Ramblermania.net

ToledoRambler wrote:One thing that should be taken away from this game - as long as everyone stays healthy, don't give up on this team... even if we hit some rough patches during the rest of conference play. Regardless of whether we finish third, fourth, fifth, sixth, or seventh at the end of the season, if all these guys are able to take the court in st. Louis, we Will only be a few winnable games from an NCAA bid. They can do it. It's an ACTUAL POSSIBILITY for this team we have now.

If we keep playing like we have the last 3 games, which I think we will, I don't see us being a Thursday team. That alone gives us a good shot.

Blers wrote:Checking the stats. We won on the boards. 35-30. Also Shockernet is complaining about officiating which is something pretty amazing considering they shot 29 freebies to our 22.

The lowly Ramblers almost won at Koch...They have to find some excuse.

Blers wrote:Checking the stats. We won on the boards. 35-30. Also Shockernet is complaining about officiating which is something pretty amazing considering they shot 29 freebies to our 22.

Don't even want to hear what they have to say over there. I feel Illinois State is the team to beat this year. Of course that could change after they play.

Aren't you the same person who posted before about how you think this team is a "selfish" team? You couldn't be more wrong.

Yes, I am. I watch a lot of basketball and it's great that this team is meeting your expectations BUT this type of play won't win the big games. Great coaches teach the skill of basketball IQ through drills. For example, great teams/players will never go 1 on 3. They are conditioned to make the right play. Give up a good shot for a great shot. Pass the ball be patient and wait for the open play. I just don't see that with this team. They have moments when they play great but then they go back to 1 on 3 or let me take the last 3 shots and be the hero.

I'm not impressed by the player who would rather do it alone than with the other 4 players on the court. I hate to see it in high school, college or Pro.
I just see a lot of issues with this team. All that could be fixed. Not big problems, just a lot of little ones.
It's a shame your Coach has to run his starting 5 the whole game. Although I have never been to a practice, you can tell the other players are never seriously considered offensively. The whole offense runs through Milton so when he's not in the game it all breaks down. Coach should give the bench the same green light his starters have. The bench plays very stiff like if they make a mistake they will be pulled (which they are). It's a long season and having a bench that can contribute without punishment might help.

01grad wrote:

Blers wrote:Checking the stats. We won on the boards. 35-30. Also Shockernet is complaining about officiating which is something pretty amazing considering they shot 29 freebies to our 22.

That's their prerogative, but there were some terrible calls against us late. The one against Donte comes to mind. He had possession of the ball after fighting for the rebound, and they call him for the reach in foul. Was terrible, but that's what you get on the road. That would've been big, but we still had our chances.

I thought we got some calls, but yeah that one against Donte was rough.

Maaaan. Plus imagine if this team had a healthy Chastain/Andres. Woof. Gotta show a lot of love to the staff and players for what they've had to work through. That culture thing is truly growing.

I'd also agree down the stretch we certainly got some calls go our way. It evened out by the end of the game. Doyle got to the line at will for a stretch.

When the dust settles after tonight, we are likely to be alone in 7th place in the Valley. Must win Sunday.

sundevil12 wrote:Aren't you the same person who posted before about how you think this team is a "selfish" team? You couldn't be more wrong.

Yes, I am. I watch a lot of basketball and it's great that this team is meeting your expectations BUT this type of play won't win the big games. Great coaches teach the skill of basketball IQ through drills. For example, great teams/players will never go 1 on 3. They are conditioned to make the right play. Give up a good shot for a great shot. Pass the ball be patient and wait for the open play. I just don't see that with this team. They have moments when they play great but then they go back to 1 on 3 or let me take the last 3 shots and be the hero.

I'm not impressed by the player who would rather do it alone than with the other 4 players on the court. I hate to see it in high school, college or Pro.
I just see a lot of issues with this team. All that could be fixed. Not big problems, just a lot of little ones.
It's a shame your Coach has to run his starting 5 the whole game. Although I have never been to a practice, you can tell the other players are never seriously considered offensively. The whole offense runs through Milton so when he's not in the game it all breaks down. Coach should give the bench the same green light his starters have. The bench plays very stiff like if they make a mistake they will be pulled (which they are). It's a long season and having a bench that can contribute without punishment might help.

(a) It sounds like you've watched all of about 1/2 a game of "our" team this year if you think they play selfish. Last time you argued that, you were presented with facts that completely rebutted that, and were never heard from again. Until tonight. I guess a team that is in the top 50 nationally for assists is selfish, led by the selfish player who's nearly had a triple double two of the last three games.

(b) So tell us how you really feel about Doyle. It sounds personal.

ahunte1 wrote:When the dust settles after tonight, we are likely to be alone in 7th place in the Valley. Must win Sunday.

Agreed, but also take solace in that 2 of our loses have been against the top 2 teams in the valley. Don't think many of the teams ahead of us in the middle pack.

(a) It sounds like you've watched all of about 1/2 a game of "our" team this year if you think they play selfish. Last time you argued that, you were presented with facts that completely rebutted that, and were never heard from again. Until tonight. I guess a team that is in the top 50 nationally for assists is selfish, led by the selfish player who's nearly had a triple double two of the last three games.

(b) So tell us how you really feel about Doyle. It sounds personal.


I'm sorry that you feel I've taken this personal. I don't have any ill will about Doyle. I don't know him personally, never spoke with him I'm am purely going on what I see on the court. As I have said before, I don't have a dog in the race. I blog for several west coast bball sites and MVC is one of the conferences I have to report on. This team made a slight splash at the beginning of the season with the win against San Diego St and now I get to follow this conference until end of season.

The reason I speak about Doyle's play is because he is the clear leader of the team. A team is only as good as their weakest link and right now the weak link is your bench. I believe he has the coaches ear (based on the green light he has on the floor) but he doesn't use it to encourage the bench which is where those 12 shorted points could have come from. This game only had 5 players in double digit playing minutes. That is a HUGE problem. Look at the difference between the minutes of Wichita and Loyola. Granted you could say the players were better. I beg to differ. Wichita had several BENCH players with 2, 3, 4, and 5 points. The starting five shouldn't feel the pressure to score all the points. It's a flawed system

P.S. I also write on other MVC boards. Please don't think I'm picking on this team. I understand you feel this team is very unselfish. But I'm looking at writing on players and there is always only 5 that do anything substantial. Those same 5 are the only ones who get any real playing time. The whole program looks selfish from a writers perspective.