Crimson Red Sports

Another challenging game for the Tide. Xavier might be better than Dayton. Game is @ 11:00 am on ESPN2 in Orlando, part of the AdvoCare Invitational. We would play the winner/loser of the USC/Whichita State game on Friday. Xavier is ranked #23 in nation.



 :popcorn2:

Bama playing up tempo and has 2 layups. 4-1 Tide early. We are fouling too much already. Three fouls already.

We are being very aggressive going to the basket & rebounding. We have 3 layups & lead 6-2.




 :wave:

Another layup off a missed shot, 8-2 Tide. We have 9 rebounds, Xavier 3. Timeout.



 :popcorn2:

We better quit fouling through 3 Qtrs. we will be done. RTR!

Tide 0-9 on 3 pointers. Only saving us is 5 or 6 layups & rebounding. 13-8 Tide. Obasohan in foul trouble already & on the bench.



 :popcorn2:

Wow, mistakes galore. How do you stop this? RTR!

Yep. We have 2 players in foul trouble & Obasohan is the PG. He has to calm down. He had 18 points in our last game but he fouled out.

It looks like we don't have any focus on the game right now. We are just making to many unforced errors. RTR!

6:30 left in first half. Hall, true freshman, playing PG. Tide shooting 28%, but Xavier shooting 23%. Edwards has 3 fouls & joins Obasohan on bench. Tide 0-10 on 3 pointers. 14-13 Xavier.

Finally, a 3 pointer by Hale. 16-15 Tide. We have to hit 3 pointers to break their 1-3-1 zone.



 :clap:

Obasohan fouls, again! 3 on him & back to the bench.



 :wall: :wall: :wall:

Tide has gotten sloppy, too many fouls, & turnovers. Xavier 21-16.




 :facepalm:

We are like this is a sandlot game playing horse or something. There is no urgency at all it seems. RTR!

Hale hits 3 pointer before half. 27-24 Xavier at the half. Despite 5-8 minutes of horrible play by Bama, we are still in the game. We have 12 fouls, Xavier 5. Xavier now out rebounding us 29-22 but many of ours have been put backs.



 :popcorn2:

Tide hot & cold starting 2nd half, too many turnovers. 36-28 Xavier, timeout.



 :tinfoil:

Tide can't throw it into the ocean right now. Xavier playing good, 13-0 run right now. 43-28 Xavier.

They're Lt. Dan-ing right now. They ain't got no legs.

Xavier is experienced Sweet 16 team with good size. Tide fouling way too much & can't hit outside shot.
51-32 Xavier.



 :deadhorse:

Xavier 15 assists, Tide 6.



 :shake:

We can see for sure it will take Coach a while to get us to where we can be competitive. RTR!

Xavier 64 Tide 45  Final

Preacher, they are still trying to find chemistry. That will take some time. Glaring weaknesses are FT and 3 point shooting, particularly on the road. They will only get better.

OH yes, I totally agree. I didn't think we would be much different this year than last, till CAJ has time to get his system really drilled in place. I think we have a good future ahead. RTR!

Defense & outside shooting are a very big need. The poor defense is resulting in all the fouls being called.
Xavier very physical team under the board. They had 52 rebounds, us 32.


 :o

I think when CAJ gets some of those top players in here like Kentucky does every year we will be successful in winning some games. RTR!

THE GOOD

Donta Hall, true freshman guard/forward, showed flashes of promise. He had 6 pts & 9 rebounds & lots of energy.

Overall, good energy but out-of-contol many times.


THE BAD

FG  17/54  31.5%
FT   6/10
The play of Obasohan & Arthur Edwards


THE UGLY

REBOUNDS-Tide 32  Xavier 52
Final Score 64-45
3 Pts  5/27  18.5%
Assists  6



(http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-U37_DRZ-zGc/U8QoPHDxRdI/AAAAAAAADlU/5p0hw9DyR44/s1600/il-buono-il-brutto-il-cattivo_a6cb1c.jpg)

Whew!    Long way to go....

Perfect description. There is so much to be done but practice sessions are limited. This is at least a 3 year year rebuilding effort, plus we must keep adding quality players. It's frustrating but I understand the problem.


 :(

I know it looks and sounds bad but at least there is a ray of hope for better things to come. CAJ told us and now we just have to be a little patient. This is only the fourth game into the season and I think these tough games the team is now playing will only help them down the road more so than some easy wins.

They looked great for the first 10 minutes, not so great the next 10, and pretty bad in the 2nd half.  Dayton and Xavier are very good teams, losing is not entirely unexpected.

I know CAJ wants the team to play fast, but it looks like they're taking a lot of bad shots.  And fouls have been a problem in several of the early games.  Hopefully the team and fans won't get discouraged by the early losses.  I still think the future is looking good, but we're obviously not close to being where we want to be.

I think that CAJ will make some adjustments to the pace of their game soon to try and eliminate some of the silly fouls. I know he would like to play the fast paced game but I'm not so sure he has the right athletes to do some of the things he is trying to do right now. This isn't to say though that these same athletes can't improve enough to make that happen though.

The last game at Coleman, I thought there was a lot of ticky tacky fouls called. Maybe their game is too fast for the refs? ;)

I was always told that fouls are caused by being tired or, because your getting beat byb your man and there is to much reaching. RTR!

It does seem that refs have been really fast to call fouls on the slightest contact. Not sure if this a NCAA-wide change or if Bama has just drawn quick-whistled refs early in the season.

This is the major part of the problem, playing with other coaches players. We are in desperate need of a true point guard. Obasohan & Coleman are supposed to be PG's but Obasohan seems more like a shooting guard. CAJ has not recruited a PG so I am a little nervous, unless Coleman & Johnson, Jr. can develop into a functioning one.


 :dog:

I heard today that Bama has 8 games scheduled against top 25 teams?

A few tough games is one thing, but usually when a team gets whipped too many times, the kids seem to quit.

This may be one of the deals to play the tougher schedule and see how they react. If they play tough and improve at the end of the year we have a tough SOS to help us out toward the 64-team. RTR!

Not if Bama loses all these games.   :lol2:

Seems a brutal schedule for a new coach with a new system. 

It is going to be a long year. Dayton and Xavier are very good teams but they wore us out. Embarrassing losses. In both games we hung around for the first 10 minutes but were totally dominated the rest of the game. I thought we would lose these games but I did not think it would be this bad. We are not even competitive.

We play Wichita State today who lost to USCw yesterday 72-69 and is 2-2 on the season. They also lost to Tulsa. It is on ESPN3.

 

Last year Bama went to Wichita State and almost (should have) shocked the No. 11 Shockers.

This year, WS has some injuries and it not the same team as last year.  We'll see what this Bama team can do. 

 :popcorn2:

WSU graduated a lot of good players off last years team. It will be a diiferent team but they will be well coached.

Van Fleet, WSU's best player, has been injured. Don't know if he'll play today or not. If he does, I don't think we have much of a chance. May not anyway.

I watched Dayton play Iowa yesterday and what a ballgame it was. it was a game of two very good teams that was settled in the last seconds of the game. It's no disgrace to be a first year team and lose to teams with their quality.

I'm not looking so much at the wins and loses this year as I'm looking at the improvement of the team from game to game. It's pretty much hard to see any improvement when you are playing teams like Dayton and the likes but when their schedule gets to more of the norm I think their improvement will be more noticeable then.

I remember the years we had the soft schedules and were ticked off to not make the big dance so it's a coin toss of which is better for the team. I prefer playing the tougher schedule though because in time the cream will come to the top.

OUTSTANDING & EXACTLY TRUE!! This is a long-term project to rebuild the BB program.



 #+

I wondered about this game. I agree it will take a while and I also look forward to the improvement we see the players get each game. RTR!