Ohio Basketball Topic
Topic: Game 20 Thread: Akron
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OhioCatFan
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Posted: 2/4/2015 11:29 AM
I'm feeling foolishly confident today. 'Cats win by 8.
Bogey5
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Posted: 2/4/2015 11:29 AM
OU_Country wrote:expand_more
well let's ratchet up the posts attackers ..

BANG !! .. oh baby what a big time thread !!

Cats win in overtime !!
Recent OT home games in this series have not been kind to the Cats.

I can't forsee this getting to OT, but I was wrong about Akron this year too. They've managed to get respectable production from Robotham and Evans at the PG spot that I though could be their undoing.

This is a different Akron team that we've seen in years past. They're really a true team, without the marquee players like Tree, Diggs, Zeke, etc. Instead, they run 10 guys out there that are obviously getting it done. And, this team will only lose Evans and Ibitayo to graduation this year.

Spot on, Akron has been about as blue collar as a BB team could possibly be. I suppose that can be both good and bad as they have no real "go to guy" in crunch time. On the other hand, they are about 10/11 deep with no drop off when they go to the bench. IMO, they have been an over achieving bunch so Dambrot has really earned his money this season.


Seems like fans on both sides are getting a little soft in ref to this rivalry. Give me the good old days when DJ and Abreu were jawing at each other all night. The two teams and their fans hated one another but also respected each others program. Those games were a lot of fun to watch and I hope the atmosphere at the Convo is rockin' tonight.


A win over the Zippers could be the tonic that the 'Cats need to begin to salvage the rest of the season and get something done in Cleveland.

I still get geeked when these two teams meet and suppose that I always will, no matter the stakes.
OUVan
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Posted: 2/4/2015 1:52 PM
100%Cat wrote:expand_more
Interior passing (when it has rarely occurred) has been sloppy also. Usually rocket pass to the knees or lower, w/o benefit of a catchable bounce. Or, receiver just not not ready or concentrating on the dish.
A lot of things I have seen this season drive me nuts, but near the top of that list is poor interior passing. You've got a big guy in the paint calling for the ball and it's thrown in below his knees. A lot of times at the ankles. Give the big fellas a chance to catch the ball.
Most of the time it's because our guards don't appear to mentally process a situation before they drive. Stevie drives into the lane and if he's confronted he looks like a QB expecting the pocket to collapse. To his credit he usually keeps his dribble but he appears to no longer know where his teammates are. D.J. was great at driving and then using their big as a trigger. If he doesn't come out it's floater time. If he does come out then it's bounce pass time. The only time Bean looks to dish on a drive is when he's already in the air and it's apparent that his shot would be blocked.

And can you blame the receiver for not expecting the pass and losing focus?
Pete Chouteau
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Posted: 2/4/2015 6:47 PM
Color me pessimistic.

The only question is whether Dambrot makes us eat $#*! with a spoon or rubs our faces in it.
tevis48
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Posted: 2/4/2015 7:27 PM
started off with 10 minutes of the worst 3 point defense I've seen from any team all year... Bean and Stevie playing well on offense though
oubobcatjohn
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Posted: 2/4/2015 9:20 PM
83-82 Bobcats win a thriller. This is a game the team can hang their hat on that they got one from Akron. Bobcats gutted out this one. Wasn't easy as nothing has been easy this year, but hanging a loss on Akron lets them know we may be down but we never out of it at Ohio. We starting to show a little fight these last couple home games.
Pataskala
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Posted: 2/4/2015 9:23 PM
Great effort and a fantastic second half comeback. But geez let's learn how to put a game away. The clock is your friend, guys. Shouldn't be trying a shot with more than 10 seconds on the shot clock. And with less than 10 seconds to go in the game you don't have to move the ball when you have the lead. Couldn't believe N'Dour tried to pass it back to Stevie on the inbound. Get the ball, cover it up and hold it.

Still, glad to see them playing with a sense of urgency. And when the Convo's rocking, it's the toughest place in the MAC for visitors, and one of the top three or four in the MAC footprint.

Beat EMU!!!
Eagle66
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Posted: 2/4/2015 9:26 PM
Wow... The ESPN box score shows Akron finishing 0-6 from the FT line.
shabamon
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Posted: 2/4/2015 9:27 PM
Good lord....

Akron had 11 guys play more than 10 minutes.
Pete Chouteau
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Posted: 2/4/2015 9:30 PM
How about that for free-throw disparity?

I will happily eat my words. Anybody got a spoon?
Tom Valentino
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Posted: 2/4/2015 9:46 PM
Some of those 3-pointers Akron was throwing in during the final few minutes were giving me flashbacks to some of Zippy's recent visits to the Convo. That team is like the monster in a horror movie that won't die when they come to Athens.

Fantastic win, though. Whatever happens the rest of the season, a win in this rivalry takes a lot of the sting out of an often frustrating year. Damn, it feels good to be a Bobcat.
MonroeClassmate
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Posted: 2/4/2015 10:24 PM
How many OHIO fouls in the second half? TV seemed to show 5. If so, why wasn't someone fouled before Kretzer hit the bomb from the corner or on the final play when the player put the ball on the floor? Would have made Zips take it out again with no time outs and about 3 seconds left?


Bean, way to come up BIG against the Zips!
RSBobcat
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Posted: 2/4/2015 11:15 PM
RSBobcat wrote:expand_more
I'm thinking break all my superstition rules.

No green underwear
Where a Browns sweatshirt
No Green Kool-Aid
Arrive after game start
Yell at refs "Good Call!"
So I wear this Browns sweatshirt now rest of the season?
cc-cat
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Posted: 2/4/2015 11:17 PM
MonroeClassmate wrote:expand_more
How many OHIO fouls in the second half? TV seemed to show 5. If so, why wasn't someone fouled before Kretzer hit the bomb from the corner or on the final play when the player put the ball on the floor? Would have made Zips take it out again with no time outs and about 3 seconds left?


Bean, way to come up BIG against the Zips!
Russ asked Saul about fouling nn the final play and he said they were going to foul if the play went horizontal, but as soon as he went to the hoop you can't foul without the risk if the a continuation.
Chicken George
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Posted: 2/4/2015 11:24 PM
For as sketchy as this team is, these past 2 home games have been classics. Couple diamonds in the rough for what otherwise has been a disappointing season. Went down halfway through the 2H to get a stat sheet and saw what I thought I was witnessing---Akron shooting 60% from 3 point range and 50% from inside the arch. Haven't checked final stats as of this post, but it appears we're going to live & die by the Bean. When he's on fire like he was tonight, we'll like him. When he's not--just the opposite. Hard to count on that night in/night out, but occassionally we'll have these kind of nights. Going into the MAC Tournament we'll have a punchers chance to beat anyone, but also be able to lay an egg against anyone. Still don't like our chances, but on shooting nights like tonight we'll at least have a pulse.
cc-cat
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Posted: 2/4/2015 11:42 PM
Akron came in shooting 34% on 26 3s per game. Ended up shooting 505 on 36 3s. Not sure why they changed their approach against an Ohio team that lacks inside depth. Worked for a while, but caught up to them a bit in the 2nd half. Also kept them off the line - which is where we won the game.
LuckySparrow
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Posted: 2/5/2015 1:39 AM
Holy, that was an incredible game. We live and die with Bean's scoring. Loved the fire from the fellas tonight, Stevie looked like the firecracker Stevie of old - but most importantly, he contributed in several ways.

Thought Akron got really careless with the ball tonight in the 2nd half and we did a great job getting turnovers. Ohio did an excellent job staying out of foul trouble, perhaps because Akron shot nearly 40 3-pt shots.

Besides the heart attack finish, that was some serious fun and a VERY impressive win from our guys. I would have killed to have been at the Convo tonight, my voice is just about gone and I watched on ESPN3 on demand a couple hours after the game was over (of course, I avoided running into a final score so I could watch it fresh).
LuckySparrow
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Posted: 2/5/2015 1:39 AM
bobcatsquared
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Posted: 2/5/2015 6:44 AM
Anyone know why this game was televised ton Time Warner Sports Channel? Not complaining - but wondering with the MAC in a new contract with ESPN. Would love to see more games on any TV.
Last Edited: 2/5/2015 6:45:01 AM by bobcatsquared
100%Cat
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Posted: 2/5/2015 8:14 AM
LuckySparrow wrote:expand_more
Holy, that was an incredible game. We live and die with Bean's scoring. Loved the fire from the fellas tonight, Stevie looked like the firecracker Stevie of old - but most importantly, he contributed in several ways.

Thought Akron got really careless with the ball tonight in the 2nd half and we did a great job getting turnovers. Ohio did an excellent job staying out of foul trouble, perhaps because Akron shot nearly 40 3-pt shots.

Besides the heart attack finish, that was some serious fun and a VERY impressive win from our guys. I would have killed to have been at the Convo tonight, my voice is just about gone and I watched on ESPN3 on demand a couple hours after the game was over (of course, I avoided running into a final score so I could watch it fresh).
It was a great atmosphere. Quiet in the latter part of the first half, but once we got close and pulled even, it got loud. I'm not sure what the attendance was exactly, it was good not great, but the place was jumping late in the game.
Tom Valentino
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Posted: 2/5/2015 9:23 AM
bobcatsquared wrote:expand_more
Anyone know why this game was televised ton Time Warner Sports Channel? Not complaining - but wondering with the MAC in a new contract with ESPN. Would love to see more games on any TV.
I believe the contract allows for conference games to be sublicensed to regional sports networks such as TWC SportsChannel. Still, it's strange for TWC to pull a random weeknight game in the middle of the season. I'd have thought they'd get a whole package of games, but apparently not.
The Optimist
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Posted: 2/5/2015 9:25 AM
That finish had me pulling my hair out.

It was very ugly. Credit to our guys for somehow pulling that out after nearly giving it away...
OU_Country
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Posted: 2/5/2015 10:07 AM
We need to see that "version" of Bean and ST every night. There were far fewer bad decisions going into the lane, and there was some real distribution and ball movement. Bean with 5 assists, and Stevie could have had a couple more than he did if layups get made. In fact, if OUr guys make simple layups that they worked hard to get in position for, that game is a 16-17pt game with 2 minutes to go.


For as good as I thought they were, that Akron team REALLY relies on shooting a ton of three's. Live by it, die by it.

The last two games they've shown some good things and improvement against two pretty good teams. Still, the defense on the perimeter can get better, and the missed layups can get better.
SBH
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Posted: 2/5/2015 10:54 AM
According to the Zips beat writer for the Akron Beacon Journal, some guy named Willis Alvarez really lit it up for the 'Cats last night.
Ted Thompson
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Posted: 2/5/2015 10:59 AM

Ohio's defense is so bad that Bean pretty much has to score 30 for Ohio to have a chance to win. Last night, they gave up 1.22 points/possession in a 67 possession game.

Conference-only Points/100 possessions defense
BG 93.3      
EMU 97.4      
Akron 100.0      
Kent St. 101.0      
Buffalo 102.3      
Toledo 102.6      
NIU 103.7      
CMU 105.1      
WMU 108.4      
Ball St. 108.5      
Ohio 110.2      
Miami 115.5      
Showing Messages: 26 - 50 of 57
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