9-4 heading into CAA play...

[northernvatiger]

Not too shabby. Good couple of games this week with the positives being able to close out a tough Wofford team coming directly after the debacle at UAB, and dominating UNH with the game never in doubt. Would like to have the USF and UAB games back, but these things happen. Let's keep the momentum going and dominate the CAA!

 

[VCU4LIFE]

I'll drink to that!

 

[L72boy]

I can't complain tonight...pretty happy with the WIN!!!!!!!!!!

 

[ram4life]

Perhaps the OOC games did what they were suppose to do: prepare us for the conference games. Time will tell but I am confident with the team and coaches. Bring on the CAA! GO RAMS!

 

[mike7842]

We should be 11 and 2, with only loses to UR and UT.

 

[MattRock]

We should be 11 and 2, with only loses to UR and UT.

We should win the national championship this year.

I was VERY impressed with how we played last night. Good player rotation, we really took advantage of Brad/Jaime/Brandon, and not as many unnecessary turnovers.

I still can't believe we're struggling with the easy buckets, layups, etc.

9-4 ain't bad, and with a game like last night, starting to see the potential for a strong season!

 

[major ram]

this was a perfect game for us last night. the new guys got playing time and a chance to play in game conditions against a big and physical team. the got a chance to make mistakes and learn from then something difficult to duplicate in practice or in mop up time in a blow out.
i am not really concerned that the final spread was whatever, liked the effort and was impressed with the young guys. the future is bright as far as I am concerned but I am a certified homer. (hey, maybe someone can come up with a little logo for us homers to put in our profile...)

 

[fmrick]

Not too shabby. Good couple of games this week with the positives being able to close out a tough Wofford team coming directly after the debacle at UAB, and dominating UNH with the game never in doubt. Would like to have the USF and UAB games back, but these things happen. Let's keep the momentum going and dominate the CAA!

I would have loved to win all four that we lost! However, how many times have we been sitting on Jan 1 of a year saying we should have won games that we should have won, but lost? We were not favored to win any of the games we lost. No Western Michigan or Hampton loss on this schedule. And we are not starting the CAA schedule with a disappointing lose to a lessor team, like last year. So while we lost four, we were in each of the games, but for ur, and could very easily be 12-1 right now.

The CAA is looking strong, if you look at just records and RPI. But I think there are some flaws there. Our goal should be to lose no more than four in conference. Then by the end of the year we can have a team that is together, playing well, and ready to take the CAA tournament.

Go Rams.

 

[districtballer]

i am not really concerned that the final spread was whatever, liked the effort and was impressed with the young guys. the future is bright as far as I am concerned but I am a certified homer. (hey, maybe someone can come up with a little logo for us homers to put in our profile...)

Your wish is my command.

 

[ViCtorioUs]

The world certainly looks better from the perspective of a couple of wins rather than than a soul draining loss. I liked a number of things I saw last night especially how the frosh seem to be developing. DJ held his ground last night instead of trying to be a shotblocker and as a result he had a physical presence down low.

I am of the opinion that our best front line is Skeen, Reddic and Burgess. I realize that Juvonte will make some mistakes but it is obvious that this combination will afford us the best opportunity to rebound, defend and score in the paint.

Rob Brandenburg continues to impress. He does so many things well. Just bringing the ball up court his head is high and watching the court, he is effortlessly fast and his passing is crisp. Very nice attributes. I thought he filled in well at the point when Joey and Darius were on the bench in foul trouble. Speaking of that, what does Darius need to do differently so he is not saddled with so many fouls at the end of the game?

When Brandon misses a few shots you can actually see him hang his head, and he is slower getting back on the defensive end. Just keep shooting and do the things besides scoring to win!

Man, oh man. Jamie Skeen is fast becoming one of my favorite all time Rams. Just work on those free throws, big guy, we are going to need them.

If Brad continues this type of consistency we will be fine for the conference race. I'm not saying we will win the regular season title but come tourney time if Shaka continues to make the adjustments necessary, we avoid the injury bug and the frosh continue to develop at their current pace, we should be in fine position to make a run.

I think our glass is more than half full, but like DB I am an unbridled homer and optimist.

 

[DCDuck]

Rob Brandenburg

Brandenberg

 

[VCU Finance 2008]

i am not really concerned that the final spread was whatever, liked the effort and was impressed with the young guys. the future is bright as far as I am concerned but I am a certified homer. (hey, maybe someone can come up with a little logo for us homers to put in our profile...)

Your wish is my command.

Nice.

 

[MozingoWasFilthy]

Since anyone/everyone can get the auto bid in March, if you are an accomplished mid-major like VCU, the only purpose of the OOC is to put yourself in a position for an at-large. Richmond and ODU have done this AGAIN this year (they are senior-heavy). We have not (we are also senior-heavy). If you are loaded with seniors/juniors (which we are), you should expect big things.

Richmond got an at-large last year. ODU very well may have. Both ODU and Richmond are well-positioned for at-large berths this year as well. OOC mission accomplished (for them). Not for us.

On the other hand, we have accomplished practically nothing in the OOC (except for a neutral win vs UCLA).
First of all, nobody cares about home wins vs sub-100 RPI teams.........good programs are supposed to win those and everyone pretty much does. To even get excited about Wofford, New Hampshire, VMI, Tulane, UNCG, etc. is ridiculous. They are, and should be, no-brainers.

When you are a mid-major, you generally have precious few opportunities to make a statement (i.e. road games against quality opponents). We are 1-3 in true road games (win vs Wake - #183 KenPom). Our AdjD = 125 (awful). Our KenPom = 90. Three golden opportunities (Rich, S. Fla, UAB) blown.....and with it, any at-large hopes. 49-19 Richmond, 26-8 So Fla, 34-12 game-ending run by UAB. Three road games against quality competition, three meltdowns.........and we have a BUNCH of seniors/juniors (a luxury). That's what I see. I don't care about Siegel Center games (you get home cookin' from the refs and rabid fan support to boost your energy levels and confidence). The true measure of a team is how they perform under duress (true road games). That's when you find out if they're poised......that's when you find out if they're well-coached.....that's when you find out if they can overcome adversity.......that's when you find out if they're mentally tough........that's when you find out if they can execute/focus at both ends, play intelligently, and close teams out.

Our competition is:
#1) ODU..........four at-large resume enhancers...........Xavier, Clemson, Richmond, Dayton. KenPom #66. AdjD = 69. One true road win = @ East Carolina. Also played G-Town/Missouri...........nice RPI enhancers.

#2) Drexel........5 true road wins including @ Louisville, @ Northeastern. AdjD = 51. KenPom = 74.

#3) GMU.........2 true road wins........@ Duquesne, @ Liberty. AdjD = 56; KenPom = 53.

#4 VCU.........1 true road win.........@ #183 Wake. AdjD = 125; KenPom = 90.

Both GMU and Drexel are "significantly" younger than us overall...........and both play better D than VCU.

The biggest red flag is the AdjD (125). Teams are scoring on us quite easily. We are soft. We do not have a defensive posture/identity. No one protecting the rim, too small on the perimeter.

The second biggest red flag is the way we play with a lead..............pitiful. The number of opponent comebacks (and Ram meltdowns) is alarming. This ties in directly with our AdjD, our coaching, our poise. Can't get stops when we need 'em. Also, pressure bothers us (real pressure, from good teams).

Flashback: Our season (essentially) ended last year directly as a result of the above.............11 pt lead on ODU with 9:28 to play in the CAA semi. Couldn't get stops when we needed 'em down the stretch. Couldn't execute offensively (play intelligently) with the lead. Played scared!

Haven't seen much, if any, improvement in that area, or in the rebounding department, or in several other areas of deficiency. FT shooting is worse. Defense is worse.

So, to recap, we play average defense, we don't rebound, our TO margin is only +2.5 (despite havoc), we have only one signature win (UCLA, if you can call it that), we blow big leads, we get thumped by our rival/neighbor, we've struggled at home with VMI/Tulane/W&M/Wofford, we're allowing 70 ppg (quite high), we're 1-3 on the road, 0-3 on the road against Top 150 RPI, our competition is better-positioned than us for an at-large despite our senior-laden roster, etc.

Shaka's got A LOT of work to do......

Last yr and this year at Siegel Center: 24-1.
Last yr and this year away from Siegel Center: 12-12

Oh yeah, the good stuff.........yellow uniforms, two ESPN2 appearances over the Thanksgiving holiday, Theus/Brandenberg/Reddic are young.

 

[VCU Finance 2008]

Since anyone/everyone can get the auto bid in March, if you are an accomplished mid-major like VCU, the only purpose of the OOC is to put yourself in a position for an at-large. Richmond and ODU have done this AGAIN this year (they are senior-heavy). We have not (we are also senior-heavy). If you are loaded with seniors/juniors (which we are), you should expect big things.

Richmond got an at-large last year. ODU very well may have. Both ODU and Richmond are well-positioned for at-large berths this year as well. OOC mission accomplished (for them). Not for us.

On the other hand, we have accomplished practically nothing in the OOC (except for a neutral win vs UCLA).
First of all, nobody cares about home wins vs sub-100 RPI teams.........good programs are supposed to win those and everyone pretty much does. To even get excited about Wofford, New Hampshire, VMI, Tulane, UNCG, etc. is ridiculous. They are, and should be, no-brainers.

When you are a mid-major, you generally have precious few opportunities to make a statement (i.e. road games against quality opponents). We are 1-3 in true road games (win vs Wake - #183 KenPom). Our AdjD = 125 (awful). Our KenPom = 90. Three golden opportunities (Rich, S. Fla, UAB) blown.....and with it, any at-large hopes. 49-19 Richmond, 26-8 So Fla, 34-12 game-ending run by UAB. Three road games against quality competition, three meltdowns.........and we have a BUNCH of seniors/juniors (a luxury). That's what I see. I don't care about Siegel Center games (you get home cookin' from the refs and rabid fan support to boost your energy levels and confidence). The true measure of a team is how they perform under duress (true road games). That's when you find out if they're poised......that's when you find out if they're well-coached.....that's when you find out if they can overcome adversity.......that's when you find out if they're mentally tough........that's when you find out if they can execute/focus at both ends, play intelligently, and close teams out.

Our competition is:
#1) ODU..........four at-large resume enhancers...........Xavier, Clemson, Richmond, Dayton. KenPom #66. AdjD = 69. One true road win = @ East Carolina. Also played G-Town/Missouri...........nice RPI enhancers.

#2) Drexel........5 true road wins including @ Louisville, @ Northeastern. AdjD = 51. KenPom = 74.

#3) GMU.........2 true road wins........@ Duquesne, @ Liberty. AdjD = 56; KenPom = 53.

#4 VCU.........1 true road win.........@ #183 Wake. AdjD = 125; KenPom = 90.

Both GMU and Drexel are "significantly" younger than us overall...........and both play better D than VCU.

The biggest red flag is the AdjD (125). Teams are scoring on us quite easily. We are soft. We do not have a defensive posture/identity. No one protecting the rim, too small on the perimeter.

The second biggest red flag is the way we play with a lead..............pitiful. The number of opponent comebacks (and Ram meltdowns) is alarming. This ties in directly with our AdjD, our coaching, our poise. Can't get stops when we need 'em. Also, pressure bothers us (real pressure, from good teams).

Flashback: Our season (essentially) ended last year directly as a result of the above.............11 pt lead on ODU with 9:28 to play in the CAA semi. Couldn't get stops when we needed 'em down the stretch. Couldn't execute offensively (play intelligently) with the lead. Played scared!

Haven't seen much, if any, improvement in that area, or in the rebounding department, or in several other areas of deficiency. FT shooting is worse. Defense is worse.

So, to recap, we play average defense, we don't rebound, our TO margin is only +2.5 (despite havoc), we have only one signature win (UCLA, if you can call it that), we blow big leads, we get thumped by our rival/neighbor, we've struggled at home with VMI/Tulane/W&M/Wofford, we're allowing 70 ppg (quite high), we're 1-3 on the road, 0-3 on the road against Top 150 RPI, our competition is better-positioned than us for an at-large despite our senior-laden roster, etc.

Shaka's got A LOT of work to do......

Last yr and this year at Siegel Center: 24-1.
Last yr and this year away from Siegel Center: 12-12

Oh yeah, the good stuff.........yellow uniforms, two ESPN2 appearances over the Thanksgiving holiday, Theus/Brandenberg/Reddic are young.

It took all of that for you to explain that we haven't been good on the road so far? I don't believe that anyone has argued that we have been. Obviously being able to win on the road in conference will be the key to our season.

 

[xjohnx]

It took all of that for you to explain that we haven't been good on the road so far? I don't believe that anyone has argued that we have been. Obviously being able to win on the road in conference will be the key to our season.

No. It took all that for him to explain we're senior-laden.