Coming Out Party

[rgoode57]

Gold, Ross, and S. Jones all had their MU coming out party against CMU. All three played a bit against Radford and either struggled or really did not do much in that game. But, in the second game, all three of them started to get into the flow of the game and each one showed strong signs of becoming really good players.

Against Radford, Ben Gold, in the few minutes he played, showed nothing. But, last night, he rose to the occasion, looked comfortable, and had a strong game. By the end of the year, he will be a really strong player who can play both low and on the perimeter.

Chase Ross had a couple of moves that were truly impressive, was in the flow of the game, and worked hard on defense.  He is going to play a lot of minutes this year.

Sean Jones worked his butt off, had a couple of lightning quick drives, and gave Kolek some much needed rest.  He is definitely a keeper and will be really good when he learns how to use his quickness a little better.

It will be fun to see how the youngsters do against Purdue.

[PGsHeroes32]

Ross did plenty against Radford

[Milkshakes]

Not sure I'm jumping on the Ben Gold bandwagon yet.   

I'm happy to drive the wagon for Chase Ross though. Dude is going to be a good one. 

[Elonsmusk]

Gold, Ross, and S. Jones all had their MU coming out party against CMU. All three played a bit against Radford and either struggled or really did not do much in that game. But, in the second game, all three of them started to get into the flow of the game and each one showed strong signs of becoming really good players.

Against Radford, Ben Gold, in the few minutes he played, showed nothing. But, last night, he rose to the occasion, looked comfortable, and had a strong game. By the end of the year, he will be a really strong player who can play both low and on the perimeter.

Chase Ross had a couple of moves that were truly impressive, was in the flow of the game, and worked hard on defense.  He is going to play a lot of minutes this year.

Sean Jones worked his butt off, had a couple of lightning quick drives, and gave Kolek some much needed rest.  He is definitely a keeper and will be really good when he learns how to use his quickness a little better.

It will be fun to see how the youngsters do against Purdue.

Nice post.  This freshman class looks to be a winner, despite the angst of some MOPERS here who weren't impressed with their recruiting rankings, and lamented that Shaka hasn't gotten "Burger Boys" or Top 50 players to MU yet.

Not sure I'm jumping on the Ben Gold bandwagon yet.   

I'm happy to drive the wagon for Chase Ross though. Dude is going to be a good one. 

I'm definitely on the Chase Ross bandwagon.  Adding both Sean and Ben to that bandwagon now too.  I'd posted over the summer that Ben Gold likely would surprise people, in that he's more athletic than what you'd think.  Ben has a REALLY high ceiling.  Like higher than Steve Novak and Sam Hauser as he's got a lot more bounce/burst than either Sam/Steve, and my feeling is he will evolve into a very good/elite shooter during his time at MU.

[Markusquette]

Ross did plenty against Radford

Agreed. It was a better showing for the other two by far, but Ross impressed in game 1. He's built like a senior already.

[TSmith34, Inc.]

I'd posted over the summer that Ben Gold likely would surprise people, in that he's more athletic than what you'd think.  Ben has a REALLY high ceiling.  Like higher than Steve Novak and Sam Hauser as he's got a lot more bounce/burst than either Sam/Steve, and my feeling is he will evolve into a very good/elite shooter during his time at MU.

Whoa there fella. It is nice Gold had a good game against a cupcake, but anointing him an NBAer seems completely Scoopish.

[noblewarrior]

A bit premature on this topic...? 😉 I'll wait for a more significant opponent where the impact of the performance has more  significance.  Do we yet know who the goto is?

[lawdog77]

A bit premature on this topic...? 😉 I'll wait for a more significant opponent where the impact of the performance has more  significance.  Do we yet know who the goto is?

OsoKam Joplek

[Elonsmusk]

Whoa there fella. It is nice Gold had a good game against a cupcake, but anointing him an NBAer seems completely Scoopish.

Scoop's gotta scoop..and speculate.  I'm speculating to the upside on Gold.  Believe he is a legit 6'10" and he did something last night athletically that Steve and Sam never did once in their college careers - take somebody off of the bounce and dunk on them.

[MU82]

Scoop's gotta scoop..and speculate.  I'm speculating to the upside on Gold.  Believe he is a legit 6'10" and he did something last night athletically that Steve and Sam never did once in their college careers - take somebody off of the bounce and dunk on them.

I've been encouraged by what we've seen out of Gold so far.

In the first game, he didn't have many openings to try to do much offensively so he didn't force things. He looked comfortable on the court - not at all like a deer in headlights. Last night, he looked for his shot and showed some good aggressiveness. And that driving dunk brought me out of my chair.

Looks like an above-average athlete with a good sense of the game.

As for how good he'll be ... as with all stuff like this, I'll go with "We'll see."

[tower912]

The freshmen looked fine last night.   Against Central Michigan.   All I want is for them to work hard and improve.   I do not expect them to be as successful against a Purdue or Creighton or Baylor.   Great if they do. A benefit to MU if they do.   

[Newsdreams]

I think the background at the Al works for us, play all games there. FIFO background, bad.

[Dr. Blackheart]

I think the background at the Al works for us, play all games there. FIFO background, bad.

Except on free throws

[rgoode57]

No doubt that playing at the AL made the freshmen more comfortable since they are used to it. (Also seemed to work for Joplin.) And I will not be surprised if they falter a bit at Purdue - both because of the better competition and the hostile environment. But, that's part of the growth curve. Central Michigan may not be the best team in the country, but they all showed improvement from the first game and showed what they can become. That's enough for now.

[Markusquette]

Really liked the atmosphere for the game last night. Was a fun one to watch.

[dgies9156]

I'm holding judgment until further into the season. This team has a lot to like but it also has a lot to learn.

Two things that came out of our first two games were inconsistency and mental lapses. The former was evident when Marquette almost let CMU back into the game in the first half and actually let Radford back into the game. Sloppy shot selection, exhaustion and bad judgement appeared too often. Last night in the second half, when Marquette went down the floor and attempted four three pointers in a row, none of which scored, I really thought they were exhausted and were putting up long-range shots rather than driving the middle and staying in the offense. Joplin got a little long-shot happy at one point as well.

It's fine to do this against CMU. They're not very good. But if this happens against Purdue, Mississippi or Wisconsin, we lose.

The mental lapses came when they tried to do too much -- passing before they peeked at the folks they were passing to. While the turnovers were down from Radford, they were still high and were still caused by not thinking something through. The turnover is the basketball equivalent of Brett Favre trying to force a football into a pinhole in a defense.

I was screaming at my TV over the missed free throws.

The good news is they won, though neither game will count for much when NCAA time comes along. The team plays well together and functions well as a unit. I sometimes think Tyler Kolek may pass too much. I see a lot of great things in the way Coach Smart coaches this team and it's apparent the team is reacting in a way they didn't under his predecessor. Our defense has been impressive as well, especially given how small we are.

Our team has a lot going for it. Here's hoping they can live up to OUR expectations! 

[Dr. Blackheart]

I'm holding judgment until further into the season. This team has a lot to like but it also has a lot to learn.

Two things that came out of our first two games were inconsistency and mental lapses. The former was evident when Marquette almost let CMU back into the game in the first half and actually let Radford back into the game. Sloppy shot selection, exhaustion and bad judgement appeared too often. Last night in the second half, when Marquette went down the floor and attempted four three pointers in a row, none of which scored, I really thought they were exhausted and were putting up long-range shots rather than driving the middle and staying in the offense. Joplin got a little long-shot happy at one point as well.

It's fine to do this against CMU. They're not very good. But if this happens against Purdue, Mississippi or Wisconsin, we lose.

The mental lapses came when they tried to do too much -- passing before they peeked at the folks they were passing to. While the turnovers were down from Radford, they were still high and were still caused by not thinking something through. The turnover is the basketball equivalent of Brett Favre trying to force a football into a pinhole in a defense.

I was screaming at my TV over the missed free throws.

The good news is they won, though neither game will count for much when NCAA time comes along. The team plays well together and functions well as a unit. I sometimes think Tyler Kolek may pass too much. I see a lot of great things in the way Coach Smart coaches this team and it's apparent the team is reacting in a way they didn't under his predecessor. Our defense has been impressive as well, especially given how small we are.

Our team has a lot going for it. Here's hoping they can live up to OUR expectations! 

MU do anything well?  YADI withdrawal I suspect.

[Jay Bee]

So glad I don't waste time crying over FTs!!

[tower912]

Us, too!

[Newsdreams]

Except on free throws

True but FTs no matta

[Newsdreams]

MU do anything well?  YADI withdrawal I suspect.

Let him mope Doc

[1SE]

If we can get 8 Matt-Heldtish minutes out of Gold in BE play this year I'll be happy. That might be enough to dance.

If he becomes a legit 15-20 minute 5 option we're going to blow away folks' expectations.

[Scoop Snoop]

The good news is they won, though neither game will count for much when NCAA time comes along. The team plays well together and functions well as a unit. I sometimes think Tyler Kolek may pass too much. I see a lot of great things in the way Coach Smart coaches this team and it's apparent the team is reacting in a way they didn't under his predecessor. Our defense has been impressive as well, especially given how small we are.

Our team has a lot going for it. Here's hoping they can live up to OUR expectations! 

The bolded is the bottom line for me. It was a really fun game and it was easy to overlook the team's umm..."shortcomings".

I really wish we had one more cupcake before heading to Lafayette. Although CM is just a cupcake, we saw some great moves by our guys that gave me high hopes for our future.. 

[Shooter McGavin]

If we can get 8 Matt-Heldtish minutes out of Gold in BE play this year I'll be happy. That might be enough to dance.

If he becomes a legit 15-20 minute 5 option we're going to blow away folks' expectations.

Agreed.

[willie warrior]

Nice post.  This freshman class looks to be a winner, despite the angst of some MOPERS here who weren't impressed with their recruiting rankings, and lamented that Shaka hasn't gotten "Burger Boys" or Top 50 players to MU yet.

I'm definitely on the Chase Ross bandwagon.  Adding both Sean and Ben to that bandwagon now too.  I'd posted over the summer that Ben Gold likely would surprise people, in that he's more athletic than what you'd think.  Ben has a REALLY high ceiling.  Like higher than Steve Novak and Sam Hauser as he's got a lot more bounce/burst than either Sam/Steve, and my feeling is he will evolve into a very good/elite shooter during his time at MU.

Higher ceiling than Novak?
Would be nice, but he would need to make the NBA and play 5 or more years. So pump the brakes for a while