Was pretty accurate. We’ve gotten sloppy again. Hawkins cannot buy a damn bucket!
Marquette...
- Thread starter unihorn
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Was pretty accurate. We’ve gotten sloppy again. Hawkins cannot buy a damn bucket!
Well now he can't play D or he is out. Gilyard picking it up and Lathon showing some sass. I like it.
A Floyd team would have never scheduled a road game in the Big east.
Paul Thomas is awful. Wish there was someone to take his minutes
So Thomas won't defend the rim but he will reach in on a defense rebound to foul out?! Bonehead. Jesus Christ.
Lathon killing it. Great to see. Hoping Hawkins is ok. Great effort by the team tonight.
Freshman Odigie 16/10.
Senior Thomas 3/4 with another foul out.
Lathon balled out! And yes lets hope Hawkins is ok. This team is getter better by the game. A poor start to both halves hurt, but the wins are coming soon.
Senior Thomas 3/4 with another foul out.
Lathon balled out! And yes lets hope Hawkins is ok. This team is getter better by the game. A poor start to both halves hurt, but the wins are coming soon.
Hell, they kept it under 8.
This is one of those moral victories that I’m actually satisfied with.
They fought and fought.
Has Lathon hit a groove? It was nice to see him rise to the occassion so so early in his young career.
Has Lathon hit a groove? It was nice to see him rise to the occassion so so early in his young career.
Could have won the game if Gilyard hits three more shots or Hawkins actually shoots a decent percentage or PT plays like the only senior on the team. Anyone of those three shows up and UTEP might have won. Great game by the 4-star freshmen.
It's that #BlueCollarMentality man, RT is building a god dammed exciting culture one practice and one game at a time.
These cats are buying in, love Lathon talking shit to a Marquette player and not backing down, on the road.
When have we seen a tough UTEP team with balls??? We saw one tonight, lets hope this identity continues to be a staple, Lathon could be the freshman to flip the script and make this team more fun to watch then they already are.
Proud of Rodney Terry and his staff, and of course the kids. We were getting waxed by Lamar last year. lol
These cats are buying in, love Lathon talking shit to a Marquette player and not backing down, on the road.
When have we seen a tough UTEP team with balls??? We saw one tonight, lets hope this identity continues to be a staple, Lathon could be the freshman to flip the script and make this team more fun to watch then they already are.
Proud of Rodney Terry and his staff, and of course the kids. We were getting waxed by Lamar last year. lol
I saw the game on FS1. The Miners started out real slow. Bad nerves. They got into the game though. Gilyard was high energy but was out of control for most of the game. I hope Coach Terry makes him watch film of himself. He could have played much more within his talent. Lathon showed why he's a four star player. Odigie was very solid. Couple of fouls on UTEP could have gone the other way. Hawkins was high energy also. Hope he's not hurt bad. This team is going to be good, very good. Be patient. Go Miners.
Like everyone else, I was impressed with the continued improvement of our freshmen. I thought that we also displayed some good structure on defense, even if there is still plenty of room for improvement.
Just a random thought; but I wonder if our basketball team this season will end up like our football team and they will peak in the middle of the season and then fade down the stretch? One would think that this is very likely as we are playing so many freshmen and freshmen will often hit a “freshman wall” towards the end of their first season as they aren’t used to a full D1 schedule yet. Plus we have such a short rotation, that it might be natural that our young guys could continue to get more and more banged up the longer that the season goes on. I remember that this happened during the season that Aaron and Alvin Jones were brought in to play. UTEP played it’s best ball with a short rotation during the middle of that season and then they just ran out if gas towards the end of the year, ironically losing to a Rodney Terry team. I would love to see a straight arrow of continued improvement for the entire season, but just want to give a cautious heads-up that maybe we shouldn’t get too disapointed this particular year if some of the above happens.
BTW, at the moment it seems crazy that there were some local people who actually criticized the Rodney Terry hire at the time that he was hired. I remember that one guy called it a “lazy hire”. At the moment I feel very confident that he is running our program and tonight’s result was much better than expected.
Just a random thought; but I wonder if our basketball team this season will end up like our football team and they will peak in the middle of the season and then fade down the stretch? One would think that this is very likely as we are playing so many freshmen and freshmen will often hit a “freshman wall” towards the end of their first season as they aren’t used to a full D1 schedule yet. Plus we have such a short rotation, that it might be natural that our young guys could continue to get more and more banged up the longer that the season goes on. I remember that this happened during the season that Aaron and Alvin Jones were brought in to play. UTEP played it’s best ball with a short rotation during the middle of that season and then they just ran out if gas towards the end of the year, ironically losing to a Rodney Terry team. I would love to see a straight arrow of continued improvement for the entire season, but just want to give a cautious heads-up that maybe we shouldn’t get too disapointed this particular year if some of the above happens.
BTW, at the moment it seems crazy that there were some local people who actually criticized the Rodney Terry hire at the time that he was hired. I remember that one guy called it a “lazy hire”. At the moment I feel very confident that he is running our program and tonight’s result was much better than expected.
The more I see the Miners play the more convinced I am on RT. This team is getting better as the season wears on. We have a young team with great talent. Barring any major injuries this team should complete in CUSA and finish in the top half. We have a great group of freshmen that are growing before our eyes. This team is going to be loaded next year.
Ya'all go back and review the score predictions of the game. Lose by 15,17,18,22, etc .I really felt we had made noticable progress in the last three games and I had them losing by eleven.. 81-70. We will be a big surprise inspire of our limitations.
Don't forget...we were 21point dogs.
Pray that Hawkins hasn't sustained another bad injury. That would be a huge setback.
Don't forget...we were 21point dogs.
Pray that Hawkins hasn't sustained another bad injury. That would be a huge setback.
This team is where I thought it would be and will continue to improve. I predicted the team would win 16-18 games and I still stand by that. We have played the 18th most difficult schedule in the country so far. RPI does not even consider the two D2 games. We don't play a top 100 RPI team again until Feb. I just wish Stull would have hired Rodney Terry instead of Floyd, like I suggested at the time. I look for the team to make the post season in either the CIT or CBI tournaments, which would be a big accomplishment for this particular team.
Your prognostication was more spot on than mine. This team has jumped beyond where I thought they’d be. After watching a couple games early in the season I honestly thought the “rebuild” was going to be a very slow process.
My hope was that they’d grow, develop chemistry, get some court time for the young guys, play hard, etc. While my expectations were tempered, I’m genuinely pleased with the development so far.
Odigie continues to impress the hell out of me. Imagine having him for the next several years. Lathon showed what he is capable of. He is so silky smooth going to the hole. Those are the two who really stepped up last night imo.
Even though we lost, that game got me pumped up for conference play. I truly believe we will be in the top 3 in the conference this year and competing for the title. This team has so much talent that is just beginning to shine and the nerves are finally being shaken. I think we have a true talent in Jordan Lathon who could go down as one of the best Miners if he continues to progress. Gilyard and Hawkins still look a little lost and would rather shoot than move the ball but I like their confidence. Odigie and Ezeagu are monsters inside and put 15-20 pounds Ezeagu and we have our best big men since Caracter. I am excited for this season and really excited to see what major talent we have on the bench waiting for next year.
Great points by all. I’m having a great time watching these kids grow and learn. Hats off to our great coaches. I must add that CRT looks great in his suits on the sideline. So glad we have him.
He also looks great... looking at the refs with his "you gotta be kidding me" look
I just thought that I would post some of my thoughts on the game and team, even if they echo what a lot of you are saying.
First, has there ever been a more frustrating player at UTEP than Paul Thomas? I've only been able to see two games so far this year, last night's game and the Lobo game. You couldn't pick two games that more completely illustrate the enigma that is PT. He was absolutely fantastic in the Lobo game, scoring inside, outside, and on drives. His only weakness in that game was his perpetual foul trouble problem. His fouling out against UNM really hurt our chances of pulling off the upset.
Fast forward to last night and PT took a grand total of 2 shots, hitting one three. He basically just took up a spot in the rotation while he was on the floor. As a senior he should know to be aggressive on offense, and how to play without getting into foul trouble. We would be SO much better if we could replace PT with Williams right now.
I have to agree that Gilyard too often played out of control last night. He was continually trying to force things, which led to some truly terrible shots. When you combine that with an atypically bad night from the perimeter, and he really struggled this game. I really, really like this kid, and he's having a really good season, but tonight did prove that the comparisons we hear to Hardaway are WAY too premature.
I don't think that I can add anything about Lathon that hasn't already been said. He has that prototypical SG size, great athleticism, can take it to the hole and finish, and has apparently fixed the flat jump shot that everyone was complaining about, as his shot was money last night. I'm expecting great things from this kid.
Lathon's breakout really started against NMSU. Similarly, Hawkins, after struggling the first half against the Aggies, seemed to break out the second half of that game. Unfortunately he returned to struggling offensively last night. I do, however, believe that a game similar to what we saw from Lathon last night is coming. When it does, watch out, because a backcourt of Gilyard, Lathon, and Hawkins is going to be incredible. This, of course, is dependent on Hawkins' health. Like everyone else I hope that he is okay.
I love Efe. Marquette had no answer for him defensively. I hope that this guy can get and keep his weight under control. If so, he will a great player for us.
I love Eze as well. WestTx12, I don't see where you think he needs to put on weight. The kid is chiseled. He's fine physically. What he needs to do is to put in the time and effort to improve his skills. If he does he will be a monster. One thing that he already has is a nice set of hands. The pass he caught for the flush was a bullet which a lot of guys would have fumbled. Instead he turned it into a highlight with a great catch and nice dunk.
This team is young and inexperienced, but have huge hearts. They could have folded at the beginning of each half, but fought and scratched to make it a game. It's going to be fun to see this team improve as the season wears on.
Oh, one final note. Had Terry decided to build a team using freshmen exclusively, I would still be excited about the future, as this team would form a great foundation to build upon. Knowing, however, that we have a ton of experienced talent to join these guys next year has me ecstatic. The future of UTEP basketball is bright.
First, has there ever been a more frustrating player at UTEP than Paul Thomas? I've only been able to see two games so far this year, last night's game and the Lobo game. You couldn't pick two games that more completely illustrate the enigma that is PT. He was absolutely fantastic in the Lobo game, scoring inside, outside, and on drives. His only weakness in that game was his perpetual foul trouble problem. His fouling out against UNM really hurt our chances of pulling off the upset.
Fast forward to last night and PT took a grand total of 2 shots, hitting one three. He basically just took up a spot in the rotation while he was on the floor. As a senior he should know to be aggressive on offense, and how to play without getting into foul trouble. We would be SO much better if we could replace PT with Williams right now.
I have to agree that Gilyard too often played out of control last night. He was continually trying to force things, which led to some truly terrible shots. When you combine that with an atypically bad night from the perimeter, and he really struggled this game. I really, really like this kid, and he's having a really good season, but tonight did prove that the comparisons we hear to Hardaway are WAY too premature.
I don't think that I can add anything about Lathon that hasn't already been said. He has that prototypical SG size, great athleticism, can take it to the hole and finish, and has apparently fixed the flat jump shot that everyone was complaining about, as his shot was money last night. I'm expecting great things from this kid.
Lathon's breakout really started against NMSU. Similarly, Hawkins, after struggling the first half against the Aggies, seemed to break out the second half of that game. Unfortunately he returned to struggling offensively last night. I do, however, believe that a game similar to what we saw from Lathon last night is coming. When it does, watch out, because a backcourt of Gilyard, Lathon, and Hawkins is going to be incredible. This, of course, is dependent on Hawkins' health. Like everyone else I hope that he is okay.
I love Efe. Marquette had no answer for him defensively. I hope that this guy can get and keep his weight under control. If so, he will a great player for us.
I love Eze as well. WestTx12, I don't see where you think he needs to put on weight. The kid is chiseled. He's fine physically. What he needs to do is to put in the time and effort to improve his skills. If he does he will be a monster. One thing that he already has is a nice set of hands. The pass he caught for the flush was a bullet which a lot of guys would have fumbled. Instead he turned it into a highlight with a great catch and nice dunk.
This team is young and inexperienced, but have huge hearts. They could have folded at the beginning of each half, but fought and scratched to make it a game. It's going to be fun to see this team improve as the season wears on.
Oh, one final note. Had Terry decided to build a team using freshmen exclusively, I would still be excited about the future, as this team would form a great foundation to build upon. Knowing, however, that we have a ton of experienced talent to join these guys next year has me ecstatic. The future of UTEP basketball is bright.
Can't argue with anything you said. I think I had all the same thoughts. Could be fun season provided there's no health problems.
It's not that Ezeagu needs the 15-20lbs. like Wilms needed every year he was here but can you imagine how dominant he would be with added weight/muscle. The NMSU center, with the absudly lastname, looked bigger than Eze at times and I would love to have an absolute force under the basket and we are close to having that.
There's no way u can say ezeagu needs weight or muscle. He's the most chisled big man I've see here at utep in a very long time. Especially as a true freshman. Not to mention how dominant he's gonna be eventually. He's already shown his potential there. I just hope they feed him a little more on offense and throw some alleys his way
I can see eze being dominant on defense no question but can anyone see him being dominant on the offensive side of the ball???
I see him being kind of like Mutumbo. A good rim protector and rebounder, whose offensive game is slowly refined season by season.
He works hard in the paint to receive the ball, but at this point he is seldom rewarded. Maybe it’s cuz his guys know that he needs to be close enough to the bucket to throw it down to be effective. That’d be my guess. Cuz Efe gets the ball down low a lot.
Marquette just beat #12 Wisconsin, even after missing 6 late freebies in a row.
Does our performance against Marquette mean we can now play with the big boys?
I would say it is not absolute yet, but I would also say, " there's a chance!". A few more opportunities to find out, but it's lookin good.
I would say it is not absolute yet, but I would also say, " there's a chance!". A few more opportunities to find out, but it's lookin good.
