A-10 Media Day/Preseason Awards

[urmite]

Why do we have to accept that the program is cyclic? Why can’t it be a sustained run of 23+ win seasons? A 19 win season is like a .610 winning % - this is the frustration of a lot here I think. The coach has been entrenched long enough to have established a consistently great winning program but every 5 years it’s like an entirely new cycle starts from scratch as if it is year 1.

In a decaying A10 conference being mid pack or worse half the time just seems unacceptable to me.

"Why do we have to accept that the program is cyclic?"
The same reason Duke, UNC, Kansas and Kentucky do?

"Why can’t it be a sustained run of 23+ win seasons?"
How long is sustained? I wonder how many programs and how many times has a school had 23+ regular season wins for 10 seasons in a row? or is 7 of 8 or 8 of 9 "sustained"?

I just think all programs are cyclical, the difference is that the high of good programs are higher and lows are higher.
23-8 as a high and 17-14 as a low is much better than 20-11 as a high and 12-19 as a low...

I am not arguing that where we have been is where we should be...

 

[spiderman]

We are starting 4 seniors this year ...

minor detail but Quinn, Bigelow and King are in their final season (as is Harris).
Hunt, Roche and Bailey have another season.
Noyes and Walz will have 2 more.
and then there's 5 strong freshmen and 2 good ones so far in the next class.

 

[GKiller]

We did - and we can talk about it. UR did make the tourney in 2022 (and NIT in 2021) and won an NCAA game. Those are the results I think this board and fans are looking for and willing to congratulate the team and coaches on doing so.

I think everyone agrees last year was a disappointment. With the transfers we had come in - who I think most felt good about, and a POY candidate in Burton - the team limped to a losing record. But - its just one year removed from NCAA, so all is well. I think some fans, myself included are just a little concerned we might have similar results this year. Lets say UR finishes right around .500 - the pressure will be on the next year I think to make an NIT or NCAA. But we know we will have a big hole to fill with Quinn out - but will have other key pieces returning. I think this year is all about improvement and expectations. If this team finishes around .500 - I would be worried. If this team can finish with 19-20 wins - even though that is not NIT or NCAA worthy - I think that shows improvement and likely means the team has matured and gotten better throughout the year. That gives some positive energy going into next year - which I think is the key NCAA/NIT postseason year.

First I think we should be a program that has high expectations most years regardless.

But this year actually seems better than next to me so not sure what u r seeing w next as the key ncaa.

We lose arguably our 3 best players/scorers in King Quinn & Bigs. Possible role guy in Harris. Couple transfer in/out.

We’ll be much younger/inexperienced next year.

Unless Noyes is an all conf guy, a couple of the frosh r studs & we get in a couple really good transfers to boot.

But most if not all seem unlikely so next year unfortunately is not the recipe Mooney has lived by.

 

[VT4700]

Why do we have to accept that the program is cyclic? Why can’t it be a sustained run of 23+ win seasons? A 19 win season is like a .610 winning % - this is the frustration of a lot here I think. The coach has been entrenched long enough to have established a consistently great winning program but every 5 years it’s like an entirely new cycle starts from scratch as if it is year 1.

In a decaying A10 conference being mid pack or worse half the time just seems unacceptable to me.

I am never satisfied or happy with being mid pack A-10, no matter who we lost, or who is on our roster. I am hoping for
top 4 A-10 year every year, including this year, and I would be pretty frustrated if we have a year this year like last year. The difference in my opinion is that I don't automatically want coaches fired when we don't get there, but I also won't say never with that. Believe or not, I could reach a point where I want a change, but I feel good about our program right now.

 

[spiderman]

I'm always excited about incoming guys. sometimes they don't pan out or like Nelson, Dread and Randolph they aren't all here long.

but I'm really excited about the current freshmen and the 2 HS kids. the freshmen will likely have to wait their turn a bit. might just get their feet wet this season. but there's a lot of talent there. I like where we're heading.

 

[urmite]

2023-2024	2024-2025
Neal Quinn - Last	Djimon Bailey - Extra?
Jordan King - Last	DeLonnie Hunt - Extra?
Tyler Harris - Last	Jason Roche - Last
Djimon Bailey	Aidan Noyes
Isaiah Bigelow - Last	Michael Walz
DeLonnie Hunt	Trevor Smith
Jason Roche	Collin Tanner
Aidan Noyes	Mikkel Tyne
Michael Walz	Ryan Soulis
Trevor Smith	Jaylen Robinson
Collin Tanner	Bryson McGlothin
Mikkel Tyne	Open 2024
Ryan Soulis	Open 2024

 

[GKiller]

I'm always excited about incoming guys. sometimes they don't pan out or like Nelson, Dread and Randolph they aren't all here long.

but I'm really excited about the current freshmen and the 2 HS kids. the freshmen will likely have to wait their turn a bit. might just get their feet wet this season. but there's a lot of talent there. I like where we're heading.

It’s perfectly understandable to be excited about them. But like u said u r always that way. Moon’s hit rate recently has been poor. & we haven’t seen ourselves any of this talent yet.

 

[spiderman]

my concern (like last year) is shooting.

some 3 point shooting stats last year from the guys we expect to take most of our 3's:
King: 31.5%
Hunt: 28.7%
Bigelow: 26.5%
Harris: 29.3%

some of these guys have had years when they shot pretty well. we can hope they bounce back to their highs but we can't EXPECT it. and we certainly need them to. because if they all shoot like last year we're going to struggle.

we know Roche can shoot. we think Noyes and Tanner can shoot. but I doubt the 3 of them combine for more than 40 mpg.

 

[VT4700]

my concern (like last year) is shooting.

some 3 point shooting stats last year from the guys we expect to take most of our 3's:
King: 31.5%
Hunt: 28.7%
Bigelow: 26.5%
Harris: 29.3%

some of these guys have had years when they shot pretty well. we can hope they bounce back to their highs but we can't EXPECT it. and we certainly need them to. because if they all shoot like last year we're going to struggle.

we know Roche can shoot. we think Noyes and Tanner can shoot. but I doubt the 3 of them combine for more than 40 mpg.

3 point shooting is always one of the main keys for me, along with PG play and defense.

 

[97spiderfan]

It’s perfectly understandable to be excited about them. But like u said u r always that way. Moon’s hit rate recently has been poor. & we haven’t seen ourselves any of this talent yet.

I understand being excited for our new recruits but the constant message we have heard the past several years is that Mooney has fixed his recruiting issues.

Well, this year, out of our 13 scholarship players, we have exactly 3, Dji, Noyes and Walz, that were high school recruits by Mooney, and none of them have shown themselves to be anything close to an all A-10 type of player. Most of the other high school recruits who transferred out, Randolph, Weir, Wilson, Dread have transferred down because they weren't A-10 caliber players. Nelson is the only player who transferred out to a comparable (ok, its VCU so they are better than us) school.

Looking at all of this, it just defies logic to state that Mooney is doing a good job of recruiting high school players.

 

[brooklyn brownstone]

Agree about shooting so the use of Roche in fits and starts makes little sense to me.

Also agree that cyclical nature is common but the floor needs to be higher for both down and great seasons. I don’t feel like other winning programs start anew from zero expectations each 5 years or programs are okay having multiple consecutive losing seasons on the - chance - that a single ncaa bid is on the table for year 4 or 5.

Stay leafy.

 

[urfan1]

3 point shooting is always one of the main keys for me, along with PG play and defense.

all keys to Mooney's system.

 

[spider23]

I am in the camp that I am able to work up optimism for the upcoming season just about every year. And in the past 10 years or so have been wrong quite a bit. Though I do believe that we have the players to be successful this season. There have been 4 or 5 years in which we just had really obvious holes that I pointed out. This year, I don't think that is the case. But we do need guys to revert to their better/best years, stay healthy and young guys to make a jump or contribute as freshman. So a ton has to go right. As stated when we missed out on Brown to Utah State, would have really like to have another proven guard at this level. I love what I have heard and read about Hunt as a scrapper and leader, and really hoping he can be a big contributor, but still have questions about his offense in the A10. But if he struggles in that aspect, maybe Tynne or Dji or Roche or Tanner can fill that void. I think we have enough options at all positions to plug guys in, assuming Mooney can figure it out. I'm not content to be a mid pack A10 team, I want to be Dayton, or St. Mary's or VCU, or Gonzaga or SDSU. But I just don't see the leadership at the university having that type of energy and goals - so I will be content if we can out perform this season and maybe have a 2-3 year run with these guys.

 

[spiderman]

Looking at all of this, it just defies logic to state that Mooney is doing a good job of recruiting high school players.

the offer lists this past year for Smith, Tanner, Soulis and Tyne were all long with some good teams on them.

 

[97spiderfan]

the offer lists this past year for Smith, Tanner, Soulis and Tyne were all long with some good teams on them.

I don't disagree. I am hopeful that all of those guys are home runs. Mooney recent high school recruiting track record, does not inspire great confidence in me. But yes, I am looking forward to seeing what these guys can do this year.

 

[fan2011]

The amount of unknowns going into this season leaves a lot of room for optimism… and disappointment.

 

[Long Island Spiders]

I am never satisfied or happy with being mid pack A-10, no matter who we lost, or who is on our roster. I am hoping for
top 4 A-10 year every year, including this year, and I would be pretty frustrated if we have a year this year like last year. The difference in my opinion is that I don't automatically want coaches fired when we don't get there, but I also won't say never with that. Believe or not, I could reach a point where I want a change, but I feel good about our program right now.

Your posts are still infuriating. I swear you must be an AI program written by URFan1 to get us to repeat the same arguments so we keep returning to the board.

 

[8legs1dream]

I am never satisfied or happy with being mid pack A-10, no matter who we lost, or who is on our roster. I am hoping for
top 4 A-10 year every year, including this year, and I would be pretty frustrated if we have a year this year like last year. The difference in my opinion is that I don't automatically want coaches fired when we don't get there, but I also won't say never with that. Believe or not, I could reach a point where I want a change, but I feel good about our program right now.

hoping for top 4 in the A10 every year eh? How has that been working out for you in the Moon Era 🤣

 

[urfan1]

by my count Mooney has finished top 4 in the A-10 for 4 seasons, out of the top 4 for 12 seasons.

see correction below

 

[Eight Legger]

by my count Mooney has finished top 4 in the A-10 for 4 seasons, out of the top 4 for 12 seasons.

25% hit rate? Give that man an extension!

 

[SFspidur]

It’s 6 out of 18, with a couple of those being ties for 4th.

 

[VT4700]

Your posts are still infuriating. I swear you must be an AI program written by URFan1 to get us to repeat the same arguments so we keep returning to the board.

???

 

[urfan1]

It’s 6 out of 18, with a couple of those being ties for 4th.

you are correct I failed to give him credit for his 2 4th place ties

 

[GKiller]

we know Roche can shoot. we think Noyes and Tanner can shoot. but I doubt the 3 of them combine for more than 40 mpg.

If the O/U is 40 I’m hitting the OVER

But maybe a 1 or 2 star play not a bang it and thank me later mortal lock.

 

[ManiBenton]

I think some fans, myself included are just a little concerned we might have similar results this year.

I call it the Chris Mooney Cycle: make the tournament once every 10 years.

 

[brooklyn brownstone]

Like others, I talk myself into the best outcomes each preseason. Last year it was that Tyler was POY, Grace would build on his heroics and be a 12 ppg guy with more volume of shots, Nelson was the next great PG and the transfers would be consistent and fill all the scoring/rebounding gaps.

Well, same questions this year, minus the POY candidate and minus MFG. Quinn, Roche and Bigelow need to show up every game on the scoreboard, PG play needs to be a true strength and role players need to step in as needed across the board. And as always endgame coaching cannot snatch losses from the teeth of wins.

 

[fan2011]

???

That is exactly what an AI would say.

 

[SpiderGuy]

I call it the Chris Mooney Cycle: make the tournament once every 10 years.

Actually every 6 years. Acceptable to too many.

 

[Wood Hall]

You see Mooney got a picture with the A10 Championship Trophy? Closest that he’ll ever get to it this year

Bumping this thread. Not as an "I told you so," because I clearly didn't, but just because it makes for some fun reading. The great thing about sports is, you just never know. Never.

A-10 champs in men's and women's basketball and CAA tri-champions, playoff participants and playoff-game winners in football. Pretty good year for the Spiders.

 

[fan2011]

Bumping this thread. Not as an "I told you so," because I clearly didn't, but just because it makes for some fun reading. The great thing about sports is, you just never know. Never.

A-10 champs in men's and women's basketball and CAA tri-champions, playoff participants and playoff-game winners in football. Pretty good year for the Spiders.

ManiBenton won't see this because he is one of those posters that only shows up after losses to complain. Literally he has not visited this board since our last loss according to the stats shown when hovering over his name.

 

[Gallipoli]

I call it the Chris Mooney Cycle: make the tournament once every 10 years.

You were for the billboard, before you were against it.

 

[urmite]

ManiBenton won't see this because he is one of those posters that only shows up after losses to complain. Literally he has not visited this board since our last loss according to the stats shown when hovering over his name.

Spiderk‘s only 2 posts since Wichita were about the Buffalo game being 2 bad teams…

 

[spiderman]

Voters aren't buying the statheads' love of Loyola.

chalk one up for the statheads.

 

[GKiller]

Spiderk‘s only 2 posts since Wichita were about the Buffalo game being 2 bad teams…

SpiderK would post during good times too iirc. I wouldn't put him in that category. SpiderK had his own style that's for sure, but I admit he grew on me over the years and some of his posts could make me lol. With the red sweater crowd u don't know and I hope he's doing well.

 

[8legs1dream]

The great thing about sports is, you just never know. Never.

So true, the surefire team losing (or vice versa) has made a lot of money for a lot of bookies over the years.

 

[urmite]

SpiderK would post during good times too iirc. I wouldn't put him in that category. SpiderK had his own style that's for sure, but I admit he grew on me over the years and some of his posts could make me lol. With the red sweater crowd u don't know and I hope he's doing well.

True, he didn’t just post at opportunities to criticize. But every post seemed to mock somebody.
But after a while he did seem to be an equal opportunity mocker.
Our players, coaches, fans, refs, other teams players, coaches, fans…

 

[brooklyn brownstone]

My main takeaway from reading this was all the unknowns made questions logical. King shot 31% last year from 3? That seems crazy. Bigs 26%?

Also, GK's 1-2 star play on the over 40 minutes, went down hard. At present, it's one of the worst picks in picking history.

 

[GKiller]

My main takeaway from reading this was all the unknowns made questions logical. King shot 31% last year from 3? That seems crazy. Bigs 26%?

Also, GK's 1-2 star play on the over 40 minutes, went down hard. At present, it's one of the worst picks in picking history.

Swing & a miss but come on aren't we on the 5 star protocol? 1-5 stars then up from there to stone cold lock and then mortal lock. 1-2 stars is nothing.

 

[MDspider8]

ManiBenton won't see this because he is one of those posters that only shows up after losses to complain. Literally he has not visited this board since our last loss according to the stats shown when hovering over his name.

Saw this tweet from our buddy Mani last night...cracked me up!!

 

[brooklyn brownstone]

Swing & a miss but come on aren't we on the 5 star protocol? 1-5 stars then up from there to stone cold lock and then mortal lock. 1-2 stars is nothing.

ah, the ages old 7-tier system of betting. How could I forget this, everyone knows there are 7 tiers.

Spoken like a true gambler, I must say.