Welcome back AUHoops fans! Hope you're all out of hibernation and ready for some AU basketball coverage! As Josh alluded to in his post, Sweet, Sweet Revenge Day has yielded, well, sweet revenge. AU beats the Honeybees of Randolph-Macon 61-55. It was a back and forth game, but AU more or less had control throughout. I'll point you to the AUEagles.com recap when it comes up, but for now, I know you're here for the GOOD, the BAD, and the UGLY!
First, the GOOD
Stephen Lumpkins - With 16 points, he and Vlad were the game's leading scorers. Lump did a good job getting to the line, but not such a good job converting from the line. He also didn't do a particularly good job finishing when fouled. Still, it's clear that he is going to be a force inside this year. Randolph-Macon really had no answer for him, they slowed him down at times, but could not stop him. Sweet moment at the end of the game when Lump picked up a loose ball and went coast-to-coast; he didn't finish, but seeing Lump as the biggest point guard you'll ever see was awesome. Seems like Lump is a bit quicker this year, moved well along the baseline and was more agile than I remember him being last year. Going to be a special season for the Unstumpable One, who also grabbed 8 boards.
Vlad the Impaler - 16 points and 9 boards for Vlad who finally, on the third try, sees his team defeat Randolph-Macon. He struggled a bit from behind the arc (2-6) and had some lapses on defense, but he moved the ball well and had some real nice shots. At times it seemed like he and Lump were tripping over each other in the paint. Like so many other things that can be improved, I'm going to chalk this up to first game jitters and rust.
Tony Wroblicky - To our surprise, freshman center Tony Wroblicky got a decent chunk of playing time (9 minutes) tonight. He played well and got 2 points, a rebound, and had a particularly nasty block. I was surprised that Tony got in to back up Lump. I figured Riley Grafft would serve that role, but Riley played as many minutes as I did tonight. Nice start for Tony; he's a player in the mold of Lumpkins and has a similar frame. If Lump can take Tony under his wing, the Eagles frontcourt will be set for a while.
Troy Brewer - Pretty good debut for Troy. 10 points, though he struggled shooting from behind the arc (2-6) and had four turnovers. When he knocks the rust off, it's going to be unreal because he is the most athletic guy on the court. I wish we had seen him drive inside more, but he was content to sit on the perimeter. He and Vlad seem to have some great chemistry and made Randolph-Macon look silly with some of their exchanges.
Mike Bersch - FREE MIKE BERSCH. Well, Jeff Jones did, which is GOOD. Unfortunately, for the write-up on him, you'll have to go to the BAD.
Steve Luptak - Steve's only points (4) came in the form of free throws in the final minute to seal the game. He got the start at the point, and played a pretty good game. He (18 minutes) and Danny Munoz (22 minutes) ran the point the entire game. For more on the PG play and on-going battle, check out Bobby's post from last night.
THE BAD
Scoring Distribution - In some ways, this is a complaint dating back to last season. AU had 61 points. Troy, Vlad, and Lump contributed 42 of those 61. We've got to get some of these other guys more involved in the offense. Yes it is great to have three scoring threats, but we've got to do a better job of spreading the points around.
Mike Bersch - Mike Bersch didn't have a bad game. I feel bad, to be honest, putting him here. Here's my rationale. I love seeing Mike Bersch play. I led the FREE MIKE BERSCH charge last year. I'm excited that he's shown JJ something in practice that JJ wants to see more of. But Mike has to take advantage of the minutes he gets, and I don't think he did tonight. Yes, he only played four minutes, but he missed two from behind the arc, and he still looked a little lost on defense a la last year. I don't want to be yelling FREE MIKE BERSCH all season, I want you to keep getting in the game! Come out and hang some 3's on St. Francis, Mike, and you'll head up the GOOD list.
Three-Pointers: We went 5 for 16 from three point range. Part of this is that Randolph-Macon did a good job blocking the passing lanes so we couldn't get it inside, but we went too early in possessions to the 3-pointer. With Vlad and Lump, and Troy and Hendra's ability to slash inside, we need to not fall back on the perimeter game the way we did last year. We've got too much talent for it this year.
The Fits and Spurts - We didn't play consistently in this game. We would go on runs where we played lockdown defense and moved the ball around on offense, and then we would slump and let them have wide open shots and make sloppy turnovers. Have to tighten this up, and I anticipate that we will.
THE UGLY
Just a couple of things here:
- Blue Crew attendance was sparse. Get out of the dorms and into Bender!
- Randolph-Macon won the turnover battle 18-12. 18 turnovers is too many with the experienced ball handlers we have. Half of those came from Troy and Vlad. There was some ugly passing that led to a lot of these. All of this will get tightened up shortly I'm sure.
Overall, I'm happy with how this game went. Could some things have gone better? Yes. But this looks like a team that already has a lot of chemistry. Once things like the passes to no one get resolved, this is going to be a very fluid team. The team is moving the ball better, scoring more easily, and playing more committed defense than they were a year ago. That's to be expected; we return essentially the same team as last year. It's encouraging to see the progress a year makes. Could we have beaten R-MC by more? Maybe, but as Hoop Time noted, Randolph-Macon is a very good team. Very experienced with a lot of depth. They had the lead a couple of times, but AU was in the driver's seat most of the game. Let's hope they stay in that seat the rest of the season.
Pro deo et patria and GO EAGLES!
Coach Jones is very high on Wroblicky. There are still some rough spots: JJ said that when the energy level in practice picked up this week, Wroblicky didn't match it, so there's some growing up to do. But he did come out and say that Wroblicky is Lump's backup. That's a big deal.
ReplyDeleteWhat's up with Blake? JJ continues to stress that he's worked hard in the offseason and is very much in the PG mix, but he's played a grand total of 3 minutes since January 9th. I was very surprised that he didn't see at least a few minutes last night.
ReplyDeleteGood question, Tom. We're wondering the same thing. I don't know how you're in the mix when you don't even get to take your warm-ups off. We'll see if it changes at all based on the closed-door scrimmage this weekend against Youngstown State. Maybe he'll get some minutes in the St. Francis game. Right now it looks like the only scenario he'd come in is if Danny and/or Steve got into foul trouble.
ReplyDeleteSadly the catchphrase "FREE BLAKE JOLIVETTE" doesn't have the same ring to it as "FREE MIKE BERSCH"...we'll have to come up with something else.
ReplyDeleteafter watching the game on the internet i think this AU team will only go as far as their guard play and perimeter game improves during the season. Luptak just does not have quickness, and Munoz while quicker is not quick. and both are at best average ball handlers. while each of these kids have other attributes, tight last minute ball games where ball handling and dribbling skills are important concern me- i hope AU guard play improves.
ReplyDeleteIn last night's game Lump had his way when defenders dropped back to help out on Vlad. How sweet it could be if Troy or our guards develop into a 3 pt. threat so that defenders cannot help out defending Lump and Vlad.
Jones will give more minutes to Bersch as he develops into a tougher player. He will play those kids who bust their asses in practice. i just hope that Simon the 3rd is one of them. That is Jones' DNA.
Saw the game last night, here are my views on their opening night performance:
ReplyDeleteFirst off, this is the deepest team AU has had under the Jeff Jones regime. We can legitimately put out 8-10 guys on the court that can play and compete.
PG: Our weakest spot on the court. Luptak can defend but is shaky in almost every other skill. Munoz isn't the defender, but is a threat to score out there. His handle seemed a bit shaky last night. Ultimately, our team will go as far as our PG play this season. I'm slightly concerned that this may be a very talented team's downfall. Simon looks tiny, he is going to need to be a an offensive demon to get minutes this season. Paging Blake Jolivette!!
Wing(2/3): This is where our improved depth shows most. Brewer looks taller, but painfully thin. I think his offensive impact will improve as he gets comfortable with the players and the offense. His defense left a bit to be desired, but should improve or he'll draw JJ's wrath. Hendra looks to be in shape at the start of the season, which is nice. He was quiet, but effective and made few mental errors. I am salivating over the sight of Hinkle on the bench, once he qualifies, I hope he can start at the 3 and push either Hendra or Brewer to the 6th man spot. McCormack now goes from being a starter to a utility/spot minute guy. Outstanding depth here now.
4 Spot: Vlad - Our most complete player. Really like his game. Stretches the floor and plays great high/low with Lumpkins. Bersch looked shaky in spot minutes. Right now we are going to rely on heavy minutes from Vlad until Bersch can become a factor. Perhaps Hinkle sees a little time here as an undersized 4. Riley can always play spot minutes as well depending on the matchup. Again, a sign of our depth.
Center: Lumpkins has turned into a MAN. I was most impressed with his stamina. He played a TON of minutes in the exhibition. I have faith in the big horse, but I do NOT want him worn out for the games that matter. Wroblicky/Fish/Grafft have to be counted on to contribute a little more to not put major wear on Lump/Vlad.
Moving onto Wroblicky: I had snuck into a closed practice a week or so ago and caught a glimpse of him. In the few minutes I saw him, he seemed to have very polished offensive moves in the paint. He is a load, posts up well, and at one point had one arm pinned behind his back and still caught the pass to him. He needs to work on stamina and giving his all in the couple minute stretches he will see, but as he gets into shape, watch out. Looking forward to four years of him.
My last comment is simply this: I don't have to watch one Patriot League game to know that this is clearly the deepest and most talented team in the conference, bar none. There are individual players (McCollum, Evans, Sugars, etc.) that will give us fits this year, but collectively we should have the fire power to shut those one man attacks down and impose our will. I hate to put such expectations on a team, but anything less that an NCAA berth would be a major disappointment.
Go Eagles!
Love seeing the analysis from everyone. Welcome back guys! And yes, AU Alum, I agree, an NCAA berth has to be considered the expectation with the team we have.
ReplyDeleteAU Alum, great analysis. I agree on almost all points - however, I do think there is one conference opponent that might be able to match us in depth and experience. Bucknell returns all 5 starters, which in the Patriot League is a huge strength, and they have a very talented big man in Mike Muscala who is one of maybe two bigs in the PL who can match Lump in the paint. At the same time, I think if all our pieces come together, we are still the more talented team and will come away with the victory when it counts.
ReplyDeleteJudging from the exhibition, AU is still adrift without a Division I PG. The advantage of having players like Moldoveanu and Lumpkins will be offset by ineffective point guard play. I'm not sure if there's anything can be done about this. Maybe the addition of Hinkle will change the dynamics a bit.
ReplyDeleteI will not assume another trip the the NCAA at this point. There is too much work to be done.