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Three Observations
1. Much can be debated about the play of the ODU starting five, but perhaps the most surprising results of the weekend came from Aaron Carver. Many fans (of all D1 teams, not just ours) think that every player on scholarship is a bust if they aren't averaging double digits. But, the really successful teams have non-star players who have defined roles and play within those roles. AC is flourishing in his right now. He has a grown man's body, and refuses to give an inch. Against Temple, he was a huge factor in the Monarchs' fight to get back into the game. Against Indiana State, his advanced stats weren't great, but he grabbed more than 50% of the defensive rebounds when he was in the game. The Monarchs don't need a double-double from AC, but they will be more successful if he can come in to defend and rebound, while giving Jones some time to rest Brandan and Trey.

2. There has obviously been much debate about the play of Randy Haynes. I don't think, however, there has been a debate as to how valuable he could be for these Monarchs. In his career, he hasn't been a great shooter, particularly from deep. But the Monarchs could certainly use more shooting nights like the Dayton game from Haynes. Unlike some previous wings, he isn't afraid to shoot it from deep, but it will go a long way for the Monarchs if he can raise his average from 28% (his current average) to something in the mid-30s. Right now, the Monarchs are shooting an abysmal 29% as a team from deep. One has to believe that Caver's average will increase from the current 26%, as he shot nearly 37% last year. If Randy and the team can get to the mid-30s, this team could become very dangerous.

3. Ahmad Caver is the unquestioned leader and arguably most important player of this team, but Trey Porter might be its best. The redshirt junior has become a force in the post. His drop-step is reminiscent of the post-play of some recent Monarch greats. He can create points when the ball is dumped into him, but he might be even more dangerous grabbing offensive rebounds and putting them back. In addition to the offense, he and Brandan allow our guards to take chances at times on defense, as they know opposing guards will have to think twice about taking the ball to the rack and dealing with the long arms and great timing of Trey and Brandan.

Two Questions
1. Other than the first half of the Temple game, this Monarch team had a really good weekend. The defense was tremendous in the Indiana State and really good in the Dayton game (some garbage 3s at the end distorted those stats a bit). But, the question still becomes, will this team be able to generate enough offense to be legitimate contenders for an NCAA bid? It is clear, there are more weapons than in previous years, but thus far, the consistency on the offensive end has not yet been there. Will they find it?

2. Perhaps this is related to the previous question, but can Jeff Jones find a way to work the freshmen (Green, Godwin, Hueitt) in to create offense? These young ones come with reputations as guys who can score, but in their limited opportunities (Green excepted), have found the transition to be a challenge. Five of the next seven games (so, not the games against the teams from the capital city) seem to be good opportunities to work these guys in to the rotation to see if they are going to be able to help this year.

One Prediction
1. It wouldn't shock me to see the Monarchs come out a little flat on Saturday night in Kaplan Arena. It won't be because of the tryptophan from the turkey, but W&M Hall has a way of lulling teams to sleep. It is large. It is square. It is boring. It is far too easy to start a game with a bit of laziness. However, this is not a David Schneider, Quinn McDowell, Marcus Thornton, or Daniel Dixon led Tribe. This is Tony Shaver's least talented roster in a while. The Monarchs should be able to enforce their will upon the Tribe. The size in the post and the athleticism in the backcourt should be more than enough for the Monarchs to pull away. I expect to see at least 10 guys get some playing time for the Monarchs, as they pull away late in the first half and control until the buzzer sounds.
Great as always Coach.

Want to solve the doldrums that Kaplan imparts? Get the team hyped on the 'Kibbles and Bits' chant. My now retired boss was a pep band member in the 70s at William & Larry. Then as now, they had smart students. Then as now, the super smart ladies there were not always ummmmm how do we say in this PC era....that hot. Not all but some. At basketball games he and the other males in the band would throw Kibbles and Bits at the cheerleaders!
Interesting observations, Coach. However . . . Shaver had said this is the best shooting team he's ever had. They start raining 3s, we're in trouble.
Nathan Knight (6-10, 235) had a coming-out party against us last year in Norfolk. Things aren't going to be as easy inside as you portray.
It's ODU, W&M is home, psyched, there will be a vocal crowd in their favor (and ours, I hope). We don't play well there as I recall. In short, the game worries me and I'll be depressed, but not shocked, if we lose. Gotta come out strong.
Right now, W&M is not much better than we are shooting the ball and that's been against some average defenses. Much like with our guys, we'll see how the averages shake out in the end.

You're right about Knight. He's a big guy and a good player. He goes to the line a TON. There has to be some concern about our posts ability to defend without fouling. However, the W&M defense is terrible. We should have a bunch of success against them.
Based on past history alone, I do not see the Monarch blowing out W&M, Coach. We have had great teams go in there and really struggle. And we aren't great, YET!

Would love to see Haynes and Green play well in this one. They are the "X" factors on this team, IMO. If they are playing well, the opponent might be in trouble, since you can usually count on the others to always do something well. Like last game, BJ Stith was only 5-15 shooting but he went and got 13 rebounds to make up for it.
I would assume that students will be away for Thanksgiving break. It should be really like a morgue in there.
We usually go to Red, Hot and Blue but for some reason I don't remember any TVs??
Thanks for the input coach. For some reason I am not as worried about this game. Two years ago may have been one of the most embarrassing moments in our basketball history when Pervier showed his butt with a seat slapping rant when he was removed from the game. That could have been the low moment of our program and I think Jones and staff want to show this team is back from that dark moment in our history. I know history has not been kind to us there but I think we win this game in the same fashion we handled JMU.
(11-21-2017 10:54 AM)jumpshooter Wrote: [ -> ]Interesting observations, Coach. However . . . Shaver had said this is the best shooting team he's ever had. They start raining 3s, we're in trouble.
Nathan Knight (6-10, 235) had a coming-out party against us last year in Norfolk. Things aren't going to be as easy inside as you portray.
It's ODU, W&M is home, psyched, there will be a vocal crowd in their favor (and ours, I hope). We don't play well there as I recall. In short, the game worries me and I'll be depressed, but not shocked, if we lose. Gotta come out strong.

We are 29-13 there. Unfortunately with a 3 game losing streak.
This team seemed very focused the last few games I say we blow them out.
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