(01-22-2015 09:08 PM)Knightbengal Wrote:  Our perimeter d killed us. Uconns three ball was on point. We dominated the glass but didn't convert when we needed to. This team is better and will get better as we had talent this year and in 2016. I expect 2016 to be a tourney year. Btw thanks to the Tulsa fans for pointing out that we don't suck.....that bad. We played a lot of close games. Looking forward to seeing uc in person

This year is all about getting the freshman ready for the next few years. If we can get Mcbride better conditioned for next year this team will be good. Tourney team next year might still be a stretch, but I think by the following year it will happen.

I'm excited to see Chad Brown just next year that will help us on defense and give us needed length.

(01-23-2015 09:06 AM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 09:08 PM)Knightbengal Wrote:  Our perimeter d killed us. Uconns three ball was on point. We dominated the glass but didn't convert when we needed to. This team is better and will get better as we had talent this year and in 2016. I expect 2016 to be a tourney year. Btw thanks to the Tulsa fans for pointing out that we don't suck.....that bad. We played a lot of close games. Looking forward to seeing uc in person

This year is all about getting the freshman ready for the next few years. If we can get Mcbride better conditioned for next year this team will be good. Tourney team next year might still be a stretch, but I think by the following year it will happen.

I'm excited to see Chad Brown just next year that will help us on defense and give us needed length.

UCF will have more size at almost every position next year (starting and bench) from BJ Taylor moving over to point (along with 6' 4" McSpadden) to Adonys playing some mins at the 2...with Brown (6'7"), Efianayi (6' 5") at the 3 (with Adonys) at the 3 to AJ Davis (6' 9") with Blair at the 4...to McBride and Tacko Fall at the 5.

UCF will be taller and much longer next year...which should help them a lot on both ends of the court but especially on Defense...were UCF's 3-4 guard line-up with almost no bench has been getting destroyed this season.

(01-23-2015 09:59 AM)KnightLight Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 09:06 AM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 09:08 PM)Knightbengal Wrote:  Our perimeter d killed us. Uconns three ball was on point. We dominated the glass but didn't convert when we needed to. This team is better and will get better as we had talent this year and in 2016. I expect 2016 to be a tourney year. Btw thanks to the Tulsa fans for pointing out that we don't suck.....that bad. We played a lot of close games. Looking forward to seeing uc in person

This year is all about getting the freshman ready for the next few years. If we can get Mcbride better conditioned for next year this team will be good. Tourney team next year might still be a stretch, but I think by the following year it will happen.

I'm excited to see Chad Brown just next year that will help us on defense and give us needed length.

UCF will have more size at almost every position next year (starting and bench) from BJ Taylor moving over to point (along with 6' 4" McSpadden) to Adonys playing some mins at the 2...with Brown (6'7"), Efianayi (6' 5") at the 3 (with Adonys) at the 3 to AJ Davis (6' 9") with Blair at the 4...to McBride and Tacko Fall at the 5.

UCF will be taller and much longer next year...which should help them a lot on both ends of the court but especially on Defense...were UCF's 3-4 guard line-up with almost no bench has been getting destroyed this season.

I think we will still have trouble with our front court next year. I'm not sure Blair is capable of playing the 4 effectively on offense. He is only effective offensively around the blocks and he isn't even that great there. McBride just seems too slow right now and needs a lot of space offensively, so I don't think crowding the lane with Blair in there at the same time is a great idea. He could drop some more weight but his biggest problem is he is just not quick enough to guard anyone 1 on 1 more than 3 feet away from the basket and his rotations in zone D are way too slow. He needs to get better at anticipating where he needs to be to make up for his lack of quickness. Tacko could give us some quality minutes next year but more than likely he will be a project and wont really be effective for a few years, same problem as mcbride with mobility just for completely different reasons. When you are not quick because of your size you need great anticipation and understanding of the game to be able to go where the ball is gonna go, not where the ball is. That's why Tacko got dunked on in that video, his rotation was late. Granted Tacko hasn't even played basketball very long so his anticipation and understanding of the game will improve.

(01-23-2015 10:22 AM)zfred12 Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 09:59 AM)KnightLight Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 09:06 AM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 09:08 PM)Knightbengal Wrote:  Our perimeter d killed us. Uconns three ball was on point. We dominated the glass but didn't convert when we needed to. This team is better and will get better as we had talent this year and in 2016. I expect 2016 to be a tourney year. Btw thanks to the Tulsa fans for pointing out that we don't suck.....that bad. We played a lot of close games. Looking forward to seeing uc in person

This year is all about getting the freshman ready for the next few years. If we can get Mcbride better conditioned for next year this team will be good. Tourney team next year might still be a stretch, but I think by the following year it will happen.

I'm excited to see Chad Brown just next year that will help us on defense and give us needed length.

UCF will have more size at almost every position next year (starting and bench) from BJ Taylor moving over to point (along with 6' 4" McSpadden) to Adonys playing some mins at the 2...with Brown (6'7"), Efianayi (6' 5") at the 3 (with Adonys) at the 3 to AJ Davis (6' 9") with Blair at the 4...to McBride and Tacko Fall at the 5.

UCF will be taller and much longer next year...which should help them a lot on both ends of the court but especially on Defense...were UCF's 3-4 guard line-up with almost no bench has been getting destroyed this season.

I think we will still have trouble with our front court next year. I'm not sure Blair is capable of playing the 4 effectively on offense. He is only effective offensively around the blocks and he isn't even that great there. McBride just seems too slow right now and needs a lot of space offensively, so I don't think crowding the lane with Blair in there at the same time is a great idea. He could drop some more weight but his biggest problem is he is just not quick enough to guard anyone 1 on 1 more than 3 feet away from the basket and his rotations in zone D are way too slow. He needs to get better at anticipating where he needs to be to make up for his lack of quickness. Tacko could give us some quality minutes next year but more than likely he will be a project and wont really be effective for a few years, same problem as mcbride with mobility just for completely different reasons. When you are not quick because of your size you need great anticipation and understanding of the game to be able to go where the ball is gonna go, not where the ball is. That's why Tacko got dunked on in that video, his rotation was late. Granted Tacko hasn't even played basketball very long so his anticipation and understanding of the game will improve.

I disagree that Tacko won't be effective for "a few years"...as his impact will be immediate, especially on the defensive side of the ball...because opposing teams (and/or individual players) will change some of their style of play...and Tacko's impact may not show up in stats (i.e. less players driving the lane...forcing more lower percentage outside shots), let alone if he ends up with blocks/rebounds/pts.

UCF's greatest need now is on the defensive side of the ball...and with AJ Davis (along with McBride and Blair), UCF will have a lot more depth down low.

McBride knows what he has to do this off-season (nutrition/conditioning) and hopefully he can get approx 20 mins of game time for the rest of the season...which will also help him get in better shape.

Regardless what McBride gets down to for next season...he will never become a "quick player", as even the best defenders get beat on occasion...but it will help him remain on the court for longer periods of time...and as a space eater, he could become a rebounding machine, plus, his offensive game (already pretty good for a guy his size), should only improve as well.

(01-23-2015 10:33 AM)KnightLight Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 10:22 AM)zfred12 Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 09:59 AM)KnightLight Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 09:06 AM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 09:08 PM)Knightbengal Wrote:  Our perimeter d killed us. Uconns three ball was on point. We dominated the glass but didn't convert when we needed to. This team is better and will get better as we had talent this year and in 2016. I expect 2016 to be a tourney year. Btw thanks to the Tulsa fans for pointing out that we don't suck.....that bad. We played a lot of close games. Looking forward to seeing uc in person

This year is all about getting the freshman ready for the next few years. If we can get Mcbride better conditioned for next year this team will be good. Tourney team next year might still be a stretch, but I think by the following year it will happen.

I'm excited to see Chad Brown just next year that will help us on defense and give us needed length.

UCF will have more size at almost every position next year (starting and bench) from BJ Taylor moving over to point (along with 6' 4" McSpadden) to Adonys playing some mins at the 2...with Brown (6'7"), Efianayi (6' 5") at the 3 (with Adonys) at the 3 to AJ Davis (6' 9") with Blair at the 4...to McBride and Tacko Fall at the 5.

UCF will be taller and much longer next year...which should help them a lot on both ends of the court but especially on Defense...were UCF's 3-4 guard line-up with almost no bench has been getting destroyed this season.

I think we will still have trouble with our front court next year. I'm not sure Blair is capable of playing the 4 effectively on offense. He is only effective offensively around the blocks and he isn't even that great there. McBride just seems too slow right now and needs a lot of space offensively, so I don't think crowding the lane with Blair in there at the same time is a great idea. He could drop some more weight but his biggest problem is he is just not quick enough to guard anyone 1 on 1 more than 3 feet away from the basket and his rotations in zone D are way too slow. He needs to get better at anticipating where he needs to be to make up for his lack of quickness. Tacko could give us some quality minutes next year but more than likely he will be a project and wont really be effective for a few years, same problem as mcbride with mobility just for completely different reasons. When you are not quick because of your size you need great anticipation and understanding of the game to be able to go where the ball is gonna go, not where the ball is. That's why Tacko got dunked on in that video, his rotation was late. Granted Tacko hasn't even played basketball very long so his anticipation and understanding of the game will improve.

I disagree that Tacko won't be effective for "a few years"...as his impact will be immediate, especially on the defensive side of the ball...because opposing teams (and/or individual players) will change some of their style of play...and Tacko's impact may not show up in stats (i.e. less players driving the lane...forcing more lower percentage outside shots), let alone if he ends up with blocks/rebounds/pts.

UCF's greatest need now is on the defensive side of the ball...and with AJ Davis (along with McBride and Blair), UCF will have a lot more depth down low.

McBride knows what he has to do this off-season (nutrition/conditioning) and hopefully he can get approx 20 mins of game time for the rest of the season...which will also help him get in better shape.

Regardless what McBride gets down to for next season...he will never become a "quick player", as even the best defenders get beat on occasion...but it will help him remain on the court for longer periods of time...and as a space eater, he could become a rebounding machine, plus, his offensive game (already pretty good for a guy his size), should only improve as well.

I forgot about AJ Davis, he should contribute next year. Tacko will definitely change some things that teams will try to do offensively but I wouldn't expect anymore than 10min max a game. McBride wont ever be quick but its his anticipation he needs to work on. He is often slow in rotating because he reacts too slowly to ball movement. Some of it could be due to fatigue so conditioning could definitely help.

If Tacko is ever going to develop into a double double type of player for us, it wont be until he is at least a sophomore, more likely a junior in my opinion.

(01-23-2015 10:38 AM)zfred12 Wrote:  I forgot about AJ Davis, he should contribute next year. Tacko will definitely change some things that teams will try to do offensively but I wouldn't expect anymore than 10min max a game. McBride wont ever be quick but its his anticipation he needs to work on. He is often slow in rotating because he reacts too slowly to ball movement. Some of it could be due to fatigue so conditioning could definitely help.

If Tacko is ever going to develop into a double double type of player for us, it wont be until he is at least a sophomore, more likely a junior in my opinion.

When McBride gets tired (and wants to come off at next whistle), sometimes, like he did on one of his last fouls last night, he will just reach in for a lazy foul, get the whistle and hit the bench.

Now saying it might take awhile for Tacko to become a double-double type player is probably more of an accurate statement vs "he won't be effective for a few years".

Look back at how some of the last 5's did at UCF during their Freshmen Year...it won't take much at all for Tacko to have a positive impact:

Blair's Freshman Year:
7 mins per game
1.6 pts per game
0.8 rebounds per game
0.5 blocks per game
68% FT

Karell's Freshman Year:
Only played in 20 out of the 31 games
4.4 mins per game (in those that he played in)
0.9 pts per game (attempted only 8 shots, believe most were dunks, made them all)
0.8 rebounds per game
0.1 blocks per game
22% FT


McBride's Freshman Year:
Played the last 15 games (was injured for the first 16)
9.3 mins per game
4.4 pts per game
2.7 rebounds per game
0.4 blocks per game
54% FT

McBride for UCF trips me out. That dude is a big boy.

Blair, who came to UCF as a raw but powerful athlete, has made some nice improvement thru this year, but McBride's jump is more noticeable after dropping 30 lbs...and it will be interesting what McBride can do if he can lose another 25-30 lbs this off-season

Blair's Freshman Year:
7 mins per game
1.6 pts per game
0.8 rebounds per game
0.5 blocks per game
68% FT

Blair's Junior Year (so far)
23.1 mins per game
7.3 pts per game
4.5 rebounds per game
1.1 blocks per game
60% FT

McBride's Freshman Year:
Played the last 15 games (was injured for the first 16)
9.3 mins per game
4.4 pts per game
2.7 rebounds per game
0.4 blocks per game
54% FT

McBride's Soph Year (so far)
14.3 mins per game
7.3 pts per game
4.8 rebounds per game
1.1 blocks per game
78.4% FT (86.7% in conf play)

(01-23-2015 11:08 AM)KnightLight Wrote:  Blair, who came to UCF as a raw but powerful athlete, has made some nice improvement thru this year, but McBride's jump is more noticeable after dropping 30 lbs...and it will be interesting what McBride can do if he can lose another 25-30 lbs this off-season

Blair's Freshman Year:
7 mins per game
1.6 pts per game
0.8 rebounds per game
0.5 blocks per game
68% FT

Blair's Junior Year (so far)
23.1 mins per game
7.3 pts per game
4.5 rebounds per game
1.1 blocks per game
60% FT

McBride's Freshman Year:
Played the last 15 games (was injured for the first 16)
9.3 mins per game
4.4 pts per game
2.7 rebounds per game
0.4 blocks per game
54% FT

McBride's Soph Year (so far)
14.3 mins per game
7.3 pts per game
4.8 rebounds per game
1.1 blocks per game
78.4% FT (86.7% in conf play)

McBride has really nice touch on the ball for a guy his size.

(01-22-2015 02:39 PM)PT_american Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 01:43 PM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 01:37 PM)UofMemphis Wrote:  Temple is about to go on a little win streak...

USF
@UCF
Tulane
@USF

Ucf won't be a gimme game at home. We played them tight already at temple.

Well if the league has aspirations of sending more than 2 or 3 teams to the big dance we need Temple to win all 4 of these and get back on the radar. I agree though @UCF and Tulane are certainly not gimmes anymore.

Yep. Tulsa, SMU, Cincy, and Temple look like NCAA teams to me...

Memphis, UConn, and Tulane look like NIT teams.

(01-23-2015 11:38 AM)UofMemphis Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 02:39 PM)PT_american Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 01:43 PM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 01:37 PM)UofMemphis Wrote:  Temple is about to go on a little win streak...

USF
@UCF
Tulane
@USF

Ucf won't be a gimme game at home. We played them tight already at temple.

Well if the league has aspirations of sending more than 2 or 3 teams to the big dance we need Temple to win all 4 of these and get back on the radar. I agree though @UCF and Tulane are certainly not gimmes anymore.

Yep. Tulsa, SMU, Cincy, and Temple look like NCAA teams to me...

Memphis, UConn, and Tulane look like NIT teams.

I would agree. I think UConn is a bubble team and needs some big wins or a tourney run to get in. Memphis and Tulane seem like good bets for the NIT. Hey if the league can get 7 of 11 into the NCAA and NIT with some deep runs that would be considered a successful year to me.

(01-22-2015 09:08 PM)Knightbengal Wrote:  Our perimeter d killed us. Uconns three ball was on point. We dominated the glass but didn't convert when we needed to. This team is better and will get better as we had talent this year and in 2016. I expect 2016 to be a tourney year. Btw thanks to the Tulsa fans for pointing out that we don't suck.....that bad. We played a lot of close games. Looking forward to seeing uc in person

Your team reminds me of the Tulsa team from the 2012-2013 season, most of our players were freshmen (all of our starters this year were freshmen that season) and we'd have bursts of looking very good but would collapse in tight games, or give up big runs, etc. Keep your head up, your young guys should continue to grow and I look forward to it as a fan of this conference. Best of luck to UCF in all games that aren't against Tulsa.

(01-23-2015 11:47 AM)PT_american Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 11:38 AM)UofMemphis Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 02:39 PM)PT_american Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 01:43 PM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 01:37 PM)UofMemphis Wrote:  Temple is about to go on a little win streak...

USF
@UCF
Tulane
@USF

Ucf won't be a gimme game at home. We played them tight already at temple.

Well if the league has aspirations of sending more than 2 or 3 teams to the big dance we need Temple to win all 4 of these and get back on the radar. I agree though @UCF and Tulane are certainly not gimmes anymore.

Yep. Tulsa, SMU, Cincy, and Temple look like NCAA teams to me...

Memphis, UConn, and Tulane look like NIT teams.

I would agree. I think UConn is a bubble team and needs some big wins or a tourney run to get in. Memphis and Tulane seem like good bets for the NIT. Hey if the league can get 7 of 11 into the NCAA and NIT with some deep runs that would be considered a successful year to me.

UConn remains dangerous simply because the AAC Tourney is at the XL Center...they could get hot and get in the NCAAs that way.

(01-23-2015 12:58 PM)UofMemphis Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 11:47 AM)PT_american Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 11:38 AM)UofMemphis Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 02:39 PM)PT_american Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 01:43 PM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  Ucf won't be a gimme game at home. We played them tight already at temple.

Well if the league has aspirations of sending more than 2 or 3 teams to the big dance we need Temple to win all 4 of these and get back on the radar. I agree though @UCF and Tulane are certainly not gimmes anymore.

Yep. Tulsa, SMU, Cincy, and Temple look like NCAA teams to me...

Memphis, UConn, and Tulane look like NIT teams.

I would agree. I think UConn is a bubble team and needs some big wins or a tourney run to get in. Memphis and Tulane seem like good bets for the NIT. Hey if the league can get 7 of 11 into the NCAA and NIT with some deep runs that would be considered a successful year to me.

UConn remains dangerous simply because the AAC Tourney is at the XL Center...they could get hot and get in the NCAAs that way.

Tournament time is when UConn shines the brightest. UConn is not in danger of missing the tourney, there's lots of games still to be played.

(01-23-2015 05:06 PM)laser101 Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 12:58 PM)UofMemphis Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 11:47 AM)PT_american Wrote:  

(01-23-2015 11:38 AM)UofMemphis Wrote:  

(01-22-2015 02:39 PM)PT_american Wrote:  Well if the league has aspirations of sending more than 2 or 3 teams to the big dance we need Temple to win all 4 of these and get back on the radar. I agree though @UCF and Tulane are certainly not gimmes anymore.

Yep. Tulsa, SMU, Cincy, and Temple look like NCAA teams to me...

Memphis, UConn, and Tulane look like NIT teams.

I would agree. I think UConn is a bubble team and needs some big wins or a tourney run to get in. Memphis and Tulane seem like good bets for the NIT. Hey if the league can get 7 of 11 into the NCAA and NIT with some deep runs that would be considered a successful year to me.

UConn remains dangerous simply because the AAC Tourney is at the XL Center...they could get hot and get in the NCAAs that way.

Tournament time is when UConn shines the brightest. UConn is not in danger of missing the tourney, there's lots of games still to be played.

They aren't in danger of, they are simply out as of now...

@ChuckCarltonDMN 5h5 hours ago

SMU guard Keith Frazier loses NCAA appeal, remains ineligible for season