legit impact big men on the roster? 2012 with Andrew, Cook, Simmons, and Ndoye. Going back 30 years I can't remember many times.
 
Suppose it depends on how you define "big" and "impact", If you want to use the terms loosely, you could look at Andoh/Gregg/Amadi/Ayeni 4 years back. Or Dion/Gregg/Tyson/Woods 5 years back.
 
Right, not looking for a new Lanier, just another Shaw type. Shaw has been erratic but would love another like him as #10 man. Going to be needed, you just know it. And as for claim that this is nothing new--when was last time roster had only 2 players over 6'5"?
 
Right, not looking for a new Lanier, just another Shaw type. Shaw has been erratic but would love another like him as #10 man. Going to be needed, you just know it. And as for claim that this is nothing new--when was last time roster had only 2 players over 6'5"?
Maybe back in early 00s when Rob Cheeks played minutes at the 5. That time had big guys, but they seldom played.

Wherefore art thou, Elton Ruddock and Sal Dumbliauskas?
 
We can wish for bigs all we want but the fact is there arent as many out there. The power teams scoop them up whether they are that caliber or not (remember Obokoh?) Most guys dont want to admit they are not at that level so they go there and sit for 2 years and waste their development. From the graduation of PVP until Nicholson, we never had a good big, Paul WIlliams was OK. Schmidt has done a decent job over the years but the past few have been lean on big men. If we had a 3rd, he would be gone after 1 season because of this new culture of immediate gratification. We were lucky to have guys like Griffin and Dion who worked hard and didnt bolt at the first sign of adversity. Carpenter should have stayed, he would have got plenty of burn this year if he wanted to put in the work.
 
Right, not looking for a new Lanier, just another Shaw type. Shaw has been erratic but would love another like him as #10 man. Going to be needed, you just know it. And as for claim that this is nothing new--when was last time roster had only 2 players over 6'5"?
To be fair there were 4 plsyers over 6'5' when the semester started. Injuries and tranfers happen, so unfortunatley you just have to play the hand you dealt. I think it would be more worriesome if this was the roster that the Bonnies went into the season with.
And i agree I'd lto love another Shaw type on the roster. But with Osun deservedly getting 30 minutes a game , how many 6'10' guys with any skill are comming to a program where they're going to split 10 minutes per game?
 
Dayton will also be looking for an opponent Saturday since GW is on pause again. Id rather play them at home than have to go to Duquesne and play them for the 2nd time in 10 days.
 
Dayton will also be looking for an opponent Saturday since GW is on pause again. Id rather play them at home than have to go to Duquesne and play them for the 2nd time in 10 days.
Dayton plays VCU Saturday, Jan. 23, so that rules them out.
 
Oops, I thought I read that dayton gw was saturday.
 
Exactly, Bill. You don't know how many times we could be on pause before the end of the season. There's minimal time to make up games if we miss a week or two before year's end.
 
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