Falling Teams?? UC Checks in at #9

9. Cincinnati: Coach Mick Cronin had one of the nation’s top backcourts last season. Now, two members of a trio that anchored his 22-win NCAA tournament team -- JaQuon Parker and Cashmere Wright -- are gone. Sean Kilpatrick, the team’s leading scorer, returns. But a Cincinnati squad that struggled with consistent scoring benefited from Parker’s and Wright’s ability to stretch the floor. Both shot better than 36 percent from behind the 3-point line. Kilpatrick could be a one-man show in 2013-14, but that’s not necessarily a good thing. The toughest void for the Bearcats (14th in adjusted defensive efficiency per Ken Pomeroy) could be the defensive deficit created by the departure of Cheikh Mbodj (2.6 BPG). There are holes everywhere for this Bearcats squad.

http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketbal...ling-teams

"There are holes everywhere for this Bearcat squad."

lol

some unknowns, sure...holes, no

Sadly, I don't disagree with some of that. If this roster was in the old BE, we'd be in bad shape.

(07-25-2013 06:45 PM)rath v2.0 Wrote:  Sadly, I don't disagree with some of that. If this roster was in the old BE, we'd be in bad shape.

Agreed. UC has a chance to take a step back next year. Maybe not a ton (if at all) because a weaker AAC schedule will mask it but it's going to take a bit for all of the freshman to mesh with the rest of the team. I mean Cincinnati is basically turning over half their roster.

But the point is, we are not going to be running that gauntlet that was the 'old big east'....I think we end up with a good year when all said and done.

Guess it depends on your definition of good.

Next year is putting a lot stock in SK, a lot of pressure on guys that have not proven much (Rubles and Shaq), and a ton of hope in the freshman. Unfortunately I agree with this article, I don't see next year being a success for the Bearcats,

Here are our returning players
SK -- Pretty good scorer
JDIII -- Injured a lot, seemed to contribute when he did play. Has not proven anything
Ge'Lawn Guyn -- Good shooter and defender. I don't think he has convinced anyone that he is more than a role player.
Justin Jackson -- Probably the dumbest basketball player I have ever seen.
Titus Rubles -- Plays hard, solid contributor but certainly not a world beater.
David Nyarsuk -- Gave us very little last year. I highly doubt he was able to improve enough to have a real impact.
Jermaine Sanders -- Unless he gets about 3 steps quicker he'll never be an impact player.
Shaq Thomas -- Lots of expectations, I personally don't see him ever being a real star. He is not strong, not very quick and not a great shooter. IMO he'll score this year mostly because he absolutely has too.

Only having one guy that you really know what you're going to get every night is a bad place to be.

Trying to predict how freshman will react is an exercise in futility as far as I'm concerned but hopefully those kids are ready to contribute big time otherwise I think we will have a lot of WTF losses.

Hopefully I'm wrong and we're dancing again!

Does anyone know (and care to share) Morman's status?

(07-25-2013 09:19 PM)ctipton Wrote:  Does anyone know (and care to share) Morman's status?

As far as I can tell, his paperwork was submitted late to the clearinghouse so it is a wait and see thing right now.

(07-25-2013 09:05 PM)BeerCat Wrote:  Next year is putting a lot stock in SK, a lot of pressure on guys that have not proven much (Rubles and Shaq), and a ton of hope in the freshman. Unfortunately I agree with this article, I don't see next year being a success for the Bearcats,

Here are our returning players
SK -- Pretty good scorer
JDIII -- Injured a lot, seemed to contribute when he did play. Has not proven anything
Ge'Lawn Guyn -- Good shooter and defender. I don't think he has convinced anyone that he is more than a role player.
Justin Jackson -- Probably the dumbest basketball player I have ever seen.
Titus Rubles -- Plays hard, solid contributor but certainly not a world beater.
David Nyarsuk -- Gave us very little last year. I highly doubt he was able to improve enough to have a real impact.
Jermaine Sanders -- Unless he gets about 3 steps quicker he'll never be an impact player.
Shaq Thomas -- Lots of expectations, I personally don't see him ever being a real star. He is not strong, not very quick and not a great shooter. IMO he'll score this year mostly because he absolutely has too.

Only having one guy that you really know what you're going to get every night is a bad place to be.

Trying to predict how freshman will react is an exercise in futility as far as I'm concerned but hopefully those kids are ready to contribute big time otherwise I think we will have a lot of WTF losses.

Hopefully I'm wrong and we're dancing again!

we have to hope that the newcomers develop quickly and surprise us. Rubles, Nyarsuk and Jackson were big disappointments to me. jJ seems to get brain freeze a lot. Time for him to step up to the plate this year with him being a senior.

(07-25-2013 09:05 PM)BeerCat Wrote:  Next year is putting a lot stock in SK, a lot of pressure on guys that have not proven much (Rubles and Shaq), and a ton of hope in the freshman. Unfortunately I agree with this article, I don't see next year being a success for the Bearcats,

Here are our returning players
SK -- Pretty good scorer
JDIII -- Injured a lot, seemed to contribute when he did play. Has not proven anything
Ge'Lawn Guyn -- Good shooter and defender. I don't think he has convinced anyone that he is more than a role player.
Justin Jackson -- Probably the dumbest basketball player I have ever seen.
Titus Rubles -- Plays hard, solid contributor but certainly not a world beater.
David Nyarsuk -- Gave us very little last year. I highly doubt he was able to improve enough to have a real impact.
Jermaine Sanders -- Unless he gets about 3 steps quicker he'll never be an impact player.
Shaq Thomas -- Lots of expectations, I personally don't see him ever being a real star. He is not strong, not very quick and not a great shooter. IMO he'll score this year mostly because he absolutely has too.

Only having one guy that you really know what you're going to get every night is a bad place to be.

Trying to predict how freshman will react is an exercise in futility as far as I'm concerned but hopefully those kids are ready to contribute big time otherwise I think we will have a lot of WTF losses.

Hopefully I'm wrong and we're dancing again!

Good analysis and I think UC is dancing this season no matter what.

(07-25-2013 06:45 PM)rath v2.0 Wrote:  Sadly, I don't disagree with some of that. If this roster was in the old BE, we'd be in bad shape.

Agreed.

Given the incoming talent, the people we do have returning and the fact the conference is going to be a WHOLE LOT easier...I think we are dancing. I'm not saying we go 30-3 but I think low 20's for wins and another ncaa. So to me, all things considered, we will have a good year.

Honestly, I may be in the minority, but I think this team could wind up being really good. It really will come down to PG play, but I think this is one of the more athletic teams and could be a matchup nightmare for about any team with the ability to go big, small, etc. We will need some guys to step up, but so do many college teams in this day and age. Add in the step down in competition and I expect nothing less than another NCAA berth and I believe it will be a pretty good seed 5-6 range.

Each year you see top teams in power conferences with freshmen and junior college transfers who deliver results. As fans, it seems we've just become accustomed to writing off their first year here as a transition or an adjustment to big-time college basketball.

Let's hope that Mick's finally got the program to the point where incoming players can contribute. I'll remain skeptical about that given our recent history. I too am concerned that there seems to be no proven scorer after Kilpatrick and no one down low who can stay out of foul trouble.

(07-25-2013 09:05 PM)BeerCat Wrote:  Justin Jackson -- Probably the dumbest basketball player I have ever seen.

Not what you would call a glowing review.

Guyn is not a high major PG. Neither is JDIII...at least yet. Relying upon frosh PGs is a recipe for an ulcer.

The 5 is a problem IMO.

Thomas has shown glimpses, but I am still not sure if he is a front line player yet..

I expect great things from this class. Not sure I expect them in the first year.

(07-25-2013 09:05 PM)BeerCat Wrote:  Next year is putting a lot stock in SK, a lot of pressure on guys that have not proven much (Rubles and Shaq), and a ton of hope in the freshman. Unfortunately I agree with this article, I don't see next year being a success for the Bearcats,

Here are our returning players
SK -- Pretty good scorer Agreed

JDIII -- Injured a lot, seemed to contribute when he did play. Has not proven anything
Agreed, although his potential is higher based upon his offensive game being more advanced than Guyn

Ge'Lawn Guyn -- Good shooter and defender. I don't think he has convinced anyone that he is more than a role player.
Good shooter? i can hardly tell. Besides his defense he contributed little last season. Perhaps that was by design (limiting his game) but he's shown little in the form of progress on the offensive side of the ball which is where it is really needed especially in light of Cash's departure. The truly disappointing thing about Guyn (and perhaps this is more an indictment of the coaching staff) but we all knew the day Cash was going to leave was coming and yet it was never apparent that Guyn was capable, or prepared by the coaches, to take the reins even though he is very much the natural successor to Cash. Unless he's improved significantly, which is not out of the question, i find it hard to believe he is anything more than a bench player.

Justin Jackson -- Probably the dumbest basketball player I have ever seen.
A bit on the harsh side, but i agree with the general sentiment

Titus Rubles -- Plays hard, solid contributor but certainly not a world beater.
Agree, and that needs to change drastically in order for the Bearcats to make the tourney.

David Nyarsuk -- Gave us very little last year. I highly doubt he was able to improve enough to have a real impact.
Hopefully he's in better shape and able to provide more minutes before he fouls out. i get the feeling that watching him play is going to make me miss Cheikh Mbodj. Hell, he might make me miss Biggie.

Jermaine Sanders -- Unless he gets about 3 steps quicker he'll never be an impact player.
Two words: Corner Trey. Hit is often and consistently. He's got a nice shot (although a really long wind up, proverbially). He's got to be a zone buster that can take some heat off of SK so that SK doesn't have to take every shot. That said, he can only put in time on defense when we go zone.

Shaq Thomas -- Lots of expectations, I personally don't see him ever being a real star. He is not strong, not very quick and not a great shooter. IMO he'll score this year mostly because he absolutely has too.
i can see Shaq scoring 15 pts a night. The question is whether it takes him 12 shots or 25 shots to do so. i probably have higher expectations than most for Thomas and i do think he has star potential. Hopefully he fulfills it this season.

The long and short of it is that everyone on this roster, especially the froshes, needs to take, at a minimum, one gigantic step forward, and they need to do it quickly. Two of our returning players have to be able to contribute in addition to SK. That or the froshes will really have to step up. Whatever the case may be, if SK has to do it by himself, we are pretty much sunk.

I expect next years team to be a whole lot better than the one limped into the tournament. They may not not show it early in the year but I don't want to be champions of November and December again and losers in March. I am not sure losing Cash and Parker are that big a deal because Cash was hurt last season and Parker to a step back.

I am expecting big thing from Rubles and Jackson next year because I think Mick is smart enough not to play these guys out of position again. All this talk last of Jackson and Rubles has big guards the four out offense didn't really work. Yes, I agree that point guard and center are a concern but I really like what UC has on the wings.

Everyone claiming the schedule is going to be a lot easier in conference play needs to remember that the Bearcats play Louisville, UConn, Temple and Memphis twice. I wouldn't count USF, UCF, SMU, Houston, and Rutgers as easy wins either. The following the year conference schedule is easier but not next season.

Losing Cash is not a big deal? Good luck with that.