Jim French Stepstool
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Everything posted by Jim French Stepstool
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I think it's good, provided he's earned the respect that an attitude like that needs to go hand-in-hand with. I suspect he's done that. Can't be easy to do that right off the bat when you're the new guy.
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They had a big advantage in strength & size not only with Crowl but at the guard spots. Credit the game plan w/ Hepburn taking advantage of that. That was a small team, but a very good one that played smart & made great decisions in the half court. Klesmit will never garner all-whatever attention, but that kid is really underrated. Great defensive possession late. They were able to switch everything with Crowl on the bench, Gilmore wound up on McGhee & just did a magnificent job forcing the tough shot. Both teams combined for 14 turnovers for the game. Just really entertaining & well-played.
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When I think of Devanney & his possible impact at the major league level I consider him a 3B. But the way we value versatility I expect he'll still be moved around.
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Wahl had some foul trouble last nite, but you're right he's had an off-year. Don't know if the misses around the hoop can be attributed to health or not. I suspect he's somewhere south of 100% because his defense has run hot & cold, something you seldom see once a player establishes himself. I LOVE the fact that Essegians' game has developed to the point where he can shoot so poorly from the field yet still find a way to score 14 points. Can't say enough about the versatility of his game. Liberty is really, really experienced, which you usually see when a mid-major has a strong year. They make few mistakes & shoot very well from 3. Their guards are small, so any of our guards save for Mcgee might be able to exploit inside. They also aren't big across the front, but again very experienced. Unless we can turn off the faucet on their shooting from behind the arc I expect a close game. They beat Bradley by 11 on a neutral floor.
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UW figured out some things defensively in the 2nd half, as they often do. Which they needed to. Bradley had more impressive weapons than I anticipated. This is what I think many expected from Crowl this season. Not scoring over 30 a game but finishing w/the added strength while keeping folks honest from 3 & hitting FTs. Nice to see the confidence grow as the game went on. One of the things that'll be overlooked was the interior passing tonight. Wahl, Crowl & Gilmore were all outstanding with the extra pass. If Davion Hannah has the skills & athleticism of his big bro with a little better control & decision-making, I'll take him.
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One of the big bugaboos from the Yoder era.......winning B10 games on the road. Beat a Michigan State team that was 5-12 in the league in the finale & they probably make it in.
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That was Detroit Mercy. A kid was on the verge of breaking Maravichs' record. On top of everything else, it would be accomplished playing a ton more games plus with the benefit of the 3PT shot & shot clock. The rumor of his team being invited was related to one of the other tourneys. I don't think the NIT was ever considering them. We're going through some severe extended family issues right now, otherwise my wife & I would consider going on Tuesday. It's obviously a far cry from the NCAAs. But it's also a far cry from a late October game with UW-Eau Claire or some such, which are true exhibitions. Certainly nothing to get overly pumped about, but looking forward to seeing if they can at least finish the season on a higher note than when they left Chicago. After witnessing the end of last football season, I'd plunk down money for this before I'd travel hundreds of miles to watch a low-level bowl game infested with opt-outs.
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They like to set up matches that will put butts in the seats if they can. Let's say UWM made it in, with UW. If they think that might draw a good crowd & one is a 2 seed they'll make the other a 7, even though that school might be deserving of a 6. In this case they might think Bradley brings a busload or two. I know the last time UW was in the NIT Illinois State brought a nice contingent of fans to Madison. One interesting side note: Davian Hannah, who the Badgers are recruiting, will probably be in attendance. His big bro plays for Bradley.
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I like Pikiell & the way he gets his kids to play. Having said that I've felt for a long time some media types really bend over backwards for that program, maybe due to the NY-area angle. I'll admit though, I thought they'd sneak in.
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Turning down a bid to this IMO would've been a bad look, not surprised they didn't go that route. A Fieldhouse appearance would be cool if they knew the attendance would be around two-thirds of a normal Kohl Center crowd, but they don't so they can't. It's a basketball game. Win it, so you can get another one.
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So, Bradley on Tuesday night. I last recall them playing the Braves in an early-season tournament sometime around 1990. If they win those who care about this are expecting them to meet Villanova but I have a feeling It would be Liberty & they'll have to travel to Lynchburg.
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Yeah, they could've been going into the last week needing a win or 2........to reach the NIT. Or as was pointed out, could've been comfortably in the NCAAs. I focus mainly on Kansas & the 2-pt loss to Purdue. They were a whisker away from defeating three conference regular-season champs, and only one of those three would've been at home. THAT might not be something a lot of bubble teams can say.
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Yeah, always some flawed teams when you let in 68. I agree they shouldn't be dancing. But I agree at the end of the day they may have been closer to the cutoff than you would think. A big reason for that is we see them close-up, and the "eye test" we subject them to has been quite ugly at times. And a lot of people became overly negative due to that. I heard media types who actually get paid to give informed opinions, who thought they had to win out to secure a bid when there were like six games left on the schedule. It'll be weird being in the NIT. Last time they were there was late in the last century.
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That reminds me of what they used to call "sonic booms". In the 1960s they were caused when the supersonic jets out on maneuvers broke the sound barrier. I thought they were kinda cool. But I was a kid & didn't care whether the windows shattered.
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Sure. It's tough enough to guard well for 30 seconds. Imagine how much tougher it is to do it for 35.
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So you've seen him regularly. How would you say he holds up defensively vs small, quick guards in the Summit? Does he ever take smaller guards into the post, or mostly float around the arc?
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Pretty good stuff there. Gard went back to the swing when he took over for Bo. Now it seems intermittent at best. It's ironic because I believe people like Freitag & Kneuppel could thrive with it, and Yalden & Winter look to be capable of opening the lane from the high post. In retrospect this group was probably going to lack consistency regardless of the system with the lack of finishing around the hoop.
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One more comment regarding the portal: I think everyone who clamors for a talent upgrade should, for a minute, put aside dissatisfaction with Wahl, or Crowl or Gilmore, or who should or shouldn't be on the team, and just for that minute put yourself in the position of a kid looking to transfer. let's say you're Brewcrew82s' athletic rebounder & shot blocker, which sounds good to me. When shopping, you look at Wisconsin & you don't see Crowls' lack of aggressiveness, you don't see Wahls' lack of an outside shot & problem finishing. You see two veteran post guys, both of whom started & averaged 11-12 PPG. You also see two incoming freshmen, one pretty well regarded & the other even more so. I'd love to be proven wrong, but you're probably going to keep looking. Same thing, maybe to a slightly lesser extent, with Mr. Athletic Wing. You probably don't think of how much of a better athlete you are, you see a kid who started & was all-freshman B10, plus another returning starter. It doesn't mean Gard shouldn't try. But we need to be realistic about it.
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Crowl's shooting % from 3 went down from his soph to jr year. His FT % went down as well. His touch was obviously worse. He shot a bit better from 2 pt range, and his rebounds increased substantially. Like I said, he added strength & despite your dissatisfaction was more physical than the year before. Not claiming he was Bill Laimbeer. But let's see if his touch returns to at least soph year levels. You said he needs to be above 34%. That season he would've reached that number if 2 of his misses found the hole. Two. Pretty certain Yalden isn't starting over Crowl. And I like Yalden. There are reasons listed in which a sitting coach can remove a players' scholarship. Some of those legitimate reasons can be dicked around with. If you expect that, I think you have the wrong guy leading the program. If you're concerned about roster space being cleared I wouldn't worry. I'm pretty confident the current climate in college hoops takes care of that on its' own. Even so, improvement in the performance & consistency of the current roster is job one. I wouldn't say that if there isn't room for growth. There is. Contributor to a top 4 Big Ten team? Neither was splashy, but Davis played in 27 games, & Gilmore often got minutes ahead of Carlson when the latter struggled. Like I said, nothing to write home about but they both contributed on the floor. Top 7-8? No. The trend I see in recruiting is that there's a class coming in that I'm very happy with. The next one or two are stories that have yet to be written. As I've said, those outcomes are very important.
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Frustrating thing is, they went from 18 down at half to 27 down at the 15:00 mark or so. If that doesn't happen you might be looking at a one-possession game with several minutes left.
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It'll have to be Crowl. And it's possible given his stroke his sophomore year. Big off-season for him. Yalden can shoot it, & I believe Winter can as well. At the beginning of next season I wouldn't be surprised if Gilmore is playing ahead at least one of the freshmen & there will be a few coronaries because of it. But Carter'll get passed at some point. I think the staff was gut punched recruiting-wise when Lamont Parris left for Chattanooga. I talked to him briefly once & he just has "it". Very energetic, personable guy. Krabbenhoft seems to have pretty good connections in the TC area, and I believe Dean Oliver does too. Sharif Chambliss can earn some chops if he's able to secure Davion Hannah.
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Davis (the one who I'SNT here anymore) would've made a big difference. Not for just the obvious talent, but the way people played off him last season. You're right, Hepburn, Wahl & Essegian never "took" to the increased role, even to the point of sharing it. What really disappointed me tonight was how crappy they came out in the second half. The deficit went from 18 to I think 27. If we just hold serve or cut into it by a bucket or two the 2nd half run--you knew OSU would give you an opening--probably makes it a 4 or 5 point game with several minutes left. Just too little too late. The failure on 50-50 balls--both rebounds & scrambles--has been frustrating most of the season.
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Wahl needs to get back to where he was his first 3 years. I really enjoy your comments on here, but I'm sorry that's about all I agree with from your list. Take Crowl. He was pretty soft his second year. This season he improved in that area. Hopefully next year he continues to develop & add strength. He's not a straight-on power center nor will he ever be. He's a skill big, who passes well, usually doesn't turn the ball over & can shoot. His added strength---yes, he's much stronger this season---has made him much better in the low post but has messed with his outside touch. That's only happened to guys who add strength about 5 million times over the years. Hopefully he gets that back. If there's normal development & added consistency next years' roster can have a lot of success. Would I take a shooting wing & shot-blocking rebounder? Who wouldn't? But you can act like George Steinbrenner & kick all on your list off the team & I still doubt the two types of player you want would see sufficient opportunity to come here save for Wahl leaving (And I'm pretty sure he isn't).
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I've never seen all 3 of Hepburn, Klesmit & Essegian get outplayed on both ends as badly as they did in the first half. OSU will probably cool off--that almost always happens--but you seldom see all three on the perimeter look so lost. Essegian hasn't looked this bad defensively in a long time. And yeah, OSU has "athletic" guards, but that has little to do with it. They've given athletic guards fits at times this season. I thought a big turn came when they cut the deficit to 8, then Wahl cut it to six with a layup.......except he didn't because he somehow found a way to miss it. Soon they were down 17. Big deficit, but with their youth OSU will probably leave the door open at some point. Don't know if they have what it takes today to walk through it or not.
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I'd put him a little higher than mediocre as a recruiter, but I agree his future with the program is more about what's ahead then the job he's done so far, which IMO has been great. I alluded to it once before, that I think the next 2-3 recruiting cycles are really going to be telling, at least to McIntosh.........not only Freitag but Knueppel, Davion Hannah, Kai Rogers, maybe Will Garlock. You don't have to get all those guys but you need to make a dent on the list.
