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Few notes

USAFminersfan

MI Regular
Nov 8, 2008
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1. Bryson is the real deal (we already knew that).

2. Edwards is also really consistent, and confident. I feel the same about Odigie. There's more players around him, but he's picked up right where he left off from last year.

3. Miner's don't handle the press very well. It's especially troubling against a team who is not very athletic or fast. I think this is due to our pg situation, or maybe lack thereof. This is where I think Archie plays a big role when available. Otherwise, we're going to have some TO issues this year...

3. I actually thought Boum did better at the pg position tonight. I've watched Lathon, and I noticed he rarely crosses between his legs. He instead consistently crosses in front of his body, which gives opponents opportunities to swipe at the ball. Maybe this is a lack of confidence in his ball handling skills? Boum was the complete opposite. He made quick moves when pressed, and handled the ball with confidence. I'd say let him run the point against the press, at the very least.

4. I like Villa, but he makes some odd mistakes at times. He had a couple of bad passes that were just head scratchers. Otherwise, I thought he had a solid performance tonight

5. When is Tarke going to show up? I liked that he finally got aggressive at the end (and got a couple points), but I'm really surprised he isn't one of the guys we're all talking about already.

6. Score was closer than i'd like to see, but NM Highlands just went lights out for a good period in that second half. Some of those shots were blind luck, but that seemed to build their confidence to the point that they couldn't miss. Good job by them for not giving up so easily.
 
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The full press response for UTEP I thought went well in first half but there were two to three plays that NMHU got scrap in second half. Edwards split them many times because NMHU did not corner well. You got to body up and NMHU did not.
 
^^ on that front, it may just be me but I thought nmhu got away with some aggression during their press. I expected a foul on a few occasions where they seemed to body check our ball handler, but then again they were getting called for fouls the entire game so I guess the refs didn't want to be there all night...
 
^^ on that front, it may just be me but I thought nmhu got away with some aggression during their press. I expected a foul on a few occasions where they seemed to body check our ball handler, but then again they were getting called for fouls the entire game so I guess the refs didn't want to be there all night...
UTEP didn't play a slouch d2 team. They made NCAA D2 tourney last year. They were just too aggressive and made stupid fouls that helped UTEP.
 
1. Bryson is the real deal (we already knew that).

2. Edwards is also really consistent, and confident. I feel the same about Odigie. There's more players around him, but he's picked up right where he left off from last year.

3. Miner's don't handle the press very well. It's especially troubling against a team who is not very athletic or fast. I think this is due to our pg situation, or maybe lack thereof. This is where I think Archie plays a big role when available. Otherwise, we're going to have some TO issues this year...

3. I actually thought Boum did better at the pg position tonight. I've watched Lathon, and I noticed he rarely crosses between his legs. He instead consistently crosses in front of his body, which gives opponents opportunities to swipe at the ball. Maybe this is a lack of confidence in his ball handling skills? Boum was the complete opposite. He made quick moves when pressed, and handled the ball with confidence. I'd say let him run the point against the press, at the very least.

4. I like Villa, but he makes some odd mistakes at times. He had a couple of bad passes that were just head scratchers. Otherwise, I thought he had a solid performance tonight

5. When is Tarke going to show up? I liked that he finally got aggressive at the end (and got a couple points), but I'm really surprised he isn't one of the guys we're all talking about already.

6. Score was closer than i'd like to see, but NM Highlands just went lights out for a good period in that second half. Some of those shots were blind luck, but that seemed to build their confidence to the point that they couldn't miss. Good job by them for not giving up so easily.
I think we can expect heavy on ball pressure from upcoming teams starting with NMSU. We handled the press poorly against an undermanned team tonight, and I can see why we had 20+ turnovers against Tech. Really, we were outplayed in the second half, and the game was not as lopsided as the score indicated. We will need better production from the bench. I am wondering where Tarke will fit in on this team. He's only getting limited minutes now, and that number may be cut even further once Archie becomes eligible, since they play the same position. Overall, I wasn't thrilled with the performance based on the super high expectations I have for the team.
 
Didn't see the body language. Maybe he's just frustrated? He hasn't had the best outcomes when given opportunities
 
Was wondering the same thing. Maybe sees the writing on the wall with Archie joining the mix soon?

Or doghouse as you questioned.
I heard he tweaked a knee last week in practice. Not sure if that had something to do with the lack of PT. He sure doesn't look comfortable as a wing player right now. He was a guy that Terry really talked up, so I am hoping he is able to put things together quickly.
 
He's trying too hard. You let the game come to you.

I think he may be referring to the lack of playing time, the 5 minutes, Tarke got. He didn’t really force anything in that time. He just didn’t GET time. He actually had a quick move off the baseline that I’m guessing 75% of the time he puts it away. Just missed on the finish tonight.
 
Williams is Williams. Careful with foul trouble in big games.

Lathon had zero turnovers

Boum has a nice drive and midrange game

Edward's is still a 'shot maker'

Vila could have easily had a triple double, but he was too slow at the top of the key when the miners broke the press. Instead of turning and passing or attacking, he would reverse the ball. This is where he made a few of those boneheaded passes. Vila also needs to not foul when Williams is providing backside help at the rim.

Efe can dunk!! He played a nice game

Stroud looked a lot more comfortable out there today. Doesn't look like he can shoot well yet, but he tried a few. Terry should get him some set plays off drives or inbounds.

I think Tarke is out of position from where he is comfortable (PF). Hopefully Terry can get him going, otherwise he will be relegated when Archie becomes eligible like Train mentioned.

Verhoeven is not showing us much of his defensive prowess....yet. Right now I dont think will play much unless he has to.

No Hawkins due to the concussion and Eze will redshirt.

Overall this team has a way to go if its gonna be up there the best teams/lineups in the last 20 years (09-10, 04-05 and maybe 14-15). I'm not completely sold yet either since we don't have a dominant guard or shutdown defender. Maybe Edwards can take on those roles. I do think that once we get Archie, our top 8-9 will be very formidable.
 
Like a few of you said I really like Boum as our pg and not lathon... he scares me when he handles the ball.. I don’t know why... team didn’t look as good with him running as it did with Boum

It’s hard to explain with lathon... he just looks mechanical when he is running the team... like I think Boum will get people good looks and lathon will just move the ball because he’s supposed to.. not sure if that makes sense
 
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Not Raining on the Parade but a few problem areas I saw last night. Most of the positives have been detailed above. I have seen this team a total of 1 time so take most with a grain of salt.
1. We lack a steady ball handler and this could be trouble against good defensive teams. We sometimes panic when we can't get the ball up the court.
2. Despite our overwelling size and athletic ability we had trouble getting the ball inside at times last night. Again against a more accomplished team this could be a problem
3. Edwards has a great set shot from three but I saw some questionable passes and he did not look comfortable with the ball.
4. Stroud is very, very raw but is quick and athletic and has a lot of upside
5. Villa is a outside player in the Euro-mold for big men, but we do have enough inside and appear to use him in the best way.
6. Not impressed with Tarke seemed lost on offense and defense

Again, only my first view of this team and I see a lot of upside, but it is hard to judge with only one sample. I suspect next week at this time we will know a lot more about this team.
 
Not Raining on the Parade but a few problem areas I saw last night. Most of the positives have been detailed above. I have seen this team a total of 1 time so take most with a grain of salt.
1. We lack a steady ball handler and this could be trouble against good defensive teams. We sometimes panic when we can't get the ball up the court.
2. Despite our overwelling size and athletic ability we had trouble getting the ball inside at times last night. Again against a more accomplished team this could be a problem
3. Edwards has a great set shot from three but I saw some questionable passes and he did not look comfortable with the ball.
4. Stroud is very, very raw but is quick and athletic and has a lot of upside
5. Villa is a outside player in the Euro-mold for big men, but we do have enough inside and appear to use him in the best way.
6. Not impressed with Tarke seemed lost on offense and defense

Again, only my first view of this team and I see a lot of upside, but it is hard to judge with only one sample. I suspect next week at this time we will know a lot more about this team.
UTEP has one distinguishing identity after two scrimmages and one game against a D2 school.....they punch back. TT looked like they would pull it out and UTEP fought back. According to Yellen last night the Miners were down eight or ten against GCU and fought back and go ahead layup for the win and NMHU made a mini run raining 3's and cut it to nine but UTEP punched right back quickly and were back up by twenty within a couple game minutes.
 
A few random thoughts on the game last night. Some of these (hell, maybe all of them) will echo what others have said:

After the Tech exhibition Williams was described as a better Vince Hunter. Having now seen him play a game, albeit on a cell phone streaming the game, I understand that comment. Like Vince, Williams is 6'8", strong and athletic, but he is much more skilled offensively than Hunter ever was. Unfortunately, he shares some of Vince's weaknesses: poor decision making at times at a penchant for getting into foul trouble. Fortunately last night Efe was fantastic on offense in relief. One more note on the Vince/Bryson comparison: while Williams is obviously strong and athletic, I will need to see more of him in order to determine if he matches Hunter in these areas, as well as whether or not he shares Vince's greatest asset: his incredible motor.

Twenty plus turnovers against Tech was frustrating but somewhat understandable: it was the first time this team had played under the lights together, and Beard is a fantastic defensive coach. Twenty turnovers against New Mexico Highlands? Terry needs to clean this up, and fast. Just a few minutes into the game and I knew what my strategy would be if I was a coach playing the Miners: press them at every opportunity.

Floyd had a reputation of being a great game coach, but I one time pointed out that a great coach is able to get his team to perform as something better than the sum of its parts. Floyd was only able to do this in two of his years here, and both times only for the second half of the season. Last night the Miners won strictly because they out talented Highlands, not because they played well together. I already mentioned the turnover problem, the perimeter defense was poor, and, as someone said, the Miners looked sluggish in their half court offense. The good news is that we are still early in the season and have time to fix things. The bad news is that some of these issues have to be fixed in a week, because even with some key players missing, NMSU is miles better than Highlands.

Stroud is as athletic as expected, and looked good taking the ball to the hole. His shooting, however, needs a lot of work.

I realize that the score was within 9 points at one time in the second half, but I was never worried. I don't think that it would have hurt to give Verhoeven some of Vila's minutes, and Tarke some of the minutes that the three guards played.

Speaking of the guards, Edwards was a great late get, and Boum a great addition as well. With Lathon, Hawkins, and soon Archie on board as well, our backcourt will be much stronger than last year.

I believe that this team has the talent to be really good. But Terry and his staff need to get the individual pieces to work together much better, so that the whole becomes much better that the sum of its parts. If they are able to do so we will be in for a fun ride. If not, we'll still be much better than last year, but will suffer through some heartbreaking losses.
 
2018-19 Likekele (Big12) vs Lathon (CUSA)

MIN FG% 3P% FT% REB AST BLK STL PF TO PTS
28.9 46.6 24.0 65.7 4.8 3.9 0.3 1.3 2.2 2.3 8.7

32.9 40.0 35.0 60.0 5.0 2.7 0.9 0.7 3.4 2.7 10.9
 
As long as every key player stays (and stays healthy), this team should grow into a monster over the next 2 years. There will be some lumps given some of the limitations, but overall I think we are all excited about the upcoming games and the future possibilities. There are still a lot of questions, but being worried about deficiencies while winning is much better than complaining about losing.

I think we go 8-9 deep with all players available down the stretch. As I mentioned before though, when compared to the other talented teams over the past 20 years, we are still missing one big key ingredient. I don't see an impactful wing player yet. I'm really hoping Archie can be that guy. There will be a lot of pressure on him to perform and push one of the guards to the 2nd team with Efe and Hawkins.
 
2018-19 Likekele (Big12) vs Lathon (CUSA)

MIN FG% 3P% FT% REB AST BLK STL PF TO PTS
28.9 46.6 24.0 65.7 4.8 3.9 0.3 1.3 2.2 2.3 8.7

32.9 40.0 35.0 60.0 5.0 2.7 0.9 0.7 3.4 2.7 10.9

One was getting those numbers against Kansas, Tech, and Texas. The other against Rice, North Texas, and FAU.....
 
I am just not on board with lathon not sure why... he’s not a good shooter and just seems mechanical in running the team..
 
I am just not on board with lathon not sure why... he’s not a good shooter and just seems mechanical in running the team..
So does CRT go with Boum, Edwards and Lathon at 1, 2, 3? Take the ball mostly out of the hands of Lathon so he can focus on scoring, rebounding and defense. This could actually make sense with Tarke struggling.
 
First game of the season. The potential is there, they have depth at almost every position but the key is going to be if they can put it all together when it matters most. Let them get the kinks out.
 
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One was getting those numbers against Kansas, Tech, and Texas. The other against Rice, North Texas, and FAU.....
Yep exactly my point. Likekele was the only player that Terry didn't get and he played very well in the Big 12. Not a good shooter, but more assists and less turnovers. Boynton did well to steal him away (Including from Tech). I mean just look how he got Cunningham.
 
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