Villanova post game thread

[ctbro1999]

Alex man, 6 for his last 47 from 3. I think Andrew Hurley could shoot better. It’s hitting a level of bad that is defying all odds.

There was one 3 he took late in the 1st half where there was maybe 18 seconds left on the shot clock and he jacked it up from NBA distance....and barely even caught the rim. I don't know what happened, but his jumper is just broken right now. Thought maybe he showed signs snapping out of it at the end of the Seton Hell game, but obviously something is still off. Just hope he can figure his shot out before tourney time.

 

[RuffRuff]

to say he isnt a 5 is bizarre to me. You think he can defend the perimeter? in case you havent been watching, his trouble with the high hedge has to do with his slow footwork that you mentioned, and the reason he doesnt play as much as Samson at times. But yea, lets have him D up a wing. Barely any teams have back to basket 4's anymore. Why we could never do double bigs, not to mention the 4 out we run continually on offense, that he would muck up.

He is a 5. This isn’t 1992 NBA.

I mean what, only 7’2” shot blocking machines are 5s? Yeah ok. Go look around college hoops.

Tarris isn’t perfect, but he does more things really well that this team needs. He’s an injection of brawn and power on this otherwise soft unit. He has a really nice game around the basket, and we stall a LOT.

Yes he’s inconsistent, but what is the best way to get an inconsistent guy consistent? You start them.

 

[Deepster]

That means a really hot streak is coming shortly for him. I feel it in my bones.

Well. To go from 6/47 to 40% he’d need to shoot 32 for his next 47 (68%).

 

[Conndog]

It is a position that’s a weak spot next year as currently constructed. Other than Stewart, who is more of a 3, we don’t have anyone to play the 4 - unless Reibe can sort of be one alongside Reed. It’s a portal need if AK leaves.

I think his shot will return in the off season- I’m convinced his shooting woes are connected to his concussion, and it’s going to take some time yet for him to regain shooting.

 

[Hoophound]

This statement is the one that concerns me:

"Nowell should get more minutes and was not bad. It’s hard for him to show much of anything in one 3 minute stint. Hurley pointed to the bench as soon as he missed one 3."

I can't figure it out for sure, but it seems like Hurley makes up his mind about PT based on practice and meetings, and won't give kids the opportunity to sink or swim. Feel like we'd have a few more swimmers if he did.

Nowell started to look comfortable. If that shot had dropped it would have been huge for him. Nova was bumping and pushing him with their pressure (fouling). They were trying to rattle him and this time he passed the test. After that, he was fine. He could have stayed out there.

 

[Hamms30]

Stewie had the worst turnover and best rebound/putbacknof the night. That perfectly encapsulates his season.

Trying to remember, what was the Stewart turnover?

I thought the worst TO was Hass gets called for the push (weak call), they hit a three, Hass gets hacked on defense because now he thinks he can't defend himself and gives up an And 1 on the other end. 6 points and 2 fouls on our PG in like 20 seconds.

 

[freshler40]

We know the offense works. Have Hurley and co not proven that? This group of players are executing it poorly, especially recently

Sure, looks like other coaches also know what we do. Different looks like feeding inside resulted in a win last night. It also seemed to inspire our team. Our three point game has been largely missing in recent games.

 

[Excalibur]

I’m a big Reed guy and have been advocating for more of him but don’t the advanced metrics say most of our best lineups are with Johnson? @auror maybe you can weigh in?

I just wonder if the staff sees something we don’t because Reed is that dude!

They do, but Johnson's effectiveness as a rim runner has been limited by our inability of our guards to penetrate and finish effectively. When was the last time we had a lob to Johnson for a dunk?

 

[Excalibur]

The Reed/Samson thing is about match ups. There is a reason Reed disappears in some games. Same for Samson. Tonight Reed played bully ball. But no one had a great game. Even McNeeley had a tough first half.

We held Nova to 59 points. Good thing too.

Reed struggles with taller defenders, and I don't buy that his inconsistency is somehow due to his lack of run. He was the same way at Michigan.

I agree that he should be getting the majority of the minutes but that still doesn't make me comfortable that he's the guy.

 

[6Nattys4Us]

They do, but Johnson's effectiveness as a rim runner has been limited by our inability of our guards to penetrate and finish effectively. When was the last time we had a lob to Johnson for a dunk?

It's not just our guards...it's the defense; teams are hedging on him to block the rim running. Keeps their big on the blocks so it doesn't cost them that much but it does help open up a 3 for us.

 

[80shusky]

Season was on the line and Tarris and Liam said we're not going out like this.

Earth to Danny, you have Tarris Reed on your team and he's really big, really good at scoring down low, and really good at rebounding.

This. FEED REED.

 

[Palatine]

Honestly I think he should’ve been starting all season. Samson has certainly had some great games, but to me, he’s much better in that change of pace, energy big role off the bench.

Hurley thinks the exact opposite. How do I know that, actually I can't read Hurley's mind. But if you go by his actions. He prefers to start Samson. This does two things. Samson is very active and he brings energy to the team. Nice to have at the start of a game. He also prevents Reed from getting in early foul trouble.

 

[freshler40]

Reed has been inconsistent and that's the issue. Sometimes he plays hard and smart, other times he plays uninspired, and not so smart. Certainly, a consistent Reed is the need. An inside out game with balance and that is not overly reliant on the 3 ball puts this team in position to be much more effective.

Perhaps a coaching need to get Reed involved early and often. He seems to like the inside mess and has the body to deal with it. We settle for threes early in most games during the first five minutes of each game. Sometimes it's worked well............especially though Ball's handiwork but scoring balance hurts defense a lot. Make them play to our strength.

 

[Muddler]

Say what you want, but this team has heart. They always come back when down during a game or after a Loss. Tonight they closed the deal with authority!

Reed absolutely man'd up tonight. What a beast with a gimpy ankle.

McNeeley back to form.

Diarra hasnt looked this healthy in a month.

Still on track for a 20-22 win season and a 6 or 7-seed.

3-Peat Dream lives on!! Let's Go!!

Zero chance of a 6th or 7th seed. If you thought the committee was tough on the Big East last year, wait until you see this year. Other than St. John’s improvement, how is this league not significantly worse. Nova’s season got immensely better once they got into league play. We have losses to Colorado and Seton Hall. UConn is closer to being an 11 than a 6.

 

[RuffRuff]

Zero chance of a 6th or 7th seed. If you thought the committee was tough on the Big East last year, wait until you see this year. Other than St. John’s improvement, how is this league not significantly worse. Nova’s season got immensely better once they got into league play. We have losses to Colorado and Seton Hall. UConn is closer to being an 11 than a 6.

There is definitely a chance at a 7th. If we beat StJ and Marquette we could easily secure a 7. Unlikely but possible.

 

[husky429]

Transfer / Adams
Ball / Furphy
Mullins / Ross
Karaban / Stew
Reed / Reibe

if Alex isn’t the starting PF next year then we need to get 2 starters out of the portal. Alex can go back to being the fifth leading scorer and glue guy.

If this is going to work that transfer PG would need to be BIG. 6'5 200+lbs. A Castle or Newton-esque PG. Mullins isn't going to be in a position to succeed on defense giving up that much size. We need our offensive PG to guard the 3, and Solo/Mullins can guard the 1/2.

 

[RuffRuff]

Hurley thinks the exact opposite. How do I know that, actually I can't read Hurley's mind. But if you go by his actions. He prefers to start Samson. This does two things. Samson is very active and he brings energy to the team. Nice to have at the start of a game. He also prevents Reed from getting in early foul trouble.

Samson brings energy to the team? Um no. Samson is status quo.

Time to shake it up. We won yesterday but that effort offers little confidence this team has any tangible upside to make a run as is. We looked god awful the majority of that game. We start slow as hell a lot.

It’s honestly also time we probably let Stew spell AK more often too. Anyone shooting better than 12% from 3 would help.

 

[husky429]

Nowell started to look comfortable. If that shot had dropped it would have been huge for him. Nova was bumping and pushing him with their pressure (fouling). They were trying to rattle him and this time he passed the test. After that, he was fine. He could have stayed out there.

I feel like we watched a different game. I saw a kid overwhelmed by pressure who couldn't hold his own on defense. It's not surprising considering we haven't gotten him any meaningful minutes, then threw him into the fire down 8. Still looked better than Mahaney.

 

[uconnfan68]

Well. To go from 6/47 to 40% he’d need to shoot 32 for his next 47 (68%).

Sounds like a plan. I’m in.

 

[ColchVEGAS]

Transfer / Adams
Ball / Furphy
Mullins / Ross
Karaban / Stew
Reed / Reibe

if Alex isn’t the starting PF next year then we need to get 2 starters out of the portal. Alex can go back to being the fifth leading scorer and glue guy.

I do not like to get into who will be here or not until after the season is over so I will just go on the premise the only guys leaving are those graduating and the only players we will have are currently on the roster or incoming freshman. I think it is safe to say this will not be the case though.

For me it is tough to pin down what Nowell and Abraham bring, given so little game time. Nowell has been dealing with injuries all season so I do not think we have even seen what type of player he actually is in his extremely limited time.

Ross is a floater to me. I think he can provide limited minutes at SG/SF/PF, matchup dependant, but has not shown much on the offensive end that I would pencil him in at the backup SF. We need him to make a big jump in year 3.

Stew, if not starting, will and should be the primary backup at both SF/PF.

I like the versatility that the incoming class looks to provide on paper. Reibe is a 5. Adams is a CG, who I think the staff will be looking to primarily focus on playing PG, Mullins is a SG/SF, and Furphy is a SF/SG. I think that gives some nice potential versatility with Adams, Mullins, and Furphy sliding in at multiple positions depending on matchups.

Mahaney...he needs to find some confidence but at this point I think he is best served as a spot minute SG that is solely looking to provide spot up shooting.

The big question mark is the PG position. Solo is starting to show some playmaking ability and if he continues to develop in that area he can potentially slide into the PG role for short stints.

 

[Hoophound]

I feel like we watched a different game. I saw a kid overwhelmed by pressure who couldn't hold his own on defense. It's not surprising considering we haven't gotten him any meaningful minutes, then threw him into the fire down 8. Still looked better than Mahaney.

He was guarding Poplar. He contested his first shot well and showed some hops. Nobody was stopping Poplar until he stopped himself near the end.

 

[RuffRuff]

I do not like to get into who will be here or not until after the season is over so I will just go on the premise the only guys leaving are those graduating and the only players we will have are currently on the roster or incoming freshman. I think it is safe to say this will not be the case though.

For me it is tough to pin down what Nowell and Abraham bring, given so little game time. Nowell has been dealing with injuries all season so I do not think we have even seen what type of player he actually is in his extremely limited time.

Ross is a floater to me. I think he can provide limited minutes at SG/SF/PF, matchup dependant, but has not shown much on the offensive end that I would pencil him in at the backup SF. We need him to make a big jump in year 3.

Stew, if not starting, will and should be the primary backup at both SF/PF.

I like the versatility that the incoming class looks to provide on paper. Reibe is a 5. Adams is a CG, who I think the staff will be looking to primarily focus on playing PG, Mullins is a SG/SF, and Furphy is a SF/SG. I think that gives some nice potential versatility with Adams, Mullins, and Furphy sliding in at multiple positions depending on matchups.

Mahaney...he needs to find some confidence but at this point I think he is best served as a spot minute SG that is solely looking to provide spot up shooting.

The big question mark is the PG position. Solo is starting to show some playmaking ability and if he continues to develop in that area he can potentially slide into the PG role for short stints.

Pointless exercise at this juncture and you’re only thinking about this from the UConn angle, not the kids angle. There is NIL involved and playing time desires. Do you think Stewart and Ross want to play backup into their senior years? I’m sure that’s not why they came. Mahaney is going to want to run out here as fast as he can. I’m sure the coldest winter in a while didn’t help, lol.

 

[ColchVEGAS]

Pointless exercise at this juncture and you’re only thinking about this from the UConn angle, not the kids angle. There is NIL involved and playing time desires. Do you think Stewart and Ross want to play backup into their senior years? I’m sure that’s not why they came. Mahaney is going to want to run out here as fast as he can. I’m sure the coldest winter in a while didn’t help, lol.

All I will say is I agree. Hence why I said what I said in the first paragraph.

 

[NickDanger]

In a recent presser Danny said Samson is one of his favorite all time players. Not sure much will change and Dan Hurley doesn’t really have a history or shuffling the lineup

Against Villanova, Johnson got 13 minutes while Reed got 27. Whether he’s starting or not, we are seeing a lot of of him.

 

[3rdbass]

Gutting comeback win for sure. Nowell does look like the only guy who might be able to spell Diarra for a few but he still looked like a deer in the headlights to me. The people asking for more minutes for Stewart and Ross particularly last night - i get it but can you imagine what a loss last night would have done to this team. When you enter a game like this, you cannot turn the ball over immediatly or you are coming right back to the bench. Better players have longer leashes. Reed is a man on the floor. I really would like to see him get some touches at the low post. He just looks like a classic successful back to the basket guy. His strengths don’t get used if a clear majority of his touches come above the foul line. As for Karaban - no criticism from me. He does so many things to help his team even without the 3 point shot.

Stewart was quoted by both coach and players as having a great 2nd half in his brief stint and bringing the energy that was missing in the first half. i actually think he played better than karaban in his limited minutes at times as Karaban was tiring out according to the coach. I think if he plays like that but gives us more on offense than he deserves times. Probably his best defensive game since the last Villanova one. He is a critical player to help spell the starters and Ball. Ross I agree shouldn't of gotten anymore minutes as he brought nothing.