Ohio at UB - 1/3/23

[Bluebird96]

1 minute ago, DocCas86 said:

Stats that truly mattered in my opinion

UB 52 Ohio 46 in rebounding

Ohio 14 UB 10 turnovers

UB 10 Ohio 2 Steals

Shows the team was playing hard tonight and taking care of the ball

Great game by Hardnett

That’s a ton of rebounds over the #1 rebounding team in the MAC. Also 15 assists for UB to only 5 for Ohio. Definitely some good signs 

[Bluebird96]

45 minutes ago, Ubbulls84 said:

Foster huge liability at the free throw line, has to be take out when you know they will be fouling. Game should have not ever came down like that.

Before tonight’s 2/6 performance Foster was a respectable if slightly below average 70% (35/50) at the line. Getting Powell (47/57, 82.5%) back should be a big help in that department. 

[MuchMany]

Fun game to enjoy in person (and not read the board). Crowd was light but not terrible, and we did our best courtside to bring some energy (we definitely got the attention of Ohio's bench). Overall the guys played hard and looked motivated and focused. We won the majority of 50/50s and gang rebounded well including the guards.

Agree that Foster's minutes need to start being reeled in. I'm afraid he just doesn't have the fine skills or attention to detail to be consistently successful at this level. Curtis needs to be shooting 8-10 threes every game, his stroke is starting to look deadly. Awesome effort from Quil, proud of his progression into a smart veteran asset. Isaiah can be a real weapon if he sticks to what he does well. Jack and Jo put in an honest night's work. Still want to see more of Kuluel - he has the look of a major piece on the wing.

[UBinMD]

10 minutes ago, MuchMany said:

Fun game to enjoy in person (and not read the board). Crowd was light but not terrible, and we did our best courtside to bring some energy (we definitely got the attention of Ohio's bench). Overall the guys played hard and looked motivated and focused. We won the majority of 50/50s and gang rebounded well including the guards.

Agree that Foster's minutes need to start being reeled in. I'm afraid he just doesn't have the fine skills or attention to detail to be consistently successful at this level. Curtis needs to be shooting 8-10 threes every game, his stroke is starting to look deadly. Awesome effort from Quil, proud of his progression into a smart veteran asset. Isaiah can be a real weapon if he sticks to what he does well. Jack and Jo put in an honest night's work. Still want to see more of Kuluel - he has the look of a major piece on the wing.

Good take, I also think Blocker can be a factor before this season is over.

[MuchMany]

Just now, UBinMD said:

Good take, I also think Blocker can be a factor before this season is over.

I like Blocker as long as he doesn't have too much ball handling responsibility, still looks indecisive to me in that regard. But his putback layup tonight got us out of our seats. I like him as a decent athletic stopper who crashes the boards, gets out and runs in transition, and hopefully gets more consistent as a spot up shooter when the D starts to lock in on Curtis and Adams. Zid will command significant minutes when he returns, unsure how the 1-3 spots will shake out.

[Ubbulls84]

51 minutes ago, Bluebird96 said:

Before tonight’s 2/6 performance Foster was a respectable if slightly below average 70% (35/50) at the line. Getting Powell (47/57, 82.5%) back should be a big help in that department. 

I get that but with the game on the line I want Curtis Jones or Powell like you said with ball in hands. I get they were short handed in backcourt today. Foster also played big minutes, but I think we can all say shooting is definitely not his strength on the court. 

[Chet]

Ohio is a good team and that's a good win to start MAC play. 

[Bluebird96]

47 minutes ago, MuchMany said:

Still want to see more of Kuluel - he has the look of a major piece on the wing.

In very limited minutes (38) over Mading’s 4 games played, he has 27 pts and 13 rebs, plus a perfect 6/6 FT. Granted, more than half of that production came against SUNY Canton but he certainly seems to have earned more than the 4 minutes he played vs Ohio.

[Bluebird96]

4 minutes ago, Ubbulls84 said:

I get that but with the game on the line I want Curtis Jones or Powell like you said with ball in hands. I get they were short handed in backcourt today. Foster also played big minutes, but I think we can all say shooting is definitely not his strength on the court. 

Totally agree, the ball needs to be in Jones’ hands in clutch situations. To this point I only trust Curtis and Adams shooting the 3. Oh yeah, and Hardnett too 😂

[Big 4 Hoops Blogger]

Congrats on the win! As you guys know, I'm always conflicted when UB and Ohio battle it out. I thought Buffalo did a great job defending the Bobcats tonight. Nothing came easy for them, especially down low in the first half.

Bulls athleticism was on display. AJ Clayton was consistently getting burned defensively. Buffalo was absolutely deadly with 20 offensive rebounds. If UB can play like they did tonight, they'll be a tough game most nights in the MAC.

The biggest concerns, some poor shot selection and shot making ability. It felt like UB was dominating this game and still let Ohio have a chance to tie it up at the end. Need to clean that up. Otherwise, not much to complain about. Should grab another win over NIU.

Edited January 4, 2023 by Big 4 Hoops Blogger

[enrique14150]

You have to like this game and this result.  Starting MAC play against Ohio was a tough one but they really stepped up tonight.  When they were focused and intense they were winning.  Make no mistake, this was a physical MAC conference game and after a slow start, UB came to play.  When they clamped down on defense they opened up some leads.  Like it often does, this one came down to the last half dozen possessions for each and UB did better with them.  Make more of their foul shots (which this group tends to be better than they were tonight) and they're winning this no problem.  I don't know if they can play like this every game - but I hope this answered some questions for some people.  They did a much better job tonight at boxing out, being tough on the boards, and this group fights like hell on defense (their steals stats).

Foster - he's confident going to the net. He got some real tough rebounds first half.  He hasn't been good from outside. And I think he was a bit rattled at the end at the line.  Don't overlook 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals.  
Jack - getting more time as his defense improves. He moves well off the ball, cutting through traffic to the net. Most teams don't let them do that, but Ohio let them get that space a few times early.
Hardnett - remember when we had this guy transferring in from Cincinnati, and we figured if he's coming from there he must be good?  It took a while.  But this is a sharper, stronger, more confident version of the Laquell we've seen the past couple years.  He battled hard on both ends tonight, finished underneath, and made one from three.  He's playing like a senior setting the example for the rest.
Curtis - he can hit shots from all directions and every way.  He's getting better at defense and rebounding (9 boards tonight).  The development of this guy, in just his sophomore year (after not getting a ton of minutes last year) is pretty impressive.
Adams - hit some big three's and only traveled once. 4 for 15 but three of those were big three's.
Caesar - energy off the bench but missed his shots
Mading - some good minutes off the bench first half and hit his free throws
Blocker - stepping up as some guys are hurt
Jo Smith - playing tougher out there.  He has to, to get minutes. Had a falling-away layup first half that seemed like he didn't need to fall for.

Ohio - they're tough, physical, they go really hard to the net if you're not paying attention.  Hit some open three's till the UB defense figured that out and didn't give them many of those looks anymore.  Both teams shot about the same, both teams played tough defense, they made you work for every bucket.

This team looks a lot better than they did in early November (as they should).  They're fun to watch, they play so hard on defense.  I hope more UB fans make the time to see this team.  This was a really good win tonight.  They're a work in progress but there is definite progress to be seen.

Crowd - I know it's a rainy Tuesday but come on, this was a good matchup and we should be a better fanbase than one that only shows up if they're already good.  We desperately need more bodies and more noise.  The athletic department has to figure out how to market to the commuter kids to get some life in that end zone.  This team is worth your time.

[promotherobot]

Just caught up with the game. They tried to give it away but nice win.

[DocCas86]

6 hours ago, enrique14150 said:

Foster - he's confident going to the net. He got some real tough rebounds first half.  He hasn't been good from outside. And I think he was a bit rattled at the end at the line.  Don't overlook 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals.  

Looked at the boxscore, another good stat for Foster was he had only 2 turnovers.  Agree he needs to shoot better, but the rest of his stat line is good. 

Here are the two charts I think are most critical for Foster (turnovers and assists)

Turnovers were an issue for Foster early on as he got used to D1.  Last night hopefully a sign of what we will see in the MAC.

Here are his assist stats - again he struggled early in the year  Hoping he continues to distribute like last night.

[bullsbball]

8 hours ago, enrique14150 said:

When they were focused and intense they were winning.  Make no mistake, this was a physical MAC conference game and after a slow start, UB came to play.  When they clamped down on defense they opened up some leads. 

They really need to find that "energy" when they come out of the locker room. First 3.5 minutes of the game UB 2- Ohio 9.  First 3 minutes of the second half UB 0 - Ohio 8.

They need to have that running game rather than slow "surgical" approach.

[enrique14150]

26 minutes ago, bullsbball said:

They really need to find that "energy" when they come out of the locker room. First 3.5 minutes of the game UB 2- Ohio 9.  First 3 minutes of the second half UB 0 - Ohio 8.

They need to have that running game rather than slow "surgical" approach.

I joked with a couple people around me, "was there a gas leak in the locker room?" Sometimes I shake my head because basketball is a game of runs.  How many times have these games come down to the last 3 minutes/6 possessions?  Last night did.  All game I kept thinking, this won't be easy and it'll be close at the end.  I'm not on the bench so I don't know this - but I wonder if, down the stretch, the coaches wanted them to protect the ball and don't give it back right away off a fast break turnover.  

And to someone else - the only thing that went cold at the end was their foul shooting.  Two big buckets in the last couple minutes gave them a 5-6 point cushion and left Ohio chasing it.  Do better at the free throw line and they win this going away.

But I'm trying to realize that this was a tough game and wasn't always going to look pretty.  There are a lot of guys on this team who are not the finished article yet - or the complete package - but so far they're finding a way to combine those things into something like a team.  Which coming into this season was a serious concern.

[UBinMD]

1 hour ago, enrique14150 said:

I joked with a couple people around me, "was there a gas leak in the locker room?" Sometimes I shake my head because basketball is a game of runs.  How many times have these games come down to the last 3 minutes/6 possessions?  Last night did.  All game I kept thinking, this won't be easy and it'll be close at the end.  I'm not on the bench so I don't know this - but I wonder if, down the stretch, the coaches wanted them to protect the ball and don't give it back right away off a fast break turnover.  

And to someone else - the only thing that went cold at the end was their foul shooting.  Two big buckets in the last couple minutes gave them a 5-6 point cushion and left Ohio chasing it.  Do better at the free throw line and they win this going away.

But I'm trying to realize that this was a tough game and wasn't always going to look pretty.  There are a lot of guys on this team who are not the finished article yet - or the complete package - but so far they're finding a way to combine those things into something like a team.  Which coming into this season was a serious concern.

Hardnett has also taken a huge step forward in his play, but more importantly his leadership. He seems to be the most vocal out there and gathers the guys when things start to slip. I hope to see that all season, his hustle last night was extraordinary and gave us the rebounding edge and also got us a couple of possessions back just by working harder.

[enrique14150]

UBinMD - absolutely.  Buffalo News pointed out that Hardnett made both buckets at the end, off assists from Foster. Harnett earned that blue hard had last night, double double.  I wonder whether he was told to, or if he figured out himself, that "you're the returning upperclassman, YOU have to be the one to set the tone and the level of intensity for others to follow."  Great stuff.

[clodney]

I just want to point out my admiration for Jack too. He has some quick hands for a guy his size. There was one play where a pass was thrown low and between 2 defenders and he scooped and dished in about a millisecond. He's one of the better interior players I've ever seen in a UB uniform and that's saying something. Skogman who?

[ChubbyHubby]

Enjoyed the game last night, and am very happy about the W.  We went out to 10 point leads on a few occasions and let Ohio back into it.  We need to improve on that.  

Wondering about the last ditch 3 point attempt by Ohio to tie things up.  My view was obstructed on that shot.  OU was complaining that the shooter was fouled, but didn't get the call.  Did anyone have a good view of that?

[DocCas86]

1 hour ago, UBinMD said:

Hardnett has also taken a huge step forward in his play, but more importantly his leadership. He seems to be the most vocal out there and gathers the guys when things start to slip. I hope to see that all season, his hustle last night was extraordinary and gave us the rebounding edge and also got us a couple of possessions back just by working harder.

I thought Hardnett was not 100% last year and that contributed to a fall off in his numbers.   You may recall his second year with the team (2020-21), in MAC play he played about 20 minutes a game, averaged 7.2 ppg and 4.5 rpg.    So the current progression is more in-line with that year.  He is often the hardest working on the court - definitely hope that continues.

MAC Conference Stats

[DocCas86]

38 minutes ago, ChubbyHubby said:

Enjoyed the game last night, and am very happy about the W.  We went out to 10 point leads on a few occasions and let Ohio back into it.  We need to improve on that.  

Wondering about the last ditch 3 point attempt by Ohio to tie things up.  My view was obstructed on that shot.  OU was complaining that the shooter was fouled, but didn't get the call.  Did anyone have a good view of that?

Looking at the replay on ESPN+ - looks like there may have been contact, but initiated by Clayton sticking his leg out.  Both refs were right there and had a good look.  Also FWIW, Boals picked up his player right away and did not complain about the no call.

Edited January 4, 2023 by DocCas86

[Tee4three]

16 minutes ago, DocCas86 said:

Looking at the replay on ESPN+ - looks like there was contact, but initiated by Clayton sticking his leg out.  Both refs were right there and had a good look.  Also FWIW, Boals picked up his player right away and did not complain about the no call.

Also I'm not sure the contact didn't happen untill after buzzer as well 

[UBinMD]

4 hours ago, enrique14150 said:

UBinMD - absolutely.  Buffalo News pointed out that Hardnett made both buckets at the end, off assists from Foster. Harnett earned that blue hard had last night, double double.  I wonder whether he was told to, or if he figured out himself, that "you're the returning upperclassman, YOU have to be the one to set the tone and the level of intensity for others to follow."  Great stuff.

His post game comments I really liked about the games again Ohio as "personal". He has been on the good side and bad side of many Ohio matchups. He was able to describe to the guys why this wasn't just another game. That's how legacy teams get built. The new guys need to know the history and it's great that he was able to project that.

[UBinMD]

3 hours ago, clodney said:

I just want to point out my admiration for Jack too. He has some quick hands for a guy his size. There was one play where a pass was thrown low and between 2 defenders and he scooped and dished in about a millisecond. He's one of the better interior players I've ever seen in a UB uniform and that's saying something. Skogman who?

In my opinion, trading Jack for Skogman is going to help us long term. Jack is a true inside presence that has much better touch around the basket that I expected. He has very quick hands and is active, even if he doesn't leave the paint much. The pick and roll has been effective for us and you can see Foster looks for him early on the penetrations, they seem to be developing chemistry. Based on the pregame commentary, I was concerned that the Ohio bigs were going to decimate us inside, but Jack and Jo Smith, along with Hardnett and several guards on help defense, contained that part of Ohio's game pretty well I thought. I'm very excited for his future.

[UBinMD]

3 hours ago, ChubbyHubby said:

Enjoyed the game last night, and am very happy about the W.  We went out to 10 point leads on a few occasions and let Ohio back into it.  We need to improve on that.  

Wondering about the last ditch 3 point attempt by Ohio to tie things up.  My view was obstructed on that shot.  OU was complaining that the shooter was fouled, but didn't get the call.  Did anyone have a good view of that?

From the camera angles I saw, the shooter looked very unbalanced without any assistance from the UB player. The final pileup was awkward, but I didn't see a foul that would have altered the shot. The impact came after the ball was away and most of the contact seemed to be due to the Ohio player's unbalanced fall creating contact.