DanMcQ
Moderator
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Post by DanMcQ on Jan 1, 2014 22:55:47 GMT -5
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calhoya
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
Posts: 4,382
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Post by calhoya on Jan 2, 2014 7:56:41 GMT -5
Expecting a very difficult game against a very athletic team. If it becomes an individual "skills" contest, we could lose big. If the Hoyas stay disciplined and play strong defense it is possible that the Johnnies breakdown as they have many times under Lavin. Absolutely must have strong guard play on Saturday from DSR and Starks. Our pressure defense is going to be less effective against the guards on St. John's, but when Smith is playing it is still going to be necessary to buy some time. Finally, Lubick, Hopkins and Moses also need to present a threat on the interior, with or without Smith in the game.
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Post by HoyaSinceBirth on Jan 2, 2014 9:02:04 GMT -5
Yeah press will not be effective in getting turnovers. It's the one thing St. John's does really well on the offensive side of the ball.
We should play a lot of zone. St. John's is not a good shooting team. Forcing them to shoot jump shots is the key to the game.
I think it would be a good idea to stick with Josh to start the game and try to get some early fouls on Obekpa to get the shot blocker out of there.
St. John's gives up offensive rebounds so I would like to see us crash the boards a bit.
St. John's will likely zone us, so that will make offensive rebounds all the more plentiful.
We're going to have to want it. We slept walked through the DePaul game. St. John's will be very determined coming off a loss @ Xavier and with Villanova at home following us. If they lose to us they're staring at an 0-3 start to BE play.
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GUJook97
Platinum Hoya (over 5000 posts)
Posts: 5,445
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Post by GUJook97 on Jan 2, 2014 9:33:09 GMT -5
Expecting a very difficult game against a very athletic team. If it becomes an individual "skills" contest, we could lose big. If the Hoyas stay disciplined and play strong defense it is possible that the Johnnies breakdown as they have many times under Lavin. Absolutely must have strong guard play on Saturday from DSR and Starks. Our pressure defense is going to be less effective against the guards on St. John's, but when Smith is playing it is still going to be necessary to buy some time. Finally, Lubick, Hopkins and Moses also need to present a threat on the interior, with or without Smith in the game. I agree with this. At the beginning of the year, I thought this was one of the teams we would struggle with, and now I think it even more. We usually bury undisciplined teams, but since we havent found any defensive rhythm yet, Im pretty worried. I think it will come down to getting off to a fast start and hitting our 3s.
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biggmanu
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
Posts: 672
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Post by biggmanu on Jan 2, 2014 10:14:23 GMT -5
Need some sharp shooting from outside in this one with SJUs ability to block shots. Also need a healthy dose of DSR pull up shots.
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Post by BubbleVisionBiff on Jan 2, 2014 10:32:34 GMT -5
Any word if SJU left NYC already? Sounds like the blizzard is getting there later than originally forecast, so tomorrow travel may be iffy.
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Post by FrazierFanatic on Jan 2, 2014 11:21:50 GMT -5
Any word if SJU left NYC already? Sounds like the blizzard is getting there later than originally forecast, so tomorrow travel may be iffy. The storm is supposed to be past NYC by late morning tomorrow so they may be delayed getting out, but should be able to travel by late morning or early afternoon.
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Post by ColumbiaHeightsHoya on Jan 2, 2014 11:26:16 GMT -5
Gotta get this one with a three game road trip against all solid squads. Butler, Provy & Xavier all on the road is going to be a good solid early season challenge. Go 2-1 in those and we look like a contender in the BE, go 1-2 or drop the game at home to the Johnnies and we are mid-pack at best.
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SFHoya99
Blue & Gray (over 10,000 posts)
Posts: 17,899
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Post by SFHoya99 on Jan 2, 2014 11:37:29 GMT -5
Every game is going to be big for this team. The fewer let down games this team has, the better shot it has at the tourney (obviously). But it's so much more important when you are on the bubble.
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calhoya
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
Posts: 4,382
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Post by calhoya on Jan 2, 2014 12:15:48 GMT -5
Every game is going to be big for this team. The fewer let down games this team has, the better shot it has at the tourney (obviously). But it's so much more important when you are on the bubble. Agree with this. Unfortunately, the balance in the Big East this year may actually hurt the conference's chances of getting a large number of teams into the tournament. Down the road this will be an asset. However, this year it is entirely possible that the Hoyas could be a .500 team in conference play. At this point I keep rooting for Kansas State and VCU to win and turn those games into quality wins. Similarly, we need to perform well against Michigan State and hope that teams like Villanova, Xavier, Creighton and Butler continue to play well and gain national respect.
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lb25
Century (over 100 posts)
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Post by lb25 on Jan 2, 2014 14:21:38 GMT -5
If M Starks is as aggressive going to the basket as he was last game i think we will be in good shape
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SFHoya99
Blue & Gray (over 10,000 posts)
Posts: 17,899
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Post by SFHoya99 on Jan 2, 2014 15:04:24 GMT -5
Every game is going to be big for this team. The fewer let down games this team has, the better shot it has at the tourney (obviously). But it's so much more important when you are on the bubble. Agree with this. Unfortunately, the balance in the Big East this year may actually hurt the conference's chances of getting a large number of teams into the tournament. Down the road this will be an asset. However, this year it is entirely possible that the Hoyas could be a .500 team in conference play. At this point I keep rooting for Kansas State and VCU to win and turn those games into quality wins. Similarly, we need to perform well against Michigan State and hope that teams like Villanova, Xavier, Creighton and Butler continue to play well and gain national respect. And if we're .500, we don't deserve a NCAA bid. That's why you HAVE to win the easy ones. Four and oh versus DePaul and Seton Hall. Get to 7-1 versus SH, Dep, Providence and SJU and you are very close to a nice conference record before you get into the scrum that is the middle of the conference. Since Villanova is likely the only "big win" available to us in conference, there's only three impact games left nationally (two versus VU and Michigan State). So, really, we've probably got to get to 12-6/13-5 in conference.
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FLHoya
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
Proud Member of Generation Burton
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Post by FLHoya on Jan 2, 2014 15:08:17 GMT -5
Go 2-1 in those and we look like a contender in the BE, go 1-2 or drop the game at home to the Johnnies and we are mid-pack at best. These things I believe to be true: 1. It's unlikely that a one-game swing on a roadtrip in early January will provide conclusive evidence of the difference between "a contender in the BE" or "mid-pack at best". 2. It's likely that Hoyatalk will treat it as conclusive evidence of far more than that. (but really ) #123fireballs
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drquigley
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
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Post by drquigley on Jan 3, 2014 14:36:11 GMT -5
Most interesting thing about this game is seeing who starts at Center. As you may know from other posts, I'm not a big Josh Smith fan. If Moses starts it shows JT3 is also no longer one. I really think DePaul game was a coming out for Moses and hopefully the Hoya defense. No way we can play Hoya basketball with Smith in the game. With him in the game we can't play man defense or press ball handlers. And since he can't rebound we can't fast break. In short, when Smith is in we become a one dimensional, 2-3 zone defense, force the ball underneath offense, slow, low-scoring team. My guess is JT3 goes with Moses.
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rockhoya
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
Posts: 3,830
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Post by rockhoya on Jan 3, 2014 15:20:10 GMT -5
Most interesting thing about this game is seeing who starts at Center. As you may know from other posts, I'm not a big Josh Smith fan. If Moses starts it shows JT3 is also no longer one. I really think DePaul game was a coming out for Moses and hopefully the Hoya defense. No way we can play Hoya basketball with Smith in the game. With him in the game we can't play man defense or press ball handlers. And since he can't rebound we can't fast break. In short, when Smith is in we become a one dimensional, 2-3 zone defense, force the ball underneath offense, slow, low-scoring team. My guess is JT3 goes with Moses. Dude give it a rest already
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This Just In
Blue & Gray (over 10,000 posts)
Bold Prediction: The Hoyas will win at least 1 BE game in 2023.
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Post by This Just In on Jan 3, 2014 15:24:19 GMT -5
Most interesting thing about this game is seeing who starts at Center. As you may know from other posts, I'm not a big Josh Smith fan. If Moses starts it shows JT3 is also no longer one. I really think DePaul game was a coming out for Moses and hopefully the Hoya defense. No way we can play Hoya basketball with Smith in the game. With him in the game we can't play man defense or press ball handlers. And since he can't rebound we can't fast break. In short, when Smith is in we become a one dimensional, 2-3 zone defense, force the ball underneath offense, slow, low-scoring team. My guess is JT3 goes with Moses. JTIII is stubborn about changing starters...In '09 it took a half-time locker argument to bench Jessie Sapp...don't know who was at fault there. In 2011 even though the team performed better with Porter at the 4 with Starks, Clark, Sims, Thompson...JTIII still allowed Lubick to start even though Otto Porter was getting the starter like minutes. Short of a total meltdown, Josh Smith will presumably start with at most a reduction of minutes if he is struggling.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Jan 3, 2014 15:39:52 GMT -5
Starting is for show minutes are for impact… We’ll see who gets the most minutes.
Don’t know what to expect out of this game because you never know which St Johns team will show. Think we should win as long as we play intelligently though..
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Post by FrazierFanatic on Jan 3, 2014 15:44:35 GMT -5
Starting is for show minutes are for impact… We’ll see who gets the most minutes. Don’t know what to expect out of this game because you never know which St Johns team will show. Think we should win as long as we play intelligently though.. Spot on. If Joshua is productive he will get plenty of minutes. If not, and if Moses can stay out of foul trouble, Moses will get plenty of minutes. Coach is not giving up on Smith by a long shot, but he needs to get it done on a game-by-game basis to earn time.
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calhoya
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
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Post by calhoya on Jan 3, 2014 16:15:41 GMT -5
Also, Moses is just as limited, albeit in different ways, as Smith. Moses rebounds like a fiend. He plays strong and aggressive defense. However, he is no threat to score and for that reason should never be paired with Lubick for long periods of time. He is also a poor FT shooter and very foul prone.
The Hoyas are a very flawed team this year with a whole bunch of role players, each with strengths and weaknesses. Other than Starks, no one should be kept on the floor all the time. Moses and Hopkins together. Smith and Lubick or Hopkins. Bowen/Cameron backing up Trawick/DSR with Bowen and Trawick working up top in a press that buys time for Smith to get back on defense. St. Johns is very tall --like DePaul-- and skilled up top. They can work the inside out game as well or better than the Hoyas. Like the Hoyas they need to be hitting their outside shots. The difference is going to be discipline. If St. Johns plays within themselves and stays in a team concept, I fear it could be a blowout. Fortunately for the Hoyas, the Johnnies have not proven to be either a patient team or a disciplined team under Lavin.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 3, 2014 16:17:06 GMT -5
Zach Braziller @nypost_Brazille 4h Sir'Dominic Pointer on Georgetown: "We don't like them at all." #sjubb
Let’s beat that…haha
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