Men's Basketball Scrimmage Update
I seemed to have misplaced the stats, but I can go on memory (until I find them). I was trying to do two things at once, but it was easy to focus on hoops with how bad that football game was.
Anyway, the key stat was two injuries: Troy Franklin (knee) and Josh Thornton (finger on shooting hand). JT was getting it iced, so may be just a bruise or dislocation. I won't speculate on Troy. I saw him go down and hopefully it's not too serious. He walked off the court with a slight limp and was getting his knee iced in the second half (they played two 20 minute halves).
Troy started off very slow in the scrimmage (JT was hurt in the first minute). Had two carry violations (officials seemed to always call those things tight in scrimmage), but is such a great fit for what this team wants to do. Hopefully he won't be out too long, though Morris is the starter right now. I'm not getting into rumors and speculation, but let's just say Morris did the right things to become the starting point guard. However, he can't make the plays with his legs. Defensively, he's going to need help against some of the quicker guards and at times, he has issues agaisnt quicker point guards taking the ball up court (see Niagara). However, I think going against Troy and now Josh Brown (very quick defender) has made him aware that you have to use your body and size to hold off smaller and quicker defenders.
Morris was delivering a lot of dimes today and very few turnovers. Jumper wasn't quite going and free throw shooting has to improve. But he's taking the ball to the basket more and using that height to shoot over small guards.
Let's start with Calvin Lee. He gets it. Maybe he didn't last season early on, but that's because Junior was ahead of him. He really shoots it well from about 17 feet and in and has become a player who can put it on the floor and drive it. He's so much more comfortable at the 4 than the 5 where he isn't facing guys the size of Braxton Dupree. But he's without a doubt, the leader on this team and if he can play with Robert all season long, we'll have a special duo. However, Robert Nwankwo has to step up not just on both sides of the court, but as a leader as well. He's such a dominant force defensively, I felt bad for Tony Durant last year going up against him and today, it was Erique Gumbs and then Braxton Dupree (who fared much better).
But Robert's a junior now on scholarship. He got there on hard work, building up his body and his game. Not many people are stopping him one he gets the ball inside. Now he has to continue to be consistent and not just be content becuase he's dominating our guys in practice. It now has to translate to the games.
Now I'm not totally down on this scrimmage because of the injuries. There were some very good things. Jarrel Smith was super aggressive, and not just settling for jumpers. His shot selection is much better and I liked when he and Brewster were on the court together. You can play Brewster at the 2 next to Morris and Smith at the 3, or Jarrel at the 4 with Brewster at the 3. Like I said, didn't have the stats and Jarrel took at least 21 shots, but was well into the mid-twenties in points (23). Brewster was as well with less, shots and hit at least four three's. His shooting was terrific, but what both players need to do is limit the turnovers. (see bottom post)
It appeared that both played well over 30 minutes and I'm not sure you see that in the regular season, but with Thornton out, they needed the scoring.
It was pretty obvious in the first intrasquad scrimmage that the newcomers were will behind the veterans. Gumbs really struggled to score over Nwankwo once he got it down low. He needs to get stronger, but also utilize his body and long arms. He's not an explosive athlete, so he'll need to use more pump fakes and spin moves. He'll get better in the preseason, but if the season started today, I don't think he would play many minutes. Cal Lee would probably go to center if Nwanwko came out.
Philmore was a bit tentative and understandably so. He's not sure whether to shoot it or put it on the deck and drive. Tried posting up but it's much easier in high school where he was bigger than everybody. Not so in college. That's where he gets the tweener label because he's not really strong enough to dominate at the 4. He could play 3 but with Brewster and Jarrel Smith, there aren't going to be many minutes available. He is a very smart player for a freshman and as a passer from the high post, he knows how to get the ball to the post players.
Polk was much more productive than the freshmen. He had his moments-good and bad. Thought he settled for being a jump shooter instead of creating and taking it to whole. That's something we still don't really have. Not a guy like Neal that can score 20 or 30 on any given night or get to the line. But I think with Lee, Brewster, Jarrel Smith, Josh Thornton and Polk, we have enough firepower. Eventually Philmore will get there but give him some time. One thing Polk isn't is shy. He loves to shoot it and has that scorer's mentality from last year. Defense isn't bad and can pass some. Also has to limit the turnovers, but at this point in preseason, who doesn't?
Josh Brown played well considering he's a walk-on and had to play against Morris, who's much bigger (6-5, 185 to 6-1, 160). He's still more of a 2-guard than a 1, but his defense on the ball is oustanding. Good speed and a decent jumper. He could be serviceable for 10 minutes or so if needed.
Jimmy Smith played the most I've seen him since he sat out two years ago and was just a practice player. The good news is that he's healthy and played well. Even guarded his younger brother Jarrel for a few possessions. He's more of a 2-3 and Jarrel is a 3-4. Jumper is not bad, but could use work. Defense is solid and he's a smart player and good passer.
It's a shame Josh Thornton couldn't play because he looked great from what I've seen early on. Just seems like a more confident player with ability to take the ball to the basket and shoot from mid range. He can get more looks if Brewster continues to play this well and if Nwankwo is a threat down low. And of course Cal Lee should be more of a threat this year.
All in all, not a bad scrimmage. The team is still getting used to uptempo style basketball and had to run a few suicides in the middle of it because guys weren't hustling.
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Covering TU sports for over 2 decades. Now entering my 10th season on CAAzone.
Last edited by mat1992; 10-25-2009 at 12:34 AM.
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