Tonight:

Mercer at Florida
Chatt at UT-Martin
WCU at Iowa

On Saturday, Alonso scored the last 5 points of the game to lift UNC-G over North Alabama after it was tied with just over 2 minutes left. That makes UNC-G 10-2, with 10 wins being their most OOC wins since going DI. And not certain, but I believe that's 15 straight wins at home. Oh, and they turned the ball over only 5 times for the game.

Tomorrow night, 10-2 Samford at UT and the Woofers at Miss St.. Sammie only lost to 1-loss Belmont in OT. (And Belmont just knocked off UCLA in Pauley.)

And let me just add, the CITADEL is 9-2. Get ready for the battle royale, otherwise known as conference play in the SoCon, in about a week.

(12-19-2018 06:28 AM)Efan Wrote:  And let me just add, the CITADEL is 9-2. Get ready for the battle royale, otherwise known as conference play in the SoCon, in about a week.

Yeah - I almost mentioned that, too.

BTW...…...last night the Skyhawks' Preston Parks hit from 75 ft. - at the buzzer - to down Chatt. Probably was on Sportscenter, but don't know that.

With the SoCon so stacked this year I will say that whomever survives the gauntlet and gets the NCAA berth should be REALLY battle tested and have a decent chance of doing some damage in the big dance. Here's hoping its the Bucs when the final buzzer sounds in Asheville.

UNCG's James Dickey, SoCon defensive POY, continues to sit out with lis franc ligament damage to his foot: https://www.greensboro.com/sports/colleg...5cd37.html
See also: https://wn.com/lisfranc_injury

UNCG continues to win, being very fortunate that 6-8 250 Wichita State transfer Eric Hamilton is on board and that 6-8 Jr. Kyrin Galloway has really upped his scoring, but is not the same without him.

Wofford battled #17 Mississippi State very tough on the road, ahead by 9 at the half, and within 5 late, before falling in a high scoring game 98-87. Those guys are just tough as nails this year.
And have played the toughest schedule in the SoCon.

httpss://woffordterriers.com/news/2018/12/19/mens-basketball-despite-hot-shooting-wofford-falls-at-no-17-mississippi-state.aspx

In B'ham, Sammie led UNC-G until 11:20 left in the game, but Spartans pulled away late to win by 8. Isaiah Miller went for 20; Alonso for 30 with *17/21* FTs.

(12-22-2018 11:32 PM)posterformerlyknownasthedoctor Wrote:  In B'ham, Sammie led UNC-G until 11:20 left in the game, but Spartans pulled away late to win by 8. Isaiah Miller went for 20; Alonso for 30 with *17/21* FTs.

During the SoCon title game last year I remember watching Miller and thinking he's going to be a thorn in our side for 3 more years. He seems to have improved even more this year.

(12-22-2018 11:52 PM)Buced_Up Wrote:  

(12-22-2018 11:32 PM)posterformerlyknownasthedoctor Wrote:  In B'ham, Sammie led UNC-G until 11:20 left in the game, but Spartans pulled away late to win by 8. Isaiah Miller went for 20; Alonso for 30 with *17/21* FTs.

During the SoCon title game last year I remember watching Miller and thinking he's going to be a thorn in our side for 3 more years. He seems to have improved even more this year.

Miller isn't (often) gonna beat you from deep, but he's a bad dude this year, and as I noted in another thread, I honestly don't think we can handle him. He's a blur.
He and Alonso combined to light it up for 14 in just the final 3 minutes.

Miller and Alonso a good inside/outside combo.

Still no James Dickey.

Samford is for real.

Western knocks off Sammie in Culhowee by 7. UNC-G struggled against VMI, trailing a good portion of the game, before prevailing at the end. Alonso hit a 3 with under a minute to provide the margin, 71-68.

(01-05-2019 04:01 PM)posterformerlyknownasthedoctor Wrote:  Western knocks off Sammie in Culhowee by 7.

This might be a case of Samford getting beat by ETSU twice. On Thursday, the Bulldogs, with little depth on the bench, went maximum effort against the Bucs and came up just short. Apparently they didn't have anything left for WCU.

(01-05-2019 07:37 PM)Flippmb Wrote:  

(01-05-2019 04:01 PM)posterformerlyknownasthedoctor Wrote:  Western knocks off Sammie in Culhowee by 7.

This might be a case of Samford getting beat by ETSU twice. On Thursday, the Bulldogs, with little depth on the bench, went maximum effort against the Bucs and came up just short. Apparently they didn't have anything left for WCU.

Ruben Guerrero, who battled N’Guessan and Armus for 38 minutes, did very little in the 1st half against the Catamounts, playing 10 minutes and picking up 2 fouls – with 0 rebounds and 5 points to 8 rebounds and 8 points for Western’s Carlos Dotson. Guerrero got 16 minutes in the second half and was still outplayed by Dotson: 4 rebounds, 4 points and 3 turnovers to 7 rebounds, 5 points and 0 turnovers for Dotson.

Josh Sharkey played 44 minutes against ETSU getting 13 points, 3 steals, 5 rebounds and a stunning 14 assists, but looking gassed in overtime. Against Western he only lasted 30 minutes, getting 10 points, 1 steal, 2 rebounds and only 5 assists with 3 turnovers.

Brandon Austin went 38 minutes against ETSU with 16 points on 5-10 shooting with 5 rebounds. Against Samford he went 36 minutes, but got only 7 points on 2-9 shooting.

The Samford bench was AWOL in both games: 5 points versus ETSU and 6 points against Western.

There may well have been some problems recovering from the overtime against the Bucs.

But Western also took Furman to double overtime. They are definitely capable of hurting you if you don’t bring your "A" game.

(01-05-2019 04:01 PM)posterformerlyknownasthedoctor Wrote:  UNC-G struggled against VMI, trailing a good portion of the game, before prevailing at the end. Alonso hit a 3 with under a minute to provide the margin, 71-68.

UNCG struggled despite having Dickey back in the starting lineup for the first time since his injury in the Kentucky game. He played 21 minutes, posting 9 points on 4-11 shooting, 6 rebounds, 2 steals and a turnover. Despite his presence, they were outrebounded by VMI 42-36. It may take them a few games to get him back at full strength. https://www.nmnathletics.com//pdf9/54809...1516799502

UNCG struggled at VMI last year too. Alonzo hit two FTs with a couple of seconds left to let them sneak out with a win then.

Furman overcame poor first half three point shooting to eventually build a 20 point lead in the second half against the Citadel and win by a final margin of 16. Matt Rafferty had a career high 28 points and added 12 rebounds as the Citadel tried to cover him without help defense. It didn't work so well. The Citadel had good shooting from Reed and Rice and Stallworth lead them with 23 points but Tre Clark, 6'5" sophomore, did a great defensive job on Stallworth after being switched over on him in the second half.

Wofford and Mercer had a real battle. Wofford built a double digit lead early in the second half before Mercer clawed back and took the lead late. Mercer had the ball down one point but turned it over with 45 seconds and Magee knocked in a key three.

The Samford loss may also have a lot to do with their players seeing their coach go viral on social media over the last few days and not being able to concentrate or focus on preparation. I’ll bet you some of those guys got wrapped up in that stuff and couldn’t get away from it.

(01-06-2019 12:47 AM)FUATT Wrote:  Wofford and Mercer had a real battle. Wofford built a double digit lead early in the second half before Mercer clawed back and took the lead late. Mercer had the ball down one point but turned it over with 45 seconds and Magee knocked in a key three.

Mercer may be small, but they sure don't quit in the face of double digit deficits. They have a nasty habit of staying disciplined, running their offense, fighting back and making it VERY tight at the end.

They have done this against Georgia State, #17 NC State, Harvard and now Wofford.

Love conference basketball - Alabama beat Kentucky last night and Iowa State thrashed Kansas.

BTW, for the second game in a row, Mercer's 6-11 245 Freshman Fardaws Aimaq did not play, making them REALLY small. And short handed. Against Wofford they got 0 points outside the top 6 and 3 guys played 36 to 40 minutes each.

Does anybody know if Aimaq is hurt?

(01-05-2019 11:09 PM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  

(01-05-2019 04:01 PM)posterformerlyknownasthedoctor Wrote:  UNC-G struggled against VMI, trailing a good portion of the game, before prevailing at the end. Alonso hit a 3 with under a minute to provide the margin, 71-68.

UNCG struggled despite having Dickey back in the starting lineup for the first time since his injury in the Kentucky game. He played 21 minutes, posting 9 points on 4-11 shooting, 6 rebounds, 2 steals and a turnover. Despite his presence, they were outrebounded by VMI 42-36. It may take them a few games to get him back at full strength. https://www.nmnathletics.com//pdf9/54809...1516799502

Little, speedy Isaiah Miller game-leading rebounder with 9 (and tied as game-leading scorer with 17)!

(01-06-2019 10:52 AM)posterformerlyknownasthedoctor Wrote:  Little, speedy Isaiah Miller game-leading rebounder with 9 (and tied as game-leading scorer with 17)!

On the season 6-8 215 Kyrin Galloway has 4.3 rebounds; 6-9 250 Eric Hamilton has 4.8 rebounds.

And 6-0 180 Soph Isaiah Miller has 4.1 rebounds. He also outscores them both with 14.3 ppg and grabs 2.8 steals. Heckuva player.
http://www.uncgspartans.com/fls/32200/St...amcume.htm

Big SoCon tests coming up this week for UNCG #102 -

They get Wofford #58 in Greensboro on Thursday.

Then they get Furman #107 in Greensboro on Saturday.

Critical for them to hold serve at home if they want to win the SoCon's regular season.

Even though the Spartans are ranked lower than Wofford by Kenpom, the home court makes them the favorite in both games in their rankings. By 1 point against Wofford, 73-72, and by 4 against Furman 72-68.

[EDIT] Either the ranking has changed or I have gotten this wrong - in checking up on this game on 1/10/19, it is WOFFORD who is favored by 1 point by Kenpom, 73-72, despite playing on the road at Greensboro. This is a 50-50 game and the rankings do change a little each day, with Wofford edging up to #51 and UNCG slipping to #104. Should still be one of the best and most consequential games in the SoCon this year. Two of the best SoCon front courts clash with Wofford's +8.7 rebounding margin (16th in D1) facing the returning 6-9 James Dickey along with 6-9 250 Eric Hamilton and 6-8 Kyrin Galloway. The Spartans have struggled on the boards this year, barely breaking even overall and getting outrebounded 42-36 by VMI, after posting a fine +6.8 last year, 15th in D1. Perhaps the two best SoCon scorers in Magee and Alonso (though Bubba Parham with 21.9 might object to that characterization). That rebounding margin is double the best previous D1 rebounding margin ever posted by the Terriers (4.08 in 2009-2010).