Paradise Jam 2015

[ProudofPride]

South Carolina beat Tulsa in the championship game.
Canisius plays out next opponent, St. Bonaventure tomorrow night, so that'll be a game to watch.

Let's just hope this tournament was a good learning opportunity for the team. They know now that they have to step it up a lot if they want to win 3 games in 3 days.

[Hofstra]

I thought the fight this team showed tonight in the second half was promising. Yes, they sucked the final 2 minutes, but it was nice to see them fight back from 17 down.

One thing I would like to see is Malik starting, or at least playing more. The offense was a lot better with Rokas on the bench. I am not sure this kids deal, but his hands are cement, and his touch is not there at all. He looks like he is playing with weights on. How did he come from the number 1 high school program in the entire country and not make a transition to D1 ball? He needs to show a lot more for this team to be successful. He didnt play down the stretch at all, not a single second, and that is when we started to cut down that 17 point lead.

Also, whats the deal with Djambo? Any updates? Saw in the team picture thread that he wasn't going to be able to play until spring semester at best. We legitimately can't win games in the CAA with 9 guys.

[Flying Dutchmen]

Can anyone tell me when we actually had a deep bench. This is the norm for Hofstra. When you need grad assts to fill for practice something is wrong.

I really appreciate that the coaching staff is only filling the roster with players they believe can contribute on our level, if we have to play with nine, so be it, it's better than having 12 players but only 5 can really play at the CAA level consistently. I'm a Binghamton grad and follow the program closely, the "rebuild" has been a nightmare because the coaching staff refuses to bring in any JUCO or Transfer players, and routinely gives scholarships to players who have no business on a D-1 court, especially as underclassmen. Three seasons in a row Binghamton has had the least or one of the least experienced rosters in the NCAA, it's a perpetual rebuild. Mihalich has done such a great job getting players that both fit our system and have the physical talent to play at the CAA level.

Hofstra hasn't really had depth since '05. This year, I think 9-10 is enough just because of the quality of players we have suiting up. Buie and Wright-Foreman will be really good players, I think they can start contributing 10-15 minutes a night, now. Walker has to improve the body language, he simply does not look confident out there, he may be in some vicious cycle; no confidence, doesn't play, he doesn't play because he has no confidence. I think his athleticism will eventually shine through, he just needs to hang in there. Also, I have no problem with Robinson redshirting this year... he needs to improve his shooting ability. I like his overall game, but he doesn't do anything better than Koon, Tanksley, or Nichols. A redshirt year will benefit him a lot, and he can be a significant contributor on next year's team.

This loss still burns, mainly because the team (led by Juan'ya) dug so deep to get the lead, and they just pissed it away on stupid mistakes in the last 1:30. I think this team has the character to brush this loss off and use it as motivation, but my gut feel is we're not going to really turn it on until CAA play. This team feels like the '01 team so much, this Indiana St. game reminded me so much of that loss at Iona on the Gittens missed free throw. The '01 team needed a horrible loss to BU to really kick it into gear and ended up playing some of the best basketball ever played at this school.

Some thoughts on the Paradise Jam:

Our offensive execution drops off shockingly whenever Juan'ya's on the bench. Nobody logging major minutes but Malik can get their own shot, that's why I think it's imperative that JWF and Buie get some more time, I think they have that ability. I kind of agree with Hofstra that this team has flourished with Rokas on the bench this year, it happened in the Canisius game as well. But I think he had some bad matchups in this tournament, and will be vital in the CAA when we play bigger teams who like to establish their halfcourt offenses like Northeastern.

Overall we're just still too careless with the ball, it always stems from when we start shooting the ball poorly, it just unravels on both sides of the ball for some reason, we don't get back defensively, then we start forcing shots offensively. I really think we can start blowing out teams if we can limit some of these valleys by valuing every possession.

[daHUPride]

I agree with FD on a number of points, but:
* 9-10 is enough of a roster, but coach using only 7 of them in a game and just 5 in a half is silly with a 9 man roster or 25 man roster
* 3 games in 4 days is going to be tough - to have and sharing minutes saves legs and not properly giving rests to the core four hurt us this weekend
* I also have no problem with JR redshirting - his availability wouldn't make much of a difference for us now with DK, AT and MN - and those thre leaving next year makes JR more valuable next year
* AW not playing that is a concern to me - agree with his body language, but it has to more then just that
* for an experienced team (when MN is in for RG and the core 4 we have - we have 20+ seasons of college BB on the floor) - we don't play very heady BB - I do see somethings (backdoor cuts, slightly better zone D) that certainly gives this fan some hope but really I did expect those experienced players to out think our opponents
* still VERY confident this will be successful CAA season, 20+ wins and a shot at the dance

[Cards]

have to disagree with the Nichols vs Gustys argument. Yes, Malik is aggressive, motivated, and a good rebounder when playing against similar sized opponents. So his value only surfaces when the opposition goes very small. So yes, when Canisius did not have their 6'11" guy in there, and yes, when we up against a small Indiana team, we can get away with Malik "in the middle". That being said, we simply cannot rely on Malik when the other side is playing true centers or large power forwards. Games against SEC, ACC, or even A10 teams can rarely be won without some real size on the floor.

Now, Gustys is no Scott Eatherton, but he does exert quite a presence on the floor. Last year he averaged about 6 boards per game (with limited minutes). This year he's averaging about 9 boards per game. He will be the top rebounder in the CAA if he keeps that up. He's also averaging over 8 pts per game so far. So lets be realistic, this guy has potential to post a double double in almost every game. With those types of numbers, he would likely be a CAA all conference pick (maybe 2nd team).

Did Rokus play poorly yesterday - absolutely. Has Malik had some really bad games in the past - absolutely. So yes, it is frustrating when a perfect bounce pass goes off his Rokus hands and out of bounds. Yes it frustrating when his blows a layup. Yes, hes got to improve his FT shooting. But to suggest that we are a better team (offensively or defensively) with Malik on the floor rather than Rokus is a areal stretch. Sorry, but that's my opinion.

[Jojogunne]

I wouldn't blame Koon for this loss. He's a nice, all-around player who's generally reliable from the FT line. There were enough missed shots in the first 59 minutes of the game to turn it around. All we needed was one more basket, or one less turnover, to win.

Overall, the Paradise Jam was a good experience for our team. We probably didn't play three better teams all last year. Let's hope this tournament strengthens us for the rest of our schedule.

[Polito]

this is a good HU team... but what has become clear now is it's just not a great one yet. I actually put this loss squarely on the COACHING STAFF - there is NO excuse for HU to lose this game. Playing limited guys in a weekend tourney and burning your starting core is foolish and it cost them - and it will cost them the CAAT if they don't change. This unfortunately put a real damper on what could've been a great weekend.

this team cannot expect to win a weekend tourney with 7 guys, and 2 playing sparingly - that's just ridiculous - got to play Walker and the frosh more in situations like that - this is your roster staff, make it work. Rokas and Malik offer very different games, diff strengths / weaknesses - team needs 'em both. I don't have a huge issue with either at the moment, Nichols is a spark role player, and Rokas is a Soph who barely played last yr - the player in question to me is Tanksley - very disappointing so far, has made little to no impact - this Sr needs to step it up BIG TIME.

Not going to blame Bernardi or Koon for the loss - yes, both played poorly to end, no excuse for it, BUT this game should have NEVER come down to that - I want to know why the hell this team is CONSTANTLY having to come back from double digits down EVERY game? There's no reason for that with this club.

I also put this on the coaches - this staff downplays the regular season so much that I believe their teams don't take it seriously from the start - they do it for a game, but that attitude that's it's only about the CAAT needs to GO - it's a horrible BS mentality I think is permeating through this program - EVERY GAME MATTERS, so let's respect the game fully.

Can't bitch and moan about attendance expecting people to spend time and money to watch games you downplay - I know they care and want to win just as bad as we do, I'm just making a point that I really think it is a dangerous mindset - this is D1 ball, treat every game like the deciding one, and I bet your players will start doing the same

And yes, I get that right now the CAAT weekend is really what it's all about in the end - not saying that - just pointing out that if you don't treat every one with the utmost importance you can't just expect to turn it on for 72 hours - I just think it's REALLY scary that HU couldn't even win *2* games in 4 days...how exactly do they plan to win 3 in 3????? MAJOR concern in my book - and it really shouldn't be this yr.

The staff has earned trust to a certain point, but they have not earned any trust yet that they can win a weekend - this tourney did nothing to dispel that - if anything, I'm even MORE concerned they still aren't ready to handle business this yr - this was their only regular season shot to show they've got it figured out, and quite frankly they blew it. My early concerns remain until they show differently - need to make some changes ASAP - first, PLAY YOUR ROSTER - second, TREAT EVERY GAME LIKE IT'S FINAL

As I said, believe this is a good team that will win games - I love the players and the staff - it's def not all doom and gloom - but this is not a normal time, the expectations are high for a reason, and they've got to back 'em up - just having a 'shot at the dance' is not a successful season - this is the preseason #1 team with the preseason POY - this team is EXPECTED to win this conf, period, end of story - anything less is a failure - it's finish FIRST and NCAA or bust.

[garyg]

If we beat St. Bonaventure and LaSalle in our next 2 games I will forgive the Indiana St. loss...if I remember correctly LaSalle beat us up pretty bad last year with their inside game...what else is new right ??

[Wags]

As stated above, HU showed good fight to rally. But I see this Indiana State game as a disturbing loss.

Teams that have their sights on things like living up to expectations as conference favorites, winning their leagues and getting to the NCAAT don't rally from a 17-point, second-half deficit, to take a 7-point lead with 1:50 to go, only to let the opposition score the final eight points in a one-point loss. Rather, they put those games away in the final 1:50 and let a team like Indiana State do the pondering of how THEY let a game they should have won get away and wonder why they lost a 17-point lead in a loss. But of course, that didn't happen. That's a bad sign to not be able to close this one out.

Great win against FSU, but exposed terribly inside and gave up way too many points against South Carolina. A nice rally for a win against Indiana State would have painted a completely different picture about this trip. Instead, it goes down as one nice win but a disappointment overall. Hopefully, it's a lesson learned for the rest of the way, particularly for when it counts most, in CAA play during the regular season, and in Baltimore.

[Cards]

Funny how we evaluate success differently as the season progresses and we get wrapped up in individual game results and performances. Below is a one of my posts from earlier this fall regarding OCC predictions.

I'm going with 8-3. We play 6 good teams and 5 mediocre teams. 3-3 against the better teams is reasonable (Florida St, either DePaul or South Carolina, either Ohio, Tulsa, Ind St, or Norfolk, and then St. Bonav, LaSalle, Stony Brook). We must win (5-0) against Canisius, App State, Siena, FAU, and Sacred Heart.

So against the better teams we are at 1-2 following the Paradise Jam, and I think 2-1 against St Bon, LaSalle, and SB is very doable. That gets us to 3-3. We are 1-0 against the 5 weaker teams and I still see us at 5-0 by New Years. This would put us exactly where I thought we would be before the season started.

So maybe I need to take a step back and put into perspective the horrible Indiana performance, look at the big picture and maybe in 4-5 weeks time we will be exactly where I expected.....at 8W - 3L (not counting Molloy)

[daHUPride]

Funny how we evaluate success differently as the season progresses and we get wrapped up in individual game results and performances. Below is a one of my posts from earlier this fall regarding OCC predictions.

I'm going with 8-3. We play 6 good teams and 5 mediocre teams. 3-3 against the better teams is reasonable (Florida St, either DePaul or South Carolina, either Ohio, Tulsa, Ind St, or Norfolk, and then St. Bonav, LaSalle, Stony Brook). We must win (5-0) against Canisius, App State, Siena, FAU, and Sacred Heart.

So against the better teams we are at 1-2 following the Paradise Jam, and I think 2-1 against St Bon, LaSalle, and SB is very doable. That gets us to 3-3. We are 1-0 against the 5 weaker teams and I still see us at 5-0 by New Years. This would put us exactly where I thought we would be before the season started.

So maybe I need to take a step back and put into perspective the horrible Indiana performance, look at the big picture and maybe in 4-5 weeks time we will be exactly where I expected.....at 8W - 3L (not counting Molloy)

Cards you are 100% right - the big picture, before the games started 1-2 probably might have been viewed as a success in St Thomas - however getting the one W out of the gate against maybe the top-rated team changes our expectations to maybe a 2-1 record at the Paradise Jam, plus the way we played and were coached is the frustrating part, less about the actual record.
After this it is back to the big picture and getting wins where we are expected.
Happy Thanksgiving to All - Go Pride!!!

[ProudofPride]

Here's a short video about the team's ride on the catamaran. A few players are interviewed.
https://t.co/PQJT3wqNRw

[garyg]

South Carolina 15-0....we played them tough even though we lost game

[Polito]

yep, that's the best loss HU has - and funny enough it's that LOSS that actually gives me the confidence HU can knock off a big boy or 2 if they are fortunate enough to get that opportunity in March

USC is legit good. And experienced. Nice combo.

Really pulling for FSU too, they had a good OOC, but not so great yet in conf - ACC always brutal. Hopefully they perform well and bolster HU's win.

[Wags]

yep, that's the best loss HU has - and funny enough it's that LOSS that actually gives me the confidence HU can knock off a big boy or 2 if they are fortunate enough to get that opportunity in March

USC is legit good. And experienced. Nice combo.

Really pulling for FSU too, they had a good OOC, but not so great yet in conf - ACC always brutal. Hopefully they perform well and bolster HU's win.

The Bonnies picked up one vote in the latest AP poll today, so HU's win on their floor looks that much better right now.

[daHUPride]

yep, that's the best loss HU has - and funny enough it's that LOSS that actually gives me the confidence HU can knock off a big boy or 2 if they are fortunate enough to get that opportunity in March

USC is legit good. And experienced. Nice combo.

Really pulling for FSU too, they had a good OOC, but not so great yet in conf - ACC always brutal. Hopefully they perform well and bolster HU's win.

watch fsu play unc last week some time - fsu played very tough for +/- 30 minutes of the game vs a experienced unc team - final score was not indicative of way fsu battled