(02-27-2018 09:03 PM)Ken Barna Wrote: Dear Friends,
I don't know if anyone else predicted five wins in a row in the preseason predictions, but I did! Have to blow my own horn here, and I didn't think it would happen this late in the year. What a big victory tonight. The team could almost do nothing wrong against Western. I am proud of the way they came back from a 3-6 record to 10-7. They should be proud, and I'm sure they are.
Ha! I remember that question. And indeed you may have been the only one to have answered correctly.
Ken kudos to you! It's simply unbelievable that this team who lost to Ohio at the Convo could destroy WMU in Kalamazoo. My money was against them beating an in-state rival on their home court that possessed a better record on their Senior night. Yet they killed them.
(02-28-2018 05:10 AM)emu79 Wrote: Why has our zone improved during this run? To me the key was replacing Nobles as a starter with Ellison and having Bond start again this quickens the overall reaction time in terms of getting to the right coverage's and filling potential holes in the zone
I was thinking the same thing, 79.
Murphy has made an adjustment....Instead of playing a 4-1 where our zone was above the 3point line that easily allowed ball entry at the free throw line and not enough bodies to rebound Murphy has sunk his zone to hover at the three point line or play slightly below with a wing to try and take away ball entry at the free throw line. The kryptonite for a zone is getting the ball at the free throw line and passing to a baseline runner for a shot in the paint or to the corner for an uncontested 3point shot.I can't remember which game it was before our win streak, but our opponent had 11 offensive rebounds in the first half alone.
I would bet we've given up much fewer offensive rebounds the past 3-4 games? Plus the biggest thing I see is the guys are playing with a high level of I.N.T.E.N.S.I.T.Y! They simply want it more!!
Kudos for Murphy and players.
Luckey and '79 I think you both make great points. Bond is probably the linchpin to making it all work. Four years in the system coupled with his athleticism truly makes the zone scary.
While I have hounded Murphy for his lack of adjustments, he has modified the zone in the second half of the season. He uses the speedy Ellison or McAdoo to harass the point guard while Jackson cuts off the passing lane to the high post. Then in the second half against WMU, he brings in Nobles instead to spread those long arms to prevent the three ball and a quick comeback. It was nice.
'79 the offensive rebounding against us was indeed fatal in many games and the zone affords this as man to man block out responsibilities do not exist. You are correct, however, the correction of this has not been a tactical move but rather an issue of effort amongst the players. Oakland killed us on the offensive boards in Ypsilanti in the first half and in the second half we stopped them cold. Rebounding is not a highly skilled or tactical art but rather like you said a product of INTENSITY.
(02-28-2018 05:10 AM)emu79 Wrote: Why has our zone improved during this run? To me the key was replacing Nobles as a starter with Ellison and having Bond start again this quickens the overall reaction time in terms of getting to the right coverage's and filling potential holes in the zone
I was thinking the same thing, 79.
Murphy has made an adjustment....Instead of playing a 4-1 where our zone was above the 3point line that easily allowed ball entry at the free throw line and not enough bodies to rebound Murphy has sunk his zone to hover at the three point line or play slightly below with a wing to try and take away ball entry at the free throw line. The kryptonite for a zone is getting the ball at the free throw line and passing to a baseline runner for a shot in the paint or to the corner for an uncontested 3point shot.I can't remember which game it was before our win streak, but our opponent had 11 offensive rebounds in the first half alone.
I would bet we've given up much fewer offensive rebounds the past 3-4 games? Plus the biggest thing I see is the guys are playing with a high level of I.N.T.E.N.S.I.T.Y! They simply want it more!!
Kudos for Murphy and players.
Luckey and '79 I think you both make great points. Bond is probably the linchpin to making it all work. Four years in the system coupled with his athleticism truly makes the zone scary.
While I have hounded Murphy for his lack of adjustments, he has modified the zone in the second half of the season. He uses the speedy Ellison or McAdoo to harass the point guard while Jackson cuts off the passing lane to the high post. Then in the second half against WMU, he brings in Nobles instead to spread those long arms to prevent the three ball and a quick comeback. It was nice.
'79 the offensive rebounding against us was indeed fatal in many games and the zone affords this as man to man block out responsibilities do not exist. You are correct, however, the correction of this has not been a tactical move but rather an issue of effort amongst the players. Oakland killed us on the offensive boards in Ypsilanti in the first half and in the second half we stopped them cold. Rebounding is not a highly skilled or tactical art but rather like you said a product of INTENSITY.
(02-27-2018 10:55 PM)FrankAnderson Wrote: WMU post-game presser with Wilder and Hawkins, if you're interested:
Thanks for the link.
I think Coach Hawkins said something to the effect that EMU is playing better than any other team in the league right now. So it is not just our biased perception.
I feel a bit bad for Wilder, kind of ruined his senior night holding him to 9 points ( he averaged 18.9)
Good link Frank, thanks.
Hawkins is awfully insightful. He truly has as great analysis of the EMU program and knows our players names, the recruiting strategy and our deficiencies.
No tears for Wilder here, he is a great player and will still be all MAC. The worst Senior night I have ever seen was Keno's in the previous season when Ray Lee decided to drop 50 points and play less than 30 minutes in Mt. Pleasant. That one will leave a permanent mark!
