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Post by Non Alum Dave on Feb 18, 2018 9:52:06 GMT -5
For those watching online: the Bison fans seem to think the announcers were in the bag for HC. Who were the announcers, and do you agree?
Regarding the officiating, I thought it was bad at both ends......
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Post by lou on Feb 18, 2018 9:59:44 GMT -5
What is a players only meeting? This isn't the red Sox. Kids live in dorms, they can "meet" anytime they want. They're playing well lately after the suspension shock. I'm going to give some credit to our coaching staff.
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Post by lou on Feb 18, 2018 10:01:15 GMT -5
For those watching online: the Bison fans seem to think the announcers were in the bag for HC. Who were the announcers, and do you agree? Regarding the officiating, I thought it was bad at both ends...... Read the same, I enjoy their board, but really, the team represented by Birdsong can't do much complaining.
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Post by rgs318 on Feb 18, 2018 10:02:22 GMT -5
As a coach I have seen the benefit of a "players only" meeting. The coaches have certainly played a major role in the team's improvement, but such a meeting allows players to "clear the air" (if that is needed), to reinforce the team leadership and to support the players' buying into what is going on.
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Post by sader81 on Feb 18, 2018 10:10:39 GMT -5
WooGray - pretty amazing how well this team has come together. Green looks very confident on the court. Played most of the 2nd half with 4 fouls. Grandy is athletic and is starting to show great teamwork, which was absent early on. Floyd is a beast. I agree withwhoever posted that he’d be a PL POY candidate if he could shoot foul shots! He gets better and more confident every game. Butler is a tough player who will stand up to anyone. He’s fun to watch! PatB is steady and confident, and he’ll bounce back after yesterday. Niego and Faw are decent players who have stepped up. I don’t know how far this team goes this year, but they are a much better team now than they were in December!
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Post by rgs318 on Feb 18, 2018 10:14:06 GMT -5
I agree, sader81. That is not a surprise to those who watched them objectively. The future is bright if this continues.
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Post by timholycross on Feb 18, 2018 10:20:18 GMT -5
Big East banter is delusional. Informed discussion about potential options and pathways for the future of HC basketball and athletics, is not. "Big East or bust" -- come on, use your head for a second. Holy Cross has no basketball history with anyone in the league aside from Providence. UConn (sadly) and BC are both out that door, in case you didn't notice. Not to mention, we would be NOWHERE on the league's radar for admission. IF the league ever felt the need to add new members, there are bigger schools with stronger programs AND recent success, in larger college sports markets, and with far less academic hurtles. It's not 1947, 1979 or 1987 anymore -- the landscape has changed. That doesn't mean as fans and supporters of the school that we should stomp our feet and refuse to enjoy the student-athlete product on the floor at the level we play at now, which is still decent Division I basketball and sometimes even better than that. Our basketball players are still phenomenal young athletes so accomplished in high school that they were among or possibly the best in their leagues, counties and states. Many are the best to have ever played at their respective high schools. Keep that in perspective. Want to debate whether we should join the MAAC and dump the hinterlands of PA in favor of a Catholic, more urban-centric conference? Sure, that's cool. Maybe the CAA where we can get exposure up and down the East Coast while simultaneously moving up the latter in football? OK. Maybe dominating the PL for a stretch and pining for an A-10 gig? Sounds like a plausible long-term plan with the Luth upgrades and ambition of the current admin (from what others have said). Who knows -- maybe Big East expansion and a raid of the Atlantic 10 one day would open up a spot for us there. All speculation that shouldn't stop anyone from enjoying our current Division I backdrop. This encapsulates the options pretty well. Sorry, 87, there is no Big East option. Doubt there has been one after the formulation of the league..as the sentence that starts with "there are bigger schools...." summates better than I can. And, as someone else inquired, a league like that doesn't want to play league games in the likes of the Hart Center...St. John's with 2K more seating is as small as it's going to get.
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Post by hchoops on Feb 18, 2018 10:22:37 GMT -5
And ST John’s plays most of its games in the Garden
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Post by WorcesterGray on Feb 18, 2018 10:38:02 GMT -5
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Post by hopjim on Feb 18, 2018 10:55:14 GMT -5
Hopefully the crowd will be a large and enthusiastic one. I'll be there '70! Even if the students are too young to know / remember that Bucknell is supposed to be one of our top basketball rivals, a Saturday game against the Patriot League's best should add up to close to 3,000 in attendance. Not to mention, we've won six out of our last nine games. A packed Hart one of the best places to watch college basketball. Several decades in past saw Bucknell come in to 125% crowds and great games. My favorite was when past BU coach Flannery needed to be escorted off court after very vocal and somewhat physical disagreement with officials. Not sure if he coached again. Unfortunate since he was strong coach and he and each year's Bucknell team was entertaining (and good).
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Post by Sons of Vaval on Feb 18, 2018 11:00:30 GMT -5
What is a players only meeting? This isn't the red Sox. Kids live in dorms, they can "meet" anytime they want. They're playing well lately after the suspension shock. I'm going to give some credit to our coaching staff. It's a meeting without coaches.
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Post by hopjim on Feb 18, 2018 11:06:00 GMT -5
The league is a joke....and we are basically trapped into it...we should be in the Big East but those of us much smahhtah than I know bettah....joke As much as I would love the Big East. It is most likely not going to happen. Any other conference change ideas. Based on the current performance of Holy Cross teams across the board, why would the Big East want HC? Big East done a great job with their athletics, particularly in basketball where every team, excluding DuPaul, doing well/making improvement. Top coaches, large crowds, great facilities. Even the geography of Worchester, while near Boston, doesn't compare to most of the campuses. Trying to be open minded, but can't see any reason why HC would be wanted or want to come in and be the new bottom of the League.
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Post by rgs318 on Feb 18, 2018 11:10:30 GMT -5
Did you really mean "campuses?" HC is rated as one of the most beautiful campuses in the nation every year and our facilities are quite good (except for the on-campus seating capacity for hoops and hockey). HC can certainly compare to Big East facilities, and the DCU could help with the seating issue. I don't see HC going Big East any time in the near future (ok, in my lifetime), but HC can compare facilities (and certainly student-athlete GPAs) with anyone in the Big East. Worcester, however, is still an issue at this time.
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Post by bringbackcaro on Feb 18, 2018 11:13:09 GMT -5
We are a better team with two of our weakest defenders unavailable.
Floyd’s inside presence has completely transformed the defense, and by having a smart player like Benzan now on the perimeter, we are not getting beat as badly at the 3 point line. Hard to believe Zignorski was starting over him for a long stretch of the season.
As predicted all along, there is no reason why we shouldn’t have been competing for 2nd place in the PL and challenging a beatable Bucknell team.
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Post by WorcesterGray on Feb 18, 2018 11:41:49 GMT -5
We are a better team with two of our weakest defenders unavailable. by having a smart player like Benzan now on the perimeter, we are not getting beat as badly at the 3 point line. Conference opponent 3FG%, when PB has gotten 25+ minutes. 1/8, vs. Loyola, 26 minutes . . . 5-15 1/11, vs. Navy, 29 minutes . . . 6-24 2/10 vs. BU, 26 minutes . . . 5-25* 2/14 vs Army, 36 minutes . . . 8-26* 2/17, vs.' Bucknell, 45 minutes . . . 5-23 Total . . . 29-113 (25.6%). Other PL Games . . . 98-246 (39.8%)
* In first two meetings - at the Hart - when Benzan averaged just 15 minutes, BU and Army shot a combined 41% from three. Other factors involved, of course, but no question in my mind that Benzan has been a difference-maker here.
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Post by bringbackcaro on Feb 18, 2018 11:43:18 GMT -5
We are a better team with two of our weakest defenders unavailable. by having a smart player like Benzan now on the perimeter, we are not getting beat as badly at the 3 point line. Conference opponent 3FG%, when PB has gotten 25+ minutes. 1/8, vs. Loyola, 26 minutes . . . 5-15 1/11, vs. Navy, 29 minutes . . . 6-24 2/10 vs. BU, 26 minutes . . . 5-25* 2/14 vs Army, 36 minutes . . . 8-26* 2/17, vs.' Bucknell, 45 minutes . . . 5-23 Total . . . 29-113 (25.6%). Other PL Games . . . 98-246 (39.8%)
Other factors involved, of course, but no question in my mind that Benzan has been a difference-maker here. Amazing stats.
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Post by crusader12 on Feb 18, 2018 11:55:50 GMT -5
87, We understand your point of view. The repetition is old, dull and honestly, nobody cares what you think. Whether the number is 8 or 18 or 1818, there are people here who do care and are the reason this board exists. If you want to participate, fine. But if all you’re going to do is come here, crap on those who do care, and continually regurgitate your tired old tripe about how great things used to be, I suggest you find another board. Look, I rarely agree with 87 and don't think he has a life, but this is a free country for god sakes and people should be allowed to post. Don't like it then block!
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Post by hchoops on Feb 18, 2018 11:57:12 GMT -5
We are a better team with two of our weakest defenders unavailable. by having a smart player like Benzan now on the perimeter, we are not getting beat as badly at the 3 point line. Conference opponent 3FG%, when PB has gotten 25+ minutes. 1/8, vs. Loyola, 26 minutes . . . 5-15 1/11, vs. Navy, 29 minutes . . . 6-24 2/10 vs. BU, 26 minutes . . . 5-25* 2/14 vs Army, 36 minutes . . . 8-26* 2/17, vs.' Bucknell, 45 minutes . . . 5-23 Total . . . 29-113 (25.6%). Other PL Games . . . 98-246 (39.8%)
* In first two meetings - at the Hart - when Benzan averaged just 15 minutes, BU and Army shot a combined 41% from three. Other factors involved, of course, but no question in my mind that Benzan has been a difference-maker here. It is rare indeed when any one player makes a major difference in any opponent’s 3 point shooting.
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Post by crusader12 on Feb 18, 2018 12:03:11 GMT -5
Also: ADNP needs to fire both Stadium and RSIG now!!!!!!!!
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Post by lou on Feb 18, 2018 12:04:52 GMT -5
Stadium via Apple TV has been perfect for me all year, what was the issue?
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Post by possum on Feb 18, 2018 12:05:21 GMT -5
It certainly helps when you have a Bill Russell type defending the rim we can really defend aggressively out to the 3 point line knowing JF will swallow up any penetrators.
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Post by WorcesterGray on Feb 18, 2018 12:07:46 GMT -5
Intangibly, maybe, I think it also makes a difference when a player is vocal and barking instructions at the defensive end, and in on-court huddles. Leadership matters, and as Jehyve, in particular, noted in a recent post-game, Pat is the leader of this team.
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Post by hchoops on Feb 18, 2018 12:16:21 GMT -5
Intangibly, maybe, I think it also makes a difference when a player is vocal and barking instructions at the defensive end, and in on-court huddles. Leadership matters, and as Jehyve, in particular, noted in a recent post-game, Pat is the leader of this team. Not to demean his leadership, but I presume he was also the leader when we were losing
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Post by jkh67 on Feb 18, 2018 12:18:36 GMT -5
As much as I would love the Big East. It is most likely not going to happen. Any other conference change ideas. Based on the current performance of Holy Cross teams across the board, why would the Big East want HC? Big East done a great job with their athletics, particularly in basketball where every team, excluding DuPaul, doing well/making improvement. Top coaches, large crowds, great facilities. Even the geography of Worchester, while near Boston, doesn't compare to most of the campuses. Trying to be open minded, but can't see any reason why HC would be wanted or want to come in and be the new bottom of the League. As many have noted, there's no point talking about other conferences until we do very well in the PL. If that happens, possible options include the CAA, A-10, MAAC, and NEC. (I don't include the Big East because (a) the likelihood they would ever want us is next to zero, and (b) I don't think that the BE would turn out to be a good overall fit for a very small school like HC.) One other factor needs to be considered. And that is the overall reputations of the schools we would be associating with. You can say what you want about the PL's athletic deficiencies, but the core of the conference (Bucknell, Colgate, HC, Lafayette, Lehigh, Army and Navy (ex football), and Georgetown and Fordham for football), coupled with the extensive historical and current athletic ties between many of these schools and the Ivies, certainly presents an attractive overall profile. One that cannot be matched by any other realistic option. Conference affiliation involves a lot more that athletics!
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Post by WorcesterGray on Feb 18, 2018 12:21:19 GMT -5
Not to demean his leadership, but I presume he was also the leader when we were losing He may be in a less advantageous position to influence events when he's sitting on the bench.
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