1. Knowing what we know now about how good UConn actually was, how do you feel about the 1st round loss 6 months later?
Honestly, we all saw it coming after UConn's run in the Big East tournament. (Editor's note: not me. I talked myself into UConn being tired and overlooking us...) It was disheartening that it wasn't ever competitive. They played like an intimidated team. The final buzzer couldn't come soon enough. My hope is that they turn it into a positive stepping stone for this season. I have my doubts though. Nobody stepped up in the UConn game. I think Paulsen's strategy to book a really tough non-conference schedule this season is a good one. They need to play against major conference teams as much as possible this season so the tournament isn't such a shock.
One thing the 04-05 team never lacked was grit and determination. They reveled in the David vs. Goliath games. They were always up for a fight. The list of major conference wins or almost wins by that team is impressive (MSU, Pitt, Syracuse, Kansas, Arkansas...). The only game they didn't show up for was Duke (but really, we were never going to stop Reddick). Even in the losses to Wisconsin and Memphis they never stopped fighting. This year's Bison would do well to borrow some of that underdog workman-like determination.
2. The Bison remain a really young team, but the team did lose it's 3rd and 4th leading scorers. How do they replace Daryl Shazier's scoring and leadership?
There will be an immense amount of pressure on Cameron Ayers to step into the point guard position. Ryan Hill will share the duties with him in his Sophomore season. Interestingly, Shazier was a highly touted scoring point guard from Virginia. He was suffocated ia little n Paulsen's motion offense system. The point guard position in Paulsen's offense is a pass-first floor general role. It will be interesting to see how Ayers fits into that position.
3. Similarly, how do they replace GW Boon, who was the best 6th man in the league last year?
There's really no answer for GW's role at this point. Though, GW really never matured into the solid swingman we expected. This role is certainly a good opportunity for one of the incoming Freshman or young Sophomore's to fill and make an impact.
4. Does Mike Muscala repeat as league POY?
Yes, and I don't think it will be close. If he's willing to be a little more physical inside then he should be marching to the foul line all season. He was a little soft on the boards last year, but another year of maturity should help. He has such a great mid-range game that he's hard to stop in the motion offense.
5. What player steps up his game the most this year?
I think it's Cameron Ayers. Besides being the floor general, Darrel Shazier was our best on-the-ball defender. Cohen gets a lot of media attention as a great defensive stopper, but I always admired Shazier's pressure. Cohen can man-up anyone in the PL, but he's too slow when we step up a level to play mid or major conference teams. Shazier did a good job in this role. Ayers has more size, but less quickness, so he might struggle with the faster point guards in the league.
As a bonus, I'll give you Mike Muscala. But not for his play on the court. This team lost their emotional leader in Stephen Tyree. If this is Muscala's team, he will need to fill the leadership void left by Tyree.
6. Any impact freshman I should know about?
I don't get the sense any of the freshman will make an immediate impact - at least, not in the non-conference schedule. I think Ryan Hill is the guy to watch in his Sophomore season. He should be filling a lot of GW's minutes spelling Cohen and Ayers.
7. Finally, how many league games does the team win? How many overall games does the team win? Does the team get a high profile win against the likes of Minnesota, Vandy or Syracuse? And most importantly, are we dancing again in March?
I think they win 11 league games. Lehigh will have a nice squad this season, and Holy Cross will be back. For overall, I think they get to 20 wins. Their non-conference schedule is really brutal, but if they can come away with 6-8 wins in the early going, then I think they will reach 20 wins on the season (counting PL tourney).
Regarding Minnesota, Syracuse and Vandy, I'll say this - we will learn a lot very quickly about the trajectory for this team. Don't be surprised if they're bad losses. It really won't mean much because they started off terrible last season but still rallied in the PL. I can very easily see the same thing happening this year.
However, if they manage to steal one of those games then it should be a really fun season. I think we dance again this season and make another first round exit - but we put up a good fight this year.
No comments:
Post a Comment