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Date Posted: 20:22:54 02/22/03 Sat
Author: Stagman
Subject: Speaking My Mind
In reply to:
spud
's message, "Chalk up another Loss to being thoroughly outcoached" on 18:39:53 02/22/03 Sat
Some of you might not like what I have to say, but hey, I've been following this program for 31 years and this is how I feel. You don't have to agree. Here goes.
As I asked the other day, has this team really improved? Aren't our complaints virtually identical to what we have griped about for the past few years? I've come to the conclusion that, even though they had a seven game winning streak earlier this year, what we are seeing now is the real Stags. The season is about 100 days old. They had a decent stretch of about 21 days or so. The remaining time has been pretty comparable to the past four years.
Sure we beat Manhattan and UNCW but every team TOT has fielded has pulled out wins against strong programs (see BC his first year, two George Mason NCAA teams and a strong Central Conn team that went to the NCAA's). Shows they certainly have the potential to be good, but they are just too $%^& inconsistent. And games like today suggest that they simply do not learn from their mistakes. I really fear that what we are seeing from this team in terms of victories is about as good as we will ever get out of a TOT coached team. They are simply not smart enough or well coached enough to avoid about half a dozen stupid losses every year.
They really are not much better than the teams fielded the past four years. Sure, they might finish 17-12 or something like that, but I really don't think that we have experienced any great step forward. That's a shame, because as Running Man suggested earlier, this year they had a chance to get it done. Sitting at 11-5 a few weeks ago, we all figured the worst they would do is go 7-4 the rest of the way and finish 18-9. Well fellas, they ain't gonna make it.
Take away their only inside player (Garcia) and you've got a very one dimensional team with NO inside presence next year. Think that team will get to 18 wins?
This program has not played ONE decent game in the last five years against all of the top level competition they have scheduled, yet the powers that be stubbornly stick to the routine of getting slammed by 30+ a few times a year. I used to think it was a novel approach. I now think it is a failed approach. But it gets us good recruits right? How good can they be if we can't win more than 15 games with them?
Just like the coach stubbornly sticks to substituting for players who are playing well. How is it that we fans can see this insane pattern, but the coaching staff can not?
I attended the George Mason/James Madison game today. I didn't have any particular interest in the game, but I was kind of interested in seeing Jon Plefka play for JMU (he is the son of former Stag Mark Plefka). Plefka is a freshman who rarely gets off the bench, but today he and some other bench warmers were inserted into the lineup about 3 minutes into the 2nd half. His team was down by 10 and sinking fast.
Within minutes the benchwarmers had gained the lead. Plefka was aggressive, got some boards, a steal or two, and hit some clutch shots and free throws. You know what? The coach left him in for pretty much the remainder of the game. Why? Because he was playing well. He didn't substitute just for the sake of subbing. Wow! What a concept! Our coach hasn't learned that one yet. I guess it takes longer than 5 years to grasp that.
TOT teams have consistently beat themselves by making stupid mistakes like today. No different than years past. No improvement from years past. We can say that TOT is a great recruiter, but I'm not so sure that is true. His players have virtually no understanding of how to play the game, and they do not appear to gain any learning from the coaching staff. His one "strength" is arguably not so strong.
Sure the game was close and we should take consolation in that right? WRONG!!! That's fine when you are playing North Carolina. You walk away from that game with your head held high. These stinking two point losses to mediocre teams are appalling. Terry O'Connor was the king of the two point loss. You know where it got him after a few years? FIRED!!
I laugh when I see notes like the one posted earlier today about merging with some A-10 teams. Heck, we struggle with the weakest MAAC teams, what makes us think we could play with LaSalle and St Bonaventure, much less Xavier, St Joes, and UMass?
The team will likely finish 12-6 or 13-5 in the regular season and that looks great. Remember, however, that they started the MAAC season 7-0 and it doesn't look all that impressive does it? TOT and Doris can say that he is the first coach to have a decent record in the MAAC and that is true. He never mentions that his .500 MAAC record is pretty skewed by the fact that he has been able to feast on the two weakest MAAC programs ever for the past 5 years (i.e. Loyola and St Peters). Take those teams away and his MAAC record is sub-par just like his predecessors.
fyi: Our chances at the NIT have all but vaporized. Might be for the best though. They'd probably draw Seton Hall and get smacked by 30 (again).
I'm confident that Coach O'Toole will be rehired. I'm not so confident that it is really a good thing.
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Re: Speaking My Mind -- Sobro, 22:15:03 02/22/03 Sat
Being that you brought up next year, allow me to put in my two cents. FF MUST FIND A BIG MAN WHO CAN DEFEND, BANG WITH THE BIG GUYS AND REBOUND. If he can score, that's nice, too , but it is not a necessity. There are two much needed shooters on the way in O'Sullivan and Van Schaick. Some have told me that O'Sullivan reminds them of Cantamessa from Siena. FF should be so lucky.
Let's look at the frontline. O'Sullivan, Deng Gai, Thomson, Maxwell,Fellecia, Carter, Logan (or another recruit) and the needed big man. Personally, I'd like a guy who takes up a lot of room, pushes people off the box, rebounds and outlets.
When you add Van Schaick to the backcourt, that gives FF FIVE guards. When was the last time FF had FIVE guards. I can't remember and this is a guard league.
I know there's still plenty to do this year, but its fun to look ahead. I just hope when we do, we see a guy in the middle we can't help but see. Someone who can body up Reaves, Jenkins and even the kid from Canisius.(Moton Spruil?) Somebody BIG!!! Real BIG!!! Big enough to work in the MAAC office!!!! OK, OK, not that big, but you get the idea.
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Re: Speaking My Mind -- Stag '89, 22:20:43 02/22/03 Sat
What's the point, the future is dead with TOT at the helm. We lose Delfico, Oscar and Deng and have marginal talent coming in. Let's face it, we are doomed to be mediocre in the years to come. Get used to it.
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Re: Speaking My Mind -- gostags03, 23:00:33 02/22/03 Sat
wait and see, there is no marginal talent coming in. there are great players and this team is going to be amazing inthe years to come
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Agree on needing a big inside presence -- JoeStag, 07:50:06 02/23/03 Sun
Sobro,
I agree that we need that big (weight/strength wise) presence underneath next year. And that was obviously our issue yesterday. But Garcia and Gai are big enough. Bit why did Thomson not play.????????????
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Re: Agree on needing a big inside presence -- Stag 92, 08:57:43 02/23/03 Sun
I know Thomson is our only other alternative, but he is certainly not our answer inside! This is not to take away from his work ethic, but he doesn't bring much offensively and is a foul machine on the defensive end (if he could only learn to put one of his feet, depending on the side of the hoop he is on, out of bounds to get a charge as opposed to a blocking call). We need a Shannon Bowman, Drew Henderson, or a BCs Danye Abrams.
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Re: Agree on needing a big inside presence -- JoeStag, 09:09:56 02/23/03 Sun
IMO, Thomson will be one the main options next year to replace Garcia's minutes, as Gai gets more time at PF. Thomson does not have near the the offensive game as Garcia, but he is much better defensively. His fouling has been a real issue this year.... but that was not a problem his frosh year (25mpg), nor last year.
IMO, Thomson is a very good position defender. He has started to be too aggressive on defense. he needs to be agressive on rebounding, and go back to his "solid" defense that he played his 1st 2 years. I beleive that last year he was 2nd on the team in drawing offensive fouls, after Kudjo.
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Re: Agree on needing a big inside presence -- Stag 92, 09:23:40 02/23/03 Sun
Thomson being our replacement for Garcia is extremely frightening, in my opinion. Garcia has offensive savvy and knows how to get to the basket. Thomson puts the ball on the floor, 2 feet from the hoop, and is constantly stripped. I'm not saying that he shouldn't see some minutes, but they need to be from the bench, when our better options are in foul trouble. I pray to God that TOT has a recruit lined up in the above 6-6 range, with some strength. Can you imagine where we would be this year without Oscar? I find this very scary.
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Re: Agree on needing a big inside presence -- JoeStag, 09:35:42 02/23/03 Sun
You would not have said that about Garcia a year ago. He has improved, and so will Thomson. When given a chance to play fulltime, Thomson has always done a good job..... but he is a totally different player thatn Garcia.
Picking up Garcia's inside offense will fall onto Gai who should get better on the inside, and Maxwell, who will get stronger. I would Expect O'Sullivan and maybe another recruit to help out.... but the other recruit is an unknown, and would not expect a frosh to come in and average double figures.
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Re: Speaking My Mind -- Posterboy, 22:35:02 02/22/03 Sat
Well said. This team has a good mix of both 'athletes' and 'basketball players' - to the credit of good recruiting. Most coaches would rather have a strong pool of 'athletes' - top D1 programs are chock full of the most athletic kids - but do these teams all go 30-0 for the season? The challenge for even the best D1 coach is to form a consistent team with the players he has. Look at Princeton! FF has the bonus of a mix of players who have the ability, through proper substitution, to adjust to just about any on court situation they may see - but it's the responsibility of the coaching staff to make it happen. I ponder the question of how much better our most athletic players will be next year. I also wonder how much better will the players with good, solid coachable skills be next year. For example, what did Maxwell learn in D'ing up on Reaves near the end of the game when Reaves ate him alive? Might've Thomson prevented that lesson in futility were he in Maxwell's place? How is this 'system' developing our players?!
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