It's a Bradley week!

Birdswin

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I watched the replay last night. I would say the TV folks had filters on for the crowd noise. I can easily say it was much louder at the game, than what it seemed like on TV. Once our defense clapped down - the offense came on in a Big way. Lewis on Roberts, along with Fleming, Schmitt & McChesney on defense, made a Huge difference tonight. Only 8 turnovers did not hurt either. At least there is a reason for optimism for the rest of the season.
 

isuquinndog

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What a win. Dan out coaches wardle in the second half with one simple move. He said on the radio after that the team looked like in the first half a team that hasn’t practiced together in weeks. Cause they haven’t. Said freeman isn’t 100% and Liam couldn’t even run wind sprints on Saturday. He had COVID bad and has lost about 7 lbs.

I think the trajectory of this team is up now if they can stay healthy. Dan is getting a lot of buy in from this team, something he doesn’t seem like he’s had the last couple years.
 

DaveBird10

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Question: is it possible to score on us when Schmitt, Lewis, and McChesney are on the court together?

The lineup I am starting to like is when Dan has a combination of McChesney, Lewis, Fleming with Reeves or Strong at the 2 guard and Sy or Schmitt at the 5. McChesney, Lewis and Fleming just D up and its fun to watch. With that length and the way we can switch not a lot of MVC teams can do that.

To see that comeback vs Bradley was special and the Bradley fans sitting behind me were obnoxious in the 1st half, got quiet in the 2nd half.

SUCKS TO BU!
 
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Scipio

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We also had to tolerate some pretty obnoxious BU fans (but I repeat myself) in our section as well. I’ll give them credit for their passion and team support; but I loved the look on their faces at the end and I hope they had a long trip home.
 

Baltimore Bird

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Our length bothered PU so many times in the 2nd half. The # of tipped passes and steals were a big factor in the result.
Fleming is starting to become a ball player on the offensive end. He has no fear going to the basket. I actually wanted him in the game which is not always the case. He still has some upside as do the big guys (M&S). I really like our top 8 players. It will take some time, but Freeman will also figure it out again. He slumped and then got hurt, but he will get it back together over time.
I have watched ISU/BU games since the 70's and I still love it when we beat them. They are all satisfying, but the comeback and total domination of Bradley was so much fun to watch. Go BIRDS!
 

DWRedbird

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What a win. Dan out coaches wardle in the second half with one simple move. He said on the radio after that the team looked like in the first half a team that hasn’t practiced together in weeks. Cause they haven’t. Said freeman isn’t 100% and Liam couldn’t even run wind sprints on Saturday. He had COVID bad and has lost about 7 lbs.

I think the trajectory of this team is up now if they can stay healthy. Dan is getting a lot of buy in from this team, something he doesn’t seem like he’s had the last couple years.

I was wondering if it was COVID recovery for McChesney. At one point in the second half he was sitting on the bench with a towel over his head just completely gassed and trying to catch his breath. I'll also agree the team seems to have bought in to the system, and looks like the first team in the post Yak tenure where several members of the team really want to/take pride in defense.
 

Localfan

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That was a great second half!!! Bu sucks.

Speaking of sucking...the energy and crowd at RA. What the hell?!? We come back from 20 and the crowd is like “meh”? Why do people spend the $$$ for court side seats and act like they are at a funeral?

Go Birds!!!
Its been that way for decades
 

SgtHulka

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The Flavor Aid Crew undoubtedly enjoyed the first half yet were noticeably absent here

The Kool Aid Krew undoubtedly enjoyed the second half

The Hulka Platoon was in quarantine and watched the first half on TV in the barracks. Then Comcast lost the feed so we were forced to listen to Dick describe the second half. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Watching the replay now to see if it turns out any differently.
 
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Adunk33

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Muller said something a few years ago that stuck out to me and we're seeing it to come true. "You are your average." 1-10 from three in the first half, 7-10 in the second. 40% on the night. As a team on the year, they shoot 38.5%. If you take out Sy and Abdou's attempts its over 40%.

Admittedly, I was pretty pissed in the first half. "The team hasn't practiced in a while." That's fine, but these guys have been playing against offenses that use ball screens since at least Jr. High. They looked like they had never seen one before. At least 20 points in the first half were because of bad switches on screens. The second half defense was great. Obviously, Reeves gets a lot of headlines for his offense but the "identity" of this team could really be defense. The pieces are there, the consistency isn't.

I mentioned to some friends after the game that the team that played the first half, won't win a single MVC game. The team in the second half will be undefeated. Assuming that we'll have some continued inconsistency, 9-9 feels like where this team lands. Still not great, but significant improvement over last year.

@ Mo State would be a nice win, but I'm not expecting it. HAVE to sweep Evansville over the weekend.
 

Yogi

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enjoy the win then focus on the next game 1 game at a time for this team every game is a must win because they are so up and down
 

Redbird222

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Admittedly, I was pretty pissed in the first half. "The team hasn't practiced in a while." That's fine, but these guys have been playing against offenses that use ball screens since at least Jr. High. They looked like they had never seen one before. At least 20 points in the first half were because of bad switches on screens.
This 100%!! Muller said they didn't make any adjustments at halftime but I disagree. The birds switched on every high ball screen (whether they needed to or not in the first half). How many times did you see Strong and Freeman on Mast. Then our big would literally abandon the guard for a wide open look.

The second half they played it completely differently and they moved Lewis to guard Roberts. Freeman also sat out the second half which probably helped because he didn't look 100%.

Also this team cannot play the zone defense very well. We should forbid Dan to play zone against any half way decent coached team because they will carve us up.
 

Redbird222

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Some random thoughts after yesterday's game

1. Fleming's ability to drive and finish at the rim is so important. Ultimately I think it will help his passing. I think he sometimes looks to pass first and teams have picked up on that. If our opponents respect his ability to score, the passing lanes will open more and he should be able to capitalize vs having to thread a perfect pass.
2. Lewis is playing himself onto the all MVC defensive team.
3. I think Reeves literally broke some ankles yesterday. He didn't alway finish the shot but the ball handling and moves were quite impressive
4. We don't always give props to the coaching staff for player development but the progression of Reeves, Strong, and Fleming is quite noticeable. We can give all of the credit to the NBA camp for Reeves, but I am beginning to think that this staff deserves some due based on the improvement of other players too. I would also note that Lewis appears to be doing better offensively than at Appalachian State and McChesney barely played at Utah St and is starting to make an impact.
5. Many folks have noted what McChesney and Schmidt bring to the table. I think having at least 2 of the following four on the floor greatly improves our defense. 3 of 4 is even better

1. Lewis
2. Fleming
3. McChesney
4. Schmidt


6. We have players that play a lot of minutes. I think it's going to important that we have 9 capable players for the weeks where we play 4 games in a short period and if we play three consecutive days in St Louis. We will need The good Freeman once his ankle is healed.

7. Coach Johnson > Reese
8. This team has better chemistry than the two previous years. I know Muller said last year's team got along but I think there is better accountability and they are not as selfish.
9. Kotov may be the happiest player that never plays. This is just an observation but he always seems to be smiling and engaging with his teammates. Props to him for bringing a positive attitude
10. The offensive efficiency with this team when they take care of the ball is incredible. They have shown flashes of being able to control the turnovers lately (maybe due to Reeves and Strong handling the ball.more as some have alluded)
11. I know Loyola, MSU, Drake and UNI are the top four teams in the Valley as predicted; however, I thought they would be more dominant then they are. The odds are not in Bradley, Trees, Salukis, and Birds favor. but I think there is a possibility one of them makes some noise in the MVC.

There is still room for significant improvement in a few areas but the kool-aid is tasting good today.
 

Bird Friend

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From Benson: Watch now: Illinois State rallies from 20-point deficit to beat Bradley

Muller's not the only one saying his guys don't get it when things are going bad:

"It's been our season a little bit, inconsistent play. Good first half, horrible second half, embarrassing second half," said Bradley head coach Brian Wardle. "We didn't compete. We were in our own worlds and got selfish. Tough team to coach in the second half. We had five separate guys out there in their own world and we could not get them on the same page. I've never given up a lead like that in my coaching career."
 

Redbird222

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Racine Bird 3813

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Hell of a comeback win! Bradley sucks! I hope we can start to string some wins together. Other than Loyola the league is up for grabs. And Loyola has looks susceptible.
 

Loyl2u

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Crap. I showed up Saturday, and thought the game must have been a Covid cancel. Thanks Quinn.

Congrats to the Birds.
This 100%!! Muller said they didn't make any adjustments at halftime but I disagree. The birds switched on every high ball screen (whether they needed to or not in the first half). How many times did you see Strong and Freeman on Mast. Then our big would literally abandon the guard for a wide open look.

The second half they played it completely differently and they moved Lewis to guard Roberts. Freeman also sat out the second half which probably helped because he didn't look 100%.

Also this team cannot play the zone defense very well. We should forbid Dan to play zone against any half way decent coached team because they will carve us up.
100%- or in one case, Freeman was left under the basket with Mast for a bunny. Couldn’t understand either that approach initially or why they didn’t adjust in first half- I know I was yelling for it! That, putting the ball in Reeves hands out front to create(he is wasted most of time when they put him in the corner) and then looked like playing Schmitt, Lewis & McChessney at the same time again created the defensive shutdown in the 2nd half, like Whisky. The zone can only be used to bust a set play coming out of TO, etc.
 

SgtHulka

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100%- or in one case, Freeman was left under the basket with Mast for a bunny. Couldn’t understand either that approach initially or why they didn’t adjust in first half- I know I was yelling for it! That, putting the ball in Reeves hands out front to create(he is wasted most of time when they put him in the corner) and then looked like playing Schmitt, Lewis & McChessney at the same time again created the defensive shutdown in the 2nd half, like Whisky. The zone can only be used to bust a set play coming out of TO, etc.
Freeman got caught guarding a big in the post at least 3 other times after a defensive switch on a screen at the perimeter. Each time I thought here comes a bunny, but instead they nailed a 3. In retrospect the bunny would have been better, but that was a big defensive issue early in the game.

I'm guessing he sat, more for conditioning later, plus we were rolling the rest of the game

He was doing a slalom skiing hop at the end of the game as the team celebrated ( at first I though he was favoring his ankle again) so I'm guessing his ankle is doing well.
 

DaveBird10

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Freeman got caught guarding a big in the post at least 3 other times after a defensive switch on a screen at the perimeter. Each time I thought here comes a bunny, but instead they nailed a 3. In retrospect the bunny would have been better, but that was a big defensive issue early in the game.

I'm guessing he sat, more for conditioning later, plus we were rolling the rest of the game

He was doing a slalom skiing hop at the end of the game as the team celebrated ( at first I though he was favoring his ankle again) so I'm guessing his ankle is doing well.
100%- or in one case, Freeman was left under the basket with Mast for a bunny. Couldn’t understand either that approach initially or why they didn’t adjust in first half- I know I was yelling for it! That, putting the ball in Reeves hands out front to create(he is wasted most of time when they put him in the corner) and then looked like playing Schmitt, Lewis & McChessney at the same time again created the defensive shutdown in the 2nd half, like Whisky. The zone can only be used to bust a set play coming out of TO, etc.

I for one want to go back and re-watch the game for my own amusement and to see when the switch was made. I thought I read where it was made in the 1st half but I can't say for certain as I know I miss things when watching live at Redbird.

As for the health of Freeman and Fleming Dan said after the game that both were playing at roughly 60% so hopefully a few more days will get them back and closer to 100% because we need both of them.
 
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