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UMass Game Thread - 7pm Wed ESPN+

I think we have had more “bad weather fans” than fair weather fans in the past, haha. People who only show up when the team is struggling and then disappear when the team starts doing well. Luckily they have not been around much this year!
 
Yes, King had an off night, a bad game, which is gonna happen, especially as teams key on him. But we have to be able to overcome that. Our second most critical player to everything we do is Quinn and he also had a bad game. When both of them have that at the same time, you get what we got last night, which was largely an ass whooping, a game where we were never really in.
I don't think we can count on Quinn to pick up the slack when King has an off game. King is responsible for so much on our offensive end, that Quinn would need to score about 25 and get 5+ assists to make up for an off night by King and honestly - Quinn does not have that ceiling.

Maybe Bailey or Bigelow can step up from a points perspective, but again - I think a lot of their points rely on King getting them setup or getting the offense going. So while in theory - it would be great when King has an off night if we could just dump it in to Quinn on the block and rely on him to keep the game close - that just is not the case. Case in point - King has off game, and Quinn only gets 5 shots - even if he makes them all - still doesn't make a difference. If King is off - we would need Quinn getting 12+ shots and getting to the free throw line, and that is just not something he does.
 
I don't think we can count on Quinn to pick up the slack when King has an off game. King is responsible for so much on our offensive end, that Quinn would need to score about 25 and get 5+ assists to make up for an off night by King and honestly - Quinn does not have that ceiling.
No he doesn't. But when they both have bad games, we are probably going to lose and in a not so pretty fashion, like last night. If Quinn isn't off last night, I think we make a run and get the game close. Maybe we don't win, but we also are in the game, which we really weren't at all last night. Point is, Quinn has to step up way more than he did last night.
 
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Tyne is fun to watch, has speed, goes all in, no nonsense, drives to the hoop, and can score.
Just needs to be able to control himself better, like a car hydroplaning on a wet road. His steps are so
quick but there are times he makes up his mind too soon and ignores open shooters on the wing. Opposite of that Walz needs to gain more confidence taking short shots in the lane vs passing out automatically
 
No he doesn't. But when they both have bad games, we are probably going to lose and in a not so pretty fashion, like last night. If Quinn isn't off last night, I think we make a run and get the game close. Maybe we don't win, but we also are in the game, which we really weren't at all last night. Point is, Quinn has to step up way more than he did last night.
This is his 5th season and he has played in 131 games, I think he just is what he is at this point.
 
Neal's had big games for us. I think it's hard to play a big man's game will with a hip issue.
 
This is his 5th season and he has played in 131 games, I think he just is what he is at this point.
Exactly - Quinn is who he is. We know what to expect. You hope to get 10 points and probably 5 rebounds and maybe 3-5 assists (mainly because he plays so much on the perimeter).

Think of it this way - if King went down in a game or got into foul trouble - who would you want the offense to turn to for its offensive load? I am probably leaning more towards Bigelow, Hunt, and maybe even Bailey before I decide to give Quinn more touches or opportunities. I just am not sure he could produce enough to pick up the slack.

Bottom line is - if King struggles, its going to be tough for us to win. If Quinn struggles, we still got a chance to win (mainly because of King).
 
Agree with all of this. But in true freshman fashion, he also had several REALLY ill-advised shots. D-Lo too.
Seems to have a pretty good game all around especially for a freshman. Definitely agree on ill-advised shots. Can hit the outside shots, but needs work on that. If he can get cntl over and make higher pct outside shots, he's gonna be a heck of a player.
 
Yep, Tyne is a very interesting case. We know little guys usually can adjust to the speed of the game a lot quicker than big guys. But he is super at being able to stay in front of his man on defense, and get to the basket, and create opportunities. My hope is that his shot making will benefit from all the seasoning and experience this year. He is already pretty fearless out there, maybe a tad too much at some times. Still thinking we will look for another scorer in the portal for the back court. Hoping Tanner is ready next year, but not much opportunity this year so feel like will be more learning curve with him for next season.
 
Yep, Tyne is a very interesting case. We know little guys usually can adjust to the speed of the game a lot quicker than big guys. But he is super at being able to stay in front of his man on defense, and get to the basket, and create opportunities. My hope is that his shot making will benefit from all the seasoning and experience this year. He is already pretty fearless out there, maybe a tad too much at some times. Still thinking we will look for another scorer in the portal for the back court. Hoping Tanner is ready next year, but not much opportunity this year so feel like will be more learning curve with him for next season.
With 2 open spots, despite how amazing King is, I wonder if replacing Quinn is top priority. Not sure Walz or Soulis will be better than Quinn day 1 next season.
 
I actually think Walz will make a pretty good jump offensively knowing he is first option at the 5 and can play a little more free. I think he is embracing his role this year as a backup in there to bang around, get a few put backs, set picks, grab some boards. I think he has some upside offensively that will be unlocked when he gets to be the guy that stays in even though he makes a turnover or misses a shot or two. WE saw a glimpse in Florida, and another one vs LaSalle.
 
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all the playing with back to the basket comments from UMass game are like what was going on with Noyes. He played to run the offense, not to attack and exploit advantage. When Walz plays his better games, he's aggressive down low looking for some shots, mixing it up on offensive boards (at least as much as anyone does within UR game plan) and occasionally hitting an open 3.

When he's off, he's solely looking to pass, often trying to make ill-advised whip passes cross court, and nowhere near the hoop.

If Jordan is off shooting, better hope Bigelow and even Roche are making 3s otherwise it's a long game. Can't really rely on anyone else to give more than an occasional make from 3, and with those, usually at best around 33-35%. Dji has a better % but his volume is low. Bigs has to live at the foul line when Jordan is struggling IMO.
 
If Jordan is off shooting - better hope Bigelow and Hunt catch some sort of fire. I think Roche is non-existent at this point, as he has been for 90% of the year. Maybe he comes off the bench and hits 1 three pointer. But gone are my hopes of him being this electric shooter for us and having games where he hits 3-4 threes on a more consistent basis.

He has only had 6 games this year where he has made 2 ore more threes. Only 1 of them has been in A10 play. Right now - he is a guy we can play 5-8 minutes to give someone a quick rest, and hope he makes 1 three in that span.
 
Not sure who gets the blame for the Roche situation, but it's really odd. A bunch of solid programs wanted him last year and it was a major get for us to land him. I refuse to believe that he could go from being the best freshman three-point shooter in the nation to a bit player. That's not how it works.
 
Not sure who gets the blame for the Roche situation, but it's really odd. A bunch of solid programs wanted him last year and it was a major get for us to land him. I refuse to believe that he could go from being the best freshman three-point shooter in the nation to a bit player. That's not how it works.
The Roche situation was expected, or at least it is what I expected when we recruited him. His usage rate at Citadel and at Richmond are essentially identical at ~18%, which is very low for someone whose main role is shooting. He is playing the same way he was at Citadel, he has not regressed or anything he just isn't playing 35 minutes per game because we have other good players. He needs to find a way to get more shots up when he is on the court.

 
Roche came out of the game after hitting the three with a lower leg injury I believe it was indicated. He looked in discomfort on TV going back to the bench. I think he missed most if not all of the off season. Wondering how much thay has impacted him this season.
 
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Basically ZERO school spirit. I’m sure there are some sour grapes about the attention (and dollars) that the basketball team gets compared to all the other sports, but athletes are supposed to be representing their school. If you have to be there you might as well make the most of it. Another sign of how little sports matter to the student body. Too much “what’s in it for me” with this generation.
Do other athletes think about the $ bball and football get? I dont know of any who do.
Sounds very disappointing that these athletes didnt show support. Do we know which sports they played?
 
Do other athletes think about the $ bball and football get? I dont know of any who do.
Sounds very disappointing that these athletes didnt show support. Do we know which sports they played?
It was every other team we have, except for women's basketball, which was playing at vcu at the time.
 
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Not sure who gets the blame for the Roche situation, but it's really odd. A bunch of solid programs wanted him last year and it was a major get for us to land him. I refuse to believe that he could go from being the best freshman three-point shooter in the nation to a bit player. That's not how it works.
I blame myself. I really thought this would be a big year for Roche. I thought he would be starting, playing near 28 minutes a night and being a consistent shooter. I thought with King and Hunt handling the ball - he would be a the key guy to float around the 3 point line and get kicks out on drives, and also kick outs with Quinn in the post. I was hoping he would be getting near 10 points a night - probably making 2 threes a game, throw in a back door and then get to the free throw line - I saw him being a key player this year and it just never happened.

BUT - we might still need him in the A10 tourney. Depending on our seed and number of games we need to play, we might need him to play some minutes and catch fire. And maybe he wins a game for us and knocks down 3-4 threes in one game. He still has that ability. We just have not seen it this year.
 
It was every other team we have, except for women's basketball, which was playing at vcu at the time.
Strange. My son and his teammates went to every BBall game even when the team wasnt very good. That must have been a lot of seats to fill and maybe why the crowd was so dead. Should reconsider that event if students arent going to support the team.
 
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Are they going to spank both us and VCU sandwiched around a loss to La Salle? o_O
 
defense, pound inside, and rebounding, the umass formula
Surprisingly, they are not getting killed on fastbreaks despite trying for offensive rebounds! 🤯 (Oh right, when you try for them and get them, you don't need to defend the fastbreaks!)
 
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Surprisingly, they are not getting killed on fastbreaks despite trying for offensive rebounds! 🤯 (Oh right, when you try for them and get them, you don't need to defend the fastbreaks!)
Martin sends the offside to the boards and retreats the shooting side to defense. Good plan that's coached.
 
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