Missouri State

[jbird]

The on the ball defense and how we played the pick n roll was as good as I seen for a couple of years. How many times did we see a shot clock violation or a poor shot attempt as the shot clock expired. We went from Ole defense to hooray defense overnight. Stopping the penetration and playing the pick n rolls helped the team rebounding as well. We often start chasing the ball and get out of position for defensive rebounds. It was a welcome sight.

Prem played a great game going 13 for 15 but I really thought after the first 10 minutes we made him earn every point. Schmitt had his best game and McChesney was better. What a difference when you have some productive minutes from a front line. It's felt like in recent years we have been barely able to put one big on the floor and now we have Lewis, Chatman, Schmitt, and McChesney. They all have room for improvement but they are all making contributions.

MSU and ISU had the same number of turnovers but ISu had a lot more steals on the defensive side. On the flip side we had a lot more unforced errors. If we can play defense like we did tonight, start reducing the turnovers, and be more consistent, we could be competitive in the MVC.

Lastly, kudos to the students and fans that attended. There was a lot more energy in RBA tonight.

Three or four shot clock violations and at least two more shots in the final second. Schmitt and Sy each with three blocks. I wasn't surprised that turnovers were even at 9 apiece at halftime, because we would get a steal at one end and then turn it over on the other. Hulka suggested that we practice on a narrower court so that we would not be as inclined to step on the sideline during live action on an actual court.

Now, we need to string together several of these efforts. Unfortunately, what I feared after our first game in Cancun happened..........we showed encouraging signs against SLU, but then backslid against Buffalo.

 

[jbird]

Regarding Prim's weight...........part of my brain was extracted in 2010 so my memory might be faulty. but I thought he looked sleeker last night than I remembered him from last year; in fact, if I didn't know his uniform number, I wouldn't have recognized him when the Bears took the floor. I thought that last year he had some "baby fat" on his frame (not Krutwig-like, but noticeably more than last night). But I could be wrong; I was once in 1998..

 

[DoubleDeuce]

Take his and McChesney's numbers out of the equation and the Birds are shooting 41%.

At least McChesney has a reputation of being a capable 3 point shooter. I know talk is cheap, but I'm sure he's demonstrated this in practice. I agree that I don't like seeing Sy shoot from deep.

 

[Adunk33]

Regarding Prim's weight...........part of my brain was extracted in 2010 so my memory might be faulty. but I thought he looked sleeker last night than I remembered him from last year; in fact, if I didn't know his uniform number, I wouldn't have recognized him when the Bears took the floor. I thought that last year he had some "baby fat" on his frame (not Krutwig-like, but noticeably more than last night). But I could be wrong; I was once in 1998..

His first year at Mo State, 2019-20, he was listed at 250. Last year and this year he's listed at 235. Sy is listed at 230. I do think Prim has lost weight, but he still has to have Sy by 10-15 lbs.

 

[TBS_20]

His first year at Mo State, 2019-20, he was listed at 250. Last year and this year he's listed at 235. Sy is listed at 230. I do think Prim has lost weight, but he still has to have Sy by 10-15 lbs.

Just looks that way probably. Different body types.

 

[Redbird222]

Regarding Prim's weight...........part of my brain was extracted in 2010 so my memory might be faulty. but I thought he looked sleeker last night than I remembered him from last year; in fact, if I didn't know his uniform number, I wouldn't have recognized him when the Bears took the floor. I thought that last year he had some "baby fat" on his frame (not Krutwig-like, but noticeably more than last night). But I could be wrong; I was once in 1998..

I had similar thoughts. He has definitely in better shape.and more cut.

 

[SgtHulka]

Regarding Prim's weight...........part of my brain was extracted in 2010 so my memory might be faulty. but I thought he looked sleeker last night than I remembered him from last year; in fact, if I didn't know his uniform number, I wouldn't have recognized him when the Bears took the floor. I thought that last year he had some "baby fat" on his frame (not Krutwig-like, but noticeably more than last night). But I could be wrong; I was once in 1998..

 

[Redbird222]

 

[BirdGrad2011]

3 of those teams are projected to be Thursday night and have done nothing to convince people to come out prior to last night. Loyola has no excuse. They weren’t competing with the Bulls, DePaul, Northwestern, or UIC.

 

[IHateWSU]

Drake had 2,560 last night to take last in the attendance competition.

 

[isuquinndog]

BU is surprising. They usually have very good attendance even when Les and whoever it was after Les was there.

Chicago is not a college town.

 

[RedbirdSoxFan]

Since Prim get free rein - no over the back calls, no pushing or shoving calls, and no flop calls - amazing we survived. That double dribble call on Fleming was terrible.

Key stat is that Prim only scored 4 points the last 13 minutes of the game (2 in the last 8 minutes of regulation & 2 in the 5 minute OT).

 

[ISU86]

That prevent offense by Missouri State down the stretch looked like us from the past few years. Get the lead and literally sit on it until the shot clock reaches 5 seconds. They went static and we were hitting on the other end.

We will take it., obviously!
Going into the game I thought Dana Ford should replace Dan next year. However, Dana has a long way to go with in-game coaching. He can definitely recruit, but needs help with tactical strategy still.

Good win. Should be 9-4 going into Wisconsin game looking at the KenPom rankings of our next 5 opponents...

Jackson St. - #283
Chicago St. - #356
Quincy - D2
Ball St - #250
UTSA - #287

We are now #224

AS much as I would like to see that happen, history has shown we will probably stub a toe somewhere in those five (and this team ebbs and flows way too much to bank on it). My guess is Ball State, or maybe Texas-San Antonio (plus Chicago State, as improbable as it seems, is currently undefeated at home and we do not travel well).

 

[Dmills]

AS much as I would like to see that happen, history has shown we will probably stub a toe somewhere in those five (and this team ebbs and flows way too much to bank on it). My guess is Ball State, or maybe Texas-San Antonio (plus Chicago State, as improbable as it seems, is currently undefeated at home and we do not travel well).

I would be surprised if Ball State is not a very close and competitive game. That is far from an easy win for this team. 4-1 is probably the most likely result for this upcoming stretch (although it should be 5-0). 3-2 is also a possibility. I do not see us losing any more than 2.

 

[dpdoughbird06]

3 of those teams are projected to be Thursday night and have done nothing to convince people to come out prior to last night. Loyola has no excuse. They weren’t competing with the Bulls, DePaul, Northwestern, or UIC.

They play in a tiny gym. That might have been a sellout. If not, no excuses.

 

[Dmills]

They play in a tiny gym. That might have been a sellout. If not, no excuses.

Loyola's capacity is 4,963