Post by BleedingOrange on Nov 14, 2011 23:50:38 GMT -5
As promised, I wanted to keep you in the basketball loop if you aren't able to attend or see the games. Very brief overviews...
Friday's game against a solid UT-San Antonio squad went as well (and as poorly) as expected. We looked pretty awful in spurts; they played an aggressive trapping zone defense, and we kept panicking and throwing cross-court passes that got picked off and started fast breaks the other way (we finished with 21 turnovers) and took way too many forced or rushed shots, and also had some major defensive lapses. UTSA held a 6 or 7 point lead throughout the first half, and even extended it to an 18 point deficit midway through the second. We actually made a mini-run toward the end and cut it to 5 with about three minutes left, but then lost our defensive intensity and let them build it back up to double digits. The final score of 65-74 was a pretty accurate indication of the way things went down... Bright spots were Cedric Lang (this kid is gonna be GOOD), Julian Washburn's hustle, and more of an effort to run an offense. Still a loss, but an expected one to a tournament team with 4 of 5 returning starters.
On a side note, Teicher said before the Riverside game that freshman forward Julian Washburn's mother passed away about two weeks ago... God bless Julian and his entire family. Puts things in major perspective, and I am now rooting for this kid a hundred times more than I already was.
Side note #2: Teich also said that Darius Nelson has left the team due to "trouble adjusting" to the collegiate level. Uhhh, I don't quite know what the hell that's supposed to mean, but we lost a pretty highly rated recruit who was supposedly going to be a difference-maker in the near future. Not a word about it on the UTEP website, but his name has been deleted from the roster they posted. Hopefully Floyd can land an even better player to use the scholarship. Moving on...
Saturday's game against UC-Riverside was proof that Floyd and his staff will be able to produce noticeable improvement from one game to the next. With only one day between games, the change was evident. We played great defense the entire first half, keeping the opponent scoreless for almost 7 minutes to start the game, and only allowing four points with 12 minutes left before the half. The downside to that, though, is that we only scored 8 in that span. But the offense will come; the defense and rebounding was excellent, and with such a young team that is crucial. We beat them soundly statistically the entire night, and only late in the second half did we seem to get lackadaisical and let them back in the game; they cut it to 3 points with a little over 3 minutes left, and then Hooper Vint (our 6'10"" center) hit two three-pointers from the top of the key in back-to-back possessions, pushing our lead back up to 9. (If he can actually do that consistently, what a secret weapon that will be!) Streeter and Campbell looked poised running the offense, our hustle and shot selection looked much improved, and we even hit 68% of our free throws, better than previous contests. Julian Washburn also showed flashes of brilliance on both ends of the court, and we played much more in sync as a team. The game was actually more impressive than the final score of 52-41 would indicate, and more importantly, the baby Miners got their first collegiate win. Great job, guys!
All in all, I like the progress this team has already made, and I'm looking forward to seeing them grow up right before our eyes. I encourage anyone who can to go out and support them as much as possible. They may not contend for any titles just yet, but it's gonna be an entertaining year.
Friday's game against a solid UT-San Antonio squad went as well (and as poorly) as expected. We looked pretty awful in spurts; they played an aggressive trapping zone defense, and we kept panicking and throwing cross-court passes that got picked off and started fast breaks the other way (we finished with 21 turnovers) and took way too many forced or rushed shots, and also had some major defensive lapses. UTSA held a 6 or 7 point lead throughout the first half, and even extended it to an 18 point deficit midway through the second. We actually made a mini-run toward the end and cut it to 5 with about three minutes left, but then lost our defensive intensity and let them build it back up to double digits. The final score of 65-74 was a pretty accurate indication of the way things went down... Bright spots were Cedric Lang (this kid is gonna be GOOD), Julian Washburn's hustle, and more of an effort to run an offense. Still a loss, but an expected one to a tournament team with 4 of 5 returning starters.
On a side note, Teicher said before the Riverside game that freshman forward Julian Washburn's mother passed away about two weeks ago... God bless Julian and his entire family. Puts things in major perspective, and I am now rooting for this kid a hundred times more than I already was.
Side note #2: Teich also said that Darius Nelson has left the team due to "trouble adjusting" to the collegiate level. Uhhh, I don't quite know what the hell that's supposed to mean, but we lost a pretty highly rated recruit who was supposedly going to be a difference-maker in the near future. Not a word about it on the UTEP website, but his name has been deleted from the roster they posted. Hopefully Floyd can land an even better player to use the scholarship. Moving on...
Saturday's game against UC-Riverside was proof that Floyd and his staff will be able to produce noticeable improvement from one game to the next. With only one day between games, the change was evident. We played great defense the entire first half, keeping the opponent scoreless for almost 7 minutes to start the game, and only allowing four points with 12 minutes left before the half. The downside to that, though, is that we only scored 8 in that span. But the offense will come; the defense and rebounding was excellent, and with such a young team that is crucial. We beat them soundly statistically the entire night, and only late in the second half did we seem to get lackadaisical and let them back in the game; they cut it to 3 points with a little over 3 minutes left, and then Hooper Vint (our 6'10"" center) hit two three-pointers from the top of the key in back-to-back possessions, pushing our lead back up to 9. (If he can actually do that consistently, what a secret weapon that will be!) Streeter and Campbell looked poised running the offense, our hustle and shot selection looked much improved, and we even hit 68% of our free throws, better than previous contests. Julian Washburn also showed flashes of brilliance on both ends of the court, and we played much more in sync as a team. The game was actually more impressive than the final score of 52-41 would indicate, and more importantly, the baby Miners got their first collegiate win. Great job, guys!
All in all, I like the progress this team has already made, and I'm looking forward to seeing them grow up right before our eyes. I encourage anyone who can to go out and support them as much as possible. They may not contend for any titles just yet, but it's gonna be an entertaining year.
