Dinner theatre and the return of Justin Greene…
I just arrived at Millett Hall for tonight’s performance of the Pirates of Penzance. The part of Major General Stanley will be played by Justin Greene.
The staff here at the Theatre would like to have everyone seated by the second dimming of the lights.
No, none of that’s true. Although this always feels like dinner theatre whenever I’m here at Millett Hall with its dark setting and soft cushiony olive green seats set far away from the floor. It actually reminds me of the old Front Row Theatre, which would mean the floor should turn … Hey, there’s an idea. Make it like Hank’s Look-Around Cafe from the old Larry Sanders Show. Only problem is the mechanics to that kept breaking down for old Hank.
Dinner Theater is what Jim Christian always used to call basketball at Millett Hall, and he coached here. It’s just such an odd setting. There is actually some truth to the above, though, in that the part of Justin Greene will not be played by an understudy. Greene is in costume … I mean uniform … and he’ll be ready for curtain.
Obviously the matchup to watch is Greene vs. Julian Mavunga.
Experienced crew tonight with Lamont Simpson as the referee and Larry Scirotto and Bill Ek playing the roles of umpires.
Related posts:
- Greene likely out tonight against College of Charleston…
- Singletary on All-MAC First Team, Greene on Second-Team
- KSU at Ohio University blog, or the return of Scootie Guyton
- It’s Pinckney, McKee, Greene, Henry-Ala and Simpson
- Bowling Green, Miami, Gates and Harrison’s return…
Category: General Discussions
I LOLed at this Dave. My parents are Miami grads and since their retirement have attended many a Kent game at Millett Hall. Obviously I have converted him. I want a to see a foot on the gas pedal for long stretches of this game. Especially when Greene is not in the lineup. As long as its close at intermission (halftime to you basketball people) I will be feeling good about Kent’s chances in the second half.
Please be reminded that flash photography is not permitted during the performance. GO FLASHES!
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Haha… Love it fallsdog! (flash photography … fantastic!)
And I agree. It’s that time in the season where KSU needs to put the pedal down and not let up.
By the way, for any of you who find the Larry Sanders Show reference a little obscure (as I guess a few have based on a couple of text messages) … go online to Netflix if you have it and push play. You won’t be sorry. After West Wing, quite possibly my favorite tv show of all time.
OK, no more cracking on Millett Hall … they are playing Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers during pregame … can’t joke about a place that plays Tom Petty instead of the rap we usually here at most arenas.
Brian Sullivan has been playing very well for Miami in his freshman year.
That’s a matchup KSU needs to win. Sullivan is not very big, and KSU has the size and experience to make to make this a difficult matchup for Miami. Sullivan will likely draw Holt on the defensive end, but when he has Porrini, KSU needs to try post him.
Manns draws Mavunga early
Sloppy start
Dave and me will be supporting actors. So if Simpson, Scirotto or Ek flub up we’ll be littering the court with paper airplanes, etc.
Still looking for Wally S. poster giveaways.
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time to focus a bit more fellas. letting miami get the hoop and leaving them open ain’t gonna cut it.
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Yep, sloppy start.
The intensity seems to be picking up though
Porrini on Mavunga. He is tough as heck man. The offense still looks sloppy but so far no transition game. I am looking for that. If not now, in the second half. RUN RUN RUN.
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I know they’d like to run, but the opportunities haven’t really been there unfortunately for KSU.
By the way, Gaines looked like he was hobbling there after going for the steal in the backcourt.
Key to running is defensive rebounding and steals… so far, three defensive rebounds and just one steal.
Quinten Rollins may be the worst perimeter shooter I’ve ever seen at this level
yeah. i know what you mean. I am just waiting for the chances and here in the last couple minutes they have had some. I think that could be the difference. Eric Gaines seems likes he is going to be hurt/injured all year. Its a shame because he can really get things moving.
As long as it stays like this (down 2 at the under 4) going into halftime I think the doors could blow off early in the 2nd. I have no choice but to stick by that.
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Whew, this is some ugly basketball.
A lot of hustle, but lots of mistakes both ways.
KSU has been lucky with some of these Miami misses on open looks. Their guards keep getting caught in no mans land, not knowing whether to dig in the post.
Wow, I guess Guyton is willing to drive and take contact
Gotta step it up in the 2nd half and put this team away.
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This is shaping up similarly to how both teams played in Kent (which was awful). Put this team (Miami) away!!
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need to go inside out, falling in love with 3 again. This looks like one of the Dec games.
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Jon,
That’s what Miami wants. They want to slow it down, play a game that ends in the 50′s, and win ugly.
The good news is KSU traditionally can win ugly.
This reminds me of maybe 10 of the 12 games I’ve covered down here
Going with Jackson against Mavunga
KSU not paying any attention against Rollins when Miami has the ball. And good reason. Just dare him to shoot.
When Rollins hits a jumper, you know things are going bad.
Biggest number … Zero steals in first 25 minutes and counting.
That’s not the norm for KSU.
Wow, Didn’t look like Miami got that ball over in time… I looked up and the clock was inside 25 as they crossed.
Break there … Boy it looked like Holt was clearly out of bounds on that steal
Boy I swear I’ve covered this exact game at Miami before
Wow, give Rollins credit. He’s very limited offensively, yet he’s finding ways to beat Kent State… that was pretty good defense, and he picked up the loose ball and flipped it up and in around three KSU defenders
Replay … clean! Clean! Clean
Defense is going to be key. Miami is doing a heckuva job on the defensive end and thank goodness its close. clamping down and getting some run outs would sure be nice. I think a year ago in Millett Dave you said something like “we have seen this game before” and I am fearing that same thing.
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Yep. And when Holt can’t hit one, things are worse. Ohhhh boy.
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Miami is penetrating whenever they want to. Very dissappointing.
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Alright we have a game. The next four minutes are huge. too bad they fouled with under 8 on the shot clock there!
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Lot’s of words between Porrini and Guyton during previous TO. Let’s see if that fire gets us ignited.
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correct Dave…counts was past 10 with Simpson’s arm.
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great D from Jackson on Mavanga
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Okay Scootie! Its your time man!
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Shouldve fouled early in the possession, even if it put them on the line early…see Manns the other night.
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Well, 2 MAC titles in a row was nice.
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Also need to have an inbound play better than your center throwing up one from halfcourt.
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bad call but we should have never been in that position!
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Gman,
I agree completely… That was the direction I took with my game story.
If you don’t take care of your business and give the officials a chance to decide the game, then you deserve what you get.
Tough loss. The effort on defense during the comeback was impressive. This likely ends any hope of a 3rd consecutive regular season title. Just playing for a high seed in the conference tournament.
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ish. Beat BG.
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Our offense is awful, sometimes I wonder if we even run plays. 90% of the time we just stand around. This team has no chemistry and even argue with each other on the court. Unless Senderoff gets control fast, we will not win another game all year.
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Hi KentFlash,
I agree with some of what you said, but I don’t think the issue is that they stand around and don’t run plays.
They actually do run plays, but to me it looks like the tendency for this team is to have the motors revved too high, if that makes any sense. What I mean by that is they are in such a hurry to make a play that they too often get ahead of themselves, break off the original play with poor results, or pass up the easier play in the attempt to make an impact play… You saw that with several of the screen and rolls tonight.
It gets worse when they are down. Everything is a mile a minute instead of just settling in and confidently running their stuff.
I’ve said this before, but when they run their stuff with confidence (second half at WVa is a good example) they can be very efficient. But the hyper of this team gets to be a problem.
My analysis might be wrong, but that’s just the way it looks to me from being around it and seeing it up close tonight.
problem was we should be playing the tough D the whole game!!!!!!!!!! cant wait until the last 5 minutes to play UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Very true luckyflash.
You can’t expect to start slow, then struggle to find a rhythm and a sense of urgency on defense, and then expect to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in the last 10 minutes.
Watched the game on my wife’s IPad, with WatchESPN. Very cool.
Very disjointed play tonight. Never got into a rhythm. I was hoping the Flashes would capitalize with their transition game.
But I realize winning a MAC East road game is pretty tough.
Stay positive everyone.
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well said yablonda!
Ok Dave i will try to be polite. But explain how Senderhoff (who you claim has done a great job in year one) can stand there after the first FT and see no Miami players are not contesting the rebound and not put 3 pts shooters in for Greene and Manns.
Its almost 30 games in. a good coach would have coached end of game situations with their team in these situations. We do with our 5th grade team so i gotta believe a D1 should. At a minimum tell one of the bench players what you want done and send him in to tell others. (i.e hit holt, porrini or evans on the run and the others find an open spot). What do we get our center with a bum ankle throwing up a half courter?? B.S, bush league, JV whatever you want to call it fine. Holt got ball yes but his left arm also got some arm so blaming the refs is a cop out.
Bottom line we were the league favorite with supposedly the best talent. We have underachieved period…. Its fitting that he doesnt get another year on his contract because he didnt win this one based on that ending.
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KSU315,
I’ll be polite too, which won’t be terribly easy because I don’t usually respond well to people who are intentionally snide.
The chance to have rational, polite discussions with reasonable people who have open minds is important to me in doing this blog. Cearly from the tenor of what you wrote you don’t want to know what I think as much as you want to complain. And from the “polite” comment, clearly you think I’m an idiot.
Anyway. To your question…. You know what, he probably made a mistake. It happens, and if you think that makes him a bad coach, then I’m not really interested in your opinion. Good coaches can screw up. It’s not all black and white.
This is not meant to compare him to Bill Belichick, but I think we can agree Belichick is a great coach. Was it moronic for Belichick to go on on 4th-and-2 from his own 28 with a six-point lead late in a game in 2009?
He’s a hall of famer, and he made a boneheaded decision.
I’m not saying Senderoff did or did not make a boneheaded decision, because I don’t know what he wanted on that play. Was Greene supposed to set a screen to free one of the a guard? May sound silly, but why was Nate Gerwig on the floor in 2003 in Buffalo when Bryan Bedford hit his game-winning three? Certainly it wasn’t to get the ball up the floor for a desperation shot? No, but he did have a role in a similar situation.
We don’t know what was called and if the player inbounding the ball knew the call and got the ball to the wrong guy. Who knows. I didn’t have time to ask after the game. Sometimes players don’t do what they are supposed to. Sometimes a coach misses something, and when that happens with a young coach like Senderoff, you hope he learns from it.
I did ask about the decision not to foul Mavunga earlier. In that case, Senderoff chose to take the blame, but I know from talking with others that the players were supposed to foul Mavunga on the floor.
If you are ready to decide that Senderoff is a good or bad coach now, then we really have nothing to talk about. To think that anybody is a finished product in his first season just doesn’t make any sense to me.
People hated Jim Christian in year one when he couldn’t finish at the end of the season. You should have read some of the email he used to get. And then the fans were furious with him for leaving five years later.
There were fans who screamed insults at Geno Ford as he left the floor in year one when the 20-win streak ended under his watch, then they are furious with him for leaving.
If you are a coach of a fifth grade team, I hope fans and parents are more patient with you. Stick with coaching, I’m sure you’ll love what people start saying about you, too. It’s inevitable with any coach.
As for posting and reading here … Obviously you don’t think much about me or my work, and that’s fine.
Why read it?
If you think I’m an idiot for saying I believe Senderoff has done a good job, then go somewhere else for your Kent State news.
I know when I don’t respect someone in the media, I don’t read him or listen to him. That’s why you’ll never see me watching Bill O’Reilly. I go to other resources for commentary on the news.
There are plenty of other resources for news regarding Kent State sports out there for you. I do this blog for fun, and I’m not interested in arguing with people or listening to snide comments while I’m doing this in my free time.
For some reason your post has been blocked because of a low rating. I have nothing to do with that, by the way. It’s automatic based on readers pressing like or dislike … and I’m not happy that your post was blocked, even though I didn’t much care for it either.
You are more then welcome to post here, but I’d appreciate it if you try to restrain the vitriol and come in with an open mind and interested in discussion rather than just ranting or insulting me or others.
Best thing to come out this game is Guyton taking it to the hole. He’s been doing that more the last few games. I swear, that guy can score anytime he wants. I think that is a key development at this point in the season. Also liked Haut’s positivitism on the radio post-game. We didn’t deserve to win, but we MUST and will, learn from it. Go Flashes! We can do it!
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I agree with you completely fordflash 26,
Guyton has been playing much better, and a big reason for that is a renewed willingness to attack the basket. As we’ve talked about before here, sometimes seniors see the time passing by and set aside worries over injuries or other issues.
He appears to have done that.
I agree, there are also lessons for coaches and players to learn from this one. My guess is they will.
The finish in this one was blown by poor coaching. Tried to get a quick huddle but players were chased back to FT, why? They shouldve stayed and set up a play and then set up after 1st shot. Also should’ve substituted after 1st went in. Also, like said earlier, fouled right off the bat when Miami got ball and controlled fate not let them run down clock and still fouled them without enough time to get a quality attempt off.
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Hi KSU98,
I agree, there were some issues that appear to be coaching mistakes, and they’ll need to learn from them. The inbound play in particular.
The decision not to foul earlier was also a big mistake, as you pointed out.
In this case, the coaches actually instructed the players to foul on the floor since they had one to give. For whatever reason, they didn’t.
That could be on the players. It could also be on the coaches for not making sure their instructions were understood.
Senderoff may very well have made a few mistakes that he wishes he could have back. He’s a young coach, and hopefully he learns from them.
You guys complaining about end game coaching are just stating the obvious. Not many would have made that observation, but I agree with you completely. There was an opportunity to substitute after the first FT and there should have been the best ball handlers and shooters on the floor. Sendy really disappoints me this year. I thought he was better.
I can not imagine Jim Christian keeping his cool as two of his seniors pass the ball directly into the hands of the opponent. Where did these guys get this level of slop?
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I’m sorry you feel that way Gflash68,
I agree they didn’t play that well tonight … but I don’t agree regarding Senderoff.
Coaches make mistakes. You just hope they learn from those mistakes. I’ve known Senderoff for more than a decade, and all I can say is he is someone who evaluates his own performance and makes adjustments. I think that’s a valuable trait. I can tell you, however, that there was nothing cool regarding Senderoff’s temperature. His style of coaching is try to avoid embarrassing his players by ranting at them on the bench.
But in reality, I think Senderoff’s temperature runs a little hotter than Christian’s and because of that, he tries very hard to control it.
I hope you are not one of the negative fan who has already made up his mind on Senderoff.
I know quite a few fans who did that with Christian, and over the years they would not change their minds.
Same thing with Ford.
Dave – I posted when i was pissed and you did at 4am so assume you were tired and pissed.
I’m certainly entitled to an opinion and sorry its not a rose colored as yours. There are glaring things Sendy and staff have done wrong and as a beat writer i would think you should be challenging those. This team was ready made to win this year. We lost one player (albeit a great one and leader) and i think we all were expecting more. Instead in 2 of the last 3 we have guys fighting in huddles. That strikes of poor chemistry and leadership and some of that should fall on the staff.
I do think you provide great infomation so i hope that continues. Thanks for your work on KSU hoops.
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Hi KSU315,
I agree. There have been mistakes.
And you are right. I was tired after a long drive and I was irritated by some of the comments. But I also try as hard as I can to respond to questions or comments as soon as I get home. I know when I get home from a road game at 4 a.m., I’m probably going to sleep until noon the next day … and I don’t think a reader should wait 12 hours for a response from me.
You are also absolutely right that you are entitled to your opinion.
With respect to your question about my approach as a beat writer … Readers who want me to hammer a coach are always going to be disappointed. I’m not a guy who points fingers for several reasons. One reason is I may not know what I’m talking about.
For example. Inbounding to Greene didn’t make sense to me with three seconds left. I pointed that out in my game story, but I didn’t point fingers at Senderoff because I didn’t know what play was called or if Greene was out there for a reason.
I talked with Senderoff today, and he said Greene was in the game for a reason. And it was, as I suspected, to set a screen similar to the one Gerwig set at Buffalo all those years ago. They didn’t run the play right. Ultimately, that may come down to coaching in that they players weren’t prepared to run the play.
And when I talked to Senderoff, he gave me a list of what he should have done and didn’t, and what he learned from it, and what he’d do differently in the future.
I’m not as interested in overdoing it by challenging a coach with “he should have done this” or “he should have done that.” For the most part, if that’s true, a coach already knows that. In that case, I’m usually more interested in what did he learn from it, what adjustments will he make and what will he do differently in the future. That to me is what makes a good head coach.
I also try to know my own limitations. While I think I know quite a bit about the game, I certainly don’t know as much as any Division I head coach. Sometimes I’ll have an opinion in the moment, go back the next day and watch film by myself or with a coach and find out I was completely wrong. If I’m reactionary after a game, I think I’m doing the reader a disservice.
So, in the immediate aftermath of a game, I’d rather deal in generalities, like they lacked energy in one area or another, or looked sloppy or disorganized and not hammer a coach for a specific decisions or a player for what he should or shouldn’t have done on a specific play.
For example, it looked to me like guards were getting lost in no-mans land last night, losing the guy they were guarding on the perimeter while not committing to digging in the post. I’ve always been taught to commit to one or the other and not get lost … but there may have been a reason for playing it the way they did. I just don’t know until I ask.
If you read my game story from last night, I point out some things that didn’t make sense. But I tried to stay away from saying this is what Senderoff should or shouldn’t have done. I let him say it. I let Coles say it. They are the experts more than I am with regard to x’s and o’s.
If I’m going to criticize, I want to know I’m right or have a very good idea that I’m right. And that’s something that would come well after a a game when I’ve had a chance to look further into it, to do some research or talk to some people I consider to be experts.
For example, I didn’t hammer Jim Christian immediately after the loss to UNLV in 2008. I did some research to figure out why Kent Stat teams seemed to fold in the postseason, got some opinions I respected, and then wrote a story.
I’m not ready to hammer Senderoff right now. For the most part, I think he’s done a very good job in his first year.
But first-year coaches make mistakes. I’m more interested in if he recognizes the mistakes and learns from them.
I also wonder what happened to the team that was supposed to be so loaded we roll through this year? We have some major flaws and are obvious to the opposition. And while we are having a decent season we were supposed to be better. Dave I can appreciate your loyalty but your ability to remain objective gets compromised at times.
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Hi T-Bone 98,
If you remember, I saw some flaws in the armor back in the preseason … and I took a lot of hits from readers for it.
There are some flaws in this team that I didn’t expect after watching the NIT run at the end of last season. But they are flaws I saw by the start of this season.
Some of the issues I pointed out at the beginning of the year have been cleaned up. Some haven’t.
I’m sorry you feel my ability to remain objective gets compromised at times.
All I can tell you is that in every case, I always write what I believe. I don’t try to come up with excuses out of loyalty to a coach or a team that I cover. I write what I think to be true.
Last night, I didn’t feel right about hammering Senderoff for mistakes when I didn’t know the full story. I only have a short time to turn around a game story on deadline, so I can’t dig deeper.
And in a game story, I’d rather let the quotes speak for themselves.
There are beat writers out there who go off before they know or understand the full story. I’d rather know what I’m talking about. And usually I feel confident in that when I get home without the stress of a deadline, and rewatch the game, then talk to the coach and/or players again.
I try to be the type of beat writer that I would want to read. I don’t like to read writers who think they know everything or have all the answers. For the most part, I know they don’t have the answers. So I try not to be that. I try to report first. When it comes to commentary or criticism, I want to know as much as I can first.
If I say to a reader that I hope he hasn’t made up his mind on Senderoff already, that’s not about failing to be objective. It’s about the fact that I don’t believe it’s right to make up your mind about any head coach this early. I feel the same way about Pat Shurmur with the Browns, and I have no ties or loyalties to him. When you hire a young coach, you know there will be some mistakes. The question is, will he get better? I see far more positives than negatives with Senderoff in his first year. That’s my opinion.
We shouldn’t be learning such costly lessons this far into the season. I also want to know what happened to that team that was advertised as the best assembly of talent at KSU ever? These boys better get it in gear for the finish.
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Hi FlashDance11,
I agree, they shouldn’t be learning such costly lessons this far into the season.
I do think this is one of the most talented teams we’ve seen at KSU, but talent isn’t always what gets it done.
You have to have so many other intangibles to live up to that talent. Like I said to another reader a few minutes ago, there were some flaws that I saw at the start of the year. Some of those have been worked out, but a few still linger and maybe those are keeping this team from reaching its full potential.
Taking a step back from last night’s poor performance:
After going 6-0 through the west but still being 2 games behind a darn good Akron team, the realist would have had to figure that 4-1 and playing for a shot at the 2 seed was a successful stretch through the East. Of course, losing to a subpar Miami team is a big let down, no question about it.
So now the pressure is on for Saturday at Bowling Green. Assuming home teams hold serve tonight Buffalo grabs a full game on the good guys for the #2 seed. But with 2 left at home the team still has plenty to play for heading to Cleveland.
The other thing that has become evident, tough to accept I know, but very evident is that this team just doesn’t have the offensive options to steamroll anybody in the league. With Justin Greene at less than 100% that rears its ugly head even more.
The bottom line for me is that pushing the panic button or calling out individuals has run its course at this point in the season. I am making the trip up to BG even though I seriously considered tearing up my tickets last night around 9:10. But the truth remains, this team has plenty to play for and in the MAC you never know what your going to get. Hey, for all we know Ohio University will blast Buffalo tonight and Kent State will be right back in the thick of the sick.
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Well said Fallsdog
Sendy has done a pretty good job, but he needs to learn from mistakes like the players and fix things ASAP.
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Hi Flash Gordon96,
I agree. I know they are trying.
We’ll see if it works out in the not too distant future. Crunch time is now!
On a positive note I thought Patrick Jackson played very well last night. I think this team easily still earn the 2 seed if they play up to their ability. From there it’s only a two game season where any thing can happen. Akron is good, but not so good that they won’t lose a game or two down the stretch.Hopefully one or both of those are to Kent. Remember we could be in worse shape, just as Gary Waters!
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Dave,
Even with my criticism of Coach, I do not want you or anyone else to think that my support of him is lost. I was disappointed in Christian and Ford in their first years. They learned on the job and I would hope that Senderoff does also. This is a blog of fans so discussion of coaching decisions and styles should be allowed. At the same time, this should not be a bash the coach discussion and I do not intend for my comments to be taken in that vain. I campaigned for Sendy as our best choice when the selection took place and would do so again.
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One of my coaching heroes was Al McGuire, the hall of fame coach at Marquette in the 70s and later a TV color analyst. When McGuire rejected an invitation to the NCAA tournament once because of where the NCAA wanted Marquette to play, a call questioning the decision came from the Marquette president’s office. McGuire refused to reconsider. “Father,” he sternly told the caller. “I don’t hear confession and you don’t coach this team.” He was also the only coach to be ejected from an NCAA Championship game in 1974.
After that game, which his team lost, walking through the distraught players in the locker room, he passed Maurice Lucas, a star on the team non as The Enforcer — Lucas later won an NBA Championship with the Trail Blazers — muttered under his breath, “You lost that one for us, Coach!” McQuire responded directly, “And I won a lot of them for you, too.”
Coaches can help players win, and on the rarest occasion, they can help them lose. Whatever problems MIGHT exist on this team, my guess would be that Rob Senderoff is the least of our problems.
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Hi Gman,
I agree with you… and I didn’t know that McGuire story. Thanks for sharing it!
I remember Maurice Lucas well, by the way… I was a big Dr. J and the 76ers fan as a kid, which upset my Boston-born mom to no end. A family friend got me a Dr. J poster right around 76 or 77, and because I had that hanging on my wall I became a fan. Anyway, I still remember sitting in the living room with my parents cheering for the Sixers against the Blazers in ’77 when Lucas and Darryl Dawkins got into it.
Isn’t all of this why we are fans? We should be upset when we lose and excited when we win, but we can’t forget that as fans we have a lifetime of games to agonize about. As talent laden as this team may be victories are not always a given. Go ask the Yankees or the Heat. I believe the greatest thing about college hoops and the thing that sets it apart from almost any other sport is that on any given night almost any team can beat any other team. The thing to remember is that we have games left to play and nothing has been put out of this team’s reach. The worst thing that can happen is that we fizzle and don’t make the dance or NIT. Attendance may drop and the buzz may not be there, but the true fans of the team and the game will still show up at the MACC and on here. Hopefully the administration stays on board and realizes how special this program is and gives it the support it desperately needs. Without the school standing behind the program when it needs to reload and helping it get the players to get it done we risk seeing it decay into something like Miami. A once stellar program that has seen its window close and shows no signs of reopening. If that happens then we definitely have something to be angry about. For now a couple of losses in a 20 win season should not ruffle our feathers too much.
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JC,
Very well said!
Would’ve been a good battle had they squared-up and fought without interference. Chocolate Thunder swung on the other guy he was tangled with but got his own teammate instead.
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That’s right, BubbaT. I forgot about the accidental punch. Can’t remember who Dawkins hit with friendly fire.
David, I think Senderoff has made some mistakes, but ALL coaches do, whether first year head coaches or old veterans. I think we are lucky to have him, as it is very easy for a school to make mistakes in hiring coaches and end up with a poor coach. I also am aware that one cannot criticize a coach unless one knows what he has tried to do – a coach can only coach; the players have to do what they have been coached to do. As for this year being disappointing, I think we can attribute that to two things: (1) the MAC East being stronger than it has been in quite a while, and (2) the loss of Rod Sherman. I feel that I am, after 40 years of both playing basketball and following it closely, a pretty good judge of talent in all its aspects. I thought Rod Sherman was the glue last year and that his loss would really be felt. Granted, it has been felt much more than I thought, though. Every time I get down on this year’s team, and that has been often, I reflect back on how much we’d LOVE this team if it were as recent as 1997 or even 1998. I also remind myself that when I was a student at Kent State the team lost back-to-back HOME games to Mount Union and Steubenville – and neither was even very close!! To an extent, we have been spoiled.
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I think Dawkins caught Dougie Collins with that swing.
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Tough loss @ Miami, knowing that Miami is without 3 of their best players (suspensions/kicked off/injuries). Let’s hope this isnt the 1st 3 game losing streak of the season and the guys dig down and focus for 40 minutes of tough MAC basketball @ BG.
Here is a look at this years stats vs last years stats
This year, 27 games:
***Greene – FG %=.502, pts/game=13.6, rebs/game=6.4, turnovers=79, FT%=.744, blocks=22, steals=33
***Guyton – FG %=.438, pts/game=10.4, rebs/game=2.4, turnovers=55, FT %=.774, steals=35, assists=102
***Holt- FG %=.438, pts/game=12.7, rebs/game=2.4, turnovers=44, steals=32, assists= 69, FT %=.806
***Porrini- FG %=396, pts/game=9.0, rebs/game=5.0, turnovers=74, FT %=.692, steals=39, assists=123
***Manns – FG %=.578, pts/game=4.9, rebs/game=4.1, turnovers=16, FT %=.512, blocks=14
***Gaines – FG%=.414, pts/game=4.4, rebs/game=1.6, turnovers=18, FT %=.571, assists=15, steals=14
Last year, 37 games:
***Greene – FG %=.478, pts/game=15.4, rebs/game=8.3, turnovers= 111, blocks=53, FT%=.709
***Guyton – FG %=.450, pts/game=12.4, rebs/game 3.8, turnovers 50, FT%=.724, steals=31, assists=76
***Holt- FG %=.388, pts/game=9.9, rebs/game 2.5, turnovers=48, FT%=.784, steals=32, assists=70
***Porrini- FG %=.397, pts/game=10.1, rebs/game=4.7, turnovers=102, FT%=.649, steals=65, assists=160
***Manns – FG %=.589, pts/game=4.8, rebs/game=4.4, turnovers=20, FT%=.563, blocks=42
***Gaines – FG%=.427, pts/game=3.2, rebs/game=2.5, turnovers=22, FT%=.509, steals=31, assists=17
The proof is in the #s from last year to this year. Definitely miss Sherman’s leadership/performance which were very consistent. Double that with Guyton being tentative, Gaines having to miss quite a few games with injury, and Manns not progressing defensively like some would have hoped and you have a 19-8 team, who just lost 2 games they shouldn’t have.
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Dave, I appreciate your info/opinion on KSU athletics. People get way too emotional and need to take a step back and look @ reality.
Will you be blogging live from the BG game tonight?
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Hi Bulldog,
Thanks! … and yes, I just got the arena… Will be starting a new live blog in a few minutes.
Hey Dave, I have a few questions for you in terms of the current roster and the roster moving forward.
*Is Johnson still on scholarship eventhough he is academically ineligible? If not, is his scholarship going to be used on the big that they are hunting for, to be on campus in the summer?
*What are the latest on Pope & Brunswick in terms of what they have shown in practice & scrimmages? I know Brunswick is a project/walk-on, but you can never have enough big men. I am really hoping that Pope is as good as advertised….
*There should be some really tough competition @ PG next year, between Brewer & Kellon Thomas, as I hear Thomas is 1 hell of an athlete and physically, college ready.
*The questions down low are as follows, will Henniger rework his body and get stronger/quicker between now and next fall? Can Pat Jackson be more consistent and improve his foul shooting? Are Chris Ortiz and/or Khaliq Spicer college ready from when they step on campus or will they take a while to develop? (J Greene & Manns are graduating and Johnson is completely up in the air for next year)
*Can Eric Gaines stay healthy and continue to develop offensively?
*Can Evans & Holt keep improving and become consistent 15-20 pt/game scorers?
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Hi Bulldog,
Johnson remains on scholarship. I don’t know what happens with regard to adding another big in recruiting (I do think that will happen), but obviously if Johnson can’t get or stay eligible, it’s hard to keep him around. Injuries and now this have kept him from developing or fitting in for future plans. It’s hard to plan on a guy who is in limbo. He has to know that missing all of this time has put him further behind everyone else. Often players who realize that look into another school where they can play.
I know they really like Pope. He should be a starter next year. He’s a defensive and get-to-the-basket guy. The jumper is a bit suspect. But as a point guard he could create some real matchup problems for opponents. Brunswick is still a project, but I’ve heard a few coaches say he could work his way into the rotation … probably not next year, but further down the road. He is skilled, but like Henniger he has to get stronger to hold up at this level.
I still think the PG will be Pope. Although, titles don’t really matter with KSU in that with the current team you could see Porrini or Guyton initiating the offense. My guess is you’ll end up with a starting three-player backcourt of Holt on the wing with Brewer and Pope as a dual-point guard similar to Guyton and Porrini, with Thomas coming off the bench. Just a guess.
I would hope Henniger would work to get bigger and stronger. That’s the key for him, and as I’ve said before, it would be nice for KSU to be able to redshirt him even this season. He’s a guy who would benefit from being a five-year player.
Jackson has kind of a quirky shot with a couple of hitches. I think it is what it is with him at this point.
I like him, and I like his defense. But based on what he’s posted on twitter and some other things, it appears he hasn’t been happy with his role. Obviously he’d be counted on for more next year, but he’d still have to buy into the defensive stopper role. If he’s not ready to do that, maybe he’s the guy to move on considering he could graduate. That’s purely speculation.
My guess is both Ortiz and Spicer will have to contribute next year. Ortiz has a chance to be a Mike Scott type, but I wouldn’t expect that in year one. It’s rare for a true freshman to come in and be a big-time contributor here. Spicer can be a shot blocker. He’ll need to get stronger, too. Ideally, KSU still needs one more junior-college big.
Gaines has obviously worked hard. Staying healthy would be a guess on my part. He’s an active guy, so like an Anderson Varejao, he’s more likely to get hurt diving around and sacrificing his body the way he does. But based on the work he put in during his first off season, my guess is he’s a guy who is willing to put in the time.
Holt’s numbers should go up as a senior simply because he won’t have to defer as much to so many established players. For him to be at his best, though, guys like Brewer need to develop and guys like Darren Goodsen have to be as good as advertised to take some of the load off of him. Evans is a little different in that so much of his scoring comes off of either being active or set up by a teammate. He’s not a take-the-defeder-off-the-dribble scorer. I’d like to see him develop the his ability to go of the dribble. Being able to create his own scoring may be the next stage in his development.
Time for Johnson to do himself and the program a favor and look elsewhere. Even when in uniform he contributed very little. Maybe a step toward a program a step down like would be the right medicine his game and books need.
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Henniger=Grimsley
Two good kids that could’ve been great in the right place, just at the wrong place at the wrong time.
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Hi Jimbo,
I still like Henniger and I’d hate to see him follow Grimsley by going on to another school.
The problem with Heniger is his strength. Like we’ve all said, he needs a year off in the weight room. I think KSU missed the boat by not redshirting him in either his freshman or sophomore years. It doesn’t happen very often, but they still can redshirt him as a junior. I hope they do … but they probably won’t.
Ironically, if Henniger had Grimsley’s strength, you’d probably have a heck of a player. Strength wasn’t Grimsley’s issue.
That is the problem with the misconception of redshirt years, like a school just locks a kid in a weight room for a year to gain weight and pack on muscle with no other worries. He could have and should have been doing that same muscle building regardless if he dressed on game night or sat in street clothes. Redshirt kids do everything the other guys do, they just dont get to dress for games. He defintely should have been redshirt though for that 5th year rather than just floating through 2 somewhat unproductive seasons. With lack of inside play we could not afford that, and now with Green and Manns moving on and our big recruits being rail thin we still wont be ale to afford that next year with no inside play.
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