Game Thread/Exhibition: Xavier v Kentucky Wesleyan (11/2/2022)

[paulxu]

https://i5.walmartimages.com/asr/2a1f45a0-e1cc-4202-89d7-1b7b5c27f309_1.3c18d8e111cdcd7e8a271effb6000907.jp eg?odnHeight=612&odnWidth=612&odnBg=FFFFFFVShttps://townsquare.media/site/76/files/2016/08/Wesleyan-5.jpg?w=630&h=420&zc=1&s=0&a=t&q=89

CINCINNATI --- The Xavier University men's basketball team will host Kentucky Wesleyan College on Wednesday night at Cintas Center at 7 p.m. in its lone public exhibition game. The Panthers, who hail from Owensboro, Ky., play in NCAA Division II and the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

THE MATCHUP

XAVIER UNIVERSITY MUSKETEERS
Kentucky Wesleyan College PANTHERS


TV, RADIO & LIVE STATS


UNKNOWN

[atljar]

I feel like past years have had video streamed by XU itself, with student broadcasters. I dont see any mention of that this year :(

[XUGRAD80]

I feel like past years have had video streamed by XU itself, with student broadcasters. I dont see any mention of that this year :(

I can’t remember any exhibition games being carried on TV or Radio ever. But there may have been some YouTube videos?

[D-West & PO-Z]

Starting lineup projections?

I am thinking:
Boum
Kunkel
Jones
Free
Nunge

If Claude is ready I think it would be great and better:

Claude
Boum
Jones
Free
Nunge

Thoughts?

[UCGRAD4X]

Starting lineup projections?

I am thinking:
Boum
Kunkel
Jones
Free
Nunge

If Claude is ready I think it would be great and better:

Claude
Boum
Jones
Free
Nunge

Thoughts?

Sorry.

My wife is always telling me how thoughtless I am.

[noteggs]

Kunk out tonight because of a foot injury according to Baum. Not sure there’ll start Boum at two and add Des at 1 or start Tandy or Craft. Should be interesting.

[sirthought]

Hoping we can see/hear a stream of this tonight.

[sirthought]

Here is a radio station that broadcasts KY Wesleyan games.
https://owensbororadio.com/player/?playerID=611

[noteggs]

Also, got this from Xavier app. Downloaded and seems to be working.

https://thevarsitynetwork.com/audioapplink/source/xavier-university:oas-1072/content/xavier:allaccess-Live-5598

[sirthought]

Actually I think this is the correct link.

https://owensbororadio.com/player/?playerID=606

[GoMuskies]

Actually I think this is the correct link.

https://owensbororadio.com/player/?playerID=606

Good find. Already heard these guys saying a lot of nice things about Cintas Center.

[sirthought]

Here is a radio station that broadcasts KY Wesleyan games.
https://owensbororadio.com/player/?playerID=611

This is the correct stream.

[GoMuskies]

Colby missed two FTs. Ridiculous!

Claude has scored.

[sirthought]

Des Claude scores the first points of the game.

[GoMuskies]

We're losing 5-4. Fire Miller!

[sirthought]

The announcers with that true Kentucky accent is cracking me up!

I've lived in KY for more than 20 years but I don't hear this everyday.

[sirthought]

X working to get some separation. Tandy and Freemantle are leading the scoring thus far.

[sirthought]

X turns it over on a five second out of bounds call. :dead:

[XU-PA]

They are running, and lobbing to the post on almost every possession

[Xville]

X working to get some separation. Tandy and Freemantle are leading the scoring thus far.

I’m excited for Tandy now that he has an actual coach. I think people are going to be surprised… kid has a ton of talent probably as
Much as anyone on the team, just needs to harness it.

[sirthought]

The announcers keep praising Cintas Center and the students at the game. They seem to be enjoying the experience they don't get with Wesleyan normally. True college hoops fans.

[noteggs]

This is the correct stream.

Yea this last one one worked. Thanks. Mine was obviously garbage.

Fill like a young again with bad reception and transistor to my ear

[bjf123]

Well, free throws are still a problem. We’re a shooting 60%.


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[noteggs]

Sounds like we need to work a little bit on defense?

[sirthought]

Xavier leads 45-44 at halftime.

Bad FT

[XU-PA]

X turns it over on a five second out of bounds call. :dead:

Freshman.

[bjf123]

Sounds like we need to work a little bit on defense?

Like a Big12 football game, defense was optional in the first half. 45-44 X at the half, and that was after no one scoring for the first 2-3 minutes.


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[letskeepitreal]

Wow, I hope this is just first game jitters. Shooting well but allowing the other team put up a lot of shots.

[sirthought]

They are lucky they pulled ahead there at the end. Wesleyan almost took the half. I guess they are a decent DII team?

Probably the right kind of game to get things rolling.

[XU-PA]

No defense.
X 45-44 at half

More importantly.
The cheerleaders need work. Only got to row 7 or 8 on the ball and t-shirt toss
And D'artagnon throws like a girl. I don't care if the 4th musketeer is male or female, but please work on the mechanics, you really need to launch those things. ��

[sirthought]

The real test will be for the dance team!

[sirthought]

Wesleyan has four steals?!

Overall I think Freemantle has been getting things done. 12 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block. He's been efficient.

[coasterville95]

Also to note the concession stands have gone cashless - boo!!


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[IM4X]

Sounds like we need to work a little bit on defense?

In the words of Gomer Pyle:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=5&v=2TnkJ8_BmSI&feature=emb_logo (https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=5&v=2TnkJ8_BmSI&feature=emb_logo)

[bjf123]

Also to note the concession stands have gone cashless - boo!!


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Think Quatman’s still takes cash.


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[sirthought]

Wesleyan has the lead well into the second half. These guys are shooting.

[IM4X]

What’s going on with these guys. A heck of a lot of rust on this team.

[noteggs]

3pt shooting still seems to be problem. 4-16 not ideal.

[sirthought]

They are 0-7 on 3pt in the second half.

We have a clear size advantage and X is only shooting 33% in the second half. Pretty much even on rebounds for the second half.

[sirthought]

Finally a 10 point lead after some slashers.

[bjf123]

Just noticed no Kunkel tonight. Nursing an injury?


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[XUGRAD80]

Just noticed no Kunkel tonight. Nursing an injury?


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Foot

[XUGRAD80]

80-62 is final score. Xavier closes it out with a 15-0 run

[IM4X]

At least they finished strong.

[Blue Blooded-05]

Claude led the team in minutes

[sirthought]

Colby Jones really turned it on in the second half. I hope he's not going to take a long time to get productive every game. I know everyone is still getting up to speed, but we've seen that behavior before from guys who can obviously dominate when they really try.

[GreatWhiteNorth]

I am sure Colby can shoot better at the FT line. X can sure use Kunkel to-night for his 3pt shooting
A very close game until X made the run in the second half.

[sirthought]

Yes it was actually close until the last four minutes.

Wesleyan coach comments after the game that his team worked to score inside and get to the FT line in the first half and they got too 3pt happy in the second. Wonders if they would have hung closer if they stayed inside.

[noteggs]

Question is - did an undersized team just got tired in 2nd half or did we play better D?

[Xville]

Trying to remain positive but these are not positive signs. Let a d2 team hang around for way too long after getting their ass kicked against one of if not the worst sec team this year. Not sounding the alarm but there are concerning signs.

[XUGRAD80]

Question is - did an undersized team just got tired in 2nd half or did we play better D?

Little of both I think.

[XUGRAD80]

Noticed from the box score that Miles only played 2 minutes and Edwards got 0 playing time. Yikes! They are thin on the frontline if one of those two can’t contribute. I certainly hope that neither Nunge or Free get hurt.

[Olsingledigit]

Little of both I think.

Listened to their post game coach interview. He felt our D made the run.

[xu82]

Thanks to all who have helped keep us up to date.

[xukeith]

I am sure Colby can shoot better at the FT line. X can sure use Kunkel to-night for his 3pt shooting
A very close game until X made the run in the second half.

Man Colby needs to work on that freethrow stroke. 3 point shooting for X was better than if Free and Hunter were launching shots. Good to see Tandy but he is a gunner. Nunge, Free and Jones stood out. Defense was iffy. SLoppy play but X made progress. Miller was very animated.

[xu82]

Man Colby needs to work on that freethrow stroke. 3 point shooting for X was better than if Free and Hunter were launching shots. Good to see Tandy but he is a gunner. Nunge, Free and Jones stood out. Defense was iffy. SLoppy play but X made progress. Miller was very animated.

Did he change shirts at the half? :-)

[bjf123]

Tandy has definitely bulked up. He seemed more intense on defense than I remember, though he did take a couple of ill advised shots.


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[drudy23]

I missed much of the first half, but here are my impressions:

- Freemantle and Colby played HARD - if those two give that consistent effort all year, there will be no concern from fans about this team's leadership. Was great to see from Freemantle - he's had an issue in the past with consistency. He looked locked in and ready to go. It won't be that easy against bigger opponents, but if that effort is there, he will be the Free we all saw great potential in early in his career at X. Colby impacts the game in so many ways - he still can't shoot, but does everything else.
- Apparently Nunge played a good first 10 minutes, which I didn't see - but he looked bored and disinterested in the second half.
- Claude didn't have a great first half, but you saw glimpses of what he can be. While he plays with some pace and tries to find openings on the drive, he doesn't seem to force the action if it's not there. Had a sweet dunk after beating his guy off the dribble. He does run weird however - ala bow-legged Kenny Smith, which will probably bother me all season. Also had, I believe, zero assists - has to make things easier for others.
- Boum - I'm hoping he just had a bad game, but he seemed to be the opposite of Claude - forced some shots, didn't make many, and forced the action too much. Much skinnier and smaller than I expected.
- Hunter - played his role pretty well. Stayed within himself and didn't do stupid stuff
- Kraft - I was most intrigued with him - not because of what he did, but what he didn't do. He's a shooter and a quick off the dribble pull-up type of scorer. He seemed very hesitant to be that guy. Seemed tentative to shoot and playing not to make mistakes. I guess that's to be expected with some likely jitters - but be you Kam Craft! Let that leather fly, because we NEED some guys that can make some 3's.
- KyKy - hit a three and looked to score, which I'm fine with. I honestly think he could be a "hot hand" kind of sub along with Kunkel. Was engaged on defense.
- Miles - same ole same ole - can't guard without fouling - picked up 2 quick ones and didn't play after that
- Caesar - ???
- Overall - our defense was positively atrocious in the first half. It was better in the second, but still alot of growth needed on the defensive end. These type of exhibition games are good because these lower level division guys play hard and want to prove they can play with the big boys. To their credit, they made some shots and played physical and hard. We still can't guard the 3, which is worrisome.

Not a great game, but also working out the kinks. We have 3 games to get some things right before the schedule gets tough - I'm hoping they don't drop one. If I'm being honest, I don't see this team as the 2nd best in the Big East, but should be a tournament team. Continue to get better.

Biggest concerns, and not surprising - 3pt defense and 3pt shooting.

[atljar]

And D'artagnon throws like a girl.
Im glad Im not the only one who noticed. That was painful to watch, like something you saw in the sandlot when Smalls was trying to play catch for the first time with step dad.


Aside from that, there's not much redeeming about that game. Colby and Free looked ok, but the rest of the team was unenergetic and TIMID. When we did try to play downhill, lots of relatively easy layups missed. Didnt draw too many fouls for the rediculous size advantage we had. The shots we did get at the line didnt go in (60% guess?). Had to be under 20% from 3 and under 50% FG . Just my eye test, havent seen the stat sheet but not pretty

[drudy23]

Colby and Free looked ok

Categorically false - both were excellent tonight. I will agree everyone else was pretty bland.

[Masterofreality]

Just listened to Sean's post game presser. What a freaking difference. Talked about GUYS not stats. That’s what a coach who’s attuned to his team does.
I didn't notice that Kunk was unavailable but he hurt his ankle (?) in the scrimmage. No mention of Cesare. Was complimentary of KyKy saying he he's lost 30 pounds from 210 to 180 and lost 7% body fat and has been one of the hardest workers on the team along with Free. They are working with him to defend better. And it sounds like Dez is going to be lead point guard with Boum as a combo guard.
A press conference talking like a Coach about players rather than a robot spewing stats.
How refreshing.

[Masterofreality]

Categorically false - both were excellent tonight. I will agree everyone else was pretty bland.

Sean said in his press conference they were the two best players on the court and complimented Free’s work ethic

[D-West & PO-Z]

Claude led the team in minutes

Yeah the Xavier app has Colby, Free, and Claude all with 33 mins.

Claude being the real deal from the start would be huge for this team.

[atljar]

Categorically false - both were excellent tonight. I will agree everyone else was pretty bland.


Poor phrasing on my side.... I meant they played a fine game, no complaints.

[X-band '01]

Just listened to Sean's post game presser. What a freaking difference. Talked about GUYS not stats. That’s what a coach who’s attuned to his team does.
I didn't notice that Kunk was unavailable but he hurt his ankle (?) in the scrimmage. No mention of Cesare. Was complimentary of KyKy saying he he's lost 30 pounds from 210 to 180 and lost 7% body fat and has been one of the hardest workers on the team along with Free. They are working with him to defend better. And it sounds like Dez is going to be lead point guard with Boum as a combo guard.
A press conference talking like a Coach about players rather than a robot spewing stats.
How refreshing.

I miss the days when X could blow out St. Bonaventure and Miller would still be pissed during the postgame conference.

[IM4X]

Being that I was not at the game, I don’t know how X looked. I did listen to the game however and I can confirm that the quality of their play sounded about as good as the quality of the station broadcasting the game.

It was a very shaky performance - at least for the first 36 minutes.

[Jumpin_Jamal_Forever]

Noticed from the box score that Miles only played 2 minutes and Edwards got 0 playing time. Yikes! They are thin on the frontline if one of those two can’t contribute. I certainly hope that neither Nunge or Free get hurt.

It will become self-fulfilling. If Free and Nunge are forced to play large number of minutes because we lack backups, they will almost certainly get injured. Then, lack of depth will bury us. Cannot believe, after four years, that Miles earned only two minutes of P.T. Holy smokes! Just one early season scrimmage but have to start wondering if the four-year investment will ever pan out.

Trying to read the tea leaves----Miller's lack of any reference to Edwards tells me that there is some kind of disciplinary issue with his banishment to the bench.

There is zero chance we can get to the top of B.E. without front court depth.

[Xavier]

I think Myles just stinks. You take some projects with bigs, he hopefully can just come in and give some fouls/rebound, I know he had one strong 5 minute stretch and the board was pissed Steele hadn’t been playing him more….but he just isn’t any good. Edwards I think can spell the bigs a little. Ultimately the problem with them and Freemantle is they all just suck at defense. I thought maybe Myles could help clog the lane and be a good help defender. It’s hard to be a decent defensive team with bad inside defense.

Hope you’re right, Sean may just be trying to send a message and Myles can provide some relief. I didn’t watch or follow the game at all but did watch Sean’s press conference. It’s a joy to listen to him talk about basketball in general, I’m thrilled he is the coach. Did think for a minute if Steele were on the sidelines and started the season with a bad scrimmage loss to Vandy followed up by tonight’s game….Thank God we aren’t in that position.

[atljar]

Just listened to Sean's post game presser. What a freaking difference. Talked about GUYS not stats. That’s what a coach who’s attuned to his team does.
I didn't notice that Kunk was unavailable but he hurt his ankle (?) in the scrimmage. No mention of Cesare. Was complimentary of KyKy saying he he's lost 30 pounds from 210 to 180 and lost 7% body fat and has been one of the hardest workers on the team along with Free. They are working with him to defend better. And it sounds like Dez is going to be lead point guard with Boum as a combo guard.
A press conference talking like a Coach about players rather than a robot spewing stats.
How refreshing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfxASUov6Xg

Agreed everyone should watch

[XUGRAD80]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfxASUov6Xg

Agreed everyone should watch

:logo:

A breath of fresh air

[nuts4xu]

Trying to read the tea leaves----Miller's lack of any reference to Edwards tells me that there is some kind of disciplinary issue with his banishment to the bench.



One can also read the tea leaves to mean Edwards isn't good enough right now to play minutes against in this system against a D2 team in an exhibition game.

[BandDad]

Good and bad on the first night in my point of view.
First the good. Freemantle looked really good, Colby looked much better in the second half (although get some arc on his shots please), Tandy looked good even though his shots didn't go down and I think Hunter looked strong as well (he didn't stand out, but he probably shouldn't either way. Just played tough defense, grabbed a few rebounds and didn't force any shots. Nunge was Nunge. Defense was much better in the second half once they started helping and doubling more on defense. Hunter and Freemantle combined for one three point shot, which Freemantle had to shoot due to shot clock.
Now for the bad. Cheerleaders and Dartagnan can't throw worth a crap as others have noted. The freshman looked like freshman (Craft looked especially lost). Boum seemed tenative and did seem smaller than I hoped (he make struggle some in the Big East). Ole defense in the first half. One out of bounds play was a disaster as no one ever looked to get open to get the pass. Would have liked to seen Edwards play at least some.
Lots of work to do before Morgan State.

[drudy23]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfxASUov6Xg

Agreed everyone should watch

Such a difference - invokes passion, credibility and capability. So good.

[D-West & PO-Z]

I will say this.....I will no longe be questioning why a certain player is or isn't getting minutes like I did the last couple years. I have full confidence that Miller will find the right guys the right minutes. I wont be thinking "this guy is so in over his head, even the fans know ______ guy is playing way too many minutes or not enough" etc.

Now I am not suggesting its going to lead to guaranteed success this year. I still think we have some big holes and are closer to tourney bubble than top 15 currently. These arent Miller's guys but I have confidence he will get the most out of them that he can.

[bigdiggins]

Also to note the concession stands have gone cashless - boo!!


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Now if they could get this done with the parkign lots. Remembering to bring $10 cash to park burned me a couple times last year.

[Jumpin_Jamal_Forever]

One can also read the tea leaves to mean Edwards isn't good enough right now to play minutes against in this system against a D2 team in an exhibition game.

The reason I suggested Edwards is being disciplined (and I really have no clue) is that he played some important minutes last year. Granted, he didn't play many minutes. But, he was good enough last year, under Steele, to capture some P.T. Yes, it was under Steele but when Steele got the hook, Edwards still saw some P.T. in the NIT. And, the staff has made some positive comments about Edwards potential over the last year. Since Edwards was just a freshman last year and he has so much potential, I expect him to be a much better player this year. He has had a year to improve his game and it is reasonable (I think) to expect his game to improve from year to year.

If you are correct. If he doesn't have the talent to compete at this level, I think this team has a real problem going forward. The Big East is a tough, physical conference. If Myles is not ready. If Edwards play isn't up to par, we have zero quality frontcourt depth. I don't see how we get through the conference schedule playing "small ball". As I noted in an earlier post, Free is prone to getting into foul trouble. Numge has suffered several significant injuries in his career. Tyrique Jones isn't walking through that door this season. We could be in big trouble if both Edwards and Myles are duds.

[xukeith]

We could be in big trouble if both Edwards and Myles are duds.

Elijah Tucker to the rescue.

[noteggs]

:logo:

A breath of fresh air

Refreshing indeed!

Knew Kyky lowered his body fat, but didn’t realize he lost 35 pounds. Impressive

[paulxu]

Somebody figured out how to roll the ads in the background of the press conference.

[X-band '01]

Now if they could get this done with the parkign lots. Remembering to bring $10 cash to park burned me a couple times last year.

Better bring $20s this year for parking in some places. It's starting to be as expensive as parking at DePaul's arena.

[bjf123]

One thing I didn’t like last night was the information on the scoreboard above the student section. Previously, the panels at each end showed team stats like offensive and defensive rebounds, turnovers, etc. Now, they’re just scrolling ads. Money talks.

It was nice to not see the Kills tracker on the screen.


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[noteggs]

One thing I didn’t like last night was the information on the scoreboard above the student section. Previously, the panels at each end showed team stats like offensive and defensive rebounds, turnovers, etc. Now, they’re just scrolling ads. Money talks.

It was nice to not see the Kills tracker on the screen.


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Yeah kill thing doesn’t have much of an impact for fans. Sad to hear they got rid of the stats. Big question, did they find a way to add the score to the new “score” board?

[xukeith]

Yeah kill thing doesn’t have much of an impact for fans. Sad to hear they got rid of the stats. Big question, did they find a way to add the score to the new “score” board?

Yes they did. It is a tad small .

[drudy23]

It was nice to not see the Kills tracker on the screen.


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When you go from Mack to Steele, who coached under Mack, you basically get used to a bunch of things. The kill tracker, the in-bounds plays, the offensive sets, the warm-up routine, the music, etc, etc. It was nice to see a fresh set of everything - no carry overs.

Except the band, they still play the same songs. Oh, and Mr. Brightside. Oh, and the bouncing X on the screen. The Cintas Center desperately needs that cheerleader guy that had a hose back. No love for anyone outside the first 10 rows.

[X-band '01]

I may have to go to a game at Millett Hall just to see if someone is tracking that.

[paulxu]

We need to find some people who can shoot the 3pt.

28% will make for a long season.

[xukeith]

When you go from Mack to Steele, who coached under Mack, you basically get used to a bunch of things. The kill tracker, the in-bounds plays, the offensive sets, the warm-up routine, the music, etc, etc. It was nice to see a fresh set of everything - no carry overs.

Except the band, they still play the same songs. Oh, and Mr. Brightside. Oh, and the bouncing X on the screen. The Cintas Center desperately needs that cheerleader guy that had a hose back. No love for anyone outside the first 10 rows.

I did witness Miller on the sidelines carrying what looked to be an index card. He probably was looking at plays or defenses to communicate to the X men.

[IM4X]

Refreshing indeed!

Knew Kyky lowered his body fat, but didn’t realize he lost 35 pounds. Impressive


Dropping 35 pounds is pretty impressive. What would be even more impressive is if he dropped 35 points in a game.

It seems Free’s commitment to getting stronger and more fit has directly lead to his improved production on the court. It would be great to know that was the case with other players like Kyky and Miles.

[IM4X]

The reason I suggested Edwards is being disciplined (and I really have no clue) is that he played some important minutes last year. Granted, he didn't play many minutes. But, he was good enough last year, under Steele, to capture some P.T. Yes, it was under Steele but when Steele got the hook, Edwards still saw some P.T. in the NIT. And, the staff has made some positive comments about Edwards potential over the last year. Since Edwards was just a freshman last year and he has so much potential, I expect him to be a much better player this year. He has had a year to improve his game and it is reasonable (I think) to expect his game to improve from year to year.

If you are correct. If he doesn't have the talent to compete at this level, I think this team has a real problem going forward. The Big East is a tough, physical conference. If Myles is not ready. If Edwards play isn't up to par, we have zero quality frontcourt depth. I don't see how we get through the conference schedule playing "small ball". As I noted in an earlier post, Free is prone to getting into foul trouble. Numge has suffered several significant injuries in his career. Tyrique Jones isn't walking through that door this season. We could be in big trouble if both Edwards and Myles are duds.

This is something I’ve been posting about for a few years now. The lack of production/quality play X has been getting from the front court bench players over the past few years has been concerning. Before Steele, X always had a third and fourth big who could step in and play almost as well as the starter. You could tell that those bench players would one day be very solid starters at the BE level. Tyrique is a great example. When he was a freshman, he had that “Wow, he’s going to be a really good starter one day!”

The past few years we’ve had to hold our breath when a starting 4 or 5 got injured or had to sit with foul trouble. That should never be the case. We could be in bad shape, if the freshman big we recently landed isn’t quite ready. Edwards and Miles just aren’t showing signs they could be BE level starters one day. I would be happy to be proven those two develop into dominant players in the post. I just don’t see it.

[IM4X]

Such a difference - invokes passion, credibility and capability. So good.

More specifically, he is able to articulate what he is and isn’t seeing out of every play. He doesn’t just make vague, canned statements that shield us from determining whether the coach really understands what is and isn’t working and how to fix it. Instead of Steele’s “We just need to get better” type of statements, we are hearing specifically what each player did and didn’t do well in a fame and what needs to be seen out of them moving forward.

Sean does it in a way where it feels informative to fans and yet still doesn’t throw any players under the bus. He has us all (or at least me) feeling that for the first time in 4 years, we have a coach who is capable of immediately recognizing and conveying issues on the court. He doesn’t sugar coat things. Instead, Sean leaves fans feeling that real concerns they are all having (issues they are witnessing on the court) are the same concerns he is having are that they are being addressed.

[sirthought]

This is someone I’ve been posting about for a few years now. The lack of production/quality play X has been getting from the front court bench players over the past few years has been concerning. Before Steele, X always had a third and fourth big who could step in and play almost as well as the starter. You could tell that those bench players would one day be very solid starters at the BE level. Tyrique is a great example. When he was a freshman, he had that “Wow, he’s going to be a really good starter one day!”

The past few years we’ve had to hold our breath when a starting 4 or 5 got injured or had to sit with foul trouble. That should never be the case. We could be in bad shape, if next year’s incoming freshman big isn’t quite ready. Edwards and Miles just aren’t showing signs they could be a BE level starters one day. I would to be happy to be proven wrong. I just don’t see it.

Consider who they've been developed by so far. Let's see what happens this year.

[IM4X]

Consider who they've been developed by so far. Let's see what happens this year.

Only caught a little bit of the last game. Supposedly Miles was ineffective and Edwards didn’t even get in the game. It leads one to believe Sean wasn’t able to get much more out of them between the end of last season and now. It will become a much bigger concern, if those two continue to be a non-factor by mid season. Someone mentioned that Tucker could be a player who steps up and helps out if those two can not. Is it possible he has a bigger upside than those two?

[xukeith]

I imagine Miles, Edwatds and Tucker probably are behind and have difficulty with the new terminolgy, and plays. Maybe they will gain Miller's trust by December.

[bleedXblue]

I imagine Miles, Edwatds and Tucker probably are behind and have difficulty with the new terminolgy, and plays. Maybe they will gain Miller's trust by December.

They're stuck behind guys that are going to play a lot this year.

I am surprised that one of them hasn't emerged early and earned some PT. Granted we are one exhibition game in. I hope by game 4-5 we have one of them part of the 7-8-9 man rotation getting some decent minutes.

[drudy23]

They're stuck behind guys that are going to play a lot this year.

I am surprised that one of them hasn't emerged early and earned some PT. Granted we are one exhibition game in. I hope by game 4-5 we have one of them part of the 7-8-9 man rotation getting some decent minutes.

I think it's going to be very hard to crack the Free, Nunge, Hunter rotation, especially knowing Sean traditionally doesn't play more than 8-9 guys. Major foul trouble will require it, but other than that, I don't think we see those guys unless there are blowouts.

[muskiefan82]

I don't think we see those guys unless there are blowouts.

Let's do that. I like this idea.

[drudy23]

Let's do that. I like this idea.

I am looking forward (hopefully) to where every buy game isn't a nail biter. The last 4 years I kind of went into every game thinking there's a way we could lose some of these buy games. I don't think we lost many, but many were WAY too close for comfort.

[muskiefan82]

It's the one thing that was different with the exhibition game. We kept it close the whole game UNTIL the last 4 minutes when X stepped up instead of playing okay most of the game and then making it way too interesting or losing at the end.