Opening Night Thoughts

[Masterofreality]

Lots of good...some concerns.

-Brandon Randolph is D1 ready. I'm still not sure how we stole him from LA, but great job by the staff. This kid was not nervous or overwhelmed by the Opening Night hoopla. 1 turnover. Super.
-Semaj won't be going NBA any time soon until he A) Makes free throws, B) Shows more of an outside game. He might have to play some 3 this year if we don't get more production from others there.
-Matt Stainbrook is the Truth. I knew that from seeing him at St. Eds, but now that he's back in shape, his game is back. 5-5 on FT's too.
-James Farr. What can you say but thumbs up? He doesn't jump that well, but he has a knack for being where rebounds fall. Good effort and his 3 pointer was smooth. They say that the biggest jump in progress comes between Frosh and Soph years. I hope his confidence continues to grow.
-Myles Davis. Gawd I hope that what I read on Twitter from Shannon was true..that there was no structural damage. I love this kid. The few minutes he played he showed plenty, including a good job of guard rebounding. We need that outside stroke.
-Jalen Reynolds. Has ability but a bad case of opening night jitters. He'll be fine though.
-IPhillmore & Eric Stenger- We got what we expect. I assume the reason for Stinger starting is to avoid early "over-energy" fouls on Reynolds and Phillmore. But please, E. Make some frees!
-Kamall Richards. Liked what I saw. Kid has obvious talent and, if he learns the system and can defend, could play some valuable minutes at the 3 where we do need help.
-JMart. Uhhhhh. Worrisome. Just don't see any improvement. I know he got knocked in the head, and I'm sympathetic to that, but we need help at the 3 and he's got to provide more. Man, I wish Remy Abell could play.

As to the defense, I still hate our bigs hedging. With the new rules, we will get way too many cheap fouls. I know CMack has his philosophy, and he's a lot smarter than me, but I just don't agree with it as an every time down, base defense.

A good start, but we will need way more from the 3 and Semaj as we go forward. Hopefully Myles is OK and with him, BRandolph and Dee coming back, our guard status is solid. Bigs should be productive. On to Tennessee.

[nuts4xu]

As to the defense, I still hate our bigs hedging. With the new rules, we will get way too many cheap fouls. I know CMack has his philosophy, and he's a lot smarter than me, but I just don't agree with it as an every time down, base defense.

GG and I had this exact conversation last night. How many fouls did we pick up hedging screens? We have hedged the high screen for as long as I can remember but I agree the new rules will cause us to pick up way too many fouls to continue with this defensive philosophy. If the refs are going to call that many fouls in a meaningless game vs GWebb, what are they going to do when we play a really physical team?

Xavier better adjust, and avoid contact as much as possible - especially when hedging on the screens.

[SemajParlor]

Can we lay off the negativity on Martin for once? The guy busts his ass and is trying to help his team win.

[Muskie]

Byron remarked on the radio last night that If he was a guard today with the new rules he'd run right at every big man and probably shoot 20. Fts per night.

I think teams will be happy to put a body on Semaj and make him take his points from the stripe. Fts have to be better. But it's one game.

[sgarcia]

Can we lay off the negativity on Martin for once? The guy busts his ass and is trying to help his team win.

At this point I think the coaching staff should really have Martin focus on his defense and rebounding. He's shown that he can be a very good rebounder and can really help make us into a very good defensive team.

[Masterofreality]

Can we lay off the negativity on Martin for once? The guy busts his ass and is trying to help his team win.

No less than Chris Mack said the Justin Martin needed to give this team more- on his radio show last week.

Not negative, reality.

[Muskie]

At this point I think the coaching staff should really have Martin focus on his defense and rebounding. He's shown that he can be a very good rebounder and can really help make us into a very good defensive team.

I like this idea.

[XU 87]

Can we lay off the negativity on Martin for once? The guy busts his ass and is trying to help his team win.

I have no problem with what MOR said about Justin. We do need more from Justin. And it's one thing to say "We need more from him" as opposed to "He sucks. I can't wait until he graduates."

[LadyMuskie]

And it's one thing to say "We need more from him" as opposed to "He sucks. I can't wait until he graduates."

Which is bound to come, following in the illustrious footsteps of Dante, Kenny, Jeff and others before him.

[The_Mack_Pack]

I was impressed with the way the guards boxed out. I remember when guys like Lyons would just stand and watch on defensive rebounds and not put a body on his guy. Randolph, Davis, and Semaj all boxed out aggressively, which is awesome.

[XU 87]

Assuming Myles isn't injured and Dee comes back, I think we're going to see a lot of three guard offense this year. You have to get your best players out on the floor.

[XBR1]

No less than Chris Mack said the Justin Martin needed to give this team more- on his radio show last week.

Not negative, reality.

Martin has a long way to go. 2-8 was the worst shooting night on the team.

[PM Thor]

When Martin got hurt late in the game, the announcer on TV actually said he had a glass jaw. I kid you not. They took him in the back, and that fool said that crap. It really pissed me off.

[Fireball]

Martin will have to get it going to make sure he keeps his spot in the rotation. There are a bunch of guys who will get in and steal his playing time if he doesn't.

I was very impressed by Randolph (obviously), and hopefully Stainbrook keeps it up. If he can be a contributor from the beginning, and not keep us waiting for a while like other transfers like Taylor and Philmore, that will be huge. He clearly has the skills and desire to be big for us.

[UCGRAD4X]

When Martin got hurt late in the game, the announcer on TV actually said he had a glass jaw. I kid you not. They took him in the back, and that fool said that crap. It really pissed me off.

Martin gets no respect. On this board as well as the broadcast. Maybe he was saying that JMart needs to show some grit. He may stand out by showing he can take a hit. The concussion issue is going to create increased caution any head shot.

[XUFan09]

The obsession with "toughness" when it comes to concussions and head collisions in general is part of the reason that head injuries became such a problem in the NFL and other sports. "You're feeling dizzy and seeing spots after smacking your head? Suck it up and get back out there." Just moronic.

Or worse, the player shrugs off a serious issue because they don't want to appear weak, so they don't even tell anyone. This was once compounded by a lack of knowledge that we more recently are beginning to solve.

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk

[GIMMFD]

Stainbrook is the real deal. He made some free throws too which is huge, I had someone compare him to Kenny Frease around me, but I think he's slightly different. The whole team needs to shoot 1000 more free throws at practice however, it's annoying seeing so many easy points being left at the line, I think Randolph is definitely going to be key this year. He makes good decisions with the ball, I kind of wanted to see Semaj attack more than he did, but whatever. It's a solid win, on to Tennessee.

[wkrq59]

When Martin got hurt late in the game, the announcer on TV actually said he had a glass jaw. I kid you not. They took him in the back, and that fool said that crap. It really pissed me off.

PM, that announcer was Kevin O'Neill.

[Masterofreality]

PM, that announcer was Kevin O'Neill.

Anybody wonder why Kevin O'Nucklehead isn't coaching anymore? How that guy keeps getting any job is beyond me.

[bobbiemcgee]

-Matt Stainbrook is the Truth

Incredible line for the big guy after a year and 50 lbs off.

[ballyhoohoo]

I was extremely impressed by all four freshman scoring in the first game of their first season at x.

[Muskie1000]

Stainbrook is the real deal. He made some free throws too which is huge, I had someone compare him to Kenny Frease around me, but I think he's slightly different. The whole team needs to shoot 1000 more free throws at practice however, it's annoying seeing so many easy points being left at the line, I think Randolph is definitely going to be key this year. He makes good decisions with the ball, I kind of wanted to see Semaj attack more than he did, but whatever. It's a solid win, on to Tennessee.

a.) Stainbrook catches the ball when thrown to him; In general, Frease DID NOT
b.) Stainbrook does not dribble every single time he gets the ball; It seemed like Frease dribbled every single time even when was is a foot from the basket and already had upward momentum and it made us crazy

[nuts4xu]

Great game, and great effort by James Farr as well. If we get that type of production from him every game, our frontcourt will create a lot of match up problems.

[jhelmes37]

a.) Stainbrook catches the ball when thrown to him; In general, Frease DID NOT
b.) Stainbrook does not dribble every single time he gets the ball; It seemed like Frease dribbled every single time even when was is a foot from the basket and already had upward momentum and it made us crazy

This. The differences between Kenny and Stain are so many it's almost absurd to put them in the same category. Stain isn't gonna win a physique contest any time soon. The only thing imposing is his height. Or maybe his rec-specs. But he understands foot positioning, ball protection, how to seal off a defender, etc. It was blatantly obvious for some reason that all evaded Kenny.

And there were a number of times where Stain got a lob inside and in one, quick motion, he caught the ball above his head, KEPT IT THERE, and gently laid it in while sealing his defender. I didn't see Kenny do that once in four years. He caught the ball, brought it directly to his waist, and had it stripped.

Much prefer the Big Stain. Sorry, Kenny.

[Muskie]

Remember Farr had a huge game against F-D last year as well. Although my hope is the production will continue... i think Tennessee will be a good barometer of the progress he's made.

[Masterofreality]

This. The differences between Kenny and Stain are so many it's almost absurd to put them in the same category. Stain isn't gonna win a physique contest any time soon. The only thing imposing is his height. Or maybe his rec-specs. But he understands foot positioning, ball protection, how to seal off a defender, etc. It was blatantly obvious for some reason that all evaded Kenny.

And there were a number of times where Stain got a lob inside and in one, quick motion, he caught the ball above his head, KEPT IT THERE, and gently laid it in while sealing his defender. I didn't see Kenny do that once in four years. He caught the ball, brought it directly to his waist, and had it stripped.

Much prefer the Big Stain. Sorry, Kenny.

Let me tell you why that is.

Eric Flannery at St. Edward is one of the best fundamental High School coaches around. His guys all learn the right way to play with solid basics. Getting Stain and his brother Tim at XU is huge. I hope it opens the door for more Eagles at X.

Eric has only won one State Championship so far, but that is only because of bad luck with injuries to guys like Delvon Roe over the years. He'll win more.

[Snipe]

I am a glass half full kind of guy. I realize we didn't play Kentucky, but I was impressed by the showing.

I didn't expect Randolph to be starting his first game. Without the injuries to Myles Davis and Dee Davis I doubt that he would of. That said I found his first outing as a Muskie nothing short of impressive. I imagine he will be starting against Tennessee and with a good showing he may never worry about not starting again in his career. When we recruited him I was puzzled. Our best player last year was our freshman point guard, one if not the highest rated recruit in our history. I thought it odd that our highest rated incoming kid in the next class would also be a point guard. How was that going to work?

After watching him play I think that this is going to work. I think he is going to be a very productive player for us. I know it is one game, but I am really pumped up about it.

As for Farr, he was impressive in short minutes, and if he can keep that up it is going to be a story. He is only a soph, and we could use him. I am excited to see if he can continue it.

I was wondering what Stainbrook would look like, and somewhat skeptical about optimistic projections of a MAC bigman coming to Xavier and playing at a high level. I am not skeptical anymore. I was very pleased with what I saw. I think that big man is going to be a baller for us in the next two seasons, and he converted me to a full blown believer. I love that kid.

I am feeling great right now. I can't wait for Tennessee. I think we are going to beat them. This could be a special year.

[Milhouse]

We won by 20+ and Semaj took 7 shots.

What a different a year makes.

[GoMuskies]

We won our opener by 40 last year, and Semaj didn't play.

[The_Mack_Pack]

We won our opener by 40 last year, and Semaj didn't play.

That team was also comparable to a JV high school team.

[GoMuskies]

That team was also comparable to a JV high school team.

Details

We won our second game by 15 against a single-digit NCAA Tournament seed, and Semaj took two shots.