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What is frustrating is watching Seth Dugan dissolve in front of your eyes.

He looks and plays like he is fatigued. I dont know if his foot is hurt again. I dont think so.

Clearly after his super nova start everyone schemes against him. Both offensively and defensively. Unfortunately there is no one to sub for him that is impactful.

Ignoshkul isnt ready for prime time. How he missed the high pass thrown by Flowers as Iggie was wide open I wont know. He has incredible reach and hops. An unforced turnover instead of a dunk at a critical time.

Clifford has been reduced to undersized bulked up 5. He is a liability on D because he is stuck down low and at 6'5 he isnt really a factor. Offensively, inside a non-factor and outside an occasional spot up. He's more capable than that but expectations have been scaled down and he has a short leash. Outside of Youngstown State where he shot well he cant sustain long stretches on the floor. He isnt a game changer but more effective than showing.

If you can play Squeaky at the 4 you do the same with Clifford. He has some handles and range. He can defend some on the perimeter and would make a fine garbage man at the 4. Floor burns and all. That allows Squeaky at the 3 and or Emillen at the 2. Now you have some glass coverage, havent lost much on O as Flowers is still a point.

If Martin and Clifford on the floor together you need 3 reilable scorers on the floor who can both space it with range but also punish you with attacking the rim. Flowers, Emillen, Wilkens and Richard. I'd even say Printy who cant drive but if he could move laterally along the arch so he could step into a shot helping space the floor.

(01-09-2019 10:01 AM)gobaseline Wrote:  What is frustrating is watching Seth Dugan dissolve in front of your eyes.

He looks and plays like he is fatigued. I dont know if his foot is hurt again. I dont think so.

Clearly after his super nova start everyone schemes against him. Both offensively and defensively. Unfortunately there is no one to sub for him that is impactful.

Ignoshkul isnt ready for prime time. How he missed the high pass thrown by Flowers as Iggie was wide open I wont know. He has incredible reach and hops. An unforced turnover instead of a dunk at a critical time.

Clifford has been reduced to undersized bulked up 5. He is a liability on D because he is stuck down low and at 6'5 he isnt really a factor. Offensively, inside a non-factor and outside an occasional spot up. He's more capable than that but expectations have been scaled down and he has a short leash. Outside of Youngstown State where he shot well he cant sustain long stretches on the floor. He isnt a game changer but more effective than showing.

If you can play Squeaky at the 4 you do the same with Clifford. He has some handles and range. He can defend some on the perimeter and would make a fine garbage man at the 4. Floor burns and all. That allows Squeaky at the 3 and or Emillen at the 2. Now you have some glass coverage, havent lost much on O as Flowers is still a point.

If Martin and Clifford on the floor together you need 3 reilable scorers on the floor who can both space it with range but also punish you with attacking the rim. Flowers, Emillen, Wilkens and Richard. I'd even say Printy who cant drive but if he could move laterally along the arch so he could step into a shot helping space the floor.

I heard from a few people when Dugan was recruited here that he would be a waste of 7ft... I didn't agree at the time indicating he was so young.. Their arguments were that he's a 7ft tall 6ft forward... that he doesn't use his height and isn't strong enough mentally and physically under the net... I was expecting him to have a HUGE year this year... but it might just be that he's mentally fatigued already believing that he has to pick up slack as a 7ft senior... He's always seemed timid to me for being such a big guy... he's no Stainbrook or Reitz.... just seems to be overwhelmed by anybody who is physically more intimidating in the paint... if the rebounds don't come near him he seems to shy away from brutality... Thats just my observation from the few times I have watched them THIS season...

Maybe you on to something that maybe his injury has flared up again... who knows.

(01-09-2019 10:01 AM)gobaseline Wrote:  What is frustrating is watching Seth Dugan dissolve in front of your eyes.

He rolled his ankle again few weeks ago. Also he's getting double teamed after his early season output when teams were focused on other players like Davis. If Printy and others would be consistent Duggan would produce more by getting less attention. Why not double team him when no one else is a concern? Teams are letting Flowers get his 20 points but defending the inside game. WMU one of the younger teams in MAC, when they arent clicking on all cylinders they are in big trouble.

(01-08-2019 09:54 PM)gobaseline Wrote:  88 points is a lot to give up.

This is the issue.

If Boyer-Richard didn't get hot they still give up 88 points.

At first blush you could say their recovering on help D is problematic. They help but then can't recover fast enough or in attempting to over commit and get blown by.

What's the root issue? On the ball D.

Your pressure must be a distraction enough that they can't have a clear view to pass, drive or shoot. Anytime they attempt to move with the ball you are a threat to take it away. Now their eyes lower and their field of vision narrows. They miss open teammates. They quickly try to compensate and "hurry".

The result is unforced turnovers, poor shot selection and the opportunity for transition O often with a man advantage.

One extreme or the other results ... they rush shoots early in the shot clock but generally go deep into it forcing something up that is contested, off balance (floor too) allowing to get the D board and go the other way.

It also allows Seth to keep his legs longer as he simply can trail the break, stop and retreat back after the fast break score.

Who are the players who can ball hawk without allowing the opposition to turn the corner on them? Who is willing to do so and intelligently?

Flowers, Richard, Martin, Emillen, Wilkens(?), others?

Josh continues to lose contact with his guy on weakside. He tracks the ball and loses feel for where his guy is. That creates a spinning wheel of a mess as others rotate (or not) to cover and the results are not good.

Martin is a liability as a perimeter shooter. Solutions allowing him to stay on floor and pressure D.
1. put the ball in his hands breaking his guy down and or coming off a pick n roll.
2. Set screens on the ball or for others who are outside threats and have him roll back to the ball/slip screen so he can get it in the lane to either rise from there or attack the rim from INSIDE.
3. Put him away from the ball and have him come to it but through the inside not the outside.
- wing to wing flash.
- straight up from the baseline or diagonally up the lane.
- top of the key or wing slash diagonally toward the opp. block

He doesn't receive it he circles back out either down through baseline or up to the top.

Think about how you'd attack a box and 1 if he was the guy being guarded by the 1. Move him in, through and out. Make his guy accountable and others to help on since he is constantly moving.

No reception he continues on to either screen on the ball or down and out to screen for a primary target (Dugan, Flowers, Wilkens, Davis)

Never have him be the last guy on the weakside stuck with having to make the triple.

How?

Flash him from the weakside toward the ball. if not him open, reverse it to the w-s wing who now has an open baseline to drive or the space pull back for the open J. If he is the w-s wing recipient chances are his guy will have to close out on him. Put it on the deck and make them defend the drive. Ball in his hands attacking downhill forces the eyes of all defenders to find the ball. If it is moving (drive) it is less easy to track and counter.

Simply all the stuff others do.

The issue is on the ball D. But there are ways to minimize any deficiencies on O and still keep the heat on in the kitchen!

Martin is the best perimeter shooter in practice, has yet to bring to the game. Pokely 2.0 at this point. These freshman rarely step into D1 ball and dominate. Takes them half the conference season to figure out the system and bus ride boredom.

(01-09-2019 08:42 AM)WMUPorter Wrote:  

(01-08-2019 10:16 PM)flushtheherd Wrote:  This team is going to be a struggle to watch this season... blegh...

If you are looking for wins then this team will be hard to watch but they are very young and play hard and I think have been pretty fun to watch.

Exactly, they play their hearts out. Room for improvement, you bet. We'll get there, maybe not this season.

It doesn't seem to matter who we put on the floor because we're always busy getting embarrassed at Kent and Akron.

What does every other MAC team have that WMU doesn't? Front court players with MUSCLE.

I think Hawk gets one or two more years, tops. Then I think it's time to move on.

(01-11-2019 08:29 AM)wingsenforcer Wrote:  It doesn't seem to matter who we put on the floor because we're always busy getting embarrassed at Kent and Akron.

What does every other MAC team have that WMU doesn't? Front court players with MUSCLE.

I think Hawk gets one or two more years, tops. Then I think it's time to move on.

Next season is the last on his current contract, and they typically don't enter it without either (a) extending the contract X more years, or (b) cutting a coach loose early and moving to a different direction. I don't have much of an opinion either way. But KB will have a decision to make during this upcoming off-season.

(01-11-2019 08:37 AM)Motown Bronco Wrote:  

(01-11-2019 08:29 AM)wingsenforcer Wrote:  It doesn't seem to matter who we put on the floor because we're always busy getting embarrassed at Kent and Akron.

What does every other MAC team have that WMU doesn't? Front court players with MUSCLE.

I think Hawk gets one or two more years, tops. Then I think it's time to move on.

Next season is the last on his current contract, and they typically don't enter it without either (a) extending the contract X more years, or (b) cutting a coach loose early and moving to a different direction. I don't have much of an opinion either way. But KB will have a decision to make during this upcoming off-season.

While Hawk has done some amazing things at WMU, KB needs to ask herself if he still has what it takes to bring another MAC Championship to Kalamazoo. If not, he needs to go.

That said, whoever is head basketball coach needs WMU to invest in a practice facility. WMU is woefully behind its peers for facilities. A practice court is a need, not a want, if the Broncos are serious about competing for championships.

I was expecting to have to duck for cover when I came back in here, but it is refreshing to know I'm not alone in thinking WMU needs to reevaluate Hawk at some point. Yes, he's had success. Yes, he has a young team right now. Yes, they've been banged up. But for the kids to do what they did in A2 then start laying eggs a month later doesn't add up. Usually, we'd expect to get embarrassed by a program like Michigan and hopefully compete at places like Kent and Akron, not the other way around.

It definitely didn't help, that after Saturdays game @ Akron, they bussed back. And then bussed back to Kent on Monday. Just doesn't make any sense!!!

(01-11-2019 11:20 AM)wingsenforcer Wrote:  But for the kids to do what they did in A2 then start laying eggs a month later doesn't add up.

You’re confusing Michigan’s very poor shooting performance in a game that they didn’t take seriously at the outset, with WMU able to play against a top 10 team moving forward.

The kids played hard at Ann Arbor, and have in all games. Akron and Kent are conference games and every kid on the team that name is not Buffalo realizes there’s no margin for error.

Western is significantly undermanned both in talent and experience. That’s not an excuse it’s a fact. Could the staff make minor adjustments that collectively could make the needle moves to the upside? Yes. There isn’t a coach in the country that could not also be said.

That’s not to absolve the staff but simply keeping things realistic. Jared Printy would be the first guard off the bench if everybody was healthy. He’d be getting 15-18 minutes at most, not 25+. Small ball would have Brandon Johnson at the five not Clifford or Ignoshjkul. Neither would have seen the floor for more than a total of 20 minutes this season.

The trade-off is Boyer-Richard, Wilkins, Emillen and Martin are and should be getting minutes to develop.

Wild card could’ve been Whitens. But honestly I don’t think he would’ve made much difference. He wasn’t going to push Flowers, Davis or even Printy much.

I’m disappointed like the rest. But tempered talent wins out.

Going forward I don’t want Hawk to give up on Martin and Emillen. These are two kids that are athletic and skilled but lacking work hardened experience. Quality minutes will provide that.

(01-11-2019 08:37 AM)Motown Bronco Wrote:  

(01-11-2019 08:29 AM)wingsenforcer Wrote:  It doesn't seem to matter who we put on the floor because we're always busy getting embarrassed at Kent and Akron.

What does every other MAC team have that WMU doesn't? Front court players with MUSCLE.

I think Hawk gets one or two more years, tops. Then I think it's time to move on.

Next season is the last on his current contract, and they typically don't enter it without either (a) extending the contract X more years, or (b) cutting a coach loose early and moving to a different direction. I don't have much of an opinion either way. But KB will have a decision to make during this upcoming off-season.

This is wild speculation on my part but could the series with UC Riverside be setup so Hawkins can coach a game near family and old friends in his final season?

(01-11-2019 11:20 AM)wingsenforcer Wrote:  I was expecting to have to duck for cover when I came back in here, but it is refreshing to know I'm not alone in thinking WMU needs to reevaluate Hawk at some point. Yes, he's had success. Yes, he has a young team right now. Yes, they've been banged up. But for the kids to do what they did in A2 then start laying eggs a month later doesn't add up. Usually, we'd expect to get embarrassed by a program like Michigan and hopefully compete at places like Kent and Akron, not the other way around.

I'd never get rid of a HC who has a talent for winning the division unless I KNOW he can be replaced with someone better. Hawks has produced here-maybe not enough for some folks, but you're never going to make everybody happy.

Unless we have someone waiting in the wings who can improve our program, what's the point in firing Hawks? Western is never going to be a Georgetown or Syracuse in basketball, I'll settle for someone who makes us a force in the MAC in most seasons.

I've seen the same movie before, even with a healthy team. It's getting old watching us be a doormat, especially in crossover games.


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(01-13-2019 04:49 PM)wingsenforcer Wrote:  I've seen the same movie before, even with a healthy team. It's getting old watching us be a doormat, especially in crossover games.


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In this instance health is not bumps and bruises but rather season ending injuries. Two starters, legit starters, impact starters are missing. Talent matters. Talented depth matters. You’re not seeing the same movie you’re seeing what you wanna see.