(11-20-2017 11:19 AM)LongtimeFan Wrote:  There is very likely no team in the MAC that could go on the road and win at Oklahoma or Oregon at this point in the season. So Ball State's loss at Dayton on a last second shot and a good 9 point win at home over Stony Brook don't look too shabby.

Don't sleep on Toledo, although Rockets have yet to be tested on the road. Ditto EMU. And Bowling Green is maturing by the game. Nice young team.

(11-20-2017 11:19 AM)LongtimeFan Wrote:  There is very likely no team in the MAC that could go on the road and win at Oklahoma or Oregon at this point in the season. So Ball State's loss at Dayton on a last second shot and a good 9 point win at home over Stony Brook don't look too shabby.

Maybe, but there's a few Mac teams that would play them competitively

(11-20-2017 11:33 AM)cleveland Wrote:  

(11-20-2017 11:19 AM)LongtimeFan Wrote:  There is very likely no team in the MAC that could go on the road and win at Oklahoma or Oregon at this point in the season. So Ball State's loss at Dayton on a last second shot and a good 9 point win at home over Stony Brook don't look too shabby.

Don't sleep on Toledo, although Rockets have yet to be tested on the road. Ditto EMU. And Bowling Green is maturing by the game. Nice young team.

The Rockets big road trip this year was to the Croy Center vs Findlay. The Rockets lost 86-89. Kowalczyk said he scheduled the Oilers on their home court because he didn't want his teams first road game to be in the Carrier Dome vs Syracuse. That 45 minute drive to Findlay must have been terrifying!

(11-20-2017 09:16 AM)CliftonAve Wrote:  Buffalo playing Cincinnati tonight in the Grand Cayman Classic. Any Bulls fans on here? Talk to me about your club and tell me how you think you'll fare.

So far so good for us in 2 wins, Nick Perkins will get his points but he isnt as strong on the boards. We arent deep inside with one big out until Dec. We have some young guards stepping up and playing quick, but a physical Bearcats team will be a challenge. We will need to stay close on the boards or we will be one and done. If we stay within 10 I will be happy.

(11-20-2017 09:16 AM)CliftonAve Wrote:  Buffalo playing Cincinnati tonight in the Grand Cayman Classic. Any Bulls fans on here? Talk to me about your club and tell me how you think you'll fare.

UB likes to run and has some line ups where all 5 guys on the court can and will shoot threes. Davonta Jordan is our PG while Wes Clark is ineligible. He's shocked a lot of people by how improved his play is this year. Massinburg is our best scorer and he looks back to 100% after a knee injury in the pre-season. Perkins is a diverse big who goes strong to the basket but is prone to foul woes. Harris is expected to be a huge contributor but has opened the season with two really bad shooting nights. Defense overall has been a bit suspect in two games so far but offense may be ahead of what was expected a tad. Coach Oats said it's the closest knit and best atmosphere around a team he's experienced in his time here which includes 2 NCAA tournament runs, so I think hopes and expectations are high.

If our forwards stay out of foul trouble and the team makes free throws at a respectable % I like our chances of keeping it to single digits. I think a 12-15 point loss would be respectable tonight to be honest. Cincinnati looks great.

UB got it to within 5 with about 6 minutes left but Cincinnati pushed it back to an 11 point game. Massinburg just hit a 3 with a foul 62-54 Cincinatti leads Buffalo with Massinburg shooting 1 after the timeout.

Buffalo loses to #12 Cincinnati 73-67

UB got it back to within 4 with about 30 seconds left to play but couldn't quite get back to even.

Probably better to lose to UC by 6 than win by 3 in overtime vs Lake Erie College.

(11-20-2017 10:04 PM)axeme Wrote:  Probably better to lose to UC by 6 than win by 3 in overtime vs Lake Erie College.

(11-20-2017 10:04 PM)axeme Wrote:  Probably better to lose to UC by 6 than win by 3 in overtime vs Lake Erie College.

If it comes down to being on the bubble of an NIT bid ...
... huh, actually, I guess it is. Imagine that.

I'd rather lose by six to #12 Cincinnati any day than play four non D-I schools and pad my record and stats!

(11-21-2017 12:09 AM)BullBoy Wrote:  I'd rather lose by six to #12 Cincinnati any day than play four non D-I schools and pad my record and stats!

I can’t imagine any fan would disagree. I have never heard a fan of any team who liked the non D-1 games. Nobody is really fooled by a school’s record with lower division wins. If the team is relevant to tournament discussion, those games don’t count. And if they aren’t relevant to tourney discussion (almost every MAC team every year), who cares? The fans hate the games almost universally.

(11-21-2017 08:30 AM)axeme Wrote:  

(11-21-2017 12:09 AM)BullBoy Wrote:  I'd rather lose by six to #12 Cincinnati any day than play four non D-I schools and pad my record and stats!

I can’t imagine any fan would disagree. I have never heard a fan of any team who liked the non D-1 games. Nobody is really fooled by a school’s record with lower division wins. If the team is relevant to tournament discussion, those games don’t count. And if they aren’t relevant to tourney discussion (almost every MAC team every year), who cares? The fans hate the games almost universally.

If it is the first game of the year I am 'kind of' OK with them. But playing them once the season is rolling is super lame. It's like taking a step back to the preseason

Yeah, I can't think of one EMU fan who likes the fact that we have 4 non-D1 games. Sadly, it's the only cost-effective way that we can maintain the MAC's mandated amount of OOC home games. That, and scheduling home-and-homes with teams like North Florida and Long Beach State, on polar ends of the country. I'm sure NIU and CMU would say the same thing.

As far as "padding stats" go, we've played far better defensively against the two D1 teams we've played than we did against Spring Arbor and Michigan-Dearborn. That was kind of bizarre. Those games do nothing to help us, but that's what we have to work with. Playing Oakland twice, and traveling to Indiana, USF, and the schools I mentioned above will help to prepare for MAC play.

(11-21-2017 09:48 AM)EagleSam Wrote:  Yeah, I can't think of one EMU fan who likes the fact that we have 4 non-D1 games. Sadly, it's the only cost-effective way that we can maintain the MAC's mandated amount of OOC home games. That, and scheduling home-and-homes with teams like North Florida and Long Beach State, on polar ends of the country. I'm sure NIU and CMU would say the same thing.

As far as "padding stats" go, we've played far better defensively against the two D1 teams we've played than we did against Spring Arbor and Michigan-Dearborn. That was kind of bizarre. Those games do nothing to help us, but that's what we have to work with. Playing Oakland twice, and traveling to Indiana, USF, and the schools I mentioned above will help to prepare for MAC play.

Agree with all of this ... can accomplish the same thing playing a MEAC/SWAC team to start the season and upon Christmas return ... if you are any kind of solid MAC team at all MAC should go no worse than 22-2 with a sked like that. League should mandate such IMO.

(11-20-2017 04:45 PM)GoBullsGo Wrote:  

(11-20-2017 09:16 AM)CliftonAve Wrote:  Buffalo playing Cincinnati tonight in the Grand Cayman Classic. Any Bulls fans on here? Talk to me about your club and tell me how you think you'll fare.

UB likes to run and has some line ups where all 5 guys on the court can and will shoot threes. Davonta Jordan is our PG while Wes Clark is ineligible. He's shocked a lot of people by how improved his play is this year. Massinburg is our best scorer and he looks back to 100% after a knee injury in the pre-season. Perkins is a diverse big who goes strong to the basket but is prone to foul woes. Harris is expected to be a huge contributor but has opened the season with two really bad shooting nights. Defense overall has been a bit suspect in two games so far but offense may be ahead of what was expected a tad. Coach Oats said it's the closest knit and best atmosphere around a team he's experienced in his time here which includes 2 NCAA tournament runs, so I think hopes and expectations are high.

If our forwards stay out of foul trouble and the team makes free throws at a respectable % I like our chances of keeping it to single digits. I think a 12-15 point loss would be respectable tonight to be honest. Cincinnati looks great.

Good game last night Bull and Hillbilly (thanks for sharing your thoughts yesterday). Good luck to you the rest of the way!

(11-21-2017 10:12 AM)cleveland Wrote:  

(11-21-2017 09:48 AM)EagleSam Wrote:  Yeah, I can't think of one EMU fan who likes the fact that we have 4 non-D1 games. Sadly, it's the only cost-effective way that we can maintain the MAC's mandated amount of OOC home games. That, and scheduling home-and-homes with teams like North Florida and Long Beach State, on polar ends of the country. I'm sure NIU and CMU would say the same thing.

As far as "padding stats" go, we've played far better defensively against the two D1 teams we've played than we did against Spring Arbor and Michigan-Dearborn. That was kind of bizarre. Those games do nothing to help us, but that's what we have to work with. Playing Oakland twice, and traveling to Indiana, USF, and the schools I mentioned above will help to prepare for MAC play.

Agree with all of this ... can accomplish the same thing playing a MEAC/SWAC team to start the season and upon Christmas return ... if you are any kind of solid MAC team at all MAC should go no worse than 22-2 with a sked like that. League should mandate such IMO.

The truth is as much as I rip on scheduling Non D-I teams, we are better off scheduling them, than a terrible MEAC/SWAC team with an RPI of 320 or so. Those games just bring the RPI of the league down, while at least the non D-I games don't affect the RPI in any way.

(11-21-2017 10:20 AM)CliftonAve Wrote:  

(11-20-2017 04:45 PM)GoBullsGo Wrote:  

(11-20-2017 09:16 AM)CliftonAve Wrote:  Buffalo playing Cincinnati tonight in the Grand Cayman Classic. Any Bulls fans on here? Talk to me about your club and tell me how you think you'll fare.

UB likes to run and has some line ups where all 5 guys on the court can and will shoot threes. Davonta Jordan is our PG while Wes Clark is ineligible. He's shocked a lot of people by how improved his play is this year. Massinburg is our best scorer and he looks back to 100% after a knee injury in the pre-season. Perkins is a diverse big who goes strong to the basket but is prone to foul woes. Harris is expected to be a huge contributor but has opened the season with two really bad shooting nights. Defense overall has been a bit suspect in two games so far but offense may be ahead of what was expected a tad. Coach Oats said it's the closest knit and best atmosphere around a team he's experienced in his time here which includes 2 NCAA tournament runs, so I think hopes and expectations are high.

If our forwards stay out of foul trouble and the team makes free throws at a respectable % I like our chances of keeping it to single digits. I think a 12-15 point loss would be respectable tonight to be honest. Cincinnati looks great.

Good game last night Bull and Hillbilly (thanks for sharing your thoughts yesterday). Good luck to you the rest of the way!

Good job to you guys as well.. Now go make the Final Four so we can say we only lost by six to a Final Four team

Buffalo downs UAB 96-91 in OT in the consolation bracket of the Cayman Island Classic.

UB did it short handed down low - they lost C Brock Bertram late against Cincinnati leaving only Montell McRae and Nick Perkins in the forward rotation. Oats did a great job managing foul trouble and minutes between the two of them.

UB is now 3-1 and will face South Dakota State University tomorrow in the 5th place game.

CMU downed Sam Houston State 71-60 in the 1st round of the Great Alaska Shootout and will face Cal Poly on Friday night.