Game 2: Binghamton Game Discussion

Please post all game discussion here.

Binghamton is one of the worst shooting teams in America. They were 348 out of 350 last year and were 322 the year before that.

The kid JC Show is a good player. Saw him a lot in high school and he was a good athlete who would always finish with 30 points. He's not a great shooter but has a really good motor.

Not sure if Willie Rodriguez is playing but he's their most talented player.

St. John's should dominate physically but Binghamton will be pesky defensively.

No Yawke starting again?

No Yawke starting again?

Think this is more of a reward of Owens than punishment of Yakwe. I believe game 1 Yakwe was late or something minor of that nature that resulted in coming off the bench.

They just said Rodriguez is hurt. Ponds looks terrific. LoVett is heating up. Sima has to go up strong. He should dominate this team, and all of them, really, take it strong to the rack!

Team is looking solid.  Need to tighten defense on the perimeter and switches, that's all.  Guards look good, forwards need to flush it more.  Other than that, we are ready to blow Binghamton out

Loving the energy on D but it looks like we are selling out a bit. A bit of confusion here and there with who to guard. Seems like a lot of stuff that will iron itself out with more minutes together.

When they moved the ball all went well....When they stopped moving it they were settling and let Binghampton back in the game....not surprising, they are young.  Backcourt is impressive again.

This game needs to end in a blowout!

this point guard rose reminds me of that san francisco PG from a few years ago

Binghamton's guards, especially the transfer from Bucknell, better than I thought.  This game is where we miss having a true inside presence who can clean up the glass and score in the post against inferior comp.  Sima isn't there yet. 

Defense is our main issue.  Just need to drill more and more time on court.  Lovett and Ponds are fantastic together.

Impressed with Ponds rebounding tonight.  Just checked the box score and he has 9 at the U8 time out in the 2nd half!

Binghamton's guards, especially the transfer from Bucknell, better than I thought.  This game is where we miss having a true inside presence who can clean up the glass and score in the post against inferior comp.  Sima isn't there yet. 

Show was a good player in HS. He'll be good for Binghamton but they need a lot more help.

Fwiw, I'm saying it now, but we will have one of the most dangerous backcourts in the country by mid-season, undersized or not... And both freshmen...

It's extremely early, but this backcourt seems like the real deal.  Both can get where they wanna go on the court.  Both have nice strokes.  Both can pass and handle the rock.  Both have slick hands on defense to garner steals.  Occasionally, they get lazy, and stop moving their feet to reach or poke the ball from behind.  Gotta work on that.  Ponds rebounded the ball well tonight, as upstate mentioned. 

I think we'll be okay on the offensive end, but we're gonna need to work on our defense.  We do a lot of chasing and don't always move our feet enough, which leaves the opposition open for wide open shots or layups.  We gotta work on that or we could find ourselves in trouble once the competition gets stronger.

Sima and Yakwe also needs to do a better job of catching passes.  Instead of an easy dunk or layup, it turns into a challenged or difficult shot, as the opposition has time to defend the shot. 

Overall, I like what I see after the first two games, but I really like what I'm seeing from LoVett and Ponds.  They could end up giving many teams a headache throughout the course of this season, as well as their time at St. John's.

Not so worried about offense as I am defense. Need guys to understand space, gaps, and importance of every possession. You can get away with taking off plays in high school not so much in college.

It looks like our freshman guards are significantly further along than everyone else on the team.

Here's my take on the rest of the team:

- Sima is lost. He needs to stop dribbling the ball for an eternity before making a decision. The game seems too fast for him. Only a couple of good decisions all night. The big fella has got to keep working.
- Ahmed reminded me of Alpha Bangura tonight. He dribbled all over the place and then turned it over or he threw up an off balance jumper or rushed a contested 3. He needs time to work out the kinks. Binghamton is great for that. Also, he should be rebounding more than he is.
- Ellison was easily the most disappointing player tonight. He showed none of the improvement that we've heard about. He has to play smarter on defense.
- Owens is a good rebounder, and active defender.
- Yakwe blocked shots, so that's great, but this is surprising? Where is the big sophomore jump?
- Freudenberg will take some time. He needs to stop settling for threes. He did at the end of the game.
- Alibegovic pulled down a board or two when we needed it. He didn't play much, but he hustled when he came in.
- Mussini was quiet. His man blew him a couple of times, but he also a nice steal that led to an easy basket. He's clearly better off the bench.
- Williams is treated like a walk on.

Overall, the defense was slow to react. That's the biggest flaw. LoVett and Ponds are studs. Last year, without guards like that, we lose this game. Offensively, coach should have one clear message for everyone LoVett and Ponds: Go up strong.

Not so worried about offense as I am defense. Need guys to understand space, gaps, and importance of every possession. You can get away with taking off plays in high school not so much in college.

Exactly...  Silver lining is that most of our teams have looked poor on defense early on in the season.  Biggest problem is that we need to grow up fast in that department because we have a big boy schedule...

I know Sima is the early whipping boy. I'm not his hugest fan but I will say bigs tend to play better when they actually have bigs to body up with. I'd like to see him him take that high post jumper with more confidence. He rushed it. It's November though and I think he'll get better with more games.

I do worry about 2 of 3 Owens/Sima/Yakwe being on the floor for extended minutes. Lose O with this lineup. Would like to see more from Bash on the glass.